"To witness my ultimate skill, you too shall meet a fitting end!"
The words, now etched into his memory, pierced him again. Yu Ci felt his dragon scales, which should have been as impregnable as a fortress, become as fragile as a bubble, bursting at the slightest touch.
"Ah, ahhhhhh..."
Yu Ci let out a guttural roar. Return Village was deserted, and no one would care. He didn't hold back, hoping the scream would release the intense pain—but to little avail.
Amidst the azure sky and drifting clouds, the thousand-zhang Heavenly Dragon soared and dived, stirring the void for miles around. Each sway of its body brought lightning and thunder, but even such a fearsome aura couldn't stop the "needle" that relentlessly targeted the most vulnerable part of its being. Wherever the God Slaying Sting passed, the very foundations of Primordial Qi crumbled. In the end, it wasn't the lethality of the God Slaying Sting that killed him, but rather he was killing himself.
The damage to the Heavenly Dragon's body wasn't real, yet the sensation was unmistakably precise. All the harm was reflected onto Yu Ci's spiritual plane. Under the violent assault, his Divine Soul began to waver, teetering on the brink of collapse.
In the past, it was at this very moment that Yu Ci could no longer endure, leading to the spontaneous termination of the Illusion technique. Nearly twenty similar experiences over two days differed only in duration.
However, he was not one to accept defeat, nor was he a fool unable to learn from his failures. After nearly twenty attempts and multiple fainting spells from pushing his limits, he had gleaned some insights.
His dragon eyes, as large as city gates, shimmered with a ruddy golden light. Through these vast pupils, the Cultivator before him seemed no more than a speck of dust, as if a mere breath could blow her to the horizon. Yet, in reality, the situation was entirely reversed.
Perhaps due to the Illusion technique, Yu Ci couldn't quite discern the features of the senior Sword Immortal before him. He only knew she was clad in black, her skin pale, her waterfall-like black hair cascading over her shoulders, emanating a fiery luminescence. When the high-altitude Gang wind blew, the luminescence seemed to spread, as if a halo of light enshrouded her, dreamlike and illusory.
It was always the same person, the same sentence, the same casual strike, and the result was his clean and neat annihilation—twenty times over!
Even knowing it was an Illusion technique, a fabrication, the reality of the sensations and memories was sufficient...
"Have you had enough... Ah!"
His voice suddenly rose, and as it vibrated through the throat of the Heavenly Dragon, it became a dragon's roar that shook the heavens. The thousand-zhang long body cut through the clouds and fog. Regardless of the countless wounds within its shell, it burned the last of its blood, lunging forward, opening its massive jaws to devour the detestable female cultivator in one bite.
The void trembled, and the Heavenly Dragon's inherent ferocity roared within its shell. Although its foundations were shattered and its Primordial Qi chaotic, relying on increasingly acute and familiar senses, Yu Ci still managed to gather the last of his energy, entwining it with the God Slaying Sting. Thousands of wounds burst open simultaneously, the blood mist igniting like flames, staining the entire sky red.
There was no collapse—this was the result of twenty bitter defeats.
Forward, ever forward! In that moment, the Heavenly Dragon's thousand-zhang long body suddenly became ethereal!
The dragon's blood vanished, and with it the weight of its massive body disappeared without a trace. Everything was abnormal, yet everything was restored. Charging forward now was not the arrogant Heavenly Dragon, but Yu Ci, garbed in a Daoist robe and crown, an ordinary Cultivator.
With a clang, the Sword Light dazzled, and the keen wail of the golden blade cleaving the air still carried the majestic grandeur of a dragon's roar over a great marsh.
At this moment, Yu Ci finally penetrated the trick.
His Divine Soul merged with the Heavenly Dragon, and now he had risen above it. The magnificent Dragon Might could no longer confine his spirit. Now, it was not the Heavenly Dragon that carried him, but he who had refined the Heavenly Dragon, finally unimpeded by form, transcending in spirit.
The heart and the sword strike as one—cut!
The Sword Energy was about to penetrate Hao Dian's forehead when, with a bang, his body shattered into the tiniest of dust particles, scattering between heaven and earth.
Darkness fell before his eyes, and Yu Ci, seated cross-legged on the ground, swayed slightly, nearly fainting again. He had transcended the Heavenly Dragon, but he could not escape the God Slaying Sting. Though the damage was merely an evolution of the Illusion technique, the impact on the Divine Soul was still there. However, at this moment, a misty aura seeped into his body, piercing through to the Brain Palace. His Divine Soul, bathed in this nourishment, felt as though it had soaked in a hot spring. The warmth permeated, birthing a bright light, and smaller injuries immediately healed as before, while more severe wounds also rapidly recovered.
The harrowing experiences that had preceded, even under the sway of the Illusion technique, had nearly shaken his very foundation with their relentless, unsuccessful onslaughts, each imbued with the residual intent of the God Slaying Sting. It was only thanks to the treasure that is the True Purple Smoke Warm Jade, with its nourishing properties for the Yin Spirit and its restorative powers for wounds, that he was afforded the opportunity to make adjustments amidst his reckless attempts.
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"Exquisite!"
Yu Ci clasped his hands together, pressing them lightly against his knees, his entire body radiating an eagerness to leap into action. The arduous efforts of the past two days had finally culminated in a breakthrough, and he could hardly wait for the challenges that lay ahead!
Alas, even with the miraculous capabilities of the True Purple Smoke Warm Jade, the process of replenishing the Yin Spirit could not be hurried. Yu Ci took several deep breaths to steady his Heart-Mind. Truth be told, he was restless, barely able to sit still, yet there was little to explore within Return Village.
He had considered the possibility that, just as Hao Dian had left behind the Dragon Slaying Transforming Radiance Veil, other Sword immortals might have left treasures within Return Village. However, after surveying the area, he realized that while treasures might indeed exist, gaining entry to the various ancestral homes was not so simple. The myriad of sealing mechanisms, even with but a glimpse of their edge, were enough to deter him. As for Hao Dian's abode, it was clear that a fortuitous opportunity awaited—without the two Transforming Radiance Veils or the Primordial Formless Sword, he doubted he would have received the "honor" of dying here twenty times over.
With that thought, he extracted the crimson fine gauze veil that had plunged him into this predicament, along with the other two... halves.
In practice, he had merged with the Heavenly Dragon, frustrating Qu Thunderbolt-Free's painstaking efforts. Yet, in pushing his limits, he had also devoted time to research and contemplation. The Hundred Spirits Transforming Radiance Veil, the Ten Yin Transforming Radiance Veil, the Dragon Slaying Transforming Radiance Veil, and that half-finished embroidery were precisely the subjects of his intense study.
After two days of meticulous research and insights gained during his merging with the Heavenly Dragon, Yu Ci had discerned that these three and a half Transforming Radiance Veils, though all methods to condense the God Slaying Sting, varied in their levels of sophistication.
For instance, the Hundred Spirits Transforming Radiance Veil required the gathering of the resentful energies of a hundred living beings, channeled through the Transforming Radiance Veil to form the rudiments of the God Slaying Sting. The wielder merely acted as a conduit, almost entirely dependent on external forces—a peripheral path among the side doors. In contrast, the Ten Yin Transforming Radiance Veil cultivated and borrowed the Heart Demon's Evil Energy from within oneself. Although its activation too relied on the Transforming Radiance Veil, it was a step further along the path.
Then there was the Dragon Slaying Transforming Radiance Veil. Observing its method, once mastered, it could transcend dependence on external objects. The practitioner would channel and activate it independently, a marvel of technique, and an application of supreme ingenuity. Yu Ci's merging with the Heavenly Dragon, which resulted in being slain twenty times, made him feel that such a Sha aura was scarcely different from the "orthodox" God Slaying Sting of legend. Regrettably, this method was exceedingly complex, and within the short span of two days, Yu Ci simply lacked the ability to comprehend it fully.
As for the final half of the unfinished embroidery, Yu Ci was utterly confounded. In the end, he simply ceased to tax his brain, letting what would be, be.
Pondering over three distinct methods, time seemed to hasten its pace. Unbeknownst to him, a brilliant light burst forth within his Divine Soul, crystal clear and flawless, restoring it to its prime condition. Yu Ci, unwilling to waste even a moment, stowed away the Transforming Radiance Veil and adeptly extended his Yin Spirit, connecting with the profound power amidst the clouds.
The dragon's roar resounded once more as the thousand-zhang Heavenly Dragon thrashed its long body, piercing through the layers of clouds, displaying its awe-inspiring might. Such mastery over clouds and command of wind and thunder, suffused with Sha aura, was truly intoxicating. Yet Yu Ci allowed himself only a brief distraction before focusing his mind with absolute concentration, his intense focus swiftly elevating his spiritual plane. Within the Inner Void of the Heart, the Fish-Dragon's Divine Power External Appearance let out a silent chant, as though something had seeped within.
"To witness my ultimate skill, you too shall meet a fitting end!"
It was that same simple phrase, but the lifelike Illusionary Appearance left behind failed to notice the transformation in its adversary. It continued its delicate gesture, the God Slaying Sting invisible and formless, striking forth in an instant.
The Heavenly Dragon's long body suddenly became ethereal, and Yu Ci's figure took its place, followed by an eruption of Sword Energy.
At this moment, it was truly Yu Ci himself, confronting the Sword Immortal Hao Dian's God Slaying Sting. Yet this did not mean the Heavenly Dragon had completely vanished. As the sword blade cleaved through the air, Yu Ci's divine intent naturally coalesced upon it, imbued with the Half-Mountain Mirage Sword Intent, his will as steadfast as a boulder, and also encompassing an unprecedented awe-inspiring might from his past sword intents.
The Sword Light glittered, epitomizing the dragon's roar across the great marshes, its leap to the Nine Heavens.
A sharp pain at his brow, the God Slaying Sting clashed with the Sword Light, piercing through. In that instant, Yu Ci's entire body numbed, but this was precisely his intention. The God Slaying Sting was undeniably unstoppable; rather than struggle in vain, he sought mutual destruction!
Upon entering his body, the God Slaying Sting fragmented into thousands of energy splinters, ravaging the Brain Palace. Yet, amid this inhuman torment, Yu Ci twisted together a steel-like thread of thought, maneuvering the sword in his hand near-perfectly, cleaving down in one strike.
The Illusion of Hao Dian twisted in an instant and then vanished.
Far from elation, Yu Ci was profoundly shocked. For in that moment, the damage from the God Slaying Sting also disappeared without a trace!
He abruptly opened his eyes and, disregarding the recent injury to his Divine Soul, leapt to his feet. He sensed it—the exquisite Illusion technique was rapidly losing its sustaining power above the cloud-pathway before Hao Dian's Former Residence, like a rootless tree devoid of Divine Power.
"Is this... a cut-off supply?"
Yu Ci was no stranger to this sensation. Two days prior, when he shattered the Altar and disrupted the Spiritual Veins of the earth's energy, the scene had been vividly clear, and its impact still continued to this day, growing more intense.
There must have been a change outside! Yu Ci could surmise this even with his knees. Without further delay, he gathered himself and dashed off, sprinting in a few strides to the cloud-pathway of the "tree trunk," casting a glance downward. The entrance archway still showed no sign, but he didn't dwell on it, turning instead to run towards the "tree canopy."
Could this be an opportunity to break free from the "trap"?
Approaching the "tree canopy," the clouds still swirled as before, but at its core, the spot suspected to be the "Sword Scripture," an aura of solitary purity to the extreme could no longer be concealed.