A journey through the world of martial arts

Chapter 445 The Heart Sword is Stolen
"Treasure!"

Helian Ba ​​and the others looked at the gold and silver jewels that illuminated half a zhang of land and immediately showed their delight. However, at this moment, Helian Ba ​​glanced at the lifelike corpse and was shocked. Just as he was about to breathe a sigh of relief, he noticed a slight thud at the neck of the corpse. Helian Ba ​​immediately exclaimed in surprise.

"Go back!"

As he spoke, Helian Ba ​​grabbed Bai Yu'er and Lian Chixue and hurriedly retreated. The people who had already approached the stone cabinet stopped in their tracks upon hearing the sound and turned around to look. Suddenly, a scream came from behind them. Zheng Jing looked at the disciple closest to him, who was tearing his clothes and grabbing wildly with his hands. Soon, his upper body was covered in blood, and blood lines appeared on his face, quickly covering his entire face. He looked very frightening.

"not good!"

Zheng Jing reacted swiftly, a cold glint flashing in his hand as he swept his longsword, cleaving the disciple in two at the waist, instantly filling the air with blood.

"Get out of the way!" Zheng Jing shouted to the people around him as he made his move. The people quickly moved aside, looking at the man who had been cut in half at the waist with horrified expressions.

"This……"

Master Changmo watched as the disciple, who had been cut in half at the waist, continued to writhe on the ground, his upper body gripping the ground as he slowly crawled toward Zheng Jing, leaving a clear trail of blood in his wake.

Upon seeing this, Lu Wen's eyes lit up. Logically speaking, after being cut in half at the waist, the person should have died without a doubt. Especially since Zheng Jing hadn't held back, there was no way he could have survived after that sword strike. The fact that his disciple could still do this must have a reason. If he could find the reason, his puppetry skills might be able to reach a higher level.

Thinking of this, Lu Wen took a few steps forward and stood next to Zheng Jing, his eyes fixed on the crawling corpse. Just as Zheng Jing was about to strike again, Lu Wen stopped him.

"Brother Lu, this thing is very strange. It's best to deal with it. Otherwise, if we continue on this journey, we might lose our lives to something inexplicably before we can even collect the treasure."

Zheng Jing knew that Lu Wen had relapsed into his old ways, so he wasn't angry. He directly explained the pros and cons to him. Upon hearing this, Lu Wen glanced at the writhing corpse and said in a deep voice, "Let me see what this thing is first. If we don't find out the truth, we might not have to resort to such extreme measures if we encounter such a thing again."

As he spoke, Lu Wen walked past Zheng Jing, whose face was grim, and headed towards the corpse. When he was less than half a foot away, Lu Wen's eyes narrowed as he watched the gradually moving corpse. At that moment, Lu Wen suddenly grabbed a red centipede with lightning speed. After being caught, the centipede kept wriggling its body and even tried to bite Lu Wen's fingers with its venomous fangs. However, Lu Wen had been dealing with corpses for many years, and his Corpse Dissolving Technique was so refined that his skin was dry and hard, and the centipede was unable to harm him for the time being.

Taking advantage of this moment, Lu Wen took out a glass bottle from his pocket, poured out all the pills inside, stuffed the centipede into it, put the stopper on, and held it up to his eyes to observe the centipede in the bottle. Upon closer inspection, the centipede was as red as blood, with a hundred legs that were black and shiny, and a pair of small eyes that were even more emerald green. It was clear at a glance that it was no benevolent creature.

"Brother Lu, can you tell what this is?"

Zheng Jing glanced at the centipede and was also startled. This was the first time he had ever seen a centipede of this color. The fact that it could cause such great damage in just a few breaths meant that its venom was extraordinary.

"I don't know, but I guess it should be some kind of Gu worm. I don't know exactly what it does. I'll have to study it carefully when I get back. This thing is really interesting."

Lu Wen carefully put away the glass bottle as if it were a precious treasure, and explained it to Zheng Jing. Zheng Jing didn't ask any more questions after hearing this. Just then, Helian Ba's voice came, and the two of them immediately ran towards that place. Soon after, the two of them, along with a group of subordinates, arrived at the stone cabinet that Gu Xu had dismantled earlier.

"If I'm not mistaken, each of these stone cabinets contains a corpse and some treasures. However, the corpses here have been reduced to ashes. It must have been the people from Sword Forging City who did this. Brother Zheng, what exactly happened just now?"

"It was just a Gu worm causing trouble, and Brother Lu has already dealt with it. The only loss was one disciple. Everyone must be careful later, as there are traps everywhere here. A slight mistake could lead to the destruction of both body and soul."

After Zheng Jing explained to Helian Ba, the latter looked at Changmo Shangren and Lu Wen, both of whom nodded. Helian Ba ​​felt relieved upon seeing this. No matter what they had discovered, as long as everyone was of one mind, he would eventually get a share of the treasure here.

"Both Guan Yutian and the Sword Master have abandoned this place and must have gone to the upper levels. We've wasted too much time. We need to catch up quickly, or we might not even get a sip of soup in the end."

After Helian Ba ​​finished speaking, the three of them nodded in unison. This was only the first level, and the treasures were just ordinary. The best things should naturally be placed on the upper level. Thinking of this, their hearts were immediately filled with excitement. After exchanging a few pleasantries, the group walked quickly forward.

Helian Ba ​​and his group were also quite fast, and soon they arrived at the altar. Looking at the altar, which was about ten feet high, Changmo Shangren's eyes flickered. He stepped over the crowd and came to the front, reaching out to touch the altar. It was warm to the touch and had a slight warmth to it. He gently tapped it, and a dull sound immediately echoed in everyone's ears. Then he walked around the altar once.

At this moment, Zheng Jing and Lu Wen walked around the altar and, after careful observation, found that there were no steps leading to the altar.

"There's clearly a spiral staircase extending into the air above this altar. Are we supposed to use our lightness skills to get up there and then use the spiral staircase to enter the second level?"

That being said, Zheng Jing and Lu Wen both knew that there was something strange about this. The symbols carved on the altar were all Taoist symbols, which perhaps Master Changmo could decipher.

"Master, have you discovered anything?"

After watching Master Changmo stop, Helian Ba ​​stepped forward and asked softly.

“This altar is just a decoy, Brother Helian. Look, there is a spiral staircase on each side of the altar, which seems to lead to the next level. But if you actually go up there, you will probably lose your life in an instant, without even knowing how you died.”

Master Changmo stroked his beard and smiled. Upon seeing this, Helian Ba's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and he exclaimed with delight, "Master, have you already found a way out?"

Zheng Jing and Lu Wen happened to be passing by. Upon hearing this, they exchanged a glance and quickly came over.

"That's right, everyone. Look around this altar. The four sacred beasts, Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise, are carved on all four sides. In fact, apart from indicating directions, they are not very useful. The key is the Five Elements Plate above the Azure Dragon position."

Following the direction of the long-pointed finger of the Venerable Changmo, one could see a five-colored plate affixed to the blue dragon carving, with the five seal characters for metal, wood, water, fire, and earth engraved around it. However, the corresponding colors caused Helian Ba's pupils to shrink slightly, and he gasped.

"Master, what is this?"

The five-colored plate corresponds to the directions of white wood, black fire, red metal, yellow water, and green earth, which are completely opposite to the usual correspondence of the five elements.

"The owner of this chess city wanted to show off his literary talent, but in the end he only learned a superficial understanding. Yin and Yang and the Five Elements are profound and complex, but he only learned the simplest one, and he has put it here in a blatant manner. It is simply laughable. Let's see how I break his trap."

Master Changmo chuckled, waved to the crowd, and stepped forward alone. He pressed his palm against the eastern wood element and turned it eastward. The Five Elements Plate suddenly dispersed, leaving a blank space in the center. Master Changmo slowly moved the wood element stones, explaining as he did so: "Of the five elements, wood ranks third, which can be considered the central axis. As long as it is arranged properly, this reversed Five Elements can be broken." As he spoke, Master Changmo had already placed the wood element stones steadily in the blue position. Then, he skillfully placed the other stones in their correct positions. After they were all in place, the crowd saw the five-colored plate light up slightly. The eyes of the carved blue dragon shot out a beam of clear light, which shot towards the top of the hall. The light reflected from the top of the hall fell directly onto the altar. Under everyone's gaze, the altar suddenly sank and then rose upward.

With a click, the Azure Dragon carving opened a doorway, revealing complete darkness inside. Master Changmo nodded to Helian Ba, who then called out, picked up a light source, and quickly went inside. Once the last person had entered, the doorway swiftly closed, and the altar returned to its original state.

At this moment, on the second floor of the Chess City, in a spacious area, the Sword Master glared angrily at the composed Guan Yutian opposite him, the Crimson Blood Sword in his hand still shining brightly.

"I had long anticipated that with the Taoist priest present, nothing unexpected would happen to you all. However, this has come sooner than I expected."

Gu Xu looked at Guan Yutian and said, "If it weren't for Alliance Leader Guan leading the way, it would have been quite difficult to find you in this maze-like second floor."

Upon hearing this, Guan Yutian's expression changed slightly. He looked at Gu Xu and said, "So that's how it is. Daoist Master, you have quite the skill. I'd like to know what method you used to get here without my knowledge."

Upon hearing this, Gu Xu reached out and grabbed at Guan Yutian. The latter's eyes sharpened, and his aura surged for a moment. Suddenly, he saw that Gu Xu had a clump of cotton-like stuff in his hand. If it weren't for the light illuminating the place, he might not have noticed it.

"This item is a Thousand-Mile Guide. Wherever this item passes, it will leave a trace. When Alliance Leader Guan took the initiative to open the palace gate, I made this preparation. If Alliance Leader Guan had kept his promise, I would not have needed to use this trick. In the end, it was Alliance Leader Guan who broke his promise first."

"Heh, no wonder. But even if you get here, it's unlikely you'll escape unscathed. There's an abundance of gold and silver here; it'll be perfect for you to be buried with them. Make your move!"

Guan Yutian gave a cold shout, and twelve black-clad swordsmen suddenly appeared from all directions. The people from the Sword Casting City were all on high alert, each holding a weapon. At his command, twelve sword lights shot out, and everyone stepped forward to block them.

With a flick of her delicate hand, Master Sixin produced a melody that shattered the incoming sword lights. However, as the sword lights dissipated, another sword light appeared from behind. Master Sixin frowned, played another note, and after shattering nine sword lights in succession, she suddenly felt something was amiss.

"Illusion!"

With her hands firmly on the strings, the nun slowly played a tune that shattered illusions. Instantly, the incoming sword light burst like bubbles, leaving only a single, real sword light shooting straight ahead.

With a flick of her wrist, Abbess Sixin unleashed a zither melody that shattered the sword light. The melody continued its relentless advance towards a shadowy spot. A muffled groan was heard, and a black-clad swordsman emerged from the shadow, his right arm already wounded by the zither music.

At the same time, Sword Master, Huangfu Changhen and Yan Cangfeng also encountered the illusion. However, they quickly recovered. Yan Cangfeng, in particular, had been here before and with the presence of the Frost Sword, the illusion had very little effect on him. As a result, his outstanding performance was quickly noticed by Guan Yutian.

"The Frost-Piercing Sword".

Guan Yutian gave an order to Liao Rushen and Jian Yin, and the two immediately rushed towards Gu Xu, intending to hold him off for a moment. Guan Yutian's figure moved in an instant, and a powerful dragon palm silently attacked Yan Cangfeng. The latter immediately sensed the killing intent and hurriedly dodged to the side. With a loud bang, the stone platform holding the gold and jade treasures exploded, and the flying fragments went straight towards Yan Cangfeng.

Yan Zangfeng's expression changed drastically. Seeing the incoming palm force, he hurriedly swung his sword to slash, the sword light flashing and breaking through the palm energy. But at this moment, a crimson light suddenly appeared in the sky, and with a clang, it struck the Heart Sword precisely. A violent and domineering aura instantly rushed through the sword and into Yan Zangfeng's body. Yan Zangfeng felt a tightness in his chest, and he almost couldn't get his true energy up. Just then, the crimson sword light spun around again, and the Heart Sword actually flew out of his hand and shot into the air with a whoosh.

"Ren Qianxing, Frost-Piercing Sword!"

Seeing Ren Qianxing arrive gracefully, Yan Zangfeng was shocked and hurriedly flew up. However, Guan Yutian's Mighty Dragon Palm came crashing down. Yan Zangfeng was prepared to risk taking a blow to snatch back the Ling Shuang Sword, but at this moment he heard the transmission of Master Gu Xu's voice.

"Cang Feng, don't worry about the Frost Sword. The city lord and I have our own plans for this matter. Protecting yourselves is the best priority."

Upon hearing this, Yan Zangfeng's eyes flickered slightly, knowing that this was a scheme by the Taoist priest and the city lord. In order not to arouse their suspicion, Yan Zangfeng still endured a blow from the Mighty Dragon Palm and was sent flying. The Heart Sword was also taken away by Ren Qianxing.

Seeing that Ren Qianxing had successfully seized the Heart Sword, Guan Yutian was overjoyed. He gave an order, and everyone began to retreat in an orderly manner. However, apart from Ru Shen, Jian Yin, Mu Rongyi, and the other seven, the remaining eight black-clad swordsmen were all killed.

"Taoist priest, city lord."

With his hands empty, Yan Zangfeng walked up to Gu Xu and Jian Zun, looking at them with a guilty expression. Huangfu Changhen and Master Sixin exchanged a glance, unsure of what to say.

"Taoist priest?"

Sword Master shook his head at Huangfu Changhen, who was speaking. Huangfu Changhen looked at Gu Xu with his eyes closed, and then, with a signal from Sword Master, his eyes lit up. He instantly understood the reason and then explained it to the puzzled Abbess Sixin.

"found it."

Gu Xu opened his eyes and nodded to the Sword Master. The latter's expression immediately became solemn. The second floor already contained countless rare treasures. What would the third floor look like? If all these things fell into Guan Yutian's hands, the world would probably be in turmoil.

"Fifty steps ahead, a caisson ceiling."

After Gu Xu finished speaking, Sword Master took the lead and chased after him. Huangfu Changhen and the other two followed closely behind. Gu Xu lagged behind. After a moment's thought, he swept his energy to leave a clue for Helian Ba ​​and the others before heading in that direction. In no time, the entire second floor became silent until Helian Ba ​​and the others arrived a moment later.

"This is……"

Helian Ba ​​looked at the corpses lying on the ground, his expression changed slightly, but at the same time he was also delighted. Judging from the number of black-clad swordsmen, Guan Yutian didn't have many people left to use.

"Brother Helian, look here."

Master Changmo called out, and Helian Ba ​​quickly came over. Following the direction Master Changmo pointed, he saw a strange object made of gold and silver jewelry, which was round on the inside and square on the outside. There were strings of beads in the middle and various gemstones adorning it. It was very dazzling, but it also had an indescribable strangeness.

(End of this chapter)