Sword Sect Outer Sect

Chapter 213 Crows Cry on the Sword, Moon Sets in the Clouds

Having said that, Song Yan pointed his sword and bent it. The Crying Moon sword swirled in the air, and a ray of moonlight drifted out from the moon and condensed on the blade of the Crying Moon sword.

"full moon."

The moonlight shone down, completely wiping out the attacks of the three opponents.

The condensed crescent moon sword light suddenly slashed through the person in front. Under the moonlight, the protective spiritual energy was no match for it and was instantly crushed on the spot.

The gourd-shaped magical artifact it controlled also dimmed, seemingly becoming somewhat unstable.

At this moment, the others also joined the battle.

Thirty-six white sword lights, trailing afterimages, swirled and circled in the air.

It kept attacking the crowd, and even if it didn't work, it would leave sword marks on their protective spiritual energy.

All the people in front of them were at the late stage of Qi Refining, and there were even cultivators at the peak of Qi Refining among them.

In order to eliminate these people as quickly as possible, Song Yan naturally had to ensure that the operation was at full capacity.

If one of the cultivators has a tricky trump card, then one can easily find oneself in the awkward situation of having exhausted one's sword energy.

Fortunately, there was still that corpse puppet, which could help share some of the pressure.

This corpse puppet is quite powerful; it can completely suppress two opponents at once.

What surprised Song Yan was that although this corpse puppet was made by a cultivator who had reached the peak of Qi Refining, it seemed to rely entirely on its physical strength to fight against two cultivators who were at the late stage of Qi Refining.

Song Yanyu, wielding countless sword shadows, continuously compressed the space in which the four people, including Jiang Chen, could move.

Jiang Chen was unwilling to sit and wait for his death. He reached out and grabbed three first-grade high-quality talismans, "Ice Storm," and then flung them out at once.

The three talismans quickly transformed into three enormous frost whirlwinds, layer upon layer, spreading outwards and sweeping across the land.

The countless sword shadows were slightly deflected outwards by these three overlapping spells.

Song Yan remained unhurried, changing the sword technique in his hand.

Thirty-six sword lights rapidly regrouped in the air, weaving through the gaps in the ice storm with the agility of swimming fish, completely unaffected by the cold.

After several exchanges, Song Yan realized that Jiang Chen, who had the highest cultivation level, was actually not worth mentioning.

It's likely that they're just using that wicked and unorthodox practice of sexual cultivation to accelerate their progress, coupled with some life-saving techniques.

Such cultivators display extremely weak combat power and are not worth fearing at all.

After the sect's sword-testing competition, Song Yan truly felt just how vast the gap in strength was between cultivators of the same realm but different levels.

If this Jiang-surnamed cultivator were to face Li Yi alone, he would probably beg for mercy after one strike and be killed after two.

On the contrary, the two people at the eighth and ninth levels of Qi Refining could be felt to have some strength when they fought.

One of the red-robed cultivators wielded two curved blades, their movements swirling and twirling with astonishing power.

Both scimitars were actually top-grade magic weapons. It was unclear whether they were obtained through a fortuitous encounter or whether the person had made significant achievements in weapon crafting.

The curved blade flashed, annihilating several sword shadows.

The red-robed cultivator was also complaining bitterly at this moment.

He was overjoyed to hear that Jiang Chen had gathered several late-stage Qi Refining cultivators and invited a group of rogue cultivators from somewhere to ambush Sheng Nian.

The two curved blades in his hands were already of the high-grade magic weapon level. If he could fuse the spiritual material of the metal and earth elements, 'Sinking Sand Mysterious Gold', into them, they would very likely reach the level of a top-grade magic weapon.

He had painstakingly plotted and even killed his own brother, finally having the chance to obtain it, only to have it fall into the hands of this young man in his prime, leaving him with a belly full of resentment.

However, no one expected that this seemingly ordinary rogue cultivator would be so powerful.

Ten late-stage Qi Refining cultivators chased after them together, but not only did they not die, they also lost three of their own.

He even had a sword cultivator friend who was equally unfathomable.

Looking at Jiang Chen, who only knew how to talk, the red-robed cultivator couldn't help but curse him as a rabble.

Song Yan has just broken through to the ninth level of Qi Refining, which means his strength has increased significantly.

However, he had no intention of using these people as practice subjects.

The sword energy in his sleeves surged wildly, meandering and moving, aiming straight for Jiang Chen's face.

Upon seeing this, Jiang Chen's expression changed drastically.

He hurriedly activated his jade seal artifact, creating a cyan light barrier in front of him. The other three also summoned their protective artifacts, which shimmered with spiritual light.

boom!
The sword energy collided violently with the jade seal, producing a deafening explosion. Jiang Chen was forced back several steps, a trickle of blood spilling from the corner of his mouth.

He was horrified; the sword energy seemed weak, but its power far exceeded his expectations.

Seeing this, the other three immediately stepped in to help.

Although everyone was secretly cursing this person for being useless, anyone with discerning eyes could see that Song Yan's strength was extraordinary.

If Jiang Chen, the only one at the peak of Qi Refining, is seriously injured, the three of them will only suffer the same fate of mutual destruction.

One of them conjured a small, blue-glowing shield and placed it in front of Jiang Chen.

Another gray-robed Taoist priest made hand seals and chanted incantations, and crimson fire armor slowly appeared around his body. This scene was somewhat similar to the fire-based defensive Taoist technique that Shan Zifeng had used before.

The red-robed Taoist was in charge of the counterattack. He attacked Song Yan from the side, his two curved blades, each with a sharp edge, arcing through the air as they attacked simultaneously.

Song Yan remained calm and composed. With a flick of his right hand, his sword-like fingers drew an arc, slicing through the two curved blades that attacked from the side.

He then thrust his sword at the red-robed Taoist.

It is unremarkable and has no special spiritual power.

However, in the eyes of the red-robed cultivator, this sword strike possessed an unstoppable, earth-shattering power.

In a daze, I seemed to see the full moon falling from above.

This made him instinctively back away.

At the same time, the Green Serpent Sword Qi from the Sleeve pressed down on the remaining people.

Jiang Chen was not worried. It was true that the cyan sword energy was powerful, but he was already prepared and could withstand it with the jade seal in his hand.

He activated the jade seal again, and this time the jade seal shone brightly, and the azure spiritual energy enveloped the four of them.

"hiss……"

A cry, unique to cold-blooded animals, came from somewhere unknown.

The cyan sword energy meandered and flowed, and countless cyan flying leaves were mixed in at some point.

The cultivator wielding the shield was startled: "Demonic power?!"

Unfortunately, it's too late.

The sword energy of the Green Serpent in the Sleeve pressed down from all directions, making it difficult for the group to continue.

The demonic power of the green leaves, aided by the momentum of the sword energy, pierced into the four people's magical artifacts and even their protective spiritual garments.

Just then, Xiao He squatted down next to Ju Luyi and clasped her two little hands together with a snap.

He made an onomatopoeic sound: "Bang!"

The violent demonic power was instantly detonated, and even though the four were prepared and tried their best to resist, they could not escape unscathed.

The protective spiritual energy was torn to shreds, and the jade seal suddenly dimmed, falling back into Jiang Chen's hand.

The most terrifying thing is that before the four of them could even adjust their spiritual energy, the countless sword shadows had already flowed and landed around them.

At this moment, the unmoored boat, which had been stuck in the ground, finally moved.

The one that controlled it was not Song Yan, but Xianxian on his shoulder.

At this moment, thirty-six wind and thunder sword shadows began to rage wildly across the sword formation.

Sword energy surged forth from beneath the Sword Palace, converging towards the icy moon on the sword, and the sword energy dissipating from the sword shadow was also absorbed by it.

The moon became increasingly solid, and its momentum rapidly grew stronger.

Jiang Chen had long harbored the intention to retreat. Seeing that the situation was already precarious, his whole body shone with silver light. He used some secret technique and actually broke through the surrounding sword shadows.

They wanted to flee to the north bank of the Yangtze River!
Unexpectedly, they ran head-on into the corpse puppet named A Yuan.

A Yuan had already killed the two cultivators with slightly lower cultivation levels. His fists were covered in blood, and his deep eyes were fixed on Song Yan's sword formation. He understood what was going on.

He bent his knees and shot out like a cannonball. Before Jiang Chen could react, he was kicked in the chest.

"Do not……"

Whether from pain or fear, Jiang Chen was now deathly pale, like a kite with a broken string.

He was actually kicked back into the sword formation by the corpse puppet A Yuan!

For some reason, the riverbank under the cover of night suddenly fell silent, as if all sounds had stopped at that moment.

But the next instant, the unmoored boat sank. At the same time, a crow's cry broke the silence.

"Gah——"

The full moon hangs high.

The gray-robed cultivator was unable to dodge in time and was pinned to the ground by the unmoored boat.

Endless sword light poured out, like moonlight shining down.

At the same time, the sword shadows spun and rose rapidly, converging in the clouds, forming a straight golden rainbow that appeared for a fleeting moment before disappearing.

It was the Cloud Sword and the Moonlight that fell together!
"boom--"

The sword energy dissipated, mingling with the night breeze along the riverbank, and brushed past everyone.

The bloodshed that had permeated the area was completely swept away by the wind.

All four men died, neatly and orderly.

The corpse puppet A Yuan has disappeared without a trace.

From the moment the battle began, he noticed that among the seven people surrounding and killing the young master, one of them seemed to sense that something was wrong and had been secretly observing the situation while the battle raged on.

He tried to escape only after this young master Song displayed his astonishing swordsmanship.

The cultivator's spiritual power surged as he fled towards Red Cliff Valley.

"Song Yan!" he cried out in his heart, "Is this the Song Yan who ruined the Demon Ruins in Changping before?"

"In just a few years, he has already reached the ninth level of Qi Refining?"

He was somewhat alarmed and wanted to escape this place as soon as possible to tell his fellow cultivators from the Demon Ruins everything that was happening.

In the blink of an eye, a tall figure blocked his way.

The masked corpse puppet A Yuan appeared in front of him at some point, its pale hand gently pressing on his shoulder.

"Fellow Daoist, please wait."

His voice was gentle, like a waiter in a teahouse offering to refill your tea on a winter's day.

However, an immense force, like a thousand pounds, came from his hand, tearing apart his already unstable protective spiritual energy.

The demonic cultivator's collarbone cracked under the strain, and he immediately collapsed to his knees.

Just then, they witnessed Song Yanyue and Yun Zhongjian falling.

"Gulu."

The demon cultivator swallowed hard.

The corpse puppet A Yuan slightly raised her eyes and looked up, her eyes flashing, and she murmured, "What a beautiful moonlight."

He was lost in thought.

However, he was pulled out of his reverie in just a moment.

With his right hand, he lifted the demon cultivator from the Demon Ruins, and with his left hand, he gripped the cultivator's right arm and, with a slight exertion, dislocated him.

"Ah—" A scream came from his mouth.

The corpse puppet A Yuan seemed to find him a bit noisy, so it took out some rags from somewhere and stuffed them into his mouth, stopping the screams.

Then, with a sudden burst of force, he punched the man's dantian.

They simply and brutally destroyed his foundation, severed all his meridians, leaving him barely alive.

Ignoring the man's painful struggles and muffled sobs, A Yuan nodded with satisfaction and then led him to Song Yan and Sheng Nian.

At this moment, the sword shadows flowed and returned to the sword box, and the flying swords were also retrieved one by one.

It drifted leisurely down onto my shoulder, and the riverbank returned to silence.

Song Yan lowered his head slightly to look at Sheng Nian, who was still recuperating: "Tell me, young master of the Sheng family, what is the purpose of summoning me here from so far away?"

"That big deal you're talking about, it's not just about watching you get chased and beaten like a stray dog, is it?"

Sheng Nian had recovered considerably by now, so he stood up.

Ignoring the teasing, he took the scalpel given to him by Song Yan and examined it closely, muttering to himself, "Hmm, a fine scalpel, truly a fine scalpel."

"Young Master Song is so wealthy and generous, I will gladly accept this gift."

He gave the corpse puppet a wink, and the corpse puppet began cleaning up the battlefield.

"Huh?" Sheng Nian suddenly looked at She Bao: "Long time no see, has Xiao He grown a bit?"

Song Yan nodded: "She's now a late-stage Tier 1 demon."

Xiao He chuckled and put her hands on her hips with a smug look on her face.

Wow, amazing, amazing, amazing...

Sheng Nian's gaze shifted to Xiao Ju, who was standing quietly beside Song Yan, and he raised an eyebrow, asking, "And who is this young lady?"

Song Yan replied briefly, "Ju Luyi is now traveling with me."

Sheng Nian gave a meaningful "Oh," a hint of inquiry flashing in his eyes, but said nothing more.

Since he, Song, has brought her here to meet me, he must be a trustworthy person.

"This matter is of great importance; let's leave this place of trouble first."

When asked out of the blue, Xiao Ju looked a little nervous.

However, upon hearing what Sheng Nian said, he felt uneasy.

Since this matter is of great importance, should I avoid it for a while?
Will I still be able to walk with Senior Song...?

Just as she was lost in thought, Sheng Nian suddenly smiled knowingly: "Little sister."

"Now that you know the relationship between me, this devil, and you, Young Master Song, you've already boarded the pirate ship."

He deliberately lowered his voice and patted her tense, thin shoulder: "Don't tell anyone, otherwise—"

"Young Master Song is too soft-hearted; I will definitely silence you."

Xiao Ju was taken aback by what he heard, but she did not show the fear that Sheng Nian had imagined.

On the contrary, she looked up and stared directly at Sheng Nian, her eyes showing a hint of joy.

At that moment, Xiao Ju's heart was pounding.

She seemed to have glimpsed a path hidden in the darkness, yet shining as brightly as the moon.

"Mmm!" A strange warmth welled up in her chest, dispelling her initial unease. She nodded heavily, her hair swaying. "Xiao Ju understands!"

With unwavering resolve, as if making some kind of vow to the will of Heaven.

Sheng Nian was taken aback, clearly not expecting the other party to react this way.

"Why are you scaring her?" Song Yan shook his head: "Let's go quickly."

As they spoke, the corpse puppet A Yuan had already cleaned up the battlefield, carrying a string of Qiankun bags on his back.

The demon cultivator who had already fainted from the excruciating pain was held in his hand like a chick.

In his prime, he led the way into the mountains.

After walking for about an hour, the group arrived at a hill that resembled a cliff. Sheng Nian casually activated a talisman and dispelled the illusion array.

A hidden cave appeared before them.

It really is a hidden paradise.

Inside, the furnishings were simple.

There was a stone table and benches, with some bottles and jars placed beside them, and a few blood-stained robes lying in the corner.

"I am staying here temporarily and have not been able to provide adequate hospitality. I hope you will not take offense, Young Master Song."

Unexpectedly, this was only the outer room. Sheng Nian casually lifted a stone slab on the ground, revealing a staircase leading underground.

The group descended the steps for more than ten feet, and suddenly the view opened up before them.

It is a very large stone chamber.

He kicked aside an empty medicine jar blocking his way and sat down on a stone bench.

The corpse puppet A Yuan and Chen Jiping stood quietly behind him, one on his left and one on his right.

Sheng Nian began, "I'll keep it short. Have you ever heard of... the rumors about the ancient battlefield of the Immortal Dynasty?"

(End of this chapter)