Sword Sect Outer Sect

Chapter 301 Lone Edge
Song Yan and Sheng Nian naturally trusted A Yuan.

Having shaken off the two siblings from the He family, the two left without looking back and soon arrived at the military camp at Daming Pass.

"..."

Looking across the entire pass, all the way here...

In the far distance, at the outermost edge, the light and sounds of nine Foundation Establishment cultivators engaged in a chaotic battle.

Above the training ground, closer still, a fierce battle was taking place between the corpse puppet A Yuan and the two guards from the He family.

But here, it was completely quiet.

There wasn't even a single soldier on guard.

Sheng Nian narrowed his eyes slightly, scanning his surroundings.

Ultimately, their gazes fell upon the camp below.

Only then did two figures slowly emerge from the tent.

"I thought they were some important people, but they're just two young punks!"

The man at the head was clad in armor, tall and imposing, with a square and resolute face. He was calmly watching the two intruders, exuding an air of authority without anger.

"My two young friends, you dared to break into my Daming Pass at night, kill my patrol guards, and disregard the restrictions on the pass. You have quite the courage and skill."

He Yiming stood still, a large knife tucked into his waistband.

Beside him was another person, dressed in a Taoist robe, who looked to be about forty years old.

It was Yang Wenxuan, an elder of the Dongyuan Sect.

Song Yan was wearing a mask at the moment, so Yang Wenxuan did not recognize him.

Song Yan and Sheng Nian exchanged a glance and nodded slightly.

"General He is too kind! We are only here to borrow something from you on behalf of the Qin soldiers!"

Sheng Nian walked slowly toward He Yiming, holding the hilt of the horizontal sword with one hand.

"Oh? Could it be my head?"

He Yiming chuckled: "That depends on whether you have the ability."

Sheng Nian shook his head slightly.

He Yiming remained unmoved: "Oh? I wonder what this old man, whose name is Guanzhong, has that would make you two risk such a great danger?"

“Ah,” Sheng Nian exclaimed with “emotion,” “A wise bird chooses a good tree to perch on! Now that I have switched allegiance to a wise ruler, I urgently need military merit to establish myself!”

“I am not a bloodthirsty person. If the general is willing to generously give us that seal of the Daming Pass, we will not make a move.”

He Yiming's gaze turned cold, as if he had lost interest in chatting with this young man.

"Envoy Yang, I trouble you to help me bring all the criminals to justice."

"Ah."

Yang Wenxuan nodded, his gaze falling on the young man in front of him.

For some reason, this person's figure gave him a sense of familiarity.

Just as he was about to put aside his doubts and take down the other person, he saw the man suddenly reach out and remove the mask from his face.

Elder Yang.

Beneath the mask was an extremely young, handsome face.

"You're welcome and safe."

Yang Wenxuan was startled: "It's you..."

Song Yan did not speak again, but immediately took action.

With a thought, five flying swords swiftly flew out from the Endless Treasury and hovered around the battlefield.

Driven by divine will, the sword formation Xiao Ri instantly took shape.

Yang Wenxuan was naturally aware of Song Yan's many tricks, so he dared not be careless at this moment. He quickly made a hand seal, and an earthy yellow spiritual light shone.

An ancient, large shield, carved with mysterious mountain patterns, appeared out of thin air and swelled in the wind.

Before long, it transformed into a thick wall of spiritual light, radiating a steady earth elemental spiritual power.

The sword of the Unmoored Boat was covered with a layer of blazing fire, making it move with ease within the sword formation.

The sword energy surged and raged, and Yang Wenxuan's earth element shield barely managed to hold on.

However, Song Yan, who had the upper hand, did not press his advantage.

It was merely slowly eroding Yang Wenxuan's spiritual power and spirit.

Given Song Yan's current combat strength, killing a cultivator in the mid-Foundation Establishment stage is not a difficult task.

But he had some other ideas.

Gou Sheng is right here; this is a rare opportunity.

If we can capture Yang Wenxuan alive, at least while he is conscious, we can have Gou Sheng use the soul-searching spell to investigate what kind of collusion this person has with Xinshan Sanren.

It would also be good to find out if the root cause of the sect's destruction mentioned by Senior Brother Lin Qing was this person.

This is also why he didn't immediately unleash his sword intent or the Moon Ring Sword Formation, such deadly moves.

Yang Wenxuan was a seasoned veteran, so he could easily see that Song Yan was holding back at every turn.

However, he thought the other party was just playing with him.

"Song Yan! You've gone too far!"

Yang Wenxuan was an arrogant man, and now he felt extremely humiliated to be outmatched in a junior's sword formation.

He was born into an extraordinary family and possessed a unique earth spirit body.

Back in the day, he was an outstanding member of the Dongyuan Sect. How could he have been so easily mocked?
In his eyes, Song Yan's actions were by no means benevolent.

It's more like a condescending mockery.

He suddenly sneered: "Do you think you have the upper hand and want to capture me alive and humiliate me to avenge the grudge from back then?"

Song Yan did not answer, but continued to control his flying sword, the sword techniques changing, consuming spiritual power and interfering with his divine sense.

"Alright."

Yang Wenxuan hardened his heart: "Since you're determined to seek your own death, I'll grant your wish."

He suddenly withdrew some of his protective spiritual power, leaving only the shield struggling to hold on.

His feet landed on the ground, and his hands clasped together abruptly.

Song Yan narrowed his eyes, and golden light slowly emerged from them.

Looking down into the void, one can see that spiritual energy is rapidly gathering here.

Countless earth-elemental spiritual energies surged wildly into Yang Wenxuan's body from the earth's veins.

His aura rose rapidly, and in the blink of an eye, it reached the level of the late Foundation Establishment stage!

Similar to the Purple Qi Merging with the Void True Technique, this should also be a secret technique that temporarily enhances one's own realm and strength.

Song Yan's eyes sharpened; he knew he could no longer hold back.

A dreamlike color emerged from the lotus flower above the Sword Palace, emanating from the sword energy.

In the darkness of night, amidst the clouds, the pagoda, the yellow sand, and the flowing yellow stones, a sudden burst of sword light appeared.

Although Yang Wenxuan had secretly observed this move before, he was still terrified when he faced the sword directly now.

Only now did he realize what was happening.

This young man was completely different from the countless geniuses he had ever seen before.

There's no way he could recruit or suppress someone through any means he chooses.

Do you think he regrets it?
Perhaps a little.

He only regretted that he hadn't killed Song Yan immediately and seized the opportunity from him!

Now, there's only one outcome: mutual destruction.

hum-

A flash of sword light streaked across the heavens and earth.

Song Yan's expression suddenly froze.

Not far away, Yang Wenxuan was covered in blood, his clothes were tattered, and an ancient jade talisman was pasted on his chest.

The talisman has a black background with gold characters and is covered with fine cracks.

What kind of treasure is this?
Song Yan frowned; his sword intent had actually been stripped of its sharpness.

This is the first time I've encountered a situation like this.

Yang Wenxuan, trembling, reached out a hand and took it in his, muttering to himself.

"I obtained this talisman by chance, and it has protected me ever since I began cultivating Qi."

really……

Before he even spoke, Song Yan already had some guesses.

Foundation Establishment cultivators cannot use magic weapons.

Even a spiritual weapon rarely has the ability to completely withstand one's own sword intent.

Only the most powerful defensive magical artifacts or talismans can achieve this.

"At first, I didn't know what this item was for. I showed off my wealth and it attracted the covetous eyes of a Foundation Establishment cultivator who tried to kill me, which cost me one of my resources."

A look of reminiscence flashed in Yang Wenxuan's eyes.

"More than twenty years later, while hunting down cultivators from the Demon Ruins, an accident occurred, and I was exhausted once again."

"This is the last time, and it's with you."

Yang Wenxuan casually crushed the talisman, which had lost its spiritual light, into fragments and tossed them away.

There was little regret in his expression.

"I never expected that even with the defense of this talisman, it could still injure me like this."

Yang Wenxuan raised his head and looked at Song Yan: "You truly deserve the title of prodigy. But now, it's my turn!"

His eyes flashed with murderous intent, and earth-elemental spiritual light gathered in his palms as he formed hand seals.

A large seal materialized between his palms.

A burst of spiritual light shone forth, and the spiritual seal slowly rose, growing larger and larger, illuminating the night sky as if it were daytime.

They immediately rushed towards Song Yan Town.

This scene feels all too familiar.

Song Yan remained silent, only slowly closing his eyes and exhaling a breath of stale air.

Yang Wenxuan grinned.

Such a powerful sword strike must have exhausted his cultivation; how could he possibly have any strength left to defend against my killing move?

Song Yan's current posture of waiting for death with his hands down and eyes closed seems to confirm his thoughts.

Until, behind Song Yan, a black and gold spirit pearl was suspended.

Given Yang Wenxuan's current strength at the late Foundation Establishment stage, and his own somewhat weakened state, forcibly unleashing a sword formation would likely not yield any significant benefits.

Song Yan then simply retrieved all his flying swords.

In any case, such secret techniques will always have a time limit.

hum-

The spirit pearl hummed, and within it was a faint humanoid phantom.

A dark aura emanated from within, interspersed with golden spiritual light, spreading and growing.

Almost instantly, it transformed into a gigantic figure three zhang tall.

Its body was robust and imposing, with golden, mysterious patterns extending from its chest, back, and limbs.

Its body was deep and radiant, its face contorted with rage and ferocity.

A pair of strong, powerful arms were raised, and the palms were imprinted on the spiritual light.

The ground below suddenly sank.

boom--

The Dharma Body slightly bent its legs and received the hand seal.

Yang Wenxuan froze on the spot, staring blankly at the suddenly appearing giant Dharma body.

Until that angry, ferocious face came toward him.

In the darkness of night, the golden patterns stood out starkly, coupled with the surging malevolent intent within them…

"what……"

Such immense demonic energy was condensed into such a pure Dharma body.

What a terrifying demonic cultivator this is!?
In shock and anger, Yang Wenxuan shouted angrily, "You...you really have ties with demonic cultivators. No..."

"With such a demonic aura emanating from your body, it must be said that you yourself are an extreme demonic cultivator!"

After beheading Chen Li, the power of his Dharma Body reached a new level.

However, upon hearing Yang Wenxuan's reprimand, Song Yan frowned.

He dislikes being misunderstood by others.

Rather than referring to it as a Dharmakaya, he preferred to call this practice "Great Radiant Form".

However, at this moment, he had no mind to explain anything to Yang Wenxuan.

Yang Wenxuan's secret technique certainly won't last long.

My own condition wasn't much better either.

They immediately set up a spirit-gathering sword formation and, racing against time, began to slowly recover.

The Dharma Body suddenly raised both hands, and golden patterns appeared all over its body. It then violently overturned the Earth Spirit Seal.

He paused for only a moment before striding towards the source of the brilliant light.

Seeing this, Yang Wenxuan felt a little panicked.

He quickly flew back a few steps, gathering spiritual power in the process, and condensing countless golden spiritual shuttles between his palms.

"go with!"

The shuttle shot forward, hurtling towards Song Yan.

The massive body of the Dharmakaya casually blocked the attack, and the flying shuttle plunged into its surging demonic energy body, then exploded with a bang.

bang bang bang...

The Dharma body merely swayed slightly, its forward momentum undiminished.

The gap caused by the explosion of the Spirit Shuttle was quickly filled in.

Yang Wenxuan once again activated his magical power to prevent the Dharma body from getting closer.

It must be said that Yang Wenxuan's strength and realm at this moment are indeed strong enough, and he also cannot spare too much attention to control the actions of his Dharma body.

Most of the time, it simply lets its fighting instincts guide it.

For a time, the battle reached a stalemate.

But it doesn't matter; the longer it drags on, the better for me.

the other side.

The blade energy resembled a raging torrent, carving a bottomless gash across the field.

The air currents surged, kicking up gravel and wood chips.

He Yiming's hair and beard flew wildly, and a look of surprise and doubt appeared in his eyes.

The young man before him was clearly fighting him for the first time, yet he showed no hesitation in the fight, as if he could foresee the course of his blade.

He Yiming roared, and with a flick of his wrist, he was about to change his move from a chop to a sweep.

At the critical moment, in his prime, he pressed close to the edge of the blade, advancing instead of retreating.

With an extremely strange posture and speed, he approached He Yiming and forced him back with a single strike.

At the starting point where he strode forward in his prime, a black phantom figure identical to him was left behind.

There is more than one.

He Yiming glanced around and saw that in just a short moment, there were already six such illusory figures in this area.

They stood there quietly in various poses.

What kind of evil magic is this...?

He Yiming instinctively sensed the strangeness of these things, but he didn't have much time to think about it.

He had no choice but to step forward and violently kill the man.

He Yiming slashed horizontally with his long sword, intending to exchange injury for injury, even if it meant killing this young upstart who was so close at hand.

At that moment, Sheng Nian's actions took an extremely abrupt turn.

He abruptly stopped, gripping the hilt of the knife tightly with both hands, the blade pointing downwards, held horizontally in front of his chest.

At the same time, the eyes closed.

This momentary pause, amidst such fierce fighting, is tantamount to suicide.

He Yiming was almost certain that his blade would kill him in the next moment.

However, just as he closed his eyes in his prime, a strange change occurred.

A faint buzzing sound could be heard in the air.

The six black phantom figures scattered across the battlefield were quickly drawn together and merged into the horizontal sword that Sheng Nian held in front of him!

The blade turned pitch black and deep, seemingly able to absorb the surrounding light.

He Yiming felt the sounds around him disappear.

"Om-"

There was no earth-shattering storm of sword energy, nor any dazzling bombardment of spiritual power.

Between the battlefields, there was only a single, condensed black line.

A crack was silently torn open in the air.

In a way that He Yiming could not comprehend at all, it passed through the blade energy he had placed in front of him, through his armor, and through his flesh.

He felt a sudden lightness throughout his body, and then he lost consciousness.

In his prime, he sheathed his sword.

Dozens of scarlet spiritual lights scattered across the sky and merged into his ancient talisman.

"This sword technique is indeed very strong, but it's a bit too slow."

he said to himself.

The voice of the ancient demon Xie echoed in his mind: "Don't underestimate him."

"This sword technique originated from a sword that I found by chance, and even I don't know its origin."

"If you can really get to that point, I can guide you to see if that knife is still there."

Sheng Nian was somewhat surprised: "Even you don't know?"

Xie Yucheng chuckled: "What's so strange about that?"

"You've lived for tens of thousands of years..."

"Tens of thousands of years? Compared to those thousands of saints in heaven, I am still just a young man."

Is tens of thousands of years a long time?

Those things from the past seem to be right before my eyes.

(End of this chapter)