Jade Dynasty: I am the master of the Burning Sword, my swordsmanship is unparalleled.

Chapter 56 The Abyss of the Dead

Lu Xueqi paused for a moment, but ultimately did not chase after them immediately. Instead, the four of them followed at a distance behind the group of demonic cult members, making their way forward at a leisurely pace.

Along the way, Zhang Xiaofan and his companions eliminated several demonic cult members who had ambushed them.

……

Deep inside the cave was a straight passage, and at the end of the passage was an incredibly large space.

The rocky cave ceiling above their heads was a hundred feet high above the ground, and the ground beneath their feet was ten feet away from the exit of the passage.

Not far from the ground was a huge rock, which emitted bursts of bright light, illuminating the entire cave.

But behind that boulder was pitch black. Only upon closer inspection could one see that it was an endless abyss, eerie and deathly silent, as if leading to the depths of the underworld.

At this moment, three people were standing in front of the boulder: a burly man with a full beard, a rather beautiful woman, and a young man with a pale face, dressed in white, and with an eerie aura.

"Huh! Huh!"

Just then, streaks of light flew out from the passage. The three leading figures were a sickly, thin man holding a small fork, a young man holding a flying sword, and a Taoist priest with a fanged magic weapon and a tongue like a wild dog.

Seeing that the three men were all seriously injured and fleeing in a sorry state, the big man's expression changed slightly, and he said in a deep voice.

"Jiang Laosan, Liu Hao, Wild Dog, you three are utterly useless! You couldn't even handle four juniors from the Qingyun Sect? You had to lure them into this Dead Spirit Abyss?"

“Elder Nian, you can’t blame us for this. That kid who looks the youngest and weakest is clearly pretending to be weak. His cultivation is stronger than the others, he’s wielding an invisible sword, and his physical body is abnormally strong.”

Upon hearing this, the Taoist priest who resembled a wild dog quickly spoke up to defend himself, and as he spoke, he touched the fanged magic weapon in his hand with considerable tenderness.

"Jiang Laosan, Liu Hao, what's going on?"

The mature, beautiful woman frowned, looking at the bloodstains on Liu Hao's body and the pale, weak-looking Jiang Laosan, and couldn't help but ask sharply.

Holding the flying sword, Liu Hao trembled slightly, his hand shaking uncontrollably, and he spoke in a trembling voice.

"Elder Nian, Madam, that... that bastard is too amazing, I..."

"Brother Nian, there's something strange about his sword. My magic weapon was struck by it and almost cut in half. Liu Hao's magic weapon was damaged, and if the sword hadn't seemed too short, he would have been killed. As for the wild dogs..."

Seeing that Liu Hao hadn't been able to utter a fart for a long time, and that he was pale and weak, Jiang Laosan couldn't help but speak up. However, when he mentioned Wild Dog Taoist, his eyes showed a hint of fear.

What's wrong with stray dogs?

The eldest brother frowned, looking at his three capable henchmen with displeasure. All three of them seemed to have been defeated by a mere Qingyun disciple, and even appeared to have lost their courage.

Jiang Laosan trembled all over and swallowed hard.

"The wild dog's magic weapon was kicked into the mountain wall by that man, and it was almost blown to pieces."

"hiss!"

The eldest son and the mature, beautiful woman gasped, feeling a cold sweat break out on their brows. If what Jiang Laosan and the others said was true, then this rabble could really just run away. The pale-faced, wicked-looking young man, however, scoffed dismissively, making sarcastic remarks from the side.

"Hmph, in my opinion, it's simply because your cultivation is inadequate that you were defeated by a mere Qingyun disciple who hasn't been in the sect for long. Elder Nian, it seems you're not very good at leading people. How about I take over as sect leader?"

The eldest brother's face darkened, while the mature and beautiful woman beside him frowned and spoke softly to ease the atmosphere.

“Fellow Daoist Lin Feng, with a formidable enemy at hand, we should unite as one. You must know a little about the strength of Jiang Laosan and Wild Dog. The fact that the three of them couldn’t defeat one person shows that the newcomer is quite powerful.”

Upon hearing this, the eldest brother snorted softly, then turned to look at Liu Hao, whose face was gradually turning pale. He frowned, reached out and placed his hand on Liu Hao's hand to examine it.

Before long, the eldest brother's expression suddenly changed, and he looked at Jiang Laosan and the others with a worried look, asking.

"You just said that the sword used by that Qingyun disciple was so thin that it was impossible to see clearly, and that it was shorter than an ordinary flying sword?"

"Yes, that sword was completely invisible in the dark, appearing and disappearing like a ghost. If it hadn't been a bit short, Liu Hao would have been cut in two."

Jiang Laosan said with lingering fear, "They were the ones who launched the sneak attack, but once the fight started, they were defeated one by one by the Qingyun disciples. If it weren't for their superior numbers and the fact that they had people lying in ambush to delay them, they might not have been able to escape."

Seeing that Elder Nian's face was grim, the Wild Dog Taoist cautiously asked.

"Elder brother, do you perhaps recognize that magical artifact?"

The eldest son remained silent upon hearing this, but the mature and beautiful woman spoke with a rather worried expression.

"That sword is none other than the renowned Ink Snow Sword of our Holy Sect from a hundred years ago. Ink Snow doesn't refer to snow that's black, but rather to blood that's as black as ink. This sword has a chilling aura and has killed countless people."

"It was lost after the great battle between good and evil a hundred years ago. It seems that it was taken by the Qingyun Sect. Liu Hao's condition must be caused by the sword energy entering his body."

After the mature and beautiful woman finished speaking, the eldest brother also spoke with a gloomy expression: "The sword energy of Mo Xue has entered his body, which is no small matter. At least for a short period of time, Liu Hao will probably not have much fighting power."

Lin Feng, however, was quite disdainful. In his view, these people were merely making excuses for their incompetence.

Upon hearing this, Wild Dog and Old Man Jiang both showed a hint of lingering fear on their faces. Just as they were about to say something, they suddenly turned their heads to look at the entrance of the passage.

Several more streaks of light flew out from the passage, transforming into four figures that landed on the open ground.

After scanning over Elder Nian and the others, Zhang Xiaofan's gaze fell upon a strange, glowing boulder. On it, three large characters were inscribed in a flowing, elegant style:
The Abyss of the Dead!
Behind that boulder lay a deathly, deep darkness, like an unfathomable hell.

At this moment, the eldest brother and his men were also looking at Zhang Xiaofan and the others. In particular, Jiang Laosan, who was standing next to the eldest brother, said with great excitement after seeing Zhang Xiaofan.

“Brother Nian, that’s the guy. This kid is very strange. Not only is his magic power high, but his methods are also very strange. The long flute at his waist is no ordinary object either.”

Upon hearing this, the eldest brother narrowed his eyes, looked at the dark longsword in Zhang Xiaofan's hand, and said in a deep voice.

"It really is the Ink Snow Sword!"

(End of this chapter)