Chapter 229 - 131: Primordial Yin Cave Eternal Pearl

Chapter 229: Chapter 131: Primordial Yin Cave Eternal Pearl

Although Xuzhuang appeared to freely shift between form and formlessness while executing his Swordsmanship, weaving through all kinds of Daoist techniques and Magical Artifacts to slay his foes in an instant, the Magical Power consumed to achieve all this was truly immense. It was a good thing his foundation was so profound; an ordinary practitioner of the Tai Su Formless and Formful Sword Qi could never have brandished their Swordsmanship so wantonly.

Apparently, He Haojun had suspected as much while observing Xuzhuang’s duel with Chu River. The chaotic, disordered force of attraction and repulsion he created, which pulled from all directions, was intended to both reduce the damage from the Flying Sword’s slashes and increase the cost of Xuzhuang’s shifts between form and formlessness.

It had to be said, He Haojun’s attempt was successful. Although Xuzhuang was confident in his profound Magical Power and believed he could force his way through for a killing blow, he wasn’t naive enough to assume He Haojun had no other tricks up his sleeve. Such a decision would be unwise for his avatar, which could not replenish its Magical Power.

So, with a thought, Xuzhuang manifested the Taiyi Flying Rainbow Sword and slashed viciously at He Haojun’s protective Daoist technique. The instant it made contact, Xuzhuang could clearly feel chaotic forces—pushing and pulling, attracting and repelling from all directions—acting upon the Taiyi Rainbow Sword, whittling away its power layer by layer.

Just as its momentum was exhausted and the attractive-repulsive force tried to draw the sword in, Xuzhuang made a gesture with his sword fingers to recall the Taiyi Rainbow Sword. He then merged his body with the sword’s light and vanished into the void, dodging the pitch-black giant hand that He Haojun had sent striking back.

The next instant, a cold glint of light flashed as Xuzhuang fearlessly reappeared and struck from behind. Another slash, then another hit-and-run. He came and went without a trace, repeating the same pattern. Within a few breaths, Xuzhuang had struck He Haojun sixteen times, and He Haojun hadn’t been able to counter a single blow!

Xuzhuang, of course, was not just wasting his efforts. While He Haojun’s attractive-repulsive force increased the cost for him to become formless and pass through it, wasn’t maintaining that force also a huge drain on He Haojun himself?

And although Xuzhuang couldn’t casually break through He Haojun’s defenses, his Invisible Swordsmanship allowed him to come and go without a trace. By engaging in constant guerilla tactics, he could force He Haojun to keep his attractive-repulsive force active, leaving him perpetually on edge and anxiously awaiting the next surprise attack.

Faced with this situation, He Haojun knew things were not looking good. Even though he was a proud Great-Circle Nascent Soul cultivator with perfected techniques and a clear advantage in Magical Power, he might not be able to win this battle of attrition.

He had witnessed Xuzhuang’s Swordsmanship and knew his own methods could not easily defeat such an opponent, but Xuzhuang’s adaptability still exceeded his expectations. This left him feeling utterly frustrated. In past duels, he only needed to use his grappling techniques—which could attract, repel, capture, or suppress—and then follow up with his various Daoist techniques. Aside from his nemesis, Jiang Chengzi, whose mastery of the Dao and Daoist techniques ran deeper than his own, he had never encountered such a troublesome opponent.

’Do I have no choice but to use that thing?’ He Haojun subconsciously glanced at Jiang Chengzi on the Jade Platform, a trace of hesitation flickering in his heart.

But just then, Xuzhuang suddenly reappeared!

He had adopted these mobile tactics not to engage in a contest of who would run out of energy first. So when he suddenly saw He Haojun reveal such an opening, how could he not seize the opportunity? Instantly, he flicked his hand, and a round, shimmering Gang Pearl appeared between two of his fingers. With a light flick, he sent it flying!

BOOM!

A blinding white light flashed, momentarily eclipsing the daylight for a hundred miles around. The crowd heard only a deafening, thunderous roar, and He Haojun’s protective Daoist technique shattered on impact!

He Haojun’s attractive-repulsive force was indeed wondrously effective against Flying Sword slashes, but that was its limit. Xuzhuang had seized the opportunity, using the Gang Pearl given to him by Yang Bijie to instantly shatter it. The next moment, his sword light shot out, transforming into a single, unstoppable line as it streaked forward and beheaded He Haojun!

As the white light faded, the assembled cultivators witnessed this and erupted in an uproar. Xuzhuang, however, showed no sign of triumph. He watched as He Haojun’s head flew into the air, a look of terror still frozen on its face. But then, a hazy brilliance rose from the severed neck, shot up, grabbed the head, and pulled it back into place. Apart from a faint, bloody line, he looked completely unharmed.

Before He Haojun’s head had even fully reattached, Xuzhuang had already wheeled around in mid-air and was charging in for another kill. He Haojun, still seemingly shaken, let out a sudden roar. An invisible repulsive force shot out from the Gangyun, trying to push Xuzhuang back. Xuzhuang adapted on the fly, instantly becoming formless and passing through it. Unfortunately, He Haojun had already re-established his attractive-repulsive force and, simultaneously, activated an escape light to flee, denying Xuzhuang the chance to throw another Gang Pearl.

The crowd, which had been watching with bated breath, felt a wave of disappointment. Xuzhuang’s perfectly timed strike had ultimately failed to secure victory. He Haojun, however, wore an equally grim expression.

His terror just now had not been an act; his life had truly been hanging by a thread. Fortunately, he still had a sliver of Life Essence. This was completely different from Yang Bijie’s paper substitutes. That Substitution Skill had to be actively triggered by the user and was, in the end, just a substitution. His Life Essence, on the other hand, was a true life-saving method. As long as it remained, he could recover fully not just from being beheaded, but even from being chopped into a dozen pieces.

But this Life Essence was his ultimate life-saving Divine Technique, his ace in the hole, and Xuzhuang had forced him to use it just like that. How could he not be furious?

’I can’t hesitate any longer.’ Having faced a life-or-death moment, He Haojun steeled his resolve. He took a glossy, jet-black pearl from his pouch and tossed it into the air!

’What?’ On the Jade Platform, a chill ran through Yang Bijie’s heart. ’The Primordial Yin Cave Eternal Pearl! He Haojun was excommunicated, so how can he still possess this Magical Artifact? ...Jiang Chengzi, do you really intend to see me, the Dragon Aspect, killed?’

In the sky, as He Haojun activated the Primordial Yin Cave Eternal Pearl, it suddenly shuddered. Like a Flying Sword splitting its light, it divided into over a dozen Primordial Pearls that scattered in all directions. Xuzhuang suddenly heard a faint, almost imperceptible hum as invisible fields of force began to emanate from each of the Primordial Pearls.

Xuzhuang’s expression changed slightly, and he hurriedly tried to flee using Sword Escape. However, from all directions, the various Primordial Pearls began emitting chaotic forces of attraction and repulsion. For a moment, Xuzhuang found himself trapped.

"Zhong Shenxiu, die!" He Haojun roared upon seeing this. He activated another Daoist technique, sending the pitch-black giant hand lunging forward.

Xuzhuang’s Sword Escape felt as if he were wading through a swamp, but He Haojun’s technique moved like a flood dragon entering the sea. Its speed was astonishing, and it reached him in an instant, clamping down viciously.

Xuzhuang frowned. Seeing no way to escape, he could only channel his Magical Power, leaving a paper effigy substitute in his place as he escaped from under He Haojun’s capturing palm.

He Haojun wasn’t surprised to see Xuzhuang use a substitute to escape. Instead, he sneered and thought to himself, ’Looks like he’s run out of tricks!’ He directed the pitch-black giant hand to loop through the air in a strange arc, swiftly moving to grab Xuzhuang again.

Seeing this, a thought stirred in Xuzhuang’s mind. He urged his Sword Escape, which seemed to have regained some of its Flying Escape ability, and fled several miles in the blink of an eye. But that was its limit. He Haojun’s pitch-black hand weaved through the air, and despite starting later, it arrived first. In a flash, it was above Xuzhuang’s head again, slapping down!

Another paper effigy fluttered down. A flicker of impatience crossed He Haojun’s face. He swept the area with his Spiritual Sense and, sure enough, found Xuzhuang thousands of yards away. This time, however, Xuzhuang was riding his sword light, weaving between the scattered Primordial Pearls and charging rapidly toward him along a strange, arcing path!

"What?" He Haojun’s expression changed. ’He figured out the secret of using the attractive-repulsive force for Flying Escape so quickly?’

Using the attractive-repulsive force for Flying Escape was a Supreme Escape Technique developed by the five patriarchs of the Celestial Permanence Sect to explore whether worlds existed beyond the Celestial Waterfall Realm. Although He Haojun hadn’t fully refined the Primordial Yin Cave Eternal Pearl, and the field he created was far simpler than that of the true cosmic void, for Xuzhuang to see through it so easily was unacceptable.

He watched as Xuzhuang repeatedly evaded the grasp of the pitch-black hand, his movements powered by the attractive-repulsive force growing more and more fluid. One moment he was in front, the next he was behind, as graceful as a startled swan, as fluid as a swimming dragon.

He Haojun’s face sank. He formed a hand seal, altering the technique. All the pushing, pulling, attracting, and repelling forces of the Primordial Yin Cave Eternal Pearl suddenly shifted. In that instant, Xuzhuang had intended to use a repulsive force for Flying Escape, but the Primordial Yin Cave Eternal Pearl changed repulsion to attraction, violently yanking on his escape light. The giant capturing hand seized the opportunity and clamped down hard.