Chapter 481 - 462: The Star-Streaking Sword Slays Across a Myriad Li

Chapter 481: Chapter 462: The Star-Streaking Sword Slays Across a Myriad Li

A shooting star, fast as the wind and lightning.

Nanzhao was filled with dense forests and abundant rainfall, and insects teemed everywhere.

On his Sword Flight, Bai Zichen even saw mosquitoes the size of his fist, a crushing black mass that moved like a tide.

The low drone could be heard from miles away, fraying the nerves.

’They’re just Tier One Demon Insects, equivalent to Late-Stage Qi Refining. Only one in a hundred has reached Tier Two... But this quantity is absurd. Even a Core Formation True Man would be thrown into a frantic mess if he got caught in that swarm.’

Bai Zichen watched with his own eyes as a Tier Three Low Grade Purple Crowned Forest Python was enveloped by the sea of mosquitoes.

It spat a mouthful of venom, and swarms of mosquitoes dropped to the ground, their wings and bodies corroded beyond recognition.

The Purple Crowned Forest Python thrashed violently, crushing several dozen more with a single sweep of its tail.

But the mosquitoes were simply too numerous. Despite at least a thousand corpses piling up, the black sea hadn’t shrunk in the slightest.

A quarter of an hour later, the Purple Crowned Forest Python was worn down and killed by the relentless swarming tactics, leaving behind nothing but a skeleton picked clean.

’No wonder Insect Gu techniques are so prevalent in the Southern Domain. The Cultivation Conditions here are truly one-of-a-kind...’

A chill ran up Bai Zichen’s spine. If this sea of mosquitoes were a level higher, composed of Tier Two and Tier Three Demon Insects, he feared that even a Nascent Soul True Monarch wouldn’t dare to provoke it lightly.

When the number of Low Tier Demon Insects surpassed a certain threshold, it could truly trigger a qualitative change.

Nanzhao wasn’t even considered the edge of the Southern Domain. The nations further south had only been established a thousand years ago, carved out of barren mountains and treacherous waters.

Many of their territories were still untamed, shrouded in poisonous miasma and plagued by venomous creatures and insects.

Venomous creatures that had long gone extinct in the other Four Domains thrived here and could be seen everywhere.

In those barren mountains, treacherous waters, swamps, and dense forests, there were even Tier Four Demon Insects.

For instance, the Hundred-Eyed Celestial Centipede, which wreaked havoc for thousands of miles, had emerged from the Hundred Thousand Evil.

There was even a saying that the Five Great Strange Insects of the Cultivation Realm all originated from the Hundred Thousand Evil.

The few sects near the Hundred Thousand Evil were all proficient in Gu Techniques and skilled at raising venomous creatures, with centipedes, scorpions, and spiders being the most common.

Some creatures had such ferocious venom that they could even threaten Nascent Soul True Monarchs, allowing those sects to carve out their own unique path.

Shrouded in the Mystical Immortal Gauze, Bai Zichen stood silently in the air. Not even to mention these mosquitoes, even a Tier Four venomous creature passing by wouldn’t discover him.

Seeing the bright moon high overhead, he waited until midnight, then put on the Celestial Illusion Bracelet and changed into a plain robe.

With a quick transformation, his appearance became completely identical to that of Fengg Yishan from the Celestial Heart Sect.

Arriving at the appointed location, he stood under the moonlight. As long as he didn’t speak, anyone would have mistaken him for Fengg Yishan.

’Since the Hundred Skills Sect is so eager to eliminate the Five Elements Sect after I leave, they won’t pass up an opportunity delivered to their doorstep by the Celestial Heart Sect... This place is only a few hundred li from Wanfu Mountain. Even if it’s an ambush, he can retreat to his Mountain Gate at any moment.’

Bai Zichen concealed his killing intent but deliberately activated his Five Crystal Glaze Body, making him as dazzling as the sun in the dead of night.

’Fengg Yishan took the initiative to send a letter, so it seems it’s just as he said: he was forced to ally with them under orders from the Qingqiu Death Sea... Even if that’s a lie and he’s trying to use this as an opportunity to ambush me, I’m not afraid. No one would have guessed that in less than a year, my Realm would already be taking shape.’

Compared to when he first arrived in the Southern Domain, his combat power hadn’t increased significantly.

But with his Realm now formed, whether someone could stay or leave was now up to him.

He would no longer be helpless as he was that day, when his opponent was determined to flee and there was nothing he could do.

Defensively, he also had a much greater margin for error.

A few days ago, Fengg Yishan of the Celestial Heart Sect had sent a letter stating that the Hundred Skills Sect had contacted his sect and the Red Flame Sect to prepare for the annihilation of the Five Elements Sect.

Fengg Yishan had clearly stated that he admired Bai Zichen’s strength and would absolutely not kick the Five Elements Sect while it was down. The letter was intended only as a warning.

Regardless of whether this letter was an attempt to sow discord or the Celestial Heart Sect’s way of currying favor after witnessing his strength, he had to act.

Until he dealt with the hidden threat of the Hundred Skills Sect, he could not leave in peace.

Relying on the Five Elements Annihilation Array, the Five Elements Sect would have no problem defending against an attack from a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

The key was that the Five Elements Sect wasn’t like the Holy Lotus Sect, which had several Secret Realms within its grounds. That sect could be self-sufficient even if besieged for a hundred years, holding on even after being cut off from the outside world.

As long as a Nascent Soul True Monarch was willing to stoop so low as to envelop Two Realms Mountain with his Divine Sense and kill every Five Elements Sect disciple who stepped outside the Grand Array...

...then in less than thirty years, the Five Elements Sect would collapse from the bottom up, unable to sustain itself.

’If this villain is not eliminated, my heart will never be at peace... Even if I leave Nanzhao to travel elsewhere, I will still be worried about what’s happening here.’

Bai Zichen wrote a formal invitation in the name of Fengg Yishan of the Celestial Heart Sect, asking Xin Youhuang to meet him here at midnight.

He simply added Fengg Yishan’s personal token from the original letter, waiting to see if Xin Youhuang would take the bait.

Under normal circumstances, dealings between two Nascent Soul Sects would certainly not be so frivolous.

But Bai Zichen was betting that with "Fengg Yishan" himself appearing before Wanfu Mountain right after the Hundred Skills Sect’s messenger had been denied an audience, Xin Youhuang—even if he had suspicions—would never imagine that the visitor wasn’t Fengg Yishan at all.

In the dead of night, only the harsh croaking of frogs could be heard. An hour had already passed since the appointed time.

’Fengg Yishan’ glanced up at the bright moon and turned as if to leave.

"Fellow Daoist Fengg, why the rush to leave! If I hadn’t just come out of seclusion and seen the letter your disciple delivered, I would have almost missed you!"

Like a phantom in wide robes and long sleeves, Xin Youhuang abruptly emerged from the shadows.

"I knew it! Body Refining Cultivators are a resolute bunch, not like that old fool from the Red Flame Sect, who’s actually afraid of some Northern Domain Sword Cultivator... The Five Elements Sect had Nascent Soul Cultivators in its ancestry. Once our two sects join forces to destroy it, we can each take a portion of their legacy to enrich our Transmission Halls!"

The man had clearly been observing from the shadows for some time, only revealing himself when he saw ’Fengg Yishan’ about to leave.

"Fine. But how will we divide the rest of the spoils?"

’Fengg Yishan’ said coldly, his face like a stone.

"We’ll split it fifty-fifty, of course, taking turns choosing... Wait, you’re not Fengg Yishan!"

Xin Youhuang cried out in alarm. His figure instantly began to fade as he tried to melt back into the darkness.

Bai Zichen sighed in disappointment. Externally, this physical transformation ability was seamless.

But without any Essence Blood, the flaw was too great. A Cultivator with a keen Spiritual Sense could discover the discrepancy without even needing to fight.

Even with Essence Blood, differences in speech, mannerisms, and habits would always exist, making it easy to be exposed in front of an acquaintance.

Unless one spent a great deal of time specifically studying and learning the target’s entire set of habits.

Regardless of how Xin Youhuang had seen through the disguise, the plan to lure him a step closer for a surprise attack had failed.

It just went to show that the man was extremely cautious, not letting his guard down even before his own Mountain Gate.

The moment he sensed something was wrong, he began to retreat immediately, not caring about the visitor’s identity or lingering for even a second.

’But to just ignore me, thinking I have no means to stop him from leaving? That is a grave mistake!’

A dark red sky rose behind Bai Zichen. A curtain of crimson clouds blotted out the black night sky, sweeping down to envelop the spot where Xin Youhuang was vanishing.

The man’s appearance had been bizarre, managing to deceive his Divine Sense, and his departure was just the same.

He had clearly borrowed the power of the Hundred Skills Sect’s Grand Array. It wasn’t difficult for a Tier Four Array to project its power hundreds of li away.

Once Xin Youhuang escaped into the Mountain Gate and raised his guard, killing him would be next to impossible.

To face a Tier Four Array presided over by a Nascent Soul True Monarch single-handedly, only a Divinity Transformation Great Power could hope to break the array with ease.

The Realm abruptly unfurled, enveloping the darkness around Xin Youhuang. In that instant, the space seemed to freeze.

The flowing black light ground to a halt. Xin Youhuang, who had already merged into the darkness, was spat back out, tumbling awkwardly in the air.

"Sealing space? Impossible! How can you do that without a Void Spiritual Treasure!"

Xin Youhuang scanned his surroundings and realized he was trapped in his opponent’s Realm, his connection to the sect’s array severed. A flicker of panic finally appeared on his face.

"I didn’t see you use a Realm when we last fought! Even if you started frantically performing the Refinement of the Power of Void the very day you reached the Nascent Soul stage, you would have only just now formed it at best... How can an incomplete Nascent Soul Realm possibly counteract the Teleportation Power of a Tier Four Array!"

"That’s right, an incomplete Realm... but it’s more than enough to trap you!"

Late-Stage Nascent Soul Cultivators were called Great True Monarchs because their Realm had reached Perfection, enabling them to mobilize Grotto Heaven Power and manifest the rules of their Realm into the world.

Ordinary Nascent Soul Cultivators had no ability to resist a Great True Monarch; they could not even flee.

Bai Zichen had used a Space Spiritual Object to rapidly form his Realm in just a few months; he was still a world away from Realm Perfection.

He hadn’t even begun the internal construction or started moving Spiritual Objects inside. He had only just integrated his own Great Dao into the Realm.

The world within his Realm, unlike the Realms of other Nascent Soul True Monarchs, did not manifest various phenomena based on his Basic Cultivation Technique and chosen path; it was still a vast void.

The only feature was that the Realm was filled with faint red clouds, which he suspected was a result of the combination of the Fire Dragon Returning Essence Scripture and the Holy Beast Aura.

Furthermore, changes in the flow of time were already clearly apparent within the Realm.

Although there was no sun or moon rising and setting, one could clearly distinguish the different hues of the crimson clouds during day and night, which shifted as the hours passed.

In the vast majority of Realms, even those developed to their final stage, the passage of time could not be felt. They were no different from a dead, silent patch of void inside a spatial rift.

Only when a Realm evolved into a Grotto Heaven would it gain a normal, stable sense of the passage of time.

This marked a stable Grotto Heaven World that had formed its own complete set of the Rules of Heaven and Earth, making it fundamentally different from a Realm.

Bai Zichen was many steps ahead, causing his own Realm to possess the concept of time. This was clearly inseparable from his path along the Great Dao.

It was perfectly normal for the Realm refined by a Cultivator walking the Time Path to exhibit strange phenomena that differed from the ordinary.

In practical terms, this meant his Realm could interfere with reality more effectively, like a version of Grotto Heaven Power that had been weakened countless times over.

And the unlucky Xin Youhuang had just become its first test subject.

"You think this is enough to deal with me?"

After his initial panic, Xin Youhuang immediately regained his composure. Three Cultivator Relics flew from his sleeves, growing larger in the wind. They were shockingly lifelike, with ruddy skin, as if they were merely in a deep sleep.

"I’ll let you witness the true foundation of my Sect!"

’You’re not from a Corpse Refinement sect. What kind of person carries around the corpses of his ancestors?’

Bai Zichen was greatly surprised, but he knew Xin Youhuang must have a purpose for this act.

But no matter what Secret Technique or Divine Technique this was, he had to kill this man today. Otherwise, the future trouble would be endless.

Three brilliant beams of Sword Light flared at the same time, illuminating Xin Youhuang’s terrified face.

The several Defensive Magical Treasures he deployed all at once were easily shattered, making Xin Youhuang grateful that he had brought the three ancestral Relics from the sect’s forbidden area with him tonight.

Otherwise, with his Dharma Aspect shattered and his strength greatly diminished, he feared he would have been unable to escape even if he’d sprouted wings.

But as things stood now, it was not yet certain who was the hunter and who was the prey!