Martial Cultivator

Liu Banbi was different from most sword immortals in the world, not because his journey from scholar to sword immortal was unique, but because, compared with other sword immortals, the strikes of this blue-robed sword immortal were not particularly elegant. Instead, they were remarkably practical.

After all, he had become a sword immortal by killing demons in the Northern Frontier. His style was to use the least effort to achieve the greatest damage.

On the Northern Frontier battlefield, looking good was useless. Only efficiency mattered. Only by saving energy could one survive longer in battle, and that was what truly mattered.

After speaking a few words, Liu Banbi did not hesitate long when facing the several great demons. He raised his sword and attacked.

Although Liu Banbi had not yet stepped into the end of Nepenthe and become a true great sword immortal, he had already walked very far within Nepenthe. He was no ordinary sword immortal.

This time, facing several great demons, he did not fall behind even for a moment. Sword light scattered, sword intent flooded the sky, and the momentum of the demons was completely blocked by one man with one sword. For a time, it was impossible for anyone to approach the command tent.

Autumn stood in place, observing the battle with a neutral expression. She was not foolish; she knew that since Xie Nandu now had the ability to influence the course of the world, she must be extremely important to Great Liang. Such an important figure would surely be protected by powerful warriors. Liu Banbi was expected, but what caught Autumn off guard was that his killing power exceeded her expectations.

However, if it were only Liu Banbi, it was nothing to worry about. No matter how formidable he was, he was still just one person. Sooner or later, he would tire and die.

In Autumn’s estimate, besides Liu Banbi, who was also from the academy and her senior, there should be at least one or two Nepenthes protecting Xie Nandu.

The Northern Frontier Army would not ignore Xie Nandu’s life and death.

Autumn narrowed her eyes. Behind Liu Banbi, two auras had already crossed past him, silently approaching Xie Nandu.

One of the auras moved exceptionally fast, almost reaching the central command tent in an instant. The next moment, it was about to crash into the tent.

But at that moment, a flying sword suddenly shot out from the command tent. Its blade was as thin as a cicada’s wing, clear as water, exquisitely beautiful.

With a single swing, the vast sword qi rolled out and quickly forced that approaching figure out of the tent.

That alone would have been enough, but almost immediately, a second flying sword appeared. It was equally swift, slicing through the air so quickly that the naked eye could barely track it.

The two flying swords, one after the other, cut apart the demonic qi around the figure, revealing the demon cultivator’s true form.

It was a middle-aged demon cultivator who was extremely good-looking, dressed in black, exuding an oppressive aura from head to toe. Just looking at him could make ordinary people uncomfortable, let alone approaching him.

Each of the two flying swords carried more and more sword qi. After forcing the demon out of the tent, one of the demon’s hands waved, and a surge of demonic qi quickly enveloped one of the flying swords. In an instant, it was completely wrapped.

The flying sword was trapped in place, unable to move. Since one of the flying swords had been restrained, the second sword was easy enough to handle. But what he did not know was that the young woman he had never met never had only two flying swords.

Soon, a third flying sword shot out from the command tent, causing the middle-aged demon cultivator’s face to contort slightly in surprise.

In the world, sword cultivators with two lifeblood flying swords were already rare, and while somewhat exceptional, could still be accepted. But a third sword? That was truly unexpected.

Such a sword cultivator, there were probably very few like her in the entire world.

No wonder Her Highness the princess had mobilized so many to hunt down the woman who had never stepped into Nepenthe.

There was indeed a reason behind it.

But just as he was stunned, another flying sword shot out of the command tent.

A fourth?

No, the fourth sword alone did not yet completely shock the middle-aged demon cultivator. Almost immediately, a fifth flying sword appeared in front of him.

If that were all, it would have been surprising enough. But no one expected the sixth and seventh flying swords to appear in tandem.

Seven flying swords drifted in midair, scattering sword qi, as if seven sword cultivators had struck simultaneously. Even if the display could not be called overwhelming, it was enough to leave the demon cultivator speechless with shock.

Moreover, these seven flying swords did not pause once they appeared in the world, they swept forward together, continuously circling the demon cultivator.

In just a short moment, several wounds appeared on his body. Blood quickly stained him, looking pitiful and tragic.

He had not even seen the remaining two flying swords before Xie Nandu’s seven flying swords pierced his body, killing him instantly.

The demon cultivator collapsed with a roar. The command tent was lifted, and a quiet woman slowly stepped out, flying swords revolving around her before and behind.

There were many sword immortals in the world, and many of them were extraordinary, but none could match the aura of the sword cultivator before them.

A female sword cultivator with nine lifeblood flying swords, there was only one in the world.

The woman stepped out of the tent, calmly looking into the distance. There, another woman was quietly watching her.

Their eyes met for the first time.

Autumn was very calm. Xie Nandu was also very calm.

These two women, though perhaps with a significant difference in realm, were in many ways similar. One might even say they were almost equal.

Both were among the most elegant and commanding women in the world.

Now that they faced each other, it seemed inevitable that they would decide on superiority and survival.

Autumn narrowed her eyes, saying nothing. Her gaze instantly turned snow-white. As a demon lord at the end of Nepenthe, if she wished, she could have struck to kill Xie Nandu outright. If she did, the matter would not be so complicated. At least, Xie Nandu’s nine flying swords were nothing for Autumn to worry about.

After all, a sword cultivator who had not stepped into Nepenthe, no matter how many flying swords she had, was ultimately of little consequence.

Besides, if Xie Nandu was the bait on her hook, then if the bait vanished too soon, how would the big fish she intended to catch ever bite?

Autumn turned her head and deliberately averted her gaze. It wasn’t that she was losing the staring contest with the other woman; rather, something else seemed to have come to her mind.

......

......

Over at Liu Banbi’s side, the sword qi still surged. Sword qi ran rampant across the sky, tearing and tugging at the air so that the several numerically superior great demons could do nothing for the moment. One great demon had already unfurled a dharma idol, but Liu Banbi quickly cleaved it with a single stroke. Terrifying sword qi rained down from above as if to rip the sky apart; when it landed, it became a brilliant streak of light that ripped open the dharma idol in an instant.

After delivering that stroke, Liu Banbi pressed forward and delivered another. Standing alone against several great demons, the sword immortal showed not the slightest fear and even seemed intent on using his sword to fell great demons.

Anyone familiar with Liu Banbi would not have been surprised. This sword immortal had earned a reputation at the Northern Frontier Great Wall for a hot temper, he was not the sort to let others boss him around.

Even facing enemies several times his number, he struck whenever he ought to strike, with no hint of retreat.

At this moment, sword light blazed and flowed. One man with one sword, Liu Banbi closed in on a great demon, tore open the demonic qi barrier before him, and thrust a sword forward. At the tip, sword qi surged and in an instant tore a gash.

The great demon frowned but did not retreat. Instead he thrust out a hand, sweeping forth an endless tide of demonic qi to block Liu Banbi for a moment.

He knew he was not the only one facing the sword immortal: if he stalled this sword immortal even briefly, reinforcements would soon arrive to finish the job.

Then, with several together, there would be no doubt they could make this sword immortal remain here forever. The demons’ thinking had always been the same, if given the chance, they could not allow him to leave alive.

Human powerhouses was already fewer than demon powerhouses, those human powerhouses willing to come to the Northern Frontier Great Wall were even rarer. Killing one here would make Great Liang that much weaker.

Moreover, Liu Banbi was an outstanding one among them.

They thought their plan clever, but Liu Banbi was not so easily killed.

In other words, if he were truly that easy to slay, he would already have died at the Northern Frontier Great Wall long ago and would not be alive now.

Liu Banbi cleaved through the great demon’s rolling demonic qi with a single sword slash, using the momentum to roll through the air, and without turning, thrust another sword strike behind him.

A dazzling sword light immediately filled the surrounding space, preventing the great demons who had intended to join forces to grievously wound or even kill Liu Banbi from approaching.

“This is too terrifying.”

From the void, the voice of a great demon could be heard. They could see that Liu Banbi had not yet set foot in the end of Nepenthe, had not become a true great sword immortal.

But all the more, this made him even more frightening.

Not having reached the end of Nepenthe meant that Liu Banbi and they were still in the same realm, yet all were of Nepenthe. So why could Liu Banbi so effortlessly block their attacks?

“Sword cultivators cannot be judged by ordinary logic, especially this one before us. He is stranger still.”

A great demon murmured, his expression grave.

“Do not hold back any longer. Together, we will strike him down today. Once he is gone, the human race will lose a sword immortal, and the overall situation will be beneficial.”

Another great demon quickly summarized, speaking with decisiveness.

As his voice fell, a massive banner fluttered into the air against the wind. The banner billowed, and in an instant, terrifying demonic qi poured from it, turning this patch of sky black.

Demon cultivators rarely have the skill to forge magic artifacts. Even if they did, they were usually spears or polearms; rarely a magic artifact like this massive banner.

As the banner appeared, the demonic qi of the other great demons surged toward it uncontrollably.

In an instant, the banner absorbed countless streams of demonic qi and began to expand, eventually seeming to occupy half the sky.

At this moment, from the surface of the banner, demonic qi kept surging outward, and one by one, strange beasts emerged.

Their roars were unceasing, the terrifying sound waves instantly spreading across heaven and earth.

It was as if thousands of armies and countless horses were charging together.

Meanwhile, the other great demons exchanged glances and unleashed their ultimate techniques. The sky resounded with terrifying roars.

Layers of demonic qi stacked above the sky, forming what looked like an endless black ocean.

Liu Banbi’s sword light continuously appeared, only to be swallowed again. In the shifting chaos, the sword immortal seemed to vanish entirely, like a small boat engulfed by raging winds and waves, disappearing from sight.

The combined techniques of several great demons were far too strong. Even though Liu Banbi was a sword immortal with terrifying killing power, at this moment, he seemed nearly helpless.

He kept unleashing sword strikes, but even as the sword lights slashed out, they could no longer tear through the demonic qi. It looked as though this sword immortal was about to be completely engulfed, about to lay down his life here.

The great demons exchanged glances, excitement evident in their eyes. This was exactly the scenario they had been waiting for. It was finally coming to fruition, how could they not be pleased?

Yet at that moment, a brilliant sword light flashed again. The blue-robed sword immortal, who had long been submerged, reappeared and laughed loudly: “You want to kill me, Liu Banbi? Not so easy!”

With his laugh, he spat a mouthful of blood, and at the same time, a sword light blazed forth, cleaving through a section of demonic qi. It even severed the arm of a great demon. But as the demon spat blood in return, Liu Banbi was struck by a surge of demonic qi, and his body began to stagger violently.

It seemed this sword immortal’s fall could come at any moment.

From afar, Autumn watched this scene without a trace of satisfaction. Instead, her gaze darted left and right, as if searching for something.

She knew clearly that, having deployed so many great demons here, it was impossible that Xie Nandu had only Liu Banbi as her escort.

And what Autumn was looking for were the other powerhouses guarding Xie Nandu.

Now Liu Banbi seemed on the verge of collapse, yet the hidden figures still had not appeared, which made Autumn increasingly uneasy.

Though she was still “fishing,” an uneasy feeling had begun to rise.

......

......

The demonic qi swept endlessly across the sky, and the sword immortal’s situation had become extremely perilous. Xie Nandu stood before her great tent, watching Liu Banbi intercept the great demons for her.

On the ground, the soldiers continued fighting as if the clash between these powerhouses had no impact on them.

This world seemed to be divided clearly at this moment.

And Xie Nandu was the point where the two worlds intersected.