Martial Cultivator

Compared to the demons’ siege of the city, the battlefield several hundred miles away had far fewer combatants. But it was the more spectacular one in every sense.

The young martial artist streaked across the sky, drawing a black rainbow through heaven and earth.

Ahead, demonic qi billowed as a towering dharma idol stood between heaven and earth, terrifying beyond description. Anyone else would naturally avoid it if they could. But Chen Chao knew there was no avoiding it.

Not today, and not on any day in the future.

Not only because he had once spoken those words in the northern lands, but also because he accepted the salary paid for with the silver contributed by the people of Great Liang.

He had spent the people’s money and accepted their money. Even the lowest street ruffians in the pugilistic world understood that loyalty came first.

Besides, as Great Liang’s Lord Warden Commander, if he did not defend Great Liang, what exactly was he supposed to defend?

So, as he advanced, Chen Chao had already rested a hand on his saber hilt. Although the saber had yet to leave its scabbard, overwhelming saber qi already surged along his path.

Among the sword cultivators of the world, the higher one’s cultivation, the grander the spectacle when fighting, and the more overwhelming the aura. Just like the Sword Sect Master, who would summon tens of thousands of flying swords whenever he fought. Whether or not it was the most practical way to fight, it was certainly magnificent to behold.

Whether expert or layman, who would not praise a sword immortal for such elegance?

Over the years, whether through the poems of scholars or the admiration of cultivators, whenever sword cultivators were mentioned, no one regarded them lightly.

Besides... their killing power truly did live up to the reputation.

Sword cultivators had always ranked first. Daoist sages, scholars, and even the Buddhist bodhisattvas and vajras all held respected places in the world. Martial artists, on the other hand, had always been looked down upon. The situation had improved considerably over the past few years, but no one truly bothered distinguishing between saber users and spear users.

Nor did anyone rank them separately.

Chen Chao was already universally acknowledged as the greatest saber user of the age, but no one deliberately brought it up. At most, they would simply say he was an unparalleled martial artist.

Chen Chao had never been one to argue over such things. What others said or thought was unimportant. But now that he had come to the Northern Frontier and was about to fight in front of the countless saber-wielding martial artists stationed there, he was willing to display the bearing worthy of the world’s greatest saber user.

For no other reason than that those fellows wanted to see it. So he would let them see it properly.

Thus, as he continued rushing forward, a succession of spring thunderclaps erupted without warning. At first they sounded ordinary, but soon they became increasingly majestic. Before long, the spring thunder transformed into the booming thunder of summer, each peal sounding as though divine generals in the Heavenly Court were beating war drums to bolster the momentum of the young martial artist, who appeared no more than a speck before that towering dharma idol.

”Take a moment to watch! If you don’t, you’ll regret it for the rest of your lives!”

A voice suddenly rang out near the city wall like a clap of thunder. For a moment, whether the demons assaulting the city or the great cultivators fighting before the walls, everyone seemed to stop in unspoken agreement.

The demon lords all turned to look north.

Yu Xiyi let out a heavy breath and raised an eyebrow as he watched the demon lord turn away. He wondered whether he should seize the opportunity to strike with a sword and simply kill him, but after a moment’s thought, he gave up on the idea.

He considered himself shameless. But not that shameless.

Only Chen Chao could pull off something like that without the slightest guilt.

Still... you’re shouting for Your Father to take a good look? You’re a saber user. What kind of grand spectacle could you possibly put on? What, do you think you’re a sword cultivator?

But the moment that thought crossed Yu Xiyi’s mind, he was left dumbfounded. Although that battlefield lay several hundred miles away, the overwhelming saber qi stretching across the horizon was already astonishing enough, surging like a boundless sea of clouds with endless grandeur.

But as it advanced, why did countless snow-white dragons suddenly emerge from that sea of clouds?

White Jing’s true flood dragon form had already been enormous, yet every one of these surging white dragons was far larger than that white flood dragon.

Naturally, Demon Lord Redsleeve had also heard that earlier shout, so she had been watching that battlefield as well. Upon seeing those snow-white dragons, she glanced at White Jing with a smile that was not a smile.

The latter remained silent.

As a demon lord, he was already unimaginably powerful. Yet no matter how powerful he was, before someone who had stepped beyond Nepenthe, he still seemed rather insignificant.

......

......

Before everyone’s eyes, countless snow-white true dragons emerged from the sea of clouds. Together they raised their heads and slammed into that towering great demon’s dharma idol!

In an instant, dragon roars filled heaven and earth!

No matter how powerful the attack ultimately proved to be, it was undeniably magnificent to behold.

Yu Xiyi expressionlessly raised his middle finger. With that bastard pulling off something like this, then even if he killed one demon lord, or several, no one would fucking mention him anymore.

After the battle ended, so long as that fellow was still alive, everyone would be talking about this and nothing else.

Yu Xiyi let out a long breath. Sword qi surged forth once more.

Damn it. The more he thought about it, the angrier he became!

Once Great Sword Immortal Yu became angry, despite the fatigue that had already begun to set in, his aura unexpectedly rose another level.

Even the demon lords, who had just regained their composure, found it unbelievable.

Had the human powerhouses of this era already reached such a level?

A chill filled their eyes, strengthening their resolve to kill this young great sword immortal here and now.

Liu Banbi regained his composure and asked through voice transmission, ”Yu Xiyi, if I disregard everything and die here, can you cut all of them down with your sword?”

With two great sword immortals joining forces, there were few situations in the world they could not handle. But it just so happened that they were facing four demon lords.

Yu Xiyi’s expression became incomparably solemn as he likewise replied through voice transmission, ”Liu... Senior... even I know this isn’t the decisive battle. Shattering ourselves like jade here makes no sense. Even if we could take four demon lords with us, it wouldn’t be worth it.”

Yu Xiyi had always been an exceptionally proud man. Especially after reaching his current realm, there were even fewer people he truly regarded. But toward Liu Banbi, perhaps because of the camaraderie they had shared in the desolate north, or perhaps because Liu Banbi had originally been a scholar yet willingly came to this bitterly cold land to devote everything he had.

Whatever the reason, Yu Xiyi genuinely respected Liu Banbi.

Liu Banbi smiled faintly without saying another word.

His resolve would not change. If an opportunity presented itself later, he would not hesitate to sacrifice his own life so that Yu Xiyi could survive and take the lives of those demon lords with him.

As for who would protect his little junior sister after he died...

It went without saying.

After he was dead, wasn’t that fellow still over there?

As long as he was alive, could anything possibly happen to his little junior sister?

Impossible.

So Liu Banbi could die without worries.

He would consider it dying once for the sake of scholars.

Just once.