Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

Li Guanqi lay on the ground, feigning death, afraid that even the smallest movement would draw the eyes of the two mighty cultivators battling in the sky.

“Hmph! Cheng Yun, I suggest you cooperate while I’m still being civil. My patience with you is wearing thin.”

In the sky above, Cheng Yun’s face had gone pale. She was clearly weaker than You Daozi. Just as she parted her lips to speak, You Daozi attacked.

The weather shifted in an instant. A violent gale howled, whipping his white robes as he narrowed his eyes and raised his hands. His left hand flashed through a series of seals while his right swung the fly-whisk. Chanting what sounded like a mantra, he brought the fly-whisk down with force.

A blinding golden radiance burst across the sky, followed by metallic vital force that sliced through the air. Gigantic seals, each a hundred zhang wide, took form above.

Cheng Yun’s eyes widened. She answered with a burst of sword light, its edge sharpened with icy power.

The two clashed fiercely, from the skies to the ground, even into the depths of the earth and over the mountain peaks.

The earth quaked. Towering ridges split apart, and boulders crashed down the mountains.

Boulders rained around Li Guanqi, but he dared not move. He didn’t even breathe. Flattened to the ground, he swallowed hard and kept his eyes shut, forcing himself to appear lifeless.

The battle had reached its climax.At first, Li Guanqi thought the old man’s cultivation would easily overwhelm her. Yet it seemed Cheng Yun had concealed her true strength, as she was able to meet him blow for blow.

Anyone caught in her icy blast would freeze instantly.

Explosions echoed like thunder, and a crushing pressure blanketed the land. Li Guanqi could only marvel at the endless variety of their techniques. The two domains of vital force crashed together again and again, neither side giving way.

Before long, both showed signs of injury.

Even Sword Spirit awoke from her slumber.

Her angry voice rang in his mind. “What in the world were you thinking? Watching a battle like this? These cultivators are leagues above you!”

Li Guanqi’s face hardened. He wondered if Sword Spirit had been feigning sleep all along.

“Hmmph! If you’ve got something useful to say, then say it. Otherwise, go back to pretending you’re dead,” Li Guanqi said.

Sword Spirit scoffed. “Heh. I’d say pretending to be dead suits you best right now.”

Li Guanqi could not help but retort, “No shit! You think I needed you to tell me that? Of course I’m pretending to be dead…”

The clash above grew even fiercer. His back burned as if sliced by blades, each wave of force that swept past tearing at him. Scattered sword qi and turbulent air currents lashed across his back, but he didn’t dare move. He did everything he could to conceal his aura, holding his breath in terror of being found.

Boom boom boom!

Cheng Yun’s eyes burned with venom. She raised her sword and hacked down.

The old man swung his fly-whisk, effortlessly blocking her attack.

But then her eyes glinted coldly. Her right hand moved with practiced speed, subtly bringing a special pill to her lips.

Boom!

Her aura surged. You Daozi’s eyes widened. “Are you mad? You actually swallowed that pill?!”

Cheng Yun swept her disheveled hair aside, her composure gone. Her bloodshot eyes blazed as she shrieked, “You fucking old bastard! You left me no choice! If I don’t break through soon, I’ll be dead within a hundred years!”

You Daozi understood at once. She was speaking of the heavenly tribulation all Divine Transformation Realm cultivators faced every five centuries.

From the moment a cultivator stepped into the Nascent Soul Realm, they faced minor tribulations every three hundred years. But upon entering the Divine Transformation Realm, cultivators had to endure a major heavenly tribulation every five hundred years. Heavenly tribulations spared no one, regardless of their cultivation level and strength.

The heavenly tribulations wouldn’t diminish. In fact, they would grow stronger. No cultivator had ever survived a sixth major heavenly tribulation.

The sixth major heavenly tribulation for those in the Divine Transformation Realm was called the “extreme tribulation,” as it was essentially a death sentence.

Cheng Yun had already endured her fifth heavenly tribulation. If she failed to advance, her next tribulation would be her last. Driven by desperation, she was gambling everything.

Boom!

Suddenly, the tide turned. Her sword overwhelmed the old man, inflicting wound after wound. Cheng Yun was gaining the upper hand.

Their fighting turned the battlefield into a snowy expanse, with sword lights flashing everywhere.

“Ice Domain!” Cheng Yun yelled.

Boom!

A mysterious wave of power rippled outward, transforming the entire space within the barrier into her vital force domain. Her strength and speed increased drastically.

But Cheng Yun smirked coldly. “Thinking of leaving? I sacrificed a hundred years of cultivation for this brief burst of power. How could I possibly let you leave?”

Boom!

The barrier trembled violently. A colossal sword of condensed ice vital force took shape in the air.

Li Guanqi had reached his limit. His back had long since turned into a mess of flesh and blood. His body was stiff, frozen. Even his consciousness was fading.

Then, he sensed a warm energy coming from his sword box, protecting his divine soul and spirit platform. Sword Spirit could not bear to let him die.

She had already tested the three swords[1] and knew they would only harm her. As long as she suppressed her killing intent toward Li Guanqi, the swords would remain dormant, even if Li Guanqi died.

“If I were you, I’d run now.”

“Why?” Li Guanqi croaked, struggling to stay awake.

“Because when she spread her vital force domain,” Sword Spirit answered gravely, “she sensed you.”

Li Guanqi did not hesitate. You Daozi had opened a crack in the barrier, so he immediately leaped into the air and shot off as fast as he could.

The old man glanced at him in surprise, momentarily distracted. But the hundred-zhang-long sword was already cleaving down.

Cheng Yun cast a sidelong glance at Li Guanqi, then bellowed, “Blizzard Slash, Ultimate Frost!”

You Daozi knew he could not evade, so he turned to face the attack directly. He swallowed a handful of pills, shattered his fly-whisk, and pressed his palms together as if praying.

“Demon Destruction Seal!”

Boom!

1. This is likely referring to the three swords inside the sword box. They were first referenced in chapter 30. ☜