Sword of Coming

Regardless of their initial aims and ulterior motives, three groups of people were targeting and hunting Chen Ping'an. Of the seven extremely renowned elites from the cultivation world, three had already been defeated on this street—Pink Vajra Ma Xuan, the woman who played pipa, and Ya'er from the demonic force.

Feng Qingbai was a madman who was traveling around the world as an adventurer, and he had been willing to do everything to achieve his aim. However, he had failed to kill Chen Ping'an with his surprise attack, during which he had smashed the wall and ruthlessly thrust his sword forward, and he had instead brought Ya'er to the brink of death.

The girl in wooden clogs who had the potential to inherit the position of leader of the demonic force as a female was still unable to turn her body at this moment. Her cheek rested against the ice-cold surface of the alleyway, and her slender and jade-like fingers lightly dragged across the bluestone slabs. Her eyes were filled with agony and pleading as she looked at Zhou Shi, the young man wearing a flower hairpin.

Even though she had been joking when asking Zhou Shi to promise to keep her alive just then, he had ultimately agreed to her request, hadn't he? That being the case, why was he still unwilling to help her?

However, Zhou Shi didn't feel a shred of guilt, and he even smiled faintly and nodded in acknowledgment as he caught Ya'er's gaze.

Lu Fang didn't make a move the entire time.

Meanwhile, the elusive Smiley Face had already exchanged a few attacks with Chen Ping'an. However, he hadn't managed to gain any advantage.

Zhou Shi gently turned the sanguine prayer beads in his hand and said, "Of the people still standing, I'm the weakest of the group. However, I promise that I'll unleash my full strength to deal with this person in a moment. Mr. Lu, Smiley Face, Feng Qingbai, can we temporarily set aside our differences to face the enemy together?"

There was a freaky smile on Smiley Face's face as he nodded and replied, "Regardless of who kills this person in the end, I only want a single thing from him, that immortal technique that shortens the land and transforms a long distance into an inch. If I can't obtain it, however, then my compensation needs to be rediscussed."

There was a fervent expression in Feng Qingbai's eyes as he looked at Chen Ping'an and said, "I have to be the one who deals the killing blow. As for his belongings, I won't take a single thing at all. Not only that, but I can also hand over the treasure that I'll obtain from killing an otherworldly immortal. You people can decide how to share the spoils."

Zhou Shi glanced at Ya'er, who was on the brink of death, before smiling and saying, "I only want her."

Lu Fang gave the final word, saying, "Then it's settled."

Feng Qingbai held his sword horizontally in front of himself before bending the fingers on his other hand and gently flicking the blade. There was an amused smile on his face as he said, "Sword Immortal Lu, you're not going to stand there and do nothing again, are you? Be careful of going for wool and coming back shorn. We don't want to end up as whetstones for this person to sharpen his martial arts cultivation on.

"You're the eldest and most powerful elite on our side, so I would rather pull out and abandon this opportunity if you still insist on hiding your strength and gambling with our lives in order to probe the strength of this person. If push comes to shove, I'll simply leave and let you people do whatever you want."

"Please rest assured," Lu Fang said with a smile.

After saying this, the sword immortal from Bird's Eye View Peak who had his palm on the hilt of his sword clenched his hand into a fist and dragged Dachun out from the ground, both sword and scabbard.

Immortals from the past had once written about a tree called Dachun.[1] This type of tree experienced spring for eight thousand years and then autumn for a further eight thousand years, and upon eating its fruit, mortal people could ride on iridescent clouds and ascend from the world.

While Zhou Shi and the others discussed things, Chen Ping'an silently prepared himself and got ready to fight. In any case, he still needed to familiarize himself with his current state where he wasn't restricted by his Dao robe, Golden Sweet Wine, anymore.

Of the three fist techniques that Cui Chan's grandfather had taught him, the Rain Evaporation Technique and the Heavy Cavalry Formation Shattering Technique were relatively straightforward in the sense that he simply needed to control the strength of his punches.

However, the Deity Drumming Technique was completely different, and having his punch be just an inch off would cause the might of his attack to decrease drastically. Moreover, Chen Ping'an needed to be on guard against Lu Fang, so it was necessary for him to carefully control the power and accuracy of each punch.

Ever since beginning to learn martial arts, this was the peak state of Chen Ping'an's fist techniques. At the same time, he was also experiencing the peak state of his physique, soul, and energy.

"He's making a move now. Be careful, everyone," Lu Fang smiled faintly and said in warning.

"Seriously, you're not going to give a heads-up before launching an attack? Where's your demeanor and pride as a grandmaster?"

While saying this, Lu Fang flicked his wrist and held the hilt of his sword properly for the first time. After grabbing his renowned sword, Dachun, Lu Fang's sword qi was so abundant that some of it suffused into the surroundings even though he was actively trying to suppress it.

This caused his clothes to flutter even though there was no wind, and this was especially the case with the sleeve on his sword-wielding hand, which expanded and billowed as it filled with intense sword qi. Sounds of ringing swords surprisingly traveled out from the sleeve.

Smiley Face instantly tensed up, and he immediately activated a secret technique from the damaged immortal text he had obtained by chance without any hesitation. Using an extremely mystical divination and formation technique, he immediately teleported from the east to the north.

However, a fist aura was already rushing toward Smiley Face before he could even ascertain Chen Ping'an's position. The fist aura blasted toward his face, causing piercing pain to spread across his cheeks.

It was at this moment that a burst of sword light suddenly appeared between Smiley Face and the powerful fist aura.

To Smiley Face, the peerlessly sharp blade resting horizontally in front of him appeared much like a snow-white strand of silk.

Chen Ping'an's fist was blocked by the blade, and this won a brief moment of respite for Smiley Face. His figure vanished several times as he retreated again and again, and it took him much effort to finally break free from the suffocating pressure radiating from the powerful fist aura.

Smiley Face had been active in the cultivation world for more than thirty years after beginning cultivation, and his favorite opponent had initially been external martial arts grandmasters whom he could handle with ease. In fact, toying around with those so-called grandmasters who hopped around and seemed relatively sluggish was much like playing around with a dog.

This was also why Smiley Face had earned the nickname Pesky Ghost. Several old grandmasters renowned for their martial arts skills had been brutally exhausted to death by Smiley Face, who was as pesky and elusive as a ghost.

This was the first time Smiley Face had come across a martial artist skilled in fist techniques who was even more elusive than him.

Smiley Face knew that Feng Qingbai might be able to save him once or twice, but he wouldn't necessarily be able to save him for a third time. With this in mind, he didn't hold back anymore, hiding his hands in his large sleeves as he retreated and dodged.

Several hiltless throwing knives appeared between Smiley Face's fingers, small and exquisite yet gleaming with deadly light. The blades of the knives were painted with dark green poison—the juice of heartbreak grass—and this was a poison most suitable for shattering a martial artist's aura.

When Smiley Face retreated fifteen to twenty meters away from Chen Ping'an, he saw that Feng Qingbai had also paid a price for launching an attack and helping him break free. Feng Qingbai was now being targeted by the enemy, and he quickly fell to a disadvantage after just two or three exchanges. His shoulder was struck by a sweeping kick, causing a loud crack to ring through the air as he was sent flying backward.

A blur of white stalked him like a shadow, and it was clear that Feng Qingbai, whose shoulder was dangling limply by his side, was in extremely dire straits.

It was Smiley Face's turn to repay the favor.

Numerous throwing knives shot out from his sleeves.

However, their opponent was a genuine freak, with each of his punches and steps appearing extremely calm and casual. Compared to Pink Vajra Ma Xuan's powerful stomps which would crack the paved streets after summoning a deity, Chen Ping'an's footsteps were so nimble that Smiley Face was almost convinced that his boots weren't touching the ground at all. It was as if Chen Ping'an were walking on air.

Smiley Face wasn't holding onto the wild hope that his six poisoned throwing knives would hit his opponent, and he was instead hoping that his attack could buy some time for Feng Qingbai.

Feng Qingbai cracked a grin and loosened his grip, surprisingly letting go of his sword.

A sword practitioner abandoning his sword?

Smiley Face couldn't help but feel anxious when he saw this. Perhaps the adventuring Feng Qingbai who had traveled from the north to the south in ten years and defeated almost half of the martial arts world with his sword was already out of tricks? Perhaps this was the limit of his measly power?

Feng Qingbai's sword didn't clatter to the ground. Instead, the sword blade shuddered slightly even though it wasn't being wielded by its owner. Ripples traveled through the air, and the sword suddenly became tense as it came to a rest in midair. The tip of the blade pointed upward, directly aiming at the young boy in white. The blade then disappeared in a flash.

Feng Qingbai shrugged his left shoulder which was aching with bone-piercing pain after being struck by Chen Ping'an's vicious kick. However, this wouldn't affect his combat power.

He brought the index finger and middle finger of his right hand together, forming a sword seal.

The mystical powers of sword cultivators couldn't be used in this small and constrained world. However, Feng Qingbai had already perfected the lesser technique of performing sword kinesis and manipulating his blade.

Feng Qingbai had entered this blessed land for the sake of tempering his sword. He was using every method at his disposal to temper his sword intent and sword heart.

The attacker and the defender switched roles.

A ball of snow-white and a streak of dazzling white danced around the alley.

Elsewhere, Zhou Shi carefully helped Ya'er up before propping her in a sitting position against a nearby wall. This would prevent her from being accidentally killed by Chen Ping'an's fist aura and Feng Qingbai's sword qi.

Feng Qingbai's sword strike which had pierced through Ya'er's back had truly been intense and vicious, and it had directly severed Ya'er's connection to her dantian. Not only that, but a wisp of sword qi remained in her body, preventing her from channeling her Qi to heal her wounds.

If no powerful elite came to extract that wisp of sword qi from her body and save her, then Ya'er would have no option but to wait for death. Even the sagely medicines from Vajra Temple were powerless against this wisp of sword qi.

Zhou Shi naturally didn't get lovey-dovey with her while an intense battle was taking place nearby. Squatting in the shadows of the wall, he applied some extra force with his thumb and pushed a prayer bead out from the string of prayer beads wrapped around his fist. The sanguine prayer bead didn't fall to the ground and roll away, and it instead bounced on the paved alley twice before vanishing into thin air.

Zhou Shi continued to scatter prayer beads onto the ground.

This was a defensive treasure that his father, Zhou Fei, had given him. If used properly, this string of prayer beads could keep him alive even if he were facing off against one of the Upper Ten Elites. Meanwhile, this string of prayer beads would allow him to directly kill those who were Lower Ten Elites.

Of course, Zhou Shi's father, the palace leader of Spring Tide Palace, had also warned him to flee if he could should he come across Ding Ying or Yu Zhenyi. If he couldn't flee, then it wouldn't be embarrassing or shameful for him to kneel, kowtow, and beg for mercy.

Feng Qingbai appeared calm and relaxed as he slowly walked forward, controlling his sword with his mind in a skillful manner as he hunted down the young boy in white. Chen Ping'an attempted to break free several times, yet he was eventually caught and attacked by the flying sword each time.

The flying sword was so quick that one could only see the streaks of sword light that it left in the air.

Smiley Face didn't dare to complicate things by trying to help, so he silently composed himself and adjusted his breathing. At the same time, he both breathed a sigh of relief and felt a sense of fear. After witnessing this exchange and seeing Feng Qingbai's true power, just what should he do if he were to battle against Feng Qingbai?

The young boy in white dashing around like a fluttering snowflake suddenly came to a stop and grabbed at the hilt of Feng Qingbai's flying sword.

However, Feng Qingbai was completely unfazed as he said, "How can it be so simple? You definitely can't grab..."

Before Feng Qingbai could even finish speaking...

Chen Ping'an grabbed the hilt of Feng Qingbai's flying sword with his right hand and struck its blade with his left palm.

The blade didn't shatter, but its tip curled up significantly as the entire blade deformed.

Feng Qingbai's two fingers forming the sword seal faltered slightly.

Chen Ping'an also held his index finger and middle finger together, forming a sword seal and rapidly running it over the blade of the sword, straightening it out perfectly.

He held the sword horizontally in front of him before releasing his grip.

While Feng Qingbai was standing there transfixed with astonishment, someone grabbed the back of his collar and forcefully dragged him back, throwing him more than thirty meters back.

The tip of the flying sword had only been a hair away from piercing Feng Qingbai's heart.

Chen Ping'an moved his fingers slightly, causing the flying sword to return and fly around him like an obedient little bird.

A sword expert's ability to perform sword kinesis? I'm capable of that too.

1. Dachun (大椿) is a mythological tree from ancient China, first recorded in Zhuangzi. ☜