Chapter 00199: The Returning Spear
# The Returning Spear
Chapter 199
Novel: After the Myth
Chapter 199: The Returning Spear
The strength of Liu Yinzhu was far outmatched by her opponent.
After a mere exchange, she spat out a mouthful of blood.
Ding Huan did not move.
He understood that this was not the time for him to intervene.
He hoped Liu Yinzhu could hold on for a little longer.
If she had no ultimate attacks left, they would be in danger today.
However, he knew that the likelihood of Liu Yinzhu revealing a greater move was slim.
It wasn't that Liu Yinzhu lacked powerful techniques, but rather that they were not close enough for her to risk everything for him.
Just being able to stall for a moment was already a show of great loyalty.
As soon as Liu Yinzhu retreated, that shattered bottle-like figure would definitely not pursue her.
Guan Jiao, on the other hand, continued to withdraw.
Facing a True Dan realm fighter, it was difficult for her to even be near their battle, let alone intervene.
To Ding Huan's surprise, after Liu Yinzhu spat out blood, she suddenly gave a fierce shout and charged towards the shattered figure.
Ding Huan stared at Liu Yinzhu in disbelief.
Was she truly risking her life? Since when did they have such a close relationship?
But Ding Huan still did not approach.
He was aware he would not win against that opponent.
Perhaps he could escape, and Liu Yinzhu might not be killed.
Yet Yan Mei and Lao Liu would undoubtedly perish.
Liu Yinzhu fighting desperately was his only chance; he absolutely could not lose this opportunity.
Soon, Ding Huan’s eyes brightened.
Before Liu Yinzhu’s True Dan aura clashed with the bottle figure, her sword shot out once more with an intense murderous intent, carrying a hint of destruction.
Even as an outsider, Ding Huan sensed it; the bottle figure would surely notice it too.
Its spear moved, creating a protective light barrier, yet suddenly, the sword in Liu Yinzhu's hands shattered into countless pieces.
“Crack, crack, crack!” Some fragments of the sword, under Liu Yinzhu's desperate encouragement, even tore through the barrier of the spear.
“Ding Huan, hurry and run…” Liu Yinzhu's urgent voice reached him.
She knew well that this move would at most injure the bottle figure, and could not even guarantee serious harm.
If the bottle figure dodged this attack, she would be left with no option but to submit.
Ding Huan seemed to grasp Liu Yinzhu's meaning; he swiftly turned and began to escape.
He understood that her killing move was too weak, falling short of his expectations.
In that case, he could only create his own opportunity.
The bottle figure had not come here to kill Liu Yinzhu; its target was Ding Huan.
Now that Ding Huan sought to escape, it would not allow him to flee.
Countless sword fragments pierced into the bottle figure’s body.
Logically, this should have been the best moment for it to kill Liu Yinzhu.
Yet, astonishingly, the bottle figure paid her no heed and instead dashed towards Ding Huan.
It feared that Ding Huan might escape into the West Wind River and suspected that Ding Huan had bought this small courtyard precisely for that escape route.
As long as it didn’t let Ding Huan escape into the river, a Qi training cultivator in its eyes was no different from an ant.
Thus, when it lunged for Ding Huan, it was completely unguarded.
In its view, Ding Huan posed no threat.
But just as its hand was about to grasp Ding Huan's back, a sudden feeling of death enveloped its vitality.
It saw Ding Huan spin around instantly, his spear booming forth.
The inertia was such that the bottle figure found it impossible to dodge in time.
Forcing itself to halt, it saw countless spear lights rushing towards it, locking down the very space it occupied.
In that moment, its soul trembled.
There was no time to consider anything else; it desperately burned its blood and true essence to break free from the spear's deathly hold.
But it was clearly too late; amidst the deathly spear light, it glimpsed the crushing breath of the vast universe.
It too wielded a spear, but it had never seen anyone merge the breath of the universe with the spear arts.
“Poof!” The bottle figure unleashed a jet of blood, finally feeling the space binding it loosen.
In that moment, the bottle figure dared not harbor any other thoughts.
It frantically dashed to the side.
If it couldn’t escape the spear now, it would be doomed.
Despite pouring all its strength into breaking free, the bottle figure still sensed its soul trembling beneath Ding Huan’s barrage of spear lights.
Its soul seemed to have separated from its body, plunging it into a nightmare where it wanted to charge forth but felt as though its soul was dragging it down, slowing its every step.
This wasn’t merely a spear technique; it was a means to cleave one's soul.
If it could beg for mercy, it would have done so long ago.
If it could regret, it would never have underestimated Ding Huan in the first place.
A chilling sensation struck its brow, causing its body to shiver.
The next moment, it saw a mist of blood burst forth from its brow.
“Thud!” The body of the bottle figure crashed down, scattering dust everywhere, struck down by Ding Huan's spear.
Liu Yinzhu stared in a daze at Ding Huan’s bloodied spear.
She had witnessed the bottle figure's actions clearly just moments ago.
It had clearly managed to escape the grasp of Ding Huan’s spear, yet the speed at which it exited the spear’s locked space was excruciatingly slow, as if in slow motion.
What a tyrannical spear technique.
Liu Yinzhu was utterly certain: Ding Huan had established his foundation.
Even though she had injured the bottle figure and it had underestimated Ding Huan, for a foundation establishing cultivator to shoot down the head of the bottle figure was indeed shocking.
What kind of foundation cultivator could be this fearsome?
Ding Huan reached out to take the bottle figure's storage bag, and fire enveloped the corpse.
As for the spear, he stored it in the Stellar Room.
“Elder Liu, we must leave now. If there’s anything, let’s discuss it on the flying ship,” Ding Huan interrupted Liu Yinzhu, who was still in shock.
“Brother Ding, you… you killed him?” Guan Jiao managed to come back to her senses, still finding it hard to believe.
“He was going to kill my brother Huan. If my brother Huan doesn’t kill him, what’s the point of letting him live?” Old Liu had long stood up, prideful, as if he had completely forgotten the peril he had just faced.
The bottle figure was indeed formidable, but it had seen many powerful figures, and in its eyes, this bottle figure was nothing compared to the ones from its era.
Yan Mei also regained her composure, saying excitedly, “Brother Huan, thank goodness you were here, or I would have surely perished today.”
“Senior, what brings you here?” came the voice of Dan Peng, who was accompanied by Qiu Xingyuan and Gu Bin.
Clearly, Qiu Xingyuan and Dan Peng had come along with Gu Bin.
As Dan Peng surveyed the chaotic scene, with Ding Huan having burned the corpse, there were still traces of blood on the ground.
“Dao friend Dan, is there something you need?” Ding Huan responded politely.
He was about to leave as Gu Bin would be guarding this place.
As the representative of the Burning Star Lord Nation, it was necessary for Dan Peng to maintain a good relationship with him.
Dan Peng quickly spoke, “Senior Ding, your achievements in West Wind City have been remarkable. Our kingdom’s monarch has specifically sent me to express congratulations and to extend an invitation for you to serve as the city lord of West Wind City.”
Ding Huan smiled, saying, “I prefer not to take the city lord position. Allow Gu Bin to take it. I plan to leave here and travel about for a while.”
“Ah…” Dan Peng was stunned.
After managing West Wind City so perfectly, he intended to leave so soon?
Then he realized, even True Dan realm experts treated Ding Huan with respect.
It seemed he truly had no need to remain as the city lord.
Gu Bin, hearing this, quickly spoke up, “Captain, you know my capabilities. How could I possibly take on the role of city lord?”
Ding Huan thought for a moment, then said, “In that case, I shall take on the title of honorary city lord. Dao friends Dan and Qiu, since West Wind City is a city of the Burning Star Lord Nation, it should be looked after a bit.”
Dan Peng saw that Ding Huan was genuinely leaving and added, “If that’s the case, then Senior Ding shall be the city lord. It’s fine for you to be absent, Gu Bin shall act as deputy city lord to manage West Wind City in your stead. Even in your absence, our Burning Star Lord Nation will ensure to guard West Wind City for Dao friend Ding.”
Making friends with someone as capable as Ding Huan was something every lord nation was more than willing to do.
Ding Huan did not refuse.
After expressing his gratitude, he boarded Liu Yinzhu’s ship with Old Liu and Yan Mei, swiftly departing West Wind City.
“Ding Huan, I never expected you would be able to kill the bottle figure. I thought surely I would perish today,” Liu Yinzhu said on the ship, still shaken.
Not just her; even Yan Mei thought she was doomed.
Ding Huan replied sincerely, “My strength is far inferior to that bottle figure. If it weren’t for Elder Liu injuring it and it underestimating me, I wouldn’t have been able to kill it…”
Liu Yinzhu shot him a glare and said, “Ding Huan, I’m calling you by name now. If you truly consider me a friend, don’t keep calling me elder.”
Ding Huan had no choice but to say, “Then I’ll call you Yinzhu sister from now on.”
Liu Yinzhu was quite pleased with the change, saying, “That’s better. Let’s go to Zixia Valley first. We can discuss matters there. No matter how domineering the Double Soul Sect is, they wouldn’t dare cause trouble at Zixia Valley without substantial evidence.”
“Sister Yinzhu, let’s make a stop at Yanyue Sect first. I need to return and hand over the cultivation method to Qing Yu,” Guan Jiao chimed in.
Liu Yinzhu looked at Ding Huan, who nodded in agreement, “Then we’ll head to Yanyue Sect.”
Liu Yinzhu's flying ship was a spirit tool given to her by the sect master Gu Mo.
With her fully channeling its power, they reached the outskirts of Yanyue Sect in just a little over a day.
Guan Jiao greeted everyone hurriedly before rushing towards the sect.
“Miss?” Qing Yu happened to be returning from Yanyue City and ran into Guan Jiao at the gate.
Guan Jiao sighed inwardly, lamenting her poor judgment in choosing such a maid to accompany her into the worlds of cultivation.
Now, she addressed her directly as “Miss,” having previously referred to her as “Sister Jiao.”
Proof that gratitude could easily be forgotten; after all, it was Guan Jiao who had saved her from starvation back in the day.
“Qing Yu, I will be going to the Ascending Realm soon. You must take care of yourself while I'm gone,” Guan Jiao said, suddenly softening her tone.
Qing Yu was taken aback; Guan Jiao was usually so stern.
Guan Jiao held Qing Yu's hand and sighed, “At first, I was a bit angry at you for not speaking up for Ding Huan. But now I’ve realized, we should have been helping each other all along. I’m leaving, and I'm just a little worried about you.”
Qing Yu knew about Guan Jiao’s plans to ascend and wasn’t surprised by her words.
While she pondered how to respond, Guan Jiao produced a jade slip and handed it to Qing Yu, “This is the Great Phoenix Red Cloud Technique that the young sect master gave me. I’m nearly finished with my training in it. When I get to the Ascending Realm, I’ll have plenty of cultivation techniques, but you might find it difficult to acquire good techniques. So this is for you.”
“Ah…” Qing Yu was momentarily startled as she accepted the technique.
She had long coveted this method and never expected to receive it so easily.
“I still need to make a visit to Yanyue City. You must practice diligently and not let me or the young sect master down,” Guan Jiao reminded her once more.
Qing Yu assured her, “Sister Jiao, don’t worry. I will not disappoint you.”
“Good. I’ll head to Yanyue City now.” Once she heard that, Guan Jiao felt reassured and bid farewell to Qing Yu.
(Today’s update ends here.
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(End of Chapter)