Chapter 23
Chapter 23
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: Innate Primal Qi Ten Thousand Spirits Banner
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Above the sea of clouds, Liu Xin took the initiative to soften his stance.
"Junior Brothers, if you're willing to bury the hatchet, I'm prepared to offer a superior Dao scripture as a gift."
"At this point? You must be joking."
Lu Yang laughed upon hearing this.
"Senior Brother Liu, we are all disciples of the Primal Saint Sect. Why put on an act? It's already a fight to the death between us."
"..."
Liu Xin did not answer, his face suddenly darkening.
Because Lu Yang was right. At this moment, the ones who truly didn't want to reconcile were not Lu Yang and Xiao Shiye, but Liu Xin and Fairy Qingchen.
The reason was simple: the sect's rules.
"Although the sect's rules are meaningless as long as you're not caught, once you are, they become all too real."
Lu Yang sneered, "This surely isn't the first time you people have set up a private ambush to rob fellow disciples. It's just that no one found out before. But now, if I go to the Hall of Enforcement and file a report after I leave, the truth will come out, and you, Senior Brother Liu, will face certain death."
"You jest, Junior Brother."
A muscle twitched in Liu Xin's cheek.
"We can sign a magical pact, agreeing that the events of today will not be spoken of to a third party. That way, I can naturally rest easy..."
"Really?" Lu Yang retorted.
Of course not.
Only the dead are truly trustworthy!
"Qingchen!"
At Liu Xin's low shout, Fairy Qingchen, who had been silent by his side, finally spoke. Her ruby lips parted, and she slowly uttered a single syllable:
"Open!"
Before the word had faded, the surrounding sea of clouds changed again, instantly manifesting towering peaks that trapped Lu Yang and Xiao Shiye in the center.
It was clearly another formation!
"Did you really think I was afraid of your Heavenly Demon's Blood-Transforming Divine Light?" Liu Xin, who surprisingly recognized Lu Yang's divine ability, sneered. A banner, fluttering in the wind, appeared in his hand. "Perfect. My 'Innate Primal Qi Ten Thousand Spirits Banner' is still missing a main soul to command it. Today, I'll use you to consecrate the banner."
"Go!"
Before Liu Xin could finish, Lu Yang had already merged with his sword pellet and shot forward in a flying slash. The overwhelming stench of blood immediately made Liu Xin swallow the rest of his taunt.
"Souls, return!"
Liu Xin formed a hand seal and vigorously shook the Ten Thousand Spirits Banner. Two wisps of misty white Qi were released, gradually taking human form as they swirled.
Lu Yang didn't stop, slashing down with his sword.
Under Liu Xin's command, the two figures also channeled their true Qi and met the attack head-on. With a boom, both were shattered by the sword Qi.
Liu Xin had just been about to join the two banner spirits he had summoned to fight, but seeing this, he immediately shrank back.
"Qingchen, now!"
Hearing this, Fairy Qingchen's lovely face grew solemn. She plucked a phoenix tail hairpin from her hair and threw it. The hairpin transformed into a streak of golden light, stabbing toward the spot between Lu Yang's eyebrows.
However, before the phoenix tail hairpin could reach Lu Yang, another treasure's light appeared out of thin air and intercepted it. It was none other than Xiao Shiye, the Many Treasures Child.
Not only that, but Xiao Shiye then flicked his sleeve, sending out more than ten magical treasures at once. Although their quality varied, they all radiated a dense, precious light. Yet, the moment he sent them out, they exploded violently in mid-air!
"BOOM!"
The exploding light of the treasures was like a series of small suns. It directly blocked the killing formation laid by Fairy Qingchen and nearly blew it apart from the inside!
Such an extravagant display made the other three's eyes twitch.
Xiao Shiye was certainly different from Lu Yang; he possessed no powerful magical arts or divine abilities. But when he fought, he clearly had no need for such flashy things.
All he had to do was toss out his treasures and detonate them. That was enough.
This tactic made Liu Xin's already grim face even uglier. He simply waved the Ten Thousand Spirits Banner, instantly summoning dozens of banner spirits.
These were all the fruits of Liu Xin's recent ambushes on his fellow disciples.
"You all, go reinforce the formation."
Receiving Liu Xin's command, the banner spirits immediately moved, positioning themselves at various points around Fairy Qingchen's formation to bolster its power.
Seeing this, Fairy Qingchen also felt reassured. A small flag appeared in her hand, and with a vigorous shake, the towering peaks manifested by the formation immediately responded. They locked down heaven and earth, sealing the four directions, while also firmly protecting her and Liu Xin, blocking Lu Yang's sword light.
Only then did Liu Xin smile in satisfaction before shaking the Ten Thousand Spirits Banner once more.
This wondrous treasure was something he had obtained along with the *Innate Dao Scripture* during a fortuitous encounter years ago. It was his greatest asset in battle.
The banner's power structure was said to consist of one main soul, two guardians, and three corpse gods.
As the saying goes, the Dao gives birth to One, One gives birth to Two, Two gives birth to Three, and Three gives birth to all things. Only by filling these six positions and pairing them with ten thousand souls could this treasure be considered complete.
It sounded simple, but Liu Xin had painstakingly refined it for over a decade without success. Ten thousand souls were the easy part; he could just find time to slaughter a mortal city to solve that. However, the six most important positions remained empty. Forget the two guardians; he hadn't even managed to gather the three corpse gods.
But even so, the treasure's power was still considerable.
"Kill them!"
Liu Xin shook the banner, and ten thousand souls flew out one after another. Unlike the banner spirits who had cultivation, these souls were all resentful ghosts formed from mortals.
Their quality was poor, but their numbers were immense.
Summoned by Liu Xin, they were like a monstrous wave, a black mass that descended and instantly submerged Lu Yang's figure.
More importantly, these were fleshless, resentful ghosts, completely unafraid of Lu Yang's Blood-Transforming Divine Light!
Yet, seeing this, Lu Yang was entirely unfazed.
The Blood-Transforming Divine Light was his most powerful technique, but not his only one. After refining his sword pellet, his Divine Empyrean Sword Control True Art was also formidable!
With a thought from Lu Yang, the sword pellet rapidly split into hundreds of sword lights. His figure then began to teleport and weave among them. He didn't engage the resentful ghosts and banner spirits head-on, but instead retreated when they advanced and struck when they tired, engaging the host of spirits in guerrilla warfare.
This was the true advantage of a sword cultivator.
Strike with one slash, then flee a thousand miles, only to attack again from another direction, wearing down the opponent until they reveal a flaw, and then finishing them with a final, decapitating blow.
In no time, the ten thousand resentful ghosts were slaughtered by Lu Yang, scattered and routed.
On the other side, Xiao Shiye had also gone all out, throwing out several high-grade magical treasures and detonating them, once again shaking the formation that had just been stabilized.
Seeing the situation gradually turning against them, Fairy Qingchen couldn't help but look at Liu Xin. "Senior Brother..."
"Don't rush. If I'm not worried, why are you?"
Liu Xin, however, remained calm. Xiao Shiye was one thing, but he refused to believe that Lu Yang could use his sword-shifting technique to slaughter wantonly without consuming any true Qi or magical power.
This was also his combat strategy.
First, release the unimportant banner spirits to wear down the opponent. Once their true Qi was nearly depleted, he would bring out his trump card to secure victory in one fell swoop.
In truth, he didn't want to use his trump card unless absolutely necessary. After all, that particular banner spirit was far too precious, and its identity in its past life was incredibly sensitive. If anyone saw it, he absolutely could not leave them alive. Otherwise, if even the slightest rumor got out, he would be doomed beyond redemption.
"So be it. You can't catch a wolf if you're not willing to part with the bait."
Liu Xin deliberated for a moment, then finally raised the banner in his hand and bowed respectfully.
"A powerful enemy has come. To resolve this crisis, I must ask Senior Brother to act."