Chapter 23: Innate True Qi Myriad Spirits Banner
Chapter 23: The Innate True Qi Myriad Spirits Banner
Above the sea of clouds, Liu Xin attempted to appease them: "If you two junior brothers are willing to cease hostilities with me, I am prepared to offer you a superior Dao book as compensation."
"At this point? You can't be serious."
Lü Yang chuckled at his words. "Senior Brother Liu, we're all disciples of the Saint Sect. Why pretend? At this stage, it's already a fight to the death between us."
"..."
Liu Xin didn't respond, his expression darkening abruptly.
Because Lü Yang was right—at this moment, the ones truly unwilling to reconcile were no longer Lü Yang and Xiao Shiye, but Liu Xin and Fairy Qingchen.
The reason was simple: the sect rules of the Saint Sect.
"Although the sect rules are meaningless as long as no one finds out, the flip side is that once discovered, they become very real indeed."
Lü Yang sneered. "You people must have ambushed and robbed fellow disciples before—it's just that no one ever caught you. But now, if I report this to the Law Enforcement Hall after leaving here, the truth will come to light, and you, Senior Brother Liu, will be as good as dead."
"You jest, junior brother."
Liu Xin's face twitched slightly. "We can sign a magical contract, swearing never to speak of today's events. That way, I would naturally feel at ease..."
"Really?" Lü Yang countered.
...Of course not.
Only the dead were truly trustworthy!
"Qingchen!"
At Liu Xin's low command, Fairy Qingchen, who had remained silent until now, finally spoke. Her crimson lips parted slightly as she uttered a single syllable:
"Activate!"
Before her voice faded, the surrounding sea of clouds shifted once more, instantly manifesting towering peaks that encircled Lü Yang and Xiao Shiye in the center.
Clearly, another formation had been deployed!
"You really think I fear your Heavenly Demon Blood-Transforming Divine Light?" Liu Xin actually recognized Lü Yang's divine ability and sneered before producing a fluttering banner from his hand. "Perfect timing—my 'Innate True Qi Myriad Spirits Banner' still lacks a primary spirit. Today, I'll use you as its sacrifice..."
"Go!"
Before Liu Xin could finish, Lü Yang had already merged with his Sword Pill and slashed forward. The overwhelming stench of blood forced Liu Xin to swallow the rest of his taunt.
"Spirits, return!"
Liu Xin swiftly formed hand seals and vigorously shook the Myriad Spirits Banner, releasing two wisps of hazy white qi that gradually took human form.
Lü Yang didn't pause, cleaving downward with his sword.
Under Liu Xin's command, the two manifested spirits surged forward with their true qi, meeting the attack head-on—only to be shattered by the sword light with a thunderous crash.
Liu Xin, who had been about to join the fray alongside his summoned spirits, immediately retreated upon seeing this.
"Qingchen, act now!"
Fairy Qingchen's delicate face tightened with seriousness. She plucked a phoenix-tail hairpin from her hair and flung it toward Lü Yang's forehead, where it transformed into a streak of golden light.
Yet before it could reach Lü Yang, another treasure light intercepted it—none other than Xiao Shiye, the Multi-Treasure Dao Child.
Not stopping there, Xiao Shiye unfurled his sleeves and hurled over a dozen magical treasures in one go. Though their quality varied, each radiated intense treasure light—and every single one detonated midair the moment they were unleashed!
"Boom—!"
The explosions resembled miniature suns, directly countering Fairy Qingchen's killing formation and nearly rupturing it from within!
The sheer extravagance of the scene made the other three twitch at the corners of their eyes.
Unlike Lü Yang, Xiao Shiye lacked formidable spells or divine abilities. But when it came to combat, he didn't need flashy techniques—just tossing out treasures and detonating them was enough.
This tactic only deepened the gloom on Liu Xin's face. With a swing of his Myriad Spirits Banner, he summoned dozens more banner spirits—all harvested from fellow disciples he had ambushed over time.
"You, reinforce the formation."
At Liu Xin's command, the spirits immediately scattered to key points of Fairy Qingchen's formation, bolstering its power.
Seeing this, Fairy Qingchen steadied herself and produced a small flag, shaking it vigorously. The towering peaks manifested by the formation shifted in response, sealing the space and locking down all directions while shielding her and Liu Xin from Lü Yang's sword light.
Only then did Liu Xin smile in satisfaction before shaking the Myriad Spirits Banner once more.
This extraordinary treasure had been obtained alongside the Innate Dao Book during a fortuitous encounter years ago and had since become his greatest reliance in battle.
The banner followed the principle of "one primary spirit, two guardians, and three corpse-gods."
As the Dao begets one, one begets two, two begets three, and three begets all things, only by filling these six positions and supplementing them with ten thousand souls would the banner reach completion.
It sounded simple, yet despite over a decade of painstaking refinement, Liu Xin had never succeeded. Gathering ten thousand souls was manageable—a quick massacre in the mortal realm would suffice—but the six key positions remained elusive. He hadn't even filled the three corpse-gods, let alone the two guardians.
Still, the banner's power was formidable as-is.
"Kill them!"
Liu Xin shook the banner, releasing a flood of vengeful spirits—unlike the cultivated banner spirits, these were malevolent ghosts formed from the resentment of slaughtered mortals.
Though weak individually, their numbers were overwhelming.
Summoned forth, they surged like a tidal wave, instantly engulfing Lü Yang in a dark, seething mass.
More importantly, these were spectral entities without flesh and blood—utterly immune to Lü Yang's Blood-Transforming Divine Light!
Yet Lü Yang remained unfazed.
The Blood-Transforming Divine Light was his strongest technique, but not his only one. After refining his Sword Pill, his Divine Firmament Sword Control True Formula was equally formidable!
With a thought, Lü Yang's Sword Pill split into dozens—then hundreds—of sword lights. His figure flickered among them, teleporting rapidly without engaging the spirits head-on. He adopted guerrilla tactics—advancing when the enemy retreated, striking when they weakened—whittling down the horde with precision.
This was the true advantage of a sword cultivator.
Strike once, retreat a thousand miles, then attack from another angle—wear the enemy down until they revealed a fatal opening for the final decapitating blow.
Before long, the ten thousand vengeful ghosts had been reduced to scattered remnants, their formation in tatters.
Meanwhile, Xiao Shiye grew even more ruthless, detonating several high-grade treasures to destabilize the already-shaken formation further.
As the situation tilted against them, Fairy Qingchen couldn't help but glance at Liu Xin. "Senior Brother..."
"Don't panic. If I'm not worried, why should you be?"
Liu Xin remained composed. Xiao Shiye was one thing, but he refused to believe Lü Yang could wield such relentless sword techniques without exhausting his true qi and magic power.
This was his battle strategy:
First, expend disposable spirits to drain the enemy. Once their reserves were depleted, unleash the killing blow to secure victory.
Truthfully, he hesitated to use his trump card—that particular banner spirit was far too precious, and its original identity was dangerously sensitive. If anyone saw it, no witnesses could be left alive. Even the slightest rumor would spell his doom.
"Fine. No risk, no reward."
After brief deliberation, Liu Xin finally raised the banner and bowed respectfully. "A formidable enemy approaches. To resolve this crisis, I beseech you, senior brother, to act."