Chapter 380: The Flying Smoke Sword! Cloudpiercer! Divine Blessing! Buddhist Beads!

With a flash of saber light, one of the towering pillars of blood was instantly torn apart. Before that viscous, filthy blood could even approach, it was completely burned away by the searing vitality radiating from Li Yanchu’s body!

He lowered his gaze toward the ruins of the cavern beneath his feet, his mind stirring.

“Come!”

Boom! Boom!

Two streaks of brilliant crimson light shot out from the rubble and landed in Li Yanchu’s hands. The moment he grasped them, he could feel the blazing, righteous power of fire coursing within. They were two ancient swords, and a bow with matching arrows. The surging flames they emitted lit up half the sky!

“The Flying Smoke Sword!? The Cloudpiercer!?” Li Yanchu exclaimed in astonishment.

The aura emanating from them was ancient and scorching, almost identical to that of the Heaven-Illuminating Seal. He channeled his Telekinetic Command, and at once the two swords turned into twin streaks of sword light, slicing through the air toward Madam Bai.

“It’s those two swords!” Madam Bai’s eyes widened in shock. They were the cores of the Southern Vermilion Bird Fire Virtue Formation. That familiar aura made her both afraid and furious!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

She waved her hand, unleashing waves of magic power to block the Flying Smoke Swords’ assault.

Whoosh

!

Muscles tensed along Li Yanchu’s arm as he drew back the Cloudpiercer, and a dazzling bolt of flame shot forth, crashing hard against the barrier before Madam Bai.

Boom!

The ground trembled violently, and the mountains shook. Madam Bai quickly formed a seal with her fingers, and the sea of blood came crashing down from above, its weight like that of ten thousand mountains!

“By the fire that drives the winds before and behind, that cleaves stone and subdues demons, let the fiends of the three realms bow, and the heretics of ten directions submit. Swiftly, in accordance with the command!” Li Yanchu’s voice boomed like thunder.

𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

As his chant ended, a vast divine power descended from the heavens. It was the power of Spirit Officer Wang, chief of the five hundred Spirit Officers of Heaven!

He stowed away his barely-mastered pseudo-mythical artifacts, calling instead upon the true divine force of the spirit officer. His eyes gleamed with blinding radiance, and his aura was ancient, sacred, and unstoppable.

“Kill!”

With a heavy swing, Li Yanchu’s Jiaoslayer came crashing down.

Boom

!

The sea of blood surrounding Madam Bai split apart in an instant, and the countless wailing spirits within were shredded by the saber’s light. Her body was hurled backward violently, and deep gashes opened across her smooth forehead and chest, allowing fresh blood to flow endlessly.

Though the mountainous magical power within her tried desperately to heal the wounds, the razor-sharp sword qi lingered, refusing to fade.

“Damn you!” Madam Bai shrieked, her voice laced with fury and disbelief. Even the Daoist who had sealed her all those years ago had only imprisoned her, he had never harmed her true essence.

But this young Daoist, this insignificant man had actually wounded her!

“Come!” Li Yanchu’s eyes turned glacial, while his battle spirit burned ever hotter.

He strode forward with thunderous steps, his presence like that of a primordial beast from the desolate ages.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The earth quaked beneath his feet, cracks splitting the ground from the sheer force of his advance.

Clang!

The saber light surged again. A full third of the sea of blood was cleaved apart, and the rest was evaporated by the heat of his surging vitality.

Madam Bai’s heart sank. She gathered her power, pouring it into an overwhelming wave of force, pressing toward Li Yanchu with all her might. Though she had not yet recovered her full strength as a third-realm Yang Spirit master, she could still command the very forces of heaven and earth!

“Suppress!” Madam Bai’s cold shout echoed through the heavens.

At once, the dense yin qi between heaven and earth surged together, weaving itself into a vast, pitch-black net that blotted out the sky and came crashing down toward Li Yanchu!

“Such petty tricks!!” Li Yanchu’s voice thundered majestically and domineeringly, “and you dare flaunt them before me!”

His roar was like rolling thunder across the heavens, shaking the world and terrifying all demons within ten directions. He thrust his fist forward, and the colossal imprint that burst from it looked as if it could shatter the very firmament!

Boom!

A golden divine phantom manifested behind him, looking radiant and sacred. The immense net of yin qi was blown apart instantly, and before the fragments could fall, a saber of chilling light came slashing through.

Seeing this, Madam Bai was stunned. She swiftly produced a flower basket, and with a flick of her wrist, the incoming saber light was sucked into it.

“You really think this seat[1] will fear you, Daoist!?” Holding the basket, Madam Bai’s confidence surged. This was a magical artifact that absorbed offensive spells, and it was mysterious and formidable beyond comparison.

In the past, when she had seduced a Buddhist disciple into demonic ways, even the old monk’s Dragon-Subduing Tiger-Taming Seal had been drawn into this very basket. And now, a mere Daoist who had yet to form his Yang Spirit had actually forced her to use it, which was a feat nothing short of astonishing.

Li Yanchu’s eyes gleamed coldly. Instead of striking again, he reached into his robe and drew forth a measuring ruler, then five-colored divine light erupted from it.

Swish!

The flower basket was torn from Madam Bai’s grip. In the very next instant, Li Yanchu used Telekinetic Retrieval, and the basket flew obediently into his hand!

Seeing this, Madam Bai froze.

The Radiant Gem Ruler!?

She spread her palm wide, and in it condensed a brilliant white longsword, forged entirely of pure magical power!

Clang!

The sword tore through the air, and its beam sliced across the ground, sending stone and dust flying. Though the Radiant Gem Ruler specialized in seizing magical artifacts, she could still rely on her immense magical power and divine abilities to crush her foe.

As a woman who could cultivate to the Yang Spirit realm, offend countless orthodox sects, and yet remain unscathed, Madam Bai’s combat prowess was terrifying and unfathomable.

Clang!

A sound like the tolling of a great bronze bell resounded through the heavens, its reverberations shaking the soul. But Li Yanchu ignored the sword beam entirely, charging straight through it head-on.

Madam Bai’s eyes widened in disbelief. Was this how cultivators fought now!?

And in that single instant, a saber light flashed! Li Yanchu’s arm fell and rose, and Madam Bai’s head flew from her shoulders. Her body turned to ash, scattering into nothingness before heaven and earth.

A heartbeat later, her true body appeared high in the sky with a flicker of fear still lingering in her eyes.

“Are juniors these days really this ferocious!?”

Madam Bai hesitated for a split second, then immediately turned and fled. But beneath Li Yanchu’s feet, clouds swirled into being, and he soared after her on a cloud, giving chase through the sky.

Madam Bai couldn’t help glancing back, her eyes narrowing sharply. A manifested primordial spirit? No, this was his physical body riding the clouds!

Her lips twitched involuntarily.

Where on earth did this battle warrior come from!?

When Li Yanchu had flown out of the cavern earlier, she’d assumed he was using an elemental escape talisman, never imagining he actually mastered the Cloud-Riding Immortal Art itself.

“Fellow Daoist, wait! Could you let this humble one go free?”

A moment ago she’d called herself “this seat,” but now that she was begging for mercy, she’d downgraded to “this humble one.” For Li Yanchu, this was the first time he’d met a third-realm Yang Spirit expert face-to-face.

“Demonic scum and heretical filth, there shall be no mercy!” Li Yanchu’s voice cracked like thunder.

The Heaven-Illuminating Seal expanded with the wind, and in an instant, divine flames swept across the heavens. The magical power shielding Madam Bai’s body flickered madly, and within a heartbeat, half her power was devoured by the heavenly fire.

“Damn it... I was too rash! I should’ve recovered my strength before facing this young Daoist!” Madam Bai regretted deeply.

Who would’ve thought that a man in the second realm could actually chase down a third-realm Yang Spirit cultivator!?

To put it bluntly, she was a disgrace to her own realm!

Sensing the surrounding auras, her gaze chilled. She flung out a surge of dense, violent magical power, then used her Sea of Agony to block Li Yanchu’s path..

Behind an ancient towering tree nearby, the innkeeper was hiding, and beside her stood Lady Yun, who was dressed in a plain blue gown with her hair neatly coiled.

They were far from Huangfeng Ridge, so Lady Yun had believed this place was safe. But to her astonishment, a third-realm Yang Spirit powerhouse was now being hunted down, and the pursuit was so fast it reached them in the blink of an eye!

As a wave of immense magical power hurtled toward them, Lady Yun gritted her teeth, slipped a string of prayer beads from her wrist, and hurled it forward. Then she grabbed the innkeeper’s hand.

“Run!”

The innkeeper stared, dumbfounded.

This woman... she’s way too composed, isn’t she!?

Murderous intent gleamed in Madam Bai’s eyes as she sneered.

“A mere string of prayer beads, and you think that can stop me?”

Boom!

But what she hadn’t expected was those prayer beads suddenly radiated a blinding golden light, filled with immense Buddhist incense and prayer power.

In an instant, the entire sky blazed. A grand Sanskrit chant resounded beside her ears, and not only was her magical power attack purified, even the killing intent in her heart was washed away, replaced by a sudden pang of guilt:

How cruel I am... Why am I trying to harm these two innocent women?

Then, she snapped back to herself, her expression twisting in disbelief, and her gaze turned strange.

Just what kind of people are around this young Daoist!?

1. As a Chinese term, “本座” (běn zuò) is a self-referential title used by figures of supreme authority in mythology and xianxia (fantasy) literature. It denotes a speaker who holds absolute power or dominance, a way for high-ranking beings, such as deities, sect masters, or ancient immortals, to refer to themselves with grandeur and authority. ☜