Chapter 253: Breaking the Enemy (Seeking Subscriptions)
Chapter 253: Breaking the Enemy (Seeking Subscriptions)
Yuan Feihong employed a secret technique, his escape light flickering as if between existence and non-existence, following far behind Zhong Hongyu, who rode the Green Corner Fish Dragon.
"Brother Fang is still overly cautious. Although Daoist Zhong is only at the early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation, her spiritual root is profound, and with a mid-stage Foundation Establishment Green Corner Fish Dragon, what is there to fear?"
Above Myriad Islands Lake, mists drifted ethereally.
Before long, Spirit Sky Island came into view, truly shrouded by layers of ghostly mist, with numerous bizarre ghosts flickering in and out of sight within.
Zhong Hongyu circled Spirit Sky Island once, then suddenly patted her storage pouch, pulling out a red waist drum spirit artifact.
This was a mid-grade spirit artifact—the Blazing Flame Drum—crafted by Ruan Xing Ling, a true masterpiece among sound-wave spirit artifacts.
Paired with the 'Profound Sound Art', it held an even more extraordinary use.
Boom, boom!
"Aooooo!"
A green-furred monkey with four arms glared at Zhong Hongyu, its eyes emitting a fierce, greenish-blue light, and abruptly let out a roar.
From within the ghostly mist, a winged serpent with tattered wings flew out, flicking its purple tongue and continuously spitting out beams of gray light.
Hehehe!
Amidst the eerie laughter, a skeleton of human bones, entirely ablaze with greenish-blue phosphorescent flames, materialized, letting out strange cackles as it manipulated green ghostly flames to attack its foe.
"A ghost comparable to a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator?"
Zhong Hongyu's expression subtly shifted. "No wonder Yan Dongqing couldn't hold on. . ."
She twisted her waist, and the Blazing Flame Drum unleashed earth-shattering sounds, its sound waves and flames ceaselessly entwining with the ghostly fires, light beams, and mist.
After a violent flash of spiritual light, the woman let out a muffled grunt, seeming to have suffered a minor setback, and rapidly retreated.
Swish!
The ghost serpent with tattered wings took the lead, beating its wings in pursuit.
Just as the following skeleton and ghost monkey were about to pursue, a dragon's shadow flashed in the sky. Big Green suddenly burst forth from a layer of nearby mist, spitting out spheres of water, blocking the two major ghost entities behind.
Seeing that the enemy had been reduced to one, Zhong Hongyu immediately chuckled lightly, raised her hand slightly, and released a second-order talisman.
Rumble!
A thunderclap sounded in the sky, and a massive green bolt of lightning descended, striking the ghost serpent directly. It was split so violently that its scales flew, and ghostly mist scattered in all directions.
"As expected. . . low-level ghosts possess little intelligence."
Zhong Hongyu let out a light chuckle. Facing this ghost serpent that had fallen for her feigned retreat, she conjured another crimson orb and smashed it down directly.
This orb contained a perpetually burning cluster of flames; it was a fire-attributed spirit artifact.
Against ghosts, if one lacked lightning-attributed talismans and spirit artifacts, then naturally, fire-attributed ones would be most effective.
Bang!
The orb spirit artifact transformed into a streak of light, smashing a large hole in the ghost serpent's head.
Zhong Hongyu continuously patted the waist drum, and waves of sound-flame blades sliced the serpent into seven or eight segments.
Not far away, the Green Corner Fish Dragon was still entangled with the skeleton of human bones.
The ghost monkey, having just escaped the Green Corner Fish Dragon's frantic assault, came chasing, only to witness this scene. It let out a strange shriek and immediately ran back, attempting to rejoin the human bone skeleton.
"Hehe. . . where do you think you'll escape to?"
Zhong Hongyu controlled the orb spirit artifact, ruthlessly smashing it onto the ghost monkey's back.
It was at this moment that the lake's waters suddenly turned greenish-black like ink, and a flying sword, radiating a desolate green light, abruptly shot out.
This flying sword was entirely bone-white, appearing to be forged from a cultivator's skeleton, and upon it burned greenish-blue phosphorescent flames!
From it, an dazzling fluctuation, no weaker than that of a superior-grade spirit artifact, even erupted!
"Not good!"
Zhong Hongyu's expression shifted repeatedly. Caught by a sudden sneak attack, her spiritual light barrier was pierced through by the bone sword in an instant.
The next moment, she fiercely formed a hand seal, and with a flash of spiritual light on her body, she teleported away, reappearing more than ten yards distant.
Ever since reaching Foundation Establishment, she could effortlessly cast Qi Refinement-stage spells, and at an extremely swift pace!
"Eh?"
A soft exclamation sounded from the bottom of the lake, and a figure flew out.
This person's face vaguely resembled that of a handsome scholar, clad in a black robe, with a refined appearance, yet carrying an aura of Yin energy.
Upon closer inspection, one would notice that his feet floated eerily, as if he had no legs at all. . .
"That spell of yours is quite interesting. To think you could escape a single sword strike from me. . ."
The ghost cultivator scholar's words were also quite awkward and halting, seemingly carrying a hint of an ancient accent, making his cadence slightly different from modern speech.
Even more terrifying was that, as this ghost cultivator scholar appeared, a surge of magical power, comparable to a Perfected Foundation Establishment cultivator, furiously spread outwards.
"A Perfected Foundation Establishment ghost cultivator?"
"And such clear consciousness?"
Zhong Hongyu gritted her teeth, her escape light flying towards the Green Corner Fish Dragon. She intended to flee into Spirit Sky Island with it, relying on the grand array to hold out to the death, abandoning even her own orb spirit artifact.
"Oh, trying to leave?"
The ghost cultivator scholar chuckled softly, "First, let's witness this humble one's Yin Mountain Art divine ability!"
He formed hand seals with both hands, muttering incantations under his breath.
Above Zhong Hongyu's head, an inky black mountain peak had appeared at some unknown time, and strands of Yin energy, like chains, rustled down from its base.
"Go!"
Zhong Hongyu slapped her waist drum, and the flame sound-wave blades slashed onto the inky black Yin chains, surprisingly erupting in showers of sparks, yet the chains appeared entirely unharmed.
Greatly alarmed, Zhong Hongyu was about to employ a secret technique to break through space and flee.
"How could I let you escape?"
The ghost cultivator scholar grinned maliciously, and from the base of the Yin Mountain, circle after circle of grayish-white light erupted, accompanied by wails of ghosts and howls of wolves.
Zhong Hongyu's Sea of Consciousness trembled, her vision swam, and the magical power within her body uncontrollably surged wildly. Her face instantly paled, clearly having suffered a minor disadvantage.
"Go!"
Just as she was about to be ensnared by the iron chains, a voice suddenly sounded in her ear.
A series of golden light bursts flashed, heavily striking the Yin Mountain, instantly making the small mountain appear illusory.
She immediately teleported out of the Yin Mountain's range, regrouping with the Green Corner Fish Dragon, warily observing the ghost cultivator scholar.
"Oh? Another late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator?"
The scholar surnamed Liao smiled faintly, his eyes glinting with an inky green light as he saw Yuan Feihong appear. "This Concealment Art is truly excellent. Could Daoist Friend be that old tortoise who never leaves Dragon Fish Island?"
"Not so. . . This Hong is merely a minor guest elder of Dragon Fish Island."
Wearing a bronze mask, Yuan Feihong replied with a hearty laugh, "As for this esteemed brother. . . you seem different from ordinary ghost cultivators. Perhaps you are the remnant soul of a cultivator from the Nine Leaves Sect?"
"My former self and I have no relation anymore. However, Daoist Friend's soul must taste quite excellent. . ."
The ghost cultivator scholar's smile was exceptionally sinister, even tinged with a hint of greed. "Fine. . . though I didn't lure out the Dragon Fish Island Master this time, a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator is barely enough."
He suddenly let out a long howl heavenward, and two powerful surges of magical power rapidly approached.
"Not good, two more late-stage Foundation Establishment ghost cultivators!"
Yuan Feihong's expression changed rapidly. He flashed to Zhong Hongyu's side. "This truly is a trap. . . The opponent could have forcefully breached Spirit Sky Island's formation, yet they waited for us to fall into their net. . . Later, I'll hold back that scholar, and you and the Fish Dragon should leave as quickly as possible, escaping to Dragon Fish Island. . ."
"Wait, before the Island Master left, he gave me a life-saving talisman."
Zhong Hongyu opened the box, took out a talisman radiating brilliant purple light, and, gazing at the pursuing ghost cultivator scholar, a flicker of hatred crossed her face as she continuously infused her liquefied magical power into the talisman.
Buzz!
The purple talisman flew into the sky, emitting a powerful hum!
Immediately after, a sword light that pierced through heaven and earth appeared!
Immortal Slaying Sword Qi!
This talisman, naturally, was the 'Immortal Slaying Treasure Talisman' drawn by Fang Xi!
Rumble!
As the sword light unfurled, countless streaks of sword qi, green with flecks of gold, enveloped the ghost cultivator scholar. Then, countless sword lights exploded, gradually grinding away his aura.
The sword light's momentum remained undiminished; it was as if a single sword strike had cleaved Myriad Islands Lake, causing the waters to automatically part to both sides, tearing apart everything in its path.
The boundless sword qi shot straight into the sky, tearing even the clouds apart, revealing dazzling, piercing sunlight that spilled onto the constantly overcast Myriad Islands Lake.
One Sword Cleaves Heaven!
It had been a long time since such magnificent and brilliant sword qi and sunlight had been seen across the entirety of Myriad Islands Lake.
The two other approaching Foundation Establishment ghost cultivators saw this scene, immediately let out two strange cackles, and without looking back, fled at an even faster speed in the direction they came from, effectively escaping directly.
"My magical power. . . is exhausted. . . and I can't control the talisman to pursue the enemy. What a pity. . ."
Zhong Hongyu's face was completely pale as she leaned against the Green Corner Fish Dragon, murmuring.
"This is. . . a third-order talisman?"
Yuan Feihong looked at Zhong Hongyu, feeling a hint of envy. "The Island Master actually bestowed upon you even a third-order talisman for self-defense, which shows how highly he values you. . ."
Such third-order resources were extremely rare even in White Peace Immortal City; Yuan Feihong had barely seen a few.
"The Island Master. . . seems to be delving into the Dao of Talisman Making. . ."
Zhong Hongyu instructed the Green Corner Fish Dragon to pursue the ghost monkey and the human bone skeleton, murmuring a sentence to herself.
"What?"
Yuan Feihong was taken aback, an incredible thought surfacing in his mind: 'Could it be. . . Brother Fang not only has considerable attainments in alchemy, but has even reached the third-order level in the Dao of Talisman Making? '
'Senior Brother Ouyang. . . just what did you miss back then? '
A thought emerged in his heart, and a hint of dejection couldn't help but appear on his face.
...
Not long after, the human bone ghost was caught by the Green Corner Fish Dragon. After a struggle, it was trapped within a ball of water mist.
As for the ghost monkey, it was overtaken by Yuan Feihong and casually slain.
At this moment, on Spirit Sky Island, the Six Profound Turtle Shell Array opened a passage, and Yan Dongqing flew out from it, joining the battle to besiege the human bone ghost.
With several Foundation Establishment cultivators working together, even if this human bone ghost was comparable to a mid-stage Foundation Establishment entity, it could only be easily annihilated, turning into dense clumps of ghostly mist, which were then incinerated by true flames.
"Two Daoist Friends, thank you both for your assistance. My Yan family is eternally grateful!"
Yan Dongqing bowed solemnly to the two, appearing profoundly grateful.
In fact, he had wanted to come out and help long ago, but after a slight delay, he witnessed Zhong Hongyu fall into the trap.
Immediately thereafter, he witnessed that astonishing sword strike!
'The Dragon Fish Island Master is truly unfathomable. . . '
Yan Dongqing glanced once more at the flaunting Green Corner Fish Dragon, a wave of emotion stirring in his heart.
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