Cultivation Begins From The Desert-Chapter 788 - 771: Sword Challenges Half-Step True Immortal!
Without lingering long at the Zhou Family, Zhouyang, after waiting for Li Hong’s hundred-day mourning period to pass, left the Zhou Family and embarked on his return journey.
What he did not expect was that shortly after leaving the Zhou Family, someone began to follow him.
Even though the person following him possessed extraordinary cultivation and had superb means of concealing their aura.
The opponent clearly did not anticipate that Zhouyang’s Divine Sense had already reached a level surpassing that of a Ninth-Layer Nascent Soul "Half-Step True Immortal" Realm Cultivator.
Fearing implicating the Zhou Family, even though Zhouyang discovered someone following him, he still refrained from revealing any sign, nor did he change his course.
It wasn’t until he had flown over hundreds of thousands of miles, when he was less than a hundred thousand miles away from Fire Birch Mountain Cave Mansion, that he suddenly stopped his flight.
He moved his body, flew out from the Misty Cloud Vehicle, raised his hand to collect this Magical Artifact into his sleeve, and looked back with a cold expression towards a certain void behind him, shouting coldly, "You’ve followed Zhou all this way, what might you have to say?"
"You were actually able to discover me! It seems I might have underestimated you a bit earlier,"
The Gang Wind in the void suddenly stilled, revealing a purple-robed elder with a look of surprise on his face.
"I wondered who would track Zhou for no reason, turns out it’s Fellow Daoist Xiao from the Purple Mist Sect!"
Zhouyang’s eyes narrowed slightly, he looked at the purple-robed elder with a slightly cold expression and said in a deep voice, "Even if Fellow Daoist Xiao is a Ninth-Layer Nascent Soul Cultivator, you owe Zhou an explanation for today’s matters!"
This purple-robed elder was indeed the guardian of the Six Paths Alliance, "Master Purple Mist" Xiao Yuanli.
Xiao Yuanli evidently did not expect Zhouyang to dare to make such bold statements after recognizing his identity.
For a moment, he was slightly stunned, then his face darkened, and he smiled coldly, "Heh, youngsters really are ignorant of the heavens’ vastness, daring to say anything!"
"Is Fellow Daoist Xiao trying to act superior because of age? Let Zhou learn from your superb skills then!"
Zhouyang gave a loud shout, waved his sleeve, and a stream of silver Flying Swords poured out of his sleeve, quickly filling the sky.
"This is... quite the grand gesture!"
Xiao Yuanli’s expression changed with astonishment, looking with amazement at the thirty-six silver Flying Swords, his gaze suddenly became sharp.
Having cultivated for nearly three thousand years, it was his first time seeing so many Tier Six Flying Swords at once, his first time witnessing a complete set of Tier Six Flying Swords.
With his cultivation, a single Tier Six Flying Sword, even a Tier Six High-grade Flying Sword, wouldn’t be enough to faze him in the slightest.
But a set of thirty-six Tier Six Flying Swords, even if they were only Tier Six Lower Grade Flying Swords, was enough to make him marvel and regard them seriously.
His eyes gleamed as he looked at Zhouyang and spoke in a deep voice, "I’ve always heard that Master Qianyang’s Body Refining Divine Techniques are unparalleled, known for his many treasures and wealth. Didn’t expect you to have hidden such a sword array Divine Technique never shown to others!"
"However, this is good. Let me witness today just how powerful Fellow Daoist Zhou’s hidden sword array Divine Technique truly is!"
As his words fell, a purple Treasure Banner instantly appeared in his hand.
With a slight shake of the purple Treasure Banner in his hand, a ray of purple light swept towards Zhouyang from the sky.
Stab!
Zhouyang commanded with his Sword Technique, and the Flying Swords circling around him shot out like a stream.
As the Sword Light flashed, the purple light was already shredded to pieces.
After easily obliterating Xiao Yuanli’s probing attack, Zhouyang was unwilling to give the opponent any more opportunities to probe.
He continually formed Sword Techniques with his hands, dividing his vast Divine Sense into thirty-six portions, firmly attaching to each of the thirty-six Great Derivation Celestial Spirit Swords, making each sword act like his own arm, accurately and swiftly operating according to some mystical trajectory.
In the blink of an eye, the thirty-six Flying Swords surrounded Xiao Yuanli from all directions.
Condense!
Zhouyang’s eyes flashed brightly, and he cast the last spell with his hand.
In an instant, the thirty-six silver Flying Swords simultaneously emitted dazzling silver Sword Light, and under a peculiar traction force, the splendid Sword Light instantly connected as one, forming a vast sea of Sword Light, submerging Xiao Yuanli within.
After practicing sword arts for eight years on Fire Birch Mountain, Zhouyang finally comprehended the Annihilation Sword Array within the Great Derivation Sword Technique, setting up the Great Derivation Celestial Spirit Sword Array using thirty-six Flying Swords as the Array Base.
Once this sword array was formed, it automatically absorbed the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi from the outside to supplement consumption, greatly conserving Zhouyang’s expenditure of Magical Power.
Otherwise, even if his cultivation had reached late-stage Nascent Soul, it would be impossible to sustain the control of thirty-six Tier Six Flying Swords for even a quarter-hour.
Trapped inside the sword array, if Xiao Yuanli wanted to break out, he either needed to shatter the entire sword array with absolute power or could only deplete Magical Power against Zhouyang until Zhouyang could no longer sustain it and dispersed the sword array.
But neither method was easy.
For the former, unless he had a Tier Seven Immortal Artifact in hand, it would be difficult to accomplish.
And as Zhouyang knew, the Six Paths Alliance did not possess such treasures as a Tier Seven Immortal Artifact.
For the latter, since the sword array could absorb external Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi to supplement its consumption, greatly saving Zhouyang’s Magical Power, and Zhouyang could also absorb Spirit Marrow Stones to replenish Magical Power.
Even if his cultivation was two levels higher than Zhouyang’s, being trapped in the sword array, constantly needing to consume a great amount of Magical Power to resist the sword array’s attacks, he might not be able to outlast Zhouyang.
"The Divine Techniques of the Purple Mist Sect tend to favor defense and trapping the enemy; if this ’Master Purple Mist’ hasn’t cultivated any other attacking Divine Techniques, today, trapped in my sword array, he won’t escape unscathed!"
Zhouyang maintained the operation of the sword array with a calm expression, yet a flicker of excitement emerged in his eyes.
This was his first battle after breaking through to the late-stage Nascent Soul and also the first time he single-handedly faced a Ninth-Layer Nascent Soul "Half-Step True Immortal" Realm Cultivator and had the upper hand.
Evidently, if today he could triumph over "Master Purple Mist" Xiao Yuanli in this battle, it would signify that relying solely on his own cultivation strength, he was already qualified to join the ranks of the strongest cultivators in this world.
This was undoubtedly an exhilarating matter for him as he was about to implement that grand plan.
However, out of customary caution, he still split a bit of power to summon Lan Daoist, who was hiding inside the Dongxuan Pearl, to serve as his Guardian.
With Lan Daoist, whose full combat strength could suppress Ninth-Layer Nascent Soul "Half-Step True Immortal" Realm Cultivators, acting as Guardian, regardless of whether the sword array could eventually trap Xiao Yuanli, Zhouyang had already placed himself in an invincible position.
And within the sword array, Xiao Yuanli was currently both shocked and furious, fiercely driving the purple Treasure Banner in his hand to protect himself, resisting the onslaught of Sword Light and Flying Swords.
Although he had already given Zhouyang enough regard before, summoning his Lifebound Spiritual Artifact right away.
But reality dealt him a harsh blow, making him realize how big of a mistake he had made.
Trapped inside the sword array, given his knowledge and insight, he could of course see the formidable and troublesome nature of this sword array.
It can almost be said to be tailored specifically against him!
He had precisely noticed the formidable and troublesome nature of the sword array, which is why he didn’t hastily attempt any methods to break it. Instead, he concentrated on defending himself and first observed the attack strength and techniques of the sword array.
The more he observed, the more alarmed Xiao Yuanli became, and his expression grew increasingly grim.
To be fair, the attack method of this sword array wasn’t particularly novel. It simply relied on the sharp and fierce sword light to blanket the enemy within the array and continuously attack. Occasionally, the flying swords themselves would join in.
But sometimes, such simple and repetitive attacks are the hardest to deal with.
Xiao Yuanli could clearly see that when the sword lights attacked him, aside from the ones he had dissipated, the others, even if scattered, would be reabsorbed by the array’s power and transformed into new sword lights to attack him again.
This meant that unless he broke the sword array and this cycle, it would be impossible to exhaust Zhouyang’s magical power through a war of attrition.
But to break the sword array...
Xiao Yuanli thought it best to observe further.
Time passed slowly, and an hour quickly went by.
Zhouyang now grew more confident of his victory.
In this hour, he continuously controlled the sword array to wear down Xiao Yuanli’s magical power, reducing its aura by two to three tenths.
Meanwhile, by continuously absorbing the spiritual power from the Spirit Marrow Stone to replenish his magical power, he still retained more than seventy percent of his magic.
If this continued, he could certainly exhaust Xiao Yuanli to death.
However, he also understood that Xiao Yuanli would not sit idle. This hour had given him enough time to observe the sword array, and he would likely attempt some explosive means to break it next.
"Come on, let me see what tricks you still have up your sleeve!"
A cold light flashed in Zhouyang’s eyes as he suddenly changed the spell in his hand, taking the initiative to preempt.
In the sea of sword light trapping Xiao Yuanli, thirty-six flying swords suddenly materialized and pierced towards him simultaneously.
This change caught Xiao Yuanli off guard, and he hastily added another defensive item, a Golden Bell Spiritual Artifact, to shield himself.
Clang, clang, clang, clang!
One flying sword after another struck the Golden Bell Spiritual Artifact, causing brilliant sparks to fly and a resounding bell sound to echo.
By the time all thirty-six flying swords were repelled by the rotating Golden Bell, it was already cracked and on the verge of being scrapped.
Now!
Gazing intently from within the Golden Bell, Xiao Yuanli, disregarding the loss of the artifact, recklessly drove the Golden Bell Spiritual Artifact forward like scrap.
Boom!
Without surprise, the Golden Bell Spiritual Artifact was shattered into countless pieces by the sharp sword light after advancing over a dozen feet.
At this moment, Xiao Yuanli suddenly spat out a mouthful of life essence blood onto his lifebound magical artifact, the Purple Cloud Banner.
"Purple Mist Nine Transformations, Breaking Tribulation and Soaring!"
With a clear and long howl, a blinding purple mist burst forth from the purple treasure banner in Xiao Yuanli’s hands, piercing through the sea of sword light towards the sky.
Simultaneously, as the soaring purple mist broke through the sword light sea, Xiao Yuanli’s figure also faded into a stream of purple light, dashing out of the sword array following the purple mist.
All these changes happened in a flash, and by the time Zhouyang realized something was wrong, Xiao Yuanli had already broken free of the sword array.
"Zhouyang, you brat, your sword array has been broken by this old man. Now it’s time for you to taste the power of my divine techniques!"
Having suffered a significant setback and just managing to escape, Xiao Yuanli was not about to let matters rest with Zhouyang, and immediately shouted fiercely to retaliate.
Yet before his voice faded, Lan Daoist, who protected Zhouyang, suddenly attacked. With the power of the Five Elements, he condensed a strong beam of light that blasted Xiao Yuanli, sending him flying backward in a spray of blood.
"Ah, you vile scoundrel! To think you’d secretly call someone to ambush this old man, I’ll remember you! You will pay for this in the future!"
The tone of his words was filled with an unmistakable sense of panic and dismay.
The appearance of Lan Daoist utterly crushed Xiao Yuanli’s will to fight.
He immediately forgot the harsh words he’d just spoken, and without caring to wipe the blood off his chest, he transformed into a streak of purple light and fled the battlefield.
A Ninth-Layer "Half-Step True Immortal" realm cultivator can flee with incredible speed, which Zhouyang certainly could not catch up with.
If Lan Daoist were to fully unleash the Instant Teleportation divine technique, he could catch up.
However, Zhouyang was unwilling to waste the power that Lan Daoist had accumulated by consuming five Top-grade Spirit Stones just for a Xiao Yuanli.
While killing Xiao Yuanli today might offer satisfaction, it would also mean making a deadly enemy of the Six Paths Alliance.
This didn’t align with his interests and would have a significant negative impact on the major plan he was about to carry out.
As for Xiao Yuanli’s parting threats, Zhouyang paid them no mind.
In this battle, he had already gauged Xiao Yuanli’s strength, and Xiao Yuanli had witnessed his. Unless Xiao Yuanli was foolish, he wouldn’t confront him again.
Moreover, Zhouyang knew that Xiao Yuanli’s remaining lifespan was not long.
Soon after, a shocking news spread through the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm.
The Six Paths Alliance’s Guardian, "Master Purple Mist" Xiao Yuanli, due to his limited lifespan, quietly infiltrated the Profound Purity Dao Alliance to ambush "Master Qianyang" Zhouyang, who had just broken through to the Late-Stage Nascent Soul, intending to cut off his future path to enlightenment.
However, due to underestimating "Master Qianyang" Zhouyang’s strength, Xiao Yuanli was instead injured and forced to flee, reportedly also injuring his primordial energy and reducing his lifespan.
After this news broke, many cultivators’ first reaction was disbelief, thinking it a rumor.
But when they learned that the information came directly from "Master Qianyang" Zhouyang, and "Master Purple Mist" Xiao Yuanli did not step forward to refute it, all Nascent Soul Stage cultivators hearing the news fell silent.
Previously, after news of Zhouyang breaking through to the Late-Stage Nascent Soul spread, many had said that with the Tier Seven Immortal Artifact Vermilion Bird Fan, his strength wouldn’t lose to that of a Ninth-Layer "Half-Step True Immortal" realm cultivator.
However, many remained skeptical, doubting Zhouyang could truly achieve this.
Now, with the news of Zhouyang’s victory over "Master Purple Mist" Xiao Yuanli, there was no longer any question about his strength.
After this battle, in the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm’s circle of high-tier cultivators, the status of "Master Qianyang" Zhouyang naturally rose to be on par with Ninth-Layer "Half-Step True Immortal" realm cultivators.
Many Nascent Soul Stage cultivators, when speaking of him, would preface his name with the honorific "Master Qianyang."
