Top-tier Unruly Master-Chapter 1620 - 1657: Breaking Free
At this moment, Ding Fan and the other two were completely entangled by those extraordinarily sturdy vines, unable to move. Ding Fan’s situation was slightly better; at least his arms could still wield the flying sword, but both his legs were tightly wrapped by the vines, rendering him immobile.
Guo Linn and Ah Du were in even worse situations. Both of their limbs were entirely bound by vines, and their bodies were covered with them as well. They could do nothing but breathe and speak.
Guo Linn’s mind was in complete disarray. He never expected the plants in this oasis to be so dangerous. It seemed he was doomed to die on these vines and branches. The vines wrapped around him were constantly tightening, their strength was astonishing. It wouldn’t just break a flesh and blood body like his; even stone and steel would be crushed by these vines!
The vines around Guo Linn had already constricted severely, especially around his limbs, which seemed on the verge of deforming under the pressure. Guo Linn, face full of pain and panic, cried out to Ding Fan:
"Big brother, what are we going to do? I can’t hold on much longer! Ah..."
"I can’t hold out for much longer either! These vines are completely immune to the True Qi within me; I have no strength to break free! It seems we are doomed to die in this Xuantian Secret Realm..."
Ah Du followed Guo Linn’s words, also wearing a pained and grim expression as he spoke to Ding Fan and Guo Linn. Ah Du endured the pressure from the vines no less than Guo Linn, but he managed to withstand it without wailing like Guo Linn.
Guo Linn and Ah Du felt a wave of helplessness and despair. Seeing Ding Fan’s situation, Guo Linn realized that Ding Fan’s circumstance was no better than his own. Even if Ding Fan could still wield his sword, it was useless; his sword couldn’t sever the vines to break free. If he died first, Ding Fan would follow shortly after.
Guo Linn looked at Ding Fan’s grim face and felt a surge of hopelessness. Ding Fan had saved him many times before. If not for Ding Fan, he would have died in the Xuantian Secret Realm long ago. Although he knew Ding Fan’s skills were exceptional, and Ding Fan always had solutions for problems beyond their abilities, sometimes very easily so.
But Guo Linn knew this time, even Ding Fan might succumb. These vines and this oasis were utterly terrifying. They were not things that Ding Fan or any of them could handle... Guo Linn finally understood how perilous the Xuantian Secret Realm truly was!
"Big... brother, even if we die, I hope... in our next lives, we can still be brothers. You won’t reject that, will you?"
By now, Guo Linn’s face had turned pale, and the vines seemed embedded in his body. He struggled to breathe, as if seeing the Grim Reaper arriving before him. Strangely, he no longer felt panic. Facing the inevitable, he felt a profound calmness and, forcing a smile, spoke to Ding Fan.
Ah Du heard Guo Linn’s words and let out a helpless sigh. He too realized that this time escape seemed impossible...
Ding Fan didn’t reply to Guo Linn. He concentrated, pouring all his Divine Vigor into the flying sword, slashing at the vines that attacked him while focusing on cutting the one wrapped around his feet.
Though Ding Fan’s flying sword couldn’t quickly sever the attacking vines, he managed to deflect their course, allowing him to continue wielding his sword. Ding Fan focused on the vine around his foot, striking at the same spot again and again, refusing to believe that his flying sword couldn’t cut through these vines!
Snap!
The sound of a vine breaking echoed as Ding Fan finally severed the vine around his foot.
Upon witnessing this, Guo Linn felt a brief surge of joy, quickly replaced by despair. Though Ding Fan’s flying sword managed to cut a vine, it had taken too long. In this forest full of ancient trees, countless vines pursued them relentlessly.
The time Ding Fan spent cutting one vine allowed dozens more to wrap around him. It was impossible to cut all of them, rendering the effort futile.
Ah Du, observing Ding Fan’s feat, felt no revived hope of survival but instead grew more amazed at Ding Fan. He knew the toughness of these vines, things he couldn’t cut, but Ding Fan managed to cut through one.
Through this scene of Ding Fan, Ah Du had already comprehended the gap between himself and the opponent. Yet, he didn’t feel any frustration; instead, his face showed a trace of tragic humor. He knew that even though the opponent was much stronger than him, he had to admit, their fates were the same at this moment. Could it be that this ordeal would end with them dying among these bizarre vine branches?
Ding Fan looked at the vine he had cut off, his face showed no pride, still heavy with thoughts as he continuously pondered a way to escape. He had absolutely no time to reflect on his life, for he didn’t want to die here so quickly.
However, Ding Fan finally cut through a vine, which was a piece of good news for him. At least now Ding Fan knew that these vines weren’t indestructible; it just took more time. Ding Fan pondered, if he had a blade sharper than the flying sword, he might be able to quickly cut through these vines.
Yet Ding Fan knew deep down that he had no other blades or long swords, and at that moment, the flying sword in his hand was the sharpest item he possessed.
In brief meditation, Ding Fan contemplated whether without a sharp blade to cut through these vines, he could make them less resilient. He knew his flying sword could cut these vines, it just required time.
Ding Fan thought, if he could make these vines less resilient, and just reduce their toughness slightly, his flying sword could definitely cut through them... There it was! An idea flashed through Ding Fan’s mind; he suddenly thought of a method, though unsure if it would succeed. Yet, he had no other options left to choose.
At this moment, Ding Fan glanced at Guo Linn and Ah Du, both of whom couldn’t hold on much longer, lacking even the strength to speak. Ding Fan immediately released Arctic Chill!
This time Ding Fan unleashed a significant amount of Arctic Chill, and instantly, frost formed around him, quickly creating a thin layer of ice beneath his feet. As Ding Fan continued to release Arctic Chill from under his legs, the thin ice beneath him turned into a thick solid ice block in the blink of an eye, and the vines entangled around Ding Fan’s legs were frozen at once.
Crack... crack... crack...
Witnessing this, Ding Fan swung several times with his flying sword and heard continuous crisp sounds as the vines around his legs shattered instantly. Ding Fan flexed his feet and, as he released more Arctic Chill, even the surrounding air seemed to freeze.
Immediately, Ding Fan used the flying sword to cut through the vines suspended in the air around him, one by one. He shook off the vines swiftly; the vines surrounding him were soon completely cleared. Not letting up, Ding Fan continuously released Arctic Chill, channeling it to the ground beneath him.
In just a few breaths’ time, a thick sheet of solid ice formed beneath Guo Linn and Ah Du. Without hesitation, Ding Fan swung his sword at the vines under the two people’s feet, and with several strikes, the vines entwining Guo Linn and Ah Du shattered completely alongside the ice.
The severe cold that seeped into Guo Linn and Ah Du roused them significantly. As they noticed their feet were no longer tightly constricted by the vines as before, they were startled. Before they could react, Ding Fan had already sliced through the vines entangling their bodies.
Guo Linn and Ah Du’s bodies went limp, collapsing to the ground as the prolonged constriction by the vines had nearly frozen their True Qi, making standing difficult.
Moments later, their muddled consciousness cleared somewhat. Seeing this scene around them, they were both shocked, and as they exchanged glances, realizing they were still alive brought immense joy. Looking at Ding Fan, they saw him continuously using his flying sword to cut the vine branches still approaching them.
These vines became exceedingly slow when reaching Ding Fan, and the extreme cold air nearly froze them completely. Thus, one sword swing after another, Ding Fan cut through all vines. As the severed vines fell to the ground, they were frozen instantly. At their location, within a three-meter radius, it was an intensely cold and snowy weather condition, apart from the thick layer of ice below, numerous severed branches and vines wrapped in icy frost.
Guo Linn was astonished by this scene, never imagining the elder brother could achieve this step. It was incredibly unbelievable. Besides immense admiration for the elder brother, Guo Linn felt overwhelming gratitude and relief over surviving the disaster. He knew that without the elder brother, he would surely be dead!
Guo Linn wanted to stand up to help the elder brother cut those branches and vines still continually stabbing toward them, but he couldn’t manage to get up. His legs had been bound by those vines the longest, making standing impossible, even lacking sensation.
However, he knew his legs hadn’t been crippled. Being a Nascent Soul Mid Stage cultivator, he could sense that some blood was still slowly flowing through his legs. He understood a short recovery period would solve his problem.
Ah Du’s situation was similar to Guo Linn’s. Witnessing Ding Fan’s actions deeply shocked him too. He never thought Ding Fan could manage this step, unleashing such a terrifying amount of Arctic Chill, turning their location into an incredibly cold winter.
