Free Web NovelChapter 263: Chapter 262: A Very Successful Trip
"DA! LUO! PALACE!"
Gu Zhao focused his gaze. The Mage was a middle-aged man with a short beard, and the Ghost was a woman wearing gaudy, heavy makeup. The Mage glared at the group with venom in his eyes, while the woman looked on in anguish at the burly, bearded man lying on the ground.
"You killed Yilong!" the woman screamed, her eyes glowing red as she stared at Taoist Qingwei.
Taoist Qingwei brandished his longsword and shouted coldly, "His Evil Qi was as black as ink, and his sins were many. Did you expect me to spare him?"
"Kill them!" the woman shrieked.
"After I destroy you all, I’ll go to Changping—" Before the Mage could finish, Taoist Yan Song, Taoist Jing Feng, Taoist Qingyuan, and Taoist Shen Hao all struck simultaneously.
The Taiyi Wind and Fire arrived in an instant. The Mingling Prison and Fire Shadow Prison enveloped the Mage and the Female Ghost from the left and right. A longsword was thrust toward the Mage’s heart as a flicker of fire appeared between the Female Ghost’s brows.
Gu Zhao took a step back. With a wave of his hand, he conjured a mass of Five-Colored Thunderclouds to shield Taoist Qingwei and the others.
"These two have recovered a fair amount of their strength. You aren’t a match for them yet." Gu Zhao pointed to the battlefield. "Watch how our seniors handle the enemy."
Taoist Qingwei watched in awe as Taoist Qingyuan performed his Tai Chi Sword technique. He trapped the middle-aged Mage, redirecting the man’s own force against him and even using his Magical Power to launch counterattacks.
However, most of the onlookers weren’t focused on Taoist Qingyuan. The Tai Chi Method demanded immense comprehension and a deep foundation; Taoist Qingyuan’s current level of mastery was the fruit of decades of bitter Cultivation.
Their attention was captured by Taoist Yan Song’s Taiyi Wind and Fire, Taoist Jing Feng’s Fengdu Divine Prison Ghost General, and the Flowing Gold Fire Bell—a weapon they had all read about in the Tao Scripture but were only now witnessing the true power of for the first time.
The thought that their own Magic and Flying Swords could one day possess such might sent a thrill of excitement through them all.
On the battlefield, though life and death had yet to be decided, the outcome was already clear.
Taoist Yan Song had the highest Magical Power. His Taiyi Wind and Fire was so fiercely yang that it suppressed the duo’s Yin Qi-based Magic. Meanwhile, Taoist Jing Feng’s Fengdu Divine Prison bore down on their Seas of Divine Soul Consciousness. One part, the Mingling Prison, was bitingly cold, while the other, the Fire Shadow Prison, was scorchingly hot. This forced the bonded human and ghost to face different Divine Prisons, making it even harder for them to coordinate.
Positioned within the Taiyi Wind and Fire, Taoist Qingyuan’s longsword never strayed more than three inches from the Mage’s body. If not for the Mage’s truly extraordinary Magical Power, which he used to form a tight defense around himself, he would have been decapitated by now.
Taoist Shen Hao’s Flowing Gold Fire Bell weaved around the Female Ghost. Its golden flames spun out threads of gold that trapped her, while a constant JINGLE JINGLE JINGLE poured into her ears. This was the divine, Soul Suppressing sound of the Taoist Sect, and it made her howl in agony.
Their Dao Practice was already inferior, and they were still injured. Now, besieged by the four elder Daoists, the man and ghost were completely overwhelmed.
The sudden, explosive power of the four elder Daoists stunned the pair. They finally realized their opponents weren’t grunts from Daluo Palace, but its masters!
"How did you find us?" the Mage roared. His Dantian pulsed, and Magical Power surged out wildly, temporarily forcing back the Taiyi Wind and Fire and Taoist Qingyuan. He then turned to flee down the path from which he’d come.
This was a passage in the grotto that led deeper, all the way to the earth beneath the ancient battlefield on the back mountain. It had originally been the place the former Stone King used for secluded Cultivation, but the Mage had discovered it and was using it to heal his wounds.
If he could just escape there, he would have options. He could either fight back using the boundless Cold Evil Power of the ancient battlefield, or he could retreat through its labyrinthine passages. Anything was better than being trapped here to die.
The Mage’s shout was a signal. The Female Ghost let out a piercing shriek in response and, seizing the opportunity, swung her hand to bat away the Flowing Gold Fire Bell circling her. ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom
But she had miscalculated. The moment her ghostly hand touched the Fire Bell, it was as if the concentrated Yin Qi stimulated it. The flames on the Flowing Gold Fire Bell erupted, and its ringing grew a tier sharper.
The piercing jingle resounded like a great temple bell deep within her Divine Soul, stunning the Female Ghost for the space of two breaths.
In a battle between masters, a single instant of distraction can be fatal, let alone the space of two breaths.
Seeing the Female Ghost stunned, Taoist Shen Hao flicked his wrist, shot out another streak of golden light, and cried, "Strike!"
The next moment, the golden light struck the Female Ghost, shattering her Ghost Body. Then, a tiger’s roar echoed out, and in concert with the ringing of the Flowing Gold Fire Bell, it shredded her Divine Soul to pieces.
"Jie Ru!" The middle-aged Mage’s eyes nearly split with rage, but he didn’t slow down, continuing to fly deeper into the cave.
But before he could enter the cave, the sword-wielding Daoist from before was already there, blocking his path.
Moving with the Mage’s momentum, Taoist Qingyuan thrust his sword forward. A tiny Black and White Tai Chi Diagram materialized on its tip.
Though the diagram was no bigger than a thumbnail, its white was pristine and its black was profound. The aura it exuded was sharp and immense, containing incredible Magical Power and concentrated destructive force.
The middle-aged Mage’s pupils shrank. He wanted to retreat, but the Taiyi Wind and Fire was already sweeping in around him. Meanwhile, the Mingling Ghost Prison in his Sea of Consciousness emanated an endless, biting cold that threatened to freeze his very thoughts.
"Surrender your life!"
Knowing there was no chance of survival, the middle-aged Mage stopped trying to evade. He gathered all his Magical Power and condensed it into a pitch-black spectral skull. Radiating an aura that could dissolve both body and soul, it crashed toward the waiting Taoist Qingyuan.
But the moment the skull struck the sword’s tip, the Tai Chi Diagram spun. The spectral skull, so tightly condensed a moment before, immediately began to dissipate.
The middle-aged Mage focused all his power to hold it together, but he was powerless to stop the Tai Chi Diagram from neutralizing it.
In a single instant, Taoist Qingyuan’s longsword pierced through the spectral skull. All the Yin Qi flowed past him, leaving him completely unharmed.
His longsword, however, continued unimpeded, plunging straight into the middle-aged Mage’s heart.
A gentle twist of Tai Chi True Qi severed all the meridians of his heart.
The middle-aged Mage gave up resisting the suppression of the Mingling Prison on his Sea of Consciousness. Instead, a faint black light shone from his eyes, attempting to pierce through Taoist Qingyuan’s gaze and attack his Divine Soul.
But all he saw was a ceaselessly spinning Tai Chi Diagram. The black light had barely entered Taoist Qingyuan’s Sea of Consciousness before it was neutralized and scattered by his Tai Chi True Intent, vanishing into the void, never to be seen again.
The next moment, the light faded from the middle-aged Mage’s eyes. His Sea of Consciousness was crushed by the Mingling Prison and his Divine Soul dissipated. His body was dead, and his Dao was extinguished.
The Evil Qi from the duo was substantial. It was absorbed and divided among the four elder Daoists, and each reaped considerable benefits. Taoist Qingyuan and Taoist Shen Hao, whose Cultivation levels were relatively weaker, broke into smiles.
One had consolidated his realm, while the other had solidified his foundation.
Gu Zhao, of course, also reaped a reward. Despite not having fought, his share of the Evil Qi was enough to fill more than half the progress bar for his next Thunder Seed.
Taoist Yan Song dispersed the Taiyi Wind and Fire, leaving only corpses behind. They then entered the passage for a look, but after finding no other enemies, they blocked the entrance and returned to the area outside Stone King Cave.
"By the way, which faction were they from, anyway?" Gu Zhao suddenly asked. "Forgotten Soul Hall, or the Nianxiang Sect?"
Hearing this, everyone froze, then glanced at one another in confusion.
Apparently... no one had paid attention!
