Chapter 24: Thirty-Two Strikes of the Soaring Swan!
Hearing Fang Wang’s words, Zhou Xue immediately said to Zhou Xingshi, “Carry him on your back. I’ll protect you both. Let’s go!”
“But…”
Zhou Xingshi hesitated; his goal was to protect Fang Wang, and he cared nothing for Fang Hanyu.
“Don’t worry. He’s powerful. Hurry, don’t hold him back!” Zhou Xue said in a low, impatient tone.
Urged by her, Zhou Xingshi had no choice but to carry Fang Hanyu on his back. The two of them dashed into the forest and quickly vanished from sight.
The middle-aged man standing by the red palanquin waved his hand, and instantly, more than a dozen disciples of Azure Cicada Valley chased after Zhou Xue and Zhou Xingshi.
Fang Wang raised his left hand before his face, his index and middle fingers together. In that moment, three sword-shaped auroras formed around him and instantly struck toward those Azure Cicada Valley disciples.
The sword energy ripped through the air at incredible speed!
The faces of those disciples changed drastically. Those above the seventh stage of Qi Cultivation managed to dodge, but those below were pierced through the throat by the sword energy, blood spurting into the air. The remaining disciples tried to evade, but none could match the speed of the Soaring Swan Divine Sword Sutra.
In less than three breaths, over a dozen Qi Cultivation disciples of Azure Cicada Valley had all perished, their bodies falling to the ground.
Fang Wang’s gaze remained fixed on the red palanquin atop the venomous insect, a sneer hidden in his heart: “Demonic sects are indeed demonic—watching their own die without budging.”
The middle-aged man glared at Fang Wang in burning rage. Behind him, the remaining disciples of Azure Cicada Valley spread out, surrounding Fang Wang in a tight circle, each producing their own magical treasures or venomous insects.
Encircled by hundreds of Azure Cicada Valley disciples, Fang Wang showed no fear; his aim was to stall the enemy as long as possible.
At last, the curtain of the red palanquin was lifted. Out stepped a wickedly handsome man in black brocade, his lips and the hollows beneath his eyes a deep purple, a faint miasma of poison swirling between his brows. His long hair was bound beneath a crown made from the carapace of a venomous scorpion, a terrifying sight.
Li Hongshuang, the prodigy of Azure Cicada Valley, had gained renown even before entering the sect. His presence was unlike that of any other disciple.
At first glance, Fang Wang thought he was looking at an elder of the Azure Cicada Valley.
Li Hongshuang looked down at Fang Wang, watching the three sword forms return to float at Fang Wang’s back. He asked, “Soaring Swan Divine Sword Sutra—what is your relation to Yang Yuanzi?”
Beneath his wide-brimmed hat, Fang Wang’s face was cast in cold shadow, his murderous intent swelling as he thought of Fang Hanyu’s misery.
“Is Yang Yuanzi the only one in the world who can wield the Soaring Swan Divine Sword Sutra?” Fang Wang retorted.
Had he not been buying time for Zhou Xue and the others, he would already have made his move.
Li Hongshuang raised his right hand. A blood-red banner flew from above his head, rapidly expanding until it was taller than he was. The banner was emblazoned with a horrifying demon, its claws seeming to writhe with every wave of the flag.
A life-bound spirit treasure!
“Since you refuse to speak, I’ll force you to!” Li Hongshuang said coldly. As he spoke, he kicked the middle-aged man at his side down, and the giant venomous insect beneath his feet lunged at Fang Wang without needing any command.
Amidst this sudden assault, Li Hongshuang rapidly swept the blood-red banner, releasing billowing blood mist like dragons surging toward Fang Wang.
Fang Wang’s eyes narrowed. Bursting with spiritual power, sword shapes clustered around him.
Soaring Swan Divine Sword Sutra—twelve swords!
He leapt high, treading upon flying swords toward the venomous insect. Twelve sword forms streaked ahead, slicing through the air, shattering the blood-mist dragons.
Li Hongshuang’s lips curled as he soared after him, his left hand raised high, slamming down a giant black palm of spiritual power.
Fang Wang hurled his Azure Sovereign Sword, which turned into a streak of blue lightning, shattering the black palm. Li Hongshuang twisted his body to evade, but a lock of hair at his temple was cut.
“A top-grade magical treasure!” Li Hongshuang’s eyes flashed fiercely, but he did not retreat and continued his assault.
In a blink, the two clashed. Fang Wang, fingers as swords, wielded twelve sword forms in a furious onslaught. Li Hongshuang swung the blood-red banner, parrying the swords and launching counterattacks.
What a vicious poison mist!
Fang Wang noticed that his sword forms shrank upon touching the poison mist—the poison was corroding his spiritual power!
Li Hongshuang’s attacks were savage; in speed and skill, he was the strongest opponent Fang Wang had ever faced.
The blood-red banner swept by, and Li Hongshuang’s left palm struck out from beneath it, aiming for Fang Wang’s chest.
Clang!
Both were knocked back, neither yielding ground.
“What technique is this?” Li Hongshuang frowned, his left hand trembling. He clenched his fist and forced himself to steady.
Looking closer, he saw a visible layer of energy swirling around Fang Wang, warping the very air.
“What overbearing spiritual power!” Fang Wang was startled, but more exhilarated—truly worthy as the future master of Azure Cicada Valley.
After this exchange, Fang Wang had gauged Li Hongshuang’s strength. Murderous intent blazed in his eyes.
He raised two fingers, and the sword forms behind him multiplied.
Sixteen swords!
Eighteen swords!
Twenty-two swords!
Li Hongshuang’s heart surged with waves of shock. He knew the Soaring Swan Divine Sword Sutra well; even Yang Yuanzi had never commanded more than fifteen swords at the Spirit-Molding stage.
But Li Hongshuang kept calm. Swishing his sleeves, he released countless venomous insects, blackening the sky above the forest.
Fang Wang gathered his power—twenty-seven swords!
The sword forms whirled around him, his robes whipping as if about to burst. The more sword forms, the greater their power—twenty-seven swords, and his sword aura became terrifying. Even the watching disciples of Azure Cicada Valley grew restless, some retreating in fear.
Fang Wang stared at Li Hongshuang and said icily, “If this is all you have, you have no future.”
Li Hongshuang flew into a rage, raised his blood-red banner, and in that cloud of venomous insects, blood-red lightning flashed, thunder booming.
A formation!
…
Meanwhile, Zhou Xue and Zhou Xingshi raced through the woods, passing the corpses of beasts and cultivators—a grim sight.
Boom!
Hearing the deafening thunder behind them, Zhou Xingshi asked worriedly, “Can he really escape?”
It was Li Hongshuang, after all!
Even if Fang Wang was a Celestial Origin Spirit, Li Hongshuang was an Earth Origin Spirit, and their cultivation gap was vast.
A third-stage Spirit-Molding against a ninth-stage—there was little chance of victory, let alone against the top prodigy of the demonic sect!
Zhou Xue didn’t look back. “Don’t underestimate him. That boy always holds something back. Are you sure you know his full strength? Even if he can’t beat Li Hongshuang, escaping is no trouble for him.”
Zhou Xingshi felt a little more at ease.
True—he didn’t know just how strong Fang Wang truly was.
Fang Hanyu, silent on Zhou Xingshi’s back, was also secretly worried for Fang Wang.
…
Boom! Boom! Boom…
Bolts of lightning crashed down, tearing through the woods. Azure Cicada Valley disciples screamed as they were struck, their bodies charred. Of the three or four hundred disciples, only a third remained, all hiding at a distance, terrified as they watched the battlefield. Li Hongshuang’s giant venomous insect crushed a swath of forest, its body trailing smoke, blood mist curling through the air, suffocating the atmosphere.
But the lightning was not Li Hongshuang’s formation!
His crown knocked away, hair disheveled, Li Hongshuang stared at Fang Wang with gritted teeth. “Great Heaven Lightning Summoning Art—who are you? Are you Lu Yuanjun?”
Fang Wang stood with the Azure Sovereign Sword raised, its tip pointing to the heart of the thundercloud, twenty-seven sword forms swirling around him. In this moment, his aura was at its zenith—supreme and unmatched.
Fang Wang snorted, “Lu Yuanjun is nothing!”
He suddenly withdrew his sword, transforming into a streak of white rainbow, charging at Li Hongshuang.
The White Rainbow Escape wasn’t just for fleeing!
Enraged, Li Hongshuang met him, wielding the blood-red banner in his left hand and a longsword in his right.
Before the watching crowd, he could not allow himself to fail!
Clang!
The swords met, sparks flying. Their eyes locked, both brimming with killing intent. In a flash, both struck, their magical treasures weaving afterimages.
The twenty-seven sword forms of the Soaring Swan Divine Sword Sutra followed Fang Wang’s every move, attacking Li Hongshuang from all sides. Li Hongshuang, in grand sweeping strokes, wielded his banner to block the swords while unleashing a fierce sword art with his free hand.
Blood mist billowed, their figures interweaving, fighting from sky to ground, their feet churning dust and stones.
The surviving disciples of Azure Cicada Valley were chilled to the bone.
“How is this possible? Senior Brother Li can’t defeat him!”
“Who is he?”
“He must be from the Grand Abyss Sect. Otherwise, why save their disciple? To think the Grand Abyss Sect has such fearsome talent.”
“Did you hear Senior Brother Li’s words? The Great Heaven Lightning Summoning Art and the Soaring Swan Divine Sword Sutra—both are Grand Abyss’s supreme arts! To master even one is to dominate Qi, but he wields both!”
“Could he be the direct heir of the Grand Abyss Sect?”
Fang Wang and Li Hongshuang paid no heed to their chatter. Each cared only for one thing: to kill the other.
Fang Wang fought to avenge Fang Hanyu, while Li Hongshuang fought for his pride!
Li Hongshuang swung his sword violently; waves of poisonous sword energy lashed at Fang Wang. Fang Wang used the Shadowless Step to dodge swiftly, his eyes narrowing as more sword forms appeared behind him.
Five swords at once!
Thirty-two swords!
Li Hongshuang’s pupils contracted in terror. Before he could react, the thirty-two sword forms around Fang Wang surged with even greater speed and power.
Thirty-two swords battered Li Hongshuang. He barely managed to fend them off with both treasures, but within three breaths he was wounded, his situation worsening.
Fang Wang hurled the Azure Sovereign Sword, slicing through the dust toward Li Hongshuang.
Though battered by the thirty-two swords, Li Hongshuang reacted with astonishing speed, leaning backward to dodge. Just as he straightened, thirty-two swords closed in from all sides.
Clang!
His sword clattered to the ground as thirty-two sword forms pierced his body, blood spraying everywhere, poisonous blood gushing from his mouth, impossible to stop.
He stared at Fang Wang, his eyes bloodshot, trembling lips stammering, “Soaring Swan…thirty-two swords…who are you…”
Suddenly, the Azure Sovereign Sword struck from behind, severing his head. The head rolled a few times before being stopped by Fang Wang’s right foot, the eyes still wide with rage.