"Alas..."
Lin Wanhua sighed, and with a flick of her long sleeve, Wei Yan's body was enveloped by a gust of sword-path breeze and returned to the small hillside. The four severed chains, as if reborn, locked onto Wei Yan's limbs. Simultaneously, Lin Wanhua projected a gentle sword intent to seal Wei Yan's wounds and stop the bleeding.
Not far away, several figures stood on the mountaintop, spectating. It was Qin Yu, Liu Xilong, and Ye Lin. All three were in the Upper Five Realms, and they watched their old sword immortal get thoroughly beaten, laughing heartily. Da Feng Novel Network.
"Stop watching the fun."
Lin Wanhua glanced at them and said, "Go back to your posts."
"Yes, City Lord!"
The group cupped their fists in unison and then soared away.
"Lin girl!"
On the hillside, Wei Yan continued to hug his long sword, grinning, "Old, old, I really can't beat these youngsters anymore."
"Sword Immortal Wei."
Lin Wanhua glanced at the old sword immortal on the hillside and chuckled, "Losing so miserably has really brought honor to our Fusu Great Wall!"
"I didn't want to."
Wei Yan said with heartache, "Who would have thought that a young girl who has practiced the sword for just over a hundred years would be this formidable? The old folks from the Mountain Peak Villa are indeed not to be trifled with."
"Hmph!"
Lin Wanhua looked at Zhuo Zhi and said, "Zhuo Zhi, it's not that you can't spar with Sword Immortal Wei, but..."
She pointed to her head and said, "Sword Immortal Wei has a problem here. You shouldn't have let him go. If you cause trouble, who will be responsible, you or Lin Zhao?"
"I..."
Zhuo Zhi frowned and said, "City Lord Lin, if you're blaming me, or if you want to challenge me to a sword duel to regain face for the Fusu Great Wall, you can just say it directly."
"Then let's have a sword duel."
Lin Wanhua smiled slightly, "Although Wei Yan is a sinner, he is still one of us from the Fusu Great Wall. You've crippled him like this with just a few words. As the City Lord, it would be improper for me to do nothing."
"What do you mean by crippled?"
Wei Yan was startled and said, "Lin girl, speak clearly."
"Sword Immortal Wei, be quiet, it's not about you."
Lin Wanhua gently drew her sword, Jinghua, pointing its tip at Zhuo Zhi, and said with a smile, "I'll suppress my realm to the peak of the Twelfth Realm to fight you. Although I'll still have an advantage, I can't suppress it to the Eleventh Realm, that would be too foolish."
"Alright."
Zhuo Zhi also drew her sword, Chengxin, and said, "If I lose, it's because I'm inferior in skill, not because of City Lord Lin."
The next moment, Lin Wanhua unleashed a sword strike towards the heavens, stirring up a rumbling sword light that shot towards Zhuo Zhi's head. Zhuo Zhi gritted her teeth, her blade pointed straight forward, and she thrust a straightforward sword strike. The two sword lights collided, shaking heaven and earth.
In an instant, the two female sword immortals engaged in a fierce battle. Although both were beautiful, their sword strikes were extremely sharp.
Old Sword Immortal Wei Yan was stunned, muttering to himself, "How much enmity do they have? Their attacks are more ferocious than mine. These two... could they have some deep-seated grudges?"
In truth, Lin Wanhua and Zhuo Zhi weren't sure if they had grudges, but they had long wanted to have a sword duel. From a hundred years ago until today, both had wanted to determine a victor, but their realms had never been equal. It was only today that Lin Wanhua, suppressing her realm, fulfilled this long-awaited sword duel!
...
Inside the Sword Tomb.
Lin Zhao stood up. After refining all the sword intents gifted by the three sword souls, his perfect sword heart gained three more marks of craftsmanship on its surface, its foundation becoming increasingly profound. Although his data panel showed no improvement, his damage would definitely increase slightly when he used his sword.
Such things were mysterious, and as the person involved, he couldn't quite explain it.
Just then, the ground trembled with a low rumble.
"Huh?"
Lin Zhao frowned. What was happening outside? It sounded like someone was fighting, but... Lin Wanhua was guarding the outside, so there must be no issue. After all, this was the Fusu Great Wall, and Lin Wanhua's realm automatically increased by one level when she was guarding it. Who would dare to act presumptuously in the territory of a Fourteenth Realm grand sword cultivator?
Therefore, Lin Zhao, carrying Zhan Lu, continued forward, deciding to focus on his own cultivation.
He yearned for the scenery of the Upper Five Realms, because... once he reached the Upper Five Realms, his usefulness in various major plot events would likely increase significantly!
Ahead, amidst the debris and ancient swords of the Sword Tomb, four more figures floated up from the ancient swords. They were still sword souls of ancient sword immortals, but they were stronger this time. If the previous sword souls were at the early Eleventh Realm, these were at least at the mid-Eleventh Realm!
Shortly after, the four sword souls fell.
"Shua!"
A shower of golden light rained down, and Lin Zhao officially leveled up to 194. Shamefully, he had no time to go out and level up, so his rank in the national server never entered the top ten.
Unfortunately, sword souls only dropped sword intent and no equipment or items. Fortunately, in Lin Zhao's opinion, sword intent was better than equipment or items. The more sword intent he refined, the more stable his realm would be, and the closer he would get to the Upper Five Realms.
If he could defeat all the sword souls in the Sword Tomb and absorb the essence of the ancient sword immortals' lifelong learning, then his sword heart alone would be enough to support an Eleventh Realm sword cultivator's realm.
...
Outside.
Sword light revolved. As Lin Wanhua unleashed an extremely profound self-created sword move, Zhuo Zhi finally couldn't hold on. She spat out a mouthful of blood and flew backward, crashing heavily against the mountain wall. Then, her body rebounded, and she barely managed to kneel on one knee on the grass, leaning on her sword Chengxin.
Fine sword Qi invaded Zhuo Zhi's body. Fortunately, Lin Wanhua didn't press her attack, otherwise, it would have been dangerous.
On the other hand, Lin Wanhua, having defeated Zhuo Zhi at the Twelfth Realm, had not sustained a single wound. She had achieved a complete victory, completely suppressing Zhuo Zhi in sword intent and swordsmanship, even with her realm suppressed.
"Clap clap~~~"
From the hillside, Wei Yan's applause rang out, "Lin girl is indeed more skilled! Sword Immortal Zhuo Zhi, do you admit defeat to the Lord of our Fusu Great Wall?"
Zhuo Zhi wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, stood up, and smiled, "Of course I do. But after I heal for a while, shall we continue?"
"Alright."
Lin Wanhua leaped onto a rock and sat down cross-legged, nurturing her sword intent, and said with a smile, "Zhuo Zhi, don't rush. Take your time to heal. I'll be here and won't leave. You can challenge me as many times as you want, I'll accept."
"Mm."
Zhuo Zhi nodded, took a healing pill refined by the Danxia Sect, and began to close her eyes to rest, focusing on healing. In fact, she could already sense that Lin Wanhua's attacks, though sharp, carried little killing intent, otherwise her injuries wouldn't have been so light.
In reality, Lin Wanhua's sword duel with her was not just to regain face for the Fusu Great Wall, but also to temper herself, to solidify her peak Twelfth Realm even further. Only with a sufficiently solid foundation could she hope to break through to the Thirteenth Realm, which all sword cultivators in the world coveted!
Could Zhuo Zhi reach the Thirteenth Realm?
Yes, she could now, but if she broke through now, her Thirteenth Realm cultivation might be precarious and unstable, like a "paper-thin" Thirteenth Realm sword cultivator. Compared to Lin Wanhua, who was destined to be a Thirteenth Realm, she would be far behind.
But through Lin Wanhua's tempering, Zhuo Zhi could glimpse the brilliance of Thirteenth Realm swordsmanship in advance, and her flaws in the sword path would be pointed out one by one. This would be a great benefit to Zhuo Zhi.
There were Thirteenth Realm sword immortals in the Mountain Peak Villa, but Old Huang's sword path originated from the demon race's primeval wilderness, and it was not of the same origin as Zhuo Zhi's. Therefore, Lin Wanhua was the most qualified person in the human world to temper Zhuo Zhi's sword path, and no one else.
For a moment, Zhuo Zhi's heart was filled with mixed emotions. She was indeed grateful, as Lin Wanhua's actions were akin to bestowing a great favor upon the Mountain Peak Villa. Yet, she was also annoyed. She had originally intended to catch up to Lin Wanhua's progress, but now she needed someone else to temper her cultivation, which made her feel a step behind in spirit.
...
Inside the Sword Tomb.
After defeating a pile of sword souls consecutively, as many as 19 strands of sword intent swirled within Lin Zhao's spiritual aperture. He dared not be careless and immediately stopped advancing, sitting down on the ground to cultivate the Eternal Sword Scripture to refine the sword intent left by the sword souls. For a time, his entire body was shrouded in a hazy sword rhyme.
If anyone else saw this, they would surely think Lin Zhao was a formidable great sword immortal, otherwise, he wouldn't possess such an aura and foundation.
The Eternal Sword Scripture was profound. As Lin Zhao practiced, his mind felt a pull, and then, his consciousness continuously descended, eventually landing in a section of a golden river.
It was the three inches of flowing time preserved in the hilt of the Dragon Slaying Sword!
Lin Zhao frowned, not deliberately avoiding the flowing time. His consciousness immersed itself in it. After cultivating for a while longer, he seemed to be able to see more. As he forced his eyes open, he saw a scene.
It was a colossal mountain.
The mountain was incredibly high, its peak almost invisible.
Lin Zhao squinted, trying his best to see clearly. Finally, he saw a shadowy figure standing atop the mountain. Though small, his aura was immensely powerful. To Lin Zhao, he felt like a divine being from the heavens, a ruler of a world, one of the masters of the gods in the upper realm.
"Who?"
Lin Zhao frowned.
...
Upper Realm, Ancestral Mountain of the Demon Race.
Deep within the Ancestral Mountain, in a cave abode filled with abundant spiritual energy, the Kunpeng Demon Ancestor, clad in a gray and white robe, sat cross-legged on a bamboo bed that aided cultivation. He frowned and suddenly felt a ripple in his mind. In his sea of consciousness, he seemed to hear someone ask, "Who?" For a moment, this Kunpeng Demon Immortal, known as the "Wu Wang Demon Ancestor," furrowed his brow. How could someone probe his mind? Who could this divine being be?