"Are you a body cultivator?"
Xu You was somewhat surprised as well.
He had thought Xie Zhen was merely an unorthodox cultivator versed in talisman arts, but he had not expected this kid to be a flying-sword cultivator. After their brief exchange, however, he had begun to feel that something was wrong...
How could a sword cultivator allow someone to close in so easily?
And this fellow had taken one of his spear strikes with his body... yet he did not seem hurt at all.
"I know a little, that's all."
Xie Xuanyi smiled softly.
Without a sound, he drew a talisman from his sleeve and flung it out like lightning. It was the One Qi Talisman of the Daoist Sect.
The instant the talisman was ignited by divine sense in midair, Xu You struck it with his spear!
Boom!
The sea of clouds and mist spread apart, clearing an area ten yards wide. The One Qi Talisman exploded and swallowed Xu You whole. He swept backward at high speed, his toes continuously tapping the ground to disperse the shockwaves from the blast. Yet in the next instant, a figure flashed in behind him. Without turning his head, Xu You reversed the spearpoint and thrust backward at his attacker's heart.
Then came another clang.
Xie Xuanyi pressed his palms together and caught the spearpoint between them. The two instantly entered a contest of strength.
Xu You reacted with extreme speed, immediately shifting out of his ferocious killing stance. He abandoned the spear and slipped into Xie Xuanyi's guard in an instant, throwing a vicious punch.
Thud!
The punch landed on Xie Xuanyi's shoulder like a bell being struck or a drum being beaten, producing a dull boom!
Xie Xuanyi grunted, but did not dodge. He took the blow head-on, then crossed his hands and seized the sixth-grade treasure artifact.
"Heh."
Xu You sneered, unconcerned.
A Lifebound Artifact bore the word "lifebound" because in all the world, only one person could command it!
Even if it left his hand, even if it was taken away.
The connection between him and the artifact remained!
With but a thought, the Cloud Piercer Lance would return to its master!
"Come!"
With a sharp shout, Xu You raised his hand.
The spear trembled violently in Xie Xuanyi's grasp, like a true dragon awakening to consciousness. The quivering shaft was like a dragon's body. Though Xie Xuanyi clenched it tightly with both hands and exhausted all his strength in a dragon-subduing stance, after several breaths he still could not hold on and was forced to let go... The cold-iron spear rose into the air and flew back into Xu You's palm.
The two collided again like a pair of wild stallions!
Every move Xu You made was vicious.
Xie Xuanyi, meanwhile, abandoned defense altogether and directly crashed head-on against Xu You's spear technique with his body. He completely gave up the sword cultivator's advantage of encircling and killing from afar, relying purely on his physical body to engage Xu You in bloody close-quarters combat.
Sparks of golden light burst from the cold-iron spear!
Every one of them had been hammered out by Xie Xuanyi's fists and feet!
The longer they fought, the more Xie Xuanyi found it unbelievable.
This body of his was truly a tremendous opportunity, a great blessing!
It was practically a perfect body born in response to the spiritual fortune of heaven and earth...
Sword cultivators did not have only one path: flying swords.
Some cultivated the divine soul, pursuing greater numbers of flying swords to surround and slay their enemies.
Others cultivated the physical body, using Sword Artifacts as auxiliary tools. Throughout their lives, they cultivated only a single lifebound sword, yet could likewise unleash terrifying killing power that shocked the world!
The latter path required an exceptionally powerful physique.
In his previous life, after Xie Xuanyi had read through the Daoist collections of the Sword Palace, he had developed an immense ambition.
He had wanted to attempt cultivating both paths at once, but that idea had ultimately ended in failure.
No matter how bitterly he cultivated, his physical body was never strong enough.
Restricted by the limits of his body, Xie Xuanyi had been unable to use many of the forbidden moves of the second path.
But this time was different!
This new body seemed to have been born for the second path. Even igniting its most basic acupoints required Golden Qi, which showed just how tyrannical this new physique was!
Xie Xuanyi grew more and more at ease as the fight continued.
Xu You, however, found the battle increasingly strange.
This kid kept seeking battle, kept running into walls, yet Xu You felt not the slightest joy at holding the upper hand. That was because Xie Zhen only grew fiercer the longer they fought... He did not dodge or evade many spear strikes that he could have avoided, taking them all head-on, yet remained as lively as a dragon and vigorous as a tiger afterward. What kind of terrifying close-combat ability was this?
"Just who are you?"
Xu You stared fixedly at the white-robed youth.
"Do you truly wish to know?"
Xie Xuanyi chuckled.
A sense of foreboding surged in Xu You's heart.
The two collided once more.
This time, the Cloud Piercer Lance did not strike Xie Zhen... The latter no longer continued to meet it head-on. Instead, he gripped the spearpoint and exerted force with his palm.
A powerful force traveled down the spear shaft into Xu You's palm.
"???"
Xu You instantly felt his blood and Qi churn violently in his chest.
Looking down, he saw a jade-white palm already pressed against his chest.
Then came a bang!
Xu You flew backward. The spear left his hand, arcing through the air before embedding itself in the ground.
He dropped to one knee, staring into the distance in lingering shock.
At some point, the cloud sea and mist had grown thick again.
Xie Zhen's figure was swallowed by the Azure Origin Pill's sea of Qi and clouds.
Only a blurry silhouette remained.
Xu You's face gradually turned pale. He raised his hand, and the distant Cloud Piercer Lance tore itself from the ground and shot into his palm... His Lifebound Artifact was back in hand, but the unease in his heart did not fade. It only intensified!
In the next moment, he suddenly saw a pair of eyes shining like golden suns!
The youth wrapped in cloud and mist radiated golden light all over his body. Several major acupoints flickered with the sounds of wind and thunder.
Xu You's pupils shrank instantly.
Wait...
Golden light?
Was that the Golden Qi that only a rare few Grotto-Heaven Realm cultivators could condense?
Grotto-Heaven Realm... Xie Zhen was in the Grotto-Heaven Realm?!
Before he could react, Xu You saw a palm extend from the cloud sea and mist, instantly pressing down upon the crown of his head—
Thud!
Xu You was pinned down, his head driven toward the ground and smashed heavily into it. When he raised it again, his face was already covered in blood.
Xie Xuanyi looked down at Xu You.
This was a decent opponent, far stronger than Reverend Heavy Mist.
That fierce battle had reminded Xie Xuanyi of the days from more than ten years ago.
If he did not use Qi... then this battle truly would not have been so simple. Perhaps that was where the sense of danger in his Heart Lake had come from.
However.
Everything was already over.
Xie Xuanyi took out a second Azure Origin Pill.
A crisp sound rang out.
Crack!
The second Azure Origin Pill... shattered directly!
The vast Qi was not absorbed by Xie Xuanyi. Instead, it coiled around his arm!
Boom!
Xie Xuanyi struck down with another palm upon Xu You's head. Xu You raised his spear to block, but his entire body was directly slammed into the ground!
Xu You, who had been unstoppable just moments ago, was reduced to nothing in the blink of an eye. That powerful and domineering aura of his was scattered by Xie Xuanyi's killing intent. The deputy city lord of Taian City, his face drenched in blood, was pale as gold paper. He gritted his teeth and propped himself up with his spear, his feet stamping two deep pits into the ground.
Xu You's eyes were filled with terror. His knees bent, leaving him only a step away from kneeling—
An unprecedented despair flooded his heart.
With all his strength, he roared and thrust out his spear!
The spear shot forth like a giant dragon, crashing heavily toward Xie Xuanyi.
Before the thrust landed, Xie Xuanyi gave a light laugh.
The hundred-odd streaks of sword light that had been circling overhead all swept back. They dispersed their sword forms and became dense, fine scales of Qi, forming a shield before Xie Xuanyi. They arrived at the same time as the spearpoint and collided with it!
This was the simplest armor, and also the sturdiest bulwark!
Xu You's desperate strike was immensely powerful. The spearpoint tore through fully ninety percent of the recalled Qi scales, but the remaining ten percent could not be breached.
This was a heavenly chasm, and it was also fate.
The spear pressed tightly against Xie Xuanyi's white robes, unable to advance even an inch farther. As Xie Xuanyi stepped forward, the shaft of the cold-iron spear began to bend.
Finally, with a bang!
The cold-iron spear flew from Xu You's hands beyond his control and embedded itself heavily in the distant ground, its body trembling wildly!
Blood streamed from Xu You's hands. The webs between his thumbs and forefingers had split apart, trembling without stop.
With an incomprehensible look in his eyes, he stared blankly at this stranger who was somehow familiar.
"City Lord Xu, this truly chills the heart. An hour ago, you and I were still drinking and making merry..."
Xie Xuanyi asked faintly, "What grudge, what grievance, made you so determined to kill me?"
Without waiting for an answer.
Xie Xuanyi released the hand pressing down on Xu You's head.
At the same time, he casually threw a punch!
Bang!
Xie Xuanyi packed the Azure Origin Pill's Qi into his fist and drove it directly into Xu You's lower abdomen. The deputy city lord of Taian City's expression changed dramatically. His body bent over like a shrimp, his knees smashing heavily against the ground as he spat out a mouthful of blood along with several broken teeth.
Xu You's vision grew somewhat blurry.
He raised his head and looked at the white-robed youth in disbelief.
He confirmed it once again.
Qi Refinement.
This was Qi Refinement?!
"This Spirit Severing Array was laid quite well. Who taught you? Shen Yan's matter was arranged by you too, wasn't it... Speak. Who is behind you?"
Xie Xuanyi crouched before Xu You. After asking, he waited for a moment, but received no answer.
Seeing the dazed, unfocused look in the other man's eyes.
Xie Xuanyi did not hesitate.
He raised his hand and gave him a slap.
Slap!
The palm filled with Qi struck Xu You's face, producing an unprecedentedly loud crack!
The sound of that slap echoed throughout the entire Spirit Severing Array!
Xu You instantly came to his senses.
Xie Xuanyi's voice rang in his mind like a great bell and a great drum.
"From now on, you will answer every question I ask truthfully!"