"I will."
As he spoke, Gu Qingshan laid the longbow across his hands and examined it closely. Sure enough, he found two tiny characters where he gripped it: Night Rain.
Gu Qingshan stirred the Spiritual Power in his dantian and channeled it into the Night Rain Bow.
The longbow blurred, then vanished from sight.
He could feel the bow in his hands, but he couldn't see it. Even when he released his divine sense, he couldn't detect it.
And that wasn't all. Soon, even Gu Qingshan's presence rapidly faded away.
He stood there, yet seemed cut off from the world. Unless someone happened to see him, they wouldn't sense his existence at all.
"What a bow!" Gu Qingshan exclaimed.
By then, the Faceless Giant was close at hand. In the distant forest, dozens of Netherfire Evil Serpents raced toward them, carrying Blood-Drinking Demons on their backs.
Ning Yuechan drew a gleaming long saber and looked at the Faceless Giant. "Since the Five Elements Array can't stop it, I'll take it on."
Gongsun Zhi nodded. "I won't deal with this monster. Leave the other demons to me."
"Mm. Keep an eye on him." Ning Yuechan flicked her saber and added without turning around.
Gongsun Zhi glanced at Gu Qingshan, suppressing a laugh as he said with a straight face, "Naturally."
Ning Yuechan used a saber? Gu Qingshan instinctively looked at the weapon.
It was two inches longer than an ordinary saber, with a narrow blade that ran straight from the hilt to the tip.
It was a straight saber designed for female cultivators, more slender and nimble than the broad-backed, curved sabers favored by men.
"Wind Edge Remnant Shadow!"
"Humming Cut!"
Ning Yuechan cried softly.
Layer upon layer of blue radiance burst from the straight saber in her hand, enveloping her and the weapon.
Around the blue light, golden threads appeared and vanished out of thin air, now and then giving off a humming like a swarm of bees.
At that moment, she was like a long saber radiating a chilling killing intent.
Gu Qingshan was startled.
Two Five Elements attributes!
And an exceptionally rare combination of Metal and Wind, each aiding the other!
The Wind Spiritual Power of the Special Five Elements progressed through stages, from low to high: "Swift and Rapid," "Rapid Combo," "Wind Edge Remnant Shadow," "Gale Turbulence," "World Extinguishing Wind Calamity," and so on.
Ning Yuechan had already cultivated the Wind element to its third stage. Given her age, that was an astonishing achievement.
Many Nascent Soul cultivators who had awakened Wind Spiritual Power spent their entire lives reaching no further.
And that wasn't all. Ning Yuechan had also cultivated the Metal element to its third stage: "Humming Cut."
Very few people could awaken two of the Five Elements Spiritual Powers. Even when they did, they could only focus on cultivating one, finding it difficult to master both—let alone fuse them perfectly and achieve a strength greater than the sum of their parts.
Yet Ning Yuechan had done it. From her calm, unruffled expression, she didn't seem to be exerting herself much.
Gu Qingshan sighed inwardly.
This girl was a monster. No wonder later generations said that, had she lived, she would have been able to fight the Demon King within a few decades.
The only pity was that this world had few secret saber manuals, and cultivators had little skill in the Blade Path.
She might as well have used another weapon.
Ning Yuechan raised her saber, her eyes fixed on the approaching Faceless Giant as her aura continued to climb.
Gu Qingshan's gaze fell on the saber. He couldn't hold back any longer and asked, "Why did you choose a saber as your weapon?"
"Spears and lances are clumsy; swords are false. The saber is a weapon of sacrifice, charging forward without looking back," Ning Yuechan replied earnestly.
"I understand how spears and lances can be clumsy, but how are swords false?" Gu Qingshan asked in surprise.
Ning Yuechan glanced at him. "You're not allowed to use a sword in the future."
After speaking, she crouched and shot into the sky with a thunderous boom, plunging into the blue beyond.
Immediately afterward, the Faceless Giant's earth-shaking roar rang out from the clouds.
"Don't take it personally." Gongsun Zhi patted Gu Qingshan's shoulder. "She used to wield a sword, too."
"Then why did she switch to a saber?"
"She had a Senior Brother she was close to, a sword cultivator. He practiced swordplay with her every day and taught her swordsmanship. Then he betrayed her. Ever since, she's hated swords and sword cultivators. She beats up every one she sees."
"What's that supposed to mean? No one stops her?" Gu Qingshan asked.
Gongsun Zhi gave a wry smile. "We elders would like to see justice done, but what can we do when she's Ning Yuechan? Those sword cultivators flock to her, fawning over her and trying to get handsy. They deserve to get beaten."
"She beats up every one she sees... Does she kill them?" Gu Qingshan mused.
"Not quite. Over the years, she's always stopped once she's beaten them until they're kneeling and begging for mercy," Gongsun Zhi said.
Gu Qingshan imagined himself kneeling before Ning Yuechan and begging for mercy, then hurriedly shook his head.
Seeing Gu Qingshan's bewildered expression, Gongsun Zhi thought for a moment before offering comfort. "Don't be afraid. You're not a sword cultivator, so you'll be fine."
But I am a sword cultivator, Gu Qingshan silently replied.
Still, since his rebirth, he hadn't even touched a sword. He wouldn't offend this terrifyingly powerful girl anytime soon.
He had saved her life. Surely she wouldn't beat him until he was kneeling and begging for mercy.
If worse came to worst, he could stay far away until his swordsmanship recovered.
Just as Gu Qingshan was thinking this, a tremendous crash suddenly rang out overhead.
Boom!
A dark figure plunged from the clouds and slammed into the ground.
"Are you all right?" Gu Qingshan rushed over and asked anxiously.
Ning Yuechan stood up and said softly, "I'm fine. Keep yourself safe."
The next moment,
a magnificent saber beam enveloped Ning Yuechan, her snow-white cloak fluttering in the wind.
Clad in Golden Armor, she shot out of the crater and soared into the sky, straining to pierce through the clouds above.
"Monster, prepare to die!"
Her sharp cry rang out from the sky.
A vast, distant howl of agony came from deep within the clouds.
It was the Faceless Giant's anguished wail.
Ning Yuechan, restored to her full strength, could actually face the Faceless Giant head-on.
That was absurd.
The stirring battle in the sky continued.
Gu Qingshan sighed and muttered, "She looks so quiet and gentle, but when she fights, she doesn't care if she lives or dies. Sure enough, everyone who uses a saber is a daredevil."
"You're the daredevil!"
An indignant voice rang in his mind.
It was Ning Yuechan's voice.
Gu Qingshan froze, then felt a little chagrined.
He looked up. The thick clouds blocked his view, but he could almost feel Ning Yuechan glaring fiercely at him from somewhere in the sky.
Damn it, he'd forgotten that to fight the Faceless Giant head-on, her cultivation had to be at least at the Nascent Soul Middle Stage, if not higher.
With cultivation that profound, her divine sense covered a vast area. She'd hear every word he said.
Gu Qingshan wisely shut his mouth.
In this life, Ning Yuechan was no longer troubled by poison, and her body was gradually recovering. Her fate would surely be different from the one recorded in history.
As he was thinking, he suddenly spotted Blood-Drinking Demons emerging from the forest ahead.
Beneath them were the born assassins who had awakened the Five Elements Fire: Netherfire Evil Serpents.
The Demon Army's vanguard had caught up!
They appeared without a sound, then quickly accelerated, charging toward Gu Qingshan and Gongsun Zhi.
That famous Encirclement and Suppression from history officially began at this very moment.
Gongsun Zhi's face turned icy. He slapped his Storage Bag and pulled out an exquisite array disc.
"I can't kill the Faceless Giant, but these things are no problem," he said in a low voice.
Gu Qingshan was just about to raise his bow when his body suddenly stiffened. He was rooted to the spot, unable to move.
Countless streams of data cascaded before his eyes, and the system's mechanical, emotionless announcement rang out.
"Detected that the player has triggered a special historical event."
"Current conditions meet the activation requirements."
"Starting: Battle of the Fallen."
Before you continue