No matter how much the outside changed, the core stayed the same. The current crop of demonic cultivators sure were creative—a demonic formation had actually produced auspicious dragon and phoenix apparitions.
Zhang Yunlu's face had gone a little pale.
She didn't want to believe it, but she also felt that the man before her wasn't lying.
The Soul-Siphoning Formation was one of the most infamous grand formations in the demonic path. Anyone with even the slightest knowledge of the ancient cultivation world had heard of it.
It was a formation included in textbooks. The power of the Soul-Suppressing Formation depended on the cultivator who arranged it.
Once the formation activated, any cultivator within it who was two realms below the one who set it up would have their soul forcibly extracted, unless they had special protection. The formation's creator would also receive an absurdly powerful boost.
True Person Xiaoning, a powerful Void Return Realm cultivator, had already arrived in Mystic Sword City.
The person behind this still dared to set up a formation. That meant they had to be at least in the Void Return Realm!
The instant the formation fully activated, any cultivator below Spirit Transformation would have their soul forcibly extracted.
And she was only a lowly Qi Refining cultivator.
"But there's no need to worry. Just wait here. True Person Xiaoning must have noticed something's wrong by now."
Zhang Yunlu watched the sky, her eyes full of worry.
True or not, what could she do when she was only at the Qi Refining Realm?
Everyone else around them was also looking at the sky. They all thought the dragon and phoenix apparitions were just the flashy effects that came with a powerful Void Return Realm cultivator's entrance.
Many people took out their phones to snap pictures. Some even rode their flying swords into the sky to find a good angle, but security guards at the Golden Core Realm soon chased them back down.
A few of them had dyed their hair blond and looked like a bunch of rowdy punks. Their flying swords were made from shoddy materials and looked poorly crafted, but they made a sound like rolling thunder and came with all sorts of dazzling light effects.
"What's up with those people's flying swords?"
Zhang Yunlu was a little flustered, but she still answered instinctively when she heard the question. "Those are flying-sword skins. They've got simulated Sword Qi Thunderclap boards. They're useless."
Xu Xing understood at once. So, they were the cultivator version of souped-up scooters.
"I heard some flying-sword skin masters can even imprint the sword intent of top sword cultivators. After they've customized a sword, even a complete beginner with no experience in sword cultivation can unleash real Sword Qi Thunderclaps, or even more powerful techniques."
But those were far beyond what an ordinary person could afford.
"Come to think of it, aren't you a Sword Sect cultivator? How have you never heard of this?"
"I'm often in seclusion. I haven't paid much attention to the outside world these past few years."
Zhang Yunlu didn't doubt him. She just assumed he was the kind of ascetic cultivator who shut himself away from worldly affairs.
Dong! Dong! Dong!
Three long, ancient-sounding bell chimes rang out. Zhang Yunlu's pupils contracted as the dragon and phoenix apparitions in the sky drew closer to each other. A brilliant, clear light shone, and a small silver-white banner appeared between them.
Everyone in Mystic Sword City, whatever their cultivation level, was drawn to it.
The little banner shimmered all over. Wherever its clear light fell, countless majestic divine spirits appeared, seated atop the clouds and looking down over the entire city.
Every cultivator who met the "divine spirits'" eyes felt that the divine light in their gaze contained the principles of the Great Dao. From deep within their souls, they felt an immense freedom and bliss.
Caught off guard, seventy percent of the cultivators in Mystic Sword City were captivated in an instant, their souls on the verge of leaving their bodies.
Zhang Yunlu lowered her head. She could hear Buddhist chants ringing in her ears, but she still used sheer force of will to suppress the urge to look up.
Xu Xing watched her for a few seconds, then nodded. Even with his help, she'd managed to hold on for this long.
This young woman, with whom he seemed to share a bit of fate, had a commendable will.
Then he looked up in another direction, toward the municipal government building.
Had that Void Return Realm True Person Xiaoning still not noticed? Were the Immortal Sect disciples these days really this incompetent?
Inside the mayor's office, True Person Xiaoning stood by the window, his expression grave. He'd sensed something was wrong as soon as the strange phenomenon appeared in the sky.
After the little banner emerged, he was even more certain.
The Ten Thousand Soul Banner!
Someone was still refining such a heartless magical artifact.
The mayor, who was at Spirit Transformation, and the Supreme Dao Sect disciples who had come with him stood silently behind him.
Suddenly, a Supreme Dao Sect cultivator at Spirit Transformation stepped forward.
"Martial Uncle, I've reported the situation in Mystic Sword City to the sect, but a powerful demonic cultivator has sealed off the area. Reinforcements will take another three minutes to arrive."
Huh?
If the area was sealed off, how had you contacted the sect?
True Person Xiaoning turned around, only to see the nephew who'd just spoken suddenly collapse and turn into a bean the size of a thumb.
Sowing Beans to Make Soldiers!
Shit!
So that wasn't his real body after all!
The powerful demonic cultivator had sealed off the void, cutting off his control over his avatar.
Puff! Puff!
A few more sounds followed in quick succession. Some of the remaining cultivators turned into paper figures, some into puppets, and others simply vanished.
In the end, only three Spirit Transformation cultivators remained. Not a single Nascent Soul Realm cultivator had disappeared. After all, their avatar techniques couldn't fool True Person Xiaoning at the Void Return Realm.
The mayor stood nearby, utterly bewildered. He had no idea what the Supreme Dao Sect cultivators were up to.
True Person Xiaoning's eye twitched.
This was bad. He'd just made a monumental fool of himself.
At this point, all he could do was deal with the immediate crisis first.
"The city-protecting formation has been reversed into a Soul-Suppressing Formation. I'll hold off the one refining the artifact while we wait for the sect's reinforcements."
Without giving the mayor a chance to ask questions, he turned into a streak of light and shot out, heading straight for the Ten Thousand Soul Banner in the sky.
A wisp of pure, innate primordial qi formed the foundation, gathering boundless magical power into a hand that blotted out the sky and seized the silver-white banner.
Great Divine Ability—Innate Primordial Qi Great Seizing Hand!
The residents of Mystic Sword City were all at their sect compounds or schools. He could strike without holding back!
Under the primordial-qi hand, the banner rippled, like a tiny boat about to capsize in a stormy sea.
"I've been waiting for you, True Person Xiaoning."
A voice as clear as jade rang out. The "divine spirits" seated atop the clouds all thrust out a palm together, and a surging river of clear light crashed into the great hand.
Boom!
A visible shock wave spread outward. Directly below the collision, a towering building was torn to shreds. It was like a meteor had slammed into the earth. The ground caved inward, crushed into a pit dozens of meters deep.
As the two clashed, the cultivators drawn to the Ten Thousand Soul Banner suddenly snapped out of it.
The shock wave swept through, knocking many people to the ground. Apart from a small handful, the rest had no idea what had happened.
The Buddhist chants in her ears vanished. Zhang Yunlu's heart eased, and she collapsed limply, utterly spent.
She struggled to lift her head and look up. The clouds in the sky had already dispersed from that last clash.
The majestic "divine spirit" sat high in the sky. The Ten Thousand Soul Banner waved gently, and a sunny, easygoing young man solidified from a phantom. He reached out and grabbed its pole.
"Greetings, True Person Xiaoning," the young man said with a faint smile.
"Demonic scum! Dare to give me your name!"
True Person Xiaoning watched him coldly, secretly activating a Great Divine Ability.
"I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare. The Supreme Dao Sect's abilities are profound and mysterious. I'd rather not be hunted to the death by your elders."
"You want to kill me?" True Person Xiaoning's eyelid twitched.
"No. I just want to borrow your soul."
The two faced each other from afar. The young man was waiting for the Soul-Suppressing Formation to reach its full power.
True Person Xiaoning, meanwhile, was weighing his options: hold out until reinforcements arrived, or... simply use the Void-Evil-Breaking Sword Qi in his sea of consciousness to chop this bastard to death!
To be honest, he couldn't bring himself to do it.
"Your soul? I thought you were some terrible demon. Turns out you're just a broke deadbeat who can't afford a synthetic soul!"
The young man's expression froze. He couldn't smile anymore.
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