A chill wind blew out from between the rocks, grass, and trees, without any fixed direction. The branches and leaves of the great tree beside him rustled and trembled, as if they too felt the cold. Yu Ci's perception was much clearer: the wind had not blown from any of the four directions, but welled up from the ground, chilling his very soul before affecting his flesh.
The Pure Yang Talisman Sword in Yu Ci's hand blazed with light, and the surrounding temperature surged, yet it still failed to block the sinister wind. But in that hairbreadth interval, his thoughts stirred. It was as though a resonant clang shook through his mind palace, and the killing aura accumulated through years of tempering, governed by pure sword intent, flared and withdrew in a single release. This was precisely the method of using sword intent to break evil delusions!
The dark forest seemed to brighten for an instant. Accompanied by the killing sword intent, threads of Sword Qi spread outward. Newly sprouted tender blades of grass and thin branches on the trees were swept away in a swath, while the sinister energy surging from the ground dissipated without a trace.
Yu Ci did not delay at all. Even as his sword intent burst forth, his feet moved, carrying him seven zhang away in an instant. The moment his body shifted, metallic clangs rang from the ground where he had just stood. Several sharp claws burst from the earth. Even in the darkness, their nails glimmered with a sickly blue light. Had he been a fraction slower, his feet might well have been torn off.
As he shifted position, Yu Ci had already placed the Heart-Pulling Horn in his mouth.
Through the fish-dragon, he had sensed that some evil creature lay in ambush