Drifting fireflies glimmered, then went dark.
Sword light shimmered and scattered, falling like a dazzling shower of light.
Bi Xingjian knew nothing of the uncanny power of Jiang Yang's Immortal Foundation. Caught completely off guard, he found his own sword light descending over his head.
Fortunately, it was a sword move he had unleashed himself, and he knew its weaknesses intimately. Faced with this predicament, he merely formed a hand seal and murmured:
"Jade marrow sprouts branches, severed wood dies in my stead. Heart elixir and divine essence, grant me communion with the true."
At his command, no radiance appeared. Bi Xingjian simply vanished, then reappeared outside the encirclement of sword light. A jade-green branch remained where he had stood, only to be shredded by the sword qi.
He had shifted thirty feet through thin air, using his Immortal Foundation's power to let the severed branch suffer in his stead.
Yi Wood was a Dao Lineage that nourished life and prolonged longevity. Though its offensive power was lacking, every loss brought a gain.
Its life-preserving and healing arts were first-rate. Even injuries such as severed hands or feet held no terror for Bi Xingjian, so long as his foundation remained unharmed.
Given a moment to catch his breath, Bi Xingjian put away his short sword. Astonishment mingled with curiosity as he could not help asking:
"Junior brother, what spell was that? You caught my entire sword move and redirected it so abruptly that I nearly suffered a serious loss."
The two were only sparring, not fighting to the death, so Jiang Yang stood where he was and explained:
"This is the power of Grafting Flowers and Trees that comes with my Immortal Foundation. It can gather spell arts and mystic radiance, sword qi and sword rays, then redirect them onto