Hou Niao pushed his Sword-Riding Technique to its utmost. After all these years of diligent practice, his sword evasion could now be considered quite accomplished even among Sword Cultivators of the Three Heavens Realms.
First came diligent practice; second came the confidence his formidable cultivation gave him.
The flood dragon qi could not catch him. It could only follow behind, threatening him at an uncertain distance. But what Sword Cultivators trained in was precisely the ability to strike while darting through the air. With or without that flood dragon qi, he would have kept moving all the same.
So it made no difference.
His flying sword hacked down again and again. Though the pagoda's defense was watertight, the sheer area it had to defend placed an unbearable burden on it. After three blows from the flying sword, it shattered into pieces. But Yuan Xizhi immediately brought out a Colored Ring, which revolved around his body.
This was precisely what dissatisfied Hou Niao about his Flying Sword Art. His cultivation no longer held him back, yet he still could not cleave through his opponent's defenses with a single strike. That gave his opponent time to counterattack.
After smashing the pagoda, he had to hack away at the Colored Ring. What would come after he shattered that? He did not know. Just how many defensive treasures like these did this fellow possess? He did not know that either.
The thunder on his sword was his trump card, but its strength was very limited, an inevitable consequence of being unable to draw upon the mighty power of heaven and earth. Very little of his current thunder abilities could be unleashed through his flying sword, making them ill suited to his present circumstances.
Close-range swordplay was his forte, but considering how many treasures this