Crushed to Death

The rising sun shone brightly, illuminating the vast blue sky and the bright white clouds.

The flowers and grasses in Fire God Gully, their dewdrops evaporated, exuded the fragrance of plants.

Inside the main hall, Lan Ziya was checking the accounts, Dream-Eating Marquis stood beside him, holding a piece of crystal, letting his imagination run wild, and chuckling softly.

Suddenly, they both sensed something and looked up.

Far away in the Mist and Rosy Clouds Realm Layer, the Heavenly Ranking stood tall and serene. A figure radiating crimson Sword Intent flashed and launched an attack, suddenly crashing into the Ancient Heavenly Ranking.

"Not good!!"

Lan Ziya's eyes widened, his gaze suddenly brightening. "Great Immortal, your departure will surely invite others to take advantage of the situation and launch an attack."

"Dream Marquis, guard the Great Immortal's physical body. I'm going to assist in the battle."

Before he finished speaking, a ghostly figure detached from his body and flew away into the sky.

Aside from the top ten on the Heavenly Ranking Heavenly Ranking, martial artists don't have a very clear understanding of it.

Fang Zhenyi and Zhao Sijie were still somewhat at a loss, but they both realized that something was wrong, so they quickly went to Lan Ziya's side to guard the old God of Wealth's physical body.

Since escaping his predicament, Lan Ziya has been in excellent health, with silver eyebrows and a rosy complexion.

But once the soul leaves the body, it not only takes away the power but also seems to take away a lot of vital energy. The body becomes noticeably thinner and the skin turns sallow.

In fact, the vast majority of local martial artists follow the path of Spirit Communication Aperture Opening.

They cultivated the Taboo, then cultivated their Leakless Innate Nature, and even entered the Returning Light, mainly by working on their minds and spirits.

Therefore, when their souls leave their bodies, they can truly take away almost all of their combat power, leaving only a dry shell for the time being.

However, this practice is quite harmful to the body, and one must spend time and effort to recuperate afterwards.

The Dream-Eating Marquis's expression turned solemn. In a flash, he left the main hall and went to the outside of Chu Tianshu's quiet room.

But within the quiet room emanated a pure Sword Intent, held back yet not unleashed, seemingly already subtly permeating the air and resonating with the surrounding world.

Dream-Eating Marquis felt somewhat relieved and simply stood guard outside the door.

On the other side, in the dim, Yanxia Realm.

Besides the Heavenly Ranking displaying a dark gold texture, the drifting colorful clouds were all as soft as silk.

Lan Ziya was still on his way, while Wan Longsheng and the others had already begun to appear.

Hahaha, you guys seem pretty smug.

Chu Tianshu looked at the three of them and laughed loudly.

"In this world, martial arts revere Divine Intent. Over the years, the capital has been imbued with countless Divine Intent, and countless formations have been modified and constructed. Everywhere, the names of the founding emperors and their ministers are enshrined on the Heavenly Ranking, creating an extremely close connection."

"I have now left my physical body, and you have also left the capital."

"Xie Luoxian, do you really think that you guys definitely got the better deal?"

Xie Luoxian smiled faintly, "Senior, why bother with such mystery? When you rushed to the Heavenly Ranking, your Sword Intent carried an air of impatience; there must have been an unexpected situation—"

The inner chapters of Zhuangzi say that the mind of Perfected Person is like a mirror, neither anticipating nor welcoming, responding without clinging, thus able to overcome things without being harmed. To make calculations as intricate as a net, merely hoping for no changes, is not the true essence of Yi Jing (the Way of Change) and Dou Shu (the Book of Divination).

Chu Tianshu interrupted the other person, his eyes half-closed, his voice like the clash of metal.

"When faced with unexpected events, one should reflect them truthfully without hesitation, readily accepting what is good and decisively eliminating what is bad. The strategy is concise and the plan is executed in an instant, leaving no trace. This is the essence of strategic thinking."

"If what I said were false, why did I watch you arrive instead of fleeing first?"

This last sentence sent a slight tremor through Xie Luoxian's heart.

With a jolt, she drew her sword!!

The martial arts of this world emphasize Divine Intent, and naturally also place great importance on psychological warfare. Many masters will try to undermine their opponent's mentality and momentum before engaging in combat.

The moment your mind wavers, that's when the enemy strikes.

Over time, some experts developed a secret technique to deal with this situation.

"Distracted Sword Intent!"

This Sword Intent is very unique; it is a sensitive feeling that is accumulated before battle and entrusted to one's longsword.

As long as one's attention remains focused, this Distracted Sword Intent will not be triggered.

Once there is a tendency towards shock or distraction, this Sword Intent will automatically erupt.

The white stone sword, slightly thicker than an ordinary sword, moved like a bolt of lightning.

The front end of the "white goods" became extremely transparent and sharp, almost invisible, while the back remained white.

It was as if, when this sword was unleashed, the very tip of the sword had already transcended the mundane world and was about to enter a Yuhua realm.

The sword struck Chu Tianshu's palm squarely.

Sparks flew everywhere, and sharp shadows flew in all directions.

The sword struck Chu Tianshu's palm, which resembled Mountain Collapse, but failed to penetrate it; the sword tip shattered on the spot.

The weapons brought by Xie Luoxian and the other two were not physical objects, but rather spiritual entities nurtured within their weapons, which were then covered by their own Martial Dao Divine Intent and shaped into complete weapon forms.

The Transcendent Sword's early spirituality was extinguished because it refused to submit to Xie Luoxian. The newly reborn spirituality is perfectly in sync with Xie Luoxian and can change at will.

As soon as the sword tip shattered, Xie Luoxian slightly moved her wrist, and a white light emerged from the broken sword, thinner and more flexible than the original blade.

The new sword light, as if a thousand sword threads suddenly split from a thick line, shot out afterimages, densely striking towards Chu Tianshu.

Gu Qiuxing arrived behind Chu Tianshu and slashed down with his sword.

This strike was so fast it seemed to blend into the darkness; all that could be seen was Gu Qiuxing seemingly waving his hand, with the blade completely invisible.

But Chu Tianshu suddenly twisted his body at that moment.

No matter how fast the person is, this twist of the body gives them a chance to lock down the opponent with a sword in front and a knife behind.

But in the instant he twisted his body, his entire soul suddenly elongated, deformed, and transformed into a fleeting image of a blue dragon.

The dragon's tail lashed out at the side of the blade.

The entire dragon shadow had already darted around, eventually circling behind Gu Qiuxing.

The "Great Void Heavenly Silkworm General Principles" can deform other people's souls and stuff them into bodies that don't belong to oneself, so it can also deform one's own soul.

This dragon shadow was also inspired by Yan Temür's "Piercing Mountain Palm" technique.

Pure and ethereal, incredibly fast.

"How?!"

Gu Qiuxing was shocked to find himself in a position of being surrounded and attacked.

His knife was jerked off course, and thousands of sword threads rushed towards him.

A dragon shadow flashed behind him. Before he could even see the process of the dragon transforming into a human, he only felt a blurry blue shadow, and then a hand suddenly shot out from the blurry blue sky.

At that moment, Wan Longsheng flicked his fingers like a phantom, producing a burst of music.

The speed of this music was not due to sound waves, but rather like light waves.

A thought travels like lightning; a fleeting moment of inspiration arrives.

Despite the ferocity of Chu Tianshu's palm strike, he was still struck by the music, his arm stiffening slightly and his pupils trembling.

It was a very strange, fluttering feeling.

It wasn't that I was completely devastated, but rather it felt like a sudden, sharp prick in the deepest part of my heart.

I didn't even realize that the pain in that area was so intense.

"Attack only one soul!"

In a flash, Chu Tianshu understood.

To use a somewhat inappropriate analogy, the three souls of a human being are like three pieces of paper cutouts that are closely joined together.

The actual situation is, of course, much more nuanced and subtle than that.

If the three souls reside within the physical body, then the Seven Souls rely on them.

In short, psychological attacks often need to affect the three souls Seven Souls simultaneously to be effective.

If the opponent's soul has already left their body, then all three souls must be affected simultaneously to cause damage.

Wan Longsheng's piano music was able to precisely hit the middle layer among the three paper-cuts without expending any effort.

In other words, the person he attacked could only use the power of one of his souls to contend with Wan Longsheng's entire strength.

Back then in Beihai, he forcibly controlled tens of thousands of elite soldiers with a single melody on his zither.

In reality, it only controlled one of the three souls Seven Souls; the real difficulty was comparable to controlling thousands of people.

It is through years of continuous creation and performance of this set of musical notes that Wan Longsheng is confident that he can bypass the complex outer shell of the Heavenly Ranking and directly tame the inner spirituality.

But he hadn't expected that Chu Tianshu's three souls Seven Souls were so strongly connected.

Even though the soul had left the body, the Seven Souls, sensing each other from afar, managed to mitigate some of the damage from the music.

"Just how skilled has this person been in cultivating his physical body? How can his Seven Souls be so tyrannical?"

Wan Longsheng was surprised, but his killing intent intensified.

The music suddenly soared, like tearing the sky and ripping silk.

Xie Luoxian's sword light had already stopped, but suddenly she rose into the air, graceful and ethereal, passing over Gu Qiuxing's head, and thrusting her sword straight down towards Chu Tianshu.

Gu Qiuxing didn't move his body, his eyes suddenly went completely black, he gripped the long knife in reverse and stabbed backward.

Chu Tianshu raised his eyebrows in anger, spread his fingers wide, and his muscles, bones, and clothes suddenly swelled by several inches. The heavy feeling of his soul increased dramatically.

A terrifying Grand Void Radiation emanated from his soul, causing each joint to burst forth with emerald light waves.

Souls don't have bones, yet he used his soul to mimic the effect of a physical body.

He unleashed the power he sensed from his true form with the Mountain Collapse Divine Palm, a strike of unparalleled strength.

The sound of the instrument and the radiation interfere with each other.

Gu Qiuxing's knife was struck by his palm, and many transparent cracks appeared between his palm and the tip of the knife.

The crack stretched into the distance, instantly severing more than a dozen streaks of colorful Yanxia and mist.

It was a clash between highly concentrated radiation and Saber Intent, which instead created a crystalline, colorless sensation where both colors vanished.

Gu Qiuxing took the blow with his knife, and his body slid forward violently, flying into the distance.

Xie Luoxian's sword was also struck by another hand, but this hand originally had its fingertips pointing upwards, with the palm striking the sword's edge.

The instant they made contact, Chu Tianshu twisted his fingertips, and a twisting, vibrating force in his palm unleashed the power of the Divine Palm at close range.

The jade-white longsword shattered into pieces.

Xie Luoxian released the sword hilt a split second in advance, pointed her fingers as if they were swords, and touched the end of the hilt, using the force to pull herself back.

Chu Tianshu was about to pounce on her when Wan Longsheng stopped him.

The guqin was pushed horizontally and rammed into him.

Without hesitation, Chu Tianshu shot out a shot that slammed into the guqin.

Unexpectedly, the body of the instrument was not broken, but the seven strings, like ripples on water, grew longer and looser, and began to sway and vibrate.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Wan Longsheng hooked all seven strings of the zither towards himself, like bowstrings.

"When this person really gets into a fight, his fighting style is extremely fierce. If the opponent's skill is even slightly inferior to his, they can be instantly defeated and their momentum completely shattered."

"There has to be someone who can withstand his attacks, otherwise a three-on-one fight is a joke, almost no different from a one-on-one battle."

Based on this assessment, Wan Longsheng took the initiative to stop them.

Just as the seven strings were about to be released, Chu Tianshu delivered a swift chop to the top of the instrument, striking the roots of the seven strings.

This hand strike transformed the Soul Hand, turning it the color of jade, with sharp edges and tiny serrations resembling clusters of crystals.

With a single stroke, all seven strings snapped.

Chu Tianshu moved with lightning speed, snapping the strings of the zither with one hand and simultaneously striking Wan Longsheng's face with the other.

Wan Longsheng's fingers missed the strings on the zither, and a strand of white hair drifted across his forehead, falling in front of his face.

At this critical moment, Wan Longsheng's eyes were incredibly calm, like the deep lake of the Beihai, and he opened his mouth and blew.

One end of his white hair was on his temple, while the other end was tangled with his beard.

With that breath, it seemed as if he had poured all his energy into it, making each of the few white hairs distinct and puffed up into a semi-circle.

Because both ends are fixed, the white hair vibrates like a musical instrument string after it bulges into a semi-circle.

When!!!

Chu Tianshu used his hand chop at top speed, and with one strike, even he himself couldn't change direction midway.

This incredibly fast strike was actually blocked by the arc formed by those few strands of white hair.

Chu Tianshu's eyes widened in surprise.

Wan Longsheng saw the blade so close to his nose, and his brow furrowed deeply, without him even realizing it.

Logically speaking, the power of the soul is an invisible force and does not concern itself with appearances.

Therefore, for true masters who have thoroughly mastered the mind and soul, there should be no difference between twisting mental energy into a blade of grass and twisting it into a sword.

But that's only a theoretical state.

In reality, people's minds are ultimately bound by worldly concepts, where people believe that a sword is stronger than grass.

Therefore, without seeking novelty, when a person condenses their mental energy and spirit into something fragile, it is indeed difficult to unleash its full power; it would be more effective to condense it into a personal weapon.

Chu Tianshu had encountered so many people who practiced mental strength, but this was the first time he had ever met someone who could instantly concentrate all their mental energy into their white hair and use it to block a knife attack.

"Good!!"

This "good" wasn't from Chu Tianshu; it was from Gu Qiuxing.

After Gu Qiuxing, he turned around and just happened to sense this scene.

He was skilled with a sword and knew how rare Chu Tianshu's strike was, and he was even more amazed that someone could block that strike with their white hair.

This seemed to ignite his fighting spirit from the depths of hell, transforming it into a raging inferno.

Although he didn't get the sword he wanted, he now used the old sword in his hand, imbued with his Martial Dao Divine Intent, to unleash the [unclear - possibly a specific technique or technique].

"The Hell Buddha King Slash".

His long sword pointed to the sky, his eyes blazing like black flames.

The Heavenly Ranking was right above Gu Qiuxing. The combined power of Prince Xuan and Changti's prestige cascaded down like a colorful waterfall.

Just as the colorful waterfall obscured his vision, he saw Chu Tianshu's figure, which shot up and then slammed down from mid-air.

Wan Longsheng opened the gates and charged straight up, blocking the attack.

The two attacks clashed, posing no obstacle to Chu Tianshu. The shell seemed to have been propelled forward by Chu Tianshu to a certain fulcrum, flying even faster.

In the blink of an eye, Chu Tianshu had exceeded the upper limit of Gu Qiuxing's vision.

"It's directly above!"

Gu Qiuxing's heart clenched, and he immediately abandoned wielding his sword, preparing to lunge forward at full speed.

Boom!!!

Chu Tianshu high Heavenly Ranking, and with a single strike, he crashed into the top of the Heavenly Ranking.

The entire Heavenly Ranking, like a monument, plummeted downwards.

Gu Qiuxing was unable to escape in time; his soul was smashed to pieces, and only a furious roar could be heard.

His final resentment was directed not only at Chu Tianshu, but also at Wan Longsheng.

Wan Longsheng's charge was utterly subpar, failing to halt Chu Tianshu's momentum in the slightest.

Even if we don't completely crush him, could we at least give Chu Tianshu a little respite?

This act of defiance is worlds apart from the scene where the white-haired man blocked the sword.

"Oh dear!! I'm so ashamed!"

Wan Longsheng sensed Gu Qiuxing's resentment, and his face instantly turned extremely ugly.

The white-haired man blocked the knife, but it was almost touching his nose, almost between his eyebrows.

The sheer power of his ruthless swordsmanship ultimately caused him to falter somewhat in the subsequent clash with the enemy's strongest opponent.

This miscalculation might not have killed him, but it would have killed Gu Qiuxing.

Xie Luoxian spoke rapidly in the air.

"Old monster, we can't kill him, let's get out of here!"