Chapter 172: The Second Meridian Activates
Jing Yue cared a great deal about the Jing Heaven Sword.
It was a weapon the Young Master himself forged for him and it represented Young Master’s expectations for him. Therefore, it symbolized his resolution not to disappoint the Young Master.
He carried the Jing Heaven Sword with him no matter what he did—while he was eating, drinking, and even when he went to the restroom.
He had practiced fervently inside the lake. s.h.i.+rtless, he worked on the most basic sword movement, thrusting continuously.
He wanted to cultivate his own sword spirit until one thrust could split a hundred miles of water from the lake.
Of course, that would be the most ideal scenario.
When he practiced in the lake at the beginning, the sword lost forward momentum within five meters because of the resistance of the water.
He didn’t give up.
He practiced again and again.
He became accustomed to the changes of the current and the sensation of the Jing Heaven Sword tearing apart the flow of water.
He groped after the essence of the sword from every quiver of its movement stirring the lake water around it.
The sword spirit had grown in his heart.
Just like the Young Master told him, a sword honed to perfection could split mountains, divide lakes, and cut through the sky…
He had great ambitions to create a sword spirit that belonged to him only and become a prestigious swordsman.
Now, under the city wall of Nanjin, wearing a white robe, Jing Yue walked in long strides through the rain.
The Jing Heaven Sword transformed into five swords.
They thrust forward rapidly.
The invisible force of the swords cut through the misty rain like bolts of lightning from the gloomy sky.
It was also as if a ray of sunlight shone through the window into a dark room and lit everything up.
Bang!
The blood and flesh splattered around him.
The field was filled with lamentation and howls of misery.
The five swords swept across and killed all the shouting Nanman soldiers within its range.
Drops of sweat dripped from Jing Yue’s forehead.
He grasped the spinning Jing Heaven Sword.
With his wrist flicking, the tip of the sword touched the ground and gorged a deep hole.
Trapped by the spikes, Tang Yimo heaved a sigh of relief.
People from White Jade City came to help them!
With a.s.sistance from the most powerful cultivators in the world, the pressure on Tang Yimo was alleviated significantly.
The Nanman soldiers became more and more peculiar. Strange new tactics followed after the spikes.
He had never encountered the bizarre method of making the earth grow spikes before.
Wearing a white robe, Jing Yue didn’t flinch no matter what. He was no longer the coward who shrank back from danger. Now, he was determined to become a successful swordsman.
An indomitable and unrivaled swordsman who could kill hundreds of thousands of soldiers alone!
At the gate of Nanjin City, a Daoist robe flapped in the wind.
Xie Yunling slowly walked out of the city.
Daoist disciples followed him from behind. They went down the Tiandang Mountain and followed Xie Yunling.
They saw the corpses and blood all over the ground.
Many Daoist disciples had never witnessed this kind of carnage before. Their faces turned pale.
But most of them were seething with anger.
As citizens of Great Zhou, they couldn’t shrink away when faced with an attack from Nanman soldiers.
Even though they didn’t serve in the court, Great Zhou was still their country.
“Where are the disciples of the Daoist Pavilion?” Xie Yunling asked calmly.
His voice, however, reverberated through the entire battlefield.
“Here!” the disciples of the Daoist Pavilion answered Xie Yunling. Dressed in their Daoist robes, they swallowed the bile rising in their throats because of the spilled blood and sat down cross-legged.
Xie Yunling’s robe flapped even though there was no wind. He sat upright on the ground.
As he formed a seal with his hands, Spirit Qi gushed out of his body and permeated the air as if part of the rain.
In the distance, the men in black robes under the Nanman soldiers’ protection finally noticed these disciples wearing Daoist robes.
They raised the wooden canes in their hands and thumped the ground forcefully.
Bang!
An invisible wave spread on the earth, rolling and expanding…
The ground seemed to become a blanket that was roughly shaken up.
Bang! Bang!
Spikes charged at the disciples of the Daoist Pavilion like underground dragons.
“Form the formation,” Xie Yunling said with a glance at the undulating ground.
Immediately after that, he crossed his fingers and pushed out a seal.
The Daoist disciples sitting all around him stood up. They stepped forward and released a wisp of Spirit Qi from the Qi Core.
A brilliant white glow appeared with Xie Yunling in its center.
Even the rain seemed to be frozen for a moment.
They turned into ice arrows shooting from the sky and killed Nanman soldiers one by one. The blood flowed on the field in streams.
The soldiers of South County were covered in blood and breathing hard.
But they were not afraid anymore.
Bellowing, they brandished their knives and swords and charged at the enemy with renewed energy.
Their homeland was far behind them now. They would get trampled on if they flinched now.
They would fight with the enemy with their flesh and bones, even at the risk of their lives.
With more Nanman soldiers dead today, South County would be that much safer.
The spikes rising from the earth sprang out like dragons from underground. The sharp tips jabbed at the disciples of the Daoist Pavilion.
Xie Yunling bore the brunt of the attack.
The spikes were about to pierce through his forehead and kill him on the spot.
However, the seal in Xie Yunling’s hands changed again.
He applied the Daoist method naturally and smoothly.
A blast of wind blew through and formed a s.h.i.+eld in front of the Daoist disciples.
Bang, bang, bang!
The spikes smashed against the s.h.i.+eld and exploded. They couldn’t penetrate the barrier.
Xie Yunling’s robe flapped furiously and the grey hair on his temples blew in the wind.
He looked at the men in black robes.
They had sinister tricks up their sleeves, but he had the Daoist method as well.
It all depended on who was more powerful!
There was a sound of light and hurried footsteps.
Many figures wearing blue robes were running on top of the gate tower of Nanjin City.
They made loud clanking sound while they moved. The swords came out of sword boxes like rays of silver lights slas.h.i.+ng through the night sky.
“The Sword Pavilion of Zhongnan Mountain joins the battle!” s hoa.r.s.e roar echoed.
Hua Dongliu, the Sword Saint, was standing on the gate tower. He carried two swords on his back, the Morning Chrysanthemum sword and the Green Peach sword.
The swordsmen of the Sword Pavilion all started to move.
Holding the Jing Heaven Sword aloft, Jing Yue turned with a complicated look on his face.
He was gratified and cheerful even though he didn’t feel a strong sense of belonging to the Sword Pavilion.
Nonetheless, he was delighted at this moment.
Inside the cage of spikes, Tang Yimo bellowed, his skin burning as if he was on fire. His skin was red, and his head and neck bulged with visible veins.
He acted like a frantic beast.
He waved his fists and kept punching the spikes.
Each punch blew the spikes into pieces. He had lost count of how many punches he had thrown.
His hands were bruised from all the blows!
Spikes were still growing out of the ground and kept trying to kill Tang Yimo, yet they were all blasted away by him.
“Explode!” Tang Yimo roared in anger.
He slammed his body against the spikes.
Dark Demonic Qi slowly took over his body.
Tang Yimo felt restless, even though he had the help of Jing Yue and the Sword Pavilion.
Tang Xiansheng had let him take control of the matters in South County. At first, Tang Yimo only wanted to make sure his mother and sister would stay safe and have a carefree life.
But now, he started to realize…
He not only wanted to protect his mother and sister.
That was his immediate family.
Besides them, there was a bigger family in the eyes of the public, which was South County as a society.
“Tang Xiansheng…you b.a.s.t.a.r.d!”
With bloodshot eyes, Tang Yimo cursed while fighting the spikes.
The next time he let out a deep roar, his hair stood on end as if a fierce wave of energy shook off the shackles inside his body.
Bang!
His heart was pounding wildly and quaked the entire battlefield.
The second meridian was activated.
Inside the cage of spikes, Tang Yimo’s s.h.i.+rt was torn into pieces and revealed his knotted muscles. Every vein in his body was bulging like snakes crawling over his skin.
The second meridian of the Eight Meridians Escaping Demonic Technique.
Tang Yimo’s eyes were sharp and focused. He felt like he had enough power to turn the earth upside down.
“Internal Organs?”
Holding the Jing Heaven Sword, Jing Yue was taken by surprise.
Xie Yunling and Hua Dongliu, the Sword Saint, also looked to his direction.
Inside the cage of spikes, Tang Yimo’s hair was blowing in the wind. He raised his hand and touched the spikes.
He gripped one a little firmer.
Bang!
The spike blew up in his grasp.
Tang Yimo’s body leaped from the dust and became a blurred black shadow almost indiscernible to human eyes!
“So fast!”
Jing Yue inhaled a deep breath.
The two Philosophers, Xie Yunling and Hua Dongliu, the Sword Saint, also fixed their eyes on him.
Was this… the power of the Internal Organs Realm?!
the wind blew in gusts, and the sand and dust filled the air.
Tang Yimo appeared next to the men in black robes.
The fearless Nanman soldiers rushed up to him.
These people’s movements appeared extremely slow in Tang Yimo’s eyes.
He crossed the distance between them in a blink of an eye and struck like a flash of black lightning.
The Nanman soldiers burst apart one by one.
Tang Yimo jumped high then fell like a cannonball.
Two deep footprints appeared on the ground.
The men in black robes began to chant and the spikes started to grow again.
However, Tang Yimo was faster than the spikes.
He approached a man in black robes and smashed his elbow down on his head.
The man in black robe blew up immediately—he was even more fragile than the Nanman soldiers.
All the men in black robes were killed by Tang Yimo in the twinkling of an eye.
Only dead bodies were left on the ground.
Blue veins were bulging from Tang Yimo’s body as his blood pumped through. The tense atmosphere made people frightened of his palpitations.
All the men in black robes were dead.
Nevertheless, Tang Yimo didn’t relax yet. On the contrary, he felt a sense of unease.
He raised his head and looked through the dense woods.
In the depth of the woods, a tall and brawny figure was facing away from South County.
At that moment, he seemed to have sensed Tang Yimo’s stare and slowly turned his head around.
…
Beiluo Lake Island.
The White Jade City Pavilion was still shrouded in mist.
Lu Fan’s white robe was flapping in the wind. He gazed at the silent, giant Origin in the Beiluo Lake.
Five types of elemental energy were flowing incessantly.
Lu Fan reached out his hand and dropped wisps of Spirit Qi into the Origin and made the elemental energy inside the Origin even stronger.
“Still need more…”
Lu Fan leaned over the wheelchair and looked fixedly at the Origin. He sipped some warm green plum wine.
His fingers tapped on the Phoenix Feather Arm.
With sparkling eyes, he watched the battles around the world. His face remained calm.
How could they achieve success without adversities? How could they mature without fierce fights?
Building a world was not only about the growth of the world, but also the people inside that world.
Going through battles and hards.h.i.+p was the only way to become stronger.
Just like Overlord who could finally enter the internal Organs Realm after enormous pressure.
Or Tang Yimo, who only activated the second meridian after understanding whom he had to protect.
Lu Fan didn’t kill all the invading wanderers immediately although he had the ability to do it. This world needed pressure to have growth.
Lu Fan stopped watching the fights.
He collected his consciousness and concentrated all his attention on the last part of the transformation of the Earth’s Origin.
Once the transformation was done, it would be the time for the storm of the rejuvenation of Spirit Qi to sweep across and transfigure the world.
…
North County, Outside Tianhan Gate.
Snowflakes were falling relentlessly. But the snow was stained with blood.
The North County Army had launched a frenzied attack outside the Gate.
Wearing icy cold armor, Tantai Xuan clutched the long spear and dashed into the depths of enemy troops. He kept killing the Rong people. The warm blood splattered over his face, yet he didn’t mind. He wiped it away and carried on.
The generals of North County were also fighting madly beside him. They had been holding the fort against the Xirong Army for generations and all of them had close relatives who had been killed by the Rong people. They would not flinch and back away now.
They would rather drink the Xirong people’s blood at a feast!
On the Tianhan Gate, Mo Beike wrapped himself in a thick down coat. Mo Ju also wore a similar crane cloak. The two watched the army fighting below with a mixture of feelings.
“This fight… will probably kill all the cultivators raised by North County in the past three months.”
“Is it worth it?” Mo Ju asked.
Mo Beike coughed slightly and smiled while watching Tantai Xuan on the battlefield.
“It doesn’t matter whether it’s worth it or not. If the Mayor thinks it’s worth it, then it is.”
“Actually, I’m surprised. Tantai Xuan had been defeated repeatedly ever since the war started. At the battle of Beiluo, the battle of Hidden Dragon Ridge, the battle of Capital city… He almost lost them all. But not only did this man not lose heart, but he also became even more courageous. Although he wasn’t destined to have an Immortal encounter, he never became dejected.
“At first, I only chose Tantai Xuan because of the aristocratic family behind him and the fact that he controlled North County.
“But now…I choose him because of Tantai Xuan himself,” Mo Beike said slowly.
The snowflakes flew in front of Mo Ju.
Mo Ju laid out his hand. A snowflake fell in his palm and became a tiny piece of ice.
“Indeed… This man is not valiant like Overlord, crafty like Tang Xiansheng, mysterious like Lu Ping’an. He is even a little…simple and ingenuous. But…he’s pretty good.”
Mo Ju laughed.
Mo Beike couldn’t resist and laughed along with him.
…
In the Xirong Army, standing on his chariot, Lord of Xirong frowned while staring at Tantai Xuan who was charging through his army.
“This man…is the Mayor of North County, Tantai Xuan, right?
“He’s quite a man,” Lord of Xirong exclaimed with mixed feelings.
He once fought equally hard against the enemy like Tantai Xuan was doing now, back in the days. He had charged from the frontlines and carved a way for his men.
Unfortunately, there weren’t any impressive cultivators in North County of the Great Zhou Dynasty.
“Go.”
Lord of Xirong waved his hand gently.
Numerous strong and merciless Xirong soldiers rode horses and galloped towards Tantai Xuan at full speed.
The sound of hoofbeats reverberated through the field.
The horses stirred the snow on the ground into the air.
The ruthless Xirong soldiers charged at him. A bizarre surge of energy burst from their bodies.
Tantai Xuan, in the middle of the fight, suddenly felt a chill down his spine.
He saw the Xirong soldiers headed for him.
The North County cultivators around Tantai Xuan who held Spirit Qi in their bodies rushed forward first.
They fought at close quarters with the Xirong soldiers.
The cultivators’ weapons chopped on these Xirong soldiers’ bodies to pieces, yet the soldiers didn’t even utter a cry.
They kept waving their weapons and killed the cultivators of North County.
Tantai Xuan’s eyes widened.
The other cultivators around him were also aghast.
“Leave now, Mayor!” they roared once they realized the unfeeling Xirong soldiers were targeting Tantai Xuan and rushed to s.h.i.+eld Tantai Xuan to provide cover for him to retreat.
Tantai Xuan was heartbroken to see all the dead cultivators of North County.
On the Tianhan Gate, Mo Beike and Mo Ju knitted their brows in confusion.
From the distance, a servant walked up to them, quickly and deferentially, and handed a letter to Mo Beike.
Mo Beike opened and skimmed the letter with his eyes. A smile spread across his wrinkled face.
The wind blew the snow into the air.
Tianhan Gate opened.
With the neigh of a horse, a set of silver armor gleamed in the suns.h.i.+ne.
Leaning forward on the horse, Jiang Li held a silver spear and sprang out.
…
In the meantime, at the Dragon Gate Secret Realm on Buzhou Peak.
Luo Cheng wore his armor and walked out, leading Bai Qingniao and Nie Shuang who were carrying the baskets.
Before they reached the Dragon Gate, they heard the melodic sound of a flute.
Everyone was dazed. They saw a young woman sitting near the Dragon Gate, playing the flute with her eyes closed.
Luo Cheng greeted the young woman while Bai Qingniao and Nie Shuang stared at her curiously.
The young woman stopped playing.
Her long eyelashes fluttered.
“You have the smell of my father. Come. I will not block your way,” the young woman said.
Her voice was pleasant.
Luo Cheng was eager to know who the father of the young woman was.
They had the smell of her father on them?
They had come from Beiluo Lake Island. Could that mean her father was…
Simple and naive, Bai Qingniao and Nie Shuang didn’t think too much of it.
Luo Cheng, on the other hand, became more and more startled…
It seemed he just discovered a big secret?!
Leading Nie Shuang and Bai Qingniao, Luo Cheng climbed down Buzhou Peak.
Zhu Long raised her flute again. The sound of the flute sang to an empty Dragon Gate.
Suddenly, the flute stopped.
“They can go through it. You…can’t.”
Eyes closed, Zhu Long looked to the other side of the iron chain bridge.
She spoke in a calm voice after a long silence.