'Three Storms' had a total of five stances. Cao Yun had a very good grasp on the first three, understood the concept behind the fourth one, but was still in the dark when it came to the fifth one. He barely remembered his great-grandfather's words on the matter when he discussed it with his father. At the time Cao Yun was so young that the memories were vague and obscure, even to his current mind. Because his mind had not registered them, it was impossible for him to remember them correctly. Sometimes they made sense, but the next instant either their sense had changed or they were utterly nonsensical.
Anyway, for the time being, Cao Yun focused on the fourth stance 'The Three Storms unite in the North.'. The purpose behind this stance was to merge the three elements together to create the perfect storm, the storm that had almost cost Cao Beiwen his life. Thus, it was much more difficult than the first three stances. However, Cao Yun was eager to master this martial art. In fact, he also wanted to push it further and further.
At the moment, this art was probably only a 3 or 4-star Human martial art. But with his knowledge, Cao Yun was convinced he could make it into a real Heaven martial art. Indeed, he had already learned a lot about Wind and he could use it to improve this part. Then, he would also elevate all the other stances. For that though, he needed to get a perfect understanding of it first.
Finally ready, Cao Yun unleashed his best sword move. All around him, there was now a small storm with hail and thunder crisscrossing a tornado with him in its center. The winds were so violent that a lot of burning sand was also sucked into this tornado, adding Fire to the elements. While he was practicing his martial art, Cao Yun was also probing the Qi Manifestation with his own spiritual senses. And he could sense the new element clashing with the other three. By observing this phenomenon, Cao Yun was transfixed. It was as though he was discovering something new. His alchemical training was incredibly useful for that. In fact, if he had been in Cao Beiwen's storm, he would have been able to discern much more than his great-grandfather.
Because of the disturbance caused in the desert, a few demonic beasts were alerted to the presence of this young human. Since he wasn't hiding his cultivation at all, as he was in the middle of the desert, they were attracted by the sweet fragrance of his blood. However, they were also terrified by his strength. Indeed, Cao Yun had made sure that there was no demonic beast with more than six demonic cores. Besides, Hongyu was also close by, far enough so that Cao Yun could train without worrying about injuring her, but close enough to deter some beasts from disturbing him.
Among those beasts though, one found the courage to show its head. From a nearby dune, a tunnel was being dug out. From that tunnel, the muzzle of a fox appeared. Careful at first, smelling the air around it, its fur slowly became visible. Leaving the burning sand, silver fur appeared. It was absolutely magnificent, shining under the blazing sun. Still being extremely careful, the silver fox let its entire head come out of the dune. The beast was truly beautiful and had a dignified air, full of pride and a bit of blood lust as well.
The first thing that silver fox saw was the great storm all around Cao Yun. Then, he smelled the young human's blood. Immediately, the fox could feel its saliva in its mouth. It had to devour this human. Then, he might gain its seventh core, and with it, its seventh tail. But the fact that this human was able to conjure such a storm was worrisome. Besides, the fox also saw Hongyu by his side, that fiery bird was also dangerous. Thankfully though, she only had five demonic cores. She was weaker than the fox was.
With his six demonic core, that fox was rather smart. First of all, foxes were smart and crafty to begin with. But this particular fox had intelligence that could rival a demon's or a human's. To be fair, it wasn't necessarily that difficult for some of the specimens he had observed. Sometimes, just singing with the right tone was enough to make a demon forget safety and give themselves to its fangs. When it came to that specific human though, the fox knew it wouldn't work. It couldn't lure him in so easily.
After spending a few hours observing the human, the fox had understood what he was doing. That human was obviously training his martial art. Thus, maybe there was a way. Fighting the two of them together, man and bird, would be difficult. But if it could fight only one of them, the fox might win. Since the human was training, there was a chance he would fight alone against the fox in order to hone his skills. In the end, the fox decided to follow this course of actions. There would be no trick!
Finally coming out of the sand, the silver fox proudly showed his six tails. With sand all over its sublime shining fur, the Silver Six-Tail Fox shook it off. Even though Cao Yun was focused on his martial art, he obviously saw the silvery light reflected from the big silver's back. Hongyu was also alert to the movement of that demonic beast. The Silver Six-Tailed Fox only gazed at Cao Yun. And the young human saw a challenge in those eyes. Yes, that demonic beast was opening for a fair fight. And Cao Yun was eager to give it what it wanted.
Suddenly, the storm dissipated in thin air. After all, it was only due to Cao Yun's Qi Manifestation. The very moment he stopped fueling it, it could not exist by itself.
Facing the Silver Six-Tailed Fox, Cao Yun obviously recognized the beast from what he had learned about the Desolate Sepulcher. Such a demonic beast had six demonic cores and was very powerful and extremely fast. Quite frankly, that fox was probably a great fighting partner to test his 'Three Storms'. Apparently, it was a young male. Of course, young was relative when it came to such beasts. Most likely, it had lived for less than a century. The fact that he had already formed six demonic cores and was still alive in such a dangerous environment showed that he was indeed powerful. He had hunted enough to form his six demonic cores while avoiding the more dangerous predators.
Looking at him, Cao Yun wondered whether this day would be the day of the silver's death. Despite his good instincts, he had made a mistake. Maybe it was because he had seen Cao Yun using 'Three Storms' and not his 'Azure Dragon's Seven Piercing Stars'. After all, he was less proficient in sword than in spear. However, Cao Yun decided to use his sword in this fight since he wanted to polish his skills.
Hongyu was ready to intervene but her brother made some gesture to tell her not to. He would fight alone. Sensing that, the Silver Six-Tailed Fox knew he had made the right decision. Now, he would fight and kill this human. If that fiery bird he wasn't familiar with attacked him after that, she would be easier to kill. But even if she just flew away, he would have a great meal with this man's blood.
'Unrivaled Above the Sand' in hand, the swordsman could feel his weapon desire to draw blood. Then, Cao Yun mixed his own killing intent within the sword. Although he had no Sword Aura, his Spear Aura was a bit showing through his killing intent. In some moves, it would probably even act up. This time, Cao Yun let everything out, his full strength and his entire cultivation. He had no reason to hide anything and it felt good to let go of all restraints. As soon as he felt that, the Silver Six-Tailed Fox was a bit worried. Although the human was not stronger than he was, the fox could tell that he had indeed misjudged him at first. Anyway, he would still win this fight and feast on his blood. This just meant that his reward would be even better than he had imagined.
A sudden flash crossed the distance between the two of them. The next instant, the Silver Six-Tailed Fox's claws were clashing with Cao Yun's blade. Besides the gust of wind caused by the fox, a powerful wall of wind erupted from their clash, as well as sparks all over the place. Immediately, the Silver Six-Tailed Fox moved again. For a few moves, it attacked the human relentlessly, trying to exhaust him. Despite his incredible speed though, Cao Yun was able to block all of his attacks with his blade.
Thankfully, 'Unrivaled Above the Sand' was a 5-star Human sword. So it wasn't damaged at all despite receiving the sharp claws of the Silver Six-Tailed Fox several times in quick succession. After each attack, the fox was moving around faster than what a mortal eye could follow. In fact, Cao Yun's eyes could barely follow the Silver Six-Tailed Fox. A few times, the fox altered his speed and became faster for an instant, trying to throw off his opponent. However, Cao Yun had already stopped using his eyes to find him. Instead, he was focusing his spiritual senses all around him.
Even then, Cao Yun was just fast enough to block the attacks. If he was a bit slower, he would clearly receive the attack. Although it wouldn't kill him in a single move, it would definitely injure him. After all, even after a few attacks, he could feel his arms becoming numb under the repeated shocks.
Finally, an opportunity arose when the Silver Six-Tailed Fox slowed down for an instant. Although he was trying to exhaust Cao Yun, he was also using more strength than he had imagined at first.
At that very moment, Cao Yun seized the opportunity and struck with his sword. Still used to his spear, this became a stabbing motion. 'The Thunder rumbles in the West.' All across his blade, thunder appeared. But there was also a small cone of wind surrounding it, as though he was still using 'Azure Dragon's Seven Piercing Stars'. Moving his slender body around, the Silver Six-Tailed Fox used his tails to obscure Cao Yun's view. Of course, the beast didn't realize that his opponent had no need for his eyes in this duel. At the same time, the fox contorted his body in the air to try and avoid the stabbing sword.
That sword went through the flailing tails. Some of the wind around the blade got dispersed and the static in the fur also got rid of the thunder before it could strike the fox's main body. However, the tip of the sword still pierced through his flank and drew first blood. As soon as the blade pierced his flesh, the fox contracted his muscles, trapping it. Before Cao Yun could move it either forward or backward, the fox finally regained his bearing on the ground and moved brutally. The unexpected change caught Cao Yun off-guard and he was thrown away with his weapon.
While still in the air, the young man was attacked by the ferocious fangs of the fox. His eyes could only see silver as the sun was reverberating on the fangs. His nose could only smell blood in the beast's breath. Being in the air didn't mean Cao Yun was powerless though. 'The Wind rises in the East.' A sudden slashing motion with his sword cut through the fox's face. Although the blade didn't directly connect, the air pressure left a shallow scar on the demonic beast, just under his left eye. Under the surprise and the pain, the fox's head moved around. His fangs were not able to close around Cao Yun but he still received a canine in his left forearm.
The canine didn't pierce through Cao Yun's skin. However, it clearly left a serious bruise. As soon as Cao Yun touched the ground, he evaded a hinder leg kicking him. Then, he felt the sand under him shift. All around Cao Yun, several tails made of sand arose from the ground and tried to trap him. Without any hesitation, he cut them down. 'The Ice hails in the South.' Some of the sand was literally frozen by Cao Yun's horizontal slash. While the fight was progressing, Cao Yun's killing intent was getting fiercer. His eyes were full of blood even without using 'Weeping Demon'.
For several minutes, the fox and the human kept exchanging many moves. Although it was a battle to the death, the fox and the human were both enjoying it. They both had superficial wounds all over, nothing lethal. In fact, with their vitality, all those wounds would be gone by the end of the day. The very first scar left by Cao Yun under the fox's left eye was already almost gone even though he wasn't focusing on it.
Cao Yun's clothes were a bit tattered but he thankfully had other robes in his spatial ring. By that time, he knew that he could kill the fox if he simply took his spear out. Not only would his martial arts be stronger, he would also surprise his opponent and win the fight. Against an Accomplished Demon, this might be a sound strategy and he would remember it. However, he had no intention of doing so right now. For the moment, he was truly sensing his swordsmanship getting better and better with each move.
A few more moves later, Cao Yun charged toward the Silver Six-Tailed Fox. All around him, the sand turned into sharp tails trying to cut him into pieces. At the same moment, the Silver Six-Tailed Fox was also charging toward the human. Cao Yun easily dodged and froze a few sand tails. At last, the two opponents met. Cao Yun's blade was ready to pierce the fox's heart while his fangs were about to bite off the human's head. Suddenly shifting his weight, Cao Yun angled his sword. With the butt of it, he struck the bottom of the fox's maw, closing it violently. Using the shock going through his sword, Cao Yun stabbed the demonic beast lower in its belly, missing any vital organs.
Now, Cao Yun was standing on the belly of the fox who was lying down in the sand, a bit of blood flowing down his leg. Before Cao Yun could retrieve his sword though, the seven tails coiled around him, trying to strangulate him while restricting his movements.