The light, airy sound vanished in an instant, but the sword energy around Gu Qi's body sank deeply. The eyes hidden under his mask darkened slightly, and a pair of pupils unique to demons subtly emerged.
Just a bit of blood reminded him of the time by the foggy pond on Nanwu Mountain, when someone had slapped him with filthy blood. There was no need to confirm it through his eye veil. The blood now, fresh and full of temptation, caused his suppressed vital energy to break through the constraints of his meridians, making him involuntarily grunt, his fangs seemingly growing a little longer.
Gu Qi tilted his head, the face of the person in his arms innocent and pure, with no emotion to be seen in their eyes.
Calm, undisturbed... When quieted, they seemed like an expressionless porcelain doll, as if the previous words were just casually spoken. But Gu Qi knew that this person had noticed his sword and also the blood, and they had done it intentionally.
At this moment, Su Yu sensed that the hand restraining his waist had grown heavier, and he seemed to detect a unique scent. Through the mask, it was distinct from Gu Qi's original aura.
"Huh?" The ink beast, which had been growling due to the approach of the sword cultivator, suddenly sniffed something. An unfamiliar yet familiar aura wafted from the sword cultivator. "Wait a minute, this sword cultivator—"
But the sword cultivator spoke first.
"You ran out of Nanwu Mountain…? What does the ancient Mountain Suppressing Monument have to do with you?"
The ink beast was taken aback. "!!" So direct?
Su Yu didn't speak. He watched as the sword energy around the cultivator grew more intense, resembling the unstable posture he had first seen. It was clear that the sword cultivator's condition wasn't great. At least, he wasn't capable of cleaving the Mountain Suppressing Monument with a single sword, not like in Nanwu Mountain.
The sword cultivator did not move his sword. He could only say that if the sword were drawn, something would happen.
The sword energy behind Gu Qi trembled even more violently. Whether it was due to this person's blood or the relentless demon puppet within the array, the demonic blood in his body, along with the constantly leaking sword energy, was breaking through his body's channels.
He furrowed his brows and said, "It's fine. I'll clarify this after it's over—"
Before he could finish speaking, a rapidly growing foreign plant suddenly surged toward their direction from below.
The ground of Jinzhou Town cracked, and buildings on the streets collapsed as thicker branches extended from the earth.
It wasn't simply the ground cracking… The entire town was collapsing.
In the long street, within the Qi Family's money house, a cloaked figure spat out a mouthful of black blood, the shockwaves from the cracking ground reaching him. His body was nearly covered in tree bark, and his cloak tore open, revealing a face similar to the bark puppets on the road surface. He lay on the ground, his palm slowly emitting spiritual energy, attempting to convey something to others—
Run quickly! The array of Jinzhou Town has activated!
Outside Jinzhou Town, on the Su family's spirit vessel.
Old Qi immediately withdrew with the Su family's spirit vessel as soon as the anomaly in Jinzhou Town occurred. The entire town seemed to have turned into a massive vortex, emitting a constant pulling force, as though it was trying to drag them and all external spirit vessels into the city.
Now, forget about breaking the array; just getting too close could mean they'd be swallowed by the entire town.
The black-and-white envoys from the Loose Cultivator Alliance seemed to have realized something, their eyes filled with surprise. "Something's wrong."
The white moon in the sky wavered as if ripples appeared, resembling an illusion around the outermost layer of Jinzhou Town. In the fading firelight, the towering bark giants inside Jinzhou Town appeared before everyone's eyes.
The black-and-white envoys of the Loose Cultivator Alliance and Old Qi almost immediately acted. While Old Qi controlled the spirit vessel to retreat, the black-and-white envoy condensed an attack in his palm, sending it toward the town. Yet, when the two high-level cultivators' attacks hit the town, they were completely absorbed.
Not only that, their spiritual power was also drawn into the town.
"We can't break the array from the outside." Old Qi scrutinized the array more closely. "The key lies inside. Without breaking the core, we can't enter."
The person who set up this array clearly hadn't intended for anyone outside to get in once it was activated.
"Could it be that the young master has already...?"
"Spit, spit! Don't curse the young master!"
The other cultivators aboard the spirit vessel were still using communication talismans, trying to contact people inside Jinzhou Town, but by now, they still couldn't reach anyone.
"Any news from Nanwu Mountain?"
"How could there be such quick news? The communication bell has a limited range, and it's several days' journey from here to Nanwu Mountain!"
"What about Tianyuan City? We can't just wait here to die!"
"If this array is left unchecked, it's not as simple as the deaths of two cultivators." Old Qi's expression darkened. He turned to the black-and-white envoys and said, "Jinzhou Town… or rather, within a hundred miles, all living beings are unlikely to escape."
"I've already sent a message to the Loose Cultivator Alliance. They have scouts in the southern borders, so someone should be arriving soon." The white envoy spoke honestly, "But they might not make it in time."
They hadn't expected things to be so dire when they arrived here.
Had it been just an eerie town, it would have been one thing, but this was a sacrificial array.
With the current anomaly, the various forces in the Southern Region were affected, causing widespread suffering among living beings. This situation was not beneficial to anyone.
"Can the two of you join forces with me to weaken this array?"
At this moment, Old Qi suddenly spoke up, "After all, this is my spirit vessel. If I don't send these cultivators to Tianyuan City, it'll be bad for my reputation."
The white envoy shook his head, "Old Qi, I believe we both know this."
"Even if we weaken the array, if the array's core is not destroyed, no deity can save us here."
"Moreover, the ancient sacrificial array's records are incomplete, and once activated, it's difficult to break."
"This is a deadlock."
Inside Jinzhou Town:
Amidst the tremors, Gu Qi's figure moved, quickly retreating with the person in his arms, stepping back several paces. The ground beneath him cracked open, and a strange plant shot out from the earth, aiming to pull him down into the abyss.
"To the diagonal rear, the lowest point," Su Yu suddenly said.
Gu Qi, with his sharp senses, heard his voice and swiftly altered his sword gesture, striking toward the direction Su Yu indicated. The uncontrolled plant seemed to sense something and changed direction, intercepting his sword strike just as it was about to reach the feet of the bark giant.
There was indeed a problem at the giant's feet!
Gu Qi glanced at the person in his arms and swiftly leaped onto the roof of a nearby building. As the strange plant charged toward them again, he pushed Su Yu in the direction of another spirit beast.
The sudden feeling of weightlessness caused Su Yu to drift away from the chaotic sword energy, crashing into the fuzzy fur of a small ginseng beast. As he slid down, the small ginseng beast opened its mouth and grabbed his sleeve, tossing him back up, where he landed safely on the beast's back.
"You're talking too much to that sword cultivator!" The ink beast growled as it felt a tingling sensation all over its body from the cultivator's proximity. "This is bad! Once we're out of the array, he's definitely going to follow you and ask everything."
"What's there to be afraid of?" Su Yu replied calmly. "Just change your face."
The ink beast: "!" Do you think disguises are magic tricks?!
"Never mind." Su Yu looked at his palm, where a trace of the sword cultivator's sword energy remained, still carrying the cultivator's scent. It seemed that in that brief contact, the sword cultivator had left his mark on him… Was this to prevent him from escaping?
Su Yu frowned slightly as he looked at the sword energy in his palm, unable to get rid of it.
Zhang Fugui, watching Su Yu's mildly disgusted gesture, said, "I feel like the Daoist wants to cut off his own hand..."
The ink beast: "…?"
High above, Gu Qi noticed the shift in the situation below. Just as he was about to go and help, Elder Liu, who now had the power of the Jinzhou Town array, raised his hand, summoning countless bark vines that wrapped around Gu Qi, binding him tightly.
Elder Liu had figured out that this sword cultivator's cultivation was only at the God Transformation stage. With the Jinzhou Town array under his control, unless the sword cultivator was at a significantly higher cultivation level, he had no chance of reversing the situation.
Taking this opportunity, he decided to deal with the smaller pests first.
Elder Liu's gaze shifted to the small ginseng beast. It seemed to have decent bloodline potential, so it could serve as a foundation for the array…
Gu Qi shifted his head. This wasn't good. It was too late!
Just then, a figure suddenly leaped out and stood in front of the two of them and the beast. With one hand, it grabbed a large bundle of vines and forcefully tore them all apart, helping the small ginseng beast block the incoming attack.
Gu Qi's eyes paused, and he looked at the figure. It was the living corpse.
Or more precisely, it was the handprint on the living corpse. The mark was so clear on its forehead… The same living corpse that had disappeared in the foggy pond of Nanwu Mountain was now here.
"Brother!" Qi Liu cried, tears welling up.
The living corpse, not understanding Qi Liu's affection, appeared and immediately began tearing vines. It still remembered Su Yu's earlier orders—to protect the master and ensure nothing was lost. As it tugged at the vines, it grew more proficient.
Su Yu's yin energy had improved greatly compared to before. After the ink beast ate so many strange fruits and returned the energy to him, he had more than enough. After releasing the living corpse, he didn't care about it anymore. Instead, he looked toward the location where the strange light had first appeared.
"They really think we're helpless," the ink beast said smugly. "Open the gate and release the living corpse."
Su Yu said, "Why don't you go up?"
"If that sword cultivator hadn't destroyed the Mountain Suppressing Stele, I would've nearly lost my soul! Otherwise, I'd have devoured this bark giant by now!" The ink beast's tone was filled with indignation, but then it suddenly seemed confused. "Wait a minute, before, when that sword cultivator attacked me, he was so fierce. Why does he seem weaker now? He's treating us differently!"
"There's something wrong inside him." While the ink beast wasn't paying attention, Su Yu glanced at the sword cultivator. His inner state was nearly a mess, as if he was desperately suppressing something. With such chaotic spiritual energy, if they didn't end this quickly...
Just then, Su Yu noticed that the thunderstrike sword technique beside the sword cultivator seemed to solidify a little more.
Before he could examine it further, the surrounding energy seemed to hum and vibrate.
The sword cultivator drew his sword.
A flickering thunderbolt appeared high above, like flashing fireworks. As it emerged, Su Yu could clearly see the sword's form—the thunderous sword.
The simple, unadorned sword gleamed with an unshakable cold light, its blade reflecting the moonlight in a flowing sheen. When the sword was unsheathed, the surroundings seemed to become solemn. The vines close to Gu Qi were pushed back by an invisible force.
In that moment, the sword cultivator's sword energy stabilized.
Rather than stability, it felt more like something had been torn open, layer upon layer, transforming into a dark thunderous light.
The sword technique in the air stopped, and countless vines rushed toward Gu Qi. In the blink of an eye, the thunderlight flashed. Before anyone could react, several sword lights passed by, the sword cultivator's figure moving like wind. The surrounding bark vines were all severed!
Swift as thunder!
The sword shadows piled up, piercing straight into the bark giant's limbs, pinning it in place. Elder Liu, who was floating on top of the giant, slightly changed his expression and was about to retreat a few steps when the sword cultivator's figure became even faster. In the blink of an eye, he appeared before him.
What's going on…?
The sword cultivator had previously struggled against the vines, so how had he suddenly...?
Elder Liu looked up, and only in the midst of his dodging did he see the sword cultivator's sword in his hand.
The sword-wielding cultivator and the one using sword techniques were completely different people!
Elder Liu, unprepared in the high sky, was about to gather his strength to restore the bark giant, but Gu Qi was faster. After completing one sword strike, he immediately performed another, his cultivation soaring after unsheathing the sword. His speed increased by a lot. One sword strike severed the ground beneath Elder Liu's feet.
Elder Liu's face changed slightly. "Thunderstrike Sword Technique... You're Gu Zi…"
Gu Qi furrowed his brow slightly. After unlocking his sword, the demon blood inside him was being gradually awakened. The overwhelming energy of his bloodline clashed with the spiritual power within him. He couldn't waste time here; he had to resolve this array quickly and prevent his demon blood from exploding. His sword moved, changing direction and charging toward Elder Liu. With one sword strike, he severed the connection between him and the bark giant.
"You're here? Not in the Western Caves?" Elder Liu muttered. "You're here, and with you, this array can reach completion... No one is getting out."
Gu Qi stood with his sword on his back, his fingers moving, and above him, countless sword techniques appeared, circling around him.
While others were astonished, thousands of swords descended, piercing the bark giant and causing it to collapse.
The ink beast, at that moment, recalled a long-forgotten memory. "!!! This is the move! This damn sword cultivator used this technique to deal with me back at Nanwu Mountain!!"
But this time, the move was even fiercer. Back at Nanwu Mountain, the sword cultivator hadn't even drawn his sword. Now, the sword weapon was unleashed.
Su Yu's spiritual sight followed the sword cultivator's figure. After the sword's seal was broken, the sword cultivator's energy erupted violently. But contradicting this was a deeper layer of energy inside the cultivator, as if it had finally broken through a boundary, crashing through his defenses. The mingling, chaotic energies mixed together.
In the sky, the person's aura had completely changed.
His internal body seemed to be shattered and full of holes, but the sword's speed didn't slow down.
The bark giant was covered in sword techniques. With a single strike, the sword techniques tore it open, and the vines began to break apart inch by inch, revealing a clear array on the bark giant's body. This was the core array of Jinzhou Town, protected by layers of bark vines.
The core of the array was right there!
At that moment, Elder Liu in the sky suddenly formed a hand seal.
Su Yu, below, seemed to notice something. He looked up and saw that Elder Liu's spiritual energy was rapidly rising, expanding like it was about to break through something.
The ink beast sensed something as well and urgently said, "Su Yu, protect yourself!"
The next moment, Elder Liu exploded in mid-air, sending a surge of spiritual energy outward, especially toward Gu Qi, who was closest.
Gu Qi braced himself with his sword, his gaze snapping to the rear-right!
The spiritual energy from the cultivator's self-explosion rushed toward the ground. In a critical moment, a faint array appeared, meeting Gu Qi's sword technique. It formed before Qi Liu and the small ginseng beast, and the cloaked figure appeared, having arrived somehow. Its bark-covered body was in ruins. After protecting the two in the back, his body seemed to break past its limits, cracking open.
"Brother!" Qi Liu shouted in shock.
The cloaked figure had no strength to respond. "Run…"
The explosive spiritual energy didn't dissipate. It formed a vortex of energy beside the bark giant. A sacrificial explosion by a God Transformation cultivator caused the array beneath the bark giant to fully take shape. Su Yu felt a tremendous pulling force, as if it was trying to drag him into the core of the array.
At that moment, the bark giant in the sky stopped moving.
Its body seemed to have rooted into the ground, transforming into the massive root of an ancient tree, with roots stretching deep into the earth. The tree grew, expanding, until it became a giant tree that covered half of Jinzhou Town.
On the treetop, there hung numerous bark people.
At this moment, countless unruly branches appeared on the bark giant's body, and on these branches were bound several cultivators. Some of them had already been fully assimilated into bark puppets, while others retained their original appearance...
Qi Liu, with sharp eyes, immediately spotted Qi Yan and Su Yi, right at the very center of the treetop. He quickly grabbed the little ginseng beast, who was trying to rush up, and sternly shouted, "Young master…"
The two had already lost consciousness and were about to become sacrifices.
The cloaked figure muttered, "...The ancient sacrificial formation and the giant tree."
The ancient sacrificial formation had been mentioned in a few ancient texts, with some references to this very tree.
Using the flesh and blood of millions as offerings, a giant tree with the most spiritual power would be nurtured, capable of protecting the safety of a region.
No wonder that God Transformation cultivator had self-destructed—he had done it to speed up the formation of the giant tree.
At this rate... in half an hour, no, in less than half an hour, this formation would be complete.
Qi Liu was shocked. "A man-eating thing... becoming a spiritual tree?"
The voice of the cloaked figure carried a hint of despair: "That's why it's a sacrificial formation. Everyone is a sacrifice. There's no way out."
Su Yu frowned upon hearing this. A formation with no way out…?
Just as he hesitated, the sound of a sword rang in his ears.
It seemed to come from far away, but it clearly echoed in his ears.
"Above!" the ink beast shouted.
Su Yu looked up.
As the sword was drawn, it cut through the air with a crisp, bright sound. The sword cultivator in the sky didn't stop; behind him, numerous sword techniques lit up again. This time, the sword techniques were different from before. The sword spun in the sword cultivator's hands, creating a beautiful sword dance, with layers of sword shadows and thunderous light flickering.
Gu Qi barely held back and unleashed another sword technique, nearly exhausting half of his spiritual energy.
More than a thousand sword techniques formed at his side again. As the bark giant's roots anchored, they suddenly swept toward its body. Following the direction of the previously discovered formation core, the sword techniques tore away at the protection layer inch by inch.
Amid the layers of vines, the core of the formation was exposed. At the center, there was something pulsing with spiritual energy. It was a stone, no larger than a palm, embedded in the trunk of the giant tree. When Su Yu saw it, his eyes reflected a kind of flowing brilliance—purer than the brilliance of a spirit boat, with a richness of spiritual energy to the extreme.
The formation's core...!
But the core hadn't been destroyed.
The ink beast, upon seeing what the sword cultivator had cleaved open, froze in place. "No wonder this formation can support such a massive structure and cause so many cultivators to fall. The spiritual energy in the core is extremely abundant!"
"Su Yu, you need to hurry!" The ink beast's voice quickened. "This giant tree has been altered by someone. They must have wanted to use the flesh and blood of cultivators to create something. If we wait until the formation is complete, the core will be permanently sealed... Su Yu!"
Su Yu, his gaze still fixed upward, seemed to be looking at the remnants of the thunder that had exploded in the sky.
Suddenly, it was as if a clear figure appeared before him, with a long sword performing a graceful sword dance under the moonlight. The swordsman's body moved as the sword moved, every strike clean and decisive, and this style blended with the thunderous sword in the sky.
"Junior brother, have you learned this sword technique?"
Su Yu instinctively wanted to reply that he hadn't, but memories suddenly flooded his mind.
There, the sword was pure white, covered in endless frost. It took step after step toward him.
Along with the sword, a much older memory emerged, not like the incense-scented ancestral hall he had seen before, but like standing atop an endless mountain peak. A man stood before him, holding his sword, speaking in a tone like the gentle breeze. Every word seemed to be guiding him.
But he hadn't listened at all. He hadn't wanted to learn the sword technique. Instead, his gaze had been fixed on the sword behind the man.
Until the man took it off and placed it in front of him.
"Senior brother, what is this sword?"
"It's my life sword. Its name is Treading Snow."
"Su Yu!"
The ink beast's call shattered the memory.
Su Yu's consciousness snapped back. Hearing the thunder crackling in the sky, his body moved faster than the surrounding vines, and he leapt under the eaves. "Living corpse, come here!"
Without sound, the totem in his dantian began to rotate.
Su Yu's eyes filled with crimson and golden threads as the ink beast's illusionary technique began to disintegrate.
The living corpse, which had been absorbed in pulling vines earlier, heard the call. Its movements froze. The chains binding its ankles turned deep red. It turned, leapt down, crashing through the roof, and rushed to Su Yu's side. Reaching out, it pulled him up.
The living corpse's arms were exceptionally strong. It held Su Yu as it clearly heard the command of its master.
The speed at which it rushed forward didn't slow at all. It charged straight into the vines. Covered in a layer of yin energy, with its near-impenetrable body, it transformed its hands into sharp claws, tearing through the vines.
The living corpse, seemingly covered in rotten flesh and neither human nor ghost, like a living corpse, suddenly transformed into a sharp weapon, tearing a hole through the vines.
This caught both Gu Qi and the cloaked figure, who had been momentarily stunned by the sword techniques, completely off guard.
The ink beast looked on in astonishment. It had memories of the living corpse, but until now, the living corpse hadn't changed much. It was an indestructible body, which was strong but not as formidable as it was now. Its strength seemed limitless, and its body had transformed into something resembling an iron wall.
Despite not possessing any cultivation techniques, the living corpse was unstoppable, charging forward with Su Yu into the depths of the vines.
It was as if something had empowered it… The ink beast's gaze fell upon the chains around the ankles of Su Yu and the living corpse. The chains were a deep red, like blood, as if they had completely bound the two together.
Ghost-controlling technique…?
No, more than that. That kid was also triggering the living corpse's potential—he was making it stronger!
For something to unleash even greater strength in a controlled entity, this wasn't just about knowing the ghost-controlling technique. It meant that the chains binding those two were part of a special secret method, one that the ink beast had never seen before…
Su Yu, though blind, was unhindered, and the living corpse, unblinded, responded immediately to the command.
It knew to follow its master's orders, bringing Su Yu safely to the base of the bark giant.
"My heavens…" Qi Liu, who had just been referring to the living corpse as his 'little brother,' quickly realized the situation. The living corpse had been released by the young master!? What kind of beast-controlling technique was this?! No, was this even a beast?
"Woo!" The little ginseng cried out sharply at this moment.
Qi Liu didn't waste time, shouting, "Little brother! Behind you!"
The living corpse, moving swiftly through the vines, slashed through them, severing the ones attempting to ambush them. It then turned and dragged them into the Abyss of Evil.
The vines it threw in knocked Zhang Fugui squarely in the face.
The ink beast narrowly avoided the strike, shouting, "You're fighting! Focus on the fight! Why are you picking up things!?"
The Abyss of Evil and Su Yu shared the same fate—what affected one affected the other. Both master and servant relied on the purity of their energy from the Abyss of Evil for their strength. Could they focus on the task at hand without wasting time?
The formation around Jinzhou Town seemed to breathe, slowly drawing in the leaking spiritual energy from everyone, creating a swirling vortex that was steadily pulling toward the ground beneath the bark giant's feet.
Up above, Gu Qi had just torn open a gap. Looking down, he saw a figure charge into the vines. The figure moved so quickly that he couldn't see it clearly.
His gaze lingered on the living corpse for a moment, before he noticed the chains binding it to Su Yu. A beast-controlling technique...? No, this was more like a method from the ghost cultivation sect.
Ghost cultivators could control countless ghosts, but to be a ghost cultivator, one had to be a soul—yet when Gu Qi checked that person's pulse, they weren't dead. How could they be using this ghostly technique?
The living corpse's hand slammed into the giant tree, and it rapidly climbed, carrying Su Yu with it. The two figures scaled the giant tree's tangled roots and branches, reaching another high point in the blink of an eye.
In an instant, Su Yu's thoughts raced. As the attacks from the giant tree dispersed toward him and the living corpse, Gu Qi didn't hesitate and once again unleashed his sword technique. Each strike tore open a gap in the tree. The living corpse seized those gaps, pulling Su Yu into them.
The giant tree couldn't attack its own trunk, so the closer they were to it, the fewer attacks it would take.
But that wasn't enough… even if they were close, he still couldn't solve the core of the formation.
"Where is the key to breaking the formation?" Su Yu asked.
"Destroy the formation's core forcefully," the ink beast replied. But then it hesitated. No, how could they break the core? They didn't have the strength to do so!
Even the sword cultivator couldn't break the core! How could they destroy it?
The closer they got to the giant tree, the clearer its inner workings became.
What had been invisible from the outside was now layered before his eyes. Inside the giant tree, it was as though countless meridians were intertwined, all gradually converging at the center of the trunk—the so-called formation's core. Su Yu focused his mind and used his spiritual eyes, his gaze growing increasingly strained, even more so than when observing the Su family's spirit boat formation. Countless nodes appeared before him.
What to do if the core couldn't be destroyed...?
Then cut it off!
Outside Jinzhou Town.
The silent black emissary stood on the Su family's spirit boat, his hands making precise gestures as he observed the formation in front of him: "Little brother, it seems too early to make a judgment."
The Black and White Emissaries of the Loose Cultivator Alliance—Black Emissary, adept at insight—stood there.
The White Emissary turned his head and looked at his shorter elder brother. "What did you see?"
The Black Emissary pointed to a specific spot.
Old Qi squinted and followed the Black Emissary's finger.
The formation outside the city had been breached. A sword light leapt over the bark giant, the brilliance of the sword light dazzling. Amid the layers, it seemed a figure was rapidly climbing to the top, moving quickly as though it had found something.
"They're not all dead…"
"Someone is breaking the formation."