Another Cliché Cultivation Story

“Oh?”

The reaction from Yahui after he was stabbed with the Essence-infused sword caused Ji Xian's eyes to flicker with disappointment.

So they’re still affected by True Essence, huh? How boring, I thought I’ll be able to have some fun.

“You…”

Yahui groaned. He wasn’t injured by the sword that pierced through his stomach, it only left him slightly uncomfortable. But he also knew that his opponent was only holding back, what made him uneasy was the fact that he can’t see the depth of this person before him.

When did the humans have someone like this in their ranks?

With this thought, Yahui shuddered as he looked down at the sword sticking out of him when he suddenly felt its power swiftly increasing

Ji Xian had increased the amount of True Essence infused into his sword causing it to skyrocket, earlier he had held back and only put in enough True Essence to rival the Essence realm, but now it has increased to the point where it has just barely passed the Holy realm.

Ji Xian waved his hand and slashed Yahui across the waist, seemingly cutting him in half! It happened so fast, he wasn’t even able to react.

Just like before, Ji Xian felt like he was slicing the air. The sword swept past Yahui but on the surface, it didn’t seem to have caused any physical harm.

“Argh!”

Yahui screamed.

Out of instinct, he immediately retreated, with Yazhu following him.

“Huh?”

Ji Xian frowned as he watched the duo pull back. His eyes shined with a subtle light as he observes their Movement Art.

Their bodies flickered momentarily in and out of existence, turning almost invisible and that wasn’t all, they created numerous after-images that made it hard to determine which one was the true body.

But this wasn’t what bothered Ji Xian, as the duo retreated, they also left behind an uncomfortable sharp screech that rang throughout the area. This sound was uncomfortable and mysterious, even after he shut off his hearing, he was still able to hear it.

He wasn’t unfamiliar with this sound, Yahui and Yazhu’s voices contained a quality similar to this. When Yazhu first attack him with that foggy beam, it also had this sound, and also when the duo struck out together, that sound reverberated throughout the formation.

He had noticed its uniqueness right at the beginning and hearing it once more, Ji Xian can’t help but squint his eyes.

This sound was targeting his soul!

He wasn’t sure how this sound would affect other people, but for him, it was enough to cause him to lose his focus if he wasn’t careful.

Seeing this he can’t help but be warier of the Yazhu and Yahui.

If Ji Xian were to ask himself what was his biggest weakness, then without a doubt, the answer would be his soul!

He had never come across any Divine Arts that cultivate the soul in the Mortal Haven World, it was just too rare! It was only recently that he was able to find the Soul Liberation Art, which he had stolen from Solitude City.

And he’s only barely scratched the surface of it, as it was too mysterious and hard to read.

His knowledge of the soul was simply too little.

Ji Xian’s eyes flickered as he remembered that foggy beam from Yazhu. That beam had struck a sea beast and immediately it died, its life force instantly fading away while its body was unharmed.

So that foggy beam was a soul attack.

Thinking up to this point, he raised his head and glared at the duo with hints of madness and obsession in his eyes. His appearance at this moment would even scare Xia Lihua, as this was another side of him she has never seen, this was a side of him no one has ever seen and he would only be like this after his curiosity has reached its limits, as well as his desire for knowledge has peaked!

Are they from a race that specialized in souls? Their appearance, their Divine Arts, all of it points towards it! Wouldn’t that mean there’s a chance the Chaos Tunnel lead to their World? If I go there and obtain their knowledge… no.. I’ll worry about that later, for now though, these two will have to do.

What an interesting physique, I wonder if it's possible to refine them into pills.

That mysterious sound, if it can be used to attack, can it be used to defend?

That fog sits at their dantian, what does it do? Is it the power source for their soul attacks? So far, they have yet to use any Essence in their attacks… I wonder if they cultivate using True Essence, or perhaps that Corrosive Essence…

Are their blood also translucent? There’s only one way to find out, I guess…

——————

Yahui and Yazhu had both retreated, and Yahui, at this moment was in pain. Towards his waist, his body didn’t appear to have been damaged in the slightest, the only change that was different was the ball of fog that has now been sliced in half by Ji Xian.

Contrary to expectations, the two halves silently merged almost instantly, forming into a swirling ball of fog once more. The entire process happened in a blink of an eye.

But that wasn’t all, while the ball of fog was cut into two, Yahui’s waist showed a change. His waist was no longer see-through! Some colors can finally be seen as a portion of what looks to be a black belt and a green robe became partially visible.

For a mere moment, his body had become tangible before returning to its original appearance after the ball of fog recovered.

“Yahui! You alright?” Asked Yazhu worryingly.

“I’m fine but this guy…”

Yahui has mixed feelings. The attack from Ji Xian earlier had just barely passed the Holy realm, so although it hurt him, it wasn’t enough to kill him.

But Yahui knew that the opponent was going easy on them so what will happen if this person no longer holds back? He shuddered at the thought.

“Remember to keep your specter form, Otherwise if he manages to sneak up behind you…” Yazhu reminded.

Yahui wanted to nod, but suddenly he noticed a change in aura with Ji Xian. Yazhu also noticed this and his heart skipped a beat.

The surrounding air suddenly became increasingly oppressive to the point where it was getting hard to breathe. A great pressure descended upon the duo causing them to drop down onto one knee.

Rocks and pebbles from the broken platform floated in the air followed by an intense shaking from the formation, no, it wasn’t from the formation, but the shaking was from the entire Mortal Desolate World.

—————————-

Outside, Xia Lihua and Xiao Yueyin looked around them with wide eyes as they feel the great trembling of the world. Feeling something above them, they simultaneously lifted their head, the blue sky was nowhere to be seen having been replaced by dark rumbling clouds that stretched as far as the eyes can see.

A seven colored light appeared and shined through the clouds, its appearance brought immense fear throughout the people of the Mortal Desolate World as they know what this rainbow light represents.

Universal Will!

—————————-

In a dark unknown area at the Arcane Mountain, an old man dressed completely in white was sitting crossed-legged with his eyes closed, exuding an unfathomable aura. Suddenly, his eyes snapped open as he looked toward the sky.

His body shook with fear as he spoke, “Impossible! The Universal Will only takes action when someone doesn’t play by the rules! Has someone from the Upper World descended without lowering their cultivation?”

“But why? That’s just asking for death! Not to mention, we have never faced an invasion before."

"No.. it shouldn't be...the Upper World have yet to find us."

“So what's causing this?"

—————————-

Xia Lihua stared at the sky with a heavy heart before turning towards the formation. Perhaps it was just her imagination, but she can see a familiar figure.

This catastrophic event sparked a memory that she had forgotten long ago. She had seen a similar scene when the Nether race invaded, but, in the Mortal Haven World, something like this has happened twice in the past, not counting the times when the other beings of the Upper World descended.

It happened once before she was the elected Guardian of the Northern Continent and another time after, both times it happened abruptly, and it would only last for a few seconds before disappearing, causing mass confusion.

And now, it has happened again and the reason for it was right before her!

Ji Xian!

—————-

Inside the formation, sparks of blue lightning danced around Ji Xian while Yazhu and Yahui quivered in horror. Although Ji Xian’s appearance couldn’t be seen, they can feel his gaze was focused entirely on them. The pressure it brought them was too horrifying!

Without warning, a thundering crackle roared from the clouds!

“Huh?”

Ji Xian snapped out of his current state, he took a glance above him and gave out a bitter sigh.

“Shit, I got too excited again.”

He quickly reined in his aura.

The oppressive air instantly disappeared, and the shaking stopped. The rainbow light fades away, after seemingly having lost its target.

The dark clouds dispersed, revealing the blue sky once more.

Everything returned to normal in a blink of an eye.