NOVEL WEB AZI Vol 2 Chapter 46 to 50
Chapter 46
Glancing over at Bai Wen—who is giving off a carefree air, Zhen Huai frowns; the former’s theory is something that he has also taken notice of.
Heaving a sigh, Zhen Huai says—
“Hypothetically speaking, if his shizun’s cultivation base surpasses the realm that the suns and moons of our world possesses, then… Their strength would no doubt surpass the ancestor of your household.”
“Which is why, I feel like I’m having the time of my life right now.”
“One misstep is all it would take for it to come crashing down on you. I’d suggest you, to have a thorough plan in mind—on what sort of relationship you wish to establish. And it would be best for you to prepare yourself to face a wrath that is capable of burying the heavens on a single whim.”
Hearing this, the carefree expression on Bai Wen’s face vanishes, and is replaced with a solemn one.
“Wrath—capable of burying the heavens… Well, that’s only something that I would need to be concerned with—if I’m still around for when it happens.”
“At least think about…- Never mind.”
Raising another sigh, Zhen Huai picks up the cane by his side, and rises to a stand.
Knowing Bai Wen’s personality well, Zhen Huai knows that it is meaningless to say anything more.
Similarly, Bai Wen also gets off his seat, as he heads for the door with Zhen Huai.
The situation with the magic array’s instability cannot be left alone, as reparation costs aren’t easy to shoulder—should it sustain heavy damages.
Prior to leaving, Zhen Huai snaps his fingers, causing the bars in front of Nian Yao Yao and the others to lower.
“I’d suggest you all—to remain in this room until the matter outside is settled.”
Upon being left to their own devices, Niao Tao Tao looks over to her daughter—who still seems to be mulling over a few matters in her head.
“Well, what did you think of their conversation a moment ago, my foolish daughter?”
With a look of discomfort on her face, Nian Yao Yao replies—
“They’re making me think that I may have picked up a ticking time bomb a few years back.”
“Where exactly did you find him?”
“Wasteland areas of GC021.”
“Any other details?”
“Didn’t bother to look.”
Raising a frown, Niao Tao Tao asks—
“…Isn’t it common sense to look into someone’s history before hiring them?”
“Part of our contract was that I didn’t.”
“That means to say, he was already hiding something from you from the very beginning.”
As Niao Tao Tao narrows her eyes, Nian Yao Yao replies—
“Situation at the time was rather dire, so… Any hand offered is pretty much any hand taken. Also… Isn’t it generally impossible for us to understand the tongue of the Immortals? How is it that we are able to understand those two?”
“…”
Hearing this brought up, Nian Tao Tao also sinks into thought.
………
“…”
“…”
Pressure like no other emanates from the fog-shrouded figure, causing Long Hua to subconsciously take a step back.
Should one look to the walls and floors of the vicinity, they would notice immediately that a layer of frost has covered them.
This layer of frost is the physical manifestation of the fog-shrouded figure’s killing intent.
“…”
Extending from within the fog shroud is an unremarkable wooden sword. The only noticeable feature of this weapon is the red tassel that is attached to its pommel.
(That sword…)
(Do we really have to fight him?)
As soon as that sword had appeared, fragmented images of his previous life flashed through Long Hua’s mind, whereas the Tian Cheng inside of the dreamscape—put on an expression of dismay.
Within these flashbacks, the owner of the wooden sword is ever-present, and around the individual is either Long Hua himself, or bloodied bodies.
“…”
“…!”
Without giving Long Hua the time to process these images, the fog-shrouded figure closes in with a single step, while cleaving with their weapon.
As an instinctive response to this, Long Hua is quick to position Bai Zhe in front of the wooden sword’s path of travel, and—
*Chi…! Chi…! Chi…!* although the enemy’s weapon is made from wood, the dense sword Qi that shrouds it—has made it as durable as steel.
(Dammit…)
Noticing chip damage on Bai Zhe’s blade, Long Hua inwardly clicks his tongue.
The ferocity of the enemy’s sword Qi is clearly a few levels above his own, as demonstrated by its ability to cut through his sword Qi to damage the actual weapon.
*…!!!* as the enemy’s sword Qi begins to increase in density, it becomes obvious that the former is preparing to unleash a devastating attack.
Strengthening his grip over Bai Zhe, Long Hua reinforces its blade with his sword Qi.
“…”
In the same instance, a chilling gleam emanates from beyond the fog.
“Tian Cheng…!”
(Ah screw this! It’s only a mere replica; it can’t possibly compare to the real thing!)
As if to press down her fears, Tian Cheng shouts these words within her mind, as she draws Kun, and together with Long Hua—
*Boom!!!* the moment Kun is pressed against the wooden sword from below, a deafening sound blasts into Long Hua’s ears, causing his scalps to turn numb.
“…!”
“…!”
*Kakaka!* facing the pressure that is continuing to press the wooden sword down, Long Hua and Tian Cheng can feel the ground beneath their feet giving way.
(Even if we managed to hold, our weapons would be the ones to break first…)
As cracks begin to form on Kun’s blade as well, Tian Cheng grinds her teeth together.
“Tch!”
Taking his left hand away from Bai Zhe’s handle, Long Hua shrouds a layer of spirit Qi on his palm—prior to slapping the elbow of his right arm from below.
The abrupt introduction of this force gives way for Long Hua and Tian Cheng—to push the wooden sword upwards!
*Boom!!!* with the attack redirected, the beam of sword Qi—that extends from the wooden sword, ends up tearing a colossal hole through the ceiling!
Following this, Long Hua and Tian Cheng immediately leap out of the residence through the breach.
“…”
Almost as soon as their feet had left the ground, the fog-shrouded figure emerges from the breach as well, and closes in on Long Hua, who is still in the air.
Constricting his eyes, Long Hua positions Bai Zhe in front of himself to block the incoming attack, however—
“…!”
*Boom!* underestimating the weight of this attack, Long Hua feels his back hitting the ground in the next instance.
Chapter 47
A total of five pavilions—arranged into the shape of a star, make up the entirety of New Moon Village.
Each pavilion has a different colored roof to make it easier to distinguish them from one another.
The greenery pavilion—that has a green colored roof, is used exclusively to cultivate spirit herbs, and is the pavilion that Long Hua is currently in.
The blue pavilion, which is the largest in size—is used for storage and business transactions; its other purpose is to serve as a canteen, whereas the yellow pavilion is used as the village workers’ living space.
The red pavilion that Zhen Huai and Bai Wen had just stepped out of—is the former’s private living space.
At this time, the two are heading over to the black pavilion, which is used to house the “eyes” of the magic arrays—that allow the village to function.
Positioned in the center of the village is a teleportation magic array that is connected to various places.
“…”
Stepping into the black pavilion, Zhen Huai’s attention is immediately drawn to the eye used to control the greenery pavilion’s magic arrays.
Raising a frown, Zhen Huai mutters—
“…This is going to be troublesome.”
Surrounded by golden runes is a sphere-shaped object. This object is a magic treasure commonly called a Formation Eye.
Almost any kind of treasure can be used to serve as the core or eye of a large magic array, but in the Everlasting Spirit Realm, this is generally the treasure that is preferred—for it is designed exclusively for setting up a long-lasting magic array, while simplifying its controls.
“Ai Lao Zhen, you want to talk about how much your heart is bleeding right now?”
“…”
*Kakaka…* just as Bai Wen had poked fun at Zhen Huai’s misfortune, the cracks that are already on the Formation Eye, grow by another inch in length.
Surrounding the Formation Eye on six sides are Zhen Rong and five village workers—who are all dressed in archaic black robes. Each of them is currently pouring their spirit Qi into the eye to stabilize its collapsing structure.
Different from Zhen Rong—who is handling the situation with composure, the five workers have their faces covered in sweat. Clearly, they are about to reach their limits.
Glancing at Bai Wen, Zhen Huai says—
“This loss… You’re paying me back for this later.”
“I didn’t ask you to test him this way.”
Narrowing his eyes, Zhen Huai replies—
“But you’re the one who introduced him to me. Right now, you’re responsible for any damages that he may cause.”
“I-”
“Keep your nonsense to yourself, and help Xiao Rong with stabilizing the eye.”
“Ai…”
Walking over to the eye with a helpless sigh, Bai Wen gradually raises the speed of his cultivation base’s rotation.
“Pour the rest of your spirit Qi in. I’ll take over.”
As Bai Wen prepares to take over the magic array’s controls, Zhen Huai turns his attention to the other workers, who are standing on the sides, and orders—
“Someone head over to the storage pavilion, and grab a replacement eye. Those who remain, stand ready to shield the other Formation Eyes—should this one explode.”
“Understood.”
Having given these orders, Zhen Huai looks to the back walls of the vicinity—that is showing a projection of the greenery pavilion’s situation.
………
“…”
Pushing himself off the ground, Long Hua straightens his stance.
In the same instance, the fog-shrouded figure lands near one of the herb gardens, and—
“…”
*Boom!* leaving a footprint that is an inch deep behind, the fog-shrouded figure vanishes from sight—only to reappear within an arm’s length of Long Hua, while lashing their sword outwards.
Kicking his foot off the ground, Long Hua evades the incoming slash, but the opponent seems to have already expected this, as they press their left-hand outwards—to initiate a palm thrust.
Mirroring the same attack as his opponent, Long Hua also presses his left hand out.
*Boom!* as soon as they make contact, Long Hua loses the feel of his left arm—following this, he finds himself thrown backwards!
*Boom! Boom!* bouncing off the ground twice, Long Hua comes to a rolling stop.
And just as he is about to pick himself off the ground again—
“…”
“…!”
The fog-shrouded figure appears right in front of him with their right foot raised.
Just as the fog-shrouded figure’s foot is less than a few inches away from his face, two objects slip pass Long Hua’s head to block the attack.
What managed to block off the fog-shrouded figure’s foot at the last possible instance was none other than his Relic that takes on the form of twin serpents, however—
“…”
Switching over to his left hand, the fog-shrouded figure grabs the two serpents, and throws Long Hua—who is connected to them, into the air.
“…”
Stand in place, the fog-shrouded figure—who still has his left hand raised, points to the skies above Long Hua.
*…! …! …! …! …!* following the fog-shrouded figure’s gesture, the skies distort, as five dark rifts manifest.
Emanating from within the rifts is an air of great strength—that seems to have originated from ancient times.
………
“This is…? Heaven Manifestation realm divine art?”
Sensing the archaic power that made him feel as if he was but an ant that could be flattened in a single stomp, Bai Wen widens his eye.
Chapter 48
“This is…? Heaven Manifestation realm divine art?”
*Kakaka!* as soon as Bai Wen mutters this, the Formation Eye’s cracks grow to cover 70 percent of its body.
Heaven Manifestation realm refers to six of the seven most powerful practitioners of the Everlasting Spirit Realm.
When he was alive, the Ling Yuan Ancestor, the founding patriarch of Bai Wen’s household—had been one of these practitioners.
The first six practitioners are jointly hailed as Immortal Kings by the denizens of the Everlasting Spirit Realm, while the seventh individual is indisputably respected by all as the Immortal Emperor—for their cultivation base is well above the former six.
“Heaven Manifestation realm…”
Sensing the same sort of archaic power as Bai Wen coming from the direction of the greenery pavilion, Zhen Huai narrows his eyes, as he looks intently at the projection.
Wiping the sweat off her forehead, Zhen Rong frowns, and asks—
“Is this really a Heaven Manifestation realm divine art?”
She doesn’t feel like the archaic power—that comes from the dark rifts, is any different from the pressure that she would experience when she faced the elders of her household.
“This is all just a product of your village’s magic array. It can’t possibly hope to replicate a practitioner of this strength fully.”
“Then-?”
Just as Zhen Rong is about to ask Bai Wen how he had guessed the fog-shrouded figure’s attack to be a Heaven Manifestation realm divine art, her brother answers—
“Simply put, you’re still too young. Just a child, who has yet to experience what it’s like to stand in front of the high winds and high tides.”
“Muu…”
Despite being unhappy with being called a child, Zhen Rong has no choice but to keep her lips sealed.
“…”
Nodding to Zhen Huai’s words, Bai Wen’s gaze towards the projection turns heated.
(A practitioner in possession of a Heaven Manifestation realm divine art, and to be able to use it so easily. This person’s strength should be comparable to the Ling Yuan Ancestor. Lao Long was his disciple. He should have plenty of Spirit Assimilation realm techniques locked away in his memories.)
A similar thought as Bai Wen crosses Zhen Huai’s mind, and with it—
(Investing in him for the clan chief selection event might not be such a bad idea; however, there is still a hurdle that must be dealt with—prior to finalizing my decision.)
………
Looking to the five dark rifts, the name of this divine art appears in Long Hua’s mind, being—
(This should be… Immortal Suppression Palm?)
As if to answer Long Hua’s uncertainty, dark hands—covered in golden runes, emerge from within the five rifts.
Simultaneously, these hands push downwards with their trajectory of movement converging upon Long Hua.
In the same instance, a knife attached to a thin wire flies pass Long Hua.
Just as the knife’s handle is about to escape from his reach, Long Hua manages to grasp it.
Holding the knife firmly, Long Hua is dragged towards the ground by Tian Cheng, and without looking at the descending five hands, they immediately attempt to distance themselves from them.
“I would hope that master has a plan to deal with this opponent.”
“You’re expecting a bit too much out of me then.”
The opponent is an illusory replica of his shizun, and under normal circumstances—it shouldn’t be difficult to defeat them.
However, having witnessed the strength that this replica is able to exert, Long Hua has zero confidence towards victory.
Towards Long Hua’s reply, Tian Cheng thought—
(Figured as much… How is it that a mere replica is able to exert this much strength? Whatever the core of this magic array is, it should have exploded by now.)
(The Immortal Suppression Palm isn’t something that I can use with my current cultivation base without draining myself dry of spirit Qi. …No, I’m overestimating myself. Even if I used up all my spirit Qi, I couldn’t even hope to conjure a single finger.)
Just as Long Hua comes to this realization, the first Immortal Suppression Palm descends onto the earth, and with it—
*Boom!* a devastating shockwave capable of reducing ordinary mortals into a haze of blood goes off, while throwing both Long Hua and Tian Cheng off their feet!
(Dammit!)
As sword Qi shrouds his entire body, Long Hua immediately forms his Sword Armor.
Following this—
*Boom! Boom! Boom!* three additional palms fall, and with each shockwave that passes through his body, the more distorted Long Hua’s Sword Armor becomes.
*Boom!* upon the final shockwave’s passing, the Sword Armor shatters completely, and with it, Long Hua spews out a mouthful of blood, while the force of this shockwave also throws him higher into the air!
*Thud! Thud!* bouncing off the ground twice, Long Hua struggles to push himself to a stand, whereas Tian Cheng had sparks of electricity emanating from the location of her joints, as a result of the damage that she had sustained.
“Tch…”
Wiping the blood from his lips, Long Hua pushes down on his knee to straighten his stance—before tossing his storage pouch to Tian Cheng.
“In.”
Replying with a nod, Tian Cheng opens the storage pouch, and enters it.
Picking up the storage pouch, and with Bai Zhe in hand, Long Hua looks towards the direction of the settling dust cloud.
“…”
Emerging from within the dust clouds, the fog-shrouded figure approaches Long Hua’s direction.
Chapter 49
“…”
Tightening his grip on Bai Zhe, Long Hua looks at the fog-shrouded figure with an expression of wariness.
Had this replica of his shizun been fully replicated, then just a single Immortal Suppression Palm would be all that it would take to pulverize him into nothing.
“…Unable to use your divine arts?”
Emerging from the dust clouds, the fog-shrouded figure mutters this beneath his breath—prior to taking a single step forward.
Appearing right in front of Long Hua in the next instance, the fog-shrouded figure bears his blade down on the former’s head.
Raising Bai Zhe, Long Hua blocks the falling blade.
Simultaneously, the fog-shrouded figure strikes with his left hand.
*Boom…!* receiving the fog-shrouded figure’s punch with his free hand, Long Hua uses the momentum of the former’s strike to put some distance between them.
“Hm?”
Coming to a stop, Long Hua glances down at his left hand, which was used to receive the fog-shrouded figure’s strike.
Wrapping around his left hand at this time—is a similar set of runes, that were present on the hands conjured through the rotation of the Immortal Suppression Palm.
“…”
In that instance, a light of enlightenment emanates from Long Hua’s eyes.
(All the divine arts that were taught to me by shizun can’t be used with my current cultivation base. Even if my cultivation base was higher, the spirit Qi in this world can’t support them fully… However, similarly to my previous life, none of that should prevent me from demonstrating a weaker version of them.)
Thinking up to this point, Long Hua looks at the fog-shrouded figure with a frown.
(Is this really just a replica?)
Giving no time for Long Hua to linger on this thought, the fog-shrouded figure approaches him once more, and accompanied by a powerful gale, the latter’s blade lashes forth!
“…Mountain, mortal realm’s most immovable mass.”
Positioning his left hand in the trajectory of the blade’s movement, Long Hua mutters the incantation used to rotate the Immortal Suppression Palm, and with it, his left arm begins to darken rapidly.
*Boom!* upon the wooden sword hitting Long Hua’s wrist, a shockwave goes off.
Despite feeling a numbing sensation—that came as a result of him choosing to receive the strike head-on, Long Hua stands his ground firmly without moving an inch.
Grabbing the wooden sword, Long Hua slashes with his own blade; however, not a moment sooner than the initiation of his attack, the fog-shrouded figure relinquishes their grip over their weapon, to take a step back.
Amidst the fog-shrouded figure’s retreat, he presses his palm forward—to throw out a concentrated mass of spirit Qi, that takes on the form of a handprint.
“…”
Taking hold of the wooden sword with his left hand—
*Boom!* Long Hua thrusts it towards the incoming handprint.
“…!”
Gritting his teeth, Long Hua straightens his left arm fully to push the handprint back!
“…”
Towards the returning handprint, the fog-shrouded figure straightens the index and middle fingers of his right hand.
Extending from these fingers is a beam of sword Qi, and accompanied by a brief flash, the fog-shrouded figure swings his right arm, and—
*…!* with effortless ease, he divides the handprint in half!
Just as the two masses of spirit Qi begin to collapse—
“…”
Long Hua closes the distance between them, and swings Bai Zhe, but just as his blade is less than a meter away from his opponent—
“…!”
“…”
Without any hesitation, the fog-shrouded figure lunges his sword Qi covered fingers towards the incoming cold steel!
*Kakaka!* receiving the full brunt of the fog-shrouded figure’s counter, Bai Zhe’s blade shatters!
Amidst the scattered pieces of metal, an unusual object is mixed in, but the fog-shrouded figure pays no heed to it, as he closes in on Long Hua—who defends himself with the wooden sword, while dropping Bai Zhe’s handle.
*Boom! Boom! Boom!* in the span of a few short breaths’ worth of time, the two exchanged more than 30 hits with one another.
And with each exchange, a blast of sword Qi would carve up the grounds beneath their feet!
“…?”
Just as the fog-shrouded figure is about to attack once more, he swiftly evades to the side—as a knife attached to a thin wire, flies pass his original position.
Grabbing the incoming knife out of the air, Long Hua begins to run in a circle around the fog-shrouded figure.
On the opposite side, Tian Cheng—who had emerged from the storage pouch that was tossed out earlier, does the same.
“…Oh?”
Realizing that these wires had been coated in Long Hua’s sword Qi to reinforce their durability, the fog-shrouded figure raises an eye.
Having bound the fog-shrouded figure thoroughly, both Long Hua and Tian Cheng came to a stop.
Simultaneously, they stab their swords into the ground.
………
“A sword array?”
As sword Qi erupts from the two swords that are stabbed into the ground, Bai Wen constricts his eye, as he watches the sword Qi close in on the fog-shrouded figure.
Chapter 50
“…”
As two waves of sword Qi approach him, the fog-shrouded figure raises his right foot off the ground by an inch.
“…!”
Widening his eyes, Long Hua feels a bad premonition welling up from the corner of his mind.
Gathered towards the fog-shrouded figure’s raised right foot is an archaic air of power—that won’t lose to the Immortal Suppression Palm.
This stance to those unfamiliar with the fog-shrouded figure wouldn’t mean anything, but to Long Hua—it immediately causes him to recall the name of another divine art.
In the brief instance that is left prior to the sword Qi waves hitting him, the flow speed of time has seemingly been cut in half for the fog-shrouded figure; and under this effect, he abruptly presses his foot down on the ground.
(Martial Emperor’s Step…!)
*Kakaka!* immediately, cracks brimming with black and white radiance spread from the fog-shrouded figure’s foot!
With the rapid expansion of these cracks, the sword array is quickly broken down.
“Kuh!”
*Boom! Boom! Boom!* as a powerful force of energy attempts to push his hand away from the handle of the wooden sword, Long Hua grits his teeth.
But regardless of how much strength he exerts into holding onto the weapon’s handle—
*Kakaka!* it is all but meaningless, as both the wooden sword and Kun’s blade snap under the overbearing pressure; and with it, both Long Hua and Tian Cheng’s arm are thrown back!
In the same instance, the cracks brimming with black and white radiance cease to grow.
Following the cracks’ abrupt halt in expansion—
*…!* a Yin and Yang symbol manifests to cover the damaged areas centered around the fog-shrouded figure.
With this symbol’s manifestation—
*Boom!!!!!* a deadly blast of black and white energy erupts—to throw both Long Hua and Tian Cheng backwards!
“…!”
Recovering his balance while in the air, Long Hua lands onto his feet.
As soon as Long Hua had landed, the fog-shrouded figure emerges from within the setting dust clouds—held in the latter’s hand is a wooden staff.
*Boom! Boom! Boom!* without a moment to spare, the two immediately begin to exchange hits with one another.
The missing portion of the wooden sword held in Long Hua’s hand is made up for—with his sword Qi, to create a sharp current of energy.
However, even with this, Long Hua is forced to take on a more defensive approach—due to his opponent’s barrage of attacks.
“…”
Evading a thrust by the smallest possible margin, Long Hua swings the wooden sword towards the opponent’s wrist—in an attempt to knock their weapon out of their grip.
However—
“Naïve.”
“…!”
At the fog-shrouded figure’s mutter, the staff in their hands is dropped voluntarily, and—
*Peng!* following a sound that is akin to a door being pounded on, the staff is thrown into the air at the moment of its contact with Long Hua’s blade.
Simultaneously, the fog-shrouded figure also vanishes from Long Hua’s field of vision.
For a brief instance, Long Hua is caught off guard by the abruptness of the situation, but rather quickly, he senses the presence of someone behind his back.
“…”
“…!”
Faster than Long Hua can hope to react to the escalating situation, a sharp sense of pain comes from the back of his head!
“…!”
Before the sharp pain could cause him to faint, Long Hua bit down on his lips—to recover his consciousness.
“…”
Seeing Long Hua continuing to stand, the fog-shrouded figure readies a second strike, but before he could hope to execute his attack—a knife attached to a thread, flies over, and wraps itself around Long Hua’s waist.
Prior to the fog-shrouded figure’s strike connecting, Tian Cheng—who is on the other side of the thread, pulls Long Hua forward, allowing him to evade the attack.
“…”
Despite having missed his strike, the fog-shrouded figure maintains his outstretched fist, and at the opening of his hand, a powerful force of suction emanates from his palm—dragging both Long Hua and Tian Cheng towards himself.
“…”
As the pain emanating from the back of his head subsides, Long Hua turns his attention towards his opponent, and presses his darkened left hand towards them.
*Boom…!!!* in the next instance, the hand of the two collides—causing a violent blast of energy to burst outwards!
“…”
“…!”
Naively thinking that this stalemate might last for a few moments longer, Long Hua is immediately caught off guard, as the fog-shrouded figure shifts their palm to the side, and grabs him by his wrist.
As the fog-shrouded figure rotates their body, Long Hua feels the organs within his body leaning towards one side—prior to a heavy force of impact being pressed onto him from the front, as a result of him being tossed onto the ground by his opponent.
“…”
Looking down on Long Hua, who is struggling to peel himself off the ground, the fog-shrouded figure catches the wooden staff—that falls from the air, prior to stabbing the weapon towards the former’s head.
………
“Dammit, is this thing really just a replica?”
With her vessel tossed onto the ground as well, the Tian Cheng inside of the dreamscape—can only look on in despair.
“It is only a replica, but I’ve taken the liberty to modify it a bit.”
“Modified? I see. How…- Wait…-?”
Turning her body around like a rusted machine, Tian Cheng’s face is immediately drained of all colors—upon seeing a fog-shrouded figure standing a few meters behind her.
“…Dào Hé Tiān Xuě (稻荷天雪)………”