Bombarding Cultivators with Cluster Artillery

Jiang Ding closed his eyes, taking a long time to compose himself.

After a while,

he opened his eyes.

"I've caused Fish Daoist to laugh."

Jiang Ding descended from the sky, lightly apologetic as he said, "You are too powerful, and it made me feel a life-and-death crisis, so my reaction was a bit excessive. Please don't take it amiss."

On the ground, strands of dark green spiritual light had appeared out of nowhere in the void, falling upon Yu Qianzi.

Torn skin, broken bones, and shredded meridians—and even the flesh that had turned to dust—began to regenerate, healed by the high-level power without any lasting issues.

As a hostage, Yu Qianzi had an extremely high level of security within the Xianmen Sect.

One could say that as long as there were no strategic changes within the sect, it would be very difficult for her to commit suicide, her Golden Pill power still too weak.

"Great Sun Swordsman,"

"That doesn't sound like something a sword cultivator would say."

Yu Qianzi stood up, using mana to mend her torn moon-white palace skirt, covering her snow-white skin, and she sighed lightly, "In sword fights, we distinguish between victory and defeat, and occasionally between life and death, which is quite commonplace. Any pure Jiandao School wouldn't blame someone for a sword duel of the same rank."

"It would only invite ridicule from peers and disappointment from elders."

"It's just... your use of external objects—I still maintain this view—made this sword duel impure, and that is my regret."

"Regret, is that so?"

Jiang Ding neither agreed nor disagreed, smiling as he said, "Then next time, I will practice my swordsmanship even harder so that, without using warships, we can mutually benefit from each other's company. That would be satisfactory."

In fact, Jiang Ding felt not the slightest bit guilty about almost killing Yu Qianzi, it was purely a courteous inquiry.

Because this woman also intended to kill him, aiming to induce a qualitative change in her Sword Intent and Sword Heart. It was a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

That momentary chill of murderous intent certainly wasn't mistaken; it was a judgment made by a divine soul five times stronger than his peers.

"You say you're going to practice swordsmanship even harder?"

Yu Qianzi seemed not to care about her near-death experience, as if she was already accustomed to it.

When she heard Jiang Ding's words, it was as if she had heard something very amusing, shaking her head.

"Jiang Daoist, give it up. The path of the sword is about specialization and singularity. Aside from the sword, there is nothing else. That is the lifelong bond."

"For someone as distracted as you,"

Her speech hesitated, as if it was difficult to express, "To have reached your level is already quite good. There's no need to ask for more."

"There are many ways to become stronger: the magic of magic cultivators, numerous treasures, mechanism puppets, refined corpses, talismans, and so on. There are earth-shattering methods wielded by great experts. It's not only the Sword Dao that stands out."

Her words were earnest.

Jin Lingfeng snorted lightly, pursing her lips.

This woman seemed earnest, but in fact, she was still not convinced, still harboring a sense of superiority, believing herself to stand at the pinnacle of the Sword Dao and be in a position to instruct others casually.

"You say that the Sword Dao is about specialization and singularity."

"Is this the collective wisdom of your sect on exploring the Immortal Path? I've learned something."

Jiang Ding nodded, sliding the Taiqing Flying Sword into his forehead. Strands of Sword Qi enveloped An Siyan and himself, ripping through space as he turned to leave: "Unfortunately, the path I walk is not the Sword Dao, but my own path. Thank you for your guidance; I will keep it in mind."

Sizzle...

Accompanied by the thunderous sound of sword cries, the three of them instantly disappeared.

"Not the Sword Dao."

"But your own path?"

Standing there, Yu Qianzi muttered to herself, detecting something extremely arrogant in that statement.

By comparison, her constant talk about how the Sword Dao should be, what is best to do, what should not be done, all neatly laid out with clear rules and boundaries, seemed to lack a great deal of boldness.

"Arrogance!"

"If not Sword Dao, what is it?"

Yu Qianzi contemplated for a moment, then scoffed, "Forging one's own path is indeed suitable for oneself, easily achieving whatever one desires without overstepping boundaries. Every word and every action closely aligns with one's true nature, no longer bound by any constraints. My own actions are the 'rules,' the 'rules' that successors must follow."

"But, this is undoubtedly delusional!"

"How can the exploration of tens of thousands of years by countless predecessors, even those from far earlier times, be equated with a path forged by a single individual?"

"Alas, I once believed that this domain would give rise to a formidable Sword Dao practitioner in the future, whose light would never dim, regardless of victory or defeat. Sword Dao was sure to flourish tremendously."

"Now, it seems I am the only one walking this path alone."

Yu Qianzi sighed softly.

Throughout the ages, there have always been those who wished to forge their own path, and the world has never lacked for such arrogantly foolish individuals.

The only outcome is invariably nothingness.

"However, this kind of battle is useful to me. My Sword Intent and Swordsmanship seem to have improved somewhat."

Yu Qianzi gathered her thoughts and slowly walked towards the Guanghan Immortal Palace, "It's a lot more useful than dueling with my senior brothers and sisters. The terrifying pressure of life and death, the extreme speed, it almost feels as if I'm facing the Grest Sun Swordsman from the Great Sun Sword Pavilion of the past. Sword Qi Thunder Sound seems to be on the verge of breaking through to the third realm..."

She suddenly froze.

Sword Qi Thunder Sound.

Sword Qi Thunder Sound.

Just now, when that person left, was there thunder sound amidst the sword-light that tore through space?

Has he broken through?

"Impossible!"

"This cannot be possible, it shouldn't be this way! He clearly used external objects!"

Yu Qianzi's face changed dramatically as she replayed the scene in her Sea of Consciousness over and over again, analyzing each strand of sword-light, every detail of the thunder sound, to determine if it was the Sword Qi Thunder Sound of Sword Dao or merely the thunder of Magic.

"It really seems like Sword Qi Thunder Sound!"

Yu Qianzi was devastated, struggling to accept this as her education in Sword Dao from a young age clashed violently with reality.

Just moments ago she had asserted confidently that the other's Sword Dao could not possibly break through and would remain stagnant forever. Yet, in the blink of an eye, after just one all-out sword duel, he had entered the second realm of Sword Dao, Sword Qi Thunder Sound.

"Go!"

Yu Qianzi, with lingering resentment, pointed to her Moon White Flying Sword, which vanished amidst the roar of thunder.

Boom!

Almost instantaneously, thunder exploded in the distance. Before the sword arrived, the sound of thunder had already emerged in her Sea of Consciousness, roaring and intimidating her Divine Soul, causing her actions to become slightly obscure.

Ding!

Dozens of kilometers away, in the sky, two Sword Qi Thunder Sound sword-lights collided several times. In the end, the Moon White Flying Sword, struck by lightning, was forced to retreat hastily and return to its Sword Master's side, its Spiritual Light dimmed to the utmost.

"He really did break through..."

A heaviness settled in Yu Qianzi's heart.

She was well aware of the gap between herself and this generation's Grest Sun Swordsman.

Divine Soul, Sword Intent, Flying Sword—she was comprehensively behind!

Only in Swordsmanship did she have an overwhelming lead, even dominating to such an extent that she could overcome such a large gap and defeat him solely in the arena of Sword Dao.

But now, it seemed even her advantage in Sword Dao was quickly slipping away.

"Yu Daoist friend,"

"Please make haste to break through to the third realm of Sword Dao, Refining Sword into Silk."

Jiang Ding's voice, mixed with thunder, came from afar and penetrated her Divine Soul, "Otherwise, with Swordsmanship at the same realm, I fear you won't have another chance to lecture me about how Sword Dao ought to be."

"Because, the right to interpret the Sword Dao lies in the hands of the victor."

Yu Qianzi bit her lip.