173: Chapter 172: Soul Ghost Storm 6 [Extra for 2000 Votes] 173: Chapter 172: Soul Ghost Storm 6 [Extra for 2000 Votes] Fortunately, among them was a true Sword Cultivator.
After Hou Niao had dealt with his own opponent, he launched a surprise attack from the flank, vanquishing a Residual Soul with a single stroke!
They had resolved the issue with the two Soul Ghosts, but a problem followed: neither the cultivators from the Anhe Daoist Sect nor those from the Huncheng Sect had the capability to directly kill Tongxuan Level Soul Ghosts, even under the diminished powers brought about by the Mysterious Light Holy Fire.
Their ability to break through the defenses was insufficient, and without breaking through, all efforts were futile.
“You three handle the entanglement; I’ll handle the killing.
Don’t take risks trying to defeat them,” Hou Niao said.
Hou Niao’s words made all the cultivators in the formation feel ashamed.
A problem that a Sword Cultivator could solve alone was beyond the capability of the three of them – a vast disparity in direct combat.
When had the gap between Quanzhen Sword Cultivators and other sects grown so wide?
Or was it simply that this Sword Cultivator was an exceptional talent, an anomaly?
However, regardless, in the Cultivation World, power ruled supreme.
Given the Sword Cultivator’s abilities, he was in charge in the absence of the three higher-ups, and no one questioned this.
Qu Xiaoman’s expressive eyes sparkled; she hadn’t expected that in the remote Yinling, the Quanzhen Sect still had such an outstanding disciple.
They had stayed in Jin City for quite some time, where they had interacted with many young disciples of Quanzhen and were familiar with the sword skills of the Quanzhen Sect.
In her view, at low Realm Levels, there wasn’t much difference in strength between the Quanzhen Sect and the Huncheng Sect.
The Sword Cultivators excelled in specialization, while their own sect was stronger in versatility.
In most competitions, the situation was usually at a stalemate, with neither able to completely overpower the other.
But now she understood that once one’s specialization reached a certain extreme, a certain limit, it transcended what was termed versatility, especially in face-to-face life-and-death scenarios.
They were utterly unable to inflict any damage on Tongxuan Realm Soul Ghosts, but this Sword Cultivator could.
The secret lay in the thread of Sword Intent within his Longsword.
Of course, his Sword Qi was also very mysterious; she had yet to understand whether Sword Qi was Qi, Gang, or both.
This convinced her of his status as a True Disciple, little realizing this was merely a convenient fabrication by Lan Re.
Indeed, the Quanzhen Sect had ten True Disciples under Tongxuan Realm, but none were in Da Feng Plain; they were mostly concentrated in the Quanzhen Sect’s stronghold, Shan Country’s Yujing.
In any case, making a connection was essential, and it was also the purpose of their journey.
“Brother Hou, do we need to send in more hand-to-hand combatants?
If a few more Soul Ghosts come, I fear we might not be able to hold them off,” Qu Xiaoman asked.
Hou Niao always responded with a pleasant demeanor to polite people, “That’s fine, both your houses can discuss that.
However, no need to worry too much; Soul Ghosts are not like radishes or cabbages, they don’t come en masse.
You don’t necessarily have to use swords either; I believe using delayed-effect spells might be more effective?”
Qu Xiaoman nodded happily, “Brother is insightful.
I’ve never seen swordsmanship surpass yours under the Tongxuan level.
This experience has shown me that I was merely a frog at the bottom of a well, unaware of the sun and moon’s brilliance.”
Hou Niao graciously accepted the compliment with a smile, but Lan Ting felt somewhat displeased, “Flirtatious hoof!
Qu Xiaoman pretended not to hear, thinking, Are you calling me nauseating?
Wasn’t your fawning just now the same?
These Daoist seductresses, appearing pure as ice and jade in front of others but inside no different, delighting in the same pleasures, what’s the difference then?
The battle fell into a stalemate, and with the joining of the two houses, they had ample personnel.
When one was low on Spiritual Power, there was always someone to step in, preventing any link in the chain from breaking.
But their losses were not small; up to now, each side had lost a disciple in battle, and there were several with serious injuries too weak to fight, not to mention the lightly wounded.
Still, both houses were quite generous with elixirs – the Daoist’s Clear Spirit Pill and the Huncheng Sect’s Flesh Regeneration Pill were incomparable healing Holy Medicines, so the injuries were not overly delayed.
Holding their ground, they could only hope that fewer soul ghosts would come, that their three Daoist uncles could take out the painted ghost, and that support from Jin City would arrive faster.
To these lower cultivators, the elements that could never decide the direction of the battlefield were the coins—waiting to see if they could hang on till the moment the tide turned.
…In the sky, the fierce battle was in full swing.
The battlefield had long moved away from its original location.
For the Tongxuan cultivators who could fly, how could they be confined to one place?
The painted ghost was formidable in strength and faintly gaining the upper hand in the battle; the three cultivators supported each other, barely managing to hold their ground without being crushed, yet they struggled to inflict real damage on the painted ghost.
They were very worried about the disciples below but powerless to help, as letting the painted ghost go unchecked was unbearable; the painted ghost might not care about the loss of soul ghosts below, but could they?
Daoist Zheng now slightly regretted not heeding the advice of that patrol earlier, but there was no place to buy regret medicine; apart from bracing himself to continue, he had no better solution.
Against the painted ghost, he couldn’t break through its defenses!
Just like those lower cultivators couldn’t break through the defenses of the soul ghosts.
This was the danger of challenging beyond one’s level; one’s capabilities were completely suppressed by the realm, finding no suitable opportunity even if one wanted to fight desperately.
Fairy Lu was the most anxious; she originally had fourteen excellent disciples from the Huncheng Sect, and now who knew how many were left?
She hoped they were wise enough to run outside at the first opportunity—maybe then a few of them might escape?
She had already spotted a few soul ghosts and spirits rushing towards the disciples, and these were not something her disciples could handle.
“Daoist Brother Zheng, what if Daoist Yan and I hold this creature back while you, with your rapid Sword Escape, go and see what is actually happening down there?”
Daoist Yan was succinct, “We two cannot stop it!”
Daoist Zheng also disagreed, “Divide and we scatter, unite and we fight; we can give up one spot, but we can’t give up both!
Going there now, what has happened has already happened, I can’t save them, but instead might endanger you both!
This suggestion is not suitable.”
He also had his own little plan; since the incident had already occurred, they could only choose the lesser of two evils; losing some low-rank disciples and losing two upper Tongxuan cultivators were not the same.
If it got out that the Quanzhen Sect’s territory couldn’t even protect Tongxuan guests, his future in the Quanzhen Sect would be completely destroyed, with no other option but to retire.
“, I have a technique called Heart Sword Penetration, a secret of the Body Sword, but I need some time to prepare for it; please hold on for a moment, my fellow Daoists, while I gather my focus!”
Fairy Lu shook her magic banner, sending out waves of impacts; Daoist Yan’s fingers danced rapidly, playing a tune with the Breaking Army Kill Sound Talisman like arrows, sharply enhancing their attack and buying Daoist Zheng a few moments.
Suddenly, he pulled upwards, his body as the bow, his qi as the string, his heart as the guide, transforming into an extraordinary divine bow, his sharp qi surging forth.
The next moment, his sword flew out like a beam of light; the painted ghost sensed it and tried to dodge, but it couldn’t escape Daoist Zheng’s heart-guided lock.
The sword directly penetrated through the ghost’s gaping mouth,
Fairy Lu and Daoist Yan were full of hope, but unexpectedly, the painted ghost just laughed loudly and opened its mouth again to spit out a pile of scrap metal!
At the same time, Daoist Zheng spit out a mouthful of blood, clearly severely injured.
It was a failure; the chasm between realms was insurmountable.