"Whoosh—"
A fiery red flying sword pierced through the mist, heading straight for Yun Qi's face.
"Ding!"
The sword came so fast that Yun Qi had no time to dodge.
He could only raise his sword with all his might to deflect it.
The two swords clashed, producing a crisp sound.
The fiery red sword was deflected slightly, grazing Yun Qi's ear and leaving a bloody gash.
A string of blood droplets scattered into the air.
The flying sword retreated immediately after the clash, while "Autumn Water" continued to tremble, its snow-bright blade now marked with a scratch.
The flying sword returned to its owner, hovering in front of the Shu Dao disciples.
At that moment, a woman dressed in white slowly emerged from the mist, walking calmly under the light of Yun Qi's talisman.
The woman appeared to be no more than fourteen or fifteen years old, slender and delicate, like a willow swaying in the wind.
Her face was as bright as the moon, her skin as pure as snow.
However, a crimson mole between her eyebrows added a fierce aura to her otherwise gentle appearance, making it hard for others to look at her directly.
Yun Qi, however, had no idea what this woman was up to, strolling leisurely in front of her enemies as if she were taking a casual walk.
She seemed even more relaxed than the Shu Dao disciples.
Taking advantage of the moment when the flying sword was still, Yun Qi formed a hand seal with his left hand, his middle finger curling behind his index finger, which was pressed against his thumb.
His index finger pointed straight up, while his ring and little fingers curled into his palm.
With his right hand, he held "Autumn Water" upside down, his index finger resting on the hilt, pointing directly at the woman's feet.
He chanted,
"Sink!"
The ground beneath the woman's feet instantly turned into a pool of mud.
She seemed to be in the middle of saying something when she suddenly found herself sinking into the mud, her legs submerged up to her calves.
The "Sink" spell was a technique Yun Qi had recently mastered.
It involved the principles of earth, water, and emptiness, with the ability to transform one element into another.
In essence, it was akin to turning stone into gold.
The woman was momentarily stunned, watching as the mud stained her white boots and robe.
"Kill her first!"
Yun Qi shouted, taking advantage of the fact that the fiery sword was momentarily uncontrolled.
He stepped forward, intending to engage in close combat.
There was no time to waste.
While he could handle himself, the Miao tribesmen were struggling to fend off the miasma and couldn't stay much longer.
Upon hearing Yun Qi's command, the Miao tribesmen immediately shifted their focus, hurling various spells, poisonous insects, and talisman arrows at the woman trapped in the mud.
The Shu Dao disciples were thrown into chaos, hastily trying to defend themselves while also attempting to pull the woman out of the mud.
Amidst the chaos, Yun Qi, who had been carefully observing the situation, noticed that the fiery sword, now without a master, had flown to the top of a burning figure.
With a flash of red light, the sword absorbed all the solar fire, leaving behind only a pile of black ash.
The sword then slowly returned to its original position, as if it had never moved.
"Ah!"
A sharp cry pierced the air.
The woman, now pulled out of the mud, seemed to snap out of her daze.
She shook off the hands of the two Shu Dao disciples supporting her and immediately formed a sword seal, pointing it at Yun Qi.
"Strike!"
The fiery red flying sword obeyed her command, shooting straight toward Yun Qi.
This time, the sword's power was even greater.
Endless flames erupted from its blade, forming a fiery phoenix-like figure that lunged at Yun Qi.
A strange glint flashed in Yun Qi's eyes.
The woman, the fiery sword, and the Shu Dao disciples—he had already guessed that this woman was none other than Li Yingqiong from Emei, who had gained fame in recent years.
However, he hadn't expected that this fiery sword would resonate so deeply with his own path.
"Vanish!"
Yun Qi clenched his right hand into a fist, holding "Autumn Water" upside down.
With his left hand, he pinched his middle and index fingers together, his index finger slightly raised, while his ring and little fingers naturally curled.
He then placed his left hand over his right fist.
In an instant, his entire body disappeared from sight.
The fiery sword struck empty air.
Li Yingqiong was momentarily stunned.
But as a seasoned disciple of Emei, she quickly regained her composure.
She sneered, "You can hide, but they can't!"
With a flick of her sword seal, the fiery sword changed direction, its blazing flames sweeping away the mist as it charged toward the Miao tribesmen.
Unable to withstand the attack, the tribesmen scattered in all directions.
"Thud—"
A soft sound echoed as a head rolled to the ground.
The first to die after the woman's appearance was neither Yun Qi nor a Miao tribesman, but a third Shu Dao disciple.
A long sword emerged from the void, piercing through the disciple's left chest, directly into his heart.
By the time Li Yingqiong brought her fiery sword back, "Autumn Water" had already shaken off the bloodstains and vanished into the void once more.
"Ancestor, save us!"
The remaining four Shu Dao disciples cried out in despair.
But the woman only laughed coldly.
"Fine, you kill yours, and I'll kill mine. Let's see who cares more!"
With that, she ignored her fellow disciples and instead focused on chasing down the fleeing Miao tribesmen.
"Thud—thud—thud—thud—"
It didn't take long.
Four more sounds followed, and like cutting through melons and vegetables, the remaining four Shu Dao disciples fell to the ground.
Their wounds were either through the heart or across the neck.
Then, the light from the talisman dimmed, and the area was left without a single living soul.
"Seize!"
The fiery sword hesitated for a moment, allowing a Miao tribesman to narrowly escape death.
"You go first. I'll take care of the bodies!"
Yun Qi emerged from the void, standing between Li Yingqiong and the fleeing tribesmen.
The "Seize" spell failed to capture the fiery sword.
Instead, Yun Qi's own consciousness was scorched.
However, the fiery sword's solar fire essence felt strangely familiar to him.
The Miao tribesman knew that staying would only be a burden.
With a shout, he fled the scene.
However, the truth was that the tribesmen had already inhaled a significant amount of miasma during the fight and their escape.
Whether they would survive after leaving was uncertain.
Seeing Yun Qi reappear, Li Yingqiong's eyes filled with a murderous intent so intense it seemed almost tangible.
She directed her fiery sword to attack Yun Qi once more.
The Miao tribesmen hadn't gone far, so Yun Qi dared not use his invisibility spell again.
Instead, he gripped "Autumn Water" tightly and charged forward to meet the attack.
"Ding! Ding!"
Yun Qi exerted all his strength, carefully managing the force of each clash with the flying sword.
From their first encounter, he knew that even if "Autumn Water" were shattered, it wouldn't harm the fiery sword in the slightest.
All he could do was desperately parry the attacks.
In between deflecting the sword, he hurled several talismans and arrows, hoping to injure or at least distract the woman.
But Li Yingqiong was no ordinary opponent.
Despite her earlier misstep, she was now fully focused and highly skilled.
A snow-white silk handkerchief appeared beneath her feet.
Though it looked like an ordinary handkerchief, it was as large as a mat, lifting her into the air.
As she controlled the flying sword to attack Yun Qi, she also maneuvered the silk handkerchief to evade his talismans, moving with ease and grace.
Under such relentless pressure, Yun Qi gradually found himself at a disadvantage.
Exhausted from the constant defense, he couldn't form hand seals to activate his newly learned invisibility spell.
Wounds began to appear on his body.
"Ding!"
Another crisp sound rang out, but this time, it wasn't from the clash of swords.
The fiery sword struck Yun Qi directly in the chest, sending him flying a full ten feet before he hit the ground, spitting out a mouthful of blood.
"Oh? You demon, what kind of protective treasure do you have that can withstand my Peach Capital Sword?"
Li Yingqiong, hearing the sound of metal clashing and seeing Yun Qi survive the blow, guessed that he must have some protective treasure.
Noticing that Yun Qi was struggling to get up, she descended on her silk handkerchief and slowly approached him.
Yun Qi, meanwhile, stared intently at the fiery sword hovering in front of him, its tip pointed directly at him.
He had guessed correctly.
The blood from his ear, the wounds from the fight, and even the large mouthful of blood he had just spat out—all of it had been slowly absorbed by the fiery sword.
A strange light flickered in his eyes as he murmured, "So your name is 'Peach Capital.'"
Li Yingqiong, seeing his lips move, asked, "What are you saying?"
Yun Qi ignored her.
Li Yingqiong's robe was no ordinary garment, and by now, it was free of any mud stains.
However, the memory of falling into the mud still filled her with rage.
"Judging by your attire, you're also a cultivator. Why are you mingling with these Miao barbarians? Ah, I see. You're one of those rogue cultivators from the east. My master was right—rogue cultivators have no discipline, not even caring about their own sect!"
Yun Qi chuckled, not bothering to argue.
Li Yingqiong, however, continued to approach step by step, stopping next to "Peach Capital."
She then said,
"What's that in your arms? Hand it over, and I might spare your life."
Yun Qi waited until she was close enough, then opened his mouth and exhaled.
The solar fire he had accumulated in his Twelve Storied Tower surged out like a golden dragon.
Li Yingqiong's eyes were instantly filled with golden light, and fear crept onto her beautiful face.
The young girl immediately directed "Peach Capital" to strike the young Taoist who was now right in front of her.
At the same time, she quickly pulled out a piece of cold jade from her pouch and clutched it tightly.
The golden flames blew the girl away, while "Peach Capital" reveled in the solar fire, letting out joyful cries, one after another, like the crowing of a rooster at dawn.
It made no move to attack the Taoist.
"Cock-a-doodle-doo—"
The sound of a rooster crowing echoed.
Inside the young Taoist's Twelve Storied Tower, the Primordial Daoist sat cross-legged, his hands resting on his abdomen, his chest puffed out, his lips slightly parted, and his eyes wide open.
But what came out of his mouth was not human speech—it was the crowing of a rooster.
"Peach Capital" trembled violently upon hearing the sound, as if overjoyed.
It then began to circle around the young Taoist on the ground, swirling like a fiery ribbon.
The sword's cries harmonized with the rooster's crow, creating a melody as beautiful as that of a zither and a lute.
In the distance, Li Yingqiong, protected by the cold jade, stared in shock at the scene before her, completely baffled by what was happening.
Chapter 2 is here.
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(End of Chapter)