Translator: CinderTL
Faced with Song Wen's sudden ambush, Jin Xun appeared flustered, but his constant vigilance allowed him to barely conjure a Mana Shield before the sun-chasing spear struck.
Clang!
A deafening clash of metal erupted.
The Mana Shield shattered instantly, dissolving into shimmering motes of spiritual light that scattered in all directions.
The sun-chasing spear, momentarily halted by the shield, paused briefly.
But in that fleeting instant, its momentum surged anew, driving straight toward Jin Xun's face.
Yet this momentary delay granted Jin Xun the time he needed to react.
As if from nowhere, a three-foot green-edged sword materialized in his hand.
Its blade, as clear as autumn water, radiated a chilling, ethereal glow.
With a flick of his wrist, the sword tip darted forward like a serpent's tongue, parrying the spear.
A thunderous roar shook the heavens as the flying sword collided with the spear.
Violent energy surged outward in a terrifying shockwave, tearing apart the surrounding clouds.
Jin Xun felt a mountain-toppling force slam into him, splitting the web between his thumb and forefinger on his sword hand, blood dripping down the hilt. His Qi and Blood churned violently, his internal organs feeling as if they had shifted out of place.
Yet he had managed to block the strike, sending the sun-chasing spear flying.
Before Jin Xun could even catch his breath, a chilling sensation crept up his spine.
Ye Bing had made her move.
Initially, when she heard Jin Xun refuse to enter Gou Jun Island, Ye Bing couldn't help but feel uneasy. She worried that without the island's formation to assist them, it would be difficult to kill Jin Xun, let alone seize the Spirit Herb from his grasp.
But when she saw the wary expression on Song Wen's face as he faced the sphere of Sword Qi, her confidence returned.
Though the Sword Qi was formidable, based on her understanding of Song Wen, she knew it posed no real threat to him. His cautious demeanor was undoubtedly a facade.
She immediately guessed that her cunning companion must have devised a countermeasure.
Therefore, she kept a close watch on Song Wen's every move. When he suddenly launched his attack, she struck without hesitation.
Wielding her plum blossom fan, she performed a graceful dance. A stream of white mist materialized behind Jin Xun, carrying a bone-chilling cold that surged toward his back.
Jin Xun hastily activated his flying sword, unleashing countless streams of Sword Qi.
The Sword Qi swirled around him, forming an impenetrable protective shield.
The white mist Flood Dragon crashed against the barrier, emitting crisp, ringing sounds.
Blocked by the Sword Qi shield, the icy current scattered, transforming into a blizzard of ice crystals that drifted down from the sky.
Yet the white mist Flood Dragon refused to relent, surging forward relentlessly like an endless tide.
Instantly, the surrounding temperature plummeted, the biting cold so intense that frost began to form on the surface of the Sword Qi protective shield, its radiant glow gradually dimming.
The frost spread at a visible pace, layering upon itself until the outer layer of the Sword Qi shield was completely encased in ice, forming a massive ice sphere.
Within the sphere, the Sword Qi's circulation grew sluggish, emitting cracking sounds as strands of energy shattered under the extreme cold.
Jin Xun frantically channeled his natal flying sword, conjuring wave after wave of Sword Qi to reinforce the protective shield.
Both Li Yue and Mi Hai had far exceeded his expectations.
Mi Hai's ambush had caught him completely off guard, causing his Qi and Blood to surge violently and his spiritual power to become chaotic. Li Yue seized the opportunity, trapping him with her frigid aura. No matter how fiercely he urged his flying sword, the Sword Qi he summoned couldn't break through the layers of ice.
Jin Xun seethed with rage and frustration, yet he found himself powerless to act. Suppressing his fury, he demanded, "We have no quarrel, no grudge between us. Why set this trap to harm me?"
Seeing Jin Xun trapped by Ye Bing, Song Wen didn't intervene. Instead, he maneuvered his sun-chasing spear around the perimeter, vigilant for any unexpected developments.
Above Jin Xun's head, the Spirit Guard Umbrella hovered, spinning ceaselessly and showering down streams of black spiritual light that enveloped him in a protective aura.
Earlier, when Jin Xun had triggered the surrounding Sword Qi to attack him, it was the Spirit Guard Umbrella that had blocked the assault.
"Benefactor Jin Xun, you should stop struggling. You're no match for the two of us. Surrender and we'll grant you a swift death," Song Wen said.
Hearing this, the fury Jin Xun had barely suppressed surged back to life, burning fiercely within him. Though he was at a disadvantage, he refused to yield so easily.
"Mi Hai, don't get too cocky. The outcome is far from certain!"
"Far from certain?" A cold smile curled Song Wen's lips. "Then I'll make it certain for you."
As soon as the words left his mouth, a Corpse Puppet materialized beside him.
The Corpse Puppet's body was withered like dry wood, its ashen-gray skin crisscrossed with countless cracks, as if it might shatter at any moment. Its blood-red eyes glowed with a bloodthirsty light, and its fangs protruded from its mouth, radiating a putrid stench.
"A peak fifth-tier spirit corpse!" Inside the ice sphere, Jin Xun's pupils contracted slightly, his heart jolting with alarm.
Mi Hai, a mere rogue cultivator, has managed to refine a peak fifth-tier spirit corpse? He found it almost impossible to believe.
Yet the spirit corpse's appearance might not be entirely bad news for him.
Ye Bing's freezing aura, while trapping him, indirectly created an ice wall shield around him.
For the spirit corpse to attack, it would have to break through the ice sphere, potentially allowing him to escape.
"Roar!"
With a low growl, the Corpse Puppet lunged forward.
Enveloping itself in a torrent of Corpse Qi, it charged toward Jin Xun.
The Corpse Qi, thick as ink, surged like a ferocious black serpent, howling through the air.
Boom!
The Corpse Puppet slammed into the massive ice wall.
Spiderweb-like cracks instantly fractured the ice wall that had formed on the surface of Jin Xun's Sword Qi protective shield.
But as the freezing aura continued to pour in relentlessly, the cracks rapidly sealed, and within moments, the ice wall was restored to its original state.
The Corpse Puppet's attack seemed futile, yet under the creature's terrifying force, the entire ice sphere plummeted toward the island below like a meteor.
At that moment, Jin Xun instantly understood Song Wen's plan.
They intended to hurl him down onto the island.
Earlier, Mi Hai and Li Yue had tried to lure him onto the island, suggesting that a trap had already been set there.
Once trapped, escape seemed impossible.
A flicker of resolve flashed in Jin Xun's eyes as he decided to fight to the death.
Instead of channeling Sword Qi into his natal flying sword, he began rapidly weaving Sword Incantations with his hands. His fingertips danced like illusionary clones, conjuring streams of arcane runes.
The runes sank into the flying sword before him, causing it to spin rapidly. The blade gradually emitted a dazzling Sword Qi radiance, resembling a miniature, blazing sun.
Meanwhile, the Sword Qi protective shield, no longer replenished with fresh Sword Qi, began to dim.
The frigid air outside the ice wall surged inward, frost rapidly spreading to freeze the Sword Qi into ice crystals, which then shattered.
As the Sword Qi dwindled, the protective shield finally succumbed to the extreme cold, collapsing into countless scattered fragments.
The icy chill surged inward, enveloping Jin Xun and threatening to freeze him solid.
"Break!" Jin Xun roared suddenly, his Sword Incantation complete. The flying sword transformed into a brilliant streak of light, hurtling toward the advancing ice wall.
(End of the Chapter)
Translator's Corner:
🛑 The AD situation on the site is discussed here. 👉 https://tinyurl.com/cinder-ad-free. This is in response to the comments about there being too many ads on the site. Please read it.
🔓 𝐰𝐰𝐰.𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐥.𝐜𝐨𝐦 — 13 Series (7 Ongoing) | 14+ New Chapters Daily | 6,100+ FREE