Hearing that, Yunxi's apricot eyes narrowed. Her gaze slid to the dragon-patterned blade in the spirit's hand. The evil aura pouring off it was thick enough to choke. No wonder Dian Dian had been terrified. All the spirits in the hall together could not match the blade's miasma.
The spirit's blade turned into a streaking afterimage and hacked at Yunxi. She flipped her wrist and brought up the Seven Stars Soul-Shattering Staff to meet it. The impact sent her flying. Her back slammed hard into the Hong Energy Shield.
Seeing trouble, everyone turned toward Huaxian Gate's Xian Feng. Thus far, only he and Yunxi had broken through to Divine Transformation.
Xian Yao started to rouse Xian Feng from meditation, but Lin Keyang stopped her. "Xian Yao Daoyou, do not disturb Xian Feng Zūnzhě yet. Ran Xi said unless she asks for help, do not forcefully interrupt him."
For now, only the two of them were pseudo Divine Transformation. They could not both be dragged into a grueling fight at the same time, or the remaining Divine Transformation spirits would find their chance. When Yunxi stepped out of the shield, she had specifically entrusted the reliable Lin Keyang with that warning.
Xian Yao let out a breath and looked toward Yunxi with rising respect as she faced the Divine Transformation spirit.
While shifting and weaving, Yunxi drew the spirit toward one corner of the hall, giving the Nascent Soul cultivators room to deal with the Nascent Soul spirits.
"Heh heh. You cultivators are so self sacrificing. It was like this ten thousand years ago, and it is like this now. This honored one will be sure to fulfill your wish."
He dissolved into gray mist and lunged, the dragon-patterned blade wrapped within.
Yunxi silently flipped a middle finger to the sky in her heart. She was now sure the dragon-patterned blade had been sealed here with the evil cultivators and was one of the goals of their scheme.
She did not like to admit it, but the instant she saw the blade, her whole body felt wrong. Even Zi Yan in her dantian gave a jump, and the Nine Nether Dragon Umbrella's spirit, Hei Yao, sent a warning.
She fought all the more carefully. She suspected the Nascent Soul cultivators who had self detonated earlier were wounded by this very blade.
With a thunderous crash, blade and staff collided and the shockwave of gray and violet washed across the entire hall. Yunxi raised her voice. "All of you, return to the shield."
The Nascent Soul cultivators disengaged and flashed back inside, but some spirits clung to their opponents. Those cultivators missed the narrowest window to dodge and were pulverized together with the spirits in a single instant.
"Hahaha. These humans died by your hand, you know!"
The spirit jeered, trying to turn the others' hatred on Yunxi.
A heartbeat later, a swarm of late-stage Nascent Soul spirits rushed from every side straight at Yunxi.
The cultivators inside the shield saw things turning bad and moved to charge out again. Even if they were caught in friendly fire, they could not let one of the only Divine Transformation cultivators be erased.
Yunxi snorted. "Do not come out."
She summoned the Nine Nether Dragon Umbrella from her dantian and sent a sound transmission to Hei Yao. "Leave the trash to you. I will pin down the evil artifact. End it quickly."
"Yes, Master."
At her command, Hei Yao shot into the oncoming spirits and was swallowed by their mass in an eyeblink.
Everyone's hearts leapt to their throats. Several cultivators stepped toward the barrier despite orders. Then a dragon's cry rolled through the hall. Nine black dragons burst from the umbrella's canopy, diving in turn through the swarm. Their upright black scales glittered with a cold sheen as they coursed through the enemy, shredding bodiless spirits in their wake.
The spirits scattered under the onslaught, then gathered again, only to be broken apart within two breaths. After the third repetition, the Nascent Soul spirits finally dispersed with unwilling wails.
Yunxi's spiritual power, however, poured out of her like a breached flood, yet her face did not change. Staff in hand, she hammered strike after faster strike at the dragon-patterned blade as it darted left and right, blocking every attack.
Each clash sent a sting through her tiger's mouth. The Seven Stars Soul-Shattering Staff sensed a worthy foe. Not only did the Yaoguang Star on the staff flare, the Yuheng Star began to blaze as well. Metal's keen edge threaded through lightning's wrath, making her strikes even fiercer.
Yunxi knew she did not hold the advantage. The instant she seized a sliver of momentum, she unleashed a big move. Lightning Radiance of the Nine Heavens swept out along the staff.
The grand hall filled with lightning and thunder. Countless violet bolts struck the spirit wielding the dragon-patterned blade with pinpoint precision, each one laced with razor metal. Yunxi swallowed two top-grade Bu Ling Dan, clenched her teeth, and flicked Zi Yan out as well. She refused to believe this Divine Transformation spirit could not be erased.
She was feeding spiritual power to the Nine Nether Dragon Umbrella, the Seven Stars Soul-Shattering Staff, and Zi Yan all at once. Her dantian was nearly scraped clean, and even the reserves in her meridians were gone, but she dared not stop.
"Aaah!"
At last, under the triple assault, the spirit turned to dust. But Yunxi clearly saw the dragon-patterned blade swaddled in gray miasma and vanish before her eyes.
Knowing her master's consumption was immense, Zi Yan streaked back into the dantian the moment the job was done. The Nine Nether Dragon Umbrella followed, the nine black dragons returning to the canopy as it hovered above Yunxi's head, guarding against a sneak attack.
Yunxi gripped the staff one handed and drove its butt into the floor with a thud. Her gaze, cold and intent, swept the hall as her divine sense uncoiled to search every inch. She needed to know where the blade had gone.
She was certain the evil artifact had not left the hall, but even after two passes with divine sense, she found no trace. She had no choice but to wave the staff into storage, keep hold of the Nine Nether Dragon Umbrella, and walk slowly back toward the shield.
Crossing the barrier, her knees wobbled. The umbrella returned to her dantian of its own accord. Zhang Lingrui flashed to her side and caught her arm. "Senior Sister Ran Xi, are you all right?"
Yunxi did not pretend. Her voice was faint. "Help me back to rest."
The surrounding cultivators opened a path so Zhang Lingrui could guide her back to meditate. They had witnessed the battle. It was not one at their level to join.
Ten more Nascent Soul cultivators had fallen. That was with Ran Xi Zūnzhě's warning. Without it, who knew how many would have died.
Yunxi collapsed onto her cushion, dropped a restriction, and seized every heartbeat to restore her power.
Beside her, Wei Yunqing pressed her lips together. She had seen the whole fight. Fairly speaking, if she were in Yunxi's place, at best she could have dragged the Divine Transformation spirit, with no way to spare strength for the others. She would have retreated into the shield in the end. Yunxi alone had shredded the spirit and the remaining Nascent Soul spirits, ending the fight cleanly and remaining uninjured, spent but unbroken. Her battle power was beyond Wei Yunqing's reach.
Envy and jealousy tangled in Wei Yunqing's chest. A bleak realization struck her. She might never surpass Wei Yunxi. The thought left her hollow.
At the same time, spiritual fluctuations rose again within the shield.