The Golden-Winged Falcon circled high in the sky, appearing as a mere inconspicuous black dot to the naked eye. However, through its keen eyes, it could clearly discern the subtle movements of every blade of grass and grain of sand, far surpassing the range covered by a cultivator's spiritual awareness.
Under its protection, the group advanced briskly.
Of course, there was no need to meticulously search every inch of the riverbank; the Celestial Herb of Ascension had certain characteristics. For example, some spirit plants wouldn't coexist with surrounding vegetation and would monopolize all the spiritual energy in a specific area for their own growth.
The Celestial Herb of Ascension, on the other hand, thrived in the presence of all plants, making the surroundings lush.
Therefore, the sparse areas didn't require close inspection; they only needed to carefully examine every densely forested area and grassy field they passed.
Chu Liang and the other two groups were about a hundred zhang away from each other, meticulously scanning the area with their divine sense.
However, Chu Liang harbored some doubts. They weren't walking particularly slowly. Nevertheless, at this rate, even if they had several days, let alone a few dozen days, they would not have enough time to search the entire Immortals' Marsh.
"Isn't this really inefficient?" He thought to himself. "Even if a stalk of the Celestial Herb of Ascension really exist, they might not have noticed it. Hadn't the seniors of Mount Shu come up with a more efficient method over the years?"
As he pondered, a sharp cry suddenly echoed from the sky!
"Caw—"
A Ba appeared?
Chu Liang immediately became vigilant!
After a brief search, he realized that the Ba was not heading towards him but rather in the direction of Shang Ziliang!
"Haha..." Shang Ziliang was secretly delighted at this moment.
As he swept through the edge of the thicket, causing the leaves to rustle lightly, a dark shadow suddenly leaped down from above. Though Shang Ziliang was briefly startled, he quickly regained his composure.
"Isn't this the opportunity I've been hoping for?" Shang Ziliang mused. "It came without any effort, just as the saying goes—pivotal occurrences happen when one least expects them."
An Iron Ba emerged from the thicket. Its entire body had a layer of skin resembling raw iron, with tattered clothes hanging on its frame. Its hair was disheveled, and its face so distorted that its features were indiscernible.
"Rawrrr—"
The remains of a cultivator who had been buried here for an unknown number of years eventually transformed into this creature, the very one now roaring fiercely and charging towards Shang Ziliang.
The creature known as Ba sought the scent of blood as this trait was ingrained in its nature.
Shang Ziliang swiftly dodged, evading the first attack. With his sword in hand, he shouted, "You malevolent creature! It is your unlucky day to be crossing paths with Shang Ziliang of Mount Shu today!"
After making that declaration, he swung his sword horizontally and formed a finger seal. In that instant, a surge of white light erupted!
Swish—
"Rawrr!" The Iron Ba, fearless of death, saw only the sweet temptation before it. Without hesitation, it lunged again with astonishing speed!
Shang Ziliang thrust his sword into the chest of the Iron Ba. However, as his sword qi reached the Iron Ba's chest, it couldn't pierce through the skin. Consequently, Shang Ziliang was gradually pushed back!
So tough! Shang Ziliang thought to himself.
The two primary characteristics of a Ba were its incredible speed and an extremely hard body. It was both swift and resilient, making it extremely challenging for a cultivator of the same realm to break through its defense.
As the Iron Ba drew closer to Shang Ziliang, he formed another finger seal with his left hand and commanded, "Back off!"
The tip of the sword turned, and the surging sword qi suddenly transformed into a gentle breeze. Although the sharpness diminished, this gentle force increased significantly. As the gentle breeze moved with the sword, it left a white mark on the Iron Ba's body. Simultaneously, the Ba was pushed three zhang away!
This wasn't a sword seal of Mount Shu but a Confucian Scholar Sword Seal from the Dao of Confucianism. It was a legacy technique passed down exclusively by the Cloud Horizon Peak of Mount Shu.
"Sword Binding!" Shang Ziliang hurled his long sword, shouting swiftly. Instantly, the long sword transformed into hundreds of sword lights. It was the Hundred Swords Seal!
The hundred swords spun, weaving together into several long, dragon-like bindings, swiftly entwined the Iron Ba while rotating simultaneously!
Crackle!
In an instant, the Iron Ba seemed ensnared by numerous white pythons, while harsh sounds of metals colliding echoed throughout the area, giving the impression that the creature was being sliced and ground.
"Rawwrrr—"
It seemed to sense a hint of pain, a sensation it likely hadn't felt for a long time. The clothing on its body shredded, and numerous tiny wounds appeared all over. If its skin weren't tougher than iron, it would have been torn to pieces in an instant!
In this dangerous moment, it also unleashed power several times its usual strength, seizing the sword bindings with its palms and fiercely yanking them!
Thud! Snap! Thud! Snap!
It forcefully tore apart the shining sword bindings!
"Hah—" The Iron Ba let out a deep, muffled sound as it tore apart yet another two sword bindings, dispersing the entwining sword lights.
The scattered sword light coalesced once more into a flying sword, spinning as it returned to Shang Ziliang.
In this moment, Shang Ziliang remained calm and composed, raising both hands to activate a glowing mirror.
This was the enchanted tool his dad had given him to bring along for protection on this journey—the Yang Mirror of Righteousness.
He had intended to save this for later use. However, the ongoing struggle with this Iron Ba had already become too challenging. Therefore, Shang Ziliang activated this enchanted tool.
A beam of sunlight refracted through the bronze mirror, instantly striking the Iron Ba. Immediately, countless hissing sounds echoed as smoke billowed!
"Rawrrr—" The Iron Ba suffered a heavy blow, tumbling to the ground and emitting painful roars.
The Yang Mirror of Righteousness could harness the essence of sunlight. For ordinary people, being targeted by the light reflected through this mirror would only feel burning hot. However, creatures of Yin nature would instantly incinerate!
Seeing the Iron Ba tumbling in agony, Shang Ziliang immediately thrust his finger forward, unleashing another flying sword!
Snap!
This sword finally severed the head of the Iron Ba, leaving it motionless. Without its head, the Ba could no longer move, which meant that it was definitely dead.
Phew. Shang Ziliang heaved a sigh of relief.
Shang Ziliang stowed the Yang Mirror of Righteousness and the flying sword away. Then, he flashed a confident smile, convinced that his potential brother-in-law had witnessed how decisively he took down the Iron Ba!
With a leap, he arrived in front of Xu Ziyang. He was just about to boast of his achievement as he smiled and said, "Senior Brother Xu, my performance in the fight was..."
Before he could finish his sentence, the Golden-Winged Falcon in the sky emitted another cry.
"Caw—"
Another Ba?
This time, the cry was even higher in pitch!
Xu Ziyang's gaze sharpened. The creature that had appeared earlier was an Iron Ba, the kind that disciples at the pinnacle of the third realm could handle easily. Thus, he had no intention of taking action.
But judging from the tone of this cry, the creature that just appeared was a Copper Ba!
Danger! Xu Ziyang thought.
The same word popped up in Chu Liang's mind.
Chu Liang initially observed the intense fight between Shang Ziliang and the Iron Ba, contemplating the creature's weaknesses as he watched. As the fight concluded, he was about to turn around and continue moving forward.
Without warning, a figure shot out from the grass on one side, moving as swiftly as lightning!
Chu Liang instinctively summoned the green leaf into the form of a zongzi, but then he realized that the green leaf enchanted tool wasn't by his side. Without any choice, he activated the Hundred Swords Seal!
The hundred swords formed a protective circle around him, becoming his shield.
Through the gaps in the swordlights, he clearly saw the figure rushing towards him. It had a black-bronze hue, hollow eye sockets, and was draped in tattered Daoist robes.
A Copper Ba!
With a whoosh, it closed in and swung a fist!
Bang!
The circular shield formed by the hundred sword lights instantly shattered. The swords could not block the attack at all.
With the strength of the Copper Ba being more than ten times greater than that of the Iron Ba, how could Chu Liang's Hundred Swords Seal withstand it?
But all Chu Liang needed was this slight delay, as at that very moment, he summoned another sword—the Dustless Sword!
The symbols of Decisive Clouds circulated on the Dustless Sword. In the blink of an eye, three talismanic characters were drawn and unleashed, accompanied by the radiance of three colors!
Ice! Fire! Thunder!
It was a grand spectacle!
"Rawwrr—"
As the sword lights approached, the Copper Ba roared in anger!
Boom!
A violent explosion echoed by the lakeside, accompanied by the brief illumination of lightning and flames.
When the Dustless Sword appeared behind the Copper Ba, its massive body was already frozen in place, with its entire body covered in ice and a gaping black hole in its chest...
The ice and fire shattered its defense while the art of thunder eradicated the evil!
This was the Triple Talismanic Sword of Ice, Fire, and Thunder!
It was an instant kill!
The Dustless Sword, crafted by one of the best swordsmiths in the world, unleashed such power that it even surprised Xu Ziyang.
The destructive force was so powerful!
As the sword pierced through the Copper Ba, Xu Ziyang couldn't help but wonder if he could accomplish such a feat.
"What is my cultivation level? What is Chu Liang's cultivation level?" Xu Ziyang muttered inwardly. "Does this mean that when Chu Liang reaches the same cultivation level as me, his attack power will be significantly greater than mine?"
Whoosh!
As the sword light retraced, Chu Liang stowed the Dustless Sword away in a calm and composed manner.
He didn't find his performance earlier surprising.
Despite being a cultivator at the third realm, he had mastered a type of sword technique in the Dao of Talismans that far surpassed what an ordinary cultivator of that realm could grasp.
Moreover, the flying sword he wielded wasn't the typical weapon used by a cultivator at the third realm; it could easily be ranked as a top weapon in the Catalog of the Mortal World's Ten Thousand Treasures! With the enhancement of the Perfect Qi Circulation, his foundational qi was also significantly stronger than that of an ordinary third realm cultivator.
The combination of these three factors made what seemed to be an explosively powerful sword strike feel effortless and natural to him.
Xu Ziyang looked pensive as he reflected on the details of the sword attack that Chu Liang had unleashed.
On the other hand, Chen Su's jaw dropped, and she couldn't conceal her shock.
Shang Ziliang wore an ashen expression and felt a sense of hopelessness. He couldn't help but remember that he had initially dismissed Chu Liang's cultivation as insignificant. Yet, within a short period, Chu Liang had surpassed him by far.
Without the aid of the Yang Mirror of Righteousness, Shang Ziliang would have struggled to defeat the Iron Ba. However, Chu Liang effortlessly killed the more formidable Copper Ba with a single strike. The thought of this difference filled Shang Ziliang with apprehension.
He remained silent for a moment.
When Xu Ziyang turned around and stared at Shang Ziliang, asking, "What did you say earlier?"
"Hehe..." Shang Ziliang scratched his head and chuckled awkwardly as he said, "I said the wind here is quite strong..."
The Golden-Winged Falcon circled high in the sky, appearing as a mere inconspicuous black dot to the naked eye. However, through its keen eyes, it could clearly discern the subtle movements of every blade of grass and grain of sand, far surpassing the range covered by a cultivator's spiritual awareness.
Under its protection, the group advanced briskly.
Of course, there was no need to meticulously search every inch of the riverbank; the Celestial Herb of Ascension had certain characteristics. For example, some spirit plants wouldn't coexist with surrounding vegetation and would monopolize all the spiritual energy in a specific area for their own growth.
The Celestial Herb of Ascension, on the other hand, thrived in the presence of all plants, making the surroundings lush.
Therefore, the sparse areas didn't require close inspection; they only needed to carefully examine every densely forested area and grassy field they passed.
Chu Liang and the other two groups were about a hundred zhang away from each other, meticulously scanning the area with their divine sense.
However, Chu Liang harbored some doubts. They weren't walking particularly slowly. Nevertheless, at this rate, even if they had several days, let alone a few dozen days, they would not have enough time to search the entire Immortals' Marsh.
"Isn't this really inefficient?" He thought to himself. "Even if a stalk of the Celestial Herb of Ascension really exist, they might not have noticed it. Hadn't the seniors of Mount Shu come up with a more efficient method over the years?"
As he pondered, a sharp cry suddenly echoed from the sky!
"Caw—"
A Ba appeared?
Chu Liang immediately became vigilant!
After a brief search, he realized that the Ba was not heading towards him but rather in the direction of Shang Ziliang!
"Haha..." Shang Ziliang was secretly delighted at this moment.
As he swept through the edge of the thicket, causing the leaves to rustle lightly, a dark shadow suddenly leaped down from above. Though Shang Ziliang was briefly startled, he quickly regained his composure.
"Isn't this the opportunity I've been hoping for?" Shang Ziliang mused. "It came without any effort, just as the saying goes—pivotal occurrences happen when one least expects them."
An Iron Ba emerged from the thicket. Its entire body had a layer of skin resembling raw iron, with tattered clothes hanging on its frame. Its hair was disheveled, and its face so distorted that its features were indiscernible.
"Rawrrr—"
The remains of a cultivator who had been buried here for an unknown number of years eventually transformed into this creature, the very one now roaring fiercely and charging towards Shang Ziliang.
The creature known as Ba sought the scent of blood as this trait was ingrained in its nature.
Shang Ziliang swiftly dodged, evading the first attack. With his sword in hand, he shouted, "You malevolent creature! It is your unlucky day to be crossing paths with Shang Ziliang of Mount Shu today!"
After making that declaration, he swung his sword horizontally and formed a finger seal. In that instant, a surge of white light erupted!
Swish—
"Rawrr!" The Iron Ba, fearless of death, saw only the sweet temptation before it. Without hesitation, it lunged again with astonishing speed!
Shang Ziliang thrust his sword into the chest of the Iron Ba. However, as his sword qi reached the Iron Ba's chest, it couldn't pierce through the skin. Consequently, Shang Ziliang was gradually pushed back!
So tough! Shang Ziliang thought to himself.
The two primary characteristics of a Ba were its incredible speed and an extremely hard body. It was both swift and resilient, making it extremely challenging for a cultivator of the same realm to break through its defense.
As the Iron Ba drew closer to Shang Ziliang, he formed another finger seal with his left hand and commanded, "Back off!"
The tip of the sword turned, and the surging sword qi suddenly transformed into a gentle breeze. Although the sharpness diminished, this gentle force increased significantly. As the gentle breeze moved with the sword, it left a white mark on the Iron Ba's body. Simultaneously, the Ba was pushed three zhang away!
This wasn't a sword seal of Mount Shu but a Confucian Scholar Sword Seal from the Dao of Confucianism. It was a legacy technique passed down exclusively by the Cloud Horizon Peak of Mount Shu.
"Sword Binding!" Shang Ziliang hurled his long sword, shouting swiftly. Instantly, the long sword transformed into hundreds of sword lights. It was the Hundred Swords Seal!
The hundred swords spun, weaving together into several long, dragon-like bindings, swiftly entwined the Iron Ba while rotating simultaneously!
Crackle!
In an instant, the Iron Ba seemed ensnared by numerous white pythons, while harsh sounds of metals colliding echoed throughout the area, giving the impression that the creature was being sliced and ground.
"Rawwrrr—"
It seemed to sense a hint of pain, a sensation it likely hadn't felt for a long time. The clothing on its body shredded, and numerous tiny wounds appeared all over. If its skin weren't tougher than iron, it would have been torn to pieces in an instant!
In this dangerous moment, it also unleashed power several times its usual strength, seizing the sword bindings with its palms and fiercely yanking them!
Thud! Snap! Thud! Snap!
It forcefully tore apart the shining sword bindings!
"Hah—" The Iron Ba let out a deep, muffled sound as it tore apart yet another two sword bindings, dispersing the entwining sword lights.
The scattered sword light coalesced once more into a flying sword, spinning as it returned to Shang Ziliang.
In this moment, Shang Ziliang remained calm and composed, raising both hands to activate a glowing mirror.
This was the enchanted tool his dad had given him to bring along for protection on this journey—the Yang Mirror of Righteousness.
He had intended to save this for later use. However, the ongoing struggle with this Iron Ba had already become too challenging. Therefore, Shang Ziliang activated this enchanted tool.
A beam of sunlight refracted through the bronze mirror, instantly striking the Iron Ba. Immediately, countless hissing sounds echoed as smoke billowed!
"Rawrrr—" The Iron Ba suffered a heavy blow, tumbling to the ground and emitting painful roars.
The Yang Mirror of Righteousness could harness the essence of sunlight. For ordinary people, being targeted by the light reflected through this mirror would only feel burning hot. However, creatures of Yin nature would instantly incinerate!
Seeing the Iron Ba tumbling in agony, Shang Ziliang immediately thrust his finger forward, unleashing another flying sword!
Snap!
This sword finally severed the head of the Iron Ba, leaving it motionless. Without its head, the Ba could no longer move, which meant that it was definitely dead.
Phew. Shang Ziliang heaved a sigh of relief.
Shang Ziliang stowed the Yang Mirror of Righteousness and the flying sword away. Then, he flashed a confident smile, convinced that his potential brother-in-law had witnessed how decisively he took down the Iron Ba!
With a leap, he arrived in front of Xu Ziyang. He was just about to boast of his achievement as he smiled and said, "Senior Brother Xu, my performance in the fight was..."
Before he could finish his sentence, the Golden-Winged Falcon in the sky emitted another cry.
"Caw—"
Another Ba?
This time, the cry was even higher in pitch!
Xu Ziyang's gaze sharpened. The creature that had appeared earlier was an Iron Ba, the kind that disciples at the pinnacle of the third realm could handle easily. Thus, he had no intention of taking action.
But judging from the tone of this cry, the creature that just appeared was a Copper Ba!
Danger! Xu Ziyang thought.
The same word popped up in Chu Liang's mind.
Chu Liang initially observed the intense fight between Shang Ziliang and the Iron Ba, contemplating the creature's weaknesses as he watched. As the fight concluded, he was about to turn around and continue moving forward.
Without warning, a figure shot out from the grass on one side, moving as swiftly as lightning!
Chu Liang instinctively summoned the green leaf into the form of a zongzi, but then he realized that the green leaf enchanted tool wasn't by his side. Without any choice, he activated the Hundred Swords Seal!
The hundred swords formed a protective circle around him, becoming his shield.
Through the gaps in the swordlights, he clearly saw the figure rushing towards him. It had a black-bronze hue, hollow eye sockets, and was draped in tattered Daoist robes.
A Copper Ba!
With a whoosh, it closed in and swung a fist!
Bang!
The circular shield formed by the hundred sword lights instantly shattered. The swords could not block the attack at all.
With the strength of the Copper Ba being more than ten times greater than that of the Iron Ba, how could Chu Liang's Hundred Swords Seal withstand it?
But all Chu Liang needed was this slight delay, as at that very moment, he summoned another sword—the Dustless Sword!
The symbols of Decisive Clouds circulated on the Dustless Sword. In the blink of an eye, three talismanic characters were drawn and unleashed, accompanied by the radiance of three colors!
Ice! Fire! Thunder!
It was a grand spectacle!
"Rawwrr—"
As the sword lights approached, the Copper Ba roared in anger!
Boom!
A violent explosion echoed by the lakeside, accompanied by the brief illumination of lightning and flames.
When the Dustless Sword appeared behind the Copper Ba, its massive body was already frozen in place, with its entire body covered in ice and a gaping black hole in its chest...
The ice and fire shattered its defense while the art of thunder eradicated the evil!
This was the Triple Talismanic Sword of Ice, Fire, and Thunder!
It was an instant kill!
The Dustless Sword, crafted by one of the best swordsmiths in the world, unleashed such power that it even surprised Xu Ziyang.
The destructive force was so powerful!
As the sword pierced through the Copper Ba, Xu Ziyang couldn't help but wonder if he could accomplish such a feat.
"What is my cultivation level? What is Chu Liang's cultivation level?" Xu Ziyang muttered inwardly. "Does this mean that when Chu Liang reaches the same cultivation level as me, his attack power will be significantly greater than mine?"
Whoosh!
As the sword light retraced, Chu Liang stowed the Dustless Sword away in a calm and composed manner.
He didn't find his performance earlier surprising.
Despite being a cultivator at the third realm, he had mastered a type of sword technique in the Dao of Talismans that far surpassed what an ordinary cultivator of that realm could grasp.
Moreover, the flying sword he wielded wasn't the typical weapon used by a cultivator at the third realm; it could easily be ranked as a top weapon in the Catalog of the Mortal World's Ten Thousand Treasures! With the enhancement of the Perfect Qi Circulation, his foundational qi was also significantly stronger than that of an ordinary third realm cultivator.
The combination of these three factors made what seemed to be an explosively powerful sword strike feel effortless and natural to him.
Xu Ziyang looked pensive as he reflected on the details of the sword attack that Chu Liang had unleashed.
On the other hand, Chen Su's jaw dropped, and she couldn't conceal her shock.
Shang Ziliang wore an ashen expression and felt a sense of hopelessness. He couldn't help but remember that he had initially dismissed Chu Liang's cultivation as insignificant. Yet, within a short period, Chu Liang had surpassed him by far.
Without the aid of the Yang Mirror of Righteousness, Shang Ziliang would have struggled to defeat the Iron Ba. However, Chu Liang effortlessly killed the more formidable Copper Ba with a single strike. The thought of this difference filled Shang Ziliang with apprehension.
He remained silent for a moment.
When Xu Ziyang turned around and stared at Shang Ziliang, asking, "What did you say earlier?"
"Hehe..." Shang Ziliang scratched his head and chuckled awkwardly as he said, "I said the wind here is quite strong..."
