Chapter 32: Sword Duel

Amidst the clouds and mist, directions became indistinguishable. Everywhere churning mist rolled and surged endlessly. As the mountain wind howled, Mu Yuan heard the Golden Silkworm’s sharp chirping. His heart was already prepared as he leaped upward, pouncing toward the direction of the sound.

The Longevity Sword transformed into a ball similar to a Golden Core. Although Mu Yuan still had the cultivation of Qi Refining Third Layer, by borrowing its power, he could still perform the Divine Abilities of Elixir Formation. It was not just Qi weapons; his flying method had also shifted from wind riding to Qi manipulation.

Aided by both Qi and wind, Mu Yuan’s leap was extremely fast. Piercing through the mist, the scene before his eyes made him gasp in shock!

A rolling mass of light stretched into a human shape in mid-air, its whole body covered with a dazzling layer of sword radiance. Over a dozen beams of Sword Qi separated from it, fiercely battling the Golden Corpse. Nearly half of the dozens of flying Gu Insects had already fallen to the ground, pierced through by Sword Qi, completely dead!

Golden Silkworm Gu had tough bodies, hard to damage with blades or swords. Seeing that this fellow had managed to kill over a dozen Gu Insects in such a short time, Mu Yuan couldn’t help but be astonished. The overwhelming Sword Qi swirling around it left him deeply shocked!

The flying Golden Corpse was also somewhat overwhelmed by the dozen or so Sword Qi beams. Its silver spear blocked left and right, barely holding up. It was clear the opponent’s swordsmanship was superb, even the highly skilled Golden Corpse couldn’t withstand it!

“Fellow Daoist, please hold back!” Mu Yuan shouted loudly, spreading his hands empty, activating the Longevity Sword. Over a dozen Sword Qi beams burst forth, intercepting the Sword Qi besieging the Golden Corpse!

Yuan Longtai had also rushed up by now. The frantic dash left him somewhat breathless. Seeing the dead Golden Silkworm Gu on the ground, the muscles on his face twitched, and he couldn’t help but cry out. Cultivating Golden Silkworm Gu was quite difficult, requiring countless medicinal herbs. Losing over a dozen at once made his heart ache!

The light-formed person gave a sinister laugh. “Daring to harm my Spirit Beast, truly reckless. And such a high-quality flying corpse too, perfect for my Soul Seizure, far better than an ordinary person!” As he spoke, the Sword Qi around him surged violently. Hundreds of Sword Qi beams intertwined, weaving into a huge sword net in mid-air, enveloping both Mu Yuan and Yuan Longtai!

Yuan Longtai didn’t recognize it, but Mu Yuan could see that the person before them was an essence soul, yet it could manifest outside the body. This was truly the Spirit Refining realm, having cultivated at least one layer of soul. Hearing its intention for Soul Seizure, Mu Yuan guessed its original body had decayed, forcing it to occupy another!

A Qi Refining Practitioner advancing past the third layer, as long as they cultivated one layer of the Yin-Yang Dual Spirits, could manifest outside the body. However, this state couldn’t last long; after all, it wasn’t the achievement of a Primordial Spirit master. Without a physical body to nourish it over time, it would gradually dissipate. The being before them clearly wasn’t a Primordial Spirit master, yet from its tone, it had been without a body for a long time, which puzzled Mu Yuan!

Having seen Spirit Refining realm Cultivators before, Mu Yuan knew their Spiritual Sense was powerful, perceiving the subtle. Their control over Sword Qi reached a delicate state, much more refined than Cultivators who hadn’t achieved Spirit Refining. Fortunately, this being had no physical body, so its strength was considerably weaker. Mu Yuan felt no fear, raising his hand to release a cluster of Sword Qi, strands forming threads, clearly reaching the realm of Sword Qi Division!

Since comprehending the true meaning of Eternal Life, the Dragon King’s Dynamic Force had merged with the Longevity Art, granting Mu Yuan the Divine Ability of a false core. His understanding of the Greenwood Divine Radiance also elevated, advancing this Longevity Sword Art to the stage of Sword Qi Division!

Condensing light into Qi, dividing Sword Qi, condensing Qi into threads—these were the sword art realms Mu Yuan already knew, the three stages his master taught him about sword cultivation. As for later stages like sword threads producing sound, or sword sounds transforming into talismans, Mu Yuan didn’t know yet. However, few specializing in sword arts reached such levels!

Sword art cultivation itself was an application of Divine Abilities. Mu Yuan had considerable talent in sword practice. In just over a decade, he reached Sword Qi Division. Combined with the thunder, lightning, wind, and cloud aspects of the Dragon King’s Dynamic Force, his Greenwood Divine Radiance gained a rim of thunderous light and electrical sparks, increasing its power. Immediately, he engaged in battle with the Cultivator before him.

Regarding Sword Qi Division, generally one needed to achieve Spirit Refining first, with powerful Spiritual Sense to control the divided Sword Qi. Mu Yuan had only reached Qi Refining Third Layer half a month ago. Executing the sword art of Sword Qi Division was somewhat strenuous, but its power was still significant. Moreover, with the Longevity Sword in his Dantian acting as a Golden Core, the generated Sword Qi was especially indestructible. The opponent, of unknown origin, also possessed first-rate sword skills, completely unfazed by Mu Yuan’s Longevity Sword Qi, resulting in a closely matched fight!

“Who is this person, actually able to withstand the Sword Qi unleashed by the Longevity Sword? An ordinary Cultivator would have been destroyed long ago. Truly formidable!”

Seeing the opponent’s exquisite sword skills, Mu Yuan wanted to test his own abilities. His right hand’s Greenwood Divine Radiance shifted and surged high, while his left hand also activated the Canglang Water Sword. A sharp, vast, and turbulent Sword Qi erupted, spraying from his left forearm, forming a rolling, churning rainbow-colored Qi weapon!

With Mu Yuan’s current skill, he naturally couldn’t merge the Greenwood Divine Radiance and Canglang Water Sword into one, achieving perfect integration. If he reached that stage, with dual power variations supplemented by Longevity Sword radiance, the effect would double compared to now. Unfortunately, he was still in the comprehension phase for both sword arts, unable to fuse them.

Nevertheless, the two great sword arts remained extremely fierce. The Canglang Water Sword’s Qi vortex absorbed and dissolved attacks, while the Greenwood Divine Radiance struck hard directly. One resisted, one dissipated, complementing each other perfectly, gradually breaking down the opponent’s overwhelming sword net!

“Hmph!” The Spirit Refining Cultivator coldly snorted. Suddenly, a stream of light shot from its body—a Flying Sword. Black mist swirled around it, trailing sparks, headed straight for Mu Yuan. With Sword Qi ineffective, the opponent finally lost patience and released the Flying Sword.

“I was afraid you wouldn’t come!” When it came to Flying Swords, Mu Yuan feared no one. Though he couldn’t unleash other powers of the Longevity Sword, its sharpness was unstoppable. Mu Yuan extended his right arm, summoning the Longevity Sword. Instantly, a long dragon’s roar echoed as the Longevity Sword trailed a long sword radiance, slashing horizontally and vertically. The opponent’s Flying Sword trembled lightly, its radiance dimming significantly!

“Eh!” The opponent exclaimed in surprise. Waves of Qi rolled over its entire body. Suddenly, an illusory light field appeared around it, covering an area of three square zhang. Countless strands of Primordial Qi floated within, condensing into swords of various styles—some broad, some slender, some ancient, some ingeniously crafted. As it spread its arms, all swords turned, aiming squarely at Mu Yuan. A vast, desolate aura spread, carrying the implication of ten thousand swords flying together, which greatly shocked Mu Yuan!