Chapter 135: Endless Yakshas, Escape From Death

Ye Rong pointed his finger, blasting apart a yaksha that had pierced through layers of Sword Light defenses and lunged at his chest. But within a few meters around him, the yakshas packed densely together were simply too numerous. They were like a roaring tide threatening to completely engulf him.

“Dammit, so this is what the Minor Formless Realm is like! Nobody told me the demon numbers would get this insane!” Ye Rong cursed inwardly. He was barely holding on, his Qi and Blood and True Qi draining like a burst riverbank. All his medicinal pills were gone, only the twenty Purple Gold Pills he got as a prize from the Sect Minor Competition remained.

The Kunlun Secret Realm, this Minor Formless Realm, was indeed treacherous. Absolutely not a friendly place!

When he first entered the Minor Formless Realm, it was an excellent environment of blue skies, white clouds, green waters, and green hills. The number of demons was fairly normal too, only slightly denser than monster spawn points outside. He was also quite pleased to discover that while killing these demons didn’t grant Karma Points, nor did they drop any equipment, the Experience Points were about fifty percent higher compared to monsters of similar rank outside.

Moreover, these demons weren’t particularly hard to deal with, lacking anything extraordinary. His experience gains soared accordingly.

Judging by this monster-killing efficiency, the Minor Formless Realm truly was a leveling paradise. The leveling speed was definitely at least twice as fast as outside.

As Ye Rong kept killing, he grew dissatisfied. Feeling his strength could handle stronger demons, or he could move to places where the monsters were an even denser pack. His experience bar would surely climb faster then.

He had no idea how vast this Minor Formless Realm was. Since entering, besides himself, he hadn’t seen a single Kunlun disciple.

The further forward he went, the ground beneath his feet and the surrounding environment changed. Blinded by the Experience Points, Ye Rong didn’t notice at first – the dark red, scorching ground beneath, hot air bursting from cracks in the earth, thick fumes of sulfur carried by billowing yellow smoke, the sky a murky brownish-yellow where even the sun’s radiance was blocked.

By the time Ye Rong realized something was wrong, the situation was already bad. Even the path back was gone.

Mobs of black yakshas, each group numbering five to six hundred, were everywhere, in front, behind – covering the sky, blotting out the sun like dark clouds.

“Oh damn it! That Blood Colored Poppy really screwed me over this time!” Ye Rong couldn’t help but swear loudly. Ordinary yakshas were just weirdly agile, appearing and vanishing unpredictably, able to pass through earth, stone, and walls. Their only advantages were swift movement and tough bodies. Not really difficult enemies.

But with thousands of yakshas gathered together, even if Ye Rong had three heads and six arms, iron teeth and bronze jaws, he simply couldn’t handle them.

The endless charge! These yakshas grabbed directly at his Flying Sword with their hands. Even when the Sword Light ripped their flesh open and chopped off limbs, they showed no fear, surging forward with a savage intensity.

He had long switched the Black Phoenix Sword for the Seven Avian Feather Fan, instantly activating the Seven Avian Divine Light to encase and protect his entire body.

No matter how fast he whirled his Sword Light, he couldn’t keep up with the flood of crowding yakshas. Always, some would slip through the gaps, charging right up to Ye Rong and thrusting their five fingers towards his skull, ferocious and brutal, as if wanting to punch five holes in his head!

But upon touching the Seven Avian Divine Light, it shimmered violently, blocking all the yaksha attacks.

Though not as potent as the Seven Avian Divine Light on that Chongming Bird, this protective barrier he conjured now covered his whole body flawlessly, offering far better defense than his Mystic Purple Qi Shield.

Ye Rong fought while retreating, trying his best to edge towards the outskirts of the Minor Formless Realm. More experience? Better rewards? None of it mattered as much as preserving his own life.

Half an hour later, even after switching to a third set of the Seven Avian Feather Fan to sustain the Seven Avian Divine Light, he had only managed to move back barely a dozen steps or so.

The main problem: yaksha bodies were brutally strong – these were enemies unafraid to grab Flying Swords barehanded! Every time he killed one, the shoving yakshas would slam him back several steps with tremendous force. It wasted huge amounts of effort.

“What intense light!” To Ye Rong’s left, miles away, a sun-wheel-like golden radiance rose into the sky, showering down infinite, blazing rays. Yakshas touched by the light screeched in agony. Their bodies seemed drenched in boiling oil, melting away like snow.

Powerful mana waves rippled out, covering an area over a hundred yards wide. This single strike annihilated at least a thousand yakshas. He could clearly see rings of yakshas turning to charred cinders, disintegrating into ash. Under such a ferocious solar artifact, even the seemingly endless sea of yakshas was momentarily cleared, leaving a vacuum too difficult to immediately fill. The person mounted the sun-wheel and surged forward fiercely. Any stray yakshas in their path instantly ignited upon contact, becoming flying fireballs that burned to ash in the air.

Seeing this, Ye Rong’s heart leaped. “Now! This is the chance! To break out of this yaksha sea requires unexpected help. Otherwise, using all my skills just means dying sooner or later!”

Instantly, he dove into Body-Sword Unity. Simultaneously, he activated his Soaring Sword Heavenward state. His whole being transformed into an icy, snowy sword streak shooting out.

That devastating blow from the golden sun-wheel had emptied a huge swath of yakshas. Surrounding yakshas rushed to fill the gap and pursue the attacker. This, in a way, lessened the pressure around Ye Rong slightly.

Casting Snow cut a path through, cleaving four yakshas barring his way clean in half. He did try to avoid obstacles whenever possible.

Operating in Body-Sword Unity felt extremely difficult due to the bizarre perspective. The slightest shift could drastically alter the Sword Light’s trajectory, sending him recklessly crashing around. Even with Ye Rong’s sword control skills, he dared not make significant route changes while united with the sword. He could only make minor adjustments within his limits. His nerves were stretched to the absolute max.

In one breath he surged over ten miles away. Only then did the frost-and-snow sword streak descend. Without a second thought, he swallowed a Purple Gold Pill. The power of a sixth-grade pill was real – instantly, both Qi and Blood and True Qi refilled to full.

In a life-or-death moment like this, saving precious pills was pointless; even the rarest high-grade medicine must be used to survive.

Looking up, he saw that golden sun-wheel radiance had dimmed considerably, now surrounded again by yakshas. Hemmed in, the rider now charged left and right… trapped once more.

“Shalei Zihong, activate!”

No time to worry about others. Right now, Ye Rong used every trick he could think of. First, he refined Casting Snow using the Green Sword Reflection Art. Then, he fused Shalei Zihong onto the flying sword’s blade. Green gleam intertwined with purple radiance, staining the originally pure, silvery-snowy Casting Snow with a faint dual shade of azure and violet.

With both sword-boosting techniques applied, Casting Snow underwent a tremendous leap in power. Combined with his Neither-Thought-Nor-Non-Thought Sword Scabbard, aside from its special abilities, its attributes in some areas now rivaled a Sixth-Rank Flying Sword. Especially its travel speed, which had far surpassed Sixth-Rank and approached Seventh-Rank Flying Swords.

He merged with his sword for Body-Sword Unity again. This time he only flew three or four miles before being forced to descend.

Another Purple Gold Pill went down his throat. He charged on. This happened five times. Finally, the System Notification came:

“Daily Body-Sword Unity time limit reached. Exiting state.”

Touching down and swallowing another pill, he wasn’t disappointed – instead, he felt relieved.

He could already sense it: though yakshas still surrounded him, they were spread thin – roughly a hundred total.

He could handle that number. Even if he couldn’t kill them all, getting away clean was no problem for him.

“That Kunlun disciple was incredibly powerful! If I’d taken that hit, even with my Seven Avian Divine Light defense, it would’ve been an instant KO! Heh heh… but he still died trapped in there. That’s what happens when your travel speed isn’t fast enough.” Ye Rong chuckled wickedly. Escaping that near-certain death felt incredible.

But the golden light that marked that Player earlier with the sun-wheel artifact faded more and more. Their fate was almost certain: ten deaths out of ten, zero chance of survival.

“Shame, shame. My escape owes a lot to that guy. Who am I to gloat? Maybe I’ll kill a few hundred yakshas for him. That’d avenge that nameless hero!”

He’d only been in the Minor Formless Realm for less than two hours so far. Plenty of time remained before the six-hour limit.

So, Ye Rong wasn’t in a hurry to leave. He just needed to be cautious. He resolved not to push forward even one step deeper. Here, at the fringe, slaughtering monsters to level up felt relatively safe. It was underestimating this place earlier that got him stuck way too deep.

He roamed only the edge zones, maintaining extreme vigilance. The instant he saw signs of large yaksha groups gathering, he’d retreat fast. When he spotted packs of twenty yakshas or fewer, he’d charge in sword-first. He unleashed fast, efficient massacres, cutting them down beneath his sword, greedily hoarding the rich experience bounty.

…

With his Seven Avian Feather Fan swung halfway, Ye Rong abruptly dispersed it into seven Plume Feathers. Smacking the yaksha, it reformed instantly into a fan–

He was practicing how to maximize combat power while using a complete sword set. Though weak offensively, wielding the Seven Avian Feather Fan revealed certain unique secrets through repeated use—distinct from regular flying swords.

He prepared to finish this yaksha with another frost-snow sword strike… but then his slash hit nothing but air!

He suddenly felt dizzy. A powerful force yanked Ye Rong out of the Minor Formless Realm entirely. Ah. The six-hour duration had ended.