204: Chapter 204 Ling Xi Takes Action

At the center of the battlefield, Venerable Dry Bones grew more and more alarmed as he fought!

Xiao Ruobai's Battle Intent seemed to have no upper limit; with each collision, his Battle Intent soared, and his power seemed to condense!

This characteristic of growing stronger with each battle reminded him of certain Physiques from ancient legends!

"I can't drag this out! I must end this quickly!"

A cold glint flashed in Venerable Dry Bones' eyes, and he finally decided to unleash his true killing move!

His gaunt body suddenly trembled, and the Death Qi around him surged like boiling water. He formed an ancient and eerie hand seal with both hands, and a low growl, like sand grinding against stone, escaped his throat.

"Nine Nether...Yellow Springs Finger!"

With one finger, Heaven and Earth fell silent!

He condensed a point of ultimate darkness at his fingertip, as if compressing all the world's darkness and stillness within it!

The next moment, a finger-light, as thin as a hair yet black as ink, pierced through the Void Realm!

This finger-light had no earth-shattering momentum; wherever it passed, space silently annihilated, leaving an eternal, Void Realm-like trace!

A terrifying Law power that froze the Soul and eroded vitality locked onto Xiao Ruobai, as if a summons from the Yellow Springs of the Nine Nether, threatening to drag him and this entire world into eternal stillness!

This was a Law-level suppression! It was Venerable Dry Bones' most powerful strike, honed over a thousand years and touching the threshold of the Saint-Grade!

"Good timing! This is more like it!"

Xiao Ruobai felt an unprecedented life-or-death crisis, but instead of fear, the War God blood in him thoroughly boiled!

His eyes glowed golden-red, pushing the Battle Qi and unyielding will around him to their limits. The muscles in his arms bulged like Dragons, and the Nine Heavens Dragon Soul Halberd let out an earth-shattering roar!

"Nine Tribulations of the War God—Heaven-Opening!"

He roared, pouring all his strength into the halberd tip, and thrust it out!

There were no fancy variations, only an indomitable will to advance, to cleave through Chaos, and to re-establish order! The halberd tip burst forth with a golden light more dazzling than the sun, transforming into a golden line that tore through the Void Realm, slamming into the Nine Nether finger-light!

"Chh—!"

There was no loud bang, only a grating, teeth-aching tearing sound, as if a Law was breaking! The two extreme lights, golden and black, stalemated and annihilated in the air!

"Pfft!"

Venerable Dry Bones suddenly spat out a large mouthful of dark black blood, his body staggered backward, his aura instantly withered, and his face was filled with horror and disbelief!

His nearly Saint-Grade finger strike was not only blocked, but the domineering backlash severely damaged his Divine Soul!

A wisp of golden blood also spilled from Xiao Ruobai's mouth, and his tiger's mouth cracked. But a golden light flashed around him, that wisp of blood instantly evaporated, and the cracked tiger's mouth healed at a visible speed. Although his aura fluctuated slightly, it quickly stabilized, and the Battle Intent in his eyes grew even more intense!

The powerful recovery ability of the War God Body was fully displayed!

"You... what Physique is this?!" Venerable Dry Bones' voice was hoarse, filled with terror.

Just as the two finished their clash and their Qi had not yet settled—

"Now! Attack!"

A furious shout rang out! A figure, like a ghost, flashed out of the Void Realm, holding a longsword, thrusting it directly at Wang Xiaopang's back!

The speed was extreme, and the timing was perfectly grasped! It was precisely when Xiao Ruobai and Venerable Dry Bones were both injured, and Fang Hanyu's attention was drawn away!

"Courting death!"

Fang Hanyu's eyes flashed with coldness; he had detected the person the moment he appeared! His body remained still, but the Primordial Sword suspended before him let out a clear sword cry, and a gray Chaos Sword Qi struck first, precisely cutting towards the longsword!

"Clang!" The longsword was precisely deflected by the Chaos Sword Qi, sparks flying!

The attacker's figure paused, revealing his true appearance.

This person wore a faded green robe, with a gaunt but weathered face, and temples already streaked with white. He held an ancient longsword, its blade like a clear autumn stream, radiating a chilling light.

His aura, sharp yet tinged with an undeniable sense of decline and anxiety, revealed him to be a Sword Cultivator at the Peak of the King Realm!

Fang Hanyu's gaze suddenly fixed on that sword. The blade was like a clear autumn stream, transparent and pure, seeming to cleanse dust with each swing. A subtle, wave-like natural sword pattern was clearly visible on the hilt.

His eyes suddenly narrowed, filled with a hint of disbelief and deep regret, as he blurted out.

"Sword pattern like water, hidden sharpness... Is this 'Autumn Water Without Trace'? You are... Senior Murong Qiu, 'Sword Without Trace,' who was renowned in the Eastern Domain five hundred years ago for defeating all peers with his 'Trace-less Sword Art'?"

As a Sword Cultivator, Fang Hanyu had always studied the famous Sword Dao masters of the Eastern Domain and the characteristics of their swords. This 'Autumn Water Without Trace' sword had too distinct features; he would never mistake it!

His tone was filled with deep regret and confusion: "I never thought... the Sword Dao Prodigy who once illuminated nineteen prefectures with a single sword, whose sword left no trace and was upright and honorable, would now resort to such backstabbing and bullying of the weak?! Where is your Sword Heart?!"

The green-robed Sword Cultivator—Murong Qiu—his identity exposed, his body stiffened abruptly. The muscles on his gaunt face twitched violently, and extremely complex emotions flashed in his eyes: shame, pain, but ultimately, they were covered by a nearly insane obsession and despair.

He spoke hoarsely, his voice like dry wood rubbing together, filled with endless bitterness and self-mockery: "Sword Heart? Heh... Little friend, you are still young, exceptionally talented, with boundless prospects... How could you understand the despair of a Lifespan nearing its end, Qi and blood decaying, watching the Great Dao before you yet powerless to reach it?!"

The hand holding the sword trembled slightly from agitation, and the autumn water radiance on the blade was even tinged with a hint of gloom.

"The Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi is growing thinner day by day, and the path to sainthood for us Loose Cultivators is bleak... This old man... does not want to sit and await death! What Sword Heart, what reputation... compared to Lifespan, all can be discarded! I'm sorry!"

Before his words finished, his body moved, and sword light flared! It was still the unparalleled, sharp 'Trace-less Sword Art' that once shook the Eastern Domain; the sword moves spread like autumn water, pervasive, instantly enveloping Fang Hanyu and Wang Xiaopang!

However, the Sword Intent now lacked some of the purity and uprightness of the past, replaced by a ruthless and urgent determination to achieve his goals by any means necessary!

"Stubborn!" The regret in Fang Hanyu's eyes faded, replaced by coldness. The Primordial Sword was fully unsheathed, and Chaos Sword Intent permeated the air!

"Primordial Sword Scripture—Sword Domain of Returning to the Void!"

As the gray Sword Domain unfolded, Murong Qiu's swift-as-lightning, untraceable sword light, upon entering the Sword Domain, became like sinking into a quagmire; its trajectory became clearly visible, and its power greatly diminished!

"Your sword... has lost its Soul!" Fang Hanyu coldly shouted, thrusting the Primordial Sword directly. A Chaos Sword Qi broke through layers of sword shadows, pointing directly at the flaw in Murong Qiu's sword art!

Murong Qiu's face changed, and he quickly changed his moves to parry, but the Chaos Sword Intent shook his Qi and blood, forcing him back several steps! The horror in his eyes intensified; not only was the opponent's Sword Intent profound, but he could even see through the flaws in his sword art caused by his imbalanced state of mind!

The two exchanged swords, instantly clashing for over ten rounds, Sword Qi crisscrossing!

Fang Hanyu's Sword Intent was vast and profound, steadily gaining the upper hand, firmly suppressing Murong Qiu. But Murong Qiu was, after all, once a top Prodigy with deep foundations; although at a disadvantage, he still managed to parry Fang Hanyu's attacks with exquisite sword moves, making it difficult to defeat him completely for a time.

However, just as Fang Hanyu was fully suppressing Murong Qiu, his Sword Intent concentrated on a single point—

Another anomaly occurred!

Another hidden figure silently emerged from the shadows behind Fang Hanyu and Wang Xiaopang!

This person wore a dark Xuan-colored tight suit, his body lean like a spear, his face stern, and his eyes like ten-thousand-year-old ice, devoid of any emotional fluctuations.

He held an inconspicuous black short dagger, his aura restrained to the extreme, clearly a Late Stage King Realm expert skilled in assassination, Wuying!

His appearance was without any warning. The short dagger, like a venomous snake striking from its hole, aimed directly at Wang Xiaopang's back! The timing was perfectly grasped, precisely when Fang Hanyu was desperately entangled by Murong Qiu, and his mind was focused!

Wang Xiaopang was scared out of his wits!

By the time Fang Hanyu noticed, it was already too late to rescue him!

In a flash of peril!

"Chh!"

A clear, cold, green finger-wind, as if it had long anticipated all this, struck first from another incredible angle, precisely hitting the side of the black short dagger!

There was no loud clang of metal, only a slight, crisp sound like jade beads falling onto a plate.

"Clang!"

The black short dagger was deflected by a gentle yet irresistible force, veering off its original trajectory.

Wuying's indifferent face showed a look of astonishment for the first time, his figure was forced to reveal itself, sliding back several feet.