67: Chen Wuji breaks through defense

"Who are you?"

Chen Wuji was an Eighth Level of the Hunyuan Realm expert, yet this was the first time someone had stood silently behind him without him noticing their presence.

For some reason, the moment he saw Shen Lian, Chen Wuji’s heart involuntarily trembled, and his feet instinctively retreated half a step.

"You are blocking my Dao. If you aren't deaf, you can scram."

Although he knew his opponent's cultivation Realm was far above his own, Shen Lian showed no sign of restraining his arrogance.

After ninety-nine lifetimes of bloody, murderous refinement, nothing could make him feel the slightest bit of fear or retreat.

A mere Primordial Chaos Realm Cultivator was like an ant in his eyes; even though he was currently only in the Tribulation Crossing Realm, he had no intention of bowing his head.

On the contrary, the higher the opponent's cultivation, the stronger the desire he felt to fight them to the death.

For a Tribulation Crossing Realm Cultivator facing a Primordial Chaos Realm Cultivator, even if they were a Heavens Chosen Prodigy, the possibility of achieving a reversal without external assistance was virtually zero.

But Shen Lian was an exception; he was confident that if it came down to a life-and-death struggle, overcoming the strong with the weak was commonplace for him.

"Heh heh, it's been a long time since anyone dared to speak to this old man like that. Kid, who are you? Which Elder of the Chess Sword Pavilion are you a Disciple of? Tell me."

For such an arrogant person, Chen Wuji should have suppressed and killed him immediately, then used his blood to refine his sword.

But for some unknown reason, when he met Shen Lian’s deep, bottomless eyes, a sense of unease and the aura of death began swirling in his mind.

"Are you incapable of understanding human speech?!"

With a low roar, a violent wave of Qi blasted directly towards Chen Wuji.

Bang—

The Hunyuan Qi Force on Chen Wuji's body sensed danger and automatically began to circulate.

The moment the two streams of Spiritual Qi collided, a muffled rumble erupted.

"Tribulation Crossing Realm aura?"

Realizing his opponent was only a Tribulation Crossing Realm Cultivator, Chen Wuji relaxed.

"Kid, you dare to be so arrogant when you are only Undergoing Tribulation? This old man could crush you like an ant."

"Is that so?"

Shen Lian opened his Folding Fan, a hint of disdain in his eyes.

"Just a mere Eighth Level of the Hunyuan Realm Cultivator who barely managed to recover his cultivation after having it crippled by someone else, yet you think you are invincible and can control everything?"

Chen Wuji was stunned: "Are you just putting on an act?"

"Whether it's an act or not, you are welcome to try. Just consider what might happen after you make a move!"

Shen Lian’s indifferent attitude caused Chen Wuji’s expression to change.

He had lived for tens of thousands of years, and no one had ever dared to speak to him like this, nor had he seen such a composed junior in a long time.

"Kid, you're becoming more and more interesting to this old man. But unfortunately, your technique of playing hard to get in order to learn my sword techniques is too clumsy,

Many Disciples of the Chess Sword Pavilion covet this old man's sword techniques, but you are the first to try to attract my attention this way.

But do you know the principle that playing with fire will only result in you burning yourself to death?!"

Boom—

With a soft explosion, nine pitch-black Spiritual Swords appeared behind Chen Wuji, all condensed from Spiritual Qi.

The terrifying, bloody pressure emanating from the swords alone was unbearable even for Cultivators of the same Realm.

Yet, Shen Lian continuously fanned himself lightly with his Folding Fan, maintaining a calm and carefree demeanor throughout, quietly watching Chen Wuji show off.

Seeing Shen Lian remain silent, Chen Wuji spoke up arrogantly: "What, are you scared now? Where did that arrogant Qi from earlier go? Where did it run off to!"

"Hahahaha."

Unexpectedly, Shen Lian burst into unrestrained laughter.

"Old thing, if this is the source of your confidence, then I can only say that your legacy is like a foot-binding cloth—stinky and long. How do you have the face to bring it out and show it off?"

"What did you say!"

Chen Wuji's face instantly became ferocious. The Blood River Sword Intent was the culmination of his life's work, refined using the blood of countless people.

This should have been the most perfect Sword Intent in the world, yet now someone was openly displaying contempt for it.

This attitude completely enraged Chen Wuji.

"I said, the Sword Intent you spent your entire life researching is, in fact, an absolute joke.

A frog in a well gazing at the sky knows nothing of the universe's vastness.

It seems you, like your Sword Intent, are hopelessly rotten. Hahahahaha."

Shen Lian's unrestrained mockery instantly caused Chen Wuji to boil with rage.

Gritting his teeth, he said, "Fine, then allow me to witness Your Excellency's Sword Intent."

"As you wish!"

As Shen Lian’s voice fell, he immediately formed a sword finger with his left hand.

The next moment, everything before Chen Wuji’s eyes turned blinding white.

When he opened his eyes again, he was standing within a Yin and Yang Two Forms Dao Totem.

"This is..."

"Old thing, let me show you my Sword Intent."

A wild voice echoed from the rotating Two Forms Void.

The next moment, a sky full of sword rain appeared above Chen Wuji’s head.

Just as he looked up, Chen Wuji felt the ground disappear beneath his feet.

He looked down, and his pupils instantly contracted.

Unbeknownst to him, a bottomless abyss lay beneath his feet, and millions of dense Spiritual Swords were rushing upwards from the depths.

"What kind of sword technique is this!"

He immediately turned sideways, attempting to evade, but a sudden rush of wind sounded in his ear.

Turning his head to look, cold sweat instantly poured down his body.

He saw a sandstorm rising in the distance, and every grain of sand forming the storm was actually composed of a sword.

"What on earth is this sword technique!"

Panicked, Chen Wuji questioned loudly, then tried to mobilize his own Spiritual Qi.

However, the moment he tried to circulate his Qi, he realized that all his Spiritual Qi seemed to have been completely drained, and he couldn't mobilize even a trace.

At this moment, Shen Lian’s voice echoed hollowly within the Void Two Forms Totem.

"Heaven and Earth bear witness, grass and trees are swords, wind and thunder are swords, everything seen by the eye can be a sword!"

As the voice faded, Chen Wuji felt as if something was about to burst out of his chest.

"No~"

As if realizing something, he immediately let out a terrified shout.

Then, a seven-foot cold blade directly pierced through his body and sped toward the end of the Void Realm.

Immediately afterward, more Flying Swords erupted from every inch of his skin like a fierce storm.

Chen Wuji felt his own flesh, meridians, skin, hair, and even his breath transform into Sword Intent, wantonly ravaging his body.

In the blink of an eye, Chen Wuji's body was completely shredded by the net of swords.

Between heaven and earth, only a vortex formed by Sword Intent spun ceaselessly.

"Ah! Pfft—"

Snapping back to reality, Chen Wuji felt a sharp pain in his chest and immediately spat out a mouthful of fresh blood.

When he looked at Shen Lian again, his eyes held a trace of fear and respect.

"How about it? Do you still think that small Blood River Sword Intent can be compared to mine?"

That single sentence caused Chen Wuji to kneel directly on the ground, all traces of his former pride gone from his face.

"Why? Why can there be such perfect Sword Intent in this world? Why..."

Thinking about the Blood River Sword Intent, which had taken nearly ten thousand years of painstaking effort and the slaughter of countless people to refine, yet couldn't even be drawn in the face of Shen Lian's Sword Intent, he felt utterly ridiculous.

"What kind of sword was that?"

"You are not yet qualified to understand. You were fortunate enough to witness it today, allowing you to understand the difference between a firefly and a bright moon. Do you still intend to block my Dao now? Do you still have the nerve to bring out your legacy to teach others?"

Chen Wuji said nothing, transforming directly into a streak of bloody light and fleeing into the distance.

The shock and humiliation he experienced today had truly wounded his inner Dao heart.

"Hmph, if my cultivation hadn't been unrecovered, this kind of scoundrel wouldn't even have the right to speak."

After speaking, Shen Lian walked to the cliff edge where Chen Wuji had been standing.

He then lowered his head and activated the Eye of the Great Dao to investigate.

"It's there, just as expected!"

Witnessing a faint Spiritual Qi flickering by the broken cliff edge, Shen Lian confirmed that what he was looking for was there, and he decisively leaped, transforming into a beam of light and rushing away.

"Seeing as the Heavenly Dao kept its promise this time, I'll make an exception and waste some time playing this nurturing game with you. Hmph."