Chapter 35 Secret Techniques Revitalize the Cultivation World (35% complete)
"Someone I know?" Su Xiaoyao peeked half her head out from under the thick fox fur coat, blinking as she looked at the passing arena.
Upon seeing Shen Suqi, my eyes lit up. What a striking and elegant appearance! What a free spirit she exudes! What a peerless heroine!
People with an eye for good looks naturally have a greater affinity for those who fit their aesthetic preferences. She took off her warm woolen hat, pulled down the collar that was up to her nose, revealing her face flushed from the heat, and waved to the stage.
"I am Lao Xiao's friend, my name is Su Xiaoyao."
"Hello, my name is Shen Suqi."
After greeting Xiao Tingyuan, Shen Suqi looked at him. She didn't sense any fluctuations in his spiritual energy. After a brief moment of surprise, she composed herself and said, "After Shen Qirui returned from the Ghost Cultivation Secret Realm, he said your meridians had recovered. He made a fuss about you for more than half a year. Later, I went out to make my own way in the world and completely lost contact with my family. I haven't heard from you since. It seems you're doing well."
Meeting an old friend in a foreign land, Xiao Tingyuan was very happy: "Thanks to your arrangements, Shen Qirui was tied up with various things and had no time to cause trouble for our family, so I was able to cultivate in peace and recently formed my Golden Core."
Su Xiaoyao, who had gleaned the key information from their small talk, raised an eyebrow: "Does Shen Qirui even deserve such relatives?"
Shen Suqi smiled broadly: "He used up all his good fortune by being born from the same womb as me."
Su Xiaoyao sighed, "He really deserves to die because his kinship has added a blemish to your otherwise perfect life resume."
"yes."
The shared enemy quickly brought them closer, and the two hit it off immediately, chatting animatedly as if they had known each other for a long time. This left Xiao Tingyuan, who was supposed to be catching up with an old friend, and Shui Fan, who was secretly observing from the corner, wondering who was the old friend of whom.
Just then, the copper bell on the stage rang three times, signaling the end of the break. Shen Suqi turned around and glanced at her waiting opponents, saying to them, "I'll start my duel. I have two friends with me later. After today, would you like to have a meal together at Quanjulou?"
Quanjulou is the most famous restaurant at the foot of Kunpeng Mountain. The dishes are excellent, and even the picky mermaid prince approves of them.
Xiao Tingyuan looked in Su Xiaoyao's direction, wanting to ask his companion for advice.
Before he could ask, he heard her readily reply, "Yes, yes! Quanjulou has a hidden dessert that's not on the menu, and it's delicious."
“I must try it today,” Shen Suqi said happily.
Xiao Tingyuan: "..."
He seized the opportunity to say, "We also have a friend in Arena Number One. We'll have dinner together after the auditions are over."
After saying that, he dragged the reluctant Su Xiaoyao away, leaving Shen Suqi watching them leave with lingering affection.
After the brief encounter, Shen Suqi, with impeccable manners, bowed to Xu Lingyou, then decisively threw out a few gravity talismans, and immediately ran in the opposite direction.
Xu Lingyou held his sword horizontally to withstand the gravity. His eyes, illuminated by the reflection of the sword, were serious and slightly cold. He stepped back slightly to gather his strength, and with a single step, he broke through the spiritual talismans that were applying pressure one after another.
The talisman shattered into pieces of yellow paper, scattering across the ground like snowflakes. Shen Suqi hadn't expected this level of sneak attack to be effective; this was merely to buy some time.
The gravity rune provided enough time for her to chant a long incantation.
Under the incantation, the hair ribbon that was tied high automatically loosened, scattering light and drawing a graceful arc.
As the last syllable was bitten off, the fluttering ribbon suddenly broke into three tiny silk figures the size of a palm.
Xu Lingyou paused in his sword-drawing motion.
Silk figurines? What kind of bizarre tactic is this?
There were too many cultivators in the preliminary selection, and few people had the patience to pay attention to each one's martial arts moves. Everyone was thinking about striving to enter the final arena and then studying the moves of the remaining strong cultivators. Therefore, when he saw the talisman cultivator who did not play by the rules, he did not know how to deal with him for a moment.
After a brief hesitation, he pointed his sword at the silk figurine.
Knowing that close combat was not her forte, Shen Suqi commanded her little figures to step forward and fight back, while constantly throwing out offensive talismans to create distance between them.
Seeing that the newly formed silk figurine was about to be cut into pieces, Shen Suqi used her spiritual power to quickly sketch it out during the intervals between her movements.
A spark of inspiration is all it takes to create a talisman. She uses her spiritual energy to draw runes in the void, a speed far exceeding that of ordinary talisman cultivators who rely on yellow paper and cinnabar.
Xu Lingyou's sword pierced straight towards the silk figurine, while at the same time, the floating runes that were flickering in front of Shen Suqi froze.
The moment the sword blade touched the silk, the three little figures shone with golden light and erupted with a thunderous roar.
The seemingly fragile silk not only withstood the sharp blade but also unleashed a torrent of spiritual energy!
Xu Lingyou was unable to retract his sword in time and was blasted backward. He adjusted his body and plunged his sword deep into the arena, leaving an indelible mark on the spirit stone platform before he could barely stabilize himself. At this moment, half of his foot had already retreated to the edge of the arena.
He looked back and realized he had almost been defeated, and a chill ran down his spine.
It is an indisputable fact that in a pure face-to-face combat, the talisman cultivator's fighting power is inferior to that of the sword cultivator. The opponent obviously understands this, so he does not intend to defeat him head-on, but plans to use a roundabout tactic to knock him off the stage.
He would never give his opponent that chance.
Since Fu Xiu is afraid of close combat, he's determined to kill his way up to her!
Xu Lingyou suddenly raised his head, locked onto Shen Suqi who was on high alert, and charged forward with his sword.
Meeting his piercing gaze, Shen Suqi was momentarily burned by the surging determination in his eyes.
She changed her mind as if possessed, and instead used the hand that was drawing talismans to slap two talismans on herself to enhance her physical strength. She also threw a powerful talisman array behind her, and while running, she activated her spiritual power to draw dragons and snakes in the void.
Having exhausted a great deal of spiritual energy to complete the final stroke, fine beads of sweat had appeared on her forehead.
With a slight tilt of her head, Xu Lingyou's sword was only one body length away from hers!
Shen Suqi was immediately terrified.
That's an extremely ferocious Thunderfire Wilderness Formation! Doesn't this guy feel any pain?
Fortunately, she has extensive practical experience and will not lose her composure due to minor setbacks.
Shen Suqi gently blew on the floating runes, and the invisible runes immediately burst into flames. The eerie golden-red flames burned away the characters drawn with spiritual energy, turning into a wisp of white smoke that entered the little man's body.
The next moment, the sword blade, which was inches away, struck a hard object, and Xu Lingyou's tiger's mouth went numb from the shock.
Seeing the silk figure transform into a life-sized miniature, he suppressed his surprise and, no longer holding back, unleashed twelve deadly attacks in a single breath.
The silk figurine seemed to be protected by an unbreakable layer of spiritual energy, which would not break or retreat no matter how it was attacked.
Three tiny figures entered the battlefield in place of the controller, feeling no pain whatsoever, enduring all the fierce attacks, and raising their hands in sync with Shen Suqi behind them.
Seeing that his sword strikes were all of equal force and his wrists didn't even tremble, Shen Suqi was extremely glad that she hadn't been too ambitious and kept the villain as a secret weapon to defend her title in the finals, otherwise she would have been defeated here.
The four runes finished simultaneously, and four attacks, one large and three small, surged from all sides like a hurricane, approaching Xu Lingyou. After he bravely swung his sword to block eighty-one wind blades, they exploded one after another.
The unexpected second attack caused him a great loss. Then, three little men each took up a sword and used his sword moves!
Although I didn't learn everything, I still grasped about 50% of it.
Shen Suqi felt a little regretful. Her spiritual power was insufficient, and she had only learned the basics of controlling talismans. Once she reached the Nascent Soul stage, she would be able to mirror three identical opponents and kill them with her own moves.
However, for now, three inferior mirror images are enough to deal with Xu Lingyou.
In stark contrast to the disheveled Xu Lingyou, she had used a wind-fixing talisman to protect her skirt before the competition, and her clothes remained perfectly in place throughout the match, making her seem more like a spectator.
She casually pulled out a short-term soundproofing talisman produced by the system. The game was one-way soundproof, so they couldn't hear or see outside, but the outside world could hear their conversation. She was playing freely and wanted to say something that the outside world couldn't hear.
Taking advantage of the soundproofing, she said to Xu Lingyou, "I originally wanted to give the three mirror images to Yi-ge to play with, but you can have them now. You are all opponents that I can respect."
“The people who fight me always look down on talisman cultivators, but in reality, apart from Brother Yi who came with me, I didn’t take anyone seriously before I arrived, including their pre-selected champion Qi Tian. They don’t even have the ability to make me use the spirit talismans from the five-star cultivation techniques.”
"I've made those who looked down on Fu Xiu pay the price for their blindness. Some of them even stepped down and still felt that they were careless and that's why I was able to ambush them. I quite like this kind of 'playing dumb to fool the enemy' act."
“But you are different. You did not underestimate Fu Xiu, but treated me as an equal opponent. I am very happy, so you are worthy of my true strength.”
She kept talking to herself, but Xu Lingyou couldn't hear a word she said. The wind formation and the mirror image that completely countered his moves had exhausted all his energy.
While breaking free from the wind formation, he neglected his defenses, and a small figure immediately seized the opportunity to slash him in the back with a sword, the wound so deep that the bone was visible.
Xu Lingyou's breathing began to become erratic.
Once it happened, it happened again. Before long, sword wounds appeared frequently on his body, with blood flowing profusely from the wounds.
His face turned deathly pale, and he felt a metallic taste in his throat before spitting out a mouthful of blood.
As the arena battle began, the protective shield was raised, so he couldn't hear his teammates' anxious calls from below the stage, nor could he see the outside world's gaze gradually focusing on their arena.
Severely injured and somewhat disoriented, he instinctively looked towards the edge of the ring. If he took just three steps back, he would lose.
But he hasn't faced the people of Liuyun Sect yet, and hasn't proven himself to those who abandoned them in the past.
Is this where we're going to stop?
He tightened his grip on the sword.
Shen Suqi noticed his wavering and smiled.
"Admit defeat, Xu Lingyou. You won't lose to the unique talisman array created by the Heavenly Evolution Dao Ancestor."
The formations created by the Heavenly Dao Ancestor were all dangerous killing formations. It was just a match, and she didn't want to kill her opponent, so she kindly offered a word of advice.
Contrary to her expectations that he should accept his fate, Xu Lingyou's vision cleared instantly upon hearing "Heavenly Dao Ancestor".
If he can't even get into the finals of the Lingzhou Grand Tournament, what right does he have to participate in the Dao Ancestor's entrance examination? Wouldn't that be a waste of Brother Lin's good intentions!
Shen Suqi raised an eyebrow, but remained calm.
She had a method for dealing with sword cultivators, which was to knock their swords away!
What kind of swordsman is he without a weapon? This is a psychological and deadly method.
Her next attack was no longer scattered, but aimed at the sword in Xu Lingyou's hand.
Xu Lingyou felt pain in his tiger's mouth and quickly realized her purpose. He was unwilling to let go, his hands were so numb that they trembled, and he could only swing his sword instinctively.
He staggered backward uncontrollably, his right heel dangling over the edge of the ring.
A figure in green robes subconsciously appeared in my mind.
"A swordsman can never let go of the sword in his hand."
The turbidity in Xu Lingyou's eyes gradually faded, replaced by a deep, chilling light.
As the next talisman drew near, the longsword in his hand suddenly emitted a dazzling beam of light.
He poured all his spiritual power into the sword. The hilt could not withstand the surge of spiritual power and cracks appeared. The condensed spiritual energy twinkled like stars around the end of the sword.
The sword emitted a long hum, and a powerful sword intent instantly swept across the arena, even causing the protective barriers set up by the Nascent Soul experts around to tremble.
Just as Shen Suqi was waiting to reap the rewards, everything went black.
This sword cultivator actually comprehended sword intent at this moment! What happened to Qi Tian being the number one sword cultivator below the Nascent Soul stage? Isn't it a bit too overpowered for a sword cultivator to comprehend sword intent at the Foundation Establishment stage?!
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Author's Note: Each of the mission participants could be considered a main character on their own!
Furthermore, the more I think about it, the more I feel that my Ah Lian is inspiring. She's my absolute favorite kind of grassroots heroine who grows through adversity. My darling deserves another book! I'll just post a small preview for now. If you're interested, you can check out my author page and add it to your favorites (stretching out a tentative paw).
After racking my brains for ages, I've tentatively settled on the title: "The Tale of a Wandering Immortal Cultivator".
Gou Sheng, the girl from the next village who was her worst enemy, was chosen by an immortal to ascend to immortality.
Little Ah Hui was unconvinced; that guy clearly couldn't even beat her at playing in the mud!
So he packed his bags and set off to cultivate immortality.
She followed the crowd up the sacred mountain, where the high-ranking immortals asked her her name.
Xiao A thought about it for a moment,
The old woman who found her called her Ah Hui before she died, saying that her son, who had abandoned his studies to join the army, was cultured and that she would wait for him to come and name her.
Unfortunately, Grandma's son never came back, so she didn't have a name.
The immortal sneered.
Xiao A had studied and knew that this was called contempt and disdain.
She gave up, packed her bags, and stormed down the mountain, determined to cultivate immortality on her own.
She walked too fast, so she didn't know.
The spirit-testing stone she left behind emitted a light that rivaled the sun after she left, alarming all the Dao Lords in Yongzhou. Even the elders who had been in seclusion for a hundred years came out of the mountains. They searched the entire immortal mountain in order to find a nameless, homeless, and destitute little girl.
After leaving, Xiao Ahui decided to give herself a good name.
She took her grandmother's surname and, after thinking for a long time, wrote down the three characters "Jun Hui Lian".
Hearing that prominent immortals all had Taoist names, the ambitious Xiao Ahui also came up with one for himself:
Grandma said she wasn't an abandoned baby no one wanted, but a precious child born of heaven and earth, with the same mother as Sun Wukong in the storybook, so she was named Tianyan.
The name that would resound throughout the cultivation world for millions of years was thus stabbed into the mud by ten-year-old Ah Hui with a tree branch.
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