Chapter 122 Expectation is like a hunting dog kept in some households, focused intently...
"Great! Great! The Sword God is still here! The Sword God hasn't fallen! I can finally get a good night's sleep!!"
"The Sword God can easily take on a hundred enemies single-handedly; we're all saved!!!"
Just as everyone inside the barrier was thrilled by this, someone suddenly exclaimed, "The Sword God is still alive? Didn't the Sect Leader say before... that the Sword God had already perished?"
These words were like a bucket of cold water poured down, plunging everyone inside the barrier into an eerie silence.
After a long while, someone slowly said, "It seems the Sword God didn't actually fall; someone just wanted him to fall..."
Another person chimed in, "Yes. So it seems that the rumors circulating outside aren't entirely baseless fabrications..."
"Rumor has it that the Sword God was murdered, but judging from his current cultivation level, he seems to be much weaker than before. So who exactly harmed the Sword God? It's truly hard to guess..."
"The Sword God has returned, presumably for revenge, right? We outsiders have nothing to worry about. Those who should be worried are the ones who have done wrong..."
Hearing the veiled and sarcastic remarks from those around her, Zeng Shuqing anxiously grasped Zeng Shujin's wrist, "Brother..."
Zeng Shujin silently withdrew her hand, listened to what the people around her were saying, her expression remained calm, and she simply stared quietly at the figure outside the barrier.
The blood-stained figure was carrying a disciple's sword that had been found somewhere in the Wanshan Sect.
It was clearly just an ordinary sword, but in her hands, it was like a rare divine weapon. When she swung the sword, the silver sword light drew a cold arc in the void, instantly splitting dozens of puppets in two.
Just then, Han Shannan and Wen Riwan rushed over upon hearing the commotion.
Han Shannan's hearing was extraordinary; from afar, he could hear someone shouting "Sword God."
When he rushed over with Wen Riwan, he saw that the figure moving among the puppets and monsters was the one who had saved them earlier. He never expected that this person would be the Sword God.
But such a valiant posture was indeed the appearance that only the legendary Sword God should have. When Han Shannan saw the Sword God's swordsmanship clearly, he was even more dumbfounded.
He had clearly learned several sword techniques left by the Sword God, and he could even name some of the Sword God's moves. Yet, these moves performed completely differently in the Sword God's hands than they did in his.
They were both under siege. Even though he had used the sword techniques left by the Sword God, he had almost lost his life several times. But the Sword God could move freely. Not to mention losing his life, those puppets and monsters didn't even have a chance to touch the hem of her clothes.
She looked incredibly light, her clothes fluttering like a bird soaring in the sky, even more so than the birds in the heavens.
So this is the true form of the Sword God's swordsmanship.
No wonder he discovered that the Sword God's swordsmanship was mostly offensive and defensive; it must have been common for the Sword God to fight alone for many years and be surrounded.
Having fought her way through countless bloody battles, she naturally accumulated a lot of experience and understood better than most how to protect herself, how to fight back, and how to break through when surrounded.
Just as only a few puppets and demonic beasts remained, about to be completely wiped out, countless pale golden rays of light suddenly appeared in this world.
Those pale golden rays crisscrossed and quickly outlined a massive magic array large enough to cover the entire sword cultivation world.
The instant the magic array was formed, an invisible and immense spiritual power crashed down, pinning all the remaining puppets and demonic beasts in the area to the ground.
As the things howled in agony and the sound of bones shattering rang out, wisps of black and red mist struggled and twisted, slowly drifting out from the bodies of the puppets and monsters.
Immediately, everyone present saw that the black and red mist rose from all parts of the sword cultivator world, and eventually, like ten thousand rivers flowing into the sea, they all drifted towards the center of this magic array.
In the center of this magic circle, a circular cage made of pure spiritual energy had somehow materialized.
The cage floated in the air, slowly rotating as it absorbed and enveloped all the black and red mist that drifted toward it.
Once the black and red mist entered the cage, no matter how much it struggled, it could not break free of the "cage".
The more they struggled and resisted, the brighter the light around the cage became, until the creatures inside stopped struggling, at which point the intense light gradually softened.
Just then, someone inside the barrier pointed to the sky and shouted, "Isn't that Patriarch Shen? Has he already left?!"
Everyone looked up in that direction and saw a slender and upright figure standing silently in mid-air, particularly conspicuous under the light of the magic array, even carrying a faint sense of holiness.
It really is Shen Zhengyuan, who left the peace talks early on!
As expected, Shen Zhengyuan didn't spare them any attention, but instead lowered his eyes and looked in the direction of the Sword God.
After all, they were all under the cover of Shen Zhengyuan's magic array. If Shen Zhengyuan wanted to fight the Sword God at this moment and suddenly turned this array into a killing array, not to mention what would happen to the Sword God, these small fry would definitely be wiped out first...
These people, having come to participate in a peace conference, have truly experienced what it means to escape one danger only to fall into another...
And they knew that Han Shannan, a worshipper of the Sword God who had inquired a great deal about him, naturally knew as well.
Seeing the tense standoff between Shen Zhengyuan and the Sword God, he immediately rushed over, but Wen Riwan held him back tightly. He turned around and said angrily, "Why are you pulling me?!"
Wen Riwan said, "Are you crazy? The Sword God and Sect Leader Shen are both unparalleled geniuses. What are you, a little monster, doing getting involved?! They could crush you with a flick of their fingers, and you're actually worried about them!"
"I know you admire the Sword God, but what is the Sword God's cultivation level, and what is yours? If you go there now, won't you just be causing trouble for the Sword God?"
Han Shannan: "..."
Han Shannan stood frozen in place, motionless.
Because he realized that Wen Riwan was right.
Although these words stung him, they were indeed the truth. If he went there, with his cultivation level, he would only cause trouble and serve no other purpose.
Moreover, the Sword God is his true master, and Shen Zhengyuan is his half-master's wife. Who can he help?
He's wrong no matter who he sides with!
In the midst of the silence, where one could almost hear the pounding of everyone's heart, the Sword God and Shen Zhengyuan seemed about to embark on a life-or-death battle.
Shen Zhengyuan suddenly spoke up: "These formations were set up by me a long time ago."
"I have already sent someone to deliver a remedy that can cure the demonic poison."
"My disciples have all gone to rescue people."
After he finished speaking his three sentences, everyone present fell silent and remained stunned.
Why would Shen Zhengyuan suddenly say something like that?
Why would he suddenly say something like that?
Has Shen Zhengyuan started practicing the path of compassion?
What's even more puzzling is that he was speaking to the Sword God, and his gaze remained fixed on the Sword God the entire time.
Not only that, after he finished speaking, he pursed his lips, lowered his eyes to look in the direction of the Sword God, and his face showed a hint of...
They couldn't understand it at all...
expect.
That kind of anticipation, without any other embellishment, is purely like the way some people's hunting dogs, after catching prey for their owners, carry the prey in their mouths and place it in front of their owners, then wait attentively for their owners' praise.
But how could Shen Zhengyuan possibly show such an expression?!
Everyone present felt that there was something wrong with their eyesight, perhaps because they had been poisoned by some kind of "demon poison" that Shen Zhengyuan had mentioned before, and were experiencing hallucinations.
What shocked and puzzled everyone present even more was that the Sword God had thrown away his sword at some point, and was now standing with his hands behind his back, looking up slightly at Shen Zhengyuan's direction.
Upon hearing his words, the Sword God's face showed a slight smile, and even his eyes seemed to be smiling, making him look nothing like someone who was seeing a mortal enemy.
After Shen Zhengyuan finished speaking, she did not speak immediately, but remained silent for a long time.
But her gaze remained fixed on Shen Zhengyuan with a smile, and she remained silent even as the smile on her lips began to deepen.
Only when Shen Zhengyuan's hands, which were clasped behind his back, began to tighten involuntarily, did she slightly suppress her smile. She raised one hand, placed it to her lips, made a half-trumpet shape, and called out in Shen Zhengyuan's direction, "I know! Get down!"
After the Sword God shouted those words, Shen Zhengyuan actually landed on the ground and stood not far from her, his eyes still fixed on her face, as if observing her expression.
And even more unbelievable is...
The Sword God smiled at him again and said, "Sect Leader Shen is righteous and awe-inspiring, saving the cultivation world from disaster. I will definitely cook a good meal for Sect Leader Shen as a reward."
After a moment of deathly silence, someone inside the barrier suddenly exclaimed in horror, "I think I'm hallucinating!"
One of them spoke up, and the others were immediately jolted back to their senses, exclaiming, "Have we fallen into an illusionary formation?!"
"I must have been poisoned by that demonic poison!"
"Oh no! This illusion array is incredibly sophisticated; I can't find the exit!"
"This must be an illusion, an illusion created by that demon statue!"
………………
Just when everyone thought they were about to die, Zeng Shujin, who had been silent all along, suddenly made a move.
Suddenly, he struck Zeng Shuqing in the chest with a palm strike, using all his cultivation power, and the suddenness caught everyone off guard.
Zeng Shuqing was also caught off guard and took the blow squarely, immediately spitting out a mouthful of blood that splattered all over Zeng Shujin.
This sudden turn of events caught everyone off guard. By the time everyone came to their senses and looked closely, Zeng Shuqing had already been sent flying out of the barrier and crashed heavily to the ground.
After she landed on the ground, she coughed up another mouthful of blood, which almost splattered all over her face, but it made her pale face appear strangely beautiful.
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