Chapter 457: Chapter 455: Tiger Demon (Celebration for the alliance leader’s diligence in reading)"_1
Thud, thud!
The sky was a frenzy of azure streaks, like countless fine needles surging forth.
Each of those slender needles was extremely sharp, a single puncture was all it took to bring down a Wind Chasing Falcon plummeting from mid-air.
Bloodied feathers scattered like a torrential downpour.
Witnessing the third-order Monster Birds, which had been desperately resilient before, now being killed so effortlessly, both the experienced and the young Cultivators’ faces revealed a vacant daze.
"It’s a sword Cultivator!"
The elder Cultivator suddenly exclaimed, "And not just any, but one of those peerless sword Cultivators! Haha... we’re saved!"
Screech!
The cliff shattered, revealing the immense form of a Wind Chasing Falcon King, bathed in azure, with three bird heads, now fully exposed.
Spreading its wings, it soared into the heavens, screeching shrilly as it watched its kin fall one after another.
In a cry that seemed to tear through the sky and shatter clouds, the bird beheld a black-clothed, fierce-looking Nascent Soul old devil slowly approaching through the air!
This Nascent Soul old devil radiated an overwhelming aura of oppression, gazing at the Wind Chasing Falcon King with slight regret, "Pity, it’s just a third-order bird king. Let’s sacrifice it for the Sword Offering..."
No sooner had he finished speaking than the feathers on the back of the Wind Chasing Falcon King stood on end!
Under the intense threat of death, it opened its beak and spewed out a pitch-black Inner Core.
This peak third-order Inner Core, brimming with tremendous force, hurtled towards Fang Xi. In its desperate state, even initial-stage Nascent Soul old monsters would be hard-pressed to ignore it.
And after doing all this, the Wind Chasing Falcon King astonishingly flapped its wings, turning into a streak of azure light and fleeing backwards, abandoning both its Inner Core and its kin!
After all, it had yet to ascend and could never face a fourth-order existence of the human race.
"Quite a clever bird, but unfortunately..."
Fang Xi made a slight gesture with his sword art, and countless Cyan Light Needles appeared, densely shooting forth.
Thud, thud!
In an instant, the Wind Chasing Falcon King and the remaining falcons fell from the sky. Fang Xi then collected their corpses one by one into the Mountain Sea Pearl, feeding all but the king’s remains to the Ancestral Demon Tree.
"Gather!"
After all was done, Fang Xi recited an incantation and the omnipresent ’Qinghe Needles’ converged, transforming into the Green Barley Sword that landed in his right palm.
Checking the remaining amount of top-grade Spirit Stones, he couldn’t help but be fairly satisfied, "If I only activate the nanometer mode and utilize the twelve billion and nine hundred and sixty million ’Qinghe Needles’, then it will last a long time... But if I switch to the second gear and enter the Flying Rice’s ’Invisible Sword Light’ mode, the consumption is too great..."
"In a real battle, I might need to prepare to replace the top-grade Spirit Stones..."
At this moment, traces of blood were still visible on the Green Barley Sword’s blade, as if it were absorbing Demon Blood, making it appear particularly sinister.
Though called the fourth-generation Green Barley Sword, it was in fact the ’Demon Slaying Sword’.
Such a Demon-slaying treasure would only grow stronger by drinking deeply of the Monster Clan’s essence blood.
It was said... that slaying a fifth-order Great Demon might very well transform it into a Spirit Communication Transformation Treasure in a single leap!
The Green Barley Sword in Fang Xi’s hand was originally just an extreme-grade third-order embryonic form when it was first forged from the Bagua Furnace.
It later became a fourth-order weapon with the power of a spiritual treasure after incorporating the top-grade Spirit Stones and undergoing another round of refinement.
After slaying Hei Wei and tempering the sword edge with his Essence Blood and Monster Soul, as well as infusing it with a touch of Kylin Essence Blood from a Green Horn Puppet, its might became exceptional even among spiritual treasures.
And that’s just the sheer power it wielded when Fang Xi simply employed it as a Flying Sword against his foes!
If he were to activate the Cyan Light Needle mode, or even the ’Invisible Needle Mode’, he could dare to battle even late-stage Nascent Soul Cultivators.
For the current Green Barley Sword, drawing from the blood of a peak third-order Monster Beast was honestly little more than a minor benefit.
"Thank you, senior, for your assistance. Might we ask for your esteemed name?"
Below, the Cultivators who had narrowly escaped death bowed in gratitude, some thinking of deceased friends and relatives, their eyes brimming with tears.
"I am Yun Jiezi, an Individual Cultivitor from Yuan Country, specializing in slaying demons!"
Fang Xi, sword on his back and a chilling killing intent emanating from him, inquired, "Where’s the nearest fourth-order Great Demon?"
"I am willing to guide the senior. The closest Transformed Great Demon is a ’Wind Wing Tiger’, it resides on the Spiritual Vein left after the fall of the Mixed Origin Sect..."
A young Cultivator immediately stepped forward and offered.
"Mixed Origin Sect, eh? Then there’s no need for you to guide me."
Fang Xi laughed heartily and turned into a streak of black light, disappearing in a flash.
"Heaven have mercy..."
The elder Cultivator murmured, "Who knew that within our Yuan Country there was a Nascent Soul Cultivator? We finally have a pillar of support..."
Previously, the chaos in Yuan Country had partly been due to the mysterious demise of three homegrown Nascent Soul Cultivators.
Otherwise, had Lord Lingfeng relied on the Five Qi Towards Original Array for defense, he could have persisted for over a hundred years, possibly even outlasting the calamity of the Higher Realm’s descent...
...
The Mixed Origin Sect’s gate.
It was now utterly ruined, with countless broken walls and remnants providing shelter for a pack of tiger demons, and occasionally small tiger cubs toyed with the skulls of Human Cultivators for fun...
’Who would have thought... that the once glorious Mixed Origin Sect would end up like this.’
Fang Xi, upon sensing all this with his Divine Consciousness, couldn’t help but feel deeply moved.
He inquired around the area and completely understood the circumstances behind the Mixed Origin Sect’s fall, still somewhat astonished, "A fourth-order peak ’Five Elements Ring’ spiritual treasure, eh? No wonder I felt a hint of danger back then..."
"Had I forced my way in at the time... I guess my fate wouldn’t have been much different from those two Transformed Great Demons, would it?"
"It proves that time is the best director; it always grants everyone the perfect curtain call... except for me!"
Fang Xi stood before the gate of the Mixed Origin Sect, feeling slightly emotional, "It’s a shame... The whereabouts of the ’Five Elements Ring’ remain unknown; why do I feel as if this treasure and I are destined for each other?"
"It probably ended up in the hands of one of the secret disciples of the Mixed Origin Sect... I’m as close as family to the Mixed Origin Sect, so aren’t their belongings mine as well?"
Fang Xi was indeed a bit interested in the cultivation techniques, Spirit Stones, Secret Skills... left behind by that ancestor of the Mixed Origin Sect.
After all, that person was in the late Nascent Soul stage, and was also a Five Elements Body, truly formidable in battle. Ordinary late-stage cultivators would probably be no match, and he dominated an era.
"Pity that now, all has dissipated like mist and clouds..."
Cloaked in black robes, Fang Xi, alone with his sword, walked into the gate of the Mixed Origin Sect.
Roar!
A Wind Wing Tiger spotted Fang Xi’s entrance and stood up, roaring angrily.
Then, a terrifying burst of Nascent Soul Magic Power erupted from Fang Xi, causing the Wind Wing Tiger to whimper and flee with its tail between its legs.
"Hmm?"
In the depths of the Mixed Origin Sect, in the place where spiritual energy was most abundant, a huge man with tiger-skin and remnants of fur on his face, forming the character for "king" on his forehead, was slumbering deeply.
At this moment his Divine Consciousness swept over and he instantly got up, "A Nascent Soul fiend?!"
Whoosh!
Behind him, a pair of wings made entirely of Wind Spiritual Power materialized, and with a simple flutter, he propelled himself far away.
Dragons are accompanied by clouds, tigers by winds!
This Wind Wing Tiger was not just an expert in wind-type Divine Skills, it had even reached the mid-fourth rank, capable of moving unopposed throughout Yuan Country!
Moving as swift as the wind, the Wind Wing Tiger soon laid eyes on Fang Xi carrying the Green Barley Sword, and its tiger body trembled slightly, "Yun Jiezi?!"
"I’m surprised even the Tiger King recognizes me!"
Fang Xi was somewhat astonished, "It seems there are quite a few traitors amongst our human race..."
The Monster Clan had no lack of intelligent beings. Being enemies with the human race, gathering intelligence was the most basic strategy.
Moreover, they had cultivated some ’half-demons’ from the human race to easily acquire information about Nascent Soul old monsters.
"Heh heh... I heard that you, Yun Jiezi, are an Individual Cultivator who rose to power by yourself and seem to be largely involved with the deaths of many Nascent Soul beings like Demon Lord Qi Sha and Old Chi Laoguai. Considering that the Departure Demon Palace treated you as a secret weapon, your Divine Skills and Magic Power are not to be underestimated; you should be treated as a mid-Nascent Soul-stage Cultivator..."
The Wind Wing Tiger was in no rush to attack; instead, he seemed genuinely interested, "Since you are an Individual Cultivator with no disciples to hold you back, would you be willing to join the Monster Clan? Our clan has secret techniques to transplant a Great Demon’s Bloodline into you, making you one of our own... Ascending from the Monster World to the higher realm might even become easier."
"Is that so?"
Fang Xi stroked his chin, "I wonder if you could bestow me with ’Sky Demon Qi’."
The Wind Wing Tiger was truly taken aback this time.
While it knew human cultivators were shameless, it was the first time it had encountered such a brazen Demon Cultivator.
"Sky Demon Qi... Heh heh, it seems you are very sincere. Well, if you transform into a half-demon and demonstrate great achievements, you could indeed be granted the ’Sky Demon Qi’."
"So I still have to perform great deeds? Can’t I get an advance?" A look of regret appeared on Fang Xi’s face.
"Advance? It seems your sincerity is lacking... If you want to become a half-demon, you must destroy at least three sects to prove your commitment!" the Wind Wing Tiger replied coldly, seeing that Fang Xi was trying to freeload.
"Get lost! I refuse to become a demon!"
Fang Xi cursed loudly as he sent a murky yellow bead flying from his hand!
"The Wind-Controlling Bead?"
The Wind Wing Tiger screamed, its body trembling—yet, instead of the usual cyan Wind Blades, it released a surge of ghostly energy.
Woo woo!
A mist of ghosts appeared, from which countless wronged souls of the human race emerged, forming into a broken battlefield.
In the midst of the battlefield, several Core Formation Ghost Kings roared angrily, eyeing Fang Xi with ill intent.
The Wind Wing Tiger’s innate Divine Skill—Phantom Tiger Minions!
It could command the Essence Souls of the lives it devoured or killed, turning them into a ghostly army!
The Wind Wing Tiger was quick to respond, and upon realizing that its wind-type spells were greatly suppressed by Fang Xi, it immediately employed its innate Divine Skill.
This Divine Skill belonged to the Ghost Class and was naturally unaffected by the Wind-Controlling Bead.
"You must die!"
Fang Xi’s right hand gripped the hilt of the Green Barley Sword and drew it swiftly.
Hum hum!
The Green Barley Sword burst forth with a cyan light hundreds of feet long, filled with fiercely condensed Sword Qi, managing to cut through the ghostly fog!
The Wind Wing Tiger let out a roar, transforming its right hand into a tiger’s claw and slamming it down with great force.
Hiss!
As the Sword Qi surged, the Wind Wing Tiger’s incredibly tough fourth-rank body was split open by the Green Barley Sword!
"Die!"
Fang Xi cut through the Tiger’s half-claw and, seizing the momentum, performed a gesture, increasing the Green Barley Sword’s Sword Qi drastically, with the clear intention of cutting the Wind Wing Tiger in two.
"Impossible!"
The Wind Wing Tiger rolled backward, suddenly transforming into a huge white-eyed tiger with a height of over ten Zhang and a pair of cloud-like wings on its back, although its half-claw was maimed.
Wrapped in ghostly fog and clouds, it uttered a cry of shock.