Chapter 463: Sword Technique and Sword Wound
Qin Mu looked up at the palaces in the sky, where many women were flying out and landing on various mountain peaks. The True Heaven Palace must have already received word that Qin Mu had gathered several great clans to attack, and they were well prepared.
Rumble!
Suddenly, a great mountain exploded, rocks flying in all directions as they broke away from the peak. The transformation of this mountain was astonishing, shifting from a peak into a towering mountain giant.
The mountain giant crouched, then abruptly pulled its enormous legs from the earth, causing the ground to tremble violently.
Formation Master He Yiyi raised her hand, and the massive Jun City gave a slight jolt before coming to a halt.
Among the mountains, that mountain giant slowly stood up. Its enormous palms, each a hundred acres in size, swept through the air, stirring up howling gales as it suddenly grabbed a sword-shaped peak.
A piercing sound rang out as that sword-shaped peak was actually pulled from the earth by the mountain giant!
As the mountain giant pulled, the stones on the sword-shaped peak continued to fall away. By the time it lifted the peak, all the rocks had completely fallen off, revealing a rust-covered body beneath.
A mountain-sized greatsword!
Qin Mu’s expression grew solemn as he looked up at the mountain giant and that greatsword, shrouded in drifting clouds and mist.
The foundation of the True Heaven Palace was too vast, even surpassing the sacred lands of the Central Lands. Neither the Dao Sect, the Great Thunderclap Monastery, nor the Heavenly Demon Sect possessed such terrifying resources.
Rumble, rumble.
One after another, loud sounds rang out as mountain peaks transformed. Forests turned into giants thousands of feet tall, grasping weapons of unimaginable size!
These were the guardians of the True Heaven Palace.
Many female disciples of the True Heaven Palace stood on the shoulders or heads of the mountain giants, their bodies rising and falling with the giants’ movements, radiating fierce killing intent.
Qin Mu glanced at Mu Yingxue. If she hadn’t poisoned the Xiong family back then, it would have been difficult for the Yu family to seize the True Heaven Palace and take power from the Xiong family.
Just these mountain giants alone were an incredibly terrifying force, surpassing a million soldiers!
“Form ranks!”
He Yiyi shouted loudly. The women of the He family within the city walked out, each taking out various formation flags. As they waved them in the wind, many large and small formation spirit weapons fell from the flags.
The women of the He family quickly assembled them. Qin Mu witnessed a shocking sight: the female cultivators of the He family used formation spirit weapons to rapidly construct trebuchets a hundred feet tall, setting them up behind Jun City, their winches tightened!
Female cultivators of the Fang family activated their techniques, and behind them, the mountain giants they walked alongside continuously shed stones that rolled down, shrinking into large stone balls that automatically rolled into the great baskets of the trebuchets.
Countless female cultivators of the Xi family scattered seeds, and grass and trees grew wildly across the mountains, forming a green ocean behind them. The ocean surged constantly as tree giants rumbled forward, stepping out.
Luo family sword master Luo Yinyu pressed her hand on her sword. Shua, shua, shua—behind her, tens of thousands of Luo family women pressed their swords in unison, radiating heroic spirit.
“Sister Fu!” Mu Yingxue suddenly called out loudly.
Fu Yunxi gave the order, and the cultivators of the Fu family summoned dark clouds. The oppressive clouds merged into a sea of clouds, covering hundreds of miles, with lightning and thunder. Thick tornadoes descended from the clouds, twisting their bodies but not advancing, controlled by the Fu family cultivators.
Mu Yingxue then led the cultivators of the Mu family from Thunder Mountain City forward, pouring various poisons they had refined into the wind. The tornadoes sucked the poisons into the dark clouds, which quickly changed color, turning an eerie green.
Even the constantly flashing lightning emitted a green glow.
The entire cloud layer was filled with the Mu family’s poisons.
Gusts of wind surged from behind Qin Mu, blowing the young man’s clothes on the city tower forward, rustling loudly.
The wind was cold, carrying away the excess heat from his body.
His blood was too hot.
The female cultivators of the Western Lands displayed a different battlefield style from Yan Kang, but it was equally stirring!
Women were no less than men—though charming and alluring in men’s eyes, on the battlefield, they were the most powerful warriors!
A killing atmosphere.
Now, in front of the True Heaven Palace, a deep, oppressive killing aura filled the air. Dark clouds pressed down, threatening to crush the city. Only the wind could be heard, no other sounds. This suffocating pressure was maddening.
Just then, a figure flew out from the palace complex in the sea of clouds, passing right by the mountain giants, who paid it no attention.
“Father Gou!”
He Yiyi, Mu Yingxue, Fu Yunxi, and the others changed expression slightly. They had not shown fear when facing the mountain giants guarding the True Heaven Palace, but their faces changed when they saw that approaching figure.
He Yiyi let out a soft shout, and the entire Jun City underwent a transformation. The city split apart, and countless stones floated into the air, rapidly forming a defensive formation to protect the He family members behind her.
Her own figure was carried forward by a large stone, drifting toward the front of the formation.
Suddenly, someone appeared beside her. He Yiyi turned her head to see Qin Mu, and a warmth filled her heart.
“Sword spirits, array the heavenly soldiers!”
Luo Yinyu shouted. Tens of thousands of female cultivators of the Luo family drove their swords with qi. Countless flying swords clinked and clattered as they floated in the air, forming a massive sword formation. The countless swords wove through the air, numerous yet perfectly orderly.
Luo Yinyu floated within the sword formation, gripping her sword hilt with her hand behind her back, her gaze sharp as she stared at the newcomer.
“Eight Pillar Heaven!”
Fang Caidie shouted fiercely. Behind her, the mountain giants suddenly collided, transforming into enormous pillars that stood tall, reaching the heavens, round and massive. Eight mountain giants stepped forward, pulled up the pillars, and hoisted them onto their shoulders, radiating fierce killing intent.
The other clans also deployed their various methods, watching the newcomer with extreme tension. Even Liu Ruyin and Liu Zhenqing, mother and daughter of the Liu family, were tense, approaching the golden divine coffin, ready to unseal it and release the divine corpse at any moment.
Qin Mu’s heart trembled. This Father Gou, coming alone, had nearly forced the great clans of the Western Lands to pull out their ultimate trump cards. Truly, this Father Gou was immensely imposing!
“How could a man named Yu from the Upper Firmament make the Western Lands clans so cautious, as if facing a great enemy?”
He couldn’t help but wonder. The sects of the Western Lands were not as numerous as those of Yan Kang; the rule was mainly by clans. Each of the ten great clans had extraordinary strength, each with its own specialties and remarkable abilities. Not even a god from the Upper Firmament descending to the mortal world would necessarily make them this cautious.
This Father Gou was clearly not just a simple visitor from the Upper Firmament.
However, when that figure came before them, he realized that this Father Gou was not the ferocious demon he had imagined. Instead, he was a man of impressive appearance—tall, sturdy, and very handsome.
The clothes he wore were woven from some unknown material, the fabric having a smooth drape. Every thread seemed to be woven from runes, occasionally emitting faint, barely noticeable light from within the strands.
His attire was very fitting, making him appear without a trace of excess fat.
His dress was also that of a Western Lands man, with a white cloth wrapped around his head, crossed with gold chains. But unlike other men, he wore very few ornaments.
He had a high nose bridge and warm eyes. At first glance, one couldn’t help but feel a favorable impression.
When Qin Mu first looked at him, he found his appearance somewhat similar to Yu Jun of the Upper Firmament. Qin Mu had once seen Yu Jun’s corpse; Yu Jun was a perfect man, and even though he was killed by a cannon shot from Emperor Yanfeng, his remains were still impressive.
“His temperament is somewhat similar to Xu Shenghua’s.”
Qin Mu studied the newcomer, showing surprise. He even felt that this Father Gou’s bearing was somewhat similar to the Yan Kang National Teacher’s!
Xu Shenghua’s temperament was one of indifference to worldly affairs—coming from beyond the heavens into the mortal world, untouched by the dust of the mundane. This was related to his cultivation technique. Although Qin Mu had dragged Xu Shenghua into the mortal realm, the rolling red dust could hardly change this outstanding youth; he still seemed ready to abandon the mortal world at any moment.
As for the Yan Kang National Teacher, although he appeared cold and unsmiling, it was the invincible aura of one who had reached the summit and looked down upon all others.
He was a great master of extraordinary achievements, his mind only on reform and change. All human affairs were cast aside. Anything that obstructed his reforms was a stumbling block, and he would use thunderous means to remove it.
This Father Gou from the Upper Firmament actually possessed the bearing and temperament of both Xu Shenghua and the Yan Kang National Teacher.
“Clan Leader He.”
The turbaned man flew before the formation and greeted He Yiyi and the others one by one: “Clan Leader Mu, Clan Leader Liu, Clan Leader Fang…”
Although they were enemies, everyone returned the greeting, saying, “Father Gou.”
The turbaned man smiled slightly, then looked at Qin Mu, showing two rows of eight white teeth as he smiled. He bowed again, saying, “Human Sovereign Qin.”
Qin Mu’s heart stirred. He returned the bow, saying, “Father Gou. May I ask how Father Gou knows of such an insignificant being as myself?”
“Human Sovereign Qin, there is no need to belittle yourself.”
The turbaned man said, “I have always paid close attention to the successive Human Sovereigns. I even descended to the mortal world personally during the time of the previous Human Sovereign. You have seen his four limbs, haven’t you?”
He reached out and grabbed. A woman of the Mu family was pulled uncontrollably through the air, stopping two zhang in front of him. She struggled but couldn’t move.
The turbaned man drew his sword and swung. A severed arm fell.
He waved his hand lightly, and the severed arm flew toward Qin Mu. He smiled warmly, “Human Sovereign Qin, please take a look.”
Qin Mu’s eyelid twitched. His primordial energy surged out as he carefully examined the wound on the severed arm. His eyelid twitched violently again, and he said in a hoarse voice, “The same sword wound.”
“It was me.”
The turbaned man revealed a gentle smile: “It seems he didn’t hide the sword wounds on his body from you.”
Behind the killing formations of the great clans, the Yan Kang National Teacher and Xiong Xiyu watched from afar, not approaching. Suddenly, the National Teacher saw the sword light burst forth from the turbaned man, and his expression changed drastically, losing his composure: “Damn it! I know the origin of this Father Gou! Tell the Western Lands clans to retreat immediately!”
Xiong Xiyu shook her head, saying, “The arrow is already on the string; it must be released. There’s no way to retreat now. Why has the National Teacher suddenly lost his composure?”
The Yan Kang National Teacher took a long breath, his eyes blazing with light: “I recognize this sword technique, this sword path! This is the sword technique that severed the limbs of the previous Human Sovereign! The one who comes is not a member of the Yu family from the Upper Firmament, but a true god descending from the upper realm!”
At the front of the formation, Qin Mu suddenly relaxed, revealing a smile without any sign of tension. He said leisurely, “You cannot descend in your true body. If you had descended in your true body, would you still be skulking around in the Western Lands? Not in your true body…”
He stretched his posture, revealing a fierce, predatory stance, his gaze sharp: “Killing you won’t be much trouble!”