Chapter 608: Following the Same Pattern
Qin Mu's Calamity Sword clashed with the Nine Phoenixes. The power of the two great divine abilities was roughly equal. The Nine Phoenixes were pierced through by the sword light, and the sword-within-a-sword of the Calamity Sword erupted instantly, eight thousand swords confronting the countless divine abilities within the Nine Phoenixes' body.
Just then, the Cangwu Tree swept down with a thunderous roar. Its branches danced, radiant light shot in all directions, and under the collision, the power of the Calamity Sword was exhausted.
Qin Mu retreated, withdrawing his sword. The Overlord Body Three Dan Art surged, and eight dragon roars echoed from within his body. The Eight Tones of the Ancestral Dragon vibrated—sticking, killing, seizing, capturing, pulling, dragging, spinning, hammering, refining—causing his somewhat withered and depleted blood energy to become intensely vigorous in an instant!
Within Qin Mu's body, one divine repository after another suddenly reversed. The divine path repositories transformed into demonic path repositories. The Spiritual Embryo, Five Radiances, Six Harmonies, and Seven Stars were inverted in an instant. The divine path repositories were below, and the demonic path repositories were above!
His primordial spirit, formed from the union of his spiritual embryo and soul, descended into the demonic path's Spiritual Embryo Repository, standing upon the demonic soil. The demonic soil beneath his feet was the Six Harmonies Continent formed by his demonic path spiritual platform!
In the sky shone the demonic sun and demonic moon. The demonic palaces of the Five Radiances stars were inhabited by the Five Radiances Demon Gods.
The moment Qin Mu withdrew his sword, he thrust it out again. It was still the first form of the Calamity Sword—Opening Calamity!
The spherical light created by the collision of their divine abilities expanded once more within the valley. But this time, black sword light was mixed within it. Strands of pitch-black sword light burst outward from the center of the spherical light, instantly polluting the orb!
The divine abilities of the two were almost completely ground away. The power erupting from the light had not yet fully exploded, but the trees in the valley had already all fallen flat, toppling in all directions with the orb of light as the center.
Rocks floated in the air, hurtling in all directions at astonishing speeds.
Within the light, Qin Mu retreated and drew his sword a second time. Qi Jiuying stepped forward again, his hands clasped together. The phoenix nest atop the tree suddenly flew out, strands of golden straw and parasol tree branches surging toward Qin Mu.
Qin Mu drew his sword and flicked his wrist. The eight thousand swords suddenly merged, fusing into one, becoming the Carefree Sword in his hand. The sword light glittered as it met the incoming golden straw and parasol tree branches.
A kind of Dao resonance, bordering on the Dao itself, emerged from his body. The sword in his hand seemed like leaping numerical symbols, constantly evolving.
The Fourteenth Chapter of the Dao Sword.
The Dao nurtures all heavens and lands, resources all methods, and unifies the world!
Even the old Daoist master of the Dao Sect had not fully comprehended the Fourteenth Chapter of the Dao Sword, only mastering half a form. Yet even that half-form was already a peerless sword art divine chapter, unmatched in Yancheng.
It wasn't that the old Daoist master lacked the aptitude or insight, but because the Dao Sword involved the mathematical changes of all things in heaven and earth. If the mathematics were wrong, the Dao Sword could not be mastered.
And the sun, moon, and stars of Yancheng were all fake. There were subtle, minuscule errors in the calculations of the Heavenly Cycle of Stars. Using errors to comprehend the Fourteenth Chapter of the Dao Sword naturally made it impossible to grasp.
Qin Mu had also studied the Fourteenth Chapter of the Dao Sword. His attainments in mathematics were already extremely high. The reason he could comprehend the Fourteenth Chapter so easily wasn't that his aptitude or insight was better than the old Daoist master's, but because he had seen the star chart from 350,000 years ago and had studied the star array formation left by the founding ancestor to guard the God-Slaying Mysterious Blade.
With this foundation, he was able to calculate the method to break the Heavenly Cycle Star Killing Array while also comprehending the mysteries of the Fourteenth Chapter of the Dao Sword.
When he executed the sword move "Unifying the World," it barely consumed any of his cultivation or depleted any of his primal energy. The power of heaven and earth was borrowed by the sword art. The sword light flashed as it dismantled the incoming golden straw and parasol tree branches.
He had used the Calamity Sword twice in succession to break Qi Jiuying's great divine ability, and his own primal energy consumption was terrifying. The power of the Fourteenth Chapter of the Dao Sword was not necessarily higher than the first form of the Calamity Sword, and might even be slightly inferior. But for Qin Mu, the Fourteenth Chapter of the Dao Sword was the best choice!
As the power of the sword clashed with the golden straw and parasol tree branches, Qin Mu advanced instead of retreating, charging toward Qi Jiuying. His physical body suddenly swelled, muscles bulging. Countless tiny sword lights flew out from the Carefree Sword in his hand, forming a butcher's knife.
The knife was five feet long and two feet wide. Qin Mu grabbed it like he was holding a small door plank.
This butcher's knife split in two, and he held one in each hand, like he was carrying two door planks.
Qi Jiuying retreated, refusing to engage in close combat. A pair of phoenix wings suddenly appeared behind him, sweeping out from his back and slashing repeatedly!
His mana was also running low. He had been brewing the great divine ability "Nine Phoenixes Perch on Cangwu" for a long time, but activating this move took a long time and consumed a great deal of energy. It was already remarkable that he had withstood two of Qin Mu's Opening Calamity strikes and then forced Qin Mu to use the Fourteenth Chapter of the Dao Sword.
Among the younger generation in the world today, he was absolutely the first to push Qin Mu to this point!
The power of his pair of phoenix wings was extraordinary. Qin Mu charged in like a whirlwind, the door-plank-sized butcher's knives flying up and down, blade light swirling around his body. He used the Butcher's blade techniques and the Cripple's Heaven-Stealing Divine Leg techniques for his footwork, coming and going unpredictably.
The Cripple and the Butcher—the ultimate techniques of these two great masters were perfectly fused within him!
Qi Jiuying, meanwhile, spread and folded his wings, sending countless flying feathers like swords clanging and clashing. His sword techniques were pervasive, attacking Qin Mu's blade techniques from every angle.
His phoenix feathers executed sword techniques, while his wings themselves executed blade techniques. He was truly a master of both sword and blade.
His attainments in the school of combat techniques were not much weaker than Qin Mu's.
The two fought at lightning speed. Qin Mu's two knives moved forward and back, left and right, like a whirlwind of blades. Sometimes the blade light surged like a towering wave crashing down, with a great sun rising over the eastern sea within the wave. Sometimes it was like a long blade hanging beneath the moon's soul, a long blade on a swift horse, fast as a shooting star. He pressed Qi Jiuying relentlessly, forcing him to retreat continuously.
Whoosh—
The two butcher's knives in his hands suddenly shrank. From within the blades, flying swords swam out like little silver fish, flying through the air, coming and going like lightning!
These hundreds of flying swords seemed to be held by invisible sword technique masters, attacking Qi Jiuying from every position around him!
The Village Chief's sword techniques were also being unleashed by Qin Mu.
Qi Jiuying let out a long cry. The head on his neck suddenly exploded, splitting into nine. Nine phoenix heads with plumes of feathers swaying on top. Immediately, clusters of light shone down, clanging as they knocked the flying swords out of the air.
Qi Jiuying's nine heads pecked down. Qin Mu held his two knives horizontally and vertically, about to chop off the phoenix heads, when suddenly Qi Jiuying's wings met them.
Qin Mu's butcher's knives slashed into the wings, embedding themselves in the bone, unable to be pulled out.
Qi Jiuying's phoenix heads pecked down one after another, aiming for Qin Mu's chest. The phoenix beaks opened, and clusters of light brewed within.
Suddenly, Qin Mu pulled out his knives. One knife slashed a throat, the other stabbed into a phoenix mouth. Meanwhile, the two butcher's knives embedded in Qi Jiuying's wings turned into two flying swords, still stuck there.
His two butcher's knives were both composed of eight thousand flying swords, each one an individual entity. What was embedded in Qi Jiuying's wings were just the blades of two of those swords. Leaving those two swords behind, the other flying swords could still form two butcher's knives.
Qi Jiuying's phoenix head was slashed in the throat. He immediately retracted his neck, pressing down on the blade to prevent it from severing his throat bone. At the same time, he closed his phoenix beak, biting down on the blade of the other knife.
Qin Mu pulled out his knives again. Qi Jiuying could only bite one flying sword and lock another with his throat. But then he saw Qin Mu's two knives slashing toward another of his pecking necks and heads, following the exact same pattern. They struck the throat of his second neck and the mouth of his second head!
Qi Jiuying had no choice but to open his mouth to bite the knife and take the blade to his neck.
Qin Mu pulled out his knives, leaving two more flying swords in his wounds. Then his two butcher's knives slashed toward his third head and third neck.
Qi Jiuying was furious. "Is there no end to this?"
Despite his words, he had no choice but to bite the knife again and lock the butcher's knife with his neck once more.
Qin Mu pulled out his knives again, left swords again, and slashed toward his fourth head and fourth neck.
Qi Jiuying's claws itched with hatred. Four heads were all bleeding profusely from his cuts. To say it didn't hurt was a lie. The pain from four heads simultaneously was heart-wrenching, bone-deep!
"I..."
Qin Mu pulled out his knives for the fifth time, cutting off his words. One butcher's knife sealed his throat, the other sealed his mouth.
Qi Jiuying was beside himself with rage, but he had to bite the knife and seal it again. Qin Mu pulled out his knives and rose again. Qi Jiuying, unable to contain his anger, had to bite the knife and seal it once more. Qin Mu pulled out his knives again.
In an instant, eight of Qi Jiuying's nine phoenix heads had swords hanging from their necks and swords clamped in their mouths.
"Qin, you've angered me! Don't underestimate the divine abilities and Dao techniques of the Heavenly Court! Phoenix Cry to the Nine Heavens!"
Qi Jiuying's last phoenix head let out a piercing cry. The phoenix cry reached the sky, echoing back and forth, forming a mass of cloud. Then, from within the cloud, divine sounds vibrated, like thousands of great gods chanting solemnly. Ten thousand gods bestowed their blessings. Beams of light shone down from that cloud, illuminating Qi Jiuying.
Qi Jiuying was draped in golden light. His remaining phoenix head pecked down. Qin Mu followed the same pattern. Qi Jiuying did not dodge or evade, meeting his blade light head-on. The phoenix beak was split open, a large gash torn in it. The trachea in his neck was severed. But the divine ability "Phoenix Cry to the Nine Heavens" sprinkled golden light on him, allowing him to forcibly withstand Qin Mu's knife. The phoenix beak struck Qin Mu's chest with a heavy blow!
Qin Mu flew backward, tumbling and rolling to the ground. He propped himself up with his knives, steadying himself.
Qi Jiuying was radiant with golden light. He flapped his wings and flew over. His nine heads shook, and the flying swords fell to the ground. The nine phoenix heads slowly retracted, reverting to human form. The golden, radiant phoenix wings behind him also disappeared.
"Qin Fengqing, freeze!"
Qi Jiuying sneered. He raised a mirror and shone it at Qin Mu, saying calmly, "The Prince of the Netherworld, sealed by Lord Tu Bo. Did you really think I couldn't beat you? I was only ordered to descend to the mortal world to capture you. My goal was not to take your life, but to shatter your seal and release the true you. This mirror was refined by the Black Emperor, who rules the northern heavens in the Heavenly Court, specifically to freeze you, the Prince of the Netherworld! You're not bad, you managed to wound me..."
"Freeze me? Let me see!"
Qin Mu reached out and grabbed the mirror. Qi Jiuying was horrified as the mirror was snatched from his hand. What met him was a gleaming white broadsword, which slammed down on his forehead!
Qi Jiuying cried out in pain. His cerebrum and cerebellum were almost shattered by the blow. He involuntarily shook his body, revealing his true form—a nine-headed phoenix. All nine heads had a butcher's knife stuck in them, likely already cutting into the brain matter!
Qi Jiuying flapped his wings, about to flee, when Qin Mu stepped onto his back in one stride. Fist after fist hammered down on the nine-headed phoenix beneath his feet. Every punch struck flesh, sending phoenix feathers flying and turning the flesh into a bloody mess.
Below, the battered Zhe Huali walked quickly over, picked up the small box on the ground, and showed a delighted expression. But then he looked up and saw Qin Mu riding the phoenix in battle, and a look of horror appeared on his face.
"Brother Qin is indeed formidable, able to suppress Qi Jiuying. His strength is indeed a cut above mine. The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. I am that oriole! The box is in my hands. My God-Slaying Mysterious Blade can help my blade techniques enter the Dao and advance further, right..."
— There will be an update after midnight tonight. Please stay tuned.