Chapter 895: Sword Enlightenment
A Time Imprint was fused into the sword strike.
In just an instant, the silvery-white blade swept past Ling Feiyu.
"Chi."
At the same time, the veil on Ling Feiyu's face split apart, fluttering down with the wind, revealing a delicate sacred countenance. She appeared quite young, exceptionally beautiful—a single glance left an unforgettable impression.
However, the lofty Flying Feather Sword Saint was not as cold and icy as she seemed. At the very least, her face gave off an enchanting allure, like a reincarnated fox fairy, forming a stark contrast with her usual demeanor.
Zhang Ruochen only caught a fleeting glimpse. The next moment, the sword wave struck his body, sending him flying backward until he crashed several miles away.
That blow had landed solidly on him. Even wearing the Meteor Invisibility Cloak and possessing the Five Elements Chaos Body, Zhang Ruochen could not withstand it.
His bones and meridians were on the verge of shattering. His entire body was immobilized, completely losing the strength to continue fighting.
Ling Feiyu's expression froze for a moment. She touched her cheek, and only after a long pause did light return to her eyes.
She had to admit, she had been unable to block that sword strike in time.
If the sword energy had been even stronger, she might have been severely injured, if not killed.
She had clearly underestimated Zhang Ruochen. This young man possessed two eternal paths—Space and Time—and his future achievements might surpass her own.
Ling Feiyu slowly descended to the ground, fixing her gaze on the lingering spirits of the past masters of the Skyward Sword Lineage. "The Skyward Sword Lineage is full of talents, all heroic sword cultivators. I now believe that Zhang Ruochen is not a spy for the Undying Blood Clan."
"Zhang Ruochen just blocked three of your moves, girl. Shouldn't you apologize first?" a towering, burly shadow roared.
Making a Sword Saint apologize and admit fault was clearly unrealistic, especially for someone as proud and aloof as Ling Feiyu. She would never bow her head to anyone.
Ling Feiyu clasped her hands behind her back. "First, I have done nothing wrong and owe no one an apology. Second, I will personally investigate the truth about the Undying Blood Clan spy. If Zhang Ruochen is truly innocent, I will clear his name."
Another shadow flew out. "Girl, you are far too arrogant. How about we arrange another duel? Next time, Zhang Ruochen can at least withstand ten of your moves."
Ling Feiyu remained firm, her tone cold. "I don't want to argue with you, but that doesn't mean I'm foolish. A group of dead people should stay quietly in their graves. If you try to lure me into sparring with Zhang Ruochen again, don't blame me for digging up your tombs."
As she spoke, she formed a hand seal and struck out. In the sky above, a lightning hand covering dozens of miles formed, smashing the sacred souls of the sixteen past masters back into the ground.
"Boom!"
From deep within the Sword Grave came the furious voices of the Skyward Sword Lineage's past masters.
"Girl, you dare strike so harshly at the spirits of your predecessors? Be careful—once the Skyward Sword heir grows up, he'll dig up the tombs of your Sky Burial Sword Lineage's masters!"
"Rebellious! I just said a few words, and you use such heavy force? Once the Skyward Sword heir becomes a Saint, he must capture you first!"
"Exactly, he must capture you and teach you how to respect the spirits of your predecessors!"
Ling Feiyu ignored them, too lazy to bother with a bunch of spirits who only knew how to make threats.
She was a woman with a small heart, not so magnanimous. If pushed too far, she might indeed dig up a few graves.
Walking over to Zhang Ruochen, Ling Feiyu took a Withered Wood Pill from her Space Bracelet and placed it into his mouth.
Then, she carried him and left the Sword Grave directly.
Zhang Ruochen was indeed severely injured, but he did not lose consciousness—he just couldn't move easily. After swallowing the Withered Wood Pill, he immediately began circulating his Saint Qi to absorb the pill's medicinal power.
By dawn the next day, Zhang Ruochen's injuries had fully healed.
Not only that, but after the battle the previous night, the Divine Blood power hidden deep in his blood and muscles had been completely absorbed, slightly elevating his cultivation.
"Ling Feiyu isn't in the cave dwelling—where did she go?"
Zhang Ruochen did not go looking for her. Instead, he left the cave, walked into a bamboo grove, closed his eyes, and recalled the battle with her from the previous night, seeking enlightenment in the Sword Dao.
Although the fight had only lasted a few moves and ended quickly,
it was a battle at the Sword Saint level, and Zhang Ruochen had experienced it firsthand. Thus, it was extremely valuable.
Upon reaching the Half-Saint realm, cultivators needed to spend a great deal of time comprehending the Sacred Dao. The more they understood, the faster their progress.
After every battle, cultivators should summarize their experiences and gain stronger combat techniques.
Every sword move Ling Feiyu had used formed vivid images in Zhang Ruochen's mind, replaying repeatedly.
His brow furrowed and relaxed as he pondered ways to counter them.
At the same time, he formed sword seals with his hands, using his fingers as swords, continuously striking out to try and break Ling Feiyu's techniques.
In truth, Ling Feiyu's sword moves were quite simple and ordinary, yet that very simplicity made them full of variables, hard to defend against.
This was a process of sword enlightenment, and also a process of Zhang Ruochen's self-growth.
By noon, Zhang Ruochen had fully countered all the sword moves Ling Feiyu had used the previous night. At the same time, he gained some new insights into the Sword Dao.
"Last night, if I hadn't used Space and Time power, I probably wouldn't have been able to threaten Ling Feiyu at all. Next, I can start cultivating the second realm of the Time Sword Art."
The first realm of the Time Sword Art, "Instant Traceless," consisted of nine hundred basic moves, which Zhang Ruochen had already mastered.
However, because he had not yet comprehended Time Rules, he had not cultivated the second realm.
The second realm of the Time Sword Art was called "Eight Variations of the Scale." It shared many commonalities with the nine hundred basic moves of the first realm.
Once successfully cultivated, it would become one of Zhang Ruochen's trump cards, allowing him to face Ling Feiyu without being so overwhelmed.
But since he was cultivating at Bamboo Node Mountain under Ling Feiyu's watch, he couldn't enter the Scroll World. Cultivating the Time Sword Art would be very slow.
"I must find a way to get out of Ling Feiyu's sight."
Zhang Ruochen's eyes lit up as he thought of the Sword Grave.
Wasn't the Sword Grave the perfect place to practice swordsmanship?
There, he could freely use the Cosmic Divine Wood Map and receive guidance from the lingering spirits of the Skyward Sword Lineage's past masters. Both his sword techniques and Sword Dao would advance rapidly.
"Shua shua."
Just as Zhang Ruochen thought of this, two shadows rushed out of the bamboo grove and appeared before him.
It was Xiao Hei and the Swallowing Elephant Rabbit, whom he had sent out to gather information a few days ago.
Seeing them, Zhang Ruochen withdrew his thoughts, smiled slightly, and asked, "Well? Did you find any useful information?"
"Those two didn't go gather information at all. Instead, they snuck into the Town Prison Ancient Clan's medicinal fields to steal spiritual herbs. If I hadn't caught them first, and if the elder guarding the fields had found them, they would have been locked up in the Nether Prison forever."
Li Min's delicate figure stepped out from behind the Swallowing Elephant Rabbit, her slightly arched chest rising as she stared at Zhang Ruochen.
Xiao Hei glanced at Li Min and snorted, "This emperor always acts meticulously. If that rabbit hadn't been greedy and caused trouble, how would you have found out? Besides, this emperor did gather information—quite a lot of useful intel, in fact."
"I don't believe you," Li Min muttered softly.
Zhang Ruochen didn't care what Xiao Hei and the Swallowing Elephant Rabbit had stolen from the medicinal fields. He only wanted to know about the situation at the Nether King Sword Grave, so he asked, "What did you find out?"
Xiao Hei said, "I heard that the Town Prison Ancient Clan has begun to coordinate with the imperial court's army, planning to launch an offensive against the Undying Blood Clan and wipe out all of them within Yuan Prefecture."
Zhang Ruochen nodded. "Since Undying Blood Clan spies have appeared in the Nether King Sword Grave, the big shots of the Town Prison Ancient Clan must feel the crisis. It's expected that they would take the initiative."
Xiao Hei added, "In the next few days, two high-ranking officials from the imperial court will visit the Nether King Sword Grave to discuss the specifics of dealing with the Undying Blood Clan. They may have already arrived."
Zhang Ruochen frowned slightly. Once the Town Prison Ancient Clan cooperated with the imperial court, his identity would become quite awkward.
If he joined the campaign against the Undying Blood Clan, he would have to fight them while constantly guarding against ambushes from the imperial court's experts.
Zhang Ruochen asked, "Any other news besides this?"
The Swallowing Elephant Rabbit rolled its eyes and said mysteriously, "Master Chen, I heard some rumors. They say there's internal conflict within the Town Prison Ancient Clan. The biggest issue is the struggle for the position of Young Clan Leader."
Zhang Ruochen was very curious about this struggle.
Shi Ren was a friend worth keeping. If he needed help, Zhang Ruochen would go all out to assist him.
But first, he had to understand the internal situation of the Town Prison Ancient Clan.
Wang Xie was the Clan Leader's son and had outstanding talent, so why hadn't he become the Young Clan Leader?
How had Shi Ren become the Young Clan Leader?
Zhang Ruochen's gaze fell on Li Min. As a member of a peripheral family of the Town Prison Ancient Clan, she surely knew some inside information. (To be continued.)