Chapter 53
Yu Sui raised her hand to block the air wave from the sword spirit's attack, struggling to look toward Li Jin Shuang at the center of the storm, asking Xue Mushi: "Is she in a stable state or out of control right now?"
"Not sure, we need to get closer to see!" Xue Mushi flew several Energy Stabilization talismans to hover in place as a precaution, in case they didn't have time later or didn't have enough Five Elements Energy to cast divination and leave.
The two circled around the attacking evil spirits and approached Li Jin Shuang.
Above the massive skeleton, one of the heads noticed the two approaching and swung its sword again, forcing Yu Sui and Xue Mushi to retreat.
Xue Mushi wiped his face and said: "...It looks like she's out of control."
Yu Sui was blown away by the sword energy. After landing and steadying herself, she took a deep breath and shouted loudly: "Li Jin Shuang!"
Hearing the voice, Li Jin Shuang turned to look at Yu Sui, an extremely complex glance.
Yu Sui couldn't help thinking that sword spirit losing control meant something completely different. Li Jin Shuang wasn't losing control halfway through using it, but had been unable to control her sword spirit from the very beginning.
Her sword spirit was far too powerful compared to herself.
This power and presence could rival a Thirteenth Realm master. It could even frighten away some of the evil spirits in this special-grade Military Formation.
Perhaps the power was too strong for Li Jin Shuang to control, or perhaps the sword spirit was too powerful and unwilling to be controlled by someone weak.
Whatever the case, they needed to stabilize Li Jin Shuang first.
Yu Sui and Xue Mushi didn't want to gamble on the possibility of whether Li Jin Shuang's sword spirit would still be there after they broke out of the formation.
They would try their best to make it disappear while still in the Military Formation.
The two reached a consensus, igniting golden Five Elements Energy around their bodies for protection.
"Sword spirits are also a type of Five Elements Energy manifestation and can have their Five Elements Energy extracted. Your Ghost Way Death Symbols can restrain Military School sword spirits." Xue Mushi pondered, "Sword spirits exist symbiotically with their Military School masters. Even if Death Symbols extract their Five Elements Energy and make them dissipate, it doesn't mean they're dead. Only killing the master counts."
So there was no need to worry about Death Symbols causing harm to the sword spirit.
Yu Sui sighed: "I'll try, but I can't guarantee whether I'll be able to use Death Symbols."
There was no other choice. Standing there waiting for Li Jin Shuang to solve it herself wouldn't work either, as they'd be killed by the sword spirit's indiscriminate attacks.
"It's four." Xue Mushi added, "It has four heads."
Yu Sui looked at him in surprise: "Are sword spirits counted by heads?"
Xue Mushi hesitated: "I've only seen other people's sword spirits with one head, never four, and eight arms. Just to be safe, prepare to deal with four sword spirits."
Yu Sui was confused by his explanation. As Li Jin Shuang's sword spirit rose up again and threw long swords forward, letting out deafening roars, she withdrew her gaze: "Alright, four Death Symbols is a bit challenging for me."
"Wait for it to throw two more swords. After the left four arms have no weapons, we'll break through from this side. I'll cover you." Xue Mushi analyzed seriously. When it came to important matters, he also perked up and began thinking and acting.
Yu Sui concentrated on observing the sword spirit's every move. The pale skull heads showed no expression or emotion, and it didn't speak either. Dark golden light flickered in the pitch-black eye sockets, appearing and disappearing, adding to the sinister atmosphere.
Li Jin Shuang also concentrated and closed her eyes, trying to communicate with her sword spirit, begging it to behave and at least not attack their own people.
The speed at which the sword spirit killed evil spirits was matched by how quickly the evil spirits replenished their numbers. When it threw its fourth long sword, Xue Mushi's copper coins flew out, encircling the sword spirit within his divination range while signaling Yu Sui. The two moved with Wind-Riding Techniques, rushing toward the sword spirit.
They had thought that with no weapons in the skeletal hands, one of the bone heads moved and looked at Yu Sui and Xue Mushi. Four arms made attacking motions, and when the two used Wind-Riding Techniques to dodge the air waves from the sword energy and got close, long swords suddenly appeared in the bone hands, blocking their path and almost grazing their skin.
The situation changed suddenly. The sword spirit that had summoned weapons again held swords and slashed at the two.
Its body looked massive but its movements were incredibly sharp and fast. Its arms, twice as long as a human's, were extremely flexible, capable of rotating at various angles, and even knew countless sword techniques. With flexible wrist movements and speeds nearly impossible for the naked eye to catch, it forced Xue Mushi to retreat in just two moves.
Xue Mushi touched his cut cheek and looked up to see Yu Sui dodging the sword spirit's attack, leaving him stunned.
She actually dodged at that speed?
Xue Mushi's expression turned strange as he stared intently at Yu Sui.
The sword spirit wielded more than one long sword. Even though Yu Sui had landed on its massive skeletal body, its several ape-like long arms could still flexibly and precisely find her and slash at her.
It struck very quickly, each sword carrying killing intent, but Yu Sui could always capture its intention just before it moved and then precisely avoid it.
The moment Yu Sui saw the blade light, everything around her seemed to become slow, as if they were suppressed by gravity and began to pause, but only Yu Sui herself continued to accelerate.
This reminded her of the feeling when she first saw the Communication Array as a child.
When the massive Number Mountains operated, countless character spell patterns appeared consecutively on the disc. Vast information poured from her eyes into her brain, but it was incredibly clear. Each one was firmly remembered by her eyes, and they were also extremely slow, just like now.
Yu Sui dodged the sword spirit's attack once again, the long sword grazing past her nose. As she bent to avoid it and fell from the skeletal shoulder, Wind-Riding Techniques steadied her form. She moved a step faster, and when another sword came slashing, she tapped the blade with her toes, using the force to return to her position on the skeletal shoulder.
She was always one step faster than the sword spirit's movements.
Divine Mechanism: Heavenly Eye automatically activated when facing Li Jin Shuang's extraordinarily powerful sword spirit, different from ordinary people.
Yu Sui was no longer in a hurry to destroy Li Jin Shuang's sword spirit. She continued testing, sparring with the sword spirit.
From Xue Mushi's perspective, the afterimages of Yu Sui's Wind-Riding Techniques and the sword shadows from the sword spirit's attacks intersected with each other in a dazzling display. Even with Eight Trigrams Living Arts enhancing his vision, the speed and reactions were difficult to capture.
But he didn't know Yu Sui was testing and sparring. He thought Yu Sui could hold her own against the sword spirit, so he prepared to help suppress it, giving Yu Sui a chance to use Ghost Way Death Symbols to extract the sword spirit's Five Elements Energy and destroy its manifestation.
So Xue Mushi directly used the Seven Kill Trigram, First Trigram: Strangle.
Countless fine threads flew from the copper coin holes, connecting to each other, making low sounds as they penetrated the sword spirit's skeletal body.
The divination strangulation threads precisely avoided Yu Sui and Li Jin Shuang, only penetrating and surrounding the sword spirit's skeleton.
The skeletal arms raised high with long swords were also entangled and pulled by threads full of Five Elements power. One of the heads turned to look at Xue Mushi. This glance made Xue Mushi's heart sink as an ominous premonition arose. He placed his palms together in a seal, once again strengthening the Seven Kill Trigram's power.
Fine threads like spider silk attacked from all directions, above and below.
The sword spirit stared at Xue Mushi, twisted its wrist, and the long sword that had been pointing upward reversed to point toward the ground. The sword spirit released its grip, and as the long sword fell, the blade burned with flames, stabbing straight into the divination threads and igniting large flames, burning all the divination threads binding the sword spirit to ashes.
The copper coins floating in the air to maintain the formation trembled lightly, making pleasant sounds.
Xue Mushi stared blankly at the completely burned divination threads.
While pursuing Yu Sui, the sword spirit threw a sword at Xue Mushi, making him instantly come to his senses and dodge. The sword spirit then backhanded another sword toward the four copper coins maintaining the formation.
This sword spirit seemed to have self-awareness.
Both Xue Mushi and Yu Sui noticed that the four skull heads had eyes in all directions and ears listening everywhere, reacting extremely quickly, able to simultaneously attack both of them while destroying the divination formation.
The time to exit was approaching.
Otherwise, they might face attacks from Thirteenth Realm black armored cavalry. Previously, they had guessed that not crossing the river wouldn't trigger attacks, but last time no one crossed the river and they still attacked.
Yu Sui calculated the time and began attacking the sword spirit. She closed her eyes and opened them again, her pupils capturing the flow of Five Elements Energy in the world before her. With the self separated through the second level of Soul Control, her seven senses perceived everything around her: scents, wind and fire, moist earth, turbid water, gloomy sky, flashing lightning, heavy and startling thunder. Everything in the Military Formation, whether dead or alive, could be sensed and observed as long as it existed.
From the perceived world, she searched for the runes representing each thing's self. Everything became simple and transparent.
Yu Sui saw the twisted black runes on the sword spirit's skeleton, each head bearing different runic marks.
Xue Mushi had really guessed correctly, it would take four Death Symbols.
Yu Sui accelerated with Wind-Riding Techniques under her feet, approaching the sword spirit.
Xue Mushi glanced at the Military Formation evil spirits still trying to approach and join the battle. One sword spirit had been ignoring Yu Sui and Xue Mushi throughout, only attacking the approaching evil spirits, which provided convenience for Yu Sui and Xue Mushi.
He took a deep breath and formed seals again to steady the copper coins trembling from the sword spirit's sword energy shocks.
Second Trigram: Shatter Ice.
Cold mist with frost rose from all directions. Ice climbed from the ground up the sword spirit's skeleton, instantly freezing it completely. Before the sword spirit could shatter the ice, Yu Sui reached its shoulder, raised her hand to grasp the Five Elements Energy manifesting the sword spirit, and clenched her five fingers: the sword spirit shattered the ice, ice shards flying as one of the sword spirit's heads exploded with a bang, and a black Death Symbol quietly appeared and disappeared.
The thousands of ice shards shattered by the sword spirit floated in the air, transforming into sharp ice blades that turned and killed toward the sword spirit.
The moment long swords touched ice blades, they were frozen again. The sword spirit shattered the ice pillars again, only creating more sharp ice shards, repeating endlessly.
Yu Sui and Xue Mushi cooperated seamlessly. Without words, they understood each other's intentions through their respective Nine Schools Arts. Under the Seven Kill Trigram's interference, the sword spirit's movements became stuttered. Yu Sui approached during the sword spirit's pauses and destroyed the second Death Symbol representing the sword spirit.
The third, the fourth.
Reaching the sword spirit's head to destroy the last Death Symbol, Yu Sui paused. She stood on the frozen long sword, looking into the sword spirit's pitch-black eye sockets. The originally dark depths seemed to reflect orange-gold light, becoming magnificent.
In this instant, Yu Sui successfully used Divine Mechanism: Heavenly Eye actively for the first time. Not using physical eyes to observe what ordinary people cannot see, but after reaching the third level of Soul Control, the third separated soul transcended self and flesh, becoming an eye that peered into everything in darkness.
Yu Sui didn't destroy the fourth Death Symbol. Under the pressure of Divine Mechanism: Heavenly Eye, the sword spirit's last head also crumbled, and the Five Elements Energy manifesting it disappeared the moment it was seen through.
After solving Li Jin Shuang's troublesome sword spirit, Yu Sui and Xue Mushi didn't pause. They immediately extracted the Military Formation's Five Elements Energy, destroying the balance to accelerate its demise and exit the formation.
This time Yu Sui also used Divine Mechanism: Heavenly Eye, but couldn't successfully break the formation. As she puzzled over this, they had already appeared in the Yin-Yang Five Elements Field.
……
Both Xue Mushi and Yu Sui had consumed large amounts of Five Elements Energy. Discovering they had exited the formation, both breathed sighs of relief, then turned together to look at Li Jin Shuang lying unconscious on the ground, frowning.
"She should be alright, right?" Yu Sui said.
She crouched down and gently poked Li Jin Shuang's face with her finger. "Hey, wake up."
She didn't appear injured, just still gripping the sword hilt tightly with her five fingers.
"She seems to have just fainted, or possibly received influence from her sword spirit, communicating with it in the deepest part of her self-consciousness." Xue Mushi also crouched down and tapped Li Jin Shuang, feeling there was no major problem. He stood up again to look at the sky and estimate the time.
He said: "This time about three hours passed. Dawn is approaching."
Yu Sui remained crouched, cupping her face as she looked at the unconscious Li Jin Shuang: "I didn't expect the most troublesome thing this time wasn't the Military Formation puppets, but her sword spirit."
"I hope she can tame her sword spirit soon, otherwise it's a disaster for her or anyone else." Xue Mushi touched his face cut by sword energy. He paused and said quietly, "The Military School won't like her type of sword spirit that devours its master either."
Yu Sui looked up: "It's not another one of those scenarios where she gets expelled from the Academy or hunted down after the Military School finds out, is it?"
"Expulsion and hunting wouldn't be that extreme." Xue Mushi scratched his head, searching his mind for appropriate descriptive words, "They would just think she's unlucky... and worthless, unable to even control her own sword spirit."
"Oh, that's gentler than the Agricultural School and Taoist School." Yu Sui nodded.
For Li Jin Shuang, being expelled from the Academy and hunted down would be better than being certified as worthless and weak.
Because for the Li family, this would definitely be adding insult to injury.
The two were silent for a moment before Xue Mushi said: "Her sword spirit was very fast, but you managed to hold your own."
Yu Sui smiled and praised him: "Your Seven Kill Trigram is also very impressive, able to freeze her sword spirit. Later it couldn't swing its swords at all, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to destroy the Death Symbols."
After mutual awkward praise, there was silent quiet again.
After a moment, Xue Mushi spoke first: "Should we wait for her to wake up?"
"Let's wait. We can't just leave her here unattended." Yu Sui nodded.
Hearing this, Xue Mushi sat down in the Yin-Yang Five Elements Field, lowering his head to stare at the flickering galaxy on the ground.
This time it was Yu Sui's turn to ask him: "Why does your cousin also have the surname Xue?"
Xue Mushi scratched his face and said: "She grew up in the Xue family, so her surname is Xue."
Yu Sui rested her face on one hand, tilting her head to look at him, her gaze seeming to say, can you explain that more clearly?
Xue Mushi struggled to squeeze words from his brain: "Because her parents died early and no one cared for her, she was brought to my family and raised as a Xue family child."
"Your family atmosphere is really nice." Yu Sui sighed softly.
Seeing that she seemed sincere, Xue Mushi looked at Yu Sui with some confusion.
"Your cousin looks like she was raised very well. Even though she was a child brought back from relatives, she was raised like your family's own child." Yu Sui also noticed his confusion and explained, "And I can see you siblings have a good relationship."
Xue Mushi said quietly: "It's alright, I guess."
Following Yu Sui's words, he couldn't help but think carefully. Xue Jiayue indeed wasn't mistreated in the Xue family. Although her parents died early, she grew up loved by the Xue family elders. She never lacked food or clothing, getting whatever she wanted. Even if her temper was a bit spoiled, everyone was willing to indulge her.
It really was quite good.
"Your family doesn't seem to have the scheming, mutually exploitative atmosphere of mine either. Why did you learn Taoist forbidden techniques meant only for killing?" Yu Sui looked at Xue Mushi, asking in a gentle tone.
Xue Mushi was silent for a moment, lowering his head further, saying in a muffled voice: "It's hard to say."
Yu Sui didn't expect him to give an answer immediately.
Instead, Xue Mushi asked back: "Is your family's atmosphere really scheming and mutually exploitative?"
Yu Sui explained innocently: "Yes, the manor involves court politics. I also have three older brothers, and although the fourth brother isn't biological, my parents treat him like their own son. I used to be an Ordinary Practitioner, but they're all more outstanding and capable than each other."
Xue Mushi tilted his head to look at Yu Sui: "Sibling competition for succession?"
Yu Sui nodded earnestly.
Xue Mushi thought for a moment and added: "I heard you also possess Agricultural School Breath Soil, so you're hunted by Agricultural School people."
"That's right." Yu Sui nodded with a smile.
Xue Mushi looked at her with some sympathy: "Being hunted and having to worry about being overthrown by your brothers, that's indeed quite miserable."
Yu Sui: "Yes."
This person was easier to fool than expected.
Xue Mushi seemed infected by Yu Sui's topic, feeling that since this girl had survived such a difficult life, he should probably say something too.
So while trying hard to recall, he hesitated: "Everyone in my family has good talent, but my talent is poor. I learn things very slowly. Some things I can never learn no matter what, others I learn immediately."
"Like the Seven Kill Trigram you learned immediately?" Yu Sui asked.
Xue Mushi hesitated before nodding: "Yes."
That really was... talent points allocated wrong.
Yu Sui praised him: "Having talent is good, better than me being an Ordinary Practitioner for over ten years."
Xue Mushi looked at her with surprise, not expecting this comparison.
When he was young, the children around him were all high-talent geniuses, especially his fiancée, who was the most talented person, pampered from childhood and specially cultivated by Taiyuan Kingdom's Yin-Yang School practitioners.
Although she personally didn't mind her ordinary fiancé, those who had high hopes for her cared greatly. Every time the Saint Maiden and Xue Mushi stood together, people felt Xue Mushi's presence was extremely unsightly.
Facing his outstanding fiancée, Xue Mushi felt somewhat inferior.
But the Saint Maiden smiled and said: "Why? If having talent to cultivate Nine Schools Arts counts as an advantage, you just don't have this advantage, which isn't your shortcoming. Besides, you have talents others don't have, none of them have, only you alone have."
The young man asked blankly: "Me...? What talent?"
The Saint Maiden leaned close to his ear and whispered: "In my eyes, you have the most adorable talent."
Xue Mushi came back to his senses and said quietly: "Actually, I'm about the same as being an Ordinary Practitioner for over ten years."
Compared to those outstanding children, he was that Ordinary Practitioner.
"Real Ordinary Practitioners would be unhappy hearing that." Yu Sui smiled slightly. "Like me."
Xue Mushi looked at her: "You're not an Ordinary Practitioner anymore."
"Oh." Yu Sui blinked. "Right."
She added: "But when I tested my talent before, I had no affinity with any school, no talent, even scoring only 10 percent during Academy testing."
Xue Mushi said: "I'm about the same."
Yu Sui asked him: "About the same means how much?"
Xue Mushi answered honestly: "Testing talent for any school was very low, compatibility was also very low. The Taoist School I barely qualified for only gained compatibility after I learned the Seven Kill Trigram."
The two unexpectedly found common ground and began chatting back and forth.
……
Li Jin Shuang remained unconscious.
In the depths of her consciousness, she urgently wanted to establish contact with her sword spirit, earnestly hoping to have a proper conversation.
After waiting an unknown time in the void, lights appeared in the darkness. Only after illuminating this space could Li Jin Shuang see clearly where she was:
It was the dim little room where Grandmother often lectured, with only one candle lit on the square low table. Often because of Grandmother's pressure and cold scolding, Li Jin Shuang would lower her head, her gaze only able to stare at that flickering candlelight, as if it too was trembling in fear.
Sitting across from Li Jin Shuang now, however, was her sword spirit.
Its massive body had shrunk to human size, four skeletons still leaning against each other, mimicking Li Jin Shuang's posture as they knelt on the ground. Their heads, small compared to their bodies, slowly turned, silently gazing at Li Jin Shuang.
Li Jin Shuang, kneeling on the ground, slowly raised her head to look at the sword spirit, her gaze slightly stunned, her expression somewhat bitter as she spoke: "Why... won't you obey me?"
The turning sword spirit heads suddenly changed. The head now facing her bore her grandmother's appearance, issuing threatening intimidation full of pressure: "Because you are weak."
Li Jin Shuang's heart shook upon hearing this.
The next head that turned toward Li Jin Shuang became her mother. The woman looked miserable as she sobbed: "Unwilling to acknowledge your true nature, losing yourself, yet still presuming to master power?"
When the third head turned, it became her deceased father. The man looked solemn as he said: "You are weak, unable to even see yourself clearly, so you are unworthy."
Li Jin Shuang's face turned deathly pale as she said in a trembling voice: "I am not!"
The fourth head that turned looked at her, taking Li Jin Shuang's appearance, but the masculine and feminine forms flickered rapidly, even the voice alternating between male and female: "Tell me, the one who gave birth to this power..."
"Is it a man, or a woman?"
Li Jin Shuang's throat felt strangled, her lips trembling, her mind blank. The sword spirit's body across from her spun rapidly, Grandmother, Father, Mother, her own appearance... she could no longer tell whether it was the sword spirit speaking or people speaking.