Chapter 56: Battle
SCREEECH!
The grotesque head at the end of the iron chain landed on the city wall, letting out a grating sound like grinding teeth that set Wang Ping’s own on edge. It left a pool of viscous black fluid in its wake, which corroded the rammed-earth wall.
At the same time, a pungent stench filled the air. Upon smelling it, the Wood Spirit Qi within Wang Ping’s body flared in warning. ’Just as I thought, a potent corpse toxin,’ he mused. Fortunately, he had already cast the Cyan Wood Technique on himself and Guangxuan.
"Yu Lian!"
"This is so disgusting..."
Yu Lian sounded uncomfortable, but she didn’t remain hidden in his sleeve. She rapidly grew in size, channeling her Spiritual Qi to activate the Inner Armor Wang Ping wore. A cyan-green barrier formed around both of them. He had originally bought this Inner Armor to defend against the Foundation Establishment Thunder Tribulation.
Just then, the disgusting head, attached to the Barbed Iron Chain, swung out once more, aiming for Wang Ping’s chest. This time, however, Wang Ping didn’t dodge. He landed on a crenelation of the wall and activated the Wood Spirit True Essence within him.
CLANG!
The disgusting head smashed against the barrier around Wang Ping with a dull thud. Wang Ping didn’t move an inch, nor did the barrier around him waver. Simultaneously, the Longsword on his back had already left its sheath. Coated in a dense layer of Wood Spirit Qi, it shot forward, hugging the length of the Barbed Iron Chain as it flew toward the burly man’s neck.
Just then, another identical chain appeared before the burly man, this one also topped with a head—a woman’s. The chain floated in the air like a long serpent. As the man cast a Spell with a flick of his hand, it formed an invisible defensive barrier.
Wang Ping didn’t try to brute-force his way through. Instead, he immediately recalled his Longsword, using it to parry the other incoming chain. He glanced over at Guangxuan’s opponent and saw that he was just like this one, controlling two demons—one for offense and one for defense. It was an incredibly frustrating setup.
And just then, a signal flare exploded in the sky over the area Hong’an and Gao Ding were responsible for.
Wang Ping glanced over. While his left hand continued to form the hand seals to counter his opponent, his right hand delved into his storage bag, retrieved a signal flare, and tossed it into the air.
He needed reinforcements too!
"Your reinforcements won’t be coming!"
A smirk spread across the burly man’s face as he watched Wang Ping call for help. He seemed to be reveling in his own power. As he spoke, he controlled one of his chains to lash out behind him. It snatched up a Corpse Soldier, and the chain’s barbs ground the body into a pulp. The woman’s head on the other chain then devoured the remains in a single gulp.
All this happened in the blink of an eye. Afterward, a faint gray energy appeared around the burly, bloated man, and the force behind his swinging chains increased significantly.
"How revolting!"
Yu Lian was getting angry.
Wang Ping’s expression remained calm. His left hand maintained the Spell controlling his Longsword, while his right hand reached into his storage bag once more. He pulled out five Power Pills, quickly broke open their Yin Yang Vine Skin casings, injected them with Spiritual Qi, and hurled them all at the bloated man.
Silent, brilliantly colored explosions engulfed the man in the blink of an eye. The man, so supremely confident just a moment before, was vaporized without a sound. Over half his body and the chains surrounding him were reduced to white powder. The Barbed Iron Chain that had been menacing Wang Ping fell heavily to the ground, and its grotesque head let out a piercing shriek.
Unable to stand the shriek, Yu Lian instantly directed the Longsword to skewer the head. They then saw the Barbed Iron Chain connected to it become coated in a black substance, which began corroding the ground and walls it touched.
It all happened so fast that Wang Ping could hardly believe it. He had already been preparing to throw a second wave.
"He’s not dead yet! His consciousness escaped to another location using Taiyin Qi!"
Wang Ping immediately focused his spiritual sense, ignoring the cacophony of Spiritual Energy flaring up throughout the city. He quickly scanned for the location where the man’s consciousness had fled. A few moments later, he sensed it: a Corpse Soldier was carrying the familiar, disgusting woman’s head and fleeing down an alley toward the city center.
Just then, Guangxuan landed beside Wang Ping. His own opponent, seeing his comrade defeated, decisively abandoned his attack on the Tiger Demon’s corpse he was fighting and also fled toward the city center.
Guangxuan said, "They’re most likely not Qi Cultivators from the Xia Country!"
"How can you tell?"
"The Power Pills you refine have become very famous over the last ten years. Any Qi Cultivator from the Xia Country should know how to deal with them."
...
Wang Ping was taken aback. "Is that so?"
"Yes. When they first came out, they caused quite a stir and were responsible for the deaths of many Qi Cultivators. Now, when any Qi Cultivator in the Xia Country faces an enemy, the first thing they watch out for is a surprise attack with Power Pills!"
"If that’s the case..."
Wang Ping’s eyes lit up as he looked toward the city center.
As did Guangxuan’s.
Following that, Wang Ping grabbed a handful of Power Pills and handed them to Guangxuan.
"Aren’t we going to support Fellow Daoist Hong’an’s position?"
"No need. These people are definitely planning something big in the city center. If we go over there and take care of it, the threat to Hong’an will be neutralized automatically."
Although Wang Ping had a plan, he didn’t head for the city center immediately. He first performed a divination for himself and Guangxuan, then extended his spiritual sense to carefully scan the surrounding area for any abnormal energy signatures.
Once he confirmed there were no dangerous flows of Spiritual Qi, he began to advance into the city. Along the way, he took vine seeds from his storage bag, infused them with Wood Spirit Qi, and scattered them by the roadside. Aided by the Wood Spirit Qi, the seeds sprouted and grew at a visible rate, becoming Wang Ping’s most loyal sentinels.
Wang Ping stopped near the County Magistrate’s Office rather than flying directly above it. Although he couldn’t see anything from his position, he had no intention of advancing further.
"The malice over there is practically overflowing!" Yu Lian said, having shrunk down to coil around Wang Ping’s left wrist. Her slitted pupils were fixed unblinkingly on the courtyard wall of the Prefecture Magistrate’s Office.
"This will be over in a moment!"
Wang Ping grabbed a handful of Power Pills. Without counting, he cracked open all the casings in one go, infused each with a trace of Spiritual Qi, and hurled them. Guangxuan, beside him, followed suit.
Brilliant colors exploded, leaving clouds of powder in their wake. With a cold expression, Wang Ping grabbed another handful...
After more than ten such volleys, the entire Prefecture Magistrate’s Office was reduced to white powder amidst the roiling Spiritual Qi, leaving behind a massive, deep crater!
GULP!
Guangxuan swallowed hard.
Yu Lian said happily, "There’s no sign of life left inside, but there is a strange energy fluctuation!"
Wang Ping raised an eyebrow and leaped to the edge of the deep crater. He quickly identified the source of the energy fluctuation Yu Lian mentioned: a rusty iron blade. In the world of Spiritual Qi, he could see a black substance flowing around it.
"It’s a Demon Soldier!"
Guangxuan’s voice was tinged with excitement. He took a black wooden box from his storage bag and handed it to Wang Ping.
Wang Ping took the box. Just as he was about to step forward and secure the weapon, an angry roar echoed from the southern sky. "Stop!" As the voice reached Wang Ping’s ears, countless blood-red skulls began to fall from the heavens.
"Hmph!"
Yuanqing Taoist’s voice rang out, and a fierce blaze intercepted the endless rain of blood-red skulls.
His mind shaken by the blast, Wang Ping hesitated for a brief moment. Snapping out of it, he moved as fast as he could to place the Demon Soldier from the ground into the wooden box and then put it away in his storage bag.
"Let’s go, now!"
He shouted to Guangxuan, and not daring to ride a cloud, he instead channeled the True Essence in his Qi Sea. Leaping over one courtyard wall and rooftop after another, he sprinted back in the direction they had entered the city. By the time he and Guangxuan landed on the city wall, Yuanqing Taoist and the newcomer had already touched down on the very spot they had just vacated.