Chapter 158 - 157 Lanling
Judging by the proficiency exhibited in the opponent’s array formation talisman, after some calculations and considerations, Tie Dan estimated that with his current strength, he’s probably no match for Mr. Ruan.
Often, the strength or weakness of battle power can be seen from these details.
Even if both are in the Nascent Soul Realm, each additional divine skill mastered, each extra magic treasure in possession can make a vast difference in actual combat power. A ferocious beast trained extensively in flesh and bone, however fast or strong, is easy to deal with if you have a sword that breaks defense; upon encountering Tie Dan, it would still pounce to snatch the prey. An Old Xuan Sect adept in various mystical escape techniques and innumerable secret lethal moves, whose cultivation is unfathomably deep, would naturally be avoided by him.
If this Mr. Ruan were just a Mixed Cultivation Demon Path practitioner inferior to Great Demon Beasts, who swapped some cultivation technique tools with the Divine Sect, Tie Dan would have chopped his head off without hesitation.
But unfortunately, the opponent is a genuine expert. Tie Dan flew around the cellar multiple times, inside and out, yet couldn’t find the method to break the formation. No matter how he moved, the moment he entered the formation-breaking method, the restriction would trigger and activate Mr. Ruan.
From the dense talisman marks, it was evident that the opponent was skilled in Qimen Dunjia and Primordial Spirit Secret Technique. Even if Tie Dan threw a heap of trump cards and forced a victory, he would likely be severely injured and might be eradicated by the altar master’s main body of the Divine Sect.
And someone like Lord Xiao cannot afford to use his trump card unless necessary to save his life; using it would likely cause a coma for seven days, and the back-and-forth would probably be too late.
However, since he promised Hou Sheng to save his life, Tie Dan naturally took this causality upon his shoulder.
So Tie Dan took out the Stone Box, glanced at the Jade Scroll, Jade Pendant, and Jade Sword within, which were merely items for Hou Sheng’s Foundation Establishment Realm, nothing rare. But the box was quite nice, just suitable to make a Sword Box.
So Tie Dan dumped out those trinkets, split them with a slash, and placed them alongside the heads of the old and young of the Ruan Family in the cellar, keeping only a small knife with him. Then he carved on the ground with the knife, inscribing the nine characters, ’Nine Heavens Xuan Nu Wishing Heaven Venerable’, and went out to set the Ruan Family aflame.