Ze Tian Ji

Edited by: Michyrr

Guan Feibai’s attack seemed very simple, but it was actually one of the mightiest sword techniques of the Mount Li Sword Style.

During the battle in Luoyang, when the then-Sect Master of the Mount Li Sword Sect, Su Li’s master, saw Emperor Taizong’s Frost God Spear, he comprehended this sword technique.

This sword technique was a sword of the battlefield, but when it struck, it was a spear breaking through the skies, able to contend against thousands. It was called the Sword’s Tip.

It meant not that the sword’s tip should be fully revealed, but that the sword’s tip must be revealed, that the sword’s tip needed to be seen by the entire world1.

Winds howled, countless waves raged on the river, and shreds of grass flew about the air—a world-shaking momentum.

Two years ago, Guan Feibai had succeeded in breaking into Star Condensation on the battlefields of the snowy plains, and he was currently at the middle level of Star Condensation. Although everyone knew that he was a genius of the sword, he was still quite young. His current level was truthfully still not enough to use this mighty secret technique of his sect. But he had used this technique without hesitation, utterly disregarding the highly probable backlash of sword intent.

Because he was very angry, and also somewhat afraid.

If Chen Changsheng had not had those ten thousand swords to guard him, wouldn’t he have died before his eyes?

......

......

The cold winter night was cleaved apart by the supreme might revealed by the Sword’s Tip, drawing a white beam of light through the sky.

A heavy and violent thump resonated through the grass, causing mud to be tossed into the air and jolting out a small gray figure.

This person was a hunchback, short, and dressed in black. It was precisely the monster that Chen Changsheng had met in Hanqiu City.

A clear and deep sword wound appeared on the monster’s chest. Two of the fingers on his left hand had also been severed, a wound most likely inflicted by Chen Changsheng’s swords.

But whether it was from the wound on his chest or the stumps of his fingers, what flowed was not blood, but some sort of gray liquid.

The monster fixed his eyes on Guan Feibai and let out a shrill howl.

This howl was filled with pain and a crazed impulse to kill.

The moment the Sword’s Tip stabbed into the monster, Guan Feibai felt an ominous feeling in his sword heart, as well as clear feedback from his sword.

The monster’s skin and body were incredibly tough, like some sort of flexible armor but also like a muddy paste. It was very slippery and hard to apply force on.

He had not hesitated to use his strongest attack despite the backlash of sword intent, but he was only able to leave a wound on the monster’s body, not heavily injure it!

Seeing the monster charge over, Guan Feibai tensed, but he remained fearless, his fighting intent once more rising.

The longsword in his hand had just been rendered into powder by that fierce attack. His hands were empty, but this did not mean that he had lost the ability to fight.

As one of the magnificent Divine Kingdom’s Seven Laws, how could he lose to an ugly monster that looked just like some giant mouse?

An extremely sharp yet shapeless Qi coalesced on his forearm, the wind shredding into pieces upon touching it.

He truly deserved his reputation as a sword genius of the Mount Li Sword Sect—he had actually refined a Righteous Sword2!

......

......

This monster was used to living life in the shadows. Normally, upon seeing the assassination on Chen Changsheng fail, the Daoist church’s array activate, and the Orthodoxy’s experts soon rush over, he would definitely have immediately turned and left. He would not have lingered for another second, as he did not want to take this sort of risk.

But tonight, this was not possible. He found it somewhat impossible to control his emotions.

The moment he was injured by the Sword’s Tip, he began to grow angry, and when he discovered that he had been injured by the Mount Li Sword Style, that his opponent was a young disciple of the Mount Li Sword Sect, his rage began to blaze even more fiercely. His eyes turned a deep red and the seal branded on the deepest part of his soul began to burn, burning at his mind until only one thought remained.

Su Li must die! Anyone who is related to Su Li must die! Everyone in the Mount Li Sword Sect must be slaughtered to a man3!

The monster flew through the sky, wind howling around him, his putrid and foul aura exuding a terrifying pressure!

Whether in Hanqiu City or in the attack just now, the monster would always act from the shadows and then attempt to escape. He had never once revealed his entire strength. Only now, when he had decided to kill Guan Feibai, did he display his true level of cultivation, his strength reaching an incredible level!

Blood trickled from the corner of Guan Feibai’s lips, the result of backlashing sword intent and then forcefully activating the Righteous Sword after being injured.

Seeing that horrifying and sinister figure, he very quickly determined that he was no match, but so what?

He was currently standing in front of Chen Changsheng.

As long as he stood there, the monster could not wound Chen Changsheng.

As for himself, he believed that if the monster wanted to defeat him, a suitable price would have to be paid.

Yes, as the most valiant and irritable of the Mount Li Sword Sect’s disciples, he had chosen the strongest attack for his first move, and now he was choosing the most ruthless move.

The final move of the Mount Li Sword Style!

He was prepared to exchange life for life, wound for wound.

He firmly believed that no matter how severe the wounds he suffered would be, the monster would not be able to leave unscathed, so it might as well forget about leaving.

Chen Changsheng had just shaken off the ice over his body and heart, and upon seeing this sight, shouted, "No!"

He certainly did not have a complete understanding of this monster’s power and means, but he was keenly aware that the monster’s entire body was covered in a vicious toxin.

If Guan Feibai wanted to exchange wound for wound, his end might not be as he imagined, and he even might die.

Chen Changsheng had awakened a moment too late. He could only shout, nothing more.

Guan Feibai’s right hand slashed down like a sword, the Righteous Sword noiselessly slicing through the wind. Not even glancing at it, the monster shot out a tentacle-like finger.

It appeared that both sides were about to inflict grievous injuries upon each other, or perhaps an even worse result. Who could change all this?

A petite figure flew out of the church’s window.

At this moment, the small figure was still several dozen zhang away from the battlefield. It was logically impossible for her to make it.

But this figure’s speed already surpassed the bounds of logic, seeming just like a real bolt of lightning.

This thunderbolt bizarrely avoided the bits of grass and mud, precisely striking the monster.

To describe it more accurately, that petite figure flew through the air and rammed into the monster.

A groan split the night. Grass and mud were sent flying once more.

The monster flew into the grass several dozen zhang away, breaking many bones on the way.

The petite figure landed in front of Chen Changsheng and Guan Feibai, its body swaying for a moment.

It was Nanke.

The monster knew of Nanke’s terrifying speed and didn’t dare linger anymore. Turning around, he drilled into the grass.

Nanke knew that if this monster were to flee underground, it be would incredibly difficult to catch, so she prepared to pursue.

Just when she was prepared to move, her body swayed again. It was clear that she had suffered significant injuries from the previous collision.

This time, a different figure jumped down from a tall tree.

Zhexiu had arrived.

Seeing the scene laid out before him, he didn’t even think, much less calculate, only charged over according to his customary way of fighting.

Like a meteorite, he jumped down from the tree towards the new hole in the grass.

With a boom, the earth quaked and the river roiled. Grass, leaves, and mud jumped into the air once more, obscuring the starlight and casting a gloom over the scene.

The dust gradually settled, revealing the scene on the ground. A massive pit had appeared that went a zhang deep into the ground. One could faintly see ripples of water at the bottom.

______________

1. The first saying is ’锋芒毕露’, which is a Chinese idiom meaning that one is showing off their abilities to their full extent. The difference between these two sayings, ’锋芒毕露’ and ’锋芒必露’, is that ’必’, though sharing the same pronunciation as ’毕’, means ’must’, turning the display of one’s full abilities into a matter of absolute necessity.↩

2. I have chosen to translate the term ’剑罡’ as ’Righteous Sword’ because the word ’罡’ is formed from the words ’四正’, which mean ’Four Corrects/Rights’. In general, this term is used to indicate that one has made their body ’right/correct’, hence ’Righteous Sword’.↩

3. The name ’Chusu’, ’除苏’, quite literally means ’Remove Su[Li]’↩