by Fang Xiang
Ruan You Xian could maintain his composure in an emergency, far more than the other disciples, which was why he had been given such an important task. However, he was not weak. Even though he only cultivated one shen glyph, his skill was solid.
Tian Huan had not paid great attention to the mission this time. The ruins were in Lotus Sutra Temple's territory and it was not easy to move there. Li Xian Er and the other disciples were all at important points in their cultivation and could not travel. Through different methods, Tian Huan had divined that the journey of the ruins would be dangerous this time.
However, under the suggestion of Chief Elder, he still sent Ruan You Xian and a few others to sneak in.
He had originally thought that Chief Elder had other considerations until Chief Elder told him directly and he realized. Chief Elder had reached a bottleneck on his comprehension of shen glyphs, and he wanted to obtain inspiration from the other paths.
The opening of the ancient ruins would attract many experts. Chief Elder only had do a few things in order to see the fights of the disciples. He had not concealed this from Ruan You Xian and the others. The sect leader also said that if they could not win, they did not need to fight to the death.
Ruan You Xian and the others were not opposed to this arrangement. The benefit to Tian Huan, if they could help Chief Elder, was clear.
Chief Elder's setup was effective.
After watching for a while, the sect leader's face became ugly.
Ceng Lian'er was strong as they said!
He knew long ago about Ceng Lian'ers strength. However, he was still surprised at how easily Ceng Lian'er suppressed Ruan You Xian. He unconsciously compared Ceng Lian'er and Li Xian Er but he quickly found that he could not come to any specific conclusions.
This caused his expression to turn uglier.
According to the intelligence reports, Cen Lian'er was not the strongest fighter under Zuo Mo's command. All of the reports showed that Ceng Lian'er was ranked third among Zuo Mo's various fighters.
The first was Wei Sheng, the second was A Gui. They were even more terrifyingly strong existences.
Yet Xian Er was the most accomplished of the younger generation of Tian Huan disciples.
When comparing the best genius of Tian Huan and the third ranked fighter of Mo Cloud Sea there was an inconclusive comparison. This indicated many problems already.
When he thought of Kun Lun's peerless sword essence just now, the sect leader felt even more worried. Tian Huan was falling behind in terms of top experts.
"Do not worry." The chief elder seemed to know what the sect leader thought and said, "Tian Huan is on a different path from Kun Lun and we are slightly similar to Mo Cloud Sea. An individual fights using their individual methods, a battalion fights with a battalions methods. If we can advance a step on the shen glyphs, our shen equipment would grow in strength. At that time, our battalions would become unprecedentedly powerful."
Chief Elder's words were filled with confidence.
The sect leader felt better and his thoughts turned. He had to admit that Chief Elder was right. Before Mo Cloud Sea appeared, Tian Huan had been the strongest faction in forging. Tian Huan's battalions had been the best outfitted of all the factions.
However, Mo Cloud Sea's sudden rise had caused them to surpass Tian Huan in shen equipment.
Chief Elder's gaze was clear. "Mo Cloud Sea is extraordinary and Ceng Lian'er is strong. However, she has allowed me to see some ancient secrets! At most a few months, at minimum one or two, new shen glyphs will take form. Tian Huan's new shen equipment will show their light!"
The sect leader said joyfully, "Great! What does this shizhi have to prepare?"
Chief Elder glanced at the sect leader before saying, "I do not want to interfere in some matters. However, as the sect leader of Tian Huan, you have to see clearly. The greatest enemy to us is not Kun Lun but Mo Cloud Sea!"
The sect leader stilled.
"What is Tian Huan strongest in? Seal formations, forging! In the past, anyone that wanted to buy a talisman will chose Tian Huan first. But right now, even Xi Xuan went to Mo Cloud Sea to order shen equipment." Chief Elder's tone suddenly became harsh. "I should not need to say more of Tian Huan's business. One more piece of shen equipment sold is one more portion of jingshi we make and one more friend. But right now, even I know that the best on the market is not our Tian Huan's shen equipment. You are the sect leader, you need to see this clearly."
The sect leader broke out in a cold sweat.
"Mo Cloud Sea is the biggest enemy to Tian Huan! Remember!" Chief Elder shouted. "The era is different! Stop your posturing as Tian Huan! Go compete with them, steal back the lost business and allies! Only then will Tian Huan prosper! Understand?"
The sect leader kowtowed sincerely. "Yes! Mo Cloud Sea is the greatest enemy to Tian Huan!"
His last words were murderous.
Translator Ramblings: Old elder kicks unfilial disciple off his pedestal. At one person is wise.
Chapter 799: Ambush
Zuo Mo was not in a good mood.
The sword essence just now had been too great of a blow to his confidence. Kun Lun was so far away from this place, yet that sword essence was able to reach this place. Even the jinzhi of the Totem Coliseum were unable to block it. How terrifying it was!
Zuo Mo suddenly realized that when individual strength reached a certain level, it could also change the state of the world.
In reality, Zuo Mo did not place great importance on the training of experts. Mo Cloud Sea developed using forging. This was similar to Tian Huan's development path. There were no direct benefits in this path to develop experts, but it was beneficial for increasing their overall strength.
The reason that Mo Cloud Sea had so many strong fighters was just because it had been slightly ahead in this crucial time of the ling power era switching to the shen power era.
But as Kun Lun and Tian Huan reacted, the opportunity from being early was not as large as they imagined.
But even so, Mo Cloud Sea was still positioned well.
Top experts were stronger than before, but the average strength level had also increased greatly. The difference between the two did not increase, but decreased. Top experts could affect the results of a battle but could not become strategic assets. As shen equipment became mainstream and shen device raiments were rare, the difference shrunk even more.
Even the strongest expert could not win against an elite battalion.
That situation was just destroyed right now.
Such terrifying sword essence was not something the sword xiu of this era could possess. It definitely was a peerless shen sword left over from the ancient era. The Ghost Mist Child said it was the Immemorial Sword. Zuo Mo was still slightly in doubt. Even an ancient shen device could not have such an astounding presence.
Zuo Mo was not blind. Wei Sheng's God-Killing Blood Sword was also an ancient shen sword yet the two's swords presence was not on the same level. There was something else going on here.
While he did not understand, Zuo Mo perceptively realized that something important had occurred.
Even if Kun Lun could only use ten percent of such power, it would be enough to erase a battalion. If they were stronger and could use all of that power, Zuo Mo would not be surprised if they could destroy a jie.
This meant that a new kind of war had formed.
Think about it, if Lin Qian sneaked into Cloud Sea Jie and then destroyed Cloud Sea Jie with a single strike, it would be a true catastrophe for Mo Cloud Sea.
Zuo Mo felt a chill rise from his feet.
It was too terrifying!
But this was not solvable. The movement of large battalions could not be concealed, but no faction would be able to stop few people from sneaking in.
What do they do then?
Zuo Mo compartmentalized the terror he felt and his mind started to turn, thinking of a solution. His mind was nimble, cunning, and intelligence but this time, he had no plans
. When the difference in power between the two was too great, any scheme was worthless.
He pulled out the Ghost Mist Child and asked, "What method can cause the Immemorial Sword to have this presence?"
The Ghost Mist Child was confused. A moment later, he understood. His little face scrunched together as he thought. He said, "Most likely, they used a peerless soul to nurture the sword in order to reach this level."
Little Mo Ge's mind shifted and he suddenly asked, "God-Killing Blood Sword, have you heard of it?"
Slight terror rose on the Ghost Mist Child's face. "Does Master possess this sword? Not good! The sword is inauspicious! It is the most vicious sword! Every one of the sword's masters died in violence. Master, do not be greedy about this sword's power!"
Zuo Mo shook his head. "This sword is my shixiong's. My shixiong is strong in mind and cannot be defeated. Do not worry. I just want to ask, how does this sword compare to the Immemorial Shen Sword."
The worry on the Ghost Mist Child's face did not lessen but he said, "The God-Killing Blood Sword is called the most vicious sword in the world. It has drank the blood of countless warriors, and is not lacking at all compared to Immemorial."
"If I want this sword to reach the presence that now, what should I do?" Zuo Mo felt as though he found a good solution.
Since Kun Lun has the powerful Immemorial Shen Sword, then we will level up the God-Killing Blood Sword to the same level. That way, I cannot guard against you, you cannot guard against me, we will be on the same level.
The Ghost Milst Child understood what Zuo Mo meant to do but shook his head. "If you want to elevate the God-Killing Blood Sword to such a level, you need the essence blood of countless warriors, and not souls. However, this sword is the most vicious in history. The sword soul is blood-thirsty and savage, primarily inauspicious. If it becomes so strong, no one will be able to control it. It will probably turn into a storm of blood."
Zuo Mo was silent. What the Ghost Mist Child said was not complex. Zuo Mo had seen Shixiong's God-Killing Blood Sword, The killing essence of that sword was so strong it was unparalleled in the world. If the God-Killing Blood Sword really became so strong, Zuo Mo felt that even Shixiong would not be able to control it.
There would be only one result if the weapon was stronger than the master, backlash upon the master.
Zuo Mo suddenly thought of an important point and asked, "Wouldn't the Immemorial Shen Sword also cause backlash?"
The Ghost Mist Child said without thinking, "If one is not strong enough and attempts to control it, then of course it will."
"How strong? If they are as strong as me, will there be backlash?" Zuo Mo asked.
The Ghost Mist Child was afraid of offending Zuo Mo but he would not dare to lie. Hesitating a while, he nodded and said, "Yes." Then he added, "If Master is slightly stronger, then no."
Zuo Mo ignored his last sentence. Lin Qian was stronger than him, but definitely not much stronger. That meant that Lin Qian would also receive backlash!
Zuo Mo's mind turned. "If one does not want to receive backlash, then now?"
The Ghost Mist Child stilled and blurted out, "Unless it is people like his relatives who are willing to merge their soul into the sword and help him suppress it. However, this is not realistic. Using a soul to nurture the sword, the soul will be placed in great torment and will never be able to be released and reincarnated."
Zuo Mo was silent. He couldn't help but look at A Gui next to him.
Wasn't A Gui's Undying Shen Punishment just like this?
He had seen Kun Lun's zeal. For those madmen, they could do something like this. However, he would not be able to do it, and he would never agree to it.
He finally knew what had happened at Kun Lun but even so, he did not have any solution. It was not a pleasurable matter for any person when their enemies were a group of madmen with belief.
At this time, he suddenly saw two figures flash out of the corner of his eyes.
Zuo Mo seemed to wake up. This was not the time to think about such matters. A strong feeling of danger rose. He had an even stronger desire for the shen device nucleus.
A shen device raiment could not change the disadvantage Mo Cloud Sea had in terms of strategically useful experts, but it could decrease the gap between them.
In a few moments, Zuo Mo made a decision. The murderousness in his eyes grew.
The incomers were not from his side!
Zuo Mo's body flashed and he appeared without any hesitation next to one of the people.
The other hadn't thought that they would be attacked just after walking out. Zuo Mo had attacked without any warning, no noise. He was like a viper hidden in the shadows before suddenly exploding in a fatal attack.
Layers of sun shen power covered his hand. A small axe of light formed. If the Sun Shen Axe that Zuo Mo had manifested when he had been fighting with the Ghost Mist Child was tens of thousands of catties heavy, then what was on his hand now was a throwing axe.
The dark gold axe was the size of his palm. It was unusually thin and light. The sun glyph on the surface of the axe was fine and exquisite. The markings representing the rays of the sun almost covered the entire surface of the axe.
Zuo Mo's hand flickered.
The little axe silently turned into a stream of light and struck the waist of the incomer.
When the other managed to react and gathered their shen power, it was too late. The Sun Shen Power was too sharp. This person, caught off guard, had shen power as thin as paper. He was unable to stop the axe entering his body.
The incomer's body froze.
Moments later, he gave a scream. Blinding golden light suddenly released from his body. A wisp of golden fire shot out of his body and then turned him into flames in that moment.
A Gui's movements were similarly brisk. Just as Zuo Mo was attacking, A Gui's hand already gripped the neck of the other person. With a crack, the other person died without even making a sound.
The Ghost Mist Child gaped with wide eyes. By the time he reacted, he felt a wave of cold come up from under him.
Such viciousness!
Killing without blinking!
Zuo Mo crouched on the ground to gather spoils. The corpse that A Gui held was thrown in front of Zuo Mo.
They were people from Skanda Temple.
Zuo Mo's expression did not change. In just a few moments, he cleared the two of their possession. The two had only average items, except one damaged skanda staff. It seemed slightly old and was likely an item from the ancient era. Zuo Mo weighed it. The haft-section of the staff was unusually heavy and he could hear the sounds of wind and thunder.
They had some wealth, Zuo Mo thought.
The splitting of the Nine Great Dhyana Sects would be difficult to stop. The present Nine Great Dhyana Sects would split into two groups. The group led by Thunder Sound Temple was closer to Mo Cloud Sea. And Skanda Sect, Heart Leaf Dhyana Sect and others were controlled by Kun Lun and Tian Huan.
Therefore, Zuo Mo did not need to have any care towards Skanda Sect.
Suddenly, Zuo Mo realized that this was a wonderful battlefield.
Since everyone had to come through here, then they, who got here first, had a great advantage.
If they repeated what they just did … …
Zuo Mo suddenly became excited. He asked the Ghost Mist Child, "Can you act in here?"
The Ghost Mist Child recovered from his shock and nodded repeatedly. "Yes, yes, yes!"
Zuo Mo motioned. "Use mist to fill this entire place. We need to make a mist formation in here."
The Ghost Mist Child became alert. This was the first battle he was fighting under his new Master. He had to do well for Master to have a good opinion of him. Without another word, he activated the Mist Eye Tablet.
The Mist Eye Tablet sprouted out thick white mist. Soon, the mist filled the entire hall except in the area within three zhang of the four palace gates. Once the mist went near the palace gates, they would be pushed away.
Zuo Mo did not care. He pulled out the Black Gold Seal Soldier and Lil' Pagoda from his ring. Lil' Fire, and Lil' Black who did not have any offensive capabilities were shoved back into the ring.
Things like ambushes were the most exciting!
Translator Ramblings: His first successful ambush! So proud of Zuo Mo, he kept on trying.
Chapter 800: “Sneak Attack”
Tan Xu and the other two had joyful expressions. That peerless sword essence just now astounded them, and what made them even happier was that the sword essence contained that familiar Kun Lun presence!
Everyone knew what that mean. No matter if it was a shixiong had achieved a supreme level, or the appearance of the shen sword, the powerful sword essence represented great power. This was definitely a good matter for Kun Lun.
The trio were all Children of Kun Lun, the true backbone of Kun Lun. They were connected to the wellbeing of the sect.
"We will definitely obtain the shen device nucleus," Nie Chen said with a steely resolve. Unusual determination flashed through his eyes, and his usually calm expression was excited.
The other two people nodded at the same time with fanatical expressions.
This peerless sword essence seemed to rule over the world. Even the strongest expert was like an ant in front of such powerful sword essence.
The title of the strongest in the world once again returned to Kun Lun.
Kun Lun had always been thought of the sect strongest in battle. Yet in these past years, they were not as they once were. Even a Mo Cloud Sea dared to fight them.
This was hard for the proud Kun Lun disciples to tolerate.
Now that Kun Lun once again demonstrated its unparalleled power, how could Tan Xu and the others not be excited?
"Everyone, be careful." Nie Chen did not let the victory go to his head. He was even more careful. He knew that if the other people were only fifty percent sincere in their desire to get the shen device nucleus, now it would be one hundred percent.
The shen device nucleus was not able to match that sword essence right now, but an extra shen device raiment meant that the other factions would have that much more power to fight Kun Lun.