Chapter 211: Three Against One, Xiao Chen? The Advantage is Ours

Chapter 211: Three Against One, Xiao Chen? The Advantage is Ours

A remote island 160,000 li (80,000 kilometers) south of Hundred Grasses Island.

Xiao Chen landed on the ground, adjusted his breath, and prepared to practice his sword techniques.

Since merging the wind-thunder pair swords with his life-essence core to form his life-bound flying sword, he hadn’t tested them yet.

This rare opportunity to venture out was perfect for gauging the power of the Sharp Light Piercing Cloud Sword.

For thousands of li around, the sea stretched endlessly—plenty of space to unleash spells without prying eyes.

He summoned his Flying Sword for inspection. After being nourished by the life-essence core, the blades’ hues had become even purer.

One gleamed a deep azure, like dewdrops clinging to tender bamboo shoots on a spring morning; the other shimmered indigo-violet, like the outermost glow of sunset clouds in late autumn.

Though the swords had retracted their radiant auras, anyone glancing at them would instantly recognize their value.

After all, these were life-bound flying swords—naturally superior to ordinary treasures.

Xiao Chen focused his will, channeling true mana from his body into the twin blades.

At first, nothing happened. But when the hundredth stream of true mana settled, the wind-thunder pair swords suddenly emitted a crisp, ringing sword cry.

A gust of wind swept across his face, fluttering his robes, while arcs of thunderbeam coiled around him, making him seem like a celestial being descending from the heavens.

“Wow, this effect!”

Xiao Chen glanced around, nodding in satisfaction.

Forget the actual power for now—how about the visuals?

“Razor-sharp aura condenses, the heart’s light blazes like a torch…”

Wielding the wind-thunder pair swords to execute the Sword Technique felt completely different from practicing barehanded.

As a yellow rank sword art, the Sharp Light Piercing Cloud Sword only had two forms: Razor-Keen Piercing Cloud and Heart-Light Piercing Cloud, totaling twelve sword moves. Its minimalist design eased cultivation difficulty.

Thus, Xiao Chen mastered the basic forms in just half a shichen (two hours), officially entering the threshold of this sword technique.

“Soaring Through the Clouds Slash!”

He slashed at the endless sea ahead. A sword beam erupted like a gale, sweeping forward to raise waves dozens of zhang (tens of meters) high across the ocean.

In an instant, the waves surged forward over six hundred zhang (two kilometers), nearly creating a small-scale tsunami.

After executing all twelve sword moves, he gazed at the crashing waves and felt his mood lighten. The pent-up frustration from recent arduous cultivation vanished.

“Pity there’s no sect disciple to spar with—this feels slightly lacking.”

Typically, after a cultivation realm breakthrough, disciples would test their skills against peers to assess their progress.

Truthfully, Xiao Chen had never sought sparring in the Lihuo Sect.

With hextech reinforcement, he already knew he’d win without a fight.

Now, though, he missed the practice—not out of habit, but because he couldn’t gauge the combat strength of other cultivators in the Eastern Territory.

The Nine Luminaries Mysterious Pill was indeed effective, enhancing his true mana significantly.

But it shouldn’t have amplified spell range to hundreds or thousands of zhang (hundreds of meters).

Even combined with a Heaven-Tier cultivation manual, it should still fall short by several magnitudes.

Xiao Chen didn’t believe Shouyuan Zhenren would lie without reason.

There must be other methods in the Eastern Territory to boost spell power—methods he hadn’t encountered yet.

“No big deal. If needed, I’ll just buy more Nine Luminaries Mysterious Pills.”

After all, judging from the True Yang Fire Dragon, improving his true mana’s quality would amplify the hextech reinforcement.

Besides, these were merely tools for protection.

Boosting his cultivation stage remained the top priority.

Speaking of which, Xiao Chen noticed a side effect of the Nine Luminaries Mysterious Pill.

Well, not exactly a side effect.

As his true mana became more refined, both his true mana regeneration speed and new true mana condensation rate had slowed.

This was understandable, but it posed a problem.

His cultivation speed had dropped—previously, focusing for two days yielded one true mana; now, it took nearly four.

It was already late January. At this rate, he might not reach the Golden Core Middle Stage threshold until next year.

For a golden core cultivator with a 500-year lifespan, a year was trivial.

Some cultivators even secluded themselves for three to five years at a time.

Yet Xiao Chen, accustomed to rapid progress, couldn’t help craving faster results.

According to past experience, this was the time to consume Spirit Herbs to accelerate cultivation.

He’d always done this, ensuring his progress stayed ahead of the curve.

But now, Xiao Chen found himself in a gray area between wealth and poverty.

As a solitary cultivator, he possessed over a million spirit stones—a substantial fortune—and even owned numerous Fourth Stage Spirit Herbs.

Even the chief disciple of the Star-Plucking Sword Pavilion probably couldn’t match his wealth.

Yet directly consuming Fourth Stage Spirit Herbs felt wasteful, and selling them risked drawing attention.

Top-tier Third Stage Spirit Herbs cost tens of thousands of spirit stones each. If he kept devouring them like before, a million spirit stones would vanish in two months. Clearly unsustainable.

“I need to find a way to earn spirit stones. Any quick and easy money-making methods?”

As Xiao Chen flew back to Hundred Grasses Island on his sword, he pondered profit-making strategies.

Was researching pill forging too slow?

What about taking on bounties?

He recalled the Wanxian Island bounty board—eleven targets worth over a million spirit stones each, totaling over ten million. A literal spirit stone mine.

But the issue was that those targets might be hard to catch.

As Xiao Chen lost in thought, a sudden surge of spiritual energy in the distance snapped him back to reality.

“Someone’s fighting?”

Following the spiritual energy fluctuation, he spotted a Golden Core cultivator fleeing toward him on a sword beam.

Behind him, two Golden Core Initial Stage presences darted through the sea, chasing relentlessly.

They weren’t human—two golden core yao beasts.

In an instant, Xiao Chen’s mind sparked an idea—demon core!

How could he forget about them?

What did the Eastern Territory have in abundance?

Third Stage sea fish, of course!

The vast ocean teemed with countless Third Stage sea fish.

And unlike cultivators using Nine Luminaries Mysterious Pills to enhance true mana, sea fish lacked such methods.

In other words, soft targets.

Plus, Xiao Chen was a Body Cultivator. Catching Third Stage sea fish would not only yield demon cores but also save on fish meat costs—two birds with one stone.

As the saying goes, live off the land, or in this case, the sea.

“Fellow cultivator, save me!”

The fleeing cultivator spotted Xiao Chen and shouted desperately, “I’m a Jin Clan cultivator from Wanxian Island! Please, fellow cultivator, lend your aid! I’ll reward you handsomely afterward!”

Jin Baoqiang had been exploring the Baicao Forbidden Realm with two Golden Core Middle Stage elders from his clan.

After the forbidden realm closed a month ago, they lingered near Hundred Grasses Island for over half a month, touring the Nanlao Sea’s scenic beauty.

This morning, Jin Baoqiang set out for a leisurely flight but was ambushed mid-journey by two Golden Core sea fish lurking underwater.

Without a Jade Talisman gifted by his clan for emergencies, he’d have perished.

Now, he fled, seeking his clansmen’s protection.

But the sea fish were astonishingly fast, closing the gap rapidly. Desperation burned in his chest.

Just then, he spotted a fellow cultivator flying ahead on a sword beam and begged for help.

He invoked his Jin Clan status, hoping to sway the stranger.

Many solitary cultivators would avoid such trouble to stay safe.

To Jin Baoqiang’s relief, the cultivator halted immediately upon hearing his plea, seemingly willing to help.

This was great news!

“I’m Jin Baoqiang. Thank you, fellow cultivator, for your aid!”

As he hurled a talisman to suppress the sea fish, he explained the situation to reassure his ally:

“I already sent a Voice-Transmitting Spirit Sword for help earlier.

“If we hold out briefly, my clan’s elders will arrive.”

Hmm?

Reinforcements would come soon—someone else would claim the demon core?

Xiao Chen’s eyes narrowed. Time was limited. He couldn’t hold back today; he’d have to reveal some strength for a swift victory.

The True Yang Fire Dragon was too conspicuous—better to hide it.

Perfect. He’d just practiced sword techniques; time to slay beasts with his blade.

He hovered midair, gripping the Donghua Wind Sword, and infused true mana into a sword beam.

For the first strike, Xiao Chen used only 30% power as a test.

Even at 30%, the hextech reinforcement and refined true mana exploded into a hundred-meter water surge.

Jin Baoqiang’s eyes lit up—such formidable sword qi! Salvation was near.

The opponent’s strength was impressive. With teamwork, they could hold out long enough.

One sea fish reacted swiftly, swatting a meter-high wave to block the sword beam.

The other was slower, dodging too late as its dorsal fin was sliced off by three cun (centimeters). Enraged, it radiated scales that fired hundreds of ice blades in retaliation.

Jin Baoqiang hurled his talisman without hesitation. It transformed into a blooming azure lotus overhead, deflecting both ice blades and crashing waves with drooping petals.

The lotus retracted afterward, avoiding interference with their counterattacks.

When cooperating with other cultivators, defensive spells like water screen required caution—blocking enemies shouldn’t hinder allies.

Yet Xiao Chen frowned slightly. These sea fish weren’t ordinary.

A southern domain golden core cultivator would struggle to block even 30% of his power so easily.

“Razor-Keen Piercing Cloud!”

He slashed backward, adding 20% more force.

The Donghua Wind Sword transformed into a meter-long white arc plunging into the sea, carving an arc upward from the left fish’s underside.

The sword beam moved even faster this time, the sea fish completely unable to dodge.

But it didn’t just wait for death. Its scales all glowed simultaneously, radiating a deep blue true mana across its body surface that solidified into a shell-like armor.

“Ka~!”

The sword beam struck the shell, visibly slowing for a moment.

“Cha~!”

The shell shattered, but the flying fragments blocked the sword beam again, ultimately only slicing off a clump of scales without injuring a vital area.

“Brilliant!”

Jin Baoqiang used a talisman to restrain another sea fish, still finding time to praise aloud, “Fellow Cultivator, your skills are truly remarkable!”

As a disciple from a prominent clan, he immediately recognized the Sharp Light Piercing Cloud Sword’s low grade.

But this precisely indicated that the opponent had likely cultivated this low-tier sword technique to the grand mastery realm, enabling such formidable power potency.

Judging from his appearance, he seemed over two hundred years old—another swordsman who had devoted himself entirely to the sword path.

Thinking thus, Jin Baoqiang paid extra attention to the azure lotus above his head.

Sword cultivators typically excelled at offense, so defense would have to rely on him.

However, Xiao Chen’s expression grew serious as he heard the praise.

He had just seen the sea fish’s true mana manifest externally, and it was exceptionally refined.

What was going on?

Had it also consumed the Nine Luminaries Mysterious Pill?

It even seemed to have taken more than himself?

That was impossible, of course. The only explanation was that this sea fish was extraordinary.

The more he pondered, the more interested he became in its demon core.

Could it be that today was his lucky day—a mutated sea fish at last?

“Retrieve~!”

He raised his hand, and the Donghua Wind Sword pierced through the water, carving a half-circle in the sky before returning to his grasp.

If that were the case, for a mutated sea fish, temporarily exposing his sword techniques was no great loss.

“Mind-Light Severance!”

Xiao Chen fully activated the wind sword in his hand while merging part of his spiritual sense with the flying sword.

Then, gripping it like a throwing knife, he hurled it downward. The blade’s trajectory left a long trail, like casting a meteor.

Though seemingly slow, this move was actually incredibly fast.

At the moment of release, it pierced straight into the sea fish’s body.

The creature hadn’t even begun casting a spell or attempting to dodge before the Donghua Wind Sword impaled its skull.

“Pa~! Pa~!”

The massive fish thrashed violently in the sea, its tail creating waves like crashing waterfalls.

But this was merely the residual reflex of a dying beast.

After a brief struggle, wisps of pale golden blood seeped from the wound, signaling the loss of vitality as its body slowly sank to the ocean floor.

The other sea fish, witnessing its companion’s demise, suddenly appeared agitated.

In an instant, its entire body glowed brilliantly, as if the full moon of the fifteenth night had been reflected into the sea.

A colossal surge of true mana erupted, pulling seawater within a hundred-mile radius to instantly form a waterspout hundreds of zhang tall.

Next, this waterspout emitted an exceptionally strong suction force, capturing even the surrounding heavenly qi.

Seawater within hundreds of miles was violently drawn upward, then sprayed from the sky like a torrential rainstorm.

The azure lotus in midair lasted less than three breaths before being sucked into the waterspout and crushed.

Jin Baoqiang’s newly deployed defensive talisman dimmed after only two seconds.

He tried to flee on his sword, but instead of escaping, he was pulled closer to the waterspout.

Terrified, his face turned ashen, “Save me! I can’t hold on any longer!”

“Fellow Cultivator, help me quickly!”

Xiao Chen still had some reserves left. He retrieved the Binding Immortal Rope from his Storage Ring and threw one end toward Jin Baoqiang.

Then, using Chasing Stars and Racing the Moon, he forcibly broke free from the suction, dragging Jin Baoqiang dozens of miles away.

Turning back, he immediately reactivated Mind-Light Severance, slashing at the other sea fish.

The sea fish itself was also caught mid-spell, unable to dodge, and was similarly pierced through in one strike.

With the true mana supply cut off, the massive waterspout dissipated on its own.

“Huh~! Scared me to death.”

Jin Baoqiang patted his chest, clearly shaken.

Xiao Chen immediately returned, manipulating his flying sword to carve the two sea fish into large chunks and storing them in the Han Hai Ring.

He also collected the two golden demon cores.

If Internal Elixir could enhance mana capacity or aid cultivation, demon cores were undoubtedly as valuable as top-tier Third Stage spirit herbs.

Especially since these two sea fish had clearly refined true mana in an unusual way.

Thus, their demon cores should yield even better effects.

As Xiao Chen gathered the sea fish meat, two new golden core presences approached from outside.

“Baoqiang, nephew! Are you alright?”

“Worthy nephew, what happened? What’s going on?”

It was the Jin Clan’s two elders arriving.

After receiving the Voice-Transmitting Spirit Sword earlier, they had been heading this way.

The massive waterspout earlier was clearly visible across thousands of miles of open sea, immediately drawing their attention.

They quickly approached, spotting Jin Baoqiang and the golden blood seeping into the water nearby.

The two elders exchanged a glance, recognizing this as the mark of a mutated sea fish.

Unlike land spirit beasts or those in the Boundary Sea, a significant portion of high-tier sea fish in the Eastern Territory had mutated bloodlines.

This was due to the sheer number of sea fish—such a massive population naturally made bloodline regressions more likely.

With sea fish outnumbering land spirit beasts by hundreds or thousands of times, mutated sea fish were similarly more numerous.

Understanding the general situation, the Jin Clan elders’ eyes lit up.

Overall, the Eastern Territory wasn’t lacking in Third Stage sea fish or mutated ones.

But personally, they were scarce!

These two mutated demon cores were worth at least four ordinary ones.

If they could obtain them, they could shorten their cultivation time by at least five years.

After all, ordinary cultivators didn’t have hex enhancements.

Their cultivation speed was inherently slow, often taking decades or centuries.

Thus, they craved anything that could accelerate cultivation. For them, saving five years was almost equivalent to extending life by five years.

Jin Baoqiang’s sixth uncle, Jin Xiuyong, immediately sent a secret voice transmission.

In terms of timing, Xiao Chen had just fought a battle, undoubtedly depleting much of his true mana.

As for geography, this area was rarely traversed by other cultivators—clean work would ensure no one would know.

In terms of personnel, three against one was a clear advantage.

Moreover, a middle-aged swordsman who could only cultivate a yellow-tier manual was clearly without background influence, not a prodigy.

If he had any connections, how could he have ended up toiling away at a Yellow Tier manual for decades?

Such an opportunity was too tempting to pass up.

When Xiao Chen emerged from the sea, he saw Jin Baoqiang hiding behind someone.

A stern-faced middle-aged man smiled at him, “Earlier, my nephew mentioned that Fellow Cultivator came to our aid in crisis. Our Wanxian Island Jin Clan is deeply grateful.”

“Might I ask Fellow Cultivator’s name and origin? Which sect’s esteemed disciple are you?”

“Please share honestly. In the future, our clans should maintain good relations and support each other.”

Xiao Chen waved his hand, “Fellow Cultivator flatters me. I’m the Golden Light Technique Hermit, merely a solitary cultivator.”

“I came from the south, quite far from here. Fellow Cultivator might not even recognize the name, so I’ll spare you the details.”

Hearing this, the three Jin Clan members exchanged glances.

The eldest, Jin Xiuli, Jin Baoqiang’s fourth uncle, hearing Xiao Chen had no background influence, finally made his decision.

Today, they would claim those two demon cores.

Considering letting Xiao Chen escape might create a future enemy, he raised his hand and released a bronze gong, “Kill!”

Before the word finished, the gong’s sound wave erupted, trembling across hundreds of miles.

The three were prepared, their bodies glowing with mysterious runes that blocked the sound.

Xiao Chen, however, heard it clearly, feeling his spirit sea struck like a hammer to his temple.

Another spiritual sense attack!

Fortunately, his recent life-essence core condensation had strengthened his spiritual sense.

After one breath, he regained clarity.

But in that one breath, a jade ruyi hung in the sky above.

Two flying swords attacked from left and right, while a monkey phantom wielding a hundred-zhang club smashed downward.

Unable to dodge, Xiao Chen instinctively summoned the Ghost-Face Mystic Light Shield, enveloping himself in mystic light.

Due to insufficient true mana to activate the Spirit Ascension Form, the shield lasted one breath before shattering, plunging him into the sea.

Luckily, that brief delay allowed him to deploy the Qiongtai Fire Lotus.

Lotus leaves bloomed, blocking all incoming attacks.

“This isn’t right—what spell is this?”

Jin Xiuli frowned, clearly seeing a yellow-tier defense spell, yet it effortlessly blocked his attack.

“Use talismans quickly! Don’t let him counterattack!”

Jin Xiuyong shouted, knowing sword cultivators excelled in life-or-death combat and should be crushed with spells.

Xiao Chen, however, didn’t rush to retaliate.

Instead, he calmly faced Jin Baoqiang, “I saved you twice. Is this how you repay me?”

Jin Baoqiang avoided eye contact, “I’m sorry, Golden Light Technique Fellow Cultivator. I’ll set up a memorial tablet for you at home, offering sacrifices on festivals.”

As he spoke, he activated two talismans.

“Haha, how ironic.”

Sometimes anger makes one laugh, like Xiao Chen now.

He retrieved the Soul-Calling Bone Banner, injecting 120 true mana to activate the Spirit Ascension Form, releasing three Soul-Forged Puppets.

Then, he casually cast the True Yang Nine Dragon Dance, preparing to end this quickly.

At this point, there was no need to hide his ace in the hole—after all, dead men tell no secrets.

“Heaven-Tier spell!”

Jin Xiuyong stared at the 2,000-zhang True Yang Fire Dragon, his face paling with fear.

“It’s not just a Heaven-Tier spell—it’s enhanced with a true mana secret technique!”

Jin Xiuli’s face darkened, this power far beyond a solitary cultivator’s norm, “Fellow Cultivator, wait! There’s a misunderstanding!”

But in response, the Soul-Forged Puppet descended from the heavens.

Following his usual habit, Xiao Chen first directed the fire dragon to eliminate the weakest Jin Baoqiang.

Then came Jin Xiuyong.

“You even have a Heaven-Tier escape technique! Who are you really?”

Jin Xiuli tried to flee but found himself trapped.

“Me?”

Xiao Chen pierced his heart with the Scarlet Gold Quadrangular Mace, “I’m the one who takes your life!”

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end