Chapter 175: Forty-Nine Mountain Layers
The Yao Race cannot sense the Heavenly Dao; a Rongdao Realm cultivator might be able to fight a General Realm cultivator to a draw.
But among those who arrived at this time, there were thirteen Soldier King Realm cultivators, as well as countless General Realm Yao Race.
The strength and explosive power brought by Body Refining, including the growth of innate talents, were far beyond what a weak Physical Body could compare to.
Under the night sky, a cold moon hung high.
The outline of the Ten Thousand Mountains was faintly visible in the distant mist, appearing boundless.
Eight King General Yao Race from the Eastern War Zone arrived with overwhelming Aura, instantly colliding with the Immortal Sect Elders who rose into the air, stirring up surging winds that rushed straight into the sky.
They had originally intended to shake off their pursuers here and then change course to the northwest, but with the arrival of the powerful pursuers, shaking them off was no longer possible.
Thus, the original route became the best route.
Because since they were already exposed, the specific route no longer mattered; the shortest one was the least risky.
From here, they would head straight north, which was the thousand-mile long boundary line between the Yao Race and the Yao Race.
The Yao Race did not dare to send large numbers of troops there, because that boundary line represented the Face of the Yao Race, and at this critical juncture when war was about to break out, Face might seem useless, but sometimes it was an important factor influencing the balance.
At this moment, Ji You summoned a flash of Spirit Origin from his storage gourd and put on the Heart-Protecting Mirror that he had purchased at a huge cost from someone else, his heart still pounding.
That arrow just now was too dangerous; it almost made many people in Kyushu genuinely happy.”
And it almost made many women lose the husband of their dreams.
He landed on the carriage shaft, looking at the Lingjian Mountain Elder who was fighting with the Soldier King Yao Race; that dazzling Sword Qi was even stronger than his own sword, and his Sword Intent was even more fervent.
It seems that after the envoy list was confirmed, Lingjian Mountain's Young Master Jian once again left seclusion midway, sending a husband-protecting item…
At this moment, Gongshu Chou landed on the carriage shaft with his sword, recovering and panting, and looked up at his Elder, Yan Chuan.
“Why did Elder Yan save you?”
“Because Elder Yan is very kind.”
“?”
Gongshu Chou looked at him, not believing it in the slightest.
Could it be that Elder Yan Chuan was invited by Junior Sister Ding Yao?
Although Ding Yao’s Realm was not high and she had no Worldly Family background, because she was Master Jian’s maidservant and was treated as a sister by Master Jian from a young age, her invisible status was very high—
Gongshu Chou frowned, unable to help but shake his head. He felt that with Ding Yao’s status, no matter how high, she probably couldn’t invite a Wujiang Realm Elder.
It’s really strange. This Ji You is clearly a Tianshu Academy Disciple, yet he’s closer to their Lingjian Mountain, as if he has a relative on the mountain.
“Sect prestige—”
Gongshu Chou narrowed his eyes: “Indeed, it’s still sect prestige!”
Ji You is the most troublesome person in the world, and when he causes trouble, he uses their Spiritual Sword Mountain Sword Dao. If he stays alive, he can cause more and more trouble, and the value of Spiritual Sword Mountain Sword Dao will become higher and higher.
Lingjian Mountain truly understands me.
Ji You didn’t know that Gongshu Chou was pondering the matter of value; instead, he stood on the carriage shaft, his brow slightly furrowed as he looked behind him.
The pursuing battle continued relentlessly, and the hurricane stirred up by the rushing air currents caused the desolate land to change color, making the carriage creak and groan.
The Immortal Sect Elders, wielding myriad Dao, fought and retreated, while the Soldier King and Generals continuously swooped down, relying on their powerful Aura to resist spells and Sword Dao head-on.
But as the convoy continued to speed forward, a scorching figure suddenly charged fiercely towards the convoy.
With a loud boom, the entire carriage began to tremble violently. A Soldier King Yao Race, whose entire body was as hot as fire, directly struck the ground with his fists, and the entire left wing of the carriage was overturned.
In a flash, everyone saw a figure being directly torn apart, blood splattering into the air, and the soaring Aura illuminated the cruel and ferocious Face of the Soldier King Yao Race.
“So strong…”
Clang, clang, clang, sword sounds rose all around.
Jiang Chenfeng and others rose up, directly forcing back the four General Realm cultivators who followed, but there was no one to stop the Soldier King, whose Aura was like a rainbow, at this moment.
Immortal Sect Prodigies only fight battles they cannot lose.
Whether they came for the position of a direct Disciple or for their Family, the clearest point in their hearts was that if they died, they would have nothing left.
With a boom, the Soldier King Yao Race’s iron fist pressed down, and the wild Qi directly rushed towards the center of the convoy.
However, this punch did not land before it was fiercely blocked by an iron blade.
An Elder from the Chen Clan broke free at this moment, and his surging Aura directly forced back the Soldier King.
But the Soldier King he had blocked earlier now found an opening, and his entire body’s Qi surged with a roar, like a burning meteor, fiercely rushing towards the middle of the convoy.
Seeing this, Peng Dongyang, the Supervisor of the Immortal Supervision Department, turned pale.
The Human Race and the Yao Race had been separated by the Northern City Wall for a thousand years, and their understanding of each other was not deep enough.
They had thought that having a Wujiang Realm escort was stable enough, but they had underestimated the danger of this trip, just as they had previously underestimated the strict military discipline of the Yao Race.
If there were a few Spirit Wandering Realm cultivators, or Upper Five Realms at Perfection…
Unfortunately, such figures were regarded as important foundations by Immortal Sects and Worldly Sect; even thousand-year-old Worldly Sect had only a few, and if one was lost, it could almost lead to the downfall of a Worldly Family, so they would not be easily moved.
In their view, if the Yao Race and Yao Race did not unite, but their own Family was swallowed up due to the loss of a foundational master, it would be better for the Yao Race and Yao Race to unite.
In fact, their Immortal Supervision Department had also pleaded in every way to invite a Wujiang Realm cultivator from the Chen Clan.
If Lingjian Mountain hadn’t proactively sent another Wujiang Realm cultivator to generously resolve the difficulty, they might not even have reached this place—
Boom!
Fist Intent, like a surging tsunami, rushed forward, its reflection rapidly growing in Peng Dongyang’s eyes.
But at this moment, a figure suddenly rose from the last carriage, directly blocking the iron fist. His slender body seemed incredibly fragile before the mighty Soldier King of the Yao Race.
Under a heavy thud like a collapsing mountain, the Soldier King Yao Race’s punch was directly intercepted, but the wild fist Qi stirred up waves of earth that began to surge wildly in all directions.
At the same time, the figure blocking the punch was blasted away like a cannonball, falling heavily like a broken kite in front of the moving convoy.
Seeing this scene, Yan Chuan of Lingjian Mountain was now furious, his entire head buzzing.
And Jiang Chenfeng and the other twelve Prodigies, who had temporarily forced back the Yao Race General, now widened their eyes, a glimmer of disbelief flashing within them.
What for?!
But at this moment, a hand suddenly grabbed the shaft of the leading envoy carriage, and then a figure leaped into the carriage, panting continuously inside.
Ji You’s Face was somewhat pale, a trickle of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth, and the “mirror that could withstand a full-force attack from an Yingtian Realm cultivator” hanging on his chest was largely shattered, its surface dim and lifeless.
Damn it, the money wasn’t wasted!
But just thinking about the price of this Heart-Protecting Mirror made his heart ache unbearably.
Inside the carriage at this time sat three envoys: Wang Mingchang, Yu Shuheng, and Lu Ming.
As they were nearing the Snow Region, the temperature here was rapidly dropping. They were wrapped in thick winter clothes, and at this moment, their eyes were fixed on him, a hint of confusion appearing in their clouded eyes.
“Ji Gongzi—?”
Ji You reached out and grabbed Wang Mingchang: “Do you truly have the ability to persuade the Yao Emperor not to ally with the Yao Race?”
Wang Mingchang swallowed: “We will do our utmost—”
“I don’t know what price Great Xia has prepared, or what the Seven Great Immortal Sects are willing to pay to appease the Yao Race,”
“But you are professionals at talking, so you can definitely persuade them, right?”
Yu Shuheng clenched his fist: “If we don’t succeed, we’d rather die.”
Ji You looked at the three of them: “Actually, if I ran by myself, I would have a chance to escape, but I’ve always been afraid that if war truly breaks out, my small Transcendent Realm self would really be able to do nothing, so I don’t mind dying here, but you’d better keep your word.”
Wang Mingchang looked at him, raising his trembling hand: “Ji Gongzi is already an Immortal—why go to such lengths?”
“I’m fired up, so I’m a bit irrational—”
“This old man has never seen a Cultivator like Ji Gongzi before—”
“Those Prodigies will also lament this later, if that Yao Race throws another punch.”
Ji You released Wang Mingchang, reached out for the Medicinal Pill box given by the Dan Sect siblings, and then, following the instructions, took out a Medicinal Pill and swallowed it. He immediately felt a surging Qi rapidly spreading through his body, and his Divine Thought and physical strength began to recover quickly.
Once the Medicinal Pill’s effects had spread, he took out the Spirit Stones from his storage gourd, shattered them all with one punch, absorbed all the Spiritual Qi released from the Spirit Stones into his body, and then flipped onto the roof of the carriage.
Because their whereabouts were exposed, the convoy now had a “nothing to lose” mentality, directly speeding at full throttle towards the nearest border line.
With his eyesight, he could already see the city at the border line; behind the city was a vast expanse of white.
Ji You took out his bow and arrow again, drew the string, and shot a warhorse of a Yao Race pursuer, then walked towards the rear of the carriage.
At this moment, the Immortal Sect Prodigies were fighting the several General Realm Yao Race, with Qi splashing and dust flying.
Dazzling Sword Qi, wildly dancing spells, and powerful Physical Bodies continuously erupted with explosive sounds during their collisions.
The most intense battlefield was at the very back, where the six Great Immortal Sect Elders wielded profound spells, forcefully intercepting the thirteen Soldier King. Their clashing Auras made the night boil, and the Spiritual Qi in the area was almost drained by their breathing.
Yan Qiubai had said before that the improvement of the Yao Race’s Realm only enhanced their Physical Body, strength, and innate talents.
But as long as their strength was powerful enough, they could also break spells.
Therefore, the combined efforts of the six Elders against the thirteen Soldier King were not as effortless as imagined; that previous punch was because someone had broken through the encirclement.
And with the Yao Race’s powerful and heavy offensive, the barrier set up by several Elders with spells and Sword Dao was once again breached.
A Soldier King Yao Race, who had broken through the night, now rose into the air, his overwhelming Fist Intent causing everyone’s Faces to change at this moment, as if they saw a mountain of blood and a sea of corpses.
Jiang Chenfeng slashed back the General Realm Yao Race in front of him with a sword: “We can’t protect them! The Yao Race’s pursuit is far beyond the Supervisor’s judgment!”
Jiang Yan couldn’t help but look back: “We’ll be at Hailong City soon, that’s the boundary line between the Yao Race and Yao Race!”
“We can’t all die here, retreat quickly!”
Before her voice fell, Huo Hong stepped into the air first.
He had already crushed all his Spirit Stones earlier, and his Spirit Origin was now abundant.
Hailong City was right before his eyes. If he abandoned everything now, he could rush into the city at extreme speed and escape.
And the so-called retreat referred to these Cultivators retreating alone, while the envoy group would be left to their own devices; it was better than everyone dying here.
Under the pre-dawn sky, Fist Intent roared across the heavens, fiercely descending upon the vehicles laden with the envoy group.
However, to his surprise, as a sword cry suddenly rang out, that wild fist force was once again intercepted in mid-air.
Jiang Yan and Yan Qiubai suddenly paused, looking forward, and saw countless sword lights rising into the air—one, two… a total of forty-nine Spiritual Swords, their Sword Intent soaring to the heavens.
Amidst the wildly dancing winds and waves, Ji You's pupils shone with brilliant golden light, and then he raised a sky full of Sword Dragons, soaring into the air.
Sword Qi, at this moment, continuously boiled.
His white robe was whipped into a frenzy by the air currents.
A trickle of fresh blood once again spilled from Ji You's lips, staining his silver teeth red, making him look somewhat sinister.
Action and reaction were mutual. During the Autumn Tournament, he had only used Seven Chong Mountain, and now these forty-nine Sword Qi, as heavy as mountains, were already making his hand bones creak.
In silence, a thunderous roar echoed through the universe. Forty-nine Dao Swords crashed down upon the Soldier King barbarian head-on. The barbarian Soldier King was caught off guard and sent flying by the heavy Sword Dao, then fiercely struck in the chest by Yan Chuan's roaring sword.
At this moment, Ji You landed on the carriage roof with a “bang,” one foot directly breaking through the wooden board beneath him, sinking straight down.
His hands were trembling violently, his skin so red it looked as if blood would seep out.
He had used fifty-seven swords at Tianshu Academy, but he had only controlled ordinary sword moves, never Dao Swords in this manner. Now, with the Qi force reverberating through his body, he immediately spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. Jiang Yan, Yan Qiubai, and the Prodigies who had already decided to retreat suddenly stopped, looking at that figure with Faces full of shock.
【Dao Sword: Forty-Nine Mountain Layers】
Broken swords scattered across the sky, clattering down.
At this moment, the unbroken envoy carriages sped towards the city before them, the sound of hooves clattering on the snow.
Hailong City was very dilapidated, surrounded entirely by stacked yellow earth and stones. Besides a boundary marker, there were ruins everywhere.
And with the continuous roaring of carriages, some Yao Race members had already poked their heads out.
Seeing this, the barbarian Soldier Kings suddenly stopped, their sinister Faces filled with fury.
“Who is that guy?”
Especially the Soldier King who had been sent flying by the sudden Dao Sword earlier; he then took another sword from Yan Chuan, his chest already lacerated, but his killing intent surged even more fiercely. Staring at the figure on the last carriage, he clenched his iron fist, a grinding sound emanating from his mouth.
It was already dawn, and the deep night gradually began to whiten.
Bitter cold winds swept across the vast, white land, sharp as knives, but the envoy's carriages continued to gallop wildly until dawn.
Several magnificent horses pulling the carriages now collapsed, their heads slumped on the ground, their large nostrils panting madly.
Finally, their breathing became slower and slower, but not because it evened out; rather, it ceased entirely, and their eyes slowly closed.
Because they had known early on that exposure might lead to a long-distance pursuit, these horses had all been fed Immortal Hemp Grass.
This Spirit Medicine allowed horses to run tirelessly, but once they stopped, all the fatigue would rush in, completely overwhelming them.
This wasn't truly cruel, as the Human Race also used this medicine on themselves.
For instance, when Chu River spent nights comprehending the Heavenly Book, the Medicinal Pills he used contained ingredients of this Immortal Hemp Grass.
At this time, the envoy group entered this dilapidated earthen city, lit bonfires on the flat ground, and each person held their breath, drawing Spiritual Qi back into their bodies for replenishment.
There were casualties among the envoys.
Although the barbarian Soldier King’s first punch was blocked, it shattered the Magical Artifact protecting the carriage.
At the time, no one knew how many arrows had pierced the carriage, but only at dawn did they notice that the back compartment was covered in blood, and no sound emanated from it even after they stopped.
Tu Xu was hit by an arrow, his Physical Body pierced through.
Such superficial wounds were nothing to a Cultivator, but the strong Qi force directly penetrated his body, leaving him on the verge of death.
But all in all, they had finally entered the Snow Region.
Much later, a crimson sun rose through the mist, but it brought little warmth, only brightening the world a little.
The Prodigies of the Immortal Sects, having recovered their Qi, opened their eyes one by one. After a long silence, they looked towards the man leaning against the charcoal fire with closed eyes, their minds filled with the roaring Forty-Nine Mountain Layers, unable to recover for a long time.
【He didn't draw his sword; he beat him to death with his fists.】
This was what they had heard from Jiang Yan and Yan Qiubai at the beginning of the night's raid, when Ji You had killed two barbarian Upper Five Realms with his sword.
In fact, many people didn't believe it when they heard this sentence.
But what happened next told them that it didn't matter whether they believed it or not.
Because Ji You, relying on a Magical Artifact, directly withstood a punch from that barbarian Soldier King and was still alive and kicking.
That Magical Artifact was indeed extraordinary, but it was never meant to be used this way. The so-called ability to block a “full-power attack from an Yingtian Realm” referred to its use on someone in the Rongdao Realm, not any Realm. The most terrifying thing was that the Soldier King wasn't even in the Yingtian Realm; he was in the Wujiang Realm.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to break through the Elders' blockade.
So when that fierce punch struck, all the force, except for what was blocked by the heart-protecting mirror, was borne by him alone.
And what surprised them even more was that the forty-nine Dao Swords that soared into the sky at the end actually sent a ready-to-strike Soldier King flying.
The female Cultivators present, such as Jiang Yan, Yan Qiubai, Jiang Yuerou, and even Xiao Hanyan, now had the image of the soaring Sword Dragon deeply imprinted in their minds. Whenever they recalled it, they felt their Dao Heart could not be at peace.
They had Cultivated for many years, and within their Sect and Immortal Sects, they had seen many other Cultivators, but they had never seen a person like this: a private Cultivator by origin, who killed Rongdao with a sword, engaged in close combat with barbarians, and cut down a Soldier King with a sword.
“Actually, the Human Race does have Body Refining Cultivation Techniques, and with Medicinal Pills, they can reach astonishing levels of strength.”
“They say Ji You never takes Medicinal Pills.”
“That’s just what they claim publicly.”
Jiang Chenfeng said with a slight smile, then glanced at Jiang Yan. The forced disdain he had maintained suddenly dissipated,
and then he fell silent.
Because he knew that even with Body Refining Cultivation Techniques and Medicinal Pills, it was impossible to reach such a level of strength.
And the most crucial part wasn't that; it was the forty-nine swords at the end.
When he felt them from a distance, he knew he absolutely couldn't block those forty-nine swords.
Back in Feng Province, Gongshu Chou used to tell everyone that Ji You had once cut down a Rongdao with his sword, and he was extremely disdainful,
constantly claiming that a Rongdao who had honed their Realm over years in an Immortal Villa didn't count as a true Rongdao, and even said he could do it when he reached the Profound Realm.
It wasn't until those forty-nine swords repelled the barbarian Soldier King that it felt like a slap across his own Face.
Yan Qiubai spoke softly at this moment, her mind recalling the punch that had torn through the night sky earlier: “Doesn’t he fear death?”
“If he feared death, he wouldn’t have come along—”
“He and Lingjian Mountain—?”
Hearing this, everyone couldn't help but open their mouths, remembering the scene in the carriage earlier, and all looked towards Yan Qiubai.
In fact, after spending these days together, they had probably all learned about Ji You's past. They knew that although he was a Tianshu Academy Disciple, he had always been disliked by Tianshu Academy.
Indeed, many people wished he would die here.
When that arrow struck earlier, Ge Elder of Tianshu Academy didn't even move, which confirmed that statement.
The biggest difference between Ji You and them wasn't that his Realm was a bit lower, but that he had never had anyone to protect him.
This point could actually explain why he wasn't afraid of Divine Thought being restricted and insisted on Cultivating his Physical Body.
A private Cultivator from the countryside, with no one to protect him, often faced life-and-death situations, so naturally, he needed more life-saving methods.
But no one expected Lingjian Mountain’s Elder to step in to protect him, and even when he was held back by the barbarian Soldier King, seeing Ji You sent flying by a punch, he almost went mad.
It was as if this Elder Yan Chuan wasn't here to escort the envoy group at all, but specifically to escort him.
Could he be Yan Chuan's illegitimate son, with a similar experience to Huo Hong, unable to acknowledge each other due to circumstances, and thus only able to protect him in secret?
But at this thought, everyone couldn't help but recall Yan Chuan's slight bow after taking an arrow.
That wasn't the posture of an Elder towards a Junior; it was more like a subordinate towards a master. Yan Qiubai was stared at by everyone, but she couldn't offer any answers.
She only knew that Lingjian Mountain and Tianshu Academy were not on good terms. When they received Tianshu Academy's rescue order that day, her Tianjian Peak lineage almost all showed disdain.
Especially since Ling Province was located in the southernmost part of the Nine Provinces, even if the barbarian and Yao Races truly invaded Hantie Pass, it might not have much impact on their Lingjian Mountain.
So, at first, the Sect only intended to symbolically send a few people to deal with it.
But who knew that on the day of departure, she discovered that Xuanjian Peak had sent a Wujiang Realm to accompany them, and he wasn't on the initial list.
In her opinion, only the Young Master Jian, whom she had to call ‘cousin’ by seniority, could dispatch a Wujiang Realm Elder. But the problem was that Master Jian had gone into seclusion early on, and had said she wouldn't emerge until she reached Wujiang Realm.
Yan Qiubai pursed her lips, deciding not to think about what she couldn't understand.
Then her beautiful eyes couldn't help but lightly turn, looking at the figure lying behind the charcoal fire, wondering if she should go check on him.
Actually, at her age, it was indeed time to find a Dao Companion. Her earlier questions to Jiang Yan about Dao Companions and children were actually because she had started to consider it herself.
Yan Qiubai rose, smoothed her skirt, and tidied her beautiful hair, intending to walk gracefully over, but found that two figures had already gone ahead of her—Jiang Yan and Jiang Yuerou, even more gracefully than she.
