Chapter 267: Lil Birdies, Come Here!
At the fourth level of the Azure Phoenix Tower, even here, the space stretched boundlessly, vast and open.
Thick, dark mist, dense with demonic miasma, shrouded this level. Within the mist, massive azure shadows darted back and forth, their piercing cries echoing continuously. These shadows, emblazoned with runic formations and dazzling in their brilliance, were as fierce and proud as living creatures, striking against the inner walls of the tower like birds trapped in a cage.
At the entrance to this level, an island floated in the void, already crowded with a thousand onlookers. These were no ordinary folks; only disciples of the Peak Masters were worthy of observing the fourth level.
Three Sword Ruins Overseers, Feng, Yun, and Shuang, stood at the forefront, vigilantly guarding Exile Ling, allowing no errors.
"A Rank 10 Azure Phoenix!" a girl in blue exclaimed, her gaze fixed on a purple-robed figure in the midst of the black mist. Admiration was written all over her pretty face. She wore a delicate blue flower in her hair, adding to her tender charm.
"This is Exile Ling's first visit, and in just a half moment, he has absorbed a Rank 10 Azure Phoenix. Such a feat will be recorded in the annals of the Sword Ruins, unmatched by any who come after," a young boy beside her remarked. Bald but with delicate and handsome features, he resembled a piece of pure, uncut jade, both beautiful and slightly otherworldly.
"Indeed. In the history of our young disciples, only a Heavenly Sun Child managed to absorb a Rank 6 Azure Phoenix before he turned eighteen, and that took him a whole month," the girl said dreamily, her eyes locked on the young man.
"Sikong Yan, I heard you once encountered Exile Ling when he was still a sword slave and even helped him once?" the bald boy asked with a smile.
"It was just a small favor, but Exile Ling told me he remembers it well," Sikong Yan replied, her cheeks coloring slightly.
"Hold on to that memory; you might just become his chosen one," the boy said, his smile widening.
"Ku Xin, don't jump to conclusions... Exile Ling was just being polite to me..." Sikong Yan mused, her heart fluttering like a startled fawn as she recalled the young man's intense gaze.
She vividly remembered their first encounter. Back then, she was oblivious to the fact that he was Ling Chen, the sword slave. She had casually scolded some bullies, inadvertently rescuing him from their clutches. To him, she was an ethereal fairy, high and mighty, the granddaughter of a Sword Ruins Overseer.
But how the tables had turned! The disregarded has risen to glory. Now, even the fairy had to lower her proud head, her cheeks burning with a mix of embarrassment and something deeper.
Sikong Yan and Ku Xin, the young man beside her, were both top-tier Sword Cultivators of the Eternal Sword Prison, ranked within the top twenty in the last Immortal Sword Rankings. This time, their rankings were poised to climb even higher.
Ku Xin was the grandson of Ku Xuan, the guardian of the Azure Phoenix Tower, and the great-grandson of the Withered Bone Keeper. Qingzan, his aunt, was a figure of renown in the Calamity Seal Purgatory.
"There are only eleven Rank 10 Azure Phoenixs in the Azure Phoenix Tower. With one absorbed, only ten remain. I wonder if Exile Ling will continue?" Sikong Yan said, her beautiful eyes filled with tension.
Typically, those who managed to absorb a Rank 10 Azure Phoenix were celebrated Overseers of the Sword Ruins. Even they had to exchange great deeds for a chance at a Rank 10 Azure Phoenix, and even then, one was their limit. But Ling Chen needed no such exchanges. His status broke all norms.
"He's continuing!" Ku Xin exclaimed, admiration evident in his voice. As a prodigy of the Withered Bone Keeper's lineage, he rarely admired anyone. But Ling Chen had earned his genuine respect.
"The primary components of an Azure Phoenix are the demon bones of a Hell Demon. The Hell Demons of the Primeval Demon Hell are as powerful as the top ten strongest Overseers of our Sword Ruins. They're two realms higher than us at the Dao Heart Realm, and four above Exile Ling. The fact that he managed to subdue a Rank 10 Azure Phoenix in mere moments proves his true might as a reincarnated true Immortal!" Ku Xin observed, his face calm but his heart thunderstruck with awe.
When Exile Ling had captured that Rank 10 Azure Phoenix, the uproar it caused was immense, audible even from the first level of the Azure Phoenix Tower.
The spectacle on the fourth level of the Azure Phoenix Tower had drawn a crowd, swelling to at least two thousand onlookers in no time.
"A true Immortal indeed, unlike another pretender..." Sikong Yan mused, but her words were cut short by a rustling noise from behind.
"The Sword Warden and Exile Yun, have arrived, make way!" someone whispered urgently.
Ku Xin and Sikong Yan, along with Feng Buihui and the other Overseers at the front, exchanged perplexed glances and stepped aside.
"A true Immortal achieves miraculous feats, while the pretender only brings shame upon himself," Ku Xin remarked, shaking his head.
"Wherever Exile Ling goes, he follows, like a persistent parasite, a shadow that never fades," Sikong Yan said in a hushed tone.
Even they, having learned from Feng Ruolin's lesson, dared only to whisper among themselves. Feng Ruolin, three years their junior and a good friend of Sikong Yan, was regarded as a sister.
Amidst the focused attention of the crowd, Yun Xiao arrived at the forefront with an air of calm, accompanied by the Sword Warden. Thousands watched their retreating backs, their gazes filled with a curious mix of awe and unease.
Even Feng Buhui and the other two Overseers bowed respectfully to Yun Xiao, not daring to utter a word out of turn. The demise of Feng Ruolin had served as a stern warning to all Sword Cultivators of the Sword Ruins: none dared speak out of line in Yun Xiao's presence.
"Shall we?" the Sword Warden asked, raising an eyebrow. He was present this time, keen to witness firsthand. Ling Chen had set a record, capturing a Rank 10 Azure Phoenix in just a quarter of an hour. What about you?
"Can't wait," Yun Xiao replied, taking another step forward. He stood atop the floating island, not venturing into the black mist. Every eye was on him, comparing his still figure to Exile Ling in the depths, who was currently subduing a Rank 10 Azure Phoenix.
Yun Xiao paid little heed to the surrounding gazes. To him, the thoughts of the onlookers seemed increasingly absurd. He wasnt there to intimidate anyone; his sole desire was to claim an Azure Phoenix for himself.
With a metallic ring, his gaze deep and distant, as cold and vast as the night sky, he exuded the aura of the Creator Immortal. His Heaven Burial Sword Soul transformed into a three-foot-long azure blade, held before his eyes.
"Little birds, come here yourselves," Yun Xiao whispered, twirling his sword. The entire fourth level of Azure Phoenix Tower seemed to tremble at his command. Then, a series of piercing screeches filled the air as the Rank 10 Azure Phoenixes, one after another, hurled themselves towards the Heaven Burial Sword Soul.
"Uh?" Ling Chen, in the midst of thrusting his sword into another Rank 10 Azure Phoenix, paused as his target glanced disdainfully at him. With a flap of its enormous wings, the Azure Phoenix conjured a whirlwind of azure flames, diving towards a familiar figure on the floating island.
"Where did it go?" Ling Chen frowned, turning abruptly. To his astonishment, the remaining ten Rank 10 Azure Phoenixes, like ferocious demons, were all converging on Yun Xiao.
"It's him again!" Ling Chen's body jolted with realization, his expression twisting into a mix of bewilderment and intrigue. What in the world was happening? Snatching food from the tiger's mouth was always a daring feat, and he was far more formidable than any tiger.
"A sudden change in the Azure Phoenixes?" echoed the gasps from over two thousand onlookers atop the floating island. Some of the less experienced disciples hastily retreated, overwhelmed by the unfolding drama.
Above them, ten colossal Azure Phoenixes, each with wings spanning a hundred meters and engulfed in fiery fury, swooped down, their presence so immense it was like night had fallen. Their intense heat scorched the onlookers, and their ferocious aura sent several disciples scrambling away in terror.
Why had these Rank 10 Azure Phoenixes suddenly undergone such a bizarre transformation?
As the crowd watched in stunned silence, struggling to comprehend the situation, the leading Azure Phoenix dove straight towards a young man in white standing calmly below.
"Exile Yun?!"
In a flash, the young man in white lightly raised his sword, pointing it at the diving Azure Phoenix.
With a buzz, the Azure Phoenix collided with Yun Xiao's Heaven Burial Sword Soul. In an instant, feathers and bones transformed into over 2,000 layers of Sword Aura, swirling tumultuously around the sword.
This spectacle plunged the entire island into a profound silence.
Even Sword Ruins Overseers like Feng Buhui were left wide-eyed, disbelieving what they had just witnessed.
"Damn," the Sword Warden muttered under his breath.
"A Rank 10 Azure Phoenix, absorbed just like that?" Sikong Yan's beautiful eyes trembled with disbelief, turning to Ku Xin. "Am I seeing things?" Before she could get an answer, the remaining nine Azure Phoenixes, as if queued up, plummeted one after another into the Heaven Burial Sword Soul.
Nine successive explosions of feathers and bones resounded across the island.
After the ninth explosion, the entire fourth level of the Azure Phoenix Tower was shrouded in darkness, as if the whole world had plunged into an abyss. The only source of light was an azure longsword, its brilliance piercing the gloom. A total of 10,001 layers of Sword Aura roared and surged around it, creating a tempestuous sea of sword energy that churned and crashed upon the Sword Soul.
Initially, the fourth level boasted eleven Rank 10 Azure Phoenixes, each crafted from the bones of top powerhouses of the Primeval Demon Hell. Ling Chen's capture of one had sent shockwaves through the Sword Ruins. But Yun Xiao? He devoured the remaining ten in an instant, even snatching one right out of Ling Chen's grasp...
"Damn, damn, damn..." the Sword Warden muttered, his repeated curses reflecting his disbelief. Even with his vast experience, he stood gaping at the young man in white, utterly dumbfounded.
His reaction mirrored that of the other Sword Cultivators, all of whom seemed to have their brains short-circuit. Even given a quarter of an hour, they couldn't wrap their heads around what had just happened.
"Ku Xin!" Sikong Yan suddenly grabbed the bald young man's hand in panic.
"Don't ask me; I think I saw it wrong too..." Ku Xin grumbled, his voice tinged with irritation.
Sikong Yan realized that it was improbable for two people to be mistaken, especially when every onlooker wore a similar expression of disbelief.
"An illusion?" she wondered aloud.
"With all ten Azure Phoenixes gone, where's the illusion?" Ku Xin retorted.
"..." Sikong Yan fell silent.
Amidst the silence, Ling Chen floated out from the depths of the mist, his deep eyes fixated on Yun Xiao's Heaven Burial Sword Soul.
"Brother Yun's Sword Soul is no ordinary weapon," Ling Chen remarked with a forced smile, taking a deep breath.
"It's alright, just a bit too big of an appetite," Yun Xiao replied, his eyes burning with fervor as he slowly retracted the Sword Soul, wincing as it merged back into his body.
"An appetite is a blessing." Ling Chen chuckled dryly. "Seems I'm outdone on this trip to Azure Phoenix Tower."
So, you think you won the Sword Puppet Forest, huh? Yun Xiao wanted to laugh, but he held himself back. He was in a hurry to move on to the next place and said to Ling Chen, "My Sword Aura has reached the peak of the Sword Ruins. It should be enough for now. If Brother Ling still needs more, the third level awaits you. I must take my leave."
"Please," Ling Chen responded.
The Sword Warden smiled faintly at this exchange, departing with Yun Xiao.
Finally, Yun Xiao walked ahead, leaving behind a thousand silent onlookers.
Finally, Sikong Yan murmured to herself, "So, a Sword Soul with a lot of layers of Sword Aura doesn't mean much, right...? RIGHT!? So what if it's got a big appetite"
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