Chapter 439: Chapter 438: I Come From Bazhou
Outside the Jade Sword Palace.
Streams of people rushed towards the palace.
Two days had passed since the breathtaking battle, yet the smell of blood on the site had not dissipated but had instead become even stronger.
The river of blood around the palace was pitch black, thick and viscous. From time to time, human organs floated on the surface, sending chills down the spines of the onlookers.
"Apprentice, are you ready?"
A group of people stood on a mountain peak, as an old man asked the question.
No one knew that he had been hiding nearby and silently observing ever since he left the Jade Sword Palace.
The young man next to him looked ordinary except for his lack of eyebrows. He replied, "I’ve been waiting for this day too long."
"Good, I believe after this, no one of your generation in Xuanwu State will be a match for you anymore."
The old man grabbed the brow-less young man’s hand and led him directly from the mountain peak towards the Jade Sword Palace nearly a thousand meters away.
...
"The opportunity has finally come."
A man draped in a black cloak, his face aged like fossilized mold, slowly walked towards the Jade Sword Palace.
Whizz.
A Vigorous Air rushed over from afar, sent by a practitioner in the second layer of the Dragon Gate Realm.
Once the news completely circulated, large numbers of experts came to the Jade Sword Palace every day. Possibly intimidated by the prior carnage, warriors below the seventh layer of the Spiritual-Passage Realm didn’t dare approach the palace.
Therefore, it was not an exaggeration to say that the Jade Sword Palace was now crowded with experts.
Seeing that the cloaked old man seemed to possess the Jade Sword Order, someone immediately couldn’t resist testing him.
Without turning back or lifting a hand, the cloaked old man ignored the approaching Vigorous Air. The next moment, the Vigorous Air that rushed to his back, bizarrely rebounded.
Thud!
The expert exploded into a shower of blood.
The people around who had been secretly watching were dumbstruck.
Killing a second-layer Dragon Gate Realm expert with just his protective Vigorous Air, who exactly was this cloaked old man and why was he so frightening?
As time passed, one by one, people entered the Jade Sword Palace. Observant people realized that all of these people were top-level experts or geniuses, which raised some doubts.
Did the Jade Sword Order possess a choice of its own? Could it not fall into the hands of mediocrities? Moreover, how come there were so many of such orders, and when did they start circulating in the Martial World?
...
Shi Xiaole had been wandering the Jade Sword Valley for three days and three nights without finding an exit, which made him somewhat frustrated.
His intuition told him that he was trapped.
Perhaps he should never have entered the Jade Sword Valley in the first place. But if he hadn’t, who knew when his Sword Realm would have been able to reach its current level?
Shi Xiaole shook his head and chuckled bitterly.
"It seems, young friend, that you are quite troubled."
A voice echoed in his ear.
"Master Zhou, after following me for so long, you’re finally willing to show yourself?"
Shi Xiaole looked towards the jungle on his left where a refined middle-aged man with three long beards emerged. If it wasn’t Crown Sword Marquis, who else could it be?
Ever since leaving the scene where the Sword Heart Fruit was contested, Shi Xiaole had noticed that someone was secretly following him. If it were not for the huge increase in his Sword Realm, which heightened his sense amongst swordsmen, he would never have found out.
And the only one capable of such stealth was Crown Sword Marquis.
Crown Sword Marquis chuckled and said, "Young friend, you’re indeed a dormant dragon. After lying low for a long time, when you finally emerge, you will surely be famous in Xuanwu."
"Master Zhou flatters me, might I ask why Master Zhou has been following me?"
Shi Xiaole also chuckled, not appearing too nervous.
If there was anyone in Jade Sword Valley at the moment who could kill him, it would certainly be Crown Sword Marquis.
Shi Xiaole was clearer than anyone else, that Crown Sword Marquis was much stronger than he appeared. If one were to compare his aura to a sharp sword, the likes of the one-armed elder were at most rusted pieces of a sword.
If Crown Sword Marquis had wanted to harm him, he would have done so a long time ago. There was no need for him to wait till now. Of course, even if Crown Sword Marquis wanted to kill him, it wouldn’t be that easy either.
Crown Sword Marquis watched Shi Xiaole with interest for a while before sighing, "Master Zhou just wanted to see how young friend cultivates normally. It could serve as a reference."
Stepping into the Heavenly Sword Realm was the dream of every talented swordsman, and Crown Sword Marquis was no exception. For his character, he would not be jealous of others’ abilities nor have intentions against Shi Xiaole, but curiosity was unavoidable.
Unfortunately, for three consecutive days, Shi Xiaole spent all his time trying to find a way out, which disappointed him greatly.
Noticing the other’s expression, Shi Xiaole grasped the situation and said, "Master Zhou, I can discuss the specifics of cultivation methods after we get out, I promise not to hide anything. For now, what’s important is getting out."
Crown Sword Marquis laughed, "Young friend indeed has a keen mind. Yes, Master Zhou has a way out."
Unknown to many, many years ago, Crown Sword Marquis had acquired a fragment of a map from an ancient relic, which marked the exact location and coordinates of the hidden mechanisms of the Jade Sword Palace.
This was a significant reason why Crown Sword Marquis dared to come despite having suspicions about the emergence of the Jade Sword Palace.
Under Crown Sword Marquis’s lead, they arrived at a cliff in half time, where he said, "According to the description on the fragment, this is the array node of the Jade Sword Valley."
He pointed his index finger and Sword Qi struck a spot in the void, creating a door of light.
Stepping through the door, Shi Xiaole found himself and Crown Sword Marquis in a secret passage.
"This secret passage is located beneath the Jade Sword Palace. It leads directly out of the palace, so there’s no need to worry about being discovered by those who come to the palace later."
Crown Sword Marquis chuckled.
...
At the same time.
An old man and a young man without eyebrows stood atop a mound at Jade Sword Palace. The old man continuously stretched out his hands, making motions towards the void and the ground.
Soon, strands intertwined and overlapped each other, ultimately forming an approximately ten-foot-wide jade-colored hexagram. As it slowly rotated, each point of the hexagram shot out a ray of rainbow light, falling on six different areas of Jade Sword Palace.
Boom!
Astonishing events began to unfold.
Six points of Jade Sword Palace formed a larger hexagram. In the center, a small palace built entirely of jade abruptly rose.
Under the sun, the mini-palace radiated a glow that was not gentle, but rather very sharp.
"The Hidden Sword Hall is the real heart of the Jade Sword Palace. Judging by the time, the people who entered the Jade Sword Valley should also be about to come out now, right?"
The old man gazed at the Hidden Sword Hall in front of him, with brilliance radiating from his murky eyes.
Due to excitement, the young man without eyebrows seemed to be glowing, laughing, "Master, I will surely fulfil your dream after all these years of planning."
"With your talent and strength, I believe you will not disappoint me. Go ahead."
The old man nodded slightly.
No sooner had he finished speaking than the young man turned into a black dot, rushing into the Hidden Sword Hall.
...
"What’s going on, the way is blocked?"
Underground, Crown Sword Marquis’s face underwent a change.
Before him and Shi Xiaole, a jade wall suddenly appeared, emitting an intimidating aura that made them dare not approach.
The Crown Sword Marquis drew his sword and stabbed it forward. As a result, the sword Qi that resembled green willows was absorbed as soon as it touched the jade wall, leaving no trace.
Shi Xiaole tried the same, to the same effect. He sighed, "This jade wall rose just recently. Perhaps something happened above ground that we know nothing about."
At this point, Crown Sword Marquis became a bit anxious. If he had known earlier, he would have left sooner.
With their path ahead blocked, they had no choice but to retrace their steps back to Jade Sword Valley. Unexpectedly, the array system in the valley had disappeared. A large number of fighters were heading towards the glowing palace outside the valley.
Some people calmly chose to flee towards the exit of Jade Sword Palace, but they encountered a large number of fighters who had entered the palace later.
"Leave behind what you have taken."
Another round of fierce battles ensued, with severed limbs and internal organs strewn about the ground, surrounded by blood and flesh.
Greedy human nature and the cruelty of the martial world were presented straightforwardly and brutally before Shi Xiaole for the first time.
Standing to the side, Crown Sword Marquis bore an expression of distress, but given his current strength, he couldn’t make much of a difference in this place teeming with strong fighters.
To the east, there was an old man in a cloak of black robes, like the grim reaper, who didn’t need to brandish a weapon. Wherever he went, people exploded; a hundred meters’ distance made no difference.
As to the west, there was another old man, patting his hands together, and wherever they went, corpses were piling up like flies, with no power to resist.
"An expert of the ninth level Dragon Gate Realm."
Everyone was frightened out of their wits, being scared to the point of nearly wetting themselves.
And in the north and the south, it seemed as if someone set up an array, making it hard to escape the barrier.
"Let’s move to the Hidden Sword Hall."
With nowhere to escape, everyone, regardless of strong or weak, made a desperate attempt and rushed towards the Hidden Sword Hall.
Including Shi Xiaole and Crown Sword Marquis.
When one reaches ninth level Dragon Gate Realm, they can no longer rely on brute force. Even if they can’t defeat the enemy, they can escape, so joining forces is of no use.
Not to mention, under these chaotic circumstances where everyone was fighting each other, who could think so much?
Vigorous air mixed with internal power came from all directions aimed at Shi Xiaole. At this point, many people’s eyes turned red, and killing became instinctive.
With cold eyes, Shi Xiaole brandished his sword.
"Ah..."
The dozen or so fighters who raised their swords at him were all simultaneously severed by a sword Qi, their bodies split into halves.
"Willows Dark Flowers Bright!"
Crown Sword Marquis was also subjected to sneak attacks. After avoiding them, he struck out three swords. The green-willow-like sword threads twisted into the crowd, and tens of meters away, three splashes of blood simultaneously burst forth.
Lives were continuously being lost, with human existence becoming worthless here.
"Lightning Blade!"
Yang Feng, grudgingly, wielded slices of blue-colored blade aura. His wounds kept bleeding due to his extensive movements. He was already weak to the extreme, luckily due to his superior flying skill, he hadn’t been killed yet.
Four or five vigorous airs attacked, killing the people in front of him.
Yang Feng chuckled in despair. He no longer had the strength to dodge any further. In the end, he was just like the others, about to die in the martial world and be forever forgotten.
At the crucial moment, a sword Qi shattered the vigorous air. Yang Feng’s arm was pulled and they rapidly moved forward.
"You, sir, why did you save me?"
Yang Feng looked astonishingly at the handsome youth in a green shirt.
"My name is Shi Xiaole, from the Eight States."
Shi Xiaole spoke indifferently.
Back in the Flame Cloud Mountain Range, Shi Xiaole had a conversation with Lu Lingxi. Hence, he listened to her when she told him about the first genius of Fire Cloud State, the "Lightning Blade" Yang Feng’s martial arts style and immediately recognized him at first glance.
"You..."
Yang Feng’s heart pounded. He did not know why, but a warm current swept his entire body, making his nose sour.
