Chapter 81 — Nine
劍問蒼天 · Page 3 of 7
"What?" The Three Wonders Fairy, standing nearby, cried out involuntarily. Daoist Cangyan glanced at her, and his heart suddenly lurched. This beautiful woman had skin like frosted snow; during the battle she had shown a face devoid of expression and struck with ruthless ferocity, yet now, looking at her, he suddenly perceived beneath that icy mask threads of seductive charm that hooked at the soul, and for a moment he was struck dumb.
"Ahem!"
The Poison God coughed twice nearby, and Daoist Cangyan—after all, a man of many years in the Dao—startled awake, realizing that this Three Wonders Fairy, as sect master of the Enchanting Soul Sect, truly possessed arts of bewitchment, and wrought them without a trace, far beyond the reach of ordinary beauties.
At once he dared not look at her more, and said only, "Though I have never before seen the Shixian Sword Formation deployed, the Canglan Sect's records do describe it: in the days when Patriarch Qingye was at his height, when he contended with the Demon Sect... hmm, with the Holy Sect, he unleashed the Shixian Sword Formation. Beyond the immense seven-colored master sword spanning the heavens, the other six colored qi-swords arrayed themselves in order according to the positions of the six peaks, and its scope was so vast that it encircled all seven great peaks of the Canglan range; and the power of the falling sword-rain was such that we today could not even begin to withstand it!"
The Nether King was silent a moment, then let out a long breath and sighed, "This Patriarch Qingye of yours was truly extraordinary!"
The Poison God frowned. "You mean to say the Shixian Sword Formation is so powerful that we may never break it in our lifetime?"
The Nether King shook his head, yet a faint smile spread across his face. "I think otherwise."
The Poison God and the others all looked at him. "Oh? Brother Nether King, have you some insight?"
The Nether King said coolly, "Judging by today's battle: first, though Daoyan can wield the ancient sword Shixian and drive the Shixian Sword Formation, he clearly does so with difficulty, and the formation's power is greatly diminished. Second, a formation of such power must consume enormous essence and spiritual force—how could it be ordinary? I wager Daoyan's old wounds have surely reopened by now; even if he does not die, he has lost half his life!"
"Quite right!" This endorsement did not come from the Poison God and the others, but from Yuyangzi, who had walked back and, hearing these words, could not restrain himself.
The Poison God's old eyes turned to the Nether King, and his expression suddenly changed. "Brother Nether King, surely you do not mean to..."
The Nether King said decisively, "Indeed—I mean to return to Qingyun! At this very moment the Canglan Sect is weaker than it has been in the thousand years since Qingye. If we do not seize this chance to rid ourselves of our great nemesis, when shall we? And the Canglan Sect will never expect that we, having just fought our way out of a death trap, would dare strike back—caught off guard, they will surely be utterly routed!"
The Demon Sect folk around them were all struck dumb, their faces changing; even an old survivor like the Poison God, who had seen countless turns of the world, was shaken by the Nether King's words.
The Nether King looked around and declared with fervor, "Today is the perfect hour to wash away our Holy Sect's century-old humiliation! Let all of you swear a solemn oath with me before the Holy Mother and the Radiant King—why not fight with all our strength today?"
The Demon Sect folk exchanged glances. These were hardly timid or cowardly people, but mere moments ago they had just escaped with their lives on Canglan Mountain, and now in the blink of an eye they were to charge back up—such boldness on the Nether King's part, or rather such utter disregard for life and death, was truly hard to accept.
For a long while, not a single voice answered.