Might of the Sword Qi Talisman

Inside the cave dwelling, spring warmth filled the air. Chen Zhuo sat cross-legged on a prayer mat, circulating his spiritual power according to the breathing method of the Ten Thousand Trees Homage to Origin Art. This Ten Thousand Trees Homage to Origin Art truly lived up to its reputation! The moment he began circulating the art, Chen Zhuo felt a surge of vigorous vitality pouring in from all directions. The breathing method of the Ten Thousand Trees Homage to Origin Art was somewhat similar to the Changchun Art, yet vastly different. Chen Zhuo felt the circulation speed of spiritual power in his body quicken by more than thirty percent. With every breath, a vast amount of wood-attribute spiritual energy was drawn into him, coursing through his meridians before finally converging into his dantian. The spiritual power vortex in his dantian spun faster and faster as the spiritual energy continuously grew, bathing his dantian in emerald green. As a complete circulation finished, Chen Zhuo felt utterly refreshed and comfortable, as if his entire body had been cleansed by this vibrant life force. After an unknown amount of time, a full major circulation was finally complete. Only then did Chen Zhuo slowly open his eyes. "Phoo..." Chen Zhuo exhaled a long breath of turbid air. The breath congealed without dispersing in midair, turning into a wisp of pale green smoke before vanishing into the air. "The Ten Thousand Trees Homage to Origin Art is truly worthy of being an art that can be cultivated all the way to the Nascent Soul stage. It really is powerful, countless times superior to the Changchun Art..." Chen Zhuo muttered under his breath, feeling in unprecedentedly good shape. After cultivating the Ten Thousand Trees Homage to Origin Art, he felt his essence, qi, and spirit reach an absolute peak. This was the health-nourishing effect of the Ten Thousand Trees Homage to Origin Art. No wonder cultivators of this art tended to live longer than peers of the same realm! "It's about time." Chen Zhuo surveyed the spring-filled cave dwelling, raised his hand, and stowed the Dharma-Control Scout Drone into his storage bag. Three days had passed, and two uninvited guests were still waiting for him outside the market. Packing his belongings without lingering, Chen Zhuo pushed open the stone door of the cave dwelling and walked toward the market gates to return the bronze token. "Take care, fellow Daoist," the gatekeeper cultivator said with a smile. Chen Zhuo nodded in acknowledgment and stepped out of the market. As soon as he exited the market, Chen Zhuo felt a stark contrast. The world outside... The spiritual energy was so ordinary. Chen Zhuo sighed softly. Although the Immortal Mansion world was even worse, he hadn't held any high expectations for it. Meanwhile, over the past few months, the shantytown had felt like a sacred cultivation land full of hope. Now, having experienced Yunjin Market, returning to the shantytown produced a jarring gap. Chen Zhuo tapped his head and steadied his mind. Immediately, he could feel the sensation of being watched. It was a very uncomfortable feeling. However... Chen Zhuo sneered inwardly, quietly resting his hand against the high-grade Sword Qi Talisman, quickened his pace, and soon walked out of the shantytown's main gates. Outside the shantytown was an open stretch of woods, with a winding path leading into the distance. Chen Zhuo didn't take the main road; instead, he turned into a relatively secluded side path. Not long after Chen Zhuo's figure disappeared into the woods, two figures darted out from behind the gate. It was the two robber cultivators who had been lying in wait. Seeing Chen Zhuo walk out of the shantytown, the tall, thin cultivator was overjoyed, his eyes glittering with greed. "The kid is finally out! He's clearly some foolish young master from a clan, completely inexperienced, actually heading outside on his own!" The other kite-faced burly man nodded, a vicious grin appearing on his face. "Follow him and find a secluded spot to strike. Remember, leave no trace." "Don't worry, it's not our first time doing this." As for whether Chen Zhuo was intentionally luring them? The two didn't care in the slightest. Both the kite-faced burly man and the tall, thin cultivator were at the sixth layer of Qi Refining, stuck in the mid-stage of Qi Refining for over a decade. The two were notorious in the shantytown, often acting as robber cultivators, doing shady deeds to amass resources in their bid for the late stage of Qi Refining. The shantytown was lawless; even if people knew of their fierce infamy, no one would meddle in other people's business. Furthermore, they were backed by Shopkeeper Han of Jishi Hall. The three worked hand in glove, frequently ambushing and killing affluent, mediocre outsider cultivators. Most of these outsider cultivators had stumbled upon fortuitous opportunities as mortals, happened to have spiritual roots, and thus stumbled into the cultivation world. These cultivation greenhorns lacked experience yet possessed fortuitous wealth. Once killed, nobody would care. Therefore, in their eyes, what kind of trump card could a kid who had just broken through to the fourth layer of Qi Refining possibly have? Even if Chen Zhuo wasn't some lucky mortal, but came from a cultivation clan... Coming to Yunjin Market for isolated cultivation showed that his backing clan was merely a Qi Refining clan unable to protect a spirit vein of its own—otherwise, why come here? Killing him would be completely problem-free! The two trailed Chen Zhuo, while Chen Zhuo deliberately led them toward a secluded area. In this manner, the three arrived at a spot three to four kilometers outside the shantytown. The trees were sparse here, the surroundings quiet except for the gurgling mountain spring. "Alright, this is the place." Chen Zhuo suddenly stopped, turned around, and calmly looked in the direction they had come from. "You two fellow Daoists have followed me for so long. Isn't it time to show yourselves?" Chen Zhuo's voice was neither rushed nor slow, carrying clearly to the ears of the tall, thin cultivator and the kite-faced burly man. The two exchanged glances, both startled. They had thought their concealment was flawless, never expecting Chen Zhuo had noticed them long ago. But now that things had come to this, there was no need to hide anymore. The tall, thin cultivator stepped out from behind a tree first, a hypocritical smile on his face. "Fellow Daoist has sharp divine sense, I'm impressed. But since you knew we were behind you, why head toward such a secluded spot?" Chen Zhuo didn't answer. He simply looked around and said softly, "With such fine scenery of mountains and clear waters, it makes a fine burial ground." The smile on the tall, thin cultivator's face froze. The kite-faced burly man stepped out from the other side, his expression dark. "Kid, big words! Who do you think you are? A mere fourth layer of Qi Refining dares spout such nonsense before the two of us?" "Though, you really did pick yourself a fine feng shui resting place!" The tall, thin cultivator sneered, a murderous gleam in his eyes, his hand already gripping a black short blade. Before the tall, thin cultivator could finish his sentence, spiritual light flashed between Chen Zhuo's fingers! In an instant, a sharp, fierce sword qi surged out! The sword qi was so fast it was dazzling! The tall, thin cultivator felt his vision blur as a sudden sense of fatal crisis gripped him. His hairs stood on end, a chill running through his entire body! Before he could even react, the sword qi transformed into a thread-thin ray of sword light, piercing right through his protective spiritual light and flashing across his neck! Slash. The next second, head and body separated, blood gushing like a fountain. "What?!" The kite-faced burly man shuddered so hard his crotch turned wet, a surge of warmth flowing uncontrollably. He never expected Chen Zhuo to possess such a powerful instant-cast talisman! No, this was no ordinary talisman! Manipulating sword qi at will like this was virtually unheard of! The kite-faced burly man hurriedly summoned a black shield artifact to protect his front while retreating several zhang, his face full of wariness. Staring fixatedly at Chen Zhuo, he let out a sigh of relief inside. Fortunately, this kid didn't know who the real threat was and struck first to kill Zhao Si... The kite-faced burly man rejoiced inwardly. Such a powerful talisman had to be Chen Zhuo's bottom-line life-saving trump card—each use meant one fewer. Though that sword qi was fierce just now, it was no longer a threat! The kid could only have one such trump card. Otherwise, if he had triggered two talismans at once just now, how could the burly man still be alive? At this thought, a ruthless glint flashed in the burly man's eyes, and he barked fiercely, "Brat, you dared to kill my brother! If I don't tear you into ten thousand pieces today, my hatred will never be appeased!" With that, the kite-faced burly man formed hand seals. The black shield artifact shone brightly, forming a thick curtain of light in front of him. At the same time, he retrieved a blood-colored long saber from his storage bag. This was clearly a formidable artifact! "Die!" The kite-faced burly man bellowed, bringing the blood-colored saber down toward Chen Zhuo's head! Yet, right as he was about to strike, the very sword qi that had decapitated the tall, thin cultivator took a sharp turn in midair! Like a living creature, it bypassed the light curtain of the black shield at an impossible angle, striking at the kite-faced burly man from behind! "What?!" The burly man's pupils shrank, overcome with horror! How was this possible?! How could sword qi from a talisman turn?! This completely exceeded his understanding of talismans! Unless... Unless this wasn't a talisman, but a... A terrifying thought flashed across the burly man's mind, but it was already too late. The sword qi was too fast, far too fast for him to react! He only felt a chill at the back of his neck, followed by sudden, intense pain. He seemed to lose control of his body as his consciousness rapidly blurred. In his dying moments, only one thought remained in his mind: It's a talisman treasure! How could this brat possess a talisman treasure?! Thud. The kite-faced burly man's corpse collapsed to the ground, falling beside the tall, thin cultivator. Chen Zhuo stood where he was, looking at the two corpses and gently shaking his head. Having slain the kite-faced burly man, the high-grade Sword Qi Talisman transformed into a streak of light in the air and dissipated without a trace. "What a pity for such a fine scenic spot," Chen Zhuo murmured, shaking his head. "To have to bury the two of you."