Chapter 1662: How Can We Resist

The situation on Zi Kun and Qianji’s side was not much better. Qianji was, after all, only at the initial-fourth rank. But they understood Mistress Ying’s intent: they had to stall until the other Spirit Transformation experts of the Barren Moon Continent arrived. A fierce light flashed in Qianji’s eyes. He and Zi Kun had no objections to Mistress Ying’s arrangement.

At this moment, like Gong Chenying, they recalled that great battle outside the Tianli Clan. They had been equally helpless then, able only to watch as Li Yan fought a bloody battle.

“With such cultivation, you truly aren’t afraid of death!” The enemy Nascent Soul cultivator sensed the demonic qi on the two and spoke with a cold, sharp gaze.

“If anyone is to die, it will be you first!” Qianji’s voice vibrated through the air. The moment the two beasts pounced, ten massive, cold ice swords appeared at their sides. These were the ice swords Qianji had formed using his kin. He knew that relying on the two of them alone wouldn’t stall the enemy for long; he had to gamble with the lives of his people.

The various battle circles collided instantly.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Amidst the massive explosions were the arrogant laughs of the late-stage Nascent Soul enemies.

“Hahaha… is that all? You should surrender early to avoid death!”

“Grains of sand before a pearl!”

“So this is a top-tier sect!”

Yan Longzi and the others were also in a chaotic state. But as the initial-stage Spirit Transformation cultivator had thought, the foundation of the Ghost-Severing Sect was too deep. These geniuses practiced techniques that provided various bonuses, and they were assisted by poisonous mists, spirit beasts, and Gu-insects.

Especially Chu Weili and Du Sanjiang—back in the day, they were famous for their abnormal defense among their peers. They used arrays as their primary method, avoiding direct clashes of magical power. Now that they were more refined, their cooperation helped Yan Longzi, Baili Yuan, and Wang Tian block at least thirty percent of the attacks. This significantly eased the pressure on the Nascent Soul cultivators. Although they were blasted back by each strike, no one had died yet.

On Zi Kun and Qianji’s side, despite their tough bodies and the help of the massive ice swords, six of the swords shattered instantly. This wasn’t the extreme north of the Northern Abyss; there, they had prepared an ambush. Here, they were blasted back by a single strike. A massive amount of ice mist rose from Qianji’s body—a sign that he was fighting with his life on the line, a state he couldn’t maintain for long. Zi Kun possessed a stronger body, so although he was forced back, he was in much better shape than Qianji. This was partly because Qianji had reached the Nascent Soul stage later than him, and partly because Qianji was controlling the ice swords formed by his kin and couldn’t focus his full strength.

On Li Wuyi’s side, amidst a sudden burst of golden light, he stumbled out with a blood-stained back. A short distance away, Li Yuyin’s beautiful eyes showed a look of pain. The golden Gu-insects she controlled were linked to her mind; with so many dying, she suffered a backlash. She had countless types of Gu-insects, but only these golden ones could barely defend against a late-stage Great Cultivator. Other insects, whether for offense or defense, would be shredded by the Great Cultivator’s sharp aura before they could even get close…

“Qianji!” The retreating Zi Kun shouted with urgency.

“I’m… I’m fine, just do your part!” As Qianji flew back, he forcibly swallowed the rising blood, speaking to Zi Kun with feigned annoyance, though a look of heartache flashed in his eyes. With that single strike, to make the ice swords more powerful, each sword he formed had thousands of his kin within it. Too many had died in an instant.

“Truly overestimating yourselves!” Their two late-stage Nascent Soul enemies looked on with disdain. The Ghost-Severing Sect’s plan was good, but it was too idealistic. However, those massive ice swords and golden Gu-insects were quite strange. Once an ice sword was broken, the cold qi within it would affect their magical power. The opponent had summoned ten ice swords but only six had shattered, which meant they had actually blocked the previous strike. As for those golden Gu-insects, one slip-up and those needle-sharp teeth would make things very difficult for them.

By now, Qianji knew that his kin might be wiped out in this battle. From just one exchange, he knew it would be exceptionally difficult. On the other side, Li Wuyi and his companions felt the same. The number of golden Gu-insects in Li Yuyin’s possession was far fewer than the Snow Mosquitoes. Raising those insects to maturity was a long process.

The battle had only just begun, yet everyone on their side, except for Gu Jiuqi, was already in a desperate struggle. Seeing themselves entangled by a group of initial and mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivators, the three enemy Nascent Soul cultivators felt their killing intent and greed grow even stronger.

Especially the one facing Zi Kun and Qianji—he saw that the combat power of these two beasts was actually quite good. One had a body that could almost rival a late-stage Nascent Soul, and the other’s attacks were very strange, using ice swords made of even colder mosquitoes. Even with his cultivation, he couldn’t completely block that cold qi; it would seep into his body and make him extremely uncomfortable. If he could subdue these two beasts, his future combat power would multiply. These thoughts flashed by in an instant.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The attacks of both sides collided again. The last two giant swords beside Zi Kun turned into countless shards. This time, he didn’t retreat too far. His face was twisted, and many bloody gashes had appeared on his skin, soaking his purple robes. He was more concerned about Qianji. While desperately blocking the enemy’s attack, his Divine Sense swept over him.

Qianji’s body radiated a massive amount of light as he revealed his true form. The battle had just begun, but he was already using his strongest form to desperately stall the enemy. The massive ice swords on either side of his body shattered simultaneously, sending waves of freezing aura toward the enemy. This made the late-stage Nascent Soul enemy shudder despite his preparation. One of Qianji’s ice-wings, sharp as a blade, swept toward the opponent’s throat.

But just as Qianji thought he might succeed, he felt himself surrounded by an invisible giant net.

“Hmph, get captured!” As Zi Kun’s Divine Sense reached him, a cold voice rang out. But his reaction was clearly a bit slow.

The moment Qianji sensed a mortal threat, he pushed his magical power to the absolute limit to resist. But just then, a loud thump echoed, and Qianji felt the restrictive net vanish. Simultaneously, two voices reached his ears.

“Eh?” One voice was full of shock and surprise. The other was clear and soft.

“Go and help Senior Brother Wuyi and the others with Zi Kun. I will handle things here!”

Qianji stared blankly at the scene before him. It was a giant ancient ape, its hands almost reaching its feet. The technique that had been closing in on him had been smashed apart by this suddenly appearing ancient ape, which had hammered down with both fists. Amidst a burst of green light, the trap was obliterated. The ancient ape wobbled slightly before landing in front of him.

“Miss… Miss Bai!” Hearing the voice from the ancient ape, Qianji and Zi Kun recognized who it was: Bai Rou, who had sat quietly in a corner of Little Bamboo Peak since she arrived, never speaking a word.

Inside the puppet, Bai Rou was sensing the direction of the enemy’s attack. The terrifying power from the late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator had circulated through the Canopus Big Dipper Array within the ancient ape. After confirming that not much of the attack had reached her true body, she felt relieved.

She had followed Wei Zhongran and the others out of the mountain gate, but not before sending a transmission to Li Zhaoyan, telling her to stay in the sect and not come out. Bai Rou hadn’t known what was happening when she came out, but the moment they questioned the arrivals, the six mysterious cultivators had attacked without warning. Sensing their powerful auras, she had been horrified.

‘Where did these cultivators come from? Even the weakest is at the late-stage of the Nascent Soul realm…’

Before she could think further, both sides had clashed. She naturally had to join in, but before she could, a mysterious force had restricted her magical power. Her power felt like it had fallen into a swamp. To her horror, the six enemies pounced, while she was moving slowly.

‘Am I going to die?’ In that moment, a thought flashed through her mind, accompanied by the image of a young man. Though she hadn’t seen him in a long time, his face was still vivid. She wondered why his image appeared when she was about to die—was it because she had too few friends?

Before she could finish that thought, the subsequent events were beyond her expectations. They had been saved from certain death by the unexpected help of a hidden ally. Then the battle erupted. When Bai Rou saw Gong Chenying looking like a blue phoenix and Zhao Min attacking with overwhelming momentum, the Bai Rou standing at the back felt a momentary sense of inferiority.

‘He is already so powerful, so his Dao companions must be as well!’

Gong Chenying and Zhao Min possessed the strength to collectively resist a Spirit Transformation cultivator, while she was still only at the initial-stage of the Nascent Soul realm. Although she had hope of breaking through to the mid-stage, she didn’t know how long it would take. Thus, Bai Rou was not prominent among the crowd, appearing as if she were blindly following Li Changting and the others.

But she had seen the situation with the two beasts and Li Wuyi. She had hesitated for a moment. Ever since she had reached the Nascent Soul stage, protected by the Ghost-Severing Sect, she had never fought anyone of her level. She only practiced on her own. Thus, she didn’t know if her strength was the weakest among all Nascent Soul cultivators.

It was that single moment of hesitation that saw the two beasts and Li Wuyi being blasted back. Clearly, Qianji was weaker.

“I can’t let anything happen to them!” Bai Rou made a decision in an instant. Back at Wind-Cool Mountain, she had known how important the two beasts were to Li Yan. Without further hesitation, amidst a flash of green light, a Thousand-Net Ancient Ape puppet appeared before her. Her slender figure vanished into it as it appeared above Qianji. For Bai Rou, controlling the puppet was a matter of thought and technique being one.

Facing the terrifying attack of a late-stage Great Cultivator, she felt a mortal threat. She cleared her mind and focused entirely on the technique. Surprisingly, she managed to block the strike, and she found that she hadn’t been blasted back or rendered unconscious. Bai Rou’s spirit was lifted, and her confidence soared!