Chapter 118

The transmission speed of the “Eight-Nine Arcane Technique” is extremely fast, almost instantaneous. Ding Shuang also learned how to cultivate it in an instant, which requires a large amount of resources to cultivate!

With all the treasures of Qushui Kingdom that Ding Shuang currently possesses, even if he uses them all, he can only reach the first level. However, the “Eight-Nine Arcane Technique” has nine levels! The resources required will increase by more than double!

Not only that, Ding Shuang’s disguise technique has also disappeared. That was already an A-level skill. The system’s reason was that it was used to upgrade the “Eight-Nine Arcane Arts” simultaneously, but the progress bar only increased by less than one-tenth.

Most importantly, his transformation skill disappeared along with the disguise technique, and he could only continue to transform after advancing in the “Eight-Nine Arcane Arts”.

The first level of the “Eight-Nine Arcane Arts” only has one transformation: it can only transform into inanimate objects, such as stones, houses, or utensils. Moreover, it only has the form and cannot hide its aura, making it easy for divine sense to detect.

In the second layer, there are two types of transformations: transformation into living things, such as flowers, birds, fish, insects, and small animals. Similarly, they can only change their shape, and the size of the transformed organism cannot be too large or too small.

The third level has six transformations, at which point you can transform into other people. Although your aura can also change, it cannot be imitated. In other words, if you transform into a stranger, the other party cannot tell the difference. If you transform into someone the other party knows, a quick scan of their soul will expose you.

The fourth level allows one to transform inanimate objects almost perfectly; the fifth level allows one to transform living objects almost perfectly; the sixth level allows one to imitate the aura of others, but can only deceive those of equal cultivation level; only by cultivating to the ninth level can one achieve mastery of divine skill, be able to transform into all things, and possess a physical body as strong as heaven and earth.

As expected, you can’t just blindly trust the system’s expertise. How could this vengeful system possibly choose a good cultivation technique for me after I’ve already mocked it?

“Host, don’t doubt the system’s professionalism. Among the body-refining techniques, the ‘Eight-Nine Arcane Technique’ is actually the easiest to cultivate. It only requires a lot of resources to cultivate.” As if seeing through Ding Shuang’s thoughts, the system explained to Ding Shuang.

“Heh, where do you think I got those resources from?” Ding Shuang sat on the stone bench with a look of utter despair. He should have chosen the cultivation technique himself; this was a waste of an SSS-level cultivation technique exchange voucher.

“Host, most of the secondary worlds related to Xianxia can provide resources, and you can also exchange resources from the system shop.” The system’s reply made Ding Shuang’s eyes light up again.

That’s right! It’s not like you can only find the resources you need in the real world! It seems I misjudged the system; I really shouldn’t have doubted its professionalism!

Although Ding Shuang realized her mistake, she did not apologize to the system. Instead, she started browsing the system store to see how many levels she could upgrade the “Eight-Nine Arcane Arts” with 100,000 Transmigration Points.

After browsing, Ding Shuang sighed. 100,000 Transmigration Points were less than the experience provided by the Disguise Technique. It seemed that the path of exchanging points was not viable.

Ding Shuang looked at Ding Jiuli again. She was still in the process of advancing, and seemed determined not to give up until she reached the Nascent Soul stage.

Ding Shuang shook his head helplessly. The divine-grade sword spirit root was indeed extraordinary. If this continued, Ding Jiuli would not be able to finish in two or three days.

Prying open Ding Jiuli’s mouth, Ding Shuang fed her a pill containing a large amount of spiritual power, which would allow Ding Jiuli to advance in rank within an hour.

An hour later, Ding Jiuli, who had reached the peak of the Nascent Soul stage, opened her eyes and saw Ding Shuang smiling at her. She smiled gently and said, “Husband.”

Holy crap! Ding Shuang’s bones almost melted at that “husband.” He quickly waved his hand and said, “Jiu Li, don’t call me that. I had no choice but to do it before to help you break through. You don’t have to take it seriously.”

During Ding Jiuli’s promotion, Ding Shuang had already come up with his excuse. Since the mission was already completed, there was no need to marry Ding Jiuli. Moreover, his feelings for Ding Jiuli were really only those of a younger sister.

“Husband…” Seeing Ding Shuang’s serious expression, Ding Jiuli’s eyes reddened, and then tears streamed down her face as she looked at Ding Shuang with tears in her eyes.

Don’t be soft-hearted! Don’t be soft-hearted! Ding Shuang kept reminding herself that she was about to leave, and doing this would be letting Ding Jiuli down.

“Jiu Li, I’m sorry. I never imagined I would become the obstacle in your journey to pass the Sun-Asking Test. I had no choice but to resort to this tactic. I’ve always considered you my sister, and I truly cannot marry you. I’m sorry.” Ding Shuang spoke these heartless words while inwardly slapping himself repeatedly. In truth, he had an even more wicked plan.

After Ding Shuang finished speaking, he got up and left, returning to the stone house. He wanted to give Ding Jiuli some time to calm down, and he also wanted to calm down.

As Ding Shuang left, an invisible flame emerged from Ding Jiuli’s body and flew into Ding Shuang’s body.

This was Ding Shuang’s evil plan: once Ding Jiuli rejected his marriage proposal, he planned to force himself on her.

He couldn’t die; Ding Fei still needed his protection! This was the reason Ding Shuang had given him before. If he failed, he would have no choice but to keep raping Ding Jiuli to achieve soul control before the deadline.

After returning to his room, Ding Shuang was unable to calm down no matter what he did. His divine sense kept monitoring Ding Jiuli, fearing that she might do something foolish.

Ding Jiuli sat on the stone bench, silently shedding tears, until midnight when she finally staggered back to her room as if she had lost her soul.

The next morning, Ding Shuang prepared the meal and called out to the stone house, “Jiu Li, come out and eat.”

Ding Shuang didn’t sleep a wink last night, constantly monitoring Ding Jiuli’s condition with her divine sense. On the contrary, Ding Jiuli seemed to be asleep after returning to her room and lying on the bed.

Hearing Ding Shuang’s call, Ding Jiuli sat up from the bed, went to the dressing mirror, tidied herself up briefly, looked at the bronze mirror in front of her, revealed a faint smile, and then got up and went out.

“Husband, breakfast is so delicious today. It’s all my favorite dishes.” Ding Jiuli looked at Ding Shuang with a gentle smile.

“Ah, I’m apologizing to you… Wait, Jiu Li, what did you call me?” Ding Shuang wondered if she had misheard, looking at Ding Jiu Li with a bewildered expression.

“Hehe, husband, there’s no need to apologize.” Ding Jiuli gave Ding Shuang a bright smile, then sat down next to the speechless Ding Shuang and started eating.

Ding Jiuli figured it out last night. Perhaps Ding Shuang really did resort to this tactic just to help her break through, but she could force herself on him!

Why did she cultivate? Wasn’t it all to marry Ding Shuang? Passing the test of the Sun also strengthened Ding Jiuli’s Dao heart. Besides, sword cultivators are inherently stubborn, let alone a sword cultivator with a divine-grade sword spirit root!

Holy crap! Could this girl have gone crazy from the shock? Ding Shuang looked at Ding Jiuli, who was sitting there eating as if nothing had happened, and didn’t know what to say. Her divine sense swept over Ding Jiuli, but she couldn’t check if Ding Jiuli had any mental problems.

“Husband, what are you standing there for? Come and have breakfast!” Ding Jiuli patted the stone bench next to her, beckoning Ding Shuang to come and eat.

“Uh, Jiu Li, you…” Ding Shuang didn’t sit next to Ding Jiu Li, but sat opposite her as usual. He didn’t know how to ask Ding Jiu Li about her current situation. Should he just ask her if she’s gone crazy?

“What’s wrong, husband?” Ding Jiuli tilted her head, looking at Ding Shuang with a face full of questions.

“Um, um, Jiu Li, you, you, I, I… Sigh, Jiu Li, stop teasing me. I made myself very clear yesterday.” Ding Shuang decided to be direct, after all, cultivators don’t go crazy so easily.

“Oh, my husband made it very clear yesterday. But I just took it seriously. How I address you is my business.” Ding Jiuli had a look that said, “That’s how I am, what can you do about it? What’s it to you if I call you husband?”

“Me! Sigh, let’s eat.” Ding Shuang was almost amused by Ding Jiuli’s appearance, but had no choice but to vent her anger on breakfast.

“Husband, I have now broken through to the peak of the Nascent Soul stage and am preparing to storm the Qi Huo Sect to avenge my parents, brothers, and sisters.” Halfway through the meal, Ding Jiuli suddenly told Ding Shuang that she was going to take revenge.

“Are you crazy! Although your strength can surpass that of an ordinary Fusion stage cultivator, the opponent has three Fusion stage cultivators and a sect-protecting formation.” Ding Shuang looked at Ding Jiuli in shock. This girl really has mental problems.

“Isn’t there you, my husband? Would you just watch me go to my death?” Ding Jiuli gave Ding Shuang a gentle smile, as if she were really looking at her husband.

“Of course I won’t watch you die! No, I’m not your husband! If you really want revenge, that’s fine, but we need to plan it out.” It seems this girl isn’t crazy, but what’s with all this talk about “husband”?

Ding Shuang shook her head helplessly and continued to vent her frustration on the breakfast in front of her.

“Yes, everything is up to my husband.” Ding Jiuli gave Ding Shuang a sweet smile before continuing to eat her breakfast politely.

“Sigh~” Ding Shuang sighed inwardly. He understood what Ding Jiuli meant; she was trying to cling to him. Was she being unreasonable again?

Thinking of Ding Jiuli’s crazy, rascal-like behavior in the past, Ding Shuang burst out laughing. She never expected that Ding Jiuli would be so refined this time, eating like a lady from a respectable family.

“What are you laughing at, husband?” Ding Jiuli asked curiously when she heard Ding Shuang chuckle.

“Laughing at how you acted like a brat when you were little. No, I’m not your husband!” Ding Shuang was speechless. Had she gotten used to Ding Jiuli calling her husband so quickly? But thinking about it, there were only two of them here, so whatever Ding Jiuli called her was just her.

“My husband is making fun of me again, but don’t worry, I will be a good wife.” Ding Jiuli’s face turned slightly red, perhaps because she remembered how shameless she used to be when she threw tantrums at Ding Shuang.

Ding Shuang ignored Ding Jiuli’s address and did not answer her question. Instead, he finished his breakfast and began refining weapons. He was preparing to help Ding Jiuli take revenge.

During the years he accompanied Ding Jiuli on her travels, Ding Shuang also gained a great deal. His array formation skills reached level B, and he also entered the basics of weapon crafting and reached level D. He can now craft some near-low-grade spiritual weapons.

The reason it’s called a near-low-grade spiritual weapon is because the spiritual weapons Ding Shuang forged were still disposable. He inscribed formations on the iron sword he had previously forged and nurtured it with sword energy, barely reaching the level of a spiritual weapon, but it would still be destroyed after one attack.

Ding Shuang’s current task is to refine more of these disposable spirit swords. He doesn’t have a specific plan for how many to refine; he just wants to keep refining them and see how many he can refine in three months.

Ding Shuang planned to stay here for at most another year. If Ding Jiuli hadn’t expressed her desire for revenge today, he would have left soon.

After Ding Shuang finished eating, Ding Jiuli began to tidy up the stone table. After finishing, she sat back down at the stone table, resting her chin on her hands and watching Ding Shuang, who was hammering away in the courtyard.

Ding Shuang’s weapon-refining skills are only at the D level. He cannot refine spiritual weapons from ordinary iron. He must first forge the weapon, then inscribe an array, and finally nurture it with sword energy to refine a one-time low-grade spiritual flying sword.

As Ding Jiuli watched Ding Shuang inscribe an array on the newly forged longsword, she suddenly realized that Ding Shuang hadn’t used a sword for three or four years, except for flying on a sword, of course.

She had asked Ding Shuang about this before, and Ding Shuang seemed to have said that this was part of his cultivation, requiring him to forget the sword. Would Ding Shuang picking up the sword again for her sake cause him to lose all his previous efforts?

Ding Jiuli couldn’t help but feel a little worried, but she didn’t directly bother Ding Shuang. She decided to ask him again at lunchtime.

She continued to stare at Ding Shuang. Since she went down the mountain to travel, she hadn’t had a proper look at Ding Shuang. Over the years, Ding Shuang had been constantly demanding that he cultivate, while in his spare time he was just looking at the world.

Now that Ding Shuang wasn’t demanding any more cultivation from her, she could watch to her heart’s content. Thinking this, Ding Jiuli smiled dreamily; she could watch for a lifetime and still not get enough.

As Ding Jiuli watched, she noticed something was off. Ding Shuang was clearly inscribing an array on the longsword, but why did it feel like he was performing sword techniques? Recalling Ding Shuang’s blacksmithing movements earlier, those hammer blows also seemed to be sword techniques.

Ding Jiuli closed her eyes and looked again. Ding Shuang’s movements of inscribing the formation became very ordinary. After looking carefully for a while, the mysterious feeling of performing sword moves reappeared.

This is Ding Shuang’s biggest achievement over the years. Before traveling down the mountain with Ding Jiuli, he knew nothing about how to forget the sword, but now he has found the way and is on the right track.

As Ding Jiuli watched, she couldn’t help but enter a very mysterious state. Having just passed the test of asking the sun yesterday, she had now touched the pinnacle of asking the moon!

That’s how unreasonable a divine-grade sword spirit root is!

After finishing inscribing the formation, Ding Shuang casually put the longsword in his hand into his sword qi sea to nurture it. Several hundred scattered flying swords floated in the sky above his sword qi sea.

The reason it looks scattered is because Ding Shuang’s sword qi sea is very vast. After all, Ding Shuang has reached level 287, which is equivalent to a cultivator at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage.

Since Ding Shuang first glimpsed the path of the Forgotten Sword Sect, his cultivation speed has become extremely fast. Coupled with the treasures of Qushui Kingdom, his experience bar for leveling up has been rising rapidly.

After sheathing his flying sword, Ding Shuang glanced back at Ding Jiuli, who was sitting on the stone bench. He had originally intended to remind Ding Jiuli to cultivate, but upon closer inspection, he discovered that Ding Jiuli had entered a state of enlightenment.

Ding Shuang sighed inwardly, “Having a divine-grade sword spirit root really makes a difference.” He casually set up a soundproof barrier around Ding Jiuli.

After discovering that Ding Jiuli possessed a divine-grade sword spirit root, Ding Shuang asked the system what his own spirit root was. The system replied that before he acquired the system, Ding Shuang was just an ordinary young man, as ordinary as could be. However, after acquiring the system, no spirit root could compare to it.

This made Ding Shuang very curious. Why would the system choose such an ordinary young man like himself? Was it because he was immune to the Primordial Desire?

The system replied that it could not make a judgment until the host showed immunity to the Primordial Desire. As for the criteria for the system to select a host, the system itself did not know, but Ding Shuang was indeed the most ordinary host selected by the system, without exception.

Ding Shuang was somewhat surprised by the system’s response. What surprised him was not his own ordinariness, but that the system hadn’t told him he lacked the necessary permissions to answer. Perhaps the system was also puzzled as to how it had found such an ordinary host.

After Ding Shuang set up a silencing barrier for Ding Jiuli, she continued forging and refining weapons. Ding Jiuli sat there for ten days, and on the tenth day, she actually passed the Moon-Asking Test.

Seeing Ding Jiuli advance again, Ding Shuang was speechless. Heh, so much for saying even a divine-grade sword spirit root couldn’t compare to the system, look how fast she advanced?

After giving Ding Jiuli a pill, Ding Shuang continued his career as a blacksmith and weapon refiner, occasionally feeding Ding Jiuli a pill as she advanced in her cultivation.

Ding Jiuli took three days to advance this time, and her realm is still at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage. However, her Purple Mansion is more powerful, and she can now undergo tribulation and enter the Fusion stage at any time.

However, she was not in a hurry to undergo the tribulation. Ding Shuang had warned her many times before that she should not undergo the tribulation before accumulating enough power in her Purple Mansion, as that would affect her future development.

Ding Shuang had already stopped refining weapons before Ding Jiuli’s advancement. He smiled and said to Ding Jiuli, “Hehe, congratulations! You’ve already broken through again in just a few days.”

“Thank you, my husband. It’s all thanks to you.” Ding Jiuli smiled sweetly at Ding Shuang.

“Don’t call me that. It’s your exceptional talent. By the way, although you can undergo tribulation and enter the fusion stage at any time, don’t rush to undergo tribulation just because you want revenge. Your foundation is still far from sufficient.” Ding Shuang pouted and looked at the gentle and tender Ding Jiuli in front of her, thinking to herself.

If I hadn’t raised you, I would have actually believed your nonsense. What are you pretending to be, being gentle and virtuous in front of me?

“Regarding what my husband taught me, I will not undergo tribulation until my Purple Mansion reaches its limit.” Ding Jiuli nodded seriously.

“Sigh, if only you had been this obedient before. Also, I’m not your husband!” Ding Shuang looked at Ding Jiuli, thinking to herself, let’s see how long you can keep up this act.

Ding Shuang ignored Ding Jiuli and continued forging weapons. Ding Jiuli’s breakthrough meant that revenge wouldn’t be long in coming. If the Qi Huo Sect didn’t have a protective formation, the two of them could easily break through the Qi Huo Sect.

Ding Shuang crafted disposable flying swords specifically for breaking formations. He roughly calculated that collecting a thousand swords would be enough to break the formation. However, just in case, Ding Shuang ultimately collected 1,500 disposable flying swords.

Two months later, Ding Shuang and Ding Jiuli arrived at Qihuo City, where the Qihuo Sect was located. In this era, spiritual energy was abundant, and most sects were built on plains, gradually developing into large cities.

This era also has blessed lands with even richer spiritual energy, but they are mostly occupied by sects of the Jia rank or above. For example, Pinyin City, which Ding Shuang encountered when he first came to this era, is only the outer sect of the Pinyin Sect, while the main sect is located in a blessed land in the mountains.

“Husband, this is our first time in Qihuo City.” After entering the city, Ding Jiuli kept her small hands clenched into fists, tightly.

“Jiuli, don’t be impulsive. Let’s wait three more days. After three days, all those flying swords will be fully nurtured, and then we’ll go break the formation immediately,” Ding Shuang said, sensing Ding Jiuli’s anger.

“Mm.” Ding Jiuli nodded, then loosened her clenched fist.

After entering the city, the two found an inn to stay in. Ding Shuang was originally wondering whether to use the exchange as an excuse to sneak into the Qi Huo Sect and launch a surprise attack. But then he thought, we sword cultivators disdain such petty tricks. We’ll just break through the formation and kill our way through.

Moreover, Ding Shuang’s current level has reached 292, which is equivalent to a Nascent Soul cultivator nearing the limit of the Purple Mansion stage. Such cultivators are more powerful than ordinary mid-stage Fusion cultivators.

The combat power of cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage and the Fusion stage has always been a mystery, with powerful Nascent Soul cultivators frequently defeating Fusion stage cultivators.

Before a Nascent Soul cultivator engages in combat with a Fusion cultivator, they are in a state of both being able to win and lose. Only after the fight does the outcome collapse into either victory or defeat. This phenomenon is also known as Schrödinger’s Nascent Soul (Fusion) cultivator.

Who is Schrödinger? He is an ancestral immortal of the Quantum Sect, one of the three upper sects, whose causal immortal technique can kill you in the future.

Okay, all of the above was made up by Ding Shuang. There is no Quantum Sect among the three upper sects. Apart from the Dao Sword Sect, the other two sects are the Luo Tian Sect and the Shan Hai Sect.

The main reason why the Nascent Soul stage and the Fusion stage are so special is that these two stages are only a division of cultivation levels, not a division of combat power.

Once a cultivator reaches the Nascent Soul stage, they can achieve immortality. They cultivate the Purple Mansion and the Nascent Soul. The stronger the Nascent Soul and Purple Mansion, the stronger their combat power. As long as they do not actively attract a Heavenly Tribulation to shatter their Purple Mansion, they will remain in the Nascent Soul stage.

Although there are limits to the cultivation of the Nascent Soul and Purple Mansion stages, their combat power is still significantly higher than that of a typical mid-stage Fusion cultivator.

Most Nascent Soul stage cultivators do not choose to cultivate to their limit before undergoing tribulation, since the stronger the Purple Mansion, the stronger the heavenly tribulation.

Crossing the tribulation is inherently a matter of life and death, and to make it even more difficult for oneself is tantamount to courting death, since most cultivators practice ordinary cultivation techniques.

Therefore, most Nascent Soul cultivators choose to undergo tribulation when their combat power is close to the early stage of fusion, as this is when the success rate of tribulation is the highest.

Although tribulation is dangerous, most cultivators still choose to undergo it. After all, the Nascent Soul stage has its limits, and even if one could live forever, few would be willing to remain at that stage indefinitely.

The Qi Huo Sect is a sect that has been established for about three thousand years. It was developed from a cultivation family and openly has three cultivators in the Fusion stage, one of whom has already advanced to the late Fusion stage.

During their travels, Ding Shuang and Ding Jiuli gathered a lot of information about the Qi Huo Sect. It is said that the Qi Huo Sect still has at least two ancestors in the Fusion stage.

It’s no secret that sects have hidden patriarchs; every sect has a few hidden fusion-stage old monsters.

Although the process of merging the nascent soul and the physical body proceeds automatically and cannot be slowed down after entering the fusion period, some cultivators have still developed a method similar to “freezing” to put the merging cultivator into a slumber.

Once one enters a state of slumber, the process of merging the nascent soul with the physical body will cease, and one’s strength will not increase. Generally, those who are willing to “freeze” themselves are those who know they have no hope of transcending the tribulation and are willing to protect their sect.

Moreover, the longer the freezing time, the faster the fusion speed after thawing. Therefore, freezing is not permanent; under normal circumstances, it can only be frozen for a maximum of one thousand years.

A thousand years later, the fused cultivators who thaw will instantly complete the fusion and attract a heavenly tribulation. They will either remain frozen indefinitely or be used as a one-time “nuclear bomb” to pull others through the tribulation at the same time.

Such human nuclear bombs are generally used to attack other sects. After all, the tribulation takes time to gather. Except for sects that have a base and cannot move, it is easy for cultivators to avoid the tribulation. They just need to leave the range of the tribulation before it begins.

Three days later, two people flew over the Qi Huo Sect. A man and a woman walked side by side. The man was dressed in plain clothes, and the woman was dressed in mourning clothes. These two were Ding Shuang and Ding Jiuli.

“Sect Master and Elder of Qihuo Sect, come out and face your death!” Ding Shuang channeled his true energy and roared at Qihuo Sect, his voice echoing throughout the entire city of Qihuo.

With a whoosh, the Qi Huo Sect’s protective formation activated, enveloping most of the sect. A voice echoed from within the formation, “Who are you? Why do you threaten to destroy my sect?”

“Hmph, the hatred of annihilating my clan.” Ding Shuang didn’t want to say anything more and directly summoned five hundred disposable flying swords to attack the great formation.

Ding Shuang planned to use five hundred flying swords to scout ahead. With his current B-level array formation skills, he could roughly find the weak points of the Qi Huo Sect’s protective array.

This grand formation is a fire-elemental formation. Ding Shuang has no water-elemental spells that can directly counter it, so he can only fight fire with fire, attaching a star of ink fire to each disposable flying sword.

To Ding Shuang’s surprise, the Inkfire was extremely effective at restraining the formation, and the five hundred disposable flying swords directly broke through the Qihuo Sect’s protective formation.

Ding Shuang’s sudden attack caught everyone in the Qi Huo Sect off guard. With their formation destroyed, they had no choice but to fight Ding Shuang and his companion to the death.

A dense multitude of cultivators flew out from within the Qi Huo Sect, all of them at the Nascent Soul stage or above, totaling over 1,200 people. Among them, the three leading cultivators were at the Fusion stage.

“What do you mean by this?” A cultivator in the Fusion stage from the Qi Huo Sect glared at Ding Shuang.

Ding Shuang didn’t answer, and directly led Ding Jiuli to charge forward.

The Qi Huo Sect cultivators were immediately at a loss. They had never seen a cultivator who attacked so irrationally. Normally, one would at least give their name when seeking revenge.

Ding Shuang isn’t stupid. Now the whole world knows that the national treasure of Qushui Kingdom is the Immortal Flame, which went missing twenty years ago. Ding Shuang wouldn’t expose her identity and cause trouble for herself and Ding Jiuli.

The Qi Huo Sect was also frustrated. As a sect that had grown step by step from a cultivation family, they had destroyed far too many families, and they simply couldn’t figure out the identities of these two people.

The battle above Qihuo City was extremely fierce, with Ding Shuang fighting alone against two cultivators in the Fusion stage, one of whom was even at the late Fusion stage.

Ding Jiuli was fighting another mid-stage Fusion cultivator. Her strength was definitely superior to his, but she had to be on guard against sneak attacks from other Nascent Soul cultivators at all times, so she fought very cautiously.

Ding Shuang also had to be wary of sneak attacks from other Nascent Soul stage cultivators, but the other Nascent Soul stage cultivators also had to be careful of Ding Shuang’s disposable flying swords, as being hit by one would surely result in certain death.

While fighting two Nascent Soul stage cultivators, Ding Shuang occasionally released one or two disposable flying swords to kill the Nascent Soul stage cultivators around him. Each disposable flying sword that flashed by would take the lives of one or two Nascent Soul stage disciples.

Ding Shuang timed each release of his one-time flying sword perfectly, leaving the two Nascent Soul cultivators who were fighting him no time to stop him.

“Nascent Soul stage disciples, listen to my command and retreat ten miles!” After sacrificing the lives of nearly a hundred Nascent Soul stage cultivators, the late-stage Fusion cultivator of the Qi Huo Sect roared and drove back the Nascent Soul stage cultivators, which greatly reduced the pressure on Ding Jiuli’s side.

Ding Jiuli was no longer under pressure, but the pressure on the cultivator in the Fusion stage who was fighting her suddenly increased, and Ding Jiuli cut off his arm in just a few breaths.

The two men fighting Ding Shuang were shocked and quickly sent one of them to help. Ding Shuang used all her strength to hold off the two men and buy Ding Jiuli as much time as possible.

Ding Shuang’s delaying tactics worked. Before the mid-stage fusion cultivator could break free from the entanglement, Ding Jiuli successfully killed her opponent.

The Fusion stage cultivator killed by Ding Jiuli was actually the sect leader of the Qi Huo Sect. Upon seeing their sect leader killed, the Nascent Soul stage cultivators who had already retreated charged back with bloodshot eyes.

Ding Shuang forced back the late-stage Fusion cultivator fighting against him with a single sword strike, then took out all the disposable flying swords from his sword qi sea and waved them towards the group of Nascent Soul cultivators.

“You dare to do this, you brat!” A furious roar came from within the Qi Huo Sect, and four more Fusion Stage cultivators flew out.