Chapter 428: One Sword to Slash Them All

The Young Marquis, holding a serpent spear and protected by the blood energy and crimson scriptures of his Blood-Handprint Demonic Armor, charged like a streak of crimson light across the snowfield, heading straight for the county town over a hundred miles away.

He was in great pain. His dimensional bag held his sister's headless corpse, and his serpent spear was clutched tightly in his hand, his eyes burning with an endless killing intent.

Yet, he dared not pause for even a moment. Gone were his previous high spirits and confidence.

Although his opponent had used a powerful artifact, his strategic mind and combat techniques were truly exceptional. More importantly, the person was very young and always composed, as if everything was within his grasp.

Behind him, a piercing whistle shrieked.

It was getting closer and closer.

"Whoosh!"

Li Weiyi warped through space, a purple mist sphere appearing directly above the Young Marquis.

The moment Li Weiyi stepped out of the purple mist sphere, the serpent spear below him shot out like lightning. Someone who could cultivate to the Young Marquis's level was extremely skilled at seizing opportunities, even in dire peril.

Offense and defense, escape and kill—all had to be altered in an instant.

Li Weiyi remained unperturbed, raising his sword to parry and block.

"Chhhk!"

The sword edge and serpent spear scraped together, sending sparks flying and creating a harsh, grating sound.

The powerful force from the serpent spear sent Li Weiyi flying six or seven zhang away. When he landed, snow splattered from the ground.

"Indeed," Li Weiyi thought, "one must always remain cautious and never underestimate any martial cultivator."

All of Li Weiyi's prior spiritual perception had been focused on the distant county town, under immense pressure from the Eternal Life Realm giant. His vigilance towards the Young Marquis had consequently decreased, which allowed his opponent to catch him off guard.

The opponent's timing for switching between offense and defense was simply flawless.

One pursued, one fled.

Within a hundred miles of the county town, Li Weiyi intercepted the Young Marquis, and the two clashed fiercely, spear against spear.

Li Weiyi's attention remained largely on the county town, unwilling to relax his guard.

Seven Phoenix-Winged Moth Sovereigns flew out, each unleashing their innate Daoist techniques. In a short while, Li Weiyi seized an opportunity and struck the Young Marquis with a spear, sending him flying. Even though the Blood-Handprint Demonic Armor mitigated some of the attack, he was still severely wounded, with blood continuously flowing from his mouth.

The seven Phoenix-Winged Moth Sovereigns were all at the Fourth Heaven Realm, but each possessed combat power comparable to martial cultivators of the Fifth or Sixth Heaven Realm.

How could the Young Marquis possibly fight against eight opponents?

Inside the county town, the Divine Wing Marquis had never been as enraged as he was today. Being provoked by a Dao Seed Realm cultivator was an utter humiliation. He looked behind him; the ritual was already more than halfway complete.

The four-zhang-long crimson wings on his back unfurled.

His four wings vibrated, and spiritual energy and wind swept through the entire city.

"Swish! Swish!"

Dozens of foot-long crimson feathers, enveloped by a river of spiritual energy, flew towards the snowfield ninety miles away.

Each crimson feather was far from an ordinary artifact, containing the Divine Wing Marquis's essence blood, allowing him to control them from a great distance.

"Thud! Thud! Thud!"

Li Weiyi moved fluidly, delivering three consecutive spear strikes that completely shattered the Young Marquis's defenses.

The Young Marquis's internal organs were wounded, his shoulder bone fractured, blood flowed from his seven orifices, and he collapsed to his knees, unconscious, before falling prone.

Li Weiyi did not kill him.

Such a young prodigy, who could ride a Gale-Chasing Beast as a mount, could not possibly have a simple background. Keeping him alive was the only way to lure the Eternal Life Realm giant out of the city.

Li Weiyi sensed dozens of crimson feathers entering his spiritual perception field and dared not be careless. He fully activated the defenses of his inner Blood-Handprint Demonic Armor and outer Governor's Robe.

The crimson feathers flew from above the emerald-yellow pine forest, forming the ethereal silhouettes of dozens of strange birds.

They attacked Li Weiyi from various directions, twisting and turning.

"Bang! Bang..."

Li Weiyi held a sword in one hand and a spear in the other, his body shifting and moving, sometimes leaping upwards, sometimes warping through space, continuously causing the crimson feathers to explode.

Before long, only a dozen or so remained.

The Eternal Life Realm giant in the city, using his spiritual will, recalled them, and they vanished into the horizon.

"At this distance, you still can't do anything to me," Li Weiyi shouted. "Stop releasing feathers, or your wings might go bald!"

Li Weiyi shouted again, trying everything he could to provoke the Eternal Life Realm giant and lure him out of the city.

Confronting an Eternal Life Realm giant inside the city?

Li Weiyi had zero confidence in that.

Seeing no response, Li Weiyi walked towards the Young Marquis, took his serpent spear, and removed his Blood-Handprint Demonic Armor. He then took his dimensional bag, threw Luo Yi's corpse out of it, and removed her Blood-Handprint Demonic Armor.

Three Rank Seven Hundred-Character Artifact spears were all inside the bag.

Suddenly.

Li Weiyi's eyes narrowed; he detected a terrifying aura entering the edge of his spiritual perception, approaching at an unparalleled speed.

At that speed, it would arrive in mere breaths.

Had he really provoked him out?

An Eternal Life Realm giant so impatient?

Li Weiyi put away the Staff of All Things, affixed the Lightning Escape Talisman given to him by Grand Historian Taishi Yu to his body, held the Yellow Dragon Sword in one hand, and used the Young Marquis as a shield in the other.

"Boom!"

With a thunderous sound, Li Weiyi's body transformed into a streak of lightning, vanishing from his spot.

The moment he left, a Qi Trace Daoist technique swept through the spot where he had just stood.

The Divine Wing Marquis was indeed enraged, but the fundamental reason he charged out of the county town so recklessly was that he had discerned Li Weiyi was carrying an extraordinary treasure. Secondly, it was to rescue his beloved son, and only lastly was it due to his rage.

With the aid of the Lightning Escape Talisman, for a short time, Li Weiyi's speed could rival that of an initial-stage Eternal Life Realm expert.

He knew full well that with this speed, escaping from the Divine Wing Marquis was impossible. The next few dozen breaths would be an unprecedented challenge.

The Yellow Dragon Sword in his hand contained a Divine Sword Talisman refined by Grand Historian Taishi, capable of striking down an Eternal Life Realm giant.

On his back was the Thousand-Character Artifact cloak given by Tang Wanzhou, which contained the full power of a Dragon-Headed Camel's strike.

These were his two strongest killing moves!

But the gap between Li Weiyi and the Eternal Life Realm giant was too vast. The opponent didn't even need to close to within several miles to potentially kill him. The opponent had not used any long-range magical artifacts, clearly fearing injury to the hostage in his hand.

This resolved the most troublesome point for Li Weiyi!

Second, the opponent's speed was extremely high. If the distance became too short, Li Weiyi might not even have time to unleash the Divine Sword Talisman before being struck and losing all combat ability.

The optimal attack range had to be precisely judged.

Third, Eternal Life Realm giants had extremely keen perception of danger and very fast reaction speeds.

It could be said that Li Weiyi's greatest advantage now was his perceived weakness. No matter how cautious an Eternal Life Realm giant was, they would inevitably underestimate him.

Li Weiyi glanced back at the Grand Palace Master on his back. Her eyes were still tightly closed, and her breathing was even. Even after calling out several times, she showed no reaction.

Zen Sea Guanwu had said that carrying her on his back would be a protective talisman. He wondered if that was true.

"He's coming!"

A blood-red manifestation of Dao heart, like a thousand shackles, fell upon Li Weiyi.

Li Weiyi, who was sprinting, shuddered, his speed drastically decreasing, becoming slower and slower.

The Divine Wing Marquis was still three miles away, yet he had already suppressed Li Weiyi, making it impossible for him to move an inch. Spiritual energy condensed into misty chains, wrapping around his arms and legs in loops.

"Then let's die together!" Li Weiyi roared, feigning desperation. "I've already slain nine Dao Seeds of the Demonic Kingdom today; that's enough!"

Li Weiyi deliberately feigned a desperate situation, veins bulging on his face, letting out an unwilling roar. He exerted all his strength to raise his arm within the opponent's Dao heart manifestation and struck towards the Young Marquis.

"How dare you!"

The Divine Wing Marquis spread all four of his wings, swept low across the ground, and roared.

His spiritual will attacked Li Weiyi through the air, aiming to stop him.

An Eternal Life Realm giant's combat will could cross several miles and easily overwhelm the soul and consciousness of a Five Seas Realm martial cultivator. Dao Seed Realm cultivators, having already begun cultivating their souls, possessed some resistance.

Li Weiyi was already prepared. He summoned the spiritual form of the Fusang Divine Tree to resist the opponent's spiritual attack. In his consciousness, the Divine Wing Marquis's body was even taller than the Fusang Divine Tree, radiating immense pressure.

The Fusang Divine Tree couldn't entirely block it, but could only buy a little time.

Li Weiyi seized this brief moment to activate the Divine Sword Talisman on the Yellow Dragon Sword. Dense runes emerged on the sword's body.

A thousand years ago, special envoys dispatched by the Lingxiao Palace, when on missions, would carry a Divine Sword Talisman specifically to deter and slay Eternal Life Realm martial cultivators, much like an imperial sword with the power to execute.

To Li Weiyi's surprise, the Divine Sword Talisman hadn't even been fully unleashed yet.

A mile away, a painful scream was heard first.

The Divine Wing Marquis plummeted from mid-air, clutching his head, blood spilling from his eyes and nose. His heart filled with terror, he stumbled, preparing to flee and no longer daring to pursue Li Weiyi.

Moments ago, the Divine Wing Marquis, carrying an overwhelming killing intent, had unleashed his combat will, intending to overwhelm Li Weiyi's consciousness and directly obliterate his soul.

But he was met with a backlash.

An unknown spiritual will retaliated with multiplied force, severely injuring his soul and scattering his will.

What the Divine Wing Marquis didn't know was that Li Weiyi was carrying Yu Yaozi on his back. When his Eternal Life Realm killing intent and combat will attacked, Yu Yaozi sensed the danger and automatically sent a portion of her spiritual will back as a counter-attack.

The timing was perfect.

Li Weiyi thrust out the Yellow Dragon Sword, and instantly, the runes of the Divine Sword Talisman, carried by the sword body, flew forth.

All around, sword energy crisscrossed, turning all vegetation to dust.

"Boom!"

One sword strike tore open the snowfield, extending for twenty miles.

The sword energy gully stretched from beneath his feet to the distant horizon, its deepest point reaching six or seven meters, and as wide as a riverbed.

"This was the power of a single talisman?"

Li Weiyi froze on the spot, taking a sharp breath of cold air. He enveloped the Young Marquis in spiritual energy, activated his movement technique, and rapidly rushed towards the end of the sword energy gully twenty miles away.

The Divine Wing Marquis's physical body was already torn into pieces, scattered across several miles.

The armor was relatively intact, except that the Yellow Dragon Sword had pierced through its abdomen.

"Clang!"

He retrieved the Yellow Dragon Sword from deep within the earth.

Li Weiyi held the sword hilt, sighing inwardly. Only one Divine Sword Talisman had been forged. Such a talisman, used for deterrence, was far more valuable than being used directly.

Having lost the Divine Sword Talisman, Li Weiyi immediately searched for the Divine Wing Marquis's dimensional bag.

He found nothing.

He didn't know if it had been shattered by the Divine Sword Talisman or if the Divine Wing Marquis simply didn't possess a dimensional bag.

He only found a two-meter-long bow.

Li Weiyi had no time to check the bow's grade. He tossed it into his blood mud space, collected the damaged armor, and then, carrying the Young Marquis, hurried towards the distant county town.

Seven or eight miles outside the county town, Li Weiyi used various methods to probe the area. After confirming there were likely no other Eternal Life Realm experts in the city, he led the seven Phoenix-Winged Moth Sovereigns and their summoned insect horde to attack the city.

"Boom!"

The Violet Cloud Thunder Seal shattered the city's defensive formation.

The seven Phoenix-Winged Moth Sovereigns and seven waves of insect armies surged in frantically from both the ground and the sky.

The county town's defensive formation was not particularly strong. After the Demonic Kingdom experts arrived, they only had enough time to set up a massive concealment array covering the entire city.