PFFT!
Jiang Jichen dodged at extreme speed, but a flurry of sword light still grazed him, leaving a shallow wound.
Yet, he paid Yann Song no mind, not even sparing him a glance. Instead, his gaze locked onto another young disciple from the Mountain Sect.
The moment Jiang Jichen's gaze fell upon him, the Mountain Sect disciple's hair stood on end. He felt as if he were being targeted by a primordial ancient beast, a sense of life-and-death crisis overwhelming him.
He had just witnessed Jiang Jichen instantly slaughter two of his fellow disciples. If he were in their shoes, he would have been utterly unable to resist, facing certain death.
The man's speed was simply too fast, and he was actually a Body Refiner!
'In this era, the Dao of Body Refining is broken. Why would anyone still choose the path of a Body Cultivator?'
He had no time to ponder further. Jiang Jichen had already attacked. Like an Ancient Barbaric Beast, he moved with the speed of roaring thunder and the force of a tsunami, closing the distance in an instant.
He threw a devastating punch, his movements grand and sweeping, his momentum unstoppable. The sheer power of his aura was astounding, completely unlike the quiet youth who had been standing aside just moments before.
Although Jiang Jichen had now repaired his Qi Sea, he had only condensed a single Spirit Vein. Thus, to attack and kill his enemies, he could only rely on the Body Refining power of the Undying Scripture.
The young Mountain Sect disciple had reacted by now. With a flick of his wrist, his longsword unleashed a torrent of Sword Light, forming a phantom river of blades that swept toward Jiang Jichen.
The other young Mountain Sect disciple attacked at the same time, slashing several Sword Shadows through the air. The Sword Shadows morphed continuously, vaguely taking the form of a mountain as they descended to crush Jiang Jichen from above.
Mountain River Sword Technique!
This was the Mountain Sect's ultimate technique, but ordinary disciples could only learn its introductory moves. Only a legacy disciple like Yann Song could learn the core and essence of the Mountain River Sword Technique.
But even as introductory moves, when performed simultaneously by two disciples at the Eighth-level Mortal Realm—one mountain, one river, a crushing weight and a nimble flow alternating to kill—the power was truly extraordinary.
Even before he had mastered the Shadow Step, Jiang Jichen could defeat Eighth-level Mortal Realm cultivators like Lü Yinghao, Murong Hee, and Shen Yuqing. Now, with the Shadow Step to aid him, and having refined a thousand First-Grade Spirit Condensing Pills in the Meditation Room, he had done more than just condense a Spirit Vein and heal his injuries. He had further tempered his physical body, pushing the Undying Scripture to a more profound state, and was now just a hair's breadth away from the Late Stage of First Turn.
Therefore, it would be no trouble for him to break through such an attack.
However, the greatest threats to him were Yann Song and Qingya.
Qingya remained standing to the side and had yet to make a move, but this woman gave Jiang Jichen a very dangerous feeling, preventing him from lowering his guard in the slightest.
As for Yann Song, it wasn't that he was ignoring him; rather, he needed to eliminate his four helpers first so he could focus on fighting him alone.
The man was at the Ninth Level Mortal Realm, and his mastery of the Mountain River Sword Technique was extraordinary. How could Jiang Jichen dare to underestimate him in the slightest?
But in Yann Song's eyes, Jiang Jichen's actions were a clear sign of contempt.
'My attack was actually ignored by a lowly commoner!'
Yann Song was overcome with fury. He swung his Treasure Sword relentlessly, creating an endless stream of sword flourishes that all slashed toward Jiang Jichen.
Caught in a three-pronged pincer attack, Jiang Jichen had to make a choice.
Dodge, or press forward to kill?
'This youth is surprisingly remarkable. It's truly unexpected. But under these circumstances, I'm afraid he won't escape death. What a pity that the little girl will have to die with him.'
Standing not far away, Qingya sighed to herself.
Trapped in the deadly encirclement, Jiang Jichen merely gave a cold smile as his body suddenly accelerated.
"Position Shifting!"
Jiang Jichen let out a low shout. A faint golden Spiritual Light emanated from his body, and a light-golden Spiritual Power Line coiled around his feet. It rapidly extended, snaking around the legs of the Mountain Sect disciple in front of him.
In that instant, the Mountain Sect disciple felt a mysterious force on his legs, pushing him. He involuntarily rushed to the spot where Jiang Jichen had just been standing.
And Jiang Jichen appeared where the disciple had been moments before.
Position Shifting was a move from the Shadow Step technique. It allowed one to instantly swap places with an enemy—an incredibly profound ability. With Jiang Jichen's current Spirit Cultivation Realm, he could barely activate it once.
Although the Shadow Step was the most Low Level Spirit Cultivation Step Technique Jiang Jichen knew, it was also one of the most profound. Its power could evolve along with a Cultivator's strength and their level of comprehension.
The Shadow Step actually consisted of eighteen different step techniques, and Position Shifting was merely the most Low Level among them.
Even in his past life, despite the power of his Invincible Realm, Jiang Jichen had only been able to master seventeen of the step techniques. The final one, Flowing Years of Light and Shadow, remained elusive; he could never grasp its essence.
With their positions swapped, the attacks that had been meant for Jiang Jichen were now heading for the Mountain Sect disciple.
"PFFT! PFFT..."
By the time the young Mountain Sect disciple realized what had happened, Yann Song's sword flourishes and the other disciple's River Sword Shadow had already reached him.
At this moment, the Mountain Sect disciple had nowhere to run. He could only take the full brunt of the attacks. His body was hacked to pieces, and he was as dead as could be.
The scene was incredibly bloody, but Jiang Jichen didn't spare it a single glance. Within a few steps, he was beside the other Mountain Sect disciple.
CRACK!
A single punch sent the young Mountain Sect disciple flying sideways into an ancient tree. His aura vanished instantly, and he died on the spot.
Four Mountain Sect disciples at the Eighth-level Mortal Realm had been completely wiped out in just over ten seconds. Even Yann Song, a cultivator at the Ninth Level Mortal Realm, had been unable to stop him in the slightest.
'So strong! From start to finish, he only threw a single punch, killing one person with one blow, and all while holding a little girl in his arms. How could this youth possibly be a no-name?'
Qingya was utterly shocked, never imagining such an outcome. The youth was actually a Body-Spirit Dual Cultivator, and his combat prowess was terrifying to the extreme.
Even Yann Song was stunned for a moment, finding it hard to believe.
The four junior brothers at the Eighth-level Mortal Realm he had brought with him were killed by an unknown youth in just over ten seconds?
However, Yann Song was an extraordinary genius with a resolute mind. He quickly regained his composure. Gripping his Treasure Sword, he stared coldly at Jiang Jichen and said menacingly, "I don't care who you are. For killing disciples of my Mountain Sect and making an enemy of us, you will die without a burial place. And not just you—your family, your friends, and everyone associated with you will die."
Jiang Jichen was about to make his next move and retreat as quickly as possible, but upon hearing Yann Song's words, he froze and came to a stop.
His expression remained calm, showing no change, but a chill simultaneously rose in the hearts of both Qingya and Yann Song. It was as if, in that instant, the youth had suddenly become terrifying beyond measure.
Jiang Jichen held Little Yue'Er and gave her a gentle toss, landing her softly and steadily on a branch of a distant ancient tree.
"Little Yue'Er, wait for me on the tree for a moment!"
Jiang Jichen transmitted his voice to her softly.
"Little Yue'Er will be good and wait here for Big Brother."
Little Yue'Er replied obediently.
Without Little Yue'Er to hold, Jiang Jichen had no more restraints. He could now go all out in a battle to the death.
As long as he stood guard here, no one would be able to get past him to harm Little Yue'Er.
Facing Yann Song, who was at the Ninth Level Great Perfection Mortal Realm, he didn't dare to be arrogant. He had to give it his all to have a chance of winning.
After killing the four Mountain Sect disciples, Jiang Jichen had originally planned to retreat at his leisure. There was no need to fight Yann Song to the death; after all, he had Little Yue'Er to look after, and engaging in such a battle was a great risk.
But Yann Song's words had given him a reason he had to stay—and a reason he had to kill him!
With a casual wave of his hand, a longsword from the ground flew into Jiang Jichen's grasp. He looked at Yann Song with indifference, as if gazing upon a dead man.
Seeing the longsword in Jiang Jichen's hand, Yann Song gave a cold laugh. "You actually want to compete with me in Sword Skill? Haha... How ignorant. How laughable. My sect's Mountain River Sword Technique is unparalleled in this world..."
However, before Yann Song could finish his sentence, Jiang Jichen thrust his sword forward.
The strike was unremarkable, just a simple, straight thrust, but in Yann Song's eyes, it felt utterly inescapable.
His expression changed drastically, and the rest of his words caught in his throat.
The power of such a sword strike might not have been overwhelming, but if he failed to block it, he would surely suffer a serious injury.
'Simplicity from the Great Dao, Returning to the True Self... This is a domain only a Grandmaster Swordsmaster can touch upon. How can a youth this young already possess such a high Realm in the Sword Dao?'
Such an appalling thought arose in Yann Song's mind.
But the sword in his hand was already moving, and his determination to kill Jiang Jichen grew even stronger.
'This brat cannot be allowed to live. I must kill him before he has a chance to truly mature. The Mountain River Sword Technique relies on momentum and power. That youth may have a high level of comprehension, but his Spirit Cultivation Realm is too low. He lacks Spiritual Cultivation Power and can't truly unleash the power of the Sword Dao. With my Spirit Cultivation Realm, I can easily crush him when it comes to raw sword power!'
Yann Song analyzed the situation and came to this conclusion. His flagging confidence instantly surged back. He swung his Treasure Sword even faster, unleashing dense Sword Shadows that carried the momentum of a mountain and the form of a river. His heavy and unending Sword Intent slashed toward Jiang Jichen.
When the Mountain River Sword Technique was executed by Yann Song, who knew how many times more powerful it was than when his four junior brothers had used it?
CLANG! CLANG...
The two swords clashed with an incessant ringing. Sword Qi crisscrossed the air. In that instant, who knew how many times the two had thrust their blades?
Jiang Jichen's thrusting momentum did not cease, and Yann Song's Mountain River Sword Intent was relentless. But in the end, the longsword in Jiang Jichen's hand could no longer withstand the immense power of the Mountain River Sword Intent and shattered with a bang.
In contrast, Yann Song's sword still gleamed with a cold light, completely undamaged. It was clearly an extraordinary Treasure Sword, perhaps even reaching the level of an Innate Spirit Weapon, while the longsword in Jiang Jichen's hand was merely a common mortal weapon.
Seeing Jiang Jichen's longsword shatter, Yann Song laughed wildly. "Lowly commoner, your sword is broken! Now is the time for you to die!"
As he spoke, Yann Song's sword momentum changed, becoming vast and mighty like a surging river. Endless Sword Shadows engulfed Jiang Jichen.
However, in the course of their battle, the distance between the two had closed to less than two meters.
At that moment, instead of retreating, Jiang Jichen advanced, seeming not to see the infinite Sword Shadows before him at all.
"PFFT! PFFT..."
As Jiang Jichen took a step forward, his body was instantly covered in countless wounds. His clothes were soaked in blood, a miserable sight to behold. Moreover, his opponent's Mountain River Sword Intent was unending, continuously pressing down on him.
But in that instant, Jiang Jichen threw a punch.
"Seven Stars Gathering!"
Jiang Jichen shouted coldly. He was merciless; given an opportunity, he would always deliver a killing blow.
This was a Killing Technique from the Seven Stars Sky-Breaking Fist. It condensed the power of seven punches into a single blow, one fist sufficient to break the enemy.
BOOM!
Yann Song was sent flying. The endless Sword Light vanished in an instant.
His body slammed into the ground. His Qi Sea was destroyed, every bone in his body was broken, and he had not a shred of combat strength left, completely at the mercy of others.
Covered in blood, Jiang Jichen stood tall, his gaze icy and merciless.
"I... I am a legacy disciple of the Mountain Sect. If you kill me, the Mountain Sect will not let you go."
Yann Song felt a cold despair in his heart. He could feel Jiang Jichen's unconcealed killing intent and could only resort to threats, hoping his opponent would spare him out of fear of the Mountain Sect.
However, Jiang Jichen just coldly spat out a single word: "Die!"
With that, he stomped his foot down and crushed the man's heart.