Chapter 132: Slaughter

Merely half an hour later, Yuntian and his two companions stood in a desolate wilderness, gazing at a steep and towering mountain ahead.

"This is the one. Let me scout it out," Ji Ning said, his thoughts shifting instantly. A vast and powerful surge of divine sense swept forth, directly enveloping that massive mountain. In the blink of an eye, Ji Ning's formidable divine sense thoroughly inspected every nook and cranny of the mountain, both inside and out.

Muzi Shuo, standing nearby, could not help but ask eagerly, "Senior Brother Ji Ning, how does it look?"

"There are indeed quite a few monsters entrenched on this mountain. Judging by their auras, there is one Wanxiang-level great monster, over a dozen Zifu-level great monsters, along with some lesser Xiantian monsters capable of taking human form and a crowd of Houtian minions," Ji Ning said with a grin.

Hearing this, Muzi Shuo curled his lips in disappointment: "Only one? That's really few. There are three of us, after all!"

"It's just an ordinary monster mountain, and the creatures entrenched here aren't that strong either," Yuntian said with a faint smile. "However, this is, after all, the Yushan Great Wastelands; we should still be a bit careful. A Wanxiang-level great monster of ordinary strength here is likely terrified of death and will most probably form an offensive and defensive alliance with other Wanxiang-level monsters. Therefore, the moment we strike, we will likely attract other Wanxiang-level monsters."

Hearing this, Ji Ning's expression shifted, and he nodded in agreement: "Senior Brother Yun is right! Who knows, we might just attract some formidable Wanxiang-level monsters. Thus, we still need to be cautious and act decisively—kill that Wanxiang-level great monster and get out of here immediately."

"What is there to fear? Senior Brother Yun is a reincarnated immortal; why would he be afraid of a mere handful of Wanxiang-level monsters?" Muzi Shuo seemed to have immense confidence in Yuntian.

With a chuckle, the three of them quietly ascended the mountain. Although the mountain was guarded by defensive formations, under the shroud of Ji Ning's divine sense, they offered nowhere to hide.

Before long, accompanied by a violent explosion of energy high upon the mountain, a fierce battle broke out. Facing a Wanxiang-level great monster, only Muzi Shuo took action, while Ji Ning and Yuntian stood by and watched, having no intention of intervening at all.

However, shortly after the battle erupted, Yuntian and Ji Ning’s expressions shifted almost simultaneously, as both of them sensed two more Wanxiang-level great monsters rushing toward the scene.

Two figures transformed into streaks of light, speeding rapidly toward the cavern dwelling on this monster mountain. One of the figures was a golden-robed man with a hooked nose, and the other was a dark, slender youth. They were the monster kings of two nearby monster mountains.

The Yushan Great Wastelands were extremely perilous, requiring even great monsters to watch out for and assist one another. A total of eighteen Wanxiang-level great monsters in the surrounding area had formed an alliance and sworn a heavenly oath: the moment any single great monster encountered danger, it would instantly shatter its signal talisman, alerting the other seventeen, who were required to rush to its aid at the fastest possible speed.

Boom, boom... Three streaks of light blasted inward from the outside—precisely a sharp saber and two pointed awls, all of them incomparably sharp with an astonishing momentum.

"Hmph!" Seeing this, Ji Ning's thoughts shifted, and instantly seven hundred and twenty-nine flying swords appeared in the air, forming a formidable Lesser Thousand Swords Array that surged forward to annihilate the incoming streaks of light transformed by the three magical treasures.

The two monster kings were forced by Ji Ning to reveal their true forms, yet one of them was quickly and effortlessly slain by Ji Ning.

The other attempted to escape, but Yuntian executed a spatial teleportation to block his path, casually and effortlessly ending his life with a single sword strike.

On the other side, Muzi Shuo also let out an angry shout, unleashing his full power to kill the remaining great monster.

"Senior Brother Yun, what terrifying strength!" This was the first time Ji Ning had witnessed Yuntian truly strike. That seemingly effortless, casual sword blow appeared so ordinary, yet the very fact that it could so easily slay a Wanxiang-level great monster made it all the more terrifying. Such an apparent lack of flashy technique was precisely the manifestation of reducing complexity to simplicity—reaching the realm of the Dao through technique.

Having slain three Wanxiang-level great monsters and rescued a number of human beings kept in captivity by the monsters, Yuntian and his companions deliberated and decided to first escort the humans to the Dragon-Responding Guard stronghold in the Yushan Great Wastelands before returning to continue their journey of exploration through the wastelands.

However, before they even reached the Dragon-Responding Guard stronghold, Yuntian, Ji Ning, and the others spotted a warship flying toward them from the distance.

"Senior Brother, isn't that the warship of Beihezhou from the Cleaving Sky Sword Sect?" Muzi Shuo noticed it as well and could not help speaking in a low voice.

Soon, the warship drew close, and a hearty laugh rang out: "Haha... I didn't expect to encounter three fellow Daoists of the Black-White Palace here. Beihezhou pays his respects."

"Beihezhou? If you want to ambush us, just be straightforward about it. Why don't you let the other five hiding inside your warship come out as well?" Yuntian said coldly.

His expression changing, Beihezhou hurriedly transmitted his voice to the nameless cultivators hidden inside the warship: "We've been exposed! Attack!"

"Junior Brother, attack!" Urging Muzi Shuo, Ji Ning shifted his thoughts, and a massive horde of flying swords instantly appeared around him.

Around Muzi Shuo, two black wandering serpents also materialized. Their surfaces continuously rippled and shifted, with sharp spikes gradually sprouting from their scales, covered in dense runes. The aura of the entire pair of serpents began to turn violent and frenzied.

Swish, swish... Five figures flew out from the enemy warship like lightning, hazy grey light gleaming on their bodies as they rapidly formed a Space-Locking Formation.

The battle broke out instantly, with both sides employing terrifyingly powerful offensive techniques. Only Yuntian remained calm, still withholding his attack.

Soon, as Ji Ning executed the Soul-Shaking Art, the enemy's formidable True Immortals of the Wanxiang realm all fell into a momentary daze.

Ji Ning and Muzi Shuo launched a joint ambush. Beihezhou, who had managed to forcefully endure Ji Ning's sword array attack by relying on a life-saving treasure bestowed by his sect's elders, had just regained his consciousness when his body was cleaved in two by Ji Ning's follow-up strike. At the same time, Muzi Shuo manipulated his black wandering serpents to strangle another Wanxiang-level True Immortal.

By this time, the remaining four Wanxiang-level True Immortals had also regained their senses, terrified and frantically attempting to flee.

"Trying to run?" Ji Ning sneered, once again executing the Soul-Shaking Art. His powerful divine will swept out in all directions like rolling waves.

Although the four individuals attempting to escape had prepared themselves, they were still battered by the powerful wave of divine will, plunging into a daze and suffering a drastic reduction in speed.

"Junior Brother, don't let them get away!" Ji Ning brandished his Northern Dark Sword and charged at Dong Yi, while simultaneously directing the sword beams of the Lesser Thousand Swords Array to slaughter another Wanxiang-level True Immortal named Xu Manquan. Muzi Shuo also controlled his two wandering serpents to attack the remaining two Wanxiang-level True Immortals respectively.

Faced with the repeated divine sense onslaughts of Ji Ning's Soul-Shaking Art, Dong Yi gritted his teeth, desperately struggling to maintain his clarity of mind as he executed an escaping blood-flight art.

With no time to pursue him, Ji Ning killed Xu Manquan and turned his head to see that Muzi Shuo had also slain a Wanxiang-level True Immortal. As another Wanxiang-level True Immortal named Meng Liuqing attempted to flee, Yuntian finally made his move, teleporting instantly to his side and likewise executing him with a single, simple sword strike.

"Senior Brother Yun, why do you always have to make your move last? If you had struck a little earlier, we probably could have killed all of them," Muzi Shuo complained to Yuntian with a hint of grievance.

Yuntian merely smiled and shook his head: "Didn't I leave them for you two to practice on? If I had struck earlier, I probably would have frightened them into fleeing immediately."

As they spoke, the three martial brothers tallied their spoils. The gains were truly substantial, yet Yuntian had no intention of claiming any of it.

"Senior Brother Yun, what do you mean by this? When I said you acted last just now, I was merely speaking off the top of my head—you killed one of them yourself, after all. Let's do this: whoever kills the target keeps the treasures they yield. Senior Brother Yun, the treasures you obtained from slaying Meng Liuqing naturally belong to you," Muzi Shuo said, looking rather indignant upon discovering that Yuntian did not want to take even a fraction of the loot.

Looking at the somewhat childish Muzi Shuo, Yuntian could not help but smile with helpless resignation and nodded: "Very well! I shall accept it then. However, I have already stepped into the Wanxiang realm, while Junior Brother Ji Ning is still at the peak of the Zifu stage in his Qi cultivation and certainly requires some liquid elemental essence to break through to the Wanxiang level. Inside Meng Liuqing's storage magic treasure, there are a full three thousand catties of liquid elemental essence; Junior Brother Ji Ning, take these and use them."

"Senior Brother, how can I do that? You will also need plenty of liquid elemental essence when you eventually break through to the Yuanshen realm," Ji Ning hastily waved his hand in refusal.