Chapter 35: Moving Out of Yanshan

"Hmm?" The distant Snowfeather Daoist's expression changed drastically. Ji Ning's strength clearly far exceeded his expectations, but as one of the clan's founding ancestors, how could he easily give up?

Boom! Boom!

The Mandarin Duck Split Light swords, which had been knocked flying, suddenly blazed with light. One sword transformed into a cyan dragon, the other into a golden dragon. Both sword-light dragons were a hundred zhang long, their scales clearly visible, and their dragon eyes were filled with killing intent, as if alive!

The two sword-light dragons, their power surging, let out earth-shaking roars and charged straight at Ji Ning.

Ji Ning, now ten zhang tall, felt the pressure. He once again swept his Northmoon sword, as if cutting through heaven and earth, leaving a dazzling trail of sword light.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

Ji Ning's entire body shook violently, as if struck by two great mountains, and he was forced back several steps.

"What a formidable foe." Ji Ning was not alarmed but delighted. The black wings on his back fluttered as he activated the divine ability 'Windwing Evasion,' moving like a ghost as he charged forward again.

"Yin-Yang Division!"

The distant Snowfeather Daoist's expression turned solemn as he regarded Ji Ning as a true enemy.

The cyan and golden sword-light dragons roared in the high sky, frenziedly encircling Ji Ning. Ji Ning, wielding his twin swords, met them again and again... Each collision caused the air to explode and warp, and even the waters of Yize Lake below were blasted into hollows dozens of zhang deep or raised into waves hundreds of zhang high.

Even from over ten li away, the people on Brightheart Island—Ji Jiuhuo, Ji Liuzhen, Shadowgranny, Qiuye, and the others—felt the fierce wind on their faces.

"Such tremendous power."

"Ji Ning is this strong?"

Ji Jiuhuo and the others were all stunned.

In the distance, the ten-zhang-tall Ji Ning was like a god battling two dragons!

"He's evenly matched with a Daoist of the perfected Nascent Soul stage?"

"And that's one of the three founding ancestors of Snowdragon Mountain!"

"Too strong."

"It's only been a little over ten years since the battle at Oxhorn Mountain, and Ji Ning has already progressed this much. If Yichuan were still alive, he would surely be overjoyed." Ji Jiuhuo and the others were both shocked and excited, for the dazzling figure before them was the peerless existence of their Ji clan.

The Ji clan side was thrilled and excited.

The Snowdragon Mountain side was shocked and enraged.

...

Midair, Ji Ning, locked in battle with the two sword-light dragons, suddenly changed his sword technique. The previously supremely yang and rigid sword style became restrained.

"Sss!"

"Sss!"

The sword light in the air became gentle as moonlight, soft as a lover's caress... The silent sword light caused the two sword-light dragons to begin to dissipate.

"What?" Snowfeather Daoist was greatly alarmed. His sword technique 'Yin-Yang Division' was one of his most powerful moves, yet it could not hold. He had no choice but to unleash his current strongest sword move: "Mandarin Duck Entwined!"

The two dissipating sword-light dragons began to coil around each other, linking together.

As if born as one.

The entwined dragons, aiding each other with yin and yang mutually generating, completely withstood Ji Ning's sword technique.

"In terms of sword technique profundity, he is far inferior to me," Ji Ning understood. "But this Snowfeather Daoist has an extremely deep foundation, and his two Heaven-ranked flying swords are exceptionally powerful."

The Northmoon sword was a divine blood-forged weapon; the more it killed, the more baleful aura it absorbed, the greater its power. However, in the past nine years, Ji Ning had not killed much... The Northmoon sword was only equivalent to a top-grade Earth-ranked treasure, far inferior to the Mandarin Duck Split Light swords.

The advantage in sword technique was offset by the disadvantage in weapons.

"I must leverage my divine body's advantages." Ji Ning's main purpose in this battle was to test his own strength. But now that the opponent's flying swords, the Mandarin Duck Split Light swords, could withstand his strongest sword technique, Ji Ning stopped relying on sword technique alone.

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

Suddenly, the wind howled around him. Ji Ning's entire body turned into a gust of wind, swift as a ghost, charging straight at Snowfeather Daoist.

In nine years, not only had his divine ability 'Heavenly Transformation' greatly improved, but his divine ability 'Windwing Evasion' had also made astonishing progress. With full爆发, Snowfeather Daoist was startled and quickly manipulated the Mandarin Duck Split Light swords to intercept Ji Ning.

"Clang!" "Clang!"

Ji Ning's sword technique became even more gentle, only parrying, not attacking.

In the blink of an eye, he had reached Snowfeather Daoist.

"Not good." Snowfeather Daoist was alarmed. How could he dare engage in close combat with Ji Ning? Even if Ji Ning was struck by his sword, his divine body would instantly recover. But if he himself was struck... with luck, he'd be severely wounded; without luck, he'd fall on the spot.

"Whoosh!"

Snowfeather Daoist immediately used an evasion technique. A flash of white light, and he had already dodged onto the war vessel.

"Master." Xu Ke the True Man and the gray-robed man stared in shock at Snowfeather Daoist, who had suddenly appeared beside them. The two sword lights in the distance also flew back—the Mandarin Duck Split Light swords.

Snowfeather Daoist's expression was grim. He spoke, "What a Ji Ning! Worthy of being called a sword immortal. I admire you, I admire you!"

His voice was deep and resounded through heaven and earth.

"Let's go."

After speaking, Snowfeather Daoist had the massive war vessel break through the air and quickly disappear into the distant horizon.

...

Ji Ning stood midair, watching Snowfeather Daoist leave. "This Snowfeather Daoist is quite decisive. He hadn't lost yet, but seeing that things were not going his way, he immediately retreated."

This battle was also for Ji Ning to test his own strength.

In the past nine years, he had cultivated the Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens to the eleventh level, matching a perfected Wanxiang divine body. The main reason was that after crossing a major threshold, the Crimsonbright Diagram became increasingly difficult to cultivate. In the past, he advanced a level every two or three years. But from the tenth to the eleventh level, it took him six years!

Clearly, it took much longer.

At least his divine body now matched that of 'Senior Brother Bloodshadow' and others. Moreover, he had the divine ability 'Starryfinger Hand.' Once activated, it was not inferior to a perfected Nascent Soul cultivator! And this was only the first cycle of his Starryfinger Hand; if he reached the second cycle, its power would be even greater.

The cultivation method for Starryfinger Hand is called 'Six Cycles of Starryfinger.'

At the Zifu level, one can cultivate the first cycle.

At the Wanxiang level, one can cultivate the second cycle.

And so on.

However, cultivating Starryfinger Hand requires treasures containing the essence of the Five Elements, needing substantial external aid... When Ji Ning first cultivated the first cycle in the water mansion, it was entirely due to the Five Elements essence left by Sanxing Daoist. Now, to cultivate the second cycle, Ji Ning needed to find such treasures himself. Over the past nine years, though he had collected some, he was still far from enough.

"Combining divine body and divine ability, I am now on par with a perfected Nascent Soul cultivator of the Qi-refining path," Ji Ning mused. "My sword technique has even reached the fifth stance of 'Three-Foot Sword,' surpassing him! But I am at a disadvantage in terms of treasures... The Northmoon sword is far inferior to his Mandarin Duck Split Light swords."

The Mandarin Duck Split Light swords even contained a hint of intelligence.

The eyes of the dragons they transformed into showed a trace of liveliness... After all, they were top-grade Heaven-ranked treasures. If they reached the next level, 'Immortal-ranked treasures,' they could produce a treasure spirit. For instance, the black ox in the water mansion was the spirit of an Immortal-ranked treasure left by the Immortal Juhua.

"Master."

"Ji Ning."

"Young master."

In the distance, a group of people were riding a leaf-shaped treasure, flying over. Ji Jiuhuo and the others were all in a state of joyful excitement.

Heavens!

A perfected Nascent Soul Daoist! He had been driven back by Ji Ning. They could see that Ji Ning was in no way at a disadvantage against Snowfeather Daoist.

"Our Ji clan is truly rising, rising greatly!" Ji Jiuhuo laughed heartily. "Haha, even if I were to die of old age right now, I would be content. After so many years, our Ji clan has finally produced such a figure. Ji Ning, I believe it won't be long before your name spreads throughout the entire Anchan Commandery!"

"Your name will be known throughout Anchan Commandery. All the major powers will hear of you and spread your name," Ji Liuzhen said excitedly.

The Ji clan was merely a small power in Yanshan.

Yet it had produced someone like Ji Ning.

Being able to make the Nascent Soul Daoist 'Snowfeather Daoist' voluntarily retreat... This battle was certainly a battle that would make his name. Ji Ning's reputation would surely spread, for his opponent was not some early or mid Nascent Soul cultivator, nor an ordinary rogue cultivator. Snowfeather Daoist was a truly formidable figure.

"Still, I didn't actually win," Ji Ning said. "This Snowfeather Daoist is indeed powerful. If we were to fight to the death, the outcome would still be uncertain."

This was true.

Snowfeather Daoist had not truly fought to the death. Once he found that his ultimate technique, the Mandarin Duck Split Light swords' 'Mandarin Duck Entwined,' could not overcome Ji Ning, he immediately retreated. If it were a life-and-death struggle, Snowfeather Daoist would not have spared his celestial water, using it madly to attack Ji Ning while controlling his flying swords to besiege him.

Ji Ning would also have fought recklessly, ignoring injuries.

As a divine body cultivator, even if Ji Ning was wounded, it was a minor matter. So in a true life-and-death battle, Ji Ning's chances of winning were greater! Snowfeather Daoist's chances were relatively smaller. But this was only speculation, as no one knew what protective treasures Snowfeather Daoist had.

"Master, don't be modest. You drove him away. You are a divine body cultivator... I don't believe he would dare fight you to the death. When two opponents of similar strength fight, one a divine body cultivator and the other a Qi refiner, it's usually the Qi refiner who dies." Xiaoqing was excited.

...

On the war vessel flying away in the distant sky.

Snowfeather Daoist still felt a lingering fear. When a divine body cultivator of comparable strength suddenly charged at him... it was like death approaching. He had been so frightened that he immediately used an evasion technique.

Xu Ke the True Man and the gray-robed man beside him dared not speak.

"Disciple." Snowfeather Daoist looked at Xu Ke. "Go and have your Xu clan quickly move out of Yanshan. It's best not to have any further dealings with the Ji clan. Although Snowdragon Mountain is not afraid of him, he no longer needs to fear Snowdragon Mountain either."

"Yes." Xu Ke the True Man quickly replied.

"Before long, this battle will surely spread throughout Anchan Commandery." Snowfeather Daoist shook his head. "I never thought that one day I would become a stepping stone for someone else's fame."