Chapter 13: Terrified by the Killings

Black mist swirled like smoke, and the eight Zifu cultivators of Snow Dragon Mountain moved within the great formation they constantly maintained.

“Even Senior Brother Zidao couldn’t break this Nether Dragon Locking Heaven Formation; what can we do? We’ll just wander randomly. Senior Brother Tongyu and Senior Brother Zidao are also inside this formation. Maybe we’ll run into them.” The eight Zifu cultivators pressed forward with a glimmer of hope.

At the same time, each clutched talismans and other items, ready to fight to the death.

Suddenly—

Swish, swish, swish~~~

A light, drizzling rain suddenly began to fall. The raindrops were like silk threads, soft and gentle, startling Dong Ziqi and the other seven who were caught in the rain. “Hum~~~” White light appeared on their surfaces, enveloping them and directly blocking the ordinary rain.

“It’s just rain. Making a fuss over nothing,” the hawk-nosed black-robed cultivator said coldly.

“How can there be rain inside this formation?” Dong Ziqi frowned.

“Perhaps it’s raining outside right now. This maze and illusion formation only has the power to confuse and delude; it can’t stop rain from outside,” the silver-haired cultivator also spoke up.

Dong Ziqi and the others nodded one by one.

They were cultivators and could sense that this rain was naturally occurring, not formed by the formation or poisonous water. For the moment, none of them connected it to the ‘Dao Domain.’ One who had reached the Dao Domain could turn his surroundings into his own domain with a single thought; different Daos naturally produced different domains.

Some could turn the surroundings into endless flames with a thought, others could summon lightning to swirl around them, and for Ji Ning, a single thought brought rain.

“We should still be careful. Don’t let this rain soak us,” an old man in gray robes said.

“Senior Brother An is right. Trapped in the Nether Dragon Locking Heaven Formation, caution is best.”

Every Zifu cultivator would rather be overly cautious than take risks.

…

Whoosh!

A huge black dragon tail swept across, fast as lightning. Within the dragon tail stood Ji Ning, clad in animal skins, silently. Around him floated over seven hundred flying swords, nine of which were graded. With these nine graded flying swords as the core, the sword light of the Lesser Thousand Sword Formation condensed with astonishing power.

The Rainwater Sword Domain had been deployed!

Using elemental energy stronger than that of a perfected Zifu cultivator to drive the ninth layer of the Lesser Thousand Sword Formation, even though only nine of the over seven hundred flying swords were graded, it was still the ninth layer of the Lesser Thousand Sword Formation! Quantity could also lead to a qualitative change!

"Die." A flash of killing intent flickered in Ji Ning's eyes.

Whoosh!

The sword light that had coalesced before him shot through the air, instantly transforming into a fine drizzle. At this moment, Ji Ning was exerting all his strength. The ninth layer of the Lesser Thousand Sword Formation, the amplification of the grand formation, the Rainwater Sword Domain... all of these brought the power of this strike to the utmost limit he could currently achieve.

...

"Let's go." Dong Ziqi and the other seven continued forward, blocking the falling rain as they walked calmly.

Suddenly—

"Hm?" The hawk-nosed black-robed cultivator's expression changed. At that instant, he faintly sensed a great crisis, the kind that only came when a cultivator faced extreme danger. However, such premonitions came late, only when danger was imminent. Even so, it had saved his life twice before.

"Whirlmist Umbrella!" A umbrella materialized out of thin air around the hawk-nosed black-robed cultivator, opening and descending to fully protect him.

A seemingly ordinary thread of drizzle brushed past him and flew onward, directly heading toward the triangular-eyed cultivator beside him.

The triangular-eyed cultivator was startled when his companion suddenly activated a magic treasure, and then the crisis struck.

"Not good." Only when the thread of drizzle drew near did the triangular-eyed cultivator sense a sharp, rippling force. He hurriedly swung his longsword to block, but it was too late...

The thread of drizzle was too close to him!

His swordsmanship was too ordinary; how exquisite was Ji Ning's sword art? With a gentle twist, it evaded his sword and swept past his head!

"Humm..." The originally hazy white light of the Eight Trigrams Grand Formation suddenly flared brightly.

"Under attack!" Dong Ziqi and the others were all shocked. This was the grand formation's spontaneous eruption of power upon being attacked.

Pfft!

The head of the triangular-eyed cultivator, his eyes filled with terror, flew up and tumbled through the air.

Of the eight Zifu cultivators, one was dead!

"What!" Fear gripped the hearts of Dong Ziqi and the others. They had lost a comrade while maintaining the grand formation. How fearsome must the enemy's attack be?

"Formation!"

"Formation."

The remaining cultivators shouted in panic. With one dead, their previous formation had vanished. If one could die even with the formation active... without it, wouldn't they all be doomed?

"Pfft!" That wisp of rain, after slaying the triangular-eyed cultivator earlier, had expended most of its power. But now the other seven cultivators had no great formation protecting them, so the wisp of rain lightly flew, circled... and directly cut through the protection of their dharma armor. Another silver-haired cultivator's head flew up, and only then did the wisp of rain dissipate and vanish.

"Hummm~~" White light flared again, and the six surviving Zifu cultivators formed a Six Harmonies Formation.

"Boom~~"

A massive dragon tail swept across.

"Kill."

"Kill him."

"Kill."

When the six Zifu cultivators saw the dragon tail, they all bristled like startled cats, seemingly mad. Green vines, lightning, flames, a phoenix... all flew out at once, charging directly at the sweeping dragon tail.

"They're truly mad." Ji Ning was startled.

"Go." The black wings behind Ji Ning fluttered once, tracing an arc as he flew far away. Only the lightning and the turning fire phoenix still struck him. The impact of the lightning and fire phoenix also allowed Dong Ziqi and the others to see Ji Ning's face clearly... Dong Ziqi was stunned, recognizing this person as the genius of the Ji clan, 'Ji Ning'. Boom~~~ The powerful blast sent Ji Ning tumbling and flying away, but he also vanished far into the black mist and darkness.

Dong Ziqi and the other five Zifu cultivators were all terrified.

"Quick."

"Deploy the formation."

"Fight to the death."

A huge Eight Trigrams Blood Dragon Formation immediately appeared around Dong Ziqi, with eight blood-colored flood dragons roaming within it.

The eagle-beaked cultivator threw out three formation flags outside the Eight Trigrams Blood Dragon Formation. The flags fluttered, soon condensing into a vast, hazy light. This hazy white light was like a triangular pagoda, enveloping the six of them.

"Grow."

A large number of green vines sprouted, growing wildly around them. These vines intertwined with each other, completely filling the surroundings.

"My children, go." Dense swarms of poisonous insects flew around, blotting out the sky and covering the sun, completely surrounding the area.

"Come."

The gray-robed elder produced a large cloth banner radiating blood light. From the banner flew out massive figures, some four-legged beasts, some birds—nine huge figures in total, pacing around them.

For a moment, cold sweat dripped from the foreheads of these six Zifu cultivators. Each unleashed their techniques, protecting the surroundings tightly...

They looked at each other, shock and fear in their eyes.

"We won't move. We'll wait here."

"We can't move."

"Hold our ground."

Almost all their techniques were defensive ones. The growing vines, the protective formations—they couldn't be maintained while moving!

"Who was that? Who attacked us just now? He looks young." The gray-robed elder, clutching the blood-colored banner, looked at Dong Ziqi.

"Yes, who was that? How was he so strong? We were attacked by the dragon's head and claws before... this time it should be the dragon's tail, but why was it so powerful?" The eagle-beaked cultivator also looked at Dong Ziqi, and the others stared at him too.

These people were furious.

They had thought this would be a轻松的 outing, but instead they encountered such a terrifying hard nut. First, there was the 'Nether Dragon Locking Heaven Formation', which even Nong Zidao had only heard of. That formation alone was bad enough, but its power depended on the user. The previous two, relying on the formation's power, they didn't fear. But that handsome youth just now was terrifying—even with their formation maintained, he had killed two of them...

Dong Ziqi quickly said, "The Ji clan has six notable figures: Ji Jiuhuo, Granny Ying, an old servant, Ji Yichuan, Ji Liuzhen, and Ji Ning! Ji Ning is the clan's genius... When he was eleven or twelve, he already killed Junior Brother Bo Zishan."

"Killed Bo Zishan at eleven or twelve?" They all showed stunned expressions.

"He should be sixteen this year." Dong Ziqi continued, "The one who attacked just now was this Ji Ning! But Ji Ning fought me before, and he couldn't do anything to my Eight Trigrams Blood Dragon Formation. His strength was only slightly better than Ji Jiuhuo and the others, so I never took him seriously. I didn't expect that with the Nether Dragon Locking Heaven Formation's boost, his power would become so terrifying."

"He was only slightly better than Ji Jiuhuo, so why did his power explode like this?"

"A monster who could kill Junior Brother Bo Zishan at eleven or twelve can't be judged by common sense. Perhaps Ji Ning has already broken through." The gray-robed elder said hoarsely, "Such a monster, even with our combined formation, killed two of our fellow disciples. Now we can only hold our ground."

...

Ji Ning was sent tumbling and flying far away, crashing into a patch of rocks and grass.

"My god." Ji Ning winced as he climbed to his feet, his injuries quickly healing without even leaving scars.

"Those Zifu cultivators went mad, throwing powerful talismans and such directly at me! Especially that fire phoenix that flew after me... it was the most powerful, blowing a big hole in my belly. I wonder what talisman that was." Ji Ning grinned, full of confidence. "But I've already killed two of them. Out of eight Zifu cultivators, I killed two. Now there are only six left. I'll kill them all."

"Ji Ning!" A voice suddenly came.

"Clan leader." Ji Ning was startled.

"Good job, impressive! Ji Ning, hahaha, you're truly amazing, killing two in one go. Now only six remain. But don't act rashly yet. Let me finish speaking before you make a move." Ji Jiuhuo transmitted, "Dong Ziqi and the other five are now scared stiff by you. They've deployed layers of defenses and are holding their ground. I'll tell you about all these measures one by one. Listen before you decide."

...