Chapter 869: Is He Even Human?

With the Heavenly Dao technique in hand, Zhang Xuan didn't dwell on it and quickly improved his cultivation using the Earth Vein Spirit Liquid.

The Earth Vein Spirit Liquid was rich in spiritual energy, and its absorption speed was much faster than spirit stones, so his progress was naturally more rapid.

However, although the leap from the Void Step realm to the Cocoon Seal realm seemed fast, the demand for spiritual energy was also enormous.

He had obtained so much Earth Vein Spirit Liquid from Cloud Mist Ridge, but in just this short time, nearly a third of it had been consumed!

"As cultivation increases, the demand for spiritual energy grows. Although the Earth Vein Spirit Liquid is abundant in spiritual energy, its purity is still somewhat lacking..."

Zhang Xuan shook his head.

The spirit liquid absorbed quickly and had ample spiritual energy, making it a rare treasure. But its purity was insufficient. For saint beasts and other cultivators, it was fine, but for him, using it was somewhat wasteful.

The Heavenly Dao technique had too high a requirement for the purity of spiritual energy.

When he used this spirit liquid to improve his cultivation, the utilization rate might not even reach one-tenth, and the remaining nine-tenths would be completely wasted!

"It seems I can no longer use Earth Vein Spirit Liquid for cultivation. If it really doesn't work, I'll sell this stuff..."

Zhang Xuan pondered.

The Earth Vein Spirit Liquid had already begun to have a weak effect on him. Continuing to use it would waste even more; it would be better to find a way to sell it.

Although useless to him, it was a rare treasure for others. Otherwise, the saint beasts of Cloud Mist Ridge wouldn't have guarded it so desperately.

"I'll wait until I return to Hongyuan City to decide!"

No longer thinking about it, Zhang Xuan began to study his newly broken-through strength.

From the early stage of Void Step to the early stage of Cocoon Seal, his true qi power had surged nearly twofold, from the previous 17 million ding to 29 million ding!

With true qi power alone, he was already comparable to a late-stage Cocoon Seal powerhouse! (Early Cocoon Seal: 25 million ding, Mid Cocoon Seal: 28 million ding, Late Cocoon Seal: 31 million ding, Peak Cocoon Seal: 34 million ding!)

If he added his soul power of 20 million ding and his physical body power of 16 million ding, his total power would reach 65 million ding, comparable to a mid-stage Cong Sheng powerhouse! (Early Cong Sheng: 60 million ding, Mid Cong Sheng: 65 million ding, Late Cong Sheng: 70 million ding, Peak Cong Sheng: 75 million ding!)

In other words, although he was only at the early stage of Cocoon Seal, he possessed combat power close to the mid stage of Cong Sheng, spanning two entire major levels!

"Now, this guy should no longer be a match for me, right?"

He smiled lightly.

Although that Brother Deer was not weak, compared to him, he was definitely slightly inferior.

Sitting cross-legged on the ground, he consolidated his cultivation and raised all his aura to its peak. Then he opened his eyes and looked across.

He saw that Brother Deer had also mostly recovered from his injuries, and his aura was even sharper than before, giving a strong sense of oppression.

It seemed the other party had also used some powerful secret technique to restore his body to its peak and prepare for battle.

"This guy... is not easy to deal with!"

Zhang Xuan sighed.

Under normal circumstances, with his strength being so much weaker, the other party should have been indifferent. But he adjusted his state without any contempt... Just this mindset alone was something many cultivators could not achieve.

Having strength yet still being able to stabilize one's mind was the most commendable.

"I've recovered. Are you ready, my friend?"

After an unknown amount of time, Brother Deer exhaled a sword qi, raised his eyebrows, and suddenly stood up.

Although his face still looked somewhat pale, his spirit and energy had reached their peak, even stronger than before.

"Of course!"

Smiling, Zhang Xuan stood up.

"Let's begin. Take out your weapon..."

With a flick of his wrist, another long sword appeared in Brother Deer's palm.

A powerhouse of his level certainly had more than one sword.

"Alright..." Zhang Xuan flicked his wrist, and a long sword appeared in his palm.

The Ice Rain Sword!

"A... half-saint artifact?"

Seeing the sword drawn, a cold aura shot straight toward him, seemingly sealing the surroundings, Brother Deer's mouth twitched, and he nearly couldn't hold back his true qi.

This guy casually takes out another half-saint artifact... Is the weapon shop run by your family?

How can he have so many good things?

"Your sword is too sharp... Can you switch to another one?" His face reddened as he couldn't help but say.

His sword was merely a top-grade spirit artifact, fundamentally different from the other's half-saint artifact. In a real fight, just the sharpness of the sword alone could increase the opponent's combat power by as much as fifty percent, while his own ability would be weakened.

"Switch to another one?" Zhang Xuan frowned.

When he brought out the Purple Sun Beast, the other said a beast tamer wouldn't do; when he brought out the Jinyuan Cauldron, he said a saint artifact wouldn't do; now he takes out a half-saint artifact, and the other is still picking and choosing. Can they fight or not?

"You've just been injured. If I use a half-saint artifact, you'll definitely feel unconvinced..."

Although frustrated, he still nodded, looked around, reached out with his finger, plucked something, and smiled lightly: "I'll use this to fight you!"

"A... dog's tail grass?"

Hu Yaoyao and the others staggered.

What Zhang Xuan had just picked was a slender dog's tail grass.

Using this to spar?

The other party was a half-saint, and not an ordinary half-saint at that, capable of challenging higher levels. Even if you've broken through, you shouldn't go this far!

It was really demoralizing!

Seeing their concern, Zhang Xuan smiled lightly, placed the dog's tail grass between his index and middle fingers, and with a surge of true qi, the originally curved weed immediately straightened, resembling a long sword.

"When swordsmanship reaches a profound level, one is not constrained by objects. Grass, wood, bamboo, and stone can all serve as swords. This is indeed a dog's tail grass, but if used well, it possesses more than just the power of a weed!"

Smiling lightly, Zhang Xuan swept the dog's tail grass across the tree trunk that the Purple Sun Beast had discarded earlier, and the thick tree, as wide as a bowl, was cut in two.

"Such pure true qi..."

Brother Deer's pupils contracted.

Although the other was holding a dog's tail grass, it was actually true qi acting as the sword's edge. Making true qi as sharp as a real sword's edge... how pure must it be?

At least he couldn't do it!

"Let's begin!"

Knowing that even if the other used a weed, his strength wouldn't diminish much, Brother Deer let out a long roar, shifted his body, and attacked first.

Hum!

The long sword soared, sword qi crisscrossing. As soon as he made his move, he unleashed all his power, not underestimating the opponent because of his weaker strength or the use of a dog's tail grass.

"Well done!"

Smiling lightly, Zhang Xuan didn't dodge. The long grass in his hand turned into a sword light and thrust forward, aiming straight at the other's armpit.

This strike targeted the opening left by the opponent's sword raise.

For any swordsman, once they raise their sword, the armpit is inevitably exposed, just with varying speed. For this reason, this spot is often targeted against sword experts, and many experts have long trained this opening into the most heavily defended area.

Brother Deer was no exception.

Swish!

Although puzzled why the other would use such a basic sword move against him, he still didn't dare to underestimate. He gently flicked his wrist to block the opponent's sword move, while at the same time, his sword qi spread outward, thrusting straight at Zhang Xuan's eyes.

A move of defense and counterattack, turning passivity into initiative!

"Not bad, standard and proper, but... still somewhat lacking!"

Raising his eyebrows, Zhang Xuan flicked the dog's tail grass, and the situation of the straight thrust suddenly changed. The entire grass bent like a rope, forming a ninety-degree angle.

"What?"

His pupils contracting, Brother Deer's face turned pale.

With the originally straight 'sword' suddenly bending, all his blocks became useless. More importantly, the tip of the grass was aimed directly at a major acupoint on his chest. If he didn't dodge and was struck, he could be severely injured on the spot!

After all, the other had just used this grass to easily cut through the log on the ground, showing its formidable power!

"Retreat!"

Without hesitation, he flicked his long sword and quickly stepped back several paces.

"Heh!"

Seeing him retreat, Zhang Xuan had anticipated it. He stepped forward and flicked the dog's tail grass again. The originally left-right bending immediately changed to up-down, and the tip of the grass thrust toward Brother Deer's throat.

This change of move was without any hindrance, as if done in one breath, smooth and full of beauty.

To outsiders, it looked refreshing, but in Brother Deer's eyes, it was like a death-dealing Yama. If he didn't retreat, he would surely have his throat pierced on the spot.

His face turned pale again, and he continued to retreat.

Zhang Xuan still advanced, the weed in his hand dancing again. This time, it aimed not at the throat but at the Shanzhong acupoint on the chest.

Brother Deer retreated again.

The dog's tail grass in Zhang Xuan's hand was like a soft sword, dancing freely, gradually exposing the flaws in this half-saint powerhouse's swordsmanship, scaring him so much that he couldn't counterattack and could only retreat step by step.

From start to finish, the long sword and the dog's tail grass hadn't clashed even once.

"So strong..."

Hu Yaoyao and Dong Xin exchanged glances, each feeling their throats go dry.

Earlier, they thought this Brother Deer was already very strong, that even ordinary Cong Sheng were no match for him. But seeing Zhang shi's actions, they understood... he was the true powerhouse.

Using a dog's tail grass to spar against the other's top-grade spirit artifact, not only was it not cut, but it also forced the opponent to retreat repeatedly. How deep must his understanding of swordsmanship be to achieve this?

"It seems... this Brother Deer is doomed to lose..."

Xue Zhenyang clenched his fists.

Earlier, he had always thought that with weapons alone, the other would surely lose. Now he realized that the gap between the two could no longer be measured in miles.

They were not on the same level at all.

Fortunately, he had acknowledged Zheng Yang as his teacher and become a grand-disciple. Otherwise, if he had actually gone to cause trouble, he would definitely have been beaten so badly that even his own father wouldn't recognize him.

Too terrifying!

Bang!

As everyone was still in shock, they saw Brother Deer retreating repeatedly until he finally reached the cliff wall, his back against the wall, with no room to retreat.

Whoosh!

Unable to retreat, Zhang Xuan's dog's tail grass finally flicked gently and stopped above the other's heart, as if it could pierce the skin at any moment.

"I concede..."

His face turned as pale as paper. Although Brother Deer didn't want to admit it, he knew he had already lost, and lost completely.

"Thank you for yielding!"

Smiling lightly, Zhang Xuan flicked his wrist. The dog's tail grass could no longer bear it and broke into seven or eight pieces, falling to the ground.

Watching the battle from the side, Wu Xu's lips trembled, and his vision darkened: "One hundred and thirty-two sword moves, not a single clash! Brother Deer retreated seventy-seven steps and abandoned his sword in surrender..."

"Is this... still human?"