Chapter 88: Swallowing the Killer Xue Sha
Jiang Chen was also a bit moved when he saw the slight disappointment in Mang Qi’s eyes. He knew that if he just dusted himself off and left like this, it wouldn’t be kind at all.
“I think I can tarry a bit more, at most two days more. During these two days, we can chat about your seal and the matters regarding this formation.” Jiang Chen said.
Mang Qi smiled. “Mm. Jiang Chen, I can finally be certain that you’re a reliable human. However, I know nothing of the seal within my body, and have been unable to find any information. But this formation… I’ve only heard of the lord of the fourth level vaguely speak of it before. I think it’s called ‘The Great Formation of Heavenly Soul Confinement’ something or another!”
“The Great Formation of Heavenly Soul Confinement?”
Jiang Chen’s brow creased faintly, as the memory banks of his past life opened once again. He had studied formations in his past life, and he had definitely heard of this “Great Formation of Heavenly Soul Confinement” before. But the memories within his mind hadn’t been fully unlocked yet, so he couldn’t quite get any leads during this moment.
But how would Mang Qi know Jiang Chen’s secrets?
“Jiang Chen, you don’t need to bother yourself in order to ponder this matter right now. You don’t even need to turn this over in your mind within the next hundred or five hundred years, unless your training is enough to stand at the apex of this world.” Mang Qi sighed lightly.
Jiang Chen actually already knew all of what Mang Qi just said.
“Jiang Chen, take this item.” Mang Qi fished out a hard object that was like jade, but not jade.
“What’s this?”
“Something from my body. To be more precise, it’s one of my teeth.”
Although it was a tooth, its radiance was the same as jade, and it looked quite simple and unsophisticated. It almost looked like it could be one the bones of a god or demon as ancient, strange patterns were on it.
“Don’t think random thoughts, this isn’t a weapon and it can’t defend you. It’s only use is that my mark on it represents me.”
Mang Qi chuckled. “If you ever need help from me, infuse it with your true qi and I’ll receive your message.”
“So what if I need you? Aren’t you stuck within the Boundless Catacombs?”
“I can’t leave, but my troops can.” Mang Qi smiled. “You try imagining millions upon tens of millions underneath the leadership of the Goldwing Swordbirds. Just who would be able to withstand their might within these common kingdoms?”
Jiang Chen trembled from his shock.
His scalp became numb at the thought of this scene. Once these Greenwing Swordbirds, who numbered enough that they could blot out the sky and cover the earth, left the Boundless Catacombs, it would undoubtedly lead to everlasting disaster.
It was entirely possible that the other neighboring sixteen countries would be embroiled as well, not to mention just the Eastern Kingdom!
This Mang Qi was quite the marvelous character! He’d offered such a large gift obviously to tie Jiang Chen, along with his gains and losses, together.
This was precisely an indication of goodwill, cozying up to him, and playing on emotions.
“Mang Qi, I accept your gift.” Jiang Chen didn’t put on airs. He really did have need of such a great gift at the moment.
“Heh heh, this item also has another function. If I think of you, I only need to move my mental strength, and this item will send energy to your body, alerting you.”
“I’ll have to come see you then, right?” Jiang Chen smiled.
“Heh heh, I won’t come looking for you without rhyme or reason, only as a last resort. Of this you can be assured of.” Mang Qi’s old face reddened as he promised.
After reaching an agreement with Mang Qi, Jiang Chen brought up his intention to leave. Although there were still five or six days left, one thing still weighed on Jiang Chen’s mind.
The killers from Hidden Hand that day had disguised themselves as Fatty Xuan and Hubing Yue. Jiang Chen was worried about these two best friends, and he wanted to go scout out the situation.
He wanted to see them if they were alive, and their corpses if they were dead.
“Jiang Chen, that fellow who wants to kill you is still waiting outside the fourth level.” Mang Qi reminded.
“Is that so? They’re all there? I was afraid they’d left.” Jiang Chen’s tone was sinisterly cold.
“I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed. Two of them have already left, while the last one is standing guard there. It seems like he won’t rest unless he’s dead.”
“Long Yinye and Long Juxue have left?” Jiang Chen understood how matters stood after thinking briefly. They wouldn’t linger too long, not with the mission period being one month.
This meant that the person who hadn’t left was the boss killer from the Hidden Hand.
“How about this, Jiang Chen. I’ve decided to send a division of Swordbirds out. They’ll listen to your commands. One division contains ten Goldwing Swordbirds, one hundred Silverwing Swordbirds, and ten thousand Greenwing Swordbirds. If that’s not enough, you can use that thing to contact me at any time.”
Mang Qi viewed Jiang Chen as a treasure now, and didn’t wish for any accidents to befall him. Besides, within his territory, he naturally had the obligation to ensure Jiang Chen’s safety.
Mang Qi’s presence expanded as he gave orders in the beast language. Ten Goldwing Swordbirds flew docilely to Jiang Chen.
“Jiang Chen, be at ease, they will absolutely obey your orders.” Mang Qi promised. “I can’t leave the fourth level, so let my people teach that fellow a lesson.”
Jiang Chen didn’t decline or observe the formalities. He simply left with the division of Swordbirds.
On the boundary between the third and fourth level, the killer boss Xue Sha had already been standing guard for six or seven days.
“The odds are likely stacked against this Jiang Chen, if he doesn’t come out soon.” Xue Sha was also hesitating. “Should I go in and take a look or not? What if his injuries flared up and he died in the outermost fringes of the fourth level? If it’s only a few kilometers, I should be fine if I enter and leave, right?”
Xue Sha comforted himself in this way, but still couldn’t find the courage to actually take the first step into the fourth level.
After all, the legends were simply too frightening. None of the practitioners who’d ever entered the fourth level had ever made it out again.
Even if it was a few kilometers, and not penetrating deeply, Xue Sha was unable to guarantee that he would be able to emerge unscatched.
But the temptation from Jiang Chen’s blade was an itch in his heart that was impossible to scratch! He knew quite clearly that if he could obtain that blade, then he, Xue sha, would absolutely be invincible amongst those below spirit dao practitioners. He’d be able to rampage without abandon in these common kingdoms!
This temptation was difficult to withstand.
To enter or not to enter?
“That damned Jiang Chen. If you hadn’t entered the fourth level, that precious blade would definitely be in my hands.” Xue Sha grew an itch in his heart whenever he thought of the blade.
He also regretted not killing Jiang Chen with the fastest speed possible. If he’d killed Jiang Chen in the third level, how would the matters of today have occurred?
But, he also had to admit that Jiang Chen’s strength exceeded his expectations. If it wasn’t for the attacks from Long Yinye and Long Juxue’s spirit weapons drawing his attention, then his chances of killing Jiang Chen alone would’ve been even lower.
“Ai, when did such an abnormality appear in the Eastern Kingdom?” Xue Sha cursed in his heart. “Oh right, this Jiang Chen is from the Jiang Han dukedom. The Duke of Jiang Han is only a duke of the second rank. How could he cultivate such a genius as this? Unless… is there some sort of secret within the Jiang Han household? Huh! If I can’t get that blade, I must go to the capital of the Eastern Kingdom when I leave, and seize that Duke of Jiang Han. I’ll get something out of him at least.”
Xue Sha’s ears moved when his thoughts traveled down this path, and his nose sniffed faintly he subconsciously raised the bow in his hands.
He almost couldn’t believe it because he sensed a faint presence. This presence was the hidden scent that he had left on Jiang Chen’s body previously!
“Jiang Chen?” Xue Sha asked this with some disbelief.
“It’s me.” Jiang Chen’s voice sounded remotely from the darkness.
“It’s really you?” Xue Sha was agitated. “You’re not dead? Very good! Jiang Chen, we can have a chat. I can not kill you and let you leave. The condition for that, is that you leave your blade behind.”
“Do you think I would believe your bullshit?” Jiang Chen burst out laughing.
“You have no other choice but to believe me. Otherwise, you can just try going inside again, No one has emerged from the fourth level alive! You mustn’t have entered in too far, and were only on the outskirts, right?” Xue Sha asked.
“Was that what I did? Why don’t you come inside and find out?” Jiang Chen sneered.
Xue Sha laughed a sinister, cold laugh. “I have no need to enter, I only need to stand guard here. You’ll be unable to leave then. Will you leave after handing over the precious blade, or die in the forbidden zone of the fourth level?”
“I must choose one?” Jiang Chen smiled faintly.
“You must choose one!”
“Very good! I choose that you stay, and I leave!” Jiang Chen muttered a few things in his mouth as soon as he finished speaking.
“What did you say?” Xue Sha was dumbfounded.
Suddenly, Xue Sha’s breathing halted because he saw all sorts of Swordbirds surge out from all corners and all directions — like an overflow of locusts.
Blotting out the sky and covering up the earth, everywhere to be found beneath the heavens!
The thickly dotted Swordbirds were so concentrated that one didn’t even have room to lift their feet.
Countless Swordbirds rushed out without fear of death. Their violently sharp beaks and feathered wings were as sharp as knives as they cut through the air, cut through the rock walls — cut through anything and everything.
Xue Sha’s face changed, as his eleven meridians true qi continuously raged outwards, attempting to withstand them for a moment.
However, in such narrow quarters, and under the condition of being surrounded, the area in which he could deploy it truly wasn’t much.
The power of an eleven true meridians true qi master was powerful indeed. Swordbird after Swordbird was shot by the true qi and fell in a meaty mass of blood rain.
However, he could kill ten or a hundred Swordbirds this way, but he was still limited by what he could do in the end.
One division of Swordbirds had tens of thousands of birds. Including the Swordbirds on the outskirts, nearly twenty thousand Swordbirds had surged out this time. They had filled the space within five kilometers.
A golden shadow suddenly streaked towards Xue Sha.
Following that was another golden shadow, and another…
Ten golden shadows in a row started attacking Xue Sha with the intimidating aura of thunder and creeping rubble.
The Goldwing Swordbirds had finally made their move.
Each Goldwing Swordbird was the equivalent of a true qi master. Ten true qi masters plus countless numbers of regular practitioners that were unafraid of death.
This confirmed one saying – “random fists will beat the master to death!”
No matter how strong you were, you’d be unable to face the tactic of a sea of humans if you didn’t have overwhelming power.
This wasn’t the tactic of a sea of humans, but a sea of birds.
Pfft!
Golden colored wings cut across Xue Sha’s arms, hands, back, and thighs…
Another round of attacks came.
Xue Sha wailed like the ghosts crying and wolves howling, “Jiang Chen, save me! We’ll escape together!”
One had to say, people would always verbalize some utterly ridiculous, very naive words when they were in desperate circumstances.
Jiang Chen smiled remotely, “Xue Sha, I will leave shortly, but I’m not escaping. Have you woken up to the realization yet that the Goldwing Swordbirds seem to really like your flesh and blood?”
Xue Sha cried out and sobbed, and then his voice grew smaller and smaller until it disappeared.
After a short while, only a skeleton, a pile of random strands of hair, many scraps of cloth, and a randomly scattered precious bow and quiver of arrows were left.
Even a mighty eleven meridians true qi master would only be able to make slightly bigger waves when compared to and surrounded by the tactic of a sea of Swordbirds.
