Mysterious World: I Have a Lost Heavenly Court

They quickly returned home.

Lu Changqing sat on a stone bench in the courtyard, his brows slightly furrowed.

He originally thought that since his cultivation level had reached the Core Formation stage, breaking the formation would be as simple as taking a look and comprehending it.

But now it seems that the formation is more unpredictable and powerful than he had imagined.

Fortunately, the root cause has been found.

Now all that's missing is the technique related to the formation to break through!

"The timing of this attack was so perfect..."

"This means Qin Yuan has already set his sights on me!"

Lu Changqing recalled the greedy look in Qin Yuan's eyes when he first met him, and a chill ran through him.

"I still need to break through my martial arts realm as soon as possible."

"If that guy doesn't die, my own mind won't be at peace!"

...

...

As night fell, Lu Changqing lay down on the bed.

He has two things to do tonight.

First, try fighting the evil Taoist again to see if you can defeat him and obtain the divine blood.

Second, take the rightmost fork in the road behind Falling Star Cliff.

The Seven Emotions and Six Desires Town on the left and the Land of Fallen Pills in the middle have both been explored.

Only the road on the right remained, which he had never been to.

Judging from the scale of the previous two roads, there must also be an area of ​​the same level on the right road.

"I'm already at the Core Formation stage, and my Blood Exchange has reached the mid-stage. Exploring the right path tonight should be easy."

With this thought in mind, Lu Changqing chose to enter the Ancient Ruins.

...

...

Ancient relics.

Lu Changqing stepped onto the path on the right.

The first few dozen steps were no different from Falling Star Cliff.

The land was parched, withered grass was sparse, and a few dark red shrubs were occasionally stained with malevolent energy.

But the further you go in, the harder the soil becomes, making a metallic scraping sound when you step on it, like stepping on a layer of iron sand.

Lu Changqing used his divine sense to observe his surroundings.

"The air here is even sharper than the murderous aura of war beneath Falling Star Cliff."

"So, this region is also related to weapons?"

Lu Changqing's greatest hope was to encounter something related to formations on this path he had never explored before.

But it seems that things haven't gone as he wished.

However, he was not discouraged.

After all, the contents of the ancient ruins cannot develop according to one's own wishes.

As Lu Changqing continued to delve deeper.

The air felt thick with invisible blades.

Each breath made my throat feel slightly prickly.

"Even a physique at the mid-stage of blood transfusion couldn't withstand the changes in the environment."

Lu Changqing clicked his tongue in amazement.

At the same time, he was also fortunate that he had already reached the Core Formation stage.

If it is still condensed.

Facing this completely new territory, they might not fare well either.

The trees on both sides have also begun to change.

The tree trunk is as straight as a sword, and the bark has a cold, dark silver sheen.

A withered leaf fell from the branch, swirling and plunging straight down, its tip embedding itself half an inch into the soil.

Lu Changqing reached out and tapped one of the tree trunks. The sensation he felt from his fingertips was not wood, but iron.

A dull, metallic echo reverberated through the forest.

The further you go, the thicker the iron sand becomes, and the colder the air gets.

Then he heard the wind.

The wind blew from the depths of the valley, sharp and fine, like countless extremely thin blades rubbing against each other.

A very slight stinging sensation ran through my skin as the wind brushed against my cheek.

It's not malevolent energy, nor is it a demon; it's simply the wind itself.

The wind carried an extremely sharp sword intent!

At the end of the path, the valley suddenly opens up, and on the right there is a burning flame.

Lu Changqing stepped forward, extended his hand, and let the flames burn him.

The next moment, the words appeared before my eyes.

The destined person lights the "Divine Weapon Tomb" bonfire to guide the soul.

The cliffs on both sides rise high into the clouds, and are covered with sword marks of varying depths.

The only thing they had in common was that each one exuded a completely different aura of sword intent.

At the entrance of the valley stands a crooked forest of stone tablets, dozens of tablets stuck in the iron sand ground, the inscriptions blurred by the wind of the sword.

[Divine Weapon Tomb]

When the Heavenly Court fell, many celestial soldiers and generals perished. Their neglected swords were all destroyed, their blades shattered into seven pieces, carrying with them the lingering sword intent of the immortals, and crashed into an abandoned sword-forging valley in the mortal realm.

For a century, the sword intent remained, permeating the entire valley into a "sword domain." Everything within the valley was assimilated by the sword energy: stones acquired sword edges, vegetation gained sword bones, and even the wind that swept through the valley was chopped into a faint, mournful sound by the lingering sword intent.

Lu Changqing's eyes flickered as he read the description.

"The description of Falling Star Cliff matches up in terms of background."

"The Broken Sword Giant was meant to cover the retreat, but clearly, it failed. The sword intent currently emanating from this canyon must have been killed by the celestial soldiers and generals who were caught up by the pursuers."

Lu Changqing recalled his experiences since entering the ancient ruins.

The doubts that had been lingering in my mind were now even more intense.

"Who exactly destroyed the Heavenly Court?"

"Furthermore, the fact that the Buddhist scriptures on the Seven Emotions and Six Desires could fall into the Seven Emotions and Six Desires Town means that the Buddha's side has also perished."

"The destruction of both Buddhism and Taoism... what kind of disaster is this?"

"..."

His thoughts raced, but he quickly came back to his senses.

"These things are still too far removed from my own life right now."

"Even the small Wanxian Army in the Great Qian Dynasty is troublesome enough. As for the Heavenly Court and the affairs of the immortals and Buddhas... we'll think about that after we find out some useful information."

Lu Changqing walked through the forest of steles.

An invisible barrier, extremely thin, stood at the entrance of the valley, composed entirely of pure sword intent.

He took a step, and the barrier trembled slightly the moment it touched his body, then silently cracked open.

The sight in the valley made him pause.

The entire valley was permeated with sword intent.

The ground was covered with a layer of dark red iron sand, mixed with countless tiny iron filings and slag.

Countless fragments of broken swords are embedded in the cliff face; some only show half of the blade, while others have been completely rusted into dark brown lumps of iron.

A crooked tree grew out of a crevice in the cliff. Its trunk was as black as iron, its branches were as straight as swords, and the edges of its leaves gleamed with a cold, sharp light.

"Bang bang bang..."

The wind rustled through the treetops, producing only the faintest metallic clanging sounds.

He walked about a hundred paces and saw the first group of living creatures beside a clump of low grass growing close to the ground.

Its body is the size of a grain of rice, completely black, with an extremely thin iron shell covering its surface, which is covered with fine sword marks.

When they climb over the rocks in groups, the sound is like steel needles scraping across a stone slab.

【Mutant Species: Ironflint Ant】

[Description: After the fragments of the Immortal Sword fell into the valley, an ant colony happened to be built directly beneath one of the fragments. Generations of ants were imbued with the sword's essence, and the formic acid fused with iron, mutating into a bizarre creature that was half flesh and half metal.]

[Weakness: Extremely vulnerable to fire. The metal shell cannot withstand high temperatures; open flames will cause it to expand and crack. It can also be attracted by magnets. Weapons without metal components are also effective against them.]

[Dropped Item - Ironflint Ant Shell: The extremely thin iron shell left behind by dead ironflint ants. Collecting hundreds of shells and melting them down can forge a piece of "Ant Iron." Ant Iron is extremely light yet extremely hard; weapons forged from it weigh half as much as ordinary iron weapons of the same volume, but are far sharper and harder than ordinary iron. It also possesses a faint sword intent.]

"It can be collected! It can be forged into a spirit sword later!"

Lu Changqing's spirit sword is now quite powerful.

But there are always stronger opponents.

Anything that can improve one's own strength is definitely better the more you have!

Lu Changqing raised his hand, imbued it with pure Yang energy, and covered it with his large hand, refining all the iron ants that were moving and carrying objects, and storing them in his space.

"The spirit sword is a short blade. Although many materials were used to continuously improve it, it is still far from being a celestial weapon."

"But as long as we continue to explore the ancient ruins, one day we will be able to restore the original power of the immortal weapon!"

Lu Changqing continuously collected iron ants along the way.

Soon, a relatively open area of ​​iron sand appeared in front of him, with several half-collapsed stone buildings scattered around.

It's like the place where the original inhabitants of this area lived.

He stopped beside one of the ruins, turned over a piece of slag with his toe, and found a short, low grass lying on the ground underneath.

Three leaves, the blades are straight like short swords, the veins are dark silver, and the edges are sharp.

【Spiritual Plant - Iron Sword Grass】

[Efficacy: Grind mature leaves into a paste and apply to old scars to accelerate softening and fading. Dry and grind the leaves of seven Iron Sword Grass plants, mix with water, and use to soak weapons; the resulting blades will be sharper, as if re-polished.]

He picked off a few ripe leaves and put them away.

As soon as he stood up, his divine sense detected an extremely fast movement trajectory.

From above.

He didn't look up, but turned to the side, leaving a very faint afterimage in place with his Hundred Ghosts Illuminating God Step.

A streak of iron-gray light swept past where he had just stood, its wings whistling sharply as they cut through the air.

A few tattered feathers drifted down from the sky and plunged straight into the iron sand ground.

The thing hovered and rose in the air.

With a wingspan of about two feet, it is entirely iron-gray, with the edges of each feather hardened into silvery-white blades, and its wings spread out like an open pair of scissors.

The beak and claws are completely metallic, and are dark silver in color.

It let out an extremely sharp whistle.

Lu Changqing stared intently, and all the information came into view.

【Mutant · Saber Feather Falcon】

[Description: Originally, these were hunting falcons that nested on the cliff face of Sword Forging Valley. After the fragments of the immortal sword fell, one piece became embedded in the cliff face, no more than three feet from the falcon's nest. Generations of falcons have been imbued with the essence of swordsmanship, and the edges of their feathers have gradually hardened, no longer supple feathers, but sharp blades.]

[Weaknesses: While its feathers are sharp, they are extremely brittle; a heavy blow to the wings will cause the feathers to shatter and fly everywhere. Its metallic beak and claws are vulnerable to extreme cold.]

[Dropped Item - Sword Feather: The longest and sharpest primary flight feathers from the wings of the Sword Feather Falcon, each three to five inches long, with a pure silver-white shaft and razor-sharp edges. They can be directly embedded into the end of a weapon's hilt as a natural "armor-piercing spike," or ground into powder and mixed into quenching fluid to enhance the hardness and sharpness of the weapon's edge.]

Lu Changqing stood still.

He raised his right hand, palm up, and a thought crossed his mind.

Dragon spouting water.

A jet of water as thick as an arm gushed from his palm, transforming into a water net in the air, precisely covering the ascending Sword Feather Falcon.

It instinctively tried to avoid it, but the water network covered too large an area, and its left wing was hit by a jet of water.

The moment the cold water came into contact with the metallized feathers, the feathers suddenly became brittle, and several primary flight feathers broke off directly from the base.

The sword-feathered falcon lost its balance, tumbled violently twice in the air, and crashed heavily onto the iron sand ground.

It struggled to stand up, but its broken wings could no longer support its body.

Lu Changqing stepped forward and removed the intact feather from the base of its wing.

Four feathers, each three to five inches long, with pure silver-white shafts and razor-sharp edges on the vanes.

He put away the dagger and continued walking forward.

The deeper you go, the sharper the air becomes.

More and more red marks appeared on his face from the sword wind, and some of them began to bleed.

However, these were all superficial injuries. The combination of Golden Skin Jade Network and Water-Fire Immortal Robe made him almost immune to this level of damage.

Then he saw the sword furnace.

Seven dark red ancient sword furnaces are arranged in the shape of the Big Dipper at the deepest part of the valley.

Each furnace is about ten feet tall, with its body made of dark red firebricks, from which a very faint dark red light seeps out.

Recently, the Tian Shu furnace still had a dark red glow at its opening, and the air was filled with the smell of burnt iron.

But a person was standing in front of the sword furnace.

A translucent, grayish-white humanoid phantom, short and stocky with thick, long arms, and a blurred face, with only two dark red bright spots in its eye sockets.

His right hand vaguely grasped an invisible hammer, his left hand vaguely grasped an invisible pair of iron pliers, and he wore a tattered leather apron around his waist, which was covered with burn marks.

[Seed of Obsession - The Swordsmith's Lingering Image]

[Description: A swordsmith who forged a sword to death before the forge a hundred years ago, his dying obsession was absorbed by fragments of a celestial sword and fed back into the forge, solidifying into this afterimage. Unaware of their own death, they continue to wield their hammers, quench, and polish day after day.]

[Mechanics: The Swordsmith's afterimage will not attack living beings on its own. However, if a living being approaches the forge it guards, it will strike the void with an invisible hammer, producing a deafening forging sound.]

[Solution: "Help" - Pick up a piece of iron lying near the forge and place it on his anvil. He will stop and begin forging the iron. While forging, he will briefly forget to guard the forge, giving you a chance to approach it. After forging, he will hand the finished iron to the protagonist. Forged by his obsession, its quality will increase by one rank. Each afterimage can only help with forging once; after forging, it will dissipate.]

[Dropped Item - Forged Refined Iron: Iron forged with unwavering dedication by the swordsmith's afterimage, reaching the pinnacle of what ordinary iron can achieve. Weapons forged from it possess the highest levels of hardness, toughness, and sharpness among ordinary iron weapons.]

The afterimage sensed his presence, slowly turned its head, and aimed its empty eye sockets at him. Then it swung the invisible hammer in its hand.

The void was struck.

A deafening metallic clang echoed through the valley, striking the consciousness and causing a buzzing sound in the mind.

It was an attack on divine consciousness.

However, Lu Changqing had already reached the Core Formation stage, and the spiritual energy within his body vibrated, eliminating the heavy blow from his divine sense.

Lu Changqing steadied himself and did not back down. "I meant no harm."

"I'm just here to forge swords."

He bent down and picked up a piece of loose iron from the ground, placing it on the anvil next to the sword furnace.

The swordsmith's afterimage stopped.

It lowered its head, looked at the real iron, and remained silent for several breaths.

Then he raised the invisible hammer in his hand.

This time, the sound of the hammer falling was no longer a deafening roar, but a very steady and powerful muffled thud.

Taking advantage of the moment when it was immersed in forging, Lu Changqing approached the Tian Shu Furnace.

The furnace was a full head taller than him, and its opening radiated a dry, scorching heat. He placed his hand on the furnace wall, and the pure yang fire seed in his dantian flickered slightly, a wisp of blazing white flame flowing down his arm into the furnace chamber.

Deep within the furnace, the remnants of the furnace fire, dormant for a century, were rekindled by the pure yang fire.

Dark red flames slowly rose from the deepest part of the furnace.

He threw a piece of black iron he had brought from the land of Danyun into the furnace.

The iron material heated up rapidly in the dark red light, and a very faint silver-white halo appeared on its surface.

The spiritual sword in my heart emitted a very faint sword cry.

The dark red light in the furnace slowly receded, leaving a very thin wisp of silvery-white light at the bottom of the furnace.

The essence of the Metal Element Sword Intent.

He absorbed the essence of the sword intent into his palm and turned around.

The swordsmith's afterimage on the anvil also completed its final forging.

It lifts the iron from the anvil and immerses it in the unseen quenching liquid in the void.

With a hiss, white steam billowed up.

Then it held the iron in both hands and handed it over.

The iron is still the same iron, but its texture is completely different. There is an extremely fine forging pattern on the surface, and each pattern is the last mark left by a hundred years of hammering.

The afterimage began to slowly dissipate.

Starting from their feet, they transformed into extremely faint gray-white specks of light, drifting towards the seven sword furnaces.

Before it vanished, it looked at Lu Changqing one last time with its empty eye sockets, and then bowed.

Lu Changqing stored the forged refined iron and the essence of the Metal Element Sword Intent into his spatial storage.

He did not immediately activate the other sword furnaces because his divine sense detected that there was an even stronger being waiting for him at the deepest part of the valley.

He bypassed the group of sword furnaces and walked to the back of the seventh sword furnace.

There stood a dark silver humanoid swordsman, about ten feet tall.

His entire body was covered in iron armor, which was covered with countless sword marks.

Its face was a smooth iron surface, without any facial features, only seven long, vertically arranged cracks, each crack emitting a different colored sword light.

The "two arms" are not arms, but two long swords of different shapes.

The left sword is crimson, the right sword is ice blue.

Its feet were also the tips of two short swords, tapping the ground with a very faint metallic crackling sound.

[Regional Boss - Seven-Forge Sword Puppet]

[Origin: The sword intent tempered for a hundred years in seven ancient sword furnaces, resonating with the seven fragments of the Immortal Sword, and merging with the last wishes of all the swordsmiths in Sword Forging Valley, coalesced into this monster. It is not a solitary entity, but a collection of the sword intent from the seven furnaces. Only those who defeat it are qualified to approach the true form of the Immortal Sword fragments.]

[Mechanism, Seven Furnaces Sword Formation: Each time the Seven Furnaces Sword Puppet changes its attack mode, it switches the attribute of the currently dominant sword furnace. The seven attributes are: Metal's Sharpness, Wood's Resilience, Water's Softness, Fire's Intenseness, Earth's Weight, Yin's Deceit, and Yang's Righteousness. Each switch occurs in a cycle of seven attributes. There is a very brief interval between switches, during which all seven cracks dim simultaneously for about half a breath—this is the optimal moment to attack the core at the chest.]

[Weakness: Yin and Yang are mutually restraining. If attacks of both Yin and Yang attributes are used simultaneously, the Yin and Yang fissures of the sword puppet will interfere with each other, interrupting the rotation. In addition, if the sword puppet displays "complete" sword intent during battle, it will briefly stop attacking and open its core for "examination."]

[Boss Reward - Immortal Sword Fragment Resonance Orb: A ball of light formed from the core of a disintegrated sword puppet. When absorbed into the dantian, it grants the passive ability "Sword Bone," increasing the bones' resistance to blade attacks; it can be absorbed by the natal sword, giving birth to a sword intent embryo. The sword embryo will slowly awaken as the protagonist grows.]

[Additional Drop: Sword Furnace Refined Iron Ingot: Dark silver iron ingots scattered after the sword puppet's body shatters, a top-tier material for forging swords. It can be smelted with terracotta warrior iron scraps to forge weapons imbued with sword intent and possessing significant effectiveness against strange and supernatural entities.]

The sword puppet sensed Lu Changqing's approach.

"die--"

A hoarse, sharp shout.

The seven cracks on the iron surface lit up simultaneously.

Crimson, cyan, jet black, pure white, bright yellow, dark purple, pure gold.

The seven-colored sword light spun around once, finally settling on crimson.

The crimson longsword on his left arm slowly rose, its tip aimed at his chest.

The intensity of the fire.

The sword puppet took a step forward, and its crimson longsword was already slashing towards it.

The intense heat from the sword caused the air to distort slightly.

Lu Changqing dodged to the side, a tongue of fire erupting from the blade, grazing his shoulder and slamming into the iron sand ground behind him, leaving a scorched, lava-like mark.

Before he could retaliate, the crack in the sword puppet's chest had already turned ice blue.

The icy blue longsword on his right arm was raised from bottom to top, and the cold air on the blade condensed into white mist in the air, freezing even the iron filings in its path with a thin layer of frost.

The gentleness of water. This sword's trajectory is as smooth as water, seemingly slow yet impossible to block.

Lu Changqing narrowly avoided the attack with the Hundred Ghosts Illuminating God Step, but a layer of white frost remained on his robe.

Water comes after earth.

A bright yellow sword light appeared, and the sword puppet drew both swords simultaneously, unleashing a heavy, mountain-like sword aura that crashed down from above.

He parried with his spirit sword, but the earth element sword energy slammed into the blade, forcing him to kneel on one knee. The iron sand beneath his feet was shaken and flipped outwards.

Before he could catch his breath, the interval between rotations appeared.

All seven cracks dimmed simultaneously.

He seized this brief moment, launched himself forward, and thrust his spirit sword, imbued with pure Yang fire, straight into the sword puppet's chest.

But the sword puppet reacted faster, and the rotation had already switched to Golden Sharpness.

With a horizontal slash from the left and a vertical cleave from the right, the swords blocked all escape routes. The two swords crossed, and the golden sword intent erupted.

Lu Changqing was forced back more than ten steps, and his robe was torn in countless tiny rips.

Swords cannot be used for combat.

He stopped his retreat and made a hand seal with his left hand.

Dragon spouting water.

The water jet shot towards the crack in the sword puppet's chest, and the sword puppet swung its ice-blue longsword on its left arm, freezing the water jet into an ice pillar that broke in two.

But the water column was just a decoy; the real body had already appeared on the right side of the sword puppet. The pure yang fire on the spirit sword suddenly trembled and slashed at the base of the right arm blade.

The force of the Five Yin Falling God Fist was transmitted through the sword, and the pure Yang fire made the ice-blue longsword hiss as it burned.

The right arm paused, disrupting the rotation rhythm.

The crack in his chest began to flicker, and the seven-colored sword light jumped back and forth, unable to stay on any one color.

The sword puppet took a step back.

After freeing his right arm from the scorching heat of the pure yang fire, the crack in his chest stabilized again, and a dark purple sword light shone, revealing the cunning of yin.

It split into three from the front, transforming into three identical sword shadows that simultaneously slashed from three directions.

Each one exuded a chilling aura that penetrated to the bone. Two of them were feints, but the switching between feints and real attacks was so fast that even divine sense could not accurately distinguish them.

Lu Changqing simply stopped trying to dodge.

The blazing white flame in his dantian spun wildly, and pure yang fire exploded from his body, surging outwards from his center.

Pure Yang overcomes Yin.

The two sword shadows on the left and in the middle dimmed and disappeared instantly in the firelight, leaving only the true form on the right still wielding the sword.

The spirit sword met the attack head-on, its dark purple sword shadow being engulfed by the pure yang fire.

The cunning of Yin was broken, and the cycle was disrupted once again.

The sword puppet knelt on one knee.

It knelt down voluntarily.

He crossed two longswords across his chest, and seven cracks lit up simultaneously.

Crimson, cyan, jet black, pure white, bright yellow, dark purple, pure gold.

Seven-colored sword lights surged forth simultaneously, weaving together to form a net of light covering an area of ​​five zhang in radius.

The embers of the sword furnace. Wherever the light net passed, the iron sand ground was cut with neat, grid-like sword marks, and the sword marks on the cliff face that had remained intact for centuries were cut open one by one like rotten wood.

Lu Changqing took out the sword intent slag core from his spatial storage.

Within the fist-sized, translucent crystal, a very thin, silvery-white light was slowly moving.

He held the crystal in his left palm, while the pure yang fire on his right spirit sword burned at its strongest.

Then, aim the crystal at the seven cracks on the sword puppet's chest and smash it down hard.

Crystallization breaks down.

The sword intent, sealed in the slag for a hundred years, suddenly erupted, and a shockwave of silver-white sword energy shot out from the palm, striking the very center of the light net.

Two completely different sword intents met in the void, colliding, squeezing, and tearing at each other, exploding into an ever-expanding silver-white ball of light.

The Seven Furnaces Sword Puppet stopped.

It remained kneeling, its iron face turned toward the spirit sword in Lu Changqing's hand.

The sword light within the crack no longer surged forth, but instead quietly watched the pure yang fire burning on the spirit sword.

Lu Changqing pierced the central crack in the sword puppet's chest with his sword.

The pure Yang fire and the silvery-white sword intent exploded simultaneously within the sword puppet's body.

The seven-colored sword light struggled wildly in the flames, with crimson and icy blue attempting to take turns defending.

Bright yellow attempted to resist with its weight, while dark purple tried to escape by becoming ethereal.

But pure yang overcomes yin, and silver-white dispels evil; the two forces burn outward from the sword puppet's body, gushing out from every crack.

The cracks all turned dark.

The two long swords on his arms fell off his shoulders and stuck in the ground, their blades beginning to shatter.

The layer of dark silver iron armor crumbled inch by inch, revealing the hollow inner cavity beneath.

Its ten-foot-tall body crashed onto the iron sand ground, producing a final, heavy metallic roar.

Lu Changqing stood in front of the wreckage of the sword puppet, panting heavily.

His tiger's mouth was cracked from the shock, his pure yang power was almost exhausted, and his spiritual power at the Core Formation Realm was also almost gone.

At the core of the shattered sword puppet, the seven sword lights did not completely dissipate, but instead circled once before flying towards the seven sword furnaces in the valley.

The sword intent returns to the furnace.

At the very center of the core, a ball of light the size of a fist remained.

Inside the ball of light, seven extremely fine filaments of different colors continuously rotated and intertwined.

He incorporated the resonance body into his dantian.

The moment the ball of light entered, an extremely cool sword intent spread along the meridians to the limbs and bones, eventually settling slowly deep within the bone marrow.

The bones are being tempered by this sword intent.

The surface of each bone looked as if it were coated with an extremely thin layer of sword light.

Sword bone.

In addition to the sword bone, the blood and qi in his body also surged and gushed, containing a sharpness that was much sharper than before!

"My cultivation level hasn't improved, but my physique has definitely become several degrees stronger!"

"Even if they launch an attack with their bare hands, they can still achieve a more powerful offensive effect than ordinary weapons!"

At the same time, the spiritual sword in the dantian emitted a long sword cry and flew towards the ball of light, incorporating the resonant body into the sword.

Deep within the sword, something was trembling slightly.

It wasn't the sword that was moving; rather, a tiny bud of consciousness was being nurtured within the sword.

Sword intent embryo.

He also collected the dark silver iron pieces scattered on the ground after the sword puppet disintegrated. Each piece was extremely heavy and produced a long, resonant sword sound when struck.

He then activated the remaining sword furnaces one by one.

All seven furnaces were given as gifts, and I received them all.

He straightened up and glanced at the valley, which had returned to silence.

The wind from the sword was still blowing, but the stinging sensation had lessened considerably when it reached him.

It wasn't that the sword wind had weakened; it was that his bones had become accustomed to this level of sword intent erosion.

My physique has become stronger!

...

Lu Changqing stood in front of the sword furnace, displaying all the gifts from the seven furnaces and the refined iron blocks from the furnace in a row.

Ant Iron, Blade Feather, Forged Refined Iron, Essence of Metal Element Sword Intent, Crystallized Wood Element Sword Intent, Sword Liquid...

In addition, there was the resonating entity of the immortal sword fragment in his dantian, which was being slowly absorbed by the spirit sword.

The gains from this trip to the Sword Tomb were greater than those from the previous two trips combined.

He did not rush to leave the ancient ruins.

Among these materials, several can be used immediately on the spirit sword.

He summoned the spirit sword from his dantian, and the sword floated in front of him, with pure yang fire burning quietly on the blade.

Get the ant iron first.

A fist-sized iron block forged from the iron shells of hundreds of iron ants, it is extremely light to the touch, yet its hardness far exceeds that of black iron.

He heated the ant-iron in the residual heat of the sword furnace until it was half-melted, and then evenly forged it into the spine of the spirit sword.

The moment the ant-iron was incorporated into the sword, the weight of the entire sword suddenly decreased by nearly 30%, but the hardness of the sword increased instead of decreasing.

The feeling of wielding a sword has changed from "holding a sword" to "an extension of the arm".

Then comes the Blade Feather.

The four primary flight feathers of the sword falcon have pure silver-white shafts and razor-sharp edges on the vanes.

He ground the blade feathers into an extremely fine powder, mixed it into the quenching liquid, and then immersed the spirit sword in it.

When the powdered blade feathers in the quenching liquid came into contact with the pure yang fire of the spirit sword, it emitted an extremely sharp metallic whistling sound.

After quenching, the blade of the spirit sword has an extra layer of very faint silver-white cold light. When viewed against the dark red firelight of the sword furnace, the blade reflects a sharp luster similar to the edge of the wings of a sword-feathered falcon when it dives, which makes one feel a chill down one's spine.

Armor-piercing effect!

Finally, there is the essence of the Metal Element Sword Intent.

The extremely fine silver thread quietly wrapped around his fingertips, its touch icy and sharp.

He infused the essence of sword intent into the blade of the spirit sword.

The moment the light thread entered the sword, the entire sword emitted a clear and melodious sword cry, and the pure yang fire on the sword suddenly surged several inches higher, becoming three times more intense than before.

The metal element of the sword and the pure yang fire achieved a delicate balance within the sword.

Metal represents sharpness, while pure Yang represents restraint. When these two elements are combined, the sword intent of the spirit sword has a clear bias: it is specifically designed to counter evil spirits.

Lu Changqing gripped the spirit sword and casually swung it once.

He did not use spiritual power or activate pure yang fire; it was purely physical strength.

The very faint metallic hum of the blade as it sliced ​​through the air.

The metallic aura of the iron ants is sending out warning signals within the sword.

The sharpness of this sword strike is at least 30% stronger than before.

He swallowed the spirit sword back into his dantian.

The moment the sword entered the body, the embryonic sword intent trembled slightly, seemingly quite satisfied with this enhancement.

"With the Core Formation Realm and the upgraded Spirit Sword, I'll try to meet the heretical cultivator."

Standing beside the sword furnace, Lu Changqing pondered, "If I can kill the evil cultivator and obtain the divine blood, my martial arts will surely benefit greatly."

"He might even be able to break through to the Qi Condensation Realm directly!"

Do it when you think of it.

With a thought, the flame of inheritance ignited beneath his feet, and the scene before him shifted from the dark red iron sand of the Sword Tomb to the familiar dilapidated courtyard of the Taoist temple on the mountaintop.

The evil man's statue still sat cross-legged on the lotus platform, its entire body covered in stone, with exposed fangs and wings on its back, completely still.

Unlike the previous times, Lu Changqing did not test the waters first.

He slightly raised his right hand, and the spirit sword flew out from his dantian, enlarging proportionally to a three-foot-long blade in front of him.

The pure yang fire on the sword was a solid, blazing white flame.

The ant-iron reduced the sword's weight, the blade powder tempered the edge, and the essence of the metal sword intent intertwined with the pure yang fire to form a layer of light golden, sharp halo.

Then, with a thought, his spirit sword transformed into a blazing white streak of light, slashing at the malevolent deity's face from afar.

The sword fell.

The stone-like surface shattered the moment it touched the blade, and the evil Taoist suddenly opened his scarlet eyes.

But this time, it opened its eyes a beat slower than before.

Because the sword light didn't strike the stone membrane on its body, but instead cut into its flesh.

A deep, bone-revealing sword scar stretched diagonally from its forehead to its jaw.

Dark red blood gushed from the wound, but before it could drip, it was burned into a charred mist by the pure yang fire remaining on the blade.

The heretic let out a deafening roar.

Without hesitation, Lu Changqing once again controlled his spirit sword, drawing an arc in the air as it slashed down.

The evil Taoist suddenly unfurled its fleshy wings, and a thick, bloody aura exploded from its body, enveloping the entire main hall.

It raised its hand, and a dark red blood-fiend shockwave met the spirit sword. The two forces collided in mid-air, and the pure yang fire burned the blood-fiend with a hissing sound.

However, the amount of blood energy was too large and too concentrated, causing the spirit sword to deflect slightly and strike the lotus platform, creating a crack several feet long on the stone platform.

The heretic clearly remembered Lu Changqing.

When it saw Lu Changqing, a look of surprise flashed in its eyes.

It was clearly unclear why this normally weak insect could inflict such serious damage on it in such a short time!

The heretic was not arrogant in the slightest.

It formed hand seals, and dozens of dark red blood-fiend orbs appeared around its body, each the size of a fist, exuding a corrupt and sinister aura.

The French balls rained down on Lu Changqing like a storm.

Lu Changqing parried with his spirit sword, and pure yang fire wove a fire net in front of him, burning away the blood-fiend magic balls that were shooting at him.

But there are too many spells, and he knows too few spells.

The Gale Technique is effective against enemies below the Condensation Realm, but against elite monsters like the Heretic, it can only serve to restrain them.

The art of mental manipulation is almost ineffective against it.

The dragon's spit water can offset some of the blood-fiend magic orbs, but the evil cultivators' magic orbs are almost endless.

After several rounds of exchanges, Lu Changqing did not suffer any substantial injuries.

However, they were still unable to break through the ever-surging blood mist barrier surrounding the heretic.

The ground between the two was scorched and cracked by the blood demon and pure yang fire, but the battle was at a stalemate.

The heretic was the first to lose patience.

It retrieved the magic orb, flapped its wings, and transformed into a dark red afterimage as it pounced on Lu Changqing.

The claws slashed five bloody streaks in the air as it launched an attack with pure flesh!

Lu Changqing raised his sword to parry.

Claws clashed with the spirit sword, sparks flying.

The evil man's power far exceeded his expectations.

The claw struck the sword, making his hand go numb and sending him staggering back several steps.

Before he could regain his footing, the evil Taoist's second claw followed, this time aimed straight for his chest.

He dodged to the side, and with a backhand slash, he aimed his spirit sword at the evil Taoist's wrist.

The blade cut into the flesh, but the evil man's wrist bones were ridiculously hard.

The spirit sword struck the bone with a crisp metallic clang, leaving only a half-inch deep wound.

Meanwhile, the evil man's left claw had already seized the opportunity to grab his shoulder.

Gang Jin!

The evil cultivator's claws pierced through the Water and Fire Immortal Robe and the Golden Skin Jade Network, and a chilling power seeped into his bones through the wound on his shoulder.

Without the sword bone, this claw could crush his shoulder blade.

But the bones reinforced by the sword bone withstood the penetrating force.

When that chilling energy penetrated the surface of the bones, it was mostly repelled by a very faint layer of sword light.

"Sword Bone?" The evil Taoist paused noticeably, a clear look of shock flashing in his crimson eyes. "You actually possess a Sword Bone? You went to the Sword Tomb?"

Taking advantage of its momentary daze, Lu Changqing punched it in the chest.

The pure yang fire, combined with the force of the Five Yin Falling God Fist, blasted the evil Taoist back a step.

But this step back was very reluctant.

The evil man's physique far exceeded his expectations; the punch he landed on it felt like hitting a red-hot iron ingot.

The pure yang fire burned a scorch mark on its chest, but did not cause any substantial penetrating injury.

We cannot continue hand-to-hand combat.

The heretic's physique was at least at the Condensation Realm, and with that all-pervasive Qi, he was completely at a disadvantage in close combat.

The only good news is that the spirit sword can break through its defenses.

Pure Yang fire can burn away its blood and evil.

The enhancement from the sword bone allowed him to barely maintain his footing on the defensive end, preventing him from being instantly overwhelmed.

Lu Changqing decisively retreated, creating distance between them.

He glanced down at his shoulder.

Blood was seeping from the five blood holes, but the wounds were not deep. The golden skin and jade veins blocked most of the penetrating force, and the sword bone blocked the remaining small part.

Without the sword bone, he would have had to leave the Ancient Ruins.

The heretic was also injured.

Blood was still gushing from the sword wound on his face, and the scorch marks on his chest caused by the pure yang fire were also expanding.

It stood still, its scarlet eyes fixed on the spirit sword in Lu Changqing's hand, and roared again, launching an attack!

...

...

Inside the detached house, Lu Changqing opened his eyes.

Recalling the battle just now, he was not frustrated, but rather overjoyed.

At the Core Formation Realm, one can already exchange blows with evil cultivators in terms of techniques.

Although the evil cultivators' Blood Fiend Orbs are numerous, their individual power is not very high. As long as the spirit sword is in hand, there are basically no weaknesses in their defense.

The problem lies in the counterattack.

He knows too few magical techniques.

The Gale Technique is not powerful enough, the Mind Disorder Technique is useless against the dead, and the Dragon's Breath has a certain effect on offsetting the Blood Fiend, but its destructive power is insufficient.

If you can learn more advanced spells, you can turn the spell-battle phase from "even" to "suppression".

Secondly, there is martial arts.

The evil cultivator's physique is at least at the Condensation Realm, and with that all-pervasive Qi, he is completely outmatched in close combat.

The only hope is that martial arts can also break through to the Condensation Realm.

After the blood transfusion, the qi and blood transform into a powerful force, making it possible to break through magic with a fist.

At that time, with the Dao and Martial Arts at the fourth level, plus the Sword Bone and Pure Yang Fire, even if they cannot suppress the evil Daoists in close combat, they will at least not be beaten down like they are today.

"As long as we can defeat the heretic, we'll obtain the divine blood!"

"Breaking through to the Qi Condensation stage in martial arts is a foregone conclusion."

"Once we condense our inner energy, capturing Qin Yuan will be a sure thing!"