The Ninth Spirit had unequivocally succeeded. After holding out for so long, the 10,000 Swords Formation had finally been broken.
Of course, the Ninth Spirit had paid the price. Her vicious onslaught had cost the Thunder Seabird's life.
The Scarlet Sea's Seven Ghosts had also paid a grave price. Five of their seven were dead, and Tian Yijun was losing his mind. From the moment that Wu Shengjun had been killed by Wu Shengjun, their battle for loot had become a battle for vengeance!
All that remained were Tian Yijun and Yu Sanji. No matter how this turned out, the Scarlet Sea's Seven Ghosts had already lost this battle!
And this loss had been delivered by Wu Yu!
Of course, the shelter of the 10,000 Swords Formation had been of great help!
When the 10,000 Swords Formation broke, Wu Yu had no time to dwell on it. In that moment, the real fight of Immortal Dao broke out all over!
First up was Tian Yijun and Yu Sanji, who had personally seen Shen Erjun die to Wu Yu. Letting loose their eerie wails, they too summoned evil ghosts and vengeful spirits like Shen Erjun had! The sword shadows had completely vanished from the 10,000 Swords Formation. In their place were plumes of black smoke that erupted from the gorges and cracks on the ground. At least 2,000 evil ghosts and 2,000 vengeful spirits appeared on the battlefield!
"Kill! Kill them and leave none!"
"Let these Heavenly Sword Sect disciples accompany my brothers and sisters of the Scarlet Sea's Seven Ghosts into the grave! Let them descend to hell for all of eternity!"
As Yu Sanji screeched her curses, the evil ghost and vengeful spirit armies, completely unafraid of death, flooded towards the Stone Gate of a Thousand Swords in a wave. They were going straight for the thousand Heavenly Sword Sect disciples.
From the outside, there were still Zhongyuan Dao Sect disciples who were eager to test the abilities of the Heavenly Sword Sect disciples, as well as demons who had waited for all too long and were ravenous. All let loose with wretched howls of rage. They pulled out their immortal treasures and weapons as they charged to the thousand disciples that stood at the core of the Heavenly Sword Sect. A group led by Night Wishes for Snow and the elders answered their attack!
They were on the verge of the final fight!
Over at the Heavenly Sword Sect, they had languished for a long time, and each opponent they slew elevated their bloodlust and will to fight. And now they faced the real three-way army. They pulled out their immortal treasure longswords and stood composed, their will rock-solid. Wu Yu's magnificent slaughter of two of the enemy's experts - that gave them huge confidence!
Bang!
Wu Yu's current position was between the two. Familiar faces behind him - even the young Qing Mang stood poised with her longsword, ready to join in the battle to protect their sect.
Time stood still in that instant. He took a deep breath and put his back to his brethren. He turned his gaze on the evil ghosts and demons....
"Wu Yu, come with Jiu Er......"
A voice came floating past his ear that made his hair stand on end.
That's right. the Ninth Spirit's only goal was him.
Looking back, he saw that the Ninth Spirit was headed in his direction after breaking the 10,000 Swords Formation. With the 10,000 Swords Formation broken, Wu Yu no longer had a castle to return to, nor a place to hide.
She had locked on to him, her gaze devoid of emotion.
The Ninth Spirit was still in the body of the Beautiful Fox of the Nine Heavens. Her nine tails of pure white bobbed behind her body. Wu Yu only caught a quick glimpse at her and immediately forgot the battle. Everything seemed like a dream, and only she was real before his eyes.
"Scum, don't run!"
Suddenly, his head was pierced by a sharp pain. As he refocused, he saw blue sword light encasing the Ninth Spirit. From above, Sect Protector Lan Huayi was using the Art of Sword Flight. Her immortal treasure longsword was in her hand, barring the Ninth Spirit's way!
Lan Huayi naturally understood that she was her opponent. A fox demon's charms were stronger against men. The more suitable opponent for Feng Xueya was Jiang Xie. Not far from the Stone Gate of a Thousand Swords, Feng Xueya was duelling with Jiang Xie!
The four Jindan experts had begun fighting, and everyone around them scattered, afraid of being injured by accident!
The skirmish shook the heavens and earth. Things were happening too quickly and powerfully! Limitless sword qi flew back and forth. Spiritual power exploded left and right. Everyone watched, open-mouthed. But at least for Wu Yu, the pressure that the Ninth Spirit had been exerting on him was gone.
Only, Wu Yu could constantly feel the Ninth Spirit's gaze on him. A formless pair of eyes seemed to float above his head, causing a chill to run down his spine.
"Wu Yu, protect them! Fend off the enemy!" Feng Xueya suddenly roared at him.
"Them...."
Wu Yu surveyed the field. He saw the Five Elders and the Elder of Imparting Arts and the Elder of Enforcement entering the fray. The Five Elders, their keystones, were at the 10th tier of the Qi Condensation Realm, while the tripartite alliance still had Tian Yijun, Yu Sanji, and one more demon at the 10th tier of the Qi Condensation Realm, in addition to two more elders of the Zhongyuan Dao Sect.
After Shen Erjun and the Thunder Seabird had been killed by Wu Yu, the number of experts that the enemy had was evened up with the Heavenly Sword Sect's!
Plus, now Wu Yu was excess.
That was why Wu Yu reckoned that Feng Xueya and the others had abandoned the 10,000 Swords Formation after seeing him kill Shen Erjun - this was a rare chance for them to defeat their opponent. Through their harrying, the enemy's elite had been weakened, and now finally brought down to the same level as the Heavenly Sword Sect. The only advantage that the tripartite alliance still held was that their middle-tier forces numbered three times that of the Heavenly Sword Sect's!
Before them was an endless wave of evil ghosts, vengeful spirits, demons, and Zhongyuan Dao Sect disciples.
The thousand of the Heavenly Sword Sect would die quickly with no ultimate power to protect them!
This was the emergency mission that Feng Xueya had assigned to him. Now that Wu Yu was free, he was naturally responsible for their protection!
Su Yanli, Qing Mang, Mo Shishu, and the others....
In truth, once the 10,000 Swords Formation had broken, Feng Xueya and the others had been prepared, promptly seeking out the opponents they had targeted. For example, the strongest of the Scarlet Sea's Seven Ghosts, Tian Yijun, had been immediately snagged by Elder Shentu. Both tore at each other in an epic fight!
On top of the mountain, the four Jindan and 10 of the 10th tier Qi Condensation cultivators fought in seven different fights. No one dared to approach them. The remaining middle core strength congregated on the other side, one rushing down, the other rushing up. They would soon clash at Wu Yu's current position.
The Heavenly Sword Sect was different because they clustered in groups of three to five, forming sword formations. They were more rational, and killed to cover each other. The evil ghosts and vengeful spirits were their first wave of enemies. Although they were unorderly, the vengeful spirits affected their own minds and reason. While the evil ghosts were savage in battle, and their sheer numbers - a full four thousand - were four times their own number. In comparison, it seemed like the Heavenly Sword Sect was in dire straits indeed!
This was exactly why Feng Xueya had persisted in defending the 10,000 Swords Formation for so long!
And now, all of Feng Xueya's hopes were pinned on Wu Yu!
All in all, the vengeful spirits would sap at one's will, but that did not cause real harm. That was why the true danger was the combination of these two monsters. Wu Yu could not stop the evil ghosts, but those 2,000 evil ghosts did not worry him.
"Everyone, I am here. No need to worry or fear. Form your sword formations and stand strong against the enemy!
"These evil ghosts look savage, but they're all useless."
The most important thing on the battlefield was the morale of the troops. Wu Yu understood this, which was why his first step was to assuage their fears. Liberated from their fears, they could perform at their best.
"Wu Yu, rest easy. We have all killed Zhongyuan Dao Sect disciples before," Night Wishes for Snow quipped.
That slaughter had boosted their bloodlust. And now, facing these evil ghosts, vengeful spirits, and demons, most of the Heavenly Sword Sect disciples were able to maintain their best state. Their blood ran cold, but they stood composed.
Even Qing Mang managed a small smile for Wu Yu in the crowd. She gave a firm nod.
All of them felt an unprecedented sense of safety as they looked to Wu Yu standing in the front. Their desire to fight welled. All of them looked at him with respect and adoration. These people, as close to kin, filled Wu Yu with unspeakable strength.
"Heavenly Sword Sect disciples, death before dishonor!"
"FIGHT!"
Their voices roared out in unison. They hefted their longswords, a clatter of immortal treasures pointing towards the sky. This was the true meaning of overwhelming sword qi!
Wu Yu took point. The eyes on his back stimulated his emotions. Like a wave, his blood boiled. He was the spearhead that rushed the evil ghosts and vengeful spirits!
"Come with me!"
Behind him, the Heavenly Sword Sect disciples formed a wedge with Wu Yu at the point. Night Wishes for Snow, Lan Boli, and other elders were spaced out. The thousand people were like a knife that tore into the evil ghosts!
Wu Yu had combined his two swords. His cold gaze landed on the evil ghosts. He employed his dao techniques, channeling the Great Dao of the Golden Sword into a huge longsword. Hundreds of evil ghosts appeared within the killing radius of his golden sword!
Given that Wu Yu could now call upon the power of the 10th tier of the Qi Condensation Realm, killing evil ghosts and vengeful spirits was a piece of cake. When he had fought Shen Erjun, he had not even paid attention to these ghosts.
"Kill!"
They clashed!
Wu Yu was like a knife point, tearing the evil ghosts apart. The Great Dao of Golden Sword flashed out. Each slash would cut down dozens of evil ghosts clean in half!
For the moment, Night Wishes for Snow and the others did not even have a chance to get their hands dirty. Because all they encountered were corpses when they advanced in Wu Yu's wake. Any survivors were quickly dealt with by the hot-headed Heavenly Sword Sect!
In front, the golden sword waved!
The corpses of the evil ghosts thickened the sky!
The carnage was unbelievable!
Wu Yu used the most direct killing methods, emboldening the Heavenly Sword Sect disciples with an even stronger will and hope in battle. Perhaps they had not felt this strong before, plagued by nervousness and doubt. But in this moment, seeing the evil ghost army decimated by Wu Yu with overwhelming force, they saw the hope of a true victory!
One Heavenly Sword Sect taking on three powers. Before, they had not dared to hope.
The elders were impassioned now. Their eyes often flitted to Wu Yu, a godlike presence in their midst!
Su Yanli, Mo Shishu, Night Wishes for Snow, and the other senior brothers and sisters smiled at each other. They were the ones closest to Wu Yu. Especially Su Yanli, who had personally witnessed her junior brother come this far.
When Su Yanli killed her first evil ghost, she felt a sense of protectiveness. In that instant, she understood Wu Yu even better.
It was to protect them, and his new home, that he would go to such extremes!