Demon Sword Sect’s Undercover
Chapter 489 - 489 488 One Husband Holds the Pass 4

489: Chapter 488 One Husband Holds the Pass 4 489: Chapter 488 One Husband Holds the Pass 4 Glancing at the fervor of his bandit crew, Hou Niao felt that the experience had been ample.

After all, no matter how much he enjoyed the trial, the battlefield was ultimately a contest of victory between two sides.

After a brief wait, just as Qian Changqing conjured his Fire Skill to send forth fiery ravens in attack, he ceased patrolling the perimeter.

With a lead of his Flying Sword, he vanished from the sky.

Qian Changqing had never let down his guard against this Sword Cultivator.

With the precedent set by Yu Kuohai, how could he afford to be careless?

As he prepared to react, he immediately felt a difference in the power of the Flying Sword; there had been variations in force before, but this time the strength was doubled, and it carried with it the oppressive might of Sword Intent.

Knowing his opponent sought change, he subconsciously increased the power of his Techniques.

His previous spell had been a Fire Technique, so naturally, under these circumstances, he instinctively followed with an Earth Technique, while the Breeze Protection Formation shifted its Five Elements orientation towards the Earth Element.

This was the reason his Protective Formation could enhance the power of his Techniques.

The Breeze Formation was versatile, accommodating all Five Elements; if a Fire Technique was cast, it leaned towards the Fire Formation, and with an Earth Technique, it inclined to the Earth Formation.

Why was it essential to use an Earth Technique in response?

The choice wasn’t made at random.

First, Earth defenses are the strongest, and second, within the generative cycle of the Five Elements, Fire engenders Earth, which allowed him to draw some power from the Fire Technique he had just used, thereby saving energy and reacting quickly.

Cultivators, do not exert themselves without reason.

Each of their choices is dictated by logic, like the principles of generation and restriction of the Five Elements etched into their very bones.

It’s precisely because of these principles that his Instant Techniques could achieve such fluid transitions.

Considering his opponent’s explosive assault, he naturally wouldn’t choose to counter-attack but instead fashioned an Earth Wall, followed by an Earth Shield, Earth Block, and Earth Puppet, each defense stronger than the last.

Meanwhile, the Five Elements Attribute of his Protective Formation leaned towards the Earth Element.

The next moment, the Flying Sword shattered the Earth Wall and continued onward – this he had anticipated.

Fingertips knitting spells, an Earth Shield suddenly materialized, blocking the inevitable path of the Flying Sword, while he also sensed an unsettling fluctuation of spiritual energy in the air.

He hadn’t forgotten that his opponent disappeared after launching the Flying Sword, and indeed, right after the sword, a figure suddenly appeared within the range of his Protective Formation.

The Shape-shifting Sword Attachment – a renowned close-distance Skill of the Shan Sect’s Sword Cultivators, a requisite technique for every Sword Cultivator, and a Skill every Daoist had to be wary of.

Now that it was finally deployed, it put his mind at ease.

He was prepared; that’s another reason why he switched his Formation to Earth.

Comparatively, the Earth Formation is the best for causing delays, and he had calculated all of this clearly.

Earth Shield and Earth Puppet to block the sword, Earth Formation to impede the enemy – it was enough time for him to counter-attack.

But what happened next was beyond his expectations…

The Flying Sword showed no signs of weakened force after breaking an Earth Wall; instead, its Sword Momentum grew stronger, which was irrational!

The Sword Cultivator’s movements within the Earth Formation were unaffected, even faster!

In the blink of an eye, his mind conjured the scene of Yu Kuohai being dismembered by wild swords.

If it came down to close combat, he was no match for Yu Kuohai, so how could he dare to face this ferocious Sword Cultivator head-on?

This moment revealed another side of his combat philosophy, as well as his weakness.

As a practitioner of Instant Method, he pursued the simplicity of the Great Dao, concentrating all his effort on the fundamentals.

His battles were indeed a sight to behold, revealing the clear-cut side of the Dao.

But no philosophy is omnipotent, and when such a Cultivator encounters unforeseen situations, their Skill set lacks those unpredictable and tricky moves because he disdains learning those sidebar Tricks.

Remembering the words his fellow disciple Bao Wen had entrusted to him, he forcibly stopped – retracting his Formation and using a precious Substitute Talisman.

He floated a hundred yards away and with a raise of his hand, he bowed,

“Hou Daoist’s Sword Technique is exceptional, and his mastery of the Five Elements Path is profound.

I admire it.

This round is my loss.”

Without a change in expression or a skip in his heartbeat, he turned and left, showing no sign of shame.

Of course he didn’t care.

He wasn’t one of the Chasing Wind Bandits; there was no need to risk his life here.

The situation was clear enough; if he had insisted on resisting, under the sudden onslaught of the Sword Cultivator’s attacks, he might not even have had the chance to withdraw with dignity.

It wasn’t that he lacked means to fight to the death, but whether it was worth it.

There were still ten people left – what was he after?

For the Chasing Wind Bandits, to exhaust this Sword Cultivator’s leader to death would be worthwhile, even if they lost the platform in the end.

Without Hou Niao, what would the Cang Pirates amount to?

Returning to the midst of his gang, he shared his combat experience, “This man doesn’t solely rely on brute assault with his Flying Sword as he appears on the surface.

There are two things you must note.

Firstly, he has the capacity to gather force on his Flying Sword; the second strike was stronger than the first, and I can’t guarantee whether the third strike will be even more powerful?

Secondly, this person has a deep understanding of the Five Elements, able to keenly catch onto the rhythm of my Five Elements Conversion, and I suspect that he is versed in the Earth Escape Technique, otherwise he couldn’t have moved with such ease within my Earth Formation.”

After saying this, he saluted towards Bao Wen, “This battle has been highly enlightening for me and has made me aware of many shortcomings.

I am no match for him; continuing the fight would make no difference.

Besides, your upcoming matches won’t result in any chaotic battles, so staying further is pointless.

Fellow disciple, I’ll take my leave first and return to our Sect.”

Regardless of what the others felt, he walked away, shaking his head as he went, “I’ve been too rash this time.

Life is precious, and talents are rife in Jinxiu.

If I don’t step up, I’ll soon become just a stepping stone for others.”

Several Daoists were quite dissatisfied with his demeanor.

Was he really that short on time?

Even if he chose not to fight again, staying would have offered everyone some peace of mind, right?

Bao Wen defused the situation with a chuckle, “My fellow disciple has always been like this – utterly absorbed in his pursuit of the Dao and indifferent to everything else.

Thankfully, we’ve achieved our goal.

I estimate the bandit leader has already drained about twenty percent of his Cultivation, which is no small feat.”

Truthfully it was less than twenty percent, perhaps between ten and twenty, but since Bao Wen had put it that way, no one wanted to quibble further.

Amidst the impending battle, internal unity remained crucial.

In fact, if each of the next contenders could whittle away ten to twenty percent of the bandit leader’s Cultivation, then after three or four, when his Mana would have dropped to less than half, it would be their turn to strike.

Accounting for a margin of error, if another five people could deplete half of the bandit leader’s Mana, their remaining five, fighting with full force, would overwhelm the leader.

They refused to believe he could withstand so many challenges.

Gao Tianqi called over his own fellow disciple, whispering, “You saw the battle just now?

Continue in the same manner, and make sure to reduce the bandit leader’s Mana!”

His fellow disciple, a shrewd person, understood the message – fight conservatively while ensuring safety and whittle down the enemy’s power.

The Zhou Sect Daoists were known for their agility, and he, from the Qi Sect, was no different.