The Arrogant Immortal
Chapter 405 - 404: Unfamiliar with Swordsmanship, Please Forgive Me

Chapter 405: Chapter 404: Unfamiliar with Swordsmanship, Please Forgive Me

Nangong Lang, while dodging the attacks of the Puppet Beasts, sliced his palm open with his sword and smeared the fresh blood onto the blade. In an instant, the long sword’s glow greatly intensified, and its momentum climbed progressively.

"Kill!"

He struck at an oncoming Puppet Beast with his sword.

Suddenly, with a flash of sword light and a thunderous boom, a Puppet Beast was cleaved into two halves!

Nangong Lang gave Xie Jiuniang a provocative look.

With another sword strike, he destroyed yet another.

One after another, sword glows flashed by.

Only two Puppet Beasts remained.

Xie Jiuniang’s gaze swept over the destroyed Puppet Beasts, but her face showed no concern, "If that’s all you’re capable of, you’re doomed. To me, these Puppet Beasts are merely toys; I can have as many as I want."

Nangong Lang believed she was bluffing.

Could Golden Core Puppets be crafted just like that?

As he had guessed, Xie Jiuniang could indeed only control a limited number of Golden Core Puppets capable of exerting Golden Core strength — solely eighteen, mainly because the materials were difficult to obtain. They represented the strongest Puppets she could craft at the moment. The loss of four in an instant did cause her a bit of pain, but just a bit. However, she had hundreds of Foundation Establishment Puppet Beasts in stock, all crafted as practice from before.

So she let him slash away.

Feeding the sword with his own blood, Xie Jiuniang didn’t believe he could keep it up for long.

Thus, with a wave of her hand, Xie Jiuniang summoned ten Foundation Establishment Puppet Beasts, while she put away the two Golden Core Puppets. After all, you don’t use a cleaver to kill a chicken, right?

"Go! Kill him!"

The ten Puppet Beasts charged at Nangong Lang in unison, their momentum even greater than before. Xie Jiuniang made the first move without waiting for Nangong Lang to react.

"Explode!"

"Explode, explode!"

The Puppet Beasts rushing at Nangong Lang unexpectedly self-destructed, that’d surely give him a hard time!

Boom!

One explosion followed another!

The ten Puppet Beasts exploded all at once, their power stacking up.

And Xie Jiuniang had already swiftly retreated to a safe distance well in advance.

In contrast to her composed response, Nangong Lang, in order to save his life, sacrificed a Defensive Talisman, yet he still ended up dirty and disheveled, looking quite miserable!

"Dammit!"

Nangong Lang spat out the mud from his mouth.

Suddenly, he sensed a flash of golden light ahead and lifted his long sword to shield himself.

Clang!

A golden arrow was blocked!

The golden arrow instantly dissipated, evidently a Technique-based arrow.

Nangong Lang had to admit that the Child of Destiny was indeed extremely troublesome. He had not been in such a sorry state for quite some time.

The next moment, he concealed his form.

Under Xie Jiuniang’s watchful eyes, he vanished in an instant, clearly having used some kind of Technique.

It wasn’t the Invisibility Talisman!

The Invisibility Talisman, once used, would easily give him away if he moved.

Suddenly, Xie Jiuniang leaped away from her spot.

Wham!

A deep sword mark etched into the ground. Had Xie Jiuniang not been sufficiently alert and evaded in time, she might have been hit by that strike.

"Sneaky!"

Xie Jiuniang cursed loudly.

Nangong Lang revealed his form once more, and the next sword thrust targeted Xie Jiuniang’s throat.

Xie Jiuniang once again grasped Broken Sword in her hand, directly confronting Nangong Lang’s sword.

Nangong Lang altered his sword move midway, avoiding a head-on clash with Broken Sword and changed the attack, remaining sharp and aimed once more at her vital points.

Xie Jiuniang’s moves shifted in response.

Again she blocked with Broken Sword.

Nangong Lang changed his techniques once more.

His swordsmanship was endlessly variable, inexhaustible, yet he dared not meet Xie Jiuniang in a direct confrontation.

The strike earlier had notched his Exclusive Sword, making him realize his sword was no match for the Broken Sword.

If the two swords were to directly clash, he would still be at a disadvantage.

Xie Jiuniang’s close combat experience might not be as rich as Nangong Lang’s, but with the Broken Sword’s advantage to support her, it was instead Nangong Lang who was handicapped and noticeably cautious.

Thus, facing Nangong Lang’s exquisite swordsmanship, Xie Jiuniang did not fall behind for the moment.

To be honest, Nangong Lang found the fight extremely frustrating.

Xie Jiuniang was using just firm foundational swordsmanship and managed to secure an unbeatable position. It was infuriating for Nangong Lang; despite his two hundred years of arduous training in the way of the sword, he couldn’t subdue a swordsmanship novice.

However, as the battle went on, Nangong Lang suddenly saw a blur, as if Xie Jiuniang seemed to split into two?

No!

Was he poisoned?

Nangong Lang was shocked, how could this be possible?

When did he get poisoned?

"You, you used poison?!" Nangong Lang hastily retreated dozens of feet, his eyes nearly bursting with anger.

Xie Jiuniang sneered, "Only realized now? Too late!"

As long as it could kill the opponent, what was wrong with using poison?

Orthodox Cultivators in the Cultivation World usually do not resort to such malicious means as poison during combat, which is why Nangong Lang had not considered this possibility.

Nangong Lang gritted his teeth in hatred, "You, despicable and shameless!"

"It’s especially amusing for me to hear you folks from the seven great families curse at me. You’re not any better yourselves, yet you still have the gall to insult others? You’re so noble, why come to kill me?" Xie Jiuniang’s sharp tongue was as formidable as ever.

When it came to verbal confrontation, she had yet to taste defeat.

Nangong Lang quickly ingested a Detoxification Pill to suppress the poison in his body.

Thinking back to when he might have been poisoned, he remembered the injury on his face; he had earlier been wounded by a Puppet’s hidden weapon, but it was just a tiny cut, and he never expected that to be enough to get him poisoned.

The injury on Nangong Lang’s face was indeed slightly discolored.

Since the cut was small, just enough to break the skin.

Therefore, the amount of poison he was exposed to wasn’t extensive, which was why Nangong Lang was able to hold out for so long.

It was time to beat a dog when it was down, and Xie Jiuniang swung her sword, aiming to strike Nangong Lang!

Heaven Cleaving, the first movement!

In the moment she swung her sword, Xie Jiuniang subconsciously circulated the unique mental technique of the Heaven Cleaving Sword Technique; it seemed innate, as her Spiritual Power flowed smoothly in her body, and sword qi erupted, lingering around the Broken Sword without dissipating.

The surrounding Spiritual Energy of heaven and earth was drawn in, converging onto the Broken Sword!

Before the sword struck, it resonated like thunder.

Nangong Lang was a Sword Cultivator, so how could he not understand the significance of sword movements? He recognized the extraordinary nature of this move immediately. Just the half-movement alone was enough to shock him, filling him with dread!

His heart pounded rapidly, the crisis of death looming.

His instinct was to flee!

Would Xie Jiuniang let him escape?

She swung her long sword, and in an instant, it unleashed unparalleled power, like a colossal sword with dazzling light and a rainbow-like momentum. The sound of it piercing the air was like thunder, striking toward Nangong Lang!

The speed was extremely fast!

It seemed that in the blink of an eye, it was in front of Nangong Lang.

Nangong Lang could only hastily raise his sword to block, solidifying a barrier of sword qi for defense.

But beneath the powerful sword light, his action was as futile as a mantis trying to stop a chariot; the newly formed barrier shattered with overwhelming force!

Crack!

His Exclusive Sword broke!

Following that was a loud "bang."

The Defense Jade Token hanging from Nangong Lang’s waist was activated, instantly forming a Nascent Soul stage protective barrier that took the fatal blow for him. After blocking that hit, the Jade Token couldn’t bear the force anymore and shattered.

"Impossible!"

Nangong Lang said incredulously, "Your swordsmanship couldn’t possibly be this powerful! The records stated you don’t practice swordsmanship! You’re not a Sword Cultivator, not one!"

"Indeed, I’m not,"

Xie Jiuniang, fearing he wouldn’t be fully demoralized, added, "It’s the first sword style I’ve learned, and the first time I’ve used it. My swordplay isn’t skilled enough, which let you slip through. My apologies."

"Pfft—"

Upon hearing this, Nangong Lang, overcome with rage, spat out a mouthful of fresh blood.