Chapter 212:

"This Heavenly Slashing Swordsmanship, only one move, a sword that cannot be returned once unleashed, making me invincible…" "In the first realm, I call it ‘Cutting Myself.’" "First, cut off the path of retreat, cultivate the idea of invincibility, and then concentrate all your power, unstoppable in all directions…" Earth Sword Immortal demonstrated a few simple gestures to Qiao Mu in the dilapidated Taoist temple. Before Taoist Qingzhuo arrived, he planned to teach the essence of his swordsmanship. It must be said that although Earth Sword Immortal was the leader of the previous generation of martial arts, it didn’t mean he was a good teacher. He simply demonstrated a few gestures, without further explanation. He vaguely mentioned, "To concentrate all your power in one sword…" but didn’t elaborate on how to gather all the power in one move. "Time is tight, I won’t go into details. That old Qingzhuo won’t give us much time." "How is it? Have you learned?" Earth Sword Immortal casually asked. This feels lonely to learn…. Qiao Mu complained to himself. It’s like just handing you a few hundred pages of an English dictionary and then asking if you’ve memorized it yet, and if you have, quickly go to the Level 6 exam. What else could Qiao Mu do? He could only honestly answer: "Is this it? Such a simple thing, do I still need to learn? Can’t you understand it at a glance?" "It’s okay if you haven’t learned it, I didn’t expect you to learn it immediately anyway. Well, I’ll.. um?" Earth Sword Immortal looked at Qiao Mu with suspicion. "What did you say?" At first, he didn’t believe, and even let Qiao Mu try to demonstrate. Qiao Mu didn’t say much, he just held the sword in his hand, gradually focusing his energy, his eyes sharp as a sword. The so-called pulling out the sword is just a movement, the technique is heavy but the intention is light. So the act of pulling out the sword is not important, the essence lies in how to gather strength and how to give it your all with each move. "Enough." Earth Sword Immortal waved his hand to stop Qiao Mu from really swinging the sword. He could tell that Qiao Mu had some understanding of the "Heavenly Slashing Swordsmanship". Although he may not have fully grasped its secrets, he was quite proficient in the "attack me" technique. Earth Sword Immortal’s gaze became slightly vacant for a moment. He knew very well about his own abilities and that teaching martial arts was quite ordinary. Over the years, the only person who could master the "Heavenly Slashing Swordsmanship" was his brother Lu Yanbei, with whom he had a close bond. He couldn’t believe that someone dared to pretend to be a skilled swordsman in front of him, Earth Sword Immortal. How infuriating. He actually fell for it. "It’s already impressive that you have reached this level with the ‘Heavenly Slashing Swordsmanship’ without any real combat experience. Perhaps your talent is only second to mine, Earth Sword Immortal." Earth Sword Immortal didn’t hesitate to praise: "But a true talent is hard to come by. Only I was able to find a glimmer of hope before the arrival of Elder Lu Yanbei, who has the ability to recognize talents at Immortal Gate." Although he was praising himself indirectly, Earth Sword Immortal’s face did show a hint of satisfaction. Searᴄh the Novelƒire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Clearly, Qiao Mu was able to master it so quickly, which surprised him. This is a great thing considering the current situation. "Well, let’s start practicing sword here," said Earth Sword Immortal. "Third Brother, as you know, once internal strength is depleted, it takes time to recover and rest." Qiao Mu, "Ah yes, yes, yes." He really wasn’t sure how long it would take to recover his internal strength after it was depleted. After all, every time his internal strength was depleted, either he would fight to the death and then revive in full condition. Or he would luckily escape from death, but because of the Heavenly Demon Disintegration Method, his meridians were completely severed and his internal strength couldn’t recover at all. Earth Sword Immortal said. So, after defeating those 200+ bean generals, my internal strength was depleted, and I still haven’t fully recovered. He held a long sword made of stone in his hand, with a mysterious look in his eyes. As he aged, his internal strength declined… as a person, his condition was not as good as it was thirty or forty years ago during his prime. Both his strength and power were lacking, but his sword skills and the intensity of his "spirit" were still as strong as before. Even witnessing his older brother Lu Yanbei’s close brush with death made him realize his own confusion and expectations, so he boldly took action thirty years later. His "spirit" had progressed further than before, which was why he chose to wield the sword again on this day. But that was still not enough. His sword could kill, but it was not enough to slay immortals. "The sword of a mortal is not sharp enough," he said suddenly, looking at the stone sword in his hand. Qiao Mu was confused and furrowed his brow, urging him on. "Stop talking to yourself, what exactly are you planning to do to me?" "It’s not me who wants to kill you…" Earth Sword Immortal looked at Qiao Mu, his usually cold eyes now appearing mysterious. Although Qiao Zhuosen was considered his Third Brother, they were still meeting for the first time in the end. His impression of Qiao Zhuosen can actually be traced back to when they spent over a month together, with Qiao, a member of the Qiao family, being the first to teach him the Iron Crotch Skill. Being in this isolated city for thirty years, he had always been watching from a distance, watching the old soldiers in the city gradually wither away. He didn’t understand other people’s sacrifices because he was powerful. The fires in the Hundred-mile Desert couldn’t reach him, even if the entire city perished, he would still be fine on his own. It was only when Lu Yanbei was about to die that he was pulled from the other side of the river to this side. And on this side of the river, Qiao, a member of the Qiao family, was undoubtedly one of the most dazzling figures in the isolated city. "The enemy is strong and I am weak. If we want to win, relying on just your life isn’t enough," Earth Sword Immortal said calmly. "But I wasted thirty years, and there’s always a price to pay." Suddenly, Earth Sword Immortal reversed the tip of the sword and stabbed it into his own chest, amidst the uncertain gazes of everyone. This wasn’t suicide, as there was no fresh blood flowing from the wound, only a faint and radiant glow. Rather than saying the sword pierced his body, it would be more accurate to say that it merged with his body, gradually becoming one in the circulating light. Before anyone could react, Earth Sword Immortal’s body had already become withered and decayed, while the sword inserted in his chest emitted a faint glow, silently floating in mid-air. "Mortal Body Transformed Sword." The sword tip trembled gently, and Earth Sword Immortal’s voice echoed in the ears of Qiao Mu and the others: "Now, the sword is me, and I am the sword." "When that old man Qingzhuo arrives, I will guide you to unleash the true Heavenly Slashing Swordsmanship, seeking a glimmer of hope." As a human, he was no match for Taoist Qingzhuo, thirty years ago and even more so now. If you want to win, you have to be willing to make changes and use special techniques. And this is the answer from Earth Sword Immortal. Qiao Mu and the others were surprised. No one expected Earth Sword Immortal to have such methods, and they were even more surprised by his choice. At this moment, Earth Sword Immortal’s body became dry and decayed, losing its color. It looked like a pale stone statue. On the other hand, this stone sword emitted a faint light and seemed to float in the air, as if it were alive. "A mortal’s sword can’t kill an immortal." The voice of Earth Sword Immortal from within the stone sword remained calm: "I, as Earth Sword Immortal of the mortal world, now transformed into the Mortal Body Transformed Sword. Naturally, I am not comparable to an ordinary sword." "Today I am a sword, and I will surely slay the immortals!" "How… Captain Hai frowned. It was difficult for him to connect the stone sword in front of him with the Earth Sword Immortal who had been trapped in the Taoist temple carving statue. "The thing I hate the most in my life is being self-absorbed," the flying stone sword sensed something and rotated, facing Captain Hai directly. "Don’t speculate about my thoughts or flatter me. Don’t disgust me and let him enter Stone City." The old man of the arsenal paused for a moment, raised his hand and gestured, allowing Captain Hai and the other old soldiers to enter the palm of Stone City. The previously crowded courtyard of the Taoist temple suddenly became empty, and the city was also empty. Only the sound of the wind rustling through the leaves could be heard. "Earth Sword Immortal, how confident are you now?" Qiao Mu asked again. Instead of answering, Earth Sword Immortal asked in return: "Third Brother, have you heard of the story ‘Foolish Old Man Moves Mountains’?" "In the storyteller’s version of the story, Foolish Old Man’s descendants are endless, but the mountains don’t increase. So Foolish Old Man believes that after countless years, he can use all his mortal strength to move the mountains." "However, our enemy is not the mountain." "Killed Dao Shun, now Dao Ni is coming; killed Dao Ni, and now Qingzhuo is coming." "In the past forty years, the number of old soldiers in the city has decreased, but the cultivators of the Nine Immortal Gates seem endless, they keep coming back…" "Even if, by chance, we can defeat that old Qingzhuo, what happens afterwards?" "If the elders of the Nine Immortal Gates are killed by ordinary people, it will surely alarm the other elders and even the sect leader of Immortal Gate, right?" "What do you want to say?" Qiao Mu was confused, maybe Earth Sword Immortal felt that he was nearing his end, he became even more talkative than usual. "In the face of a mountain that keeps growing taller, how confident do you think I am?" Earth Sword Immortal asked back. The answer is self-evident. But not every question needs an answer. "It’s time to go." Qiao Mu glanced at the old man of the arsenal, who immediately understood, and they left with Qiao Xiaoming, bringing along the Impermanent Demon Cat, disappearing into the sandstorm outside the city. Dozens of stone statues of women took stiff steps into the streets, their footsteps echoing through the empty city. Qiao Mu stood at the top of the city gate tower, watching another version of himself gradually move further away. This lonely city only had one person and one sword left, and there was no other sound besides that. They were waiting. They were waiting for the moment Taoist Qingzhuo arrived, which would mark the end of forty years of hardship for this lonely city, regardless of success or failure. "Earth Sword Immortal, it seems like you know quite a bit about the Immortal Gate. Can you tell me where these Nine Immortal Gates came from?" Qiao Mu casually asked during the dull wait. "Ah, the Nine Immortal Gates… that old man Qingzhuo wanted me to join the Immortal Gate, so I heard some things from him…" Earth Sword Immortal seemed to be aware that his time was limited, so he was particularly talkative at the moment. "These Nine Immortal Gates didn’t just pop out of nowhere, of course." "The path to immortality has always been there, and so has the Immortal Gate. It’s just that the previous Immortal Gate chose to live in seclusion and didn’t bother with worldly matters." "Of course, what they mean by not interfering in human affairs is simply that they don’t directly control and pressure Great Yan like they did in the past. In the past, Inhuman Disasters caused by inhumans also occurred in various places in Jiu Province, just less frequently." "In the realm of immortality, when they fight, it affects the lives and towns of ordinary people. Cultivators of the demonic path sacrifice innocent people to refine magical treasures… These things have been happening since ancient times." "But later, I heard that there was a great change in the world, and the spiritual energy declined, so things became a little different." "In the past, cultivators of the immortality path were proud of their identities and didn’t interfere in mortal affairs," Earth Sword Immortal mocked. "But now, the overall situation is changing. We are all in the same boat, so who still cares about appearances?" Cultivators of the immortality path used to have high aspirations and looked down on the resources of ordinary people. After all, there is a significant gap between immortals and mortals. The abundant spiritual energy and spirit stone resources required for cultivation by cultivators of the immortality path are difficult for mortal dynasties to provide. But later, things became different. "Ever since ‘Immortal Qingmu’ refined the Incense Symbol of Divine Fire, the Nine Immortal Gates also successively mastered it. They gradually appeared in the world, established their divine positions, and set up temples." "The Immortal cultivators who follow the ancient method of cultivation cannot compete with those who use incense to assist their cultivation. Nowadays, incense cultivation has become mainstream among the Nine Immortal Gates." "However, even with the assistance of incense, the cultivation level of the Immortal cultivators is still inferior to that of the ancient times when there was abundant spiritual energy…" "So, not only is the cultivation of martial arts changing, but the cultivation of immortality is also undergoing changes. The Incense Symbol of Divine Fire is the method they use now…" "The newcomers replace the old, this is the inevitable change of the times," Earth Sword Immortal’s voice gradually became low. He was a predecessor in the martial arts, but in front of Taoist Qingzhuo, he became a later generation. Just don’t know who will replace whom today. ……………. A rainbow light shuttle through the clouds as Taoist Qingzhuo held a Message Jade Slip, communicating through the air. "Today, because of the matter concerning Earth Sword Immortal, I have delayed important matters and missed the major event of King Qin’s territorial expansion…" "If the Earthly Immortal Kingdom succeeds, we should hide in the background and let King Qin carry the destiny of the human world… This matter is crucial to the foundation of the Immortal Gate, indeed it is a great accomplishment…" Unfortunately, he had no choice but to come. Earth Sword Immortal is locked within the Hundred-mile Desert, so naturally he has to take care of the aftermath. Lost in thought, he descended from the clouds, transforming into a rainbow light. The setting sun melted into gold, the remaining sunlight resembled blood. The evening sun seemed like a huge clot of blood, congealed in the sky, casting a dim redness over half of the sky. The elderly residents of the lonely city left in a hurry, with some houses still emitting lingering wisps of smoke from the cooking fires. However, the entire city now appeared empty, and these strands of smoke only made the loneliness more apparent. In the vast desert, a solitary wisp of smoke rose, as the sun set over the wide river. Qiao Mu sat alone on the city gate tower, an old and weathered sword leaning against the wall behind him. He had become the last defender of this city. Suddenly, a gust of wind blew. The strong wind passed by, covering the sky with yellow sand. It blocked the setting sun, making it as if blood-red, and the black clouds threatened to destroy the city. However, this lonely city no longer had any defending soldiers, and there were no armored soldiers reflecting the evening sun. In this city, there was only one person left with a sword, nothing more. Amidst the swirling yellow sand, a rainbow light stayed in the air, transforming into an old taoist with a stern expression and white eyebrows.