Thinking of this, the ferocious light in his eyes gradually faded, concealing the killing intent deep within his heart, waiting for the most opportune mont to strike.
Zhang Yan stood atop the mountain peak, his robes fluttering in the wind. While his gaze remained fixed on every move of this formidable adversary, his mind was occupied with devising a thod to kill this demon.
He had many Dharma Treasures on him, yet few were truly useful in this critical mont. The Soul Suppressing Inkstone might be dodged by the opponent before it even got close, and could end up sullied by the opponent’s Xuan Guang like the Ruyi Divine Shuttle, rendering it useless here.
The Proclamation Pen might be used, but even if it managed to injure the demon, it would recover in an instant. Killing it would be exceedingly difficult—like gnawing on an ineffective bone.
The Heart-Hitting Hamr? It would likely et the sa fate as the two Flying Swords that had already failed.
The Harmony Carrying Cover could adequately shield him but couldn’t inflict even the slightest damage on the enemy.
For a brief mont, he reviewed all the treasures he had, only to ntally discard them one by one from his Sea of Consciousness. In the end, only one shimring object with star-like blue light remained, flickering uncertainly.
He steadied himself and thought, "It seems I have no choice but to use this sword ball to slay the foe."
As the thought entered his mind, all other scattered thoughts vanished completely. His Heart and Spirit trembled, as if he’d touched sothing intimately close. In that instant, it was akin to igniting a heap of wood stored in the depths of a warehouse, setting it ablaze.
The sword ball hidden in his sleeve suddenly quivered and leapt out on its own, orbiting in the air incessantly, evoking a faint sense of jubilant cheerfulness.
Zhang Yan stretched out his hand to grab it, opened his palm to inspect it, and found the sword ball resting gently there. In his hand, it exuded a feeling akin to familial kinship and a deep bond, as though connected by blood.
A joyful expression involuntarily spread across his face. Were it not for his current standoff with the Bald Old Demon, he might have tilted his head back and shouted to vent his elation.
Since acquiring the sword ball, he had always intended to refine it in harmony with his Heart and Spirit, nurturing it in his chest during idle monts with Xuan Guang slowly seeping into it. Yet, until now, he had never succeeded. Sohow, in this mont, it developed a trace of True Recognition and rged tightly with him.
From this point forward, this sword ball truly belonged to him. No one could steal it away. As his cultivation advanced, that True Recognition would inevitably evolve its Spirit into human form, becoming akin to a True Artifact.
Previously, he had the Ruyi Divine Shuttle and nurous Dharma Treasures accompanying him, and thus had never considered the sword ball sothing of utmost importance. Only at this mont, when no treasure could prevail against his enemy, did he pour his total focus into it.
Zhang Yan possessed an indomitable Dao Heart, and his prior nurturing and accumulation had already laid a sufficient foundation. What had been lacking was just this final connection of Heart and Spirit. Now that the two had bonded, clarity broke through the veil, illuminating the sun and moon.
Right then, a fleeting mont of haziness passed before his eyes, and the unmastered "Splitting Light Separation thod" briefly surfaced within his mind.
With rely a thought, no summons necessary, the sword ball leapt into action, darting toward his forehead before plunging into it, only to erge again from the top of his head. But this ti, it split into two.
A mont later, it swayed again, and the two sword balls further divided into four.
Even that wasn’t the end. The four sword balls divided once more, transforming into eight.
What seed complete proved otherwise. The eight sword balls initially paused in mid-air before jolting again—the sword balls divided further!
As sword light flickered, a total of sixteen sword balls now hovered like stars orbiting the moon above Zhang Yan’s head, radiating brilliant light.
Zhang Yan laughed heartily and said, "No matter how much you transform, I shall strike you down with one sword!"
From that mont on, he no longer needed the Ruyi Divine Shuttle.
At this very instant, a Divine Thought traveled from the far reaches of the sky, seemingly responding to his intention and transmitting a distant voice: "Junior Brother Zhang, on your first attempt at this thod, you split sixteen swords from one Qi. Heaven truly blesses our Mingcang Sect with yet another Sword Immortal!"
The Bald Old Demon blanched upon seeing Zhang Yan conjure sixteen sword balls, his body involuntarily trembling as he exclaid in shock, "Sword body shadow transformation, Splitting Light Separating?"
Just as he uttered these words, Zhang Yan activated his Divine Thought. His eyes sparkled with a strange brilliance, and all sixteen sword balls trembled simultaneously, transforming into sixteen streams of sword light that streaked toward the enemy.
The sixteen streams of sword light shifted unpredictably between solid and ethereal states, either rging or splitting as they sped toward their target.
The Bald Old Demon frantically cycled through countless strategies but found no way to defend. No matter how he tried to counter, Zhang Yan could alter the attack with a re thought. Even escape was impossible as the sixteen sword balls pierced through his flesh, ripping his body apart.
As he tried to mobilize his Mana for regeneration, the sword balls descended once more, spiraling around his mangled remains before tearing him further apart. In the end, all that remained were sprays of blood scattered across the sky—a complete obliteration.
Summoning his thoughts, Zhang Yan recalled the sixteen sword balls. After briefly dancing in the air before him, they rged back into one and sank into his head, vanishing completely.
Suddenly, he seed to sense sothing. Raising his head and gazing skyward, he saw an awe-inspiring streak of cyan light sweeping across the heavens, heading straight for Perch Eagle Land Continent.
The Bald Old Demon’s avatar was obliterated, instantly reducing his Mana by twenty percent. Enraged, he cursed loudly, "You brat, I’ll tear you limb from limb!"
He shoved aside the massive boulder overhead and prepared to rise from the ground. But just as he lifted his gaze, his expression changed drastically. He noticed an unparalleled Sword Qi slicing through the Void from an unfathomable distance, rushing straight for his head.
In panic, he attempted to evade, only for a beam of light to arrive first, enveloping him completely. To his horror, he realized that both his Divine Soul and physical body were trapped in a cage from which he could not escape.
The Sword Qi locked its target and descended unhesitatingly. With a deafening explosion, the spot where the Bald Old Demon had stood was wiped clean—no trace of him remained. All that was left was a ten-zhang-long trench carved into the ground.
...
...(To be continued. If you enjoyed this work, please visit Qidian (qidian) to vote with your recomndation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
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