Chapter 34: Sword Cultivator

Inside the grotto-heaven, the factions were now divided into two camps.

From the situation, the Beast Taming Sect held a great advantage, but the other three were unwilling to give up easily.

The young swordsman, who had yet to make a move, finally spoke.

"Forget it. I have one sword technique."

"If you can take it, I will withdraw."

"I don't need the assistance of those two." He took a deep breath and finally made his decision.

"Good," Lin Jing agreed.

"If I am defeated, I will withdraw."

Lin Jing was also reasonable.

Hearing this, the scholar in green and the female alchemist were even happier, intending to sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight.

Heavenly Sword Gate disciples had always possessed peerless combat power; they didn't believe a sword cultivator would be weaker than a scholar or alchemist like themselves.

Both were looking forward to Lin Jing and the young swordsman both suffering injuries.

"Controlling the Sword with Qi!"

The young swordsman's "Demon-Slaying Sword" flew out of his hand, as if an invisible palm was supporting it, floating in mid-air.

He leaped up, stood on the flying sword, and turned to leave.

Through his observations just now, he had already calculated the effective range of that strange mechanical construct.

The flying sword was incredibly agile and fast, and he immediately put a great distance between them.

"Sword-flying... generally, only Foundation Establishment sword cultivators with abundant True Essence can do this," the scholar in green said, guessing the other's identity.

This person must be the standout among the Heavenly Sword Gate's outer sect; he might even be the number one outer sect disciple of this generation!

"He must want to open up the distance and then use the flying sword to defeat the enemy, but..." the scholar in green was stunned.

As he flew, the young swordsman also turned his head back, and then fell silent again.

Because he didn't know when, a squirrel had actually learned from him and was flying on a leaf. He was stepping on a flying sword, while the other was stepping on a flying leaf. At the same time... it was still holding the mechanical bamboo gun, aiming at him, fearing he would run away.

"You said you were going to use sword techniques, why are you flying so far away?" Lin Jing asked.

This scene made everyone feel it was absurd.

This squirrel could actually fly on a leaf, and its speed was not much slower than the other's sword-flying technique!

What is this even?

"Flying Rainbow Sword!" Seeing this, the young swordsman gritted his teeth and summoned a cyan flying sword, controlling it to fly in mid-air.

"Sword Shadow Technique!"

Another spell was cast. The Flying Rainbow Sword split into nine sword shadows. The sword shadows were incredibly realistic, and soon it was impossible to tell which one was the real Flying Rainbow.

"Go!" Controlled by the young swordsman, the sword shadows attacked the Pine-Needle Rat from all directions, flashing like lightning.

The attacks came from all sides; with the mechanical bamboo gun's agility, it was difficult to block them all.

Yet, facing the sky full of flying swords, ten red leaves flew out of the Pine-Needle Rat's storage bag. Surprisingly, they also transformed into ten streaks of red light, just like the ten flying swords that had turned into cyan light.

Swish, swish, swish!!!

The flying swords and red leaves intertwined in mid-air. The nine sword shadows were slashed away by the flying leaves, and one flying leaf was shattered by the real Flying Rainbow. Seizing the opportunity, the Pine-Needle Rat pulled the trigger at the real Flying Rainbow Sword.

Boom!!!

The Flying Rainbow Sword was blown apart, and the young swordsman swayed.

The Pine-Needle Rat and the young swordsman unfolded their first round of spell-fighting in mid-air, leaving everyone dumbfounded.

"Holy crap."

This is... something a Pine-Needle Rat can do?

The Beast Taming Sect disciples were already dizzy.

The Qi Condensation sword cultivators in their Great Desolate Domain were considered experts if they could release seven or eight sword Qi. This Heavenly Sword Gate disciple was already a little monster, but their own sect's basic spirit beast seemed even weirder.

"The 'My Sword Spirit Wife' produced by Heavenly Sword Gate isn't worth watching; bizarre stories are happening right beside me," Senior Brother Zi Ran said.

"How is a pet beast also this strong?" The scholar in green and the female alchemist had originally thought Lin Jing's entire strength lay in his mechanical constructs. They truly hadn't expected this Seventh Layer Qi Condensation Pine-Needle Rat to be so exaggerated, capable of fighting a sword cultivator in high-altitude spell-combat.

No wonder this Pine-Needle Rat also wanted to grab a tree alone. They suddenly felt relieved and even thought it was reasonable—though, of course, it wasn't reasonable at all.

"I'm not fighting anymore." After two rounds of exchanges, the young swordsman went limp and chose to concede.

Even though he could still fight a few more rounds with the Pine-Needle Rat, he understood that the Pine-Needle Rat... was just a pet beast, and its beast tamer hadn't even made a move yet.

"After Foundation Establishment, once I refine my sword body, I will definitely go to the Beast Taming Sect to ask for advice," he said to the Pine-Needle Rat, unable to accept that he had lost to a Seventh Layer Qi Condensation squirrel spirit, even though the sword canon he practiced only revealed its power after Foundation Establishment.

"Squeak!" The Pine-Needle Rat flicked its Daoist robe and didn't look back.

It was a waste of its flying leaves and ammunition.

"Regardless of anything else, I definitely want one Green Bodhi Tree," the young swordsman said.

The few were all in the Qi Condensation stage, lacking sufficient experience, and weren't there to create cultivation methods or divine abilities; most were using the Bodhi trees to practice the realms of their existing spells.

Under these circumstances, the young swordsman wasn't particularly obsessed with the Golden Bodhi.

"I don't care, you can't leave me without a single tree." Seeing that all three trees were being monopolized, the female alchemist was dissatisfied.

As she spoke, she took out a pill and pinched it in her hand.

"This pill can allow me to obtain Foundation Establishment cultivation for a period of time."

The few ignored her completely.

"Hey, say something." The female alchemist looked at Lin Jing. "Beast Tamer, how about we share the Golden Bodhi Tree?"

"You wouldn't want me to take this pill, would you?"

Lin Jing held the mechanical bamboo gun and looked at her with a smile. "Fellow Daoist, if this pill had no side effects, you would have already taken it."

"Go ahead and take it. After defeating me with this pill, will you still have the state of mind to comprehend the Dao?"

"Besides, how do you want to bet that you'll definitely be able to defeat me after taking the pill?"

"You practice fire spells, but..." Lin Jing looked at the mechanical turtle. "This mechanical beast has a Spirit-Gathering Array pattern carved inside. Its water spell power is even greater than the mechanical construct in my hand, and it has a self-destruct method. The power is ten times that of the previous explosion. Do you want to bet on it?"

"In the end, will you perish together with me, or perish together with this mechanical turtle?"

"It has no intelligence, fears no life or death, and doesn't need to maintain a state of mind to comprehend the Dao. You wouldn't want to fight it to the death, would you?" Lin Jing finished, and the bamboo turtle stared silently at the female alchemist.

The female alchemist was furious. Who would want to perish together with a mechanical turtle?

Lin Jing wasn't lying. For the past two months, he had rarely practiced and had spent all his time improving the mechanical bamboo turtle. The mechanical bamboo gun's functions were all present in the bamboo turtle. Furthermore, Lin Jing had learned the most common array pattern in the entire continent, the "Spirit-Gathering Array," and successfully carved it onto the bamboo turtle, integrating it into the mechanical system.

It counted as the second spell he had mastered, besides the Spirit-Nurturing Technique.

Anyone with some seniority in the cultivation world could set up a Spirit-Gathering Array; it was the most basic introductory array. Its effect was to accelerate the speed of spiritual energy gathering within a certain range, often used to build cultivation sites. Almost every sect was built within a massive Spirit-Gathering Array. After Lin Jing learned it, he immediately used it to strengthen the blue spirit bamboo.

In battle, activating the Spirit-Gathering Array could allow the blue spirit bamboo to gather water spiritual energy faster, firing more intense water currents.

As for self-destructing, that was a lie. Even if it did self-destruct, it wouldn't have much power. Lin Jing was betting that the other party would believe him.

When out and about, there's no need to be an honest person.

Sure enough, after a moment of silence, the female alchemist finally withdrew the "Fire Spirit Pill." "Beast Tamer, let me use the Silver Bodhi with your squirrel. I owe you a favor."

Lin Jing hadn't even spoken yet, but the Pine-Needle Rat raised its mechanical bamboo gun and aimed it at the female alchemist. Seeing this, the female alchemist walked away in anger. ===== CHAPTER 35 =====