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 significant advantage, but the other three were not willing 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 back and watch the tigers fight.

Disciples of the Heavenly Sword Gate had always possessed unparalleled combat power; they didn't believe a sword cultivator would be weaker than a literary cultivator or an alchemist like themselves.

Both hoped that Lin Jing and the young swordsman would end up mutually injured.

"Control the sword with Qi!"

The young swordsman’s "Monster-Slaying Sword" left his hand, as if an invisible palm were holding it, floating in mid-air.

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

Through observation, 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.

"Flying on a sword... usually only Foundation Establishment sword cultivators with abundant true essence can do that." Seeing this, the scholar in green guessed the opponent’s identity.

This person must be a standout in the outer sect of the Heavenly Sword Gate; perhaps even the number one outer sect disciple of this generation!

"He must be trying to create distance and then use the flying sword to defeat the enemy, but..." The scholar in green paused.

As he flew, the young swordsman looked back, then fell silent again.

Because, at some point, 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, tracking and aiming at him, afraid he would run away.

"If you wanted to use a sword technique, why go 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 even going on?

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

"Go!" Under the young swordsman’s control, the sword shadows attacked the Pine-Leaf Rat from all directions, flashing like lightning.

The attacks came from all sides, and 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 from the Pine-Leaf Rat’s storage bag, and surprisingly, just like the ten flying swords turning into cyan light, they transformed into ten streaks of red light and flew out.

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-Leaf Rat pressed the trigger at the real Flying Rainbow Sword.

Boom!!!

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

The Pine-Leaf Rat and the young swordsman unfolded their first round of magic combat in mid-air, leaving everyone stunned.

"Holy crap."

Is this... something a Pine-Leaf Rat can do?

The Beast Taming Sect disciples were already dizzy.

The Qi Refining sword cultivators of their Great Desolation Domain were considered experts if they could release seven or eight sword Qi, and this Heavenly Sword Gate disciple was already a little monster. But their own sect’s basic spirit beast seemed even weirder.

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

"How is the pet beast also so strong?" The scholar in green and the female alchemist had originally thought Lin Jing’s entire strength lay in the mechanical construct. They truly hadn't expected this Qi Refining Level 7 Pine-Leaf Rat to be so exaggerated, capable of high-altitude magic combat with a sword cultivator.

No wonder this Pine-Leaf Rat also wanted to grab a tree for itself. They suddenly felt relieved and found it reasonable—though, of course, it was inherently unreasonable.

"I’m not fighting anymore." After two rounds of exchanges, the young swordsman grew weary and chose to concede.

Even though he could still fight a few more rounds with the Pine-Leaf Rat, he understood that the Pine-Leaf Rat... was just a pet, 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-Leaf Rat, unable to accept that he had lost to a Qi Refining Level 7 squirrel spirit, even if the sword canon he practiced only revealed its true power after Foundation Establishment.

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

What a waste of its flying leaves and ammunition.

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

Several of them were in the Qi Refining stage, lacking sufficient experience, and they weren't there to create cultivation methods or divine abilities. Most were using the Bodhi Tree to practice their existing spell realms.

In this situation, the young swordsman wasn't particularly obsessed with the Golden Bodhi.

"I don't care, you can't leave me without even one tree." Seeing all three trees were taken, 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."

Several people 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 taken it long ago."

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

"Furthermore, how can you bet that you will definitely be able to defeat me after taking the pill?"

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

"In the end, will you perish with me, or will you perish 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 to the death with it, would you?" After Lin Jing finished speaking, the bamboo turtle silently stared at the female alchemist.

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

Lin Jing wasn't lying. For the past two months, he had rarely cultivated and had spent his time improving the mechanical bamboo turtle. The mechanical bamboo gun’s functions were all present in the bamboo turtle. Moreover, Lin Jing had learned the most common "Spirit-Gathering Array" in the entire continent and successfully engraved 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.

Any cultivator with some seniority could set up a Spirit-Gathering Array; it was the most basic introductory array. Its effect was to accelerate the gathering of spiritual energy in a certain area, 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 allowed the blue spirit bamboo to gather water spiritual energy faster, firing more intense water streams.

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

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-Leaf Rat raised its mechanical bamboo gun and aimed it at the female alchemist. Seeing this, the female alchemist angrily walked away. ===== CHAPTER 35 =====