Chapter 334: Deadly Counterattack!

The river water was murky yellow, waves surging wildly as they raced through the gap between two mountains, an awe-inspiring spectacle.

Chen Mu's gaze sharpened, and his speed increased rather than slowed, charging straight toward the river surface.

At the instant before touching the water, his body suddenly halted, hovering at an altitude of less than half a meter above the surface, the hem of his robe nearly brushing the churning waves.

Here, Chen Mu spun around, facing the middle-aged man with a square face, and thrust his Xian Long Sword forward in a direct, unadorned slash!

"Ssshh—"

A pure crimson sword qi, condensed from yang-charged true qi as blazing as molten lava, shot free from the blade.

The sword qi tore through the air, vaporizing moisture along its path with a hissing "zzzz" sound, charging forward with unwavering resolve straight toward the opponent's face!

This slash was a poised counterattack.

The square-faced man had not anticipated Chen Mu's sudden halt and counterstrike on the river; his momentum was too great, and in haste, he crossed his arms, summoning a sickly green aura of inner energy to block!

Boom!

The crimson sword qi struck the green aura, exploding with a muffled thunderous roar.

The yang sword qi naturally suppressed the poisonous yin aura; the man's protective inner energy instantly sizzled and burned, violently fluctuating.

He grunted, his body flung backward over ten meters, his chest churning with turbulent blood and qi, fresh blood oozing again from his lips, his face paling further.

"Perfect opportunity!"

As Chen Mu countered the square-faced man, the "Jin Sha Four Ghosts" had seized the chance to descend.

Four shadowy figures appeared like phantoms, instantly surrounding Chen Mu once more!

This time, the four had clearly learned their lesson—they no longer attacked separately, but fully linked their qi, concentrating their power into one point.

"Soul Lock Array!"

Four piercing shrieks merged into one.

Instantly, four torrents of cold, malevolent gray-black auras of inner energy erupted from their bodies, intertwining and coiling in midair to form a twisted, shrinking force field—a silent prison that trapped Chen Mu firmly at its center.

Within the force field, icy winds howled, ghostly shadows loomed, and a bone-deep chill along with soul-corroding negative energy spread outward, its power far exceeding their previous combined assault.

Even the surrounding air groaned under the pressure, emitting a strained "creeeak," and light itself warped!

Trapped at the center, Chen Mu felt immense crushing force from all directions, his movements sluggish, his true qi circulation slightly hindered.

"Now!"

Chen Mu's eyes blazed with sharp light; instead of panic, he let out a low roar as the power he had long been cultivating erupted violently!

"Xian Long—Slash!"

His Xian Long Sword slashed first, a condensed crimson sword qi tearing through the gloom ahead, temporarily forcing back the foes before him.

Simultaneously, his empty left hand formed a mysterious seal, and the Ninefold Wave Force cultivation method spun at an unprecedented speed!

"Water—come!"

With a soft cry, the raging Dahe River below seemed to answer his call.

Infinite water vapor rose from the river's surface, like swallows returning to their nests, frantically converging toward Chen Mu!

Not only vapor—the vast water-elemental qi within the surging river itself was forcibly extracted and summoned.

Chen Mu's mastery of the third level of Water Intent was laid bare in this moment.

"Condense!"

The vast gathering vapor and elemental qi compressed and coalesced before Chen Mu, instantly forming a colossal, translucent azure blade, its edges spiraling with high-speed water flow—a "Water Great Blade."

The blade began at several zhang in length, but as Chen Mu continuously drew upon the river's elemental qi, it surged upward!

Five zhang! Ten zhang! Fifty zhang! One hundred zhang!

Finally, a terrifying Water Great Blade nearly a kilometer long, spanning nearly half the river's width, solidified above Chen Mu's head.

The blade trembled slightly, causing the river below to reverse its flow, waves surging skyward, radiating a cataclysmic, world-shattering might.

"Slash!"

Chen Mu's left hand pressed downward in a light gesture.

The thousand-meter Water Great Blade, carrying an unstoppable, heaven-and-earth-sweeping momentum, swept horizontally downward upon the "Jin Sha Four Ghosts" and their Soul Lock Array force field!

"No!"

"Block it!"

…

The "Jin Sha Four Ghosts" turned pale with horror; they had never seen such a terrifying water-element attack.

The power within that blade was as if half the Dahe River's force had been forcibly condensed and swung!

Boom boom boom boom—

The Water Great Blade slammed into the gray-black twisted force field.

Deafening explosions erupted in succession, as if heaven and earth were collapsing.

The sturdy Soul Lock Array force field, battered by the third-level Water Intent and near-infinite water-elemental force, shattered like fragile glass—cracking within less than a breath, then exploding into ruin!

Puff! Puff! Puff! Puff!

Reversed backlash from the array and the residual shockwave of the blade struck the "Jin Sha Four Ghosts" simultaneously—they each spat a gout of blood, their bodies flung backward as if struck by giant hammers, their coordinated assault instantly shattered.

Yet Chen Mu's killing move was not over!

In the instant the four ghosts spat blood and reeled backward, their formation collapsed, their spirits shaken—

"Ssshh! Ssshh! Ssshh! Ssshh…"

Chen Mu's right index finger tapped rapidly, sending forth a stream of fine, hair-thin, gray-black, cold and stealthy "Yin Jian" sword qi—like venomous snakes emerging from their holes—silent and unseen, shooting from his fingertips!

These were the Yin Jian assassination techniques from the Two-Principle Sword Qi.

These Yin Jian moved with astonishing speed, their trajectories devious, specifically targeting enemies with chaotic qi and unstable defenses!

Each retreating "Ghost" received at least four to five Yin Jian strikes.

"Ah—!"

"Ugh~"

Two sharp, piercing screams erupted almost simultaneously.

One of the two ghosts had his dantian pierced through the abdomen by the Yin Sword; his true energy instantly scattered.

The other fared worse—three consecutive Yin Sword strikes pierced straight through his chest, right at the heart, spurting blood wildly.

Both of them plummeted in vitality, gravely wounded and on the brink of death!

The remaining two ghosts reacted slightly faster, twisting their bodies desperately and narrowly avoiding vital points—but each was slashed by a Yin Sword, drenched in blood.

The "Combined Strike" was utterly shattered!

All four ghosts bore wounds; two of them had lost their combat capability entirely.

Would Chen Mu let this perfect opportunity slip away?

His form shot through the air like lightning, closing the distance in an instant toward the two gravely wounded "ghosts."

Within his eyes, an invisible spiritual force coalesced with intense focus!

"Shock-Soul Piercer!"

Two invisible, intangible yet razor-sharp spiritual spears, like the most concealed poison needles, suddenly pierced into the mind-seas of the two gravely wounded "ghosts."

"Ugh!"

"Uhh~"

The two wounded "ghosts," already reeling from their bodily injuries and with shattered spiritual defenses, now suffered a brutal spiritual assault—they were struck as if by lightning, their vision going utterly black, their souls seemingly torn apart, letting out muffled cries of agony, instantly losing control of their bodies, their consciousness slipping into brief blankness, like puppets who had lost their souls!

Hiss! Hiss!

Two crimson, condensed sword qi, like the scythes of death, crossed through the air.

Two heads, still wrapped in tattered black cloths, their faces frozen in shock and pain, flew upward with a crack.

Blood gushed from their neck stumps like geysers into the sky; then, the two headless torsos collapsed helplessly, tumbling down into the raging river below.

The "Jin Sha Four Ghosts"—two of them gone in an instant!