Chapter 23: Cold Sea Spirit Sword

Fortunately my Divine Perception warned me; otherwise, given my current suppressed state, I might not have withstood this attack. Ye Yun instantly spread his Divine Perception around himself. The attacker's method was truly covert; after striking me once, he could instantly vanish. Ye Yun expanded the range of his Divine Perception, yet still did not locate the one who launched the attack.

This left Ye Yun very puzzled.

"Could this attack be something like a trap? Can it only be triggered once?"

No. Ye Yun's eyes flashed coldly, murderous intent surging. While Ye Yun was bewildered, he sensed signs of spiritual energy flowing nearby. Normally he could not feel such subtle currents, but in recent days he had gained many insights from the Great Way of Heaven and Earth, making his sensitivity to spiritual energy far greater than before, so he detected the subtle change.

Ye Yun raised his hand and struck toward the direction he had just sensed, but the moment he made contact, he was bounced back.

"What's this? A protective shield? You've got quite a few tricks, kid. Good, you've managed to anger me. See, I'll drag you out and grind you into the ground today."

I guess these cheeky remarks I learned from that girl Du Xueqing; why didn't Xueqing teach me something decent?

Ye Yun's gaze hardened further, and he instantly raised his hand, unleashing one Dao seal after another, bombarding the previous spot like artillery. The walls trembled under Ye Yun's barrage, yet he did not cease. He switched his hand seals, condensing a sword that glowed with a faint golden light in his palm, and slashed toward the same direction. At last a sound like shattering glass rang out—the protective shield finally broke.

"Hahaha, how's that? Your shield's broken, can't block anything now. Show me your invisibility again. Sneak attack me? This isn't over today; see if I don't kill you today."

What a fellow! Ye Yun hasn't had a fight in ages, so a sudden opponent gets his blood pumping. I initially thought this guy had decent strength and might become a disciple, but he sneaked up on me, even used invisibility right before me, and successfully provoked Ye Yun.

"You're not human? Who are you exactly? Are you sent from another world? Speak up, or you won't leave this place alive."

The being was not human; its whole body was transparent, invisible unless you looked closely. Ye Yun recalled the earlier mention of the Great Way of Heaven and Earth about incursions from other worlds, and with a treasure manifesting here, everything made sense.

This being is a person sent from another world to seize the artifact.

"Kid, you're finished. How dare you snatch my thing? No matter which world you're from, you'll die today!"

In an instant Ye Yun's battle intent surged. At first he was just toying, after all it's rare in centuries to have someone spar with him, and he thought this would be fun. But now it's different; this creature slipped silently into the domain Ye Yun governs and tried to take his belongings. He must kill it today.

Ye Yun vanished instantly, as if stepping into void, while the little transparent one froze in place. Ye Yun's disappearance differed from its own; the latter was merely invisible but still within the space, whereas Ye Yun had already left the space entirely.

In the next instant Ye Yun formed a seal with his left hand, and with his right hand wielded the sword, appearing behind the little transparent one. Thanks to its quick reaction it blocked, and the cavern filled with flashes of blades. Ye Yun launched a fierce assault, using the left-hand Dao seal for ranged attacks while the left-hand sword engaged in close combat.

If Li Yan and Du Yuqing saw this, they'd fall head over heels for Ye Yun in an instant; at that moment Ye Yun was truly dazzling.

After several rapid assaults, the little transparent one's combat power was clearly inferior to Ye Yun's. Ye Yun was also puzzled—how could it endure so long? Was its strength comparable to his? After all, the artifact's suppressive field prevents full power.

"Well done, you forced me. Let's see if you die this time!"

After saying that, Ye Yun continued to attack the little transparent one as before, and after half a minute he stopped.

"Looks like you didn't notice, so you should hit the road! Die! Ten Thousand Gods Exorcising Demon Formation, activate!"

It turned out that amid Ye Yun's seemingly random attacks, he had secretly set up the Ten Thousand Gods Exorcising Demon Formation, which can affect a person's combat power; the formation should now be in effect.

Sure enough, just as Ye Yun expected, the formation flared instantly, trapping the little transparent one inside. The cavern was flooded with blinding light as countless divine beings manifested in the air and assaulted the target; in an instant the little transparent one collapsed to the ground.

Seeing the little transparent one dead, Ye Yun approached to investigate and found it was not a person from another world nor a native of this domain, but a protective image conjured from spiritual energy.

"Had you said you were just an image, you'd have saved me time. I thought you were someone from another world and took you seriously—so mischievous. Oh, I forgot, images can't speak. Sorry!"

Even an image isn't spared; I'd have to vent. If images could talk, they'd have to scold Ye Yun before swallowing their last breath, otherwise death would be too bitter.

After the battle, Ye Yun sat cross‑legged on the spot, intending to recover some energy before moving on, lest further danger lie ahead.

"No wonder you could fight me so long; you're completely unaffected by the artifact, making me think your cultivation was comparable to mine, which got me all excited."

A moment later, Ye Yun continued onward, gradually noticing a palace‑like structure ahead. Curiosity drove him forward; upon entering the main hall, he saw a sword floating in mid‑air not far away. Just as Ye Yun was about to grasp the artifact, it suddenly emitted a blinding flash that knocked him several meters back.

"Fine, you artifact, I try to take you and you still shock me. What a miserable day," Ye Yun covered himself with spiritual energy, slowly approaching the artifact. Just as he was about to pick it up, a sudden cold current surged into his body.

Thanks to Ye Yun's highly versatile Dao Heart, he quickly dissipated the cold current, though it gave him a start. Even with his body saturated by spiritual energy, the chill still penetrated. "Looks like you little thing have some power. Your skill's exhausted, isn't it? Time for me. I'll definitely bring you back today."

This time Ye Yun simply stopped covering himself with spiritual energy and instead enveloped himself with Divine Perception; in modern terms, the density of Divine Perception exceeds that of spiritual power.

At last he subdued the treasure, and Ye Yun immediately dripped his own essence blood onto it. The artifact instantly radiated a blue‑white glow, and the surrounding seals vanished the moment Ye Yun claimed it.

Ye Yun examined the sword closely and saw four bold characters on the blade: "Cold Sea Spirit Sword!"