Chapter 55: The Zither's Resonance

At the same time, the aura within Li Guanyi's body began to transform rapidly.

The slaughter in the sky had reached its most ferocious moment.

Dragon and tiger intertwined and merged; arrows and battle-halberds struck with ferocity, move after move flowing without pause, forcibly forcing out the true form of the hidden expert. A dark-colored soft armor, like dragon scales, covered his body; one hand gripped a slender sword; a dark-gold mask concealed his face.

One sword slashed down.

The owl-beast spread its wings and let out a long cry; black wind surged.

Both dragon and tiger primal energies were torn apart, and Yue Qianfeng and Xue Daoyong both dodged.

Seeing that dark-gold, awe-inspiring mask, Yue Qianfeng suddenly raged: "The Chengying Sword, the Black Dragon Body-Wrapping Armor, and the Sunken Gold Face-Armor worn by Tai Ping Gong when he dominated the Western Regions—why are they in the hands of a despicable wretch like you?!"

Clad in treasure armor, wielding a divine weapon ranked among the top ten assassination weapons in the world.

Xue Daoyong's eyes blazed with a chilling killing intent.

A martial artist at the Dharma Phase level, wearing the Black Dragon Armor that conceals his aura, wielding the Chengying Sword that is hard to perceive.

An assassin like this getting close to him and striking viciously…

Bai Hu paced through the void, and the old man laughed and said: "Good."

"Situ Deqing, ranked tenth among the world's assassins, and the Chengying Sword, the third-ranked assassination divine weapon."

"This old man's life really is expensive."

"Even I want to buy it myself."

Before his words had faded, Bai Hu had already roared; arrows shot forth like light, madly raining death upon the opponent. Situ Deqing's cold gaze swept over the youth galloping on horseback through the mountain forest, fleeing the battlefield, and he frowned slightly—he always felt that the youth's face seemed somehow one or two parts familiar.

Why… was there that faint stirring of dread?!

He instinctively raised his hand and touched the mask on his face.

An instinctive irritation and killing intent toward that youth rose up within him.

He lifted his hand, and over a dozen figures erupted from the mountain forest.

Some of them carried arm-crossbows forged of dark gold, and held enormous golden nets specially designed to counter martial artists' Dharma Phases, strung with Daoist talismans, Buddhist relics, and Confucian great-scholars' literary instruments, and they rose into the air.

The rest leapt like shooting stars, their speed even swifter than a galloping steed, pouncing to kill Li Guanyi. The old man in the sky suddenly drew his bow, and upon releasing the bowstring, a hundred streaks of golden light exploded forth.

The golden streams of light struck down, intercepting those assassins pursuing Li Guanyi, blasting craters into the ground. Yue Qianfeng raised his hand, and a crimson long dragon roared across the heavens, then suddenly flung its jaws wide—Dragon Devours the Sea—violently dragging back the vast majority of the assassins.

He clenched his left fist, crimson firelight gathered, and then he suddenly threw a punch.

The crimson firelight was like a great sun falling to the earth.

One punch burned away the primal energy within a radius of thirty li.

It forcibly suppressed every wondrous use of the martial artists' internal energy projecting beyond the body. Earlier they had been able to traverse the air with speed rivaling a galloping horse, but now their speed was forcibly stalled; they had been on the verge of catching Li Guanyi, yet were thrown back by a stretch of distance once more.

Xue Daoyong roared furiously: "Return to the city!!!"

Yue Qianfeng also shouted: "Don't look back, charge forward!"

Situ Deqing sneered: "Better worry about yourselves. Without your treasure armor and divine weapons, how much stamina will you two have left after a vicious fight lasting a single incense stick's time?!" The owl-beast spread its wings in answer to Lei Ting, and most of the remaining assassins went to use the Buddhist, Daoist, and Confucian treasures to suppress the auras of these two supreme martial artists.

Li Guanyi urged his horse into a wild gallop; after entering the realm, the bronze cauldron trembled violently.

The battle between Yue Qianfeng and Xue Daoyong, their dragon and tiger Dharma Phases fully unleashed, made the bronze cauldron hum. The jade liquid began to accumulate once more at a startling speed. According to Li Guanyi's 'research' on the bronze cauldron, each recognized Dharma Phase could be regarded as a major segment of a progress bar; the spiritual essence absorbed was converted into jade liquid, tied to Li Guanyi's realm.

Roughly put, Li Guanyi's realm was low, so the bronze cauldron's power could only draw in so much.

Now Li Guanyi had entered the realm.

The bronze cauldron rose accordingly, and could now absorb more spiritual essence to convert into jade liquid.

The dragon and tiger Dharma Phases' jade liquid poured into the cauldron in torrents. Because Yue Qianfeng and Xue Daoyong were both fighting with all their might, this time the jade liquid filled at a speed almost visible to the naked eye. Just then, Li Guanyi heard the wind by his ear; his right hand hung the bow on the horse's body, then he lifted the long spear hanging from the iron hook beside him.

Without even looking.

With a flick of his wrist, he swung the spear out in a sweeping slash.

The spear blade became a streak of cold light, violently clashing with a short sword. The spear was heavy, and added to the momentum of the galloping warhorse, the collision of weapons exploded into a layer of sparks. Li Guanyi's Hukou throbbed with pain, and that assassin was sent flying, landing atop a tree.

Li Guanyi remained very calm; his objective achieved, now it was time to break free.

A third-party force would never be fighting alone.

Li Guanyi had known this since the first time Yue Qianfeng taught him.

Yue Qianfeng's punch scattered the surrounding primordial qi; the world's primal energy needed time to recover, and the portion that did recover would be exhausted by the fighting of Yue Qianfeng and Xue Daoyong. These assassins pursuing Li Guanyi had all originally been martial artists above the realm, of no low level.

But now they could only display strength equivalent to below the realm.

Their many sword-qi and blade-light techniques, their wondrous methods, were all suppressed.

Like cooking without rice, water without a source—hard to employ.

Yet even so, they were not worried about pursuing and killing Li Guanyi, who had ruined their plans.

After all, he was only a youth; not everyone was like Xiao Wuliang, who at thirteen could already charge through enemy lines. Even without their many wondrous methods, their physical conditioning and combat experience were not something a mere youth could match.

Another crossbow bolt was fired; Li Guanyi's back seemed to have grown eyes.

He threw himself forward, flattening himself against the horse's back, dodging the bolt.

The spear in his hand thrust out in the same motion.

A burly man crossed both arms.

His arms were clad in dark-iron vambraces.

This thrust was blocked. Li Guanyi clamped his legs around the warhorse; the horse screamed, as if adding another fire to that thrust. The man groaned and was sent flying by the force—after all, he was an assassin, skilled in aura, not in physical prowess.

A full four assassins pursued Li Guanyi.

Even with primal energy sealed, relying on their physical bodies they still surpassed ordinary men, able to leap into the air and strike, their momentum like a galloping horse taking flight. Li Guanyi rode his warhorse, had abandoned his battle-blade, and gripped the long spear with both hands. The spear moved like a swimming dragon, rotating and thrusting around his body, blocking and parrying.

Relying on the power of his mount, he forcibly withstood the first coordinated assault of several assassins.

A volley of crossbow bolts was fired; Li Guanyi swept his long spear and deflected the bolts.

He suddenly spun the spear, the spear-tip thrusting out to catch one assassin's sword edge, while the spear's butt pressed horizontally against another; with both arms summoning great strength, he blocked a heavy blade cleaving down from the air. Li Guanyi had nearly held off four men, his brow furrowed, feeling dull throbbing pain through his meridians.

Yue Qianfeng's sealing of primal energy had caused the process by which Li Guanyi was about to break through into the realm and guide the world's primal energy to temper his body to be forcibly held back.

The inner Qi circulated within, as if entering a realm yet not truly entering.

This current of Qi could not link outward to the world; it was trapped within Li Guanyi's body, tempering and forging his physique.

This fierce battle instead caused the stellar force within his body to bind ever more tightly with his physique, like a volcano about to erupt suddenly blocked, the gathered force growing heavier and heavier, his meridians gradually aching sharply. These assassins kept attacking and striking down, yet it was as if an external force was scattering the condensed Qi within Li Guanyi's body.

The scattered Qi directly merged into his flesh and body.

Instead, it gave Li Guanyi an indescribable sense of exhilaration.

Then this condensed Qi was naturally replenished by the spiritual resonance absorbed when the bronze cauldron drew in jade liquid.

Anyone stared down by multiple assassins whose realms exceeded their own would feel fear.

But at this moment, there was not the slightest ripple in Li Guanyi's eyes.

Having once faced head-on the edge of the world's foremost, he found it hard to feel any physical or mental dread of these people. He suddenly shook his long spear, unsure if it was an illusion, but because that current of Qi within his body had been scattered and merged into his flesh, his strength surged violently. Waist and horse merged as one, his long spear swept horizontally, forcibly driving back these several assassins.

"Scram!!!"

The assassins were forced back, their expressions ugly.

What manner of fierce bravery was this?!

The oldest among the assassins had felt a sense of familiarity the moment he first saw Li Guanyi.

Now, seeing that youth charging on horseback through the formation, brandishing his long spear, eyes cold and stern, hair at his temples flying, a small mole at the corner of his left eye, sword-brows and starry eyes, it awakened his long-sealed memories. His expression changed drastically, and he blurted out: "It's you!!!"

"It's the…"

"It's that child from ten years ago!!!"

His face turned panicked, as if he had seen a young tiger escaped from its cage, or some nightmare.

He froze for an instant, then lost the assassin's composure and shouted:

"Kill him! We must kill him!"

Li Guanyi heard these words, his heart lurching, and he demanded: "Ten years ago?!"

People from back then?

Weren't those people the Night Cavalry?

Things he had long been certain of seemed to show a slight difference at this moment; an unforeseen change beyond Li Guanyi's expectations appeared. The youth's spirit surged forth today, yet he glimpsed a sliver of the secret he cared about most.

And the assassin who recognized Li Guanyi seemed to consider this a matter of greater importance.

Without hesitation, he abandoned his comrades, Li Guanyi, and even Xue Daoyong, turning to flee at top speed.

The remaining assassins exchanged glances, each employing techniques to cover the retreat. Li Guanyi turned to pursue, loosing an arrow; the Bai Hu arrow struck the assassin's back directly. His long spear thrust out, when suddenly a crisp crack rang by his ear. Combat instinct kicked in; he swept his spear horizontally, the spear-tip tracing an arc of light, knocking the opponent's weapon flying.

Then he felt his palm grow heavy; the long spear in Li Guanyi's hand was locked by a chain.

The chain flew from another direction, locking onto the tail of Li Guanyi's spear.

And the other end of the chain was driven directly into the mountain rock.

The assassins still had an ambush.

Had it not been for General Yue Qianfeng shattering the vital energy, these would have been experts capable of employing further measures, prepared as a contingency left by Old Master Xue Daoyong.

Cold light gleamed fiercely; an assassin had already pounced forward. Li Guanyi flicked his wrist and tossed his long spear aside, abandoning his weapon, and his body suddenly leapt from the horse. The cold light descended; the fine steed that had accompanied Li Guanyi's charge let out a long, mournful neigh and crashed to the ground, black blood flowing from its seven orifices. Its hooves twitched once, then never moved again.

The youth's eyes nearly split with rage.

A burly man drew back his right hand.

In his right hand was a massive meteor hammer.

It was drenched in fresh blood; one blow had smashed the warhorse dead so Li Guanyi could not borrow the momentum of the mount. In the instant of tumbling, Li Guanyi had already seized his bow; as he spun, he drew the war-bow taut. The Dragon Tiger Dharma Idol coiled around him. Vital Qi was sealed here, but the power of the Dharma Idol remained. Light flowed and burst upon the arrow, and he loosed it with a violent shot.

An assassin at the third floor above the Entry Realm raised his hand to block an arrow.

Blazing flames erupted, blasting his weapon upward.

The second arrow came in quick succession, already shooting out through his throat, nailing his entire body to a tree.

But the enemies were not just one.

A fierce cold light flashed past; Li Guanyi could only just raise the war-bow in his hand. Pain shot through his wrist; that Suni Bow, worth over a thousand strings of cash, was split apart. A blade with a sharp edge hacked down, reflecting in Li Guanyi's eyes. He reacted swiftly, twisting his right hand.

The bowstring directly coiled around the incoming attacker's wrist, then his two arms twisted apart.

The bowstring was like a blade, slicing the man's wrist clean off in an instant. Fresh blood gushed, blood dripping. Five assassins remained, surrounding Li Guanyi. Li Guanyi exhaled a breath of turbid air; though he had entered the realm, he could not communicate with the external vital energy. That current of Qi circulated within his body, raising his body temperature.

He released the war-bow, gripped the ink-colored blade, and regarded the five assassins ahead with calm eyes.

Clearly, they were five people whose realms exceeded his own.

Yet in this instant, those assassins were struck by an illusion: that it was the other party who had intercepted them. The blade-edge of the ink blade howled. The assassin who had killed the warhorse tried to use words to shatter Li Guanyi's One's Heart Realm, saying coldly: "You can't run anymore. If you surrender, we'll spare your life."

"Even if we cannot employ the methods beyond the Entry Realm."

"The combat experience of these bodies is not false, nor something you can match."

"Having lost the momentum of your warhorse, how much of your battlefield martial arts can you still bring out?"

He spoke word by word, pressing down on Li Guanyi's One's Heart Realm.

Whether by coincidence or because people fleeing would subconsciously choose a familiar direction, this place was not far from the Xue family's Mystical Realm.

Li Guanyi's gaze swept over the stream-fed ravine; he knew Yaoguang was just behind the mountain rock, and his heart settled.

At least she wouldn't be gnawing on a steamed bun.

He gripped his blade, raised his brow just as Xue Shen had, and said softly:

"I've only been learning horsemanship for seven days; what I'm truly skilled at…"

The other party did not get to hear the rest of that sentence, because those words were only bait. Just as he spoke, the youth shot forward like a fierce tiger, black hair flying. A phantom image flashed before the assassin's eyes, and an overbearing blade-edge smashed down.

"Is fighting on foot."

………………

The assassin who had discovered Li Guanyi's true identity swiftly departed, wanting to deliver this unexpected discovery. He was certain that, with that youth's face and Qi signature, even without today, he would be discovered eventually—but fortune was good.

The one to discover him now was himself, which meant he could redeem his sins with merit.

He breathed a quiet sigh of relief in his heart, and suddenly felt that the arrow wound was not so serious after all. He didn't know what was going on, but the mountain forest he could never seem to run out of had become extraordinarily beautiful — sunlight brilliant, flowers fragrant, wind brushing through the treetops.

The rustle of the leaves sounded just like the notes of a qin.

Lilting and beautiful.

"Qin music?!!!"

His footsteps halted abruptly.