195 - The Power of Decay (1)
“Vice-general, we have escorted the guest.”
The soldiers standing behind Rao Aimin parted without a word as one of her subordinates brought in an old man Ye Hua would recognize if he was present. The soldier saluted, while the old man with a lazy expression immediately turned humble as he cupped his fists.
“This Old Ma has seen Vice-General Rao Aimin of the Imperial Army’s Third Battalion,” he said in a low, hoarse voice.
It was exactly the innkeeper who played middlemen between the underground network composed of the shadow guild, the employers and the hired assassins.
“You recognize me?” Rao Aimin said in surprise. And then she laughed it off, &ldquo
196 - The Power of Decay (2)Innkeeper Ma was, of course, informed about the army’s difficulty of entering the Ye Sect. Thus, he was the source of the key information that Rao Aimin received when she sent out a reconnaissance team.He knew that the situation inside was dire, as he had been receiving updates from the assassins that Ye Hua hired. The silver-ranked assassins had entered the Ye Sect, roamed on the outer edge, before passing on what they observed to the assassin left near the guardian formation. He would then breach the array to exit again and pass on the accumulated report to the innkeeper.“Vice-general,” the innkeeper explained, “the secret art that my people can use allows us to pass through a weakened part of the formation, but doing so mostly consumes the entire qi within their bodi
197 - The Power of Decay (3)Despite being unaware of the deteriorating situation of the reinforcements waiting outside the sect, the powerhouses trapped within the Main Peak gradually felt their initial agitation turn into despair.A minute ago…“Huh? Did you feel that?”“It is not just me, right? Wait… my hand passed through! Ah! I stepped past the barrier!”“Yes, we are out! We can finally leave this damned pavillion!” The red-faced crowd cheered when they suddenly felt a violent fluctuation come out from the barrier. “Let’s head down and find our disciples!”“Qiu’er, Mao’er, your master will sa
198 - The Power of Decay (4) As Ye Mo made each swing, he felt like the world gradually slowed down around him, to the point that he felt the people around him stopped—no, it would be more precise to say that his existence seemingly stepped out of the world, in a plane where the concept of time and space held no meaning. There was no sound, no light; it was a space of emptiness that was neither white nor black. In that plane, he was no longer governed by the laws of the original world, and there existed nothing but him and his sword. He even forgot the fact that he was trapped by enemies. He only knew he had to at least accomplish initial mastery of the sword. An ordinary straight slash, yet it felt like each movement of his limb, each stretch of his muscles, each cell of his body, was moving for an infinity and an in
199 - The Power of Decay (5)Little Yin knew she was quickly running out of time.The deterioration of Wu Xuan’er’s injuries was worsening her control of the body. Although Wu Xuan’er gave up her control to Little Yin, since the soul and body were not compatible in the first place, the rejection of the host body to LIttle Yin’s soul grew stronger with each passing minute. The loss of vitality affected the duration of Little Yin’s consciousness’s stay within her, and it also limited what actions she could pull off at this moment.Could she still execute a divine art?Could she successfully unravel all the formation surrounding the Main Peak?As Ye Hua carried Wu Xuan’er’s bod
200 - The Power of Decay (6)As the barrier surrounding the mountain was transparent, the trapped crowd was able to see the situation outside the Main Peak. A majority of them were Nascent Divinity cultivators, and thus they were able to see more things than a normal human being.Hordes of various flying spiritual beasts could be seen swooping down at a distance. Some looked like hybrids of birds of prey, while some looked like fierce giant bats. They ought to be letting out cries and screeches; unfortunately, sound was unable to be delivered inside the formation.There were also a number of four-legged spiritual beasts resembling bears and wolves and tigers lingering near the group of old people, eyeing them like predators eyeing their prey but unable to come near them perhaps due to their animalistic instincts.
201 - The Power of Decay (7)“Fellow cultivators, a single thread cannot become a cord, and a single tree does not make a forest (1). Why are we believing and relying on a single man? Where is our dignity?” Cuty Lord Tong Fu questioned.Little Yin laughed as she ignored the petty cultivator wasting breath inside the barrier.“Why are you hesitating, Old Fogey?”Ye Mo shook his head. “It is impossible, nothing but a desperate attempt to escape. It is impossible for anyone to learn and master a sword technique within a span of a day or two.”Murmurs of the leaders standing near Ye Mo seemed to generally agree with his statement. They too didn’t believe that a young junior was the key to escape
202 - The Power of Decay (8)‘A falling leaf…‘A sword that already exists in me?’Not only was the crowd in utter disbelief, even Ye Mo himself was not convinced he could destroy such an intricate formation on his own. However, despite the commotion she caused, Little Yin stood firm in her statement.‘Can I really cut this barrier?’Ye Mo was doubtful at first, but seeing the unwavering trust and sincerity in Wu Xuan’er’s eyes—no, in Little Yin’s eyes—he strengthened the grip he had on his sword.‘...is she saying that what she showed me is also my family’s sword? The sword of Ye?’
203 - Aiya, I Am Such a Good Teacher (1)Looking at that slow yet steady downward slash of Ye Mo’s sword, Little Yin could not help but beam.‘He must have realized by now, the sword that I imparted to him.’She had watched Ye Mo train for days, and she had also watched him train the disciples of the Battle Court. Not to mention, she had also seen his eldest brother’s sword from the memories she gained from the Second Elder, Li Yun Tian.Although Little Yin had no foundations regarding the cultivation system of this mortal realm by then, one could not look down on the eyesight of an existence who had seen the pinnacle of the Sword Dao.It was easy—no, basic for her to reconstruct and perfect the sword te