The Ethereal Domains

Chapter 537: Killing People like Cutting Weeds . . .

Killing People like Cutting Weeds . . .

Ning Biluo scornfully sneered, "How did that sword strike taste? Was it to your liking? If not, let me offer you two more to savor!"

Two adversaries locked in a battle of bitter enmity, Cha Eun Xiao and Hua Liushui, faced each other, their ire ablaze. Hua Liushui bellowed before making a swift move, transforming into a tornado-like whirlwind hurtling towards Ning Biluo. "Twenty years ago, you ambushed me with your allies. But now, you stand alone. Fortune won't favor you twice! I'm curious to see how you'll fare against me without your entourage!"

His voice thundered through the room.

A torrent of lightning-fast attacks from Hua Liushui rained down upon Ning Biluo, who grunted in response. Raising his sword in defense, they swiftly turned into two radiant masses of swordplay, colliding mid-air with resounding clashes.

A loud crash resounded as the room's partition screen toppled, and a team of solemn, black-clad men entered with determined expressions. Unfeeling and cold, their eyes betrayed no emotion, and their arrival saturated the room with an aura of murderous intent.

The team consisted of twelve powerful individuals, each exuding strength and vitality—top-tier cultivators. These were the very cultivators nurtured and honed by Hua Liushui during his years of hiding. They formed the crux of the Second Prince's palace, embodying its most formidable force.

From the moment Cha Eun Xiao entered the palace, he had sensed the presence of concealed entities lurking nearby, which had stayed his hand until now. But as Ning Biluo launched his assault and Hua Liushui engaged in combat, these hidden forces revealed themselves.

While their presence complicated the situation, Cha Eun Xiao found solace in the absence of unseen threats. He was undeterred by visible adversaries.

His thoughts crystallized as he instructed Bing-Er, "Bing-Er, go and fetch Second Prince, the one who seeks to disrupt your newfound happiness. But do not kill him immediately; we need information from him. As for the others… leave them to me."

Bing-Er, without hesitation, nodded and gracefully brandished her sword. She transformed into a blizzard of chilling energy that obscured vision and spread across the room.

"Stop her!" Second Prince cried out, filled with fear. He hastily retreated, his voice trembling.

The twelve men, expressionless and resolute, stepped forward to intercept Bing-Er.

Cha Eun Xiao issued a contemptuous snort and surged forward, his trajectory akin to an arrow in flight. In mid-air, the clamor of his sword pierced the room.

His sword, now finally unsheathed, metamorphosed into a bolt of lightning aimed at the twelve men. They, in response, were consumed by sneers and a dismissive air.

Specially trained by Hua Liushui during his secretive convalescence, these twelve men possessed formidable skills, both physically and mentally. Their synchronized actions demonstrated their readiness to vanquish Cha Eun Xiao in a single concerted strike.

Their collective thoughts echoed, "How shameful it would be if we fail."

Yet Cha Eun Xiao's eyes danced with a strange gleam, and an enigmatic grin played on his lips. At that moment, he hurled his sword from his hand. Although his body remained suspended in the air, his sword streaked ahead, like a shooting star.

Unfazed by the sudden turn of events, the twelve men instinctively raised their swords in response.

—Clang!—

Cha Eun Xiao found himself in the midst of the skirmish, his keen eyes closely tracking the interplay of blades and the shimmering of steel. In the heat of battle, a flying long sword met another blade with a resounding clash, casting sparks into the air.

The man, who held the sword amidst the fray, sensed a disconcerting shift in the balance of power. To his perception, the airborne sword's might fell short of its initial promise.

In essence, it dawned upon Cha Eun Xiao that this flying sword was but a ruse, a mere precursor to a more formidable offensive.

Just as he was on the brink of alerting his comrades to this deception, a sudden twist of events unfolded. As their attention remained captivated by the aerial swordplay, Cha Eun Xiao executed a peculiar mid-air maneuver, contorting his form with remarkable agility.

"Shoot, shoot, shoot..." A cascade of thirty-six needles was launched from various points across his body in an uncanny display of dexterity. Simultaneously, a dozen knives followed suit, tracing a lethal path along the trajectory of the needles. In that fleeting instant, Cha Eun Xiao's hands danced through a complex sequence of hundreds of gestures, rendering him a spectral blur.

Evidently, his intent was to bring this confrontation to a swift conclusion. He harbored no intention of protracting the battle any longer than necessary.

One man pitted against a dozen adversaries; it was a seemingly insurmountable challenge. However, Cha Eun Xiao held unshakable confidence in his capacity to conclude the encounter singlehandedly.

"Pah, pah, pah..." Three among the twelve assailants brandished their swords with remarkable speed, repelling over a dozen needles and several knives. One of the knives veered perilously close to the Second Prince, grazing his cheek with an icy touch that seemed to portend the very depths of hell. Startled, he let out an involuntary exclamation and was perilously close to losing his composure.

Yet, amidst the clangor and chaos, a series of eerie sounds emerged.

Seven of the twelve attackers stood aghast, disbelief etched across their features. Three of them clutched their throats, while the other four grasped their chests, their faces contorted in agony. Collapsing backward, they struck the ground like lifeless timber.

Before their lifeless forms could even make contact with the ground, a dazzling flurry of swordplay unfolded.

"Puff, puff, puff..." Cha Eun Xiao executed seven sweeping strikes with his sword, as though wielding a colossal broadsword. The spectral afterimages of his blade remained suspended in the air as seven heads were unceremoniously severed in an instant.

The chamber was instantly awash in a gruesome tableau of spilled blood.

Each of the twelve assailants had been distinguished cultivators, their prowess ranging from the second level of the Sky Origin Stage to the zenith of the sixth level.

Yet, in the face of Cha Eun Xiao's astonishing and enigmatic combat technique, they had never fathomed the existence of such an unconventional and inexplicable approach to combat.