Chapter 9: Breaking the Formation (Part 1)

Blood trickled down the stone platform into the lake, instantly swallowed whole without a single ripple.

On the stone platform, Qi An bore multiple sword wounds, his dantian energy nearly exhausted, consciousness teetering on the edge of fading, with only a single spirit sword humming beside him.

A figure clad in water-blue stepped along a path solidified by earth energy toward the platform. The lake was tranquil and profound; a sudden glance sent shivers down one’s spine.

The vast surface of the lake resembled the mouth of a whirlpool, as if intent on swallowing everything that passed by, including a person’s shadow.

The golden eyes had not yet failed; this was no illusion, yet it was not entirely real either.

Never had anyone spoken of a lake in the forest near the Ascension Steps…

Beneath the giant python statue lay a bloodstained man in dark robes, his sword-like brows and bright eyes, a straight nose, standing roughly over six feet tall. His pale skin was half ghostly white, half stained with blood.

It seemed he was close to death.

Ji Ning looked up at the spirit sword, its sharp blade vibrating as if eager to break free and guard its master.

No wonder—though this man was gravely wounded and unconscious, it was impossible to block her divine sense probe; what blocked her was the sword’s aura.

This spirit weapon possessed a will of its own, a prelude formed by a concentrated spiritual consciousness.

Whether a spirit weapon has its own consciousness makes a world of difference in the power it can unleash.

Ji Ning currently had no spirit weapon at her side, but she would not take advantage of someone in peril.

More importantly, judging by how fiercely the sword protected its master, pulling it out might just send someone straight to the underworld.

Better not…

With that, Ji Ning sat down beside the man. She needed to check if he could still be saved.

Just as she reached out, the spirit sword's humming grew louder.

Ji Ning sighed, her brows furrowed so tightly they could trap a fly. “Buzz all you want. If you’ve got the guts, come down and save him! Come on, show yourself!”

The humming faltered, seemingly roused by her mockery, then resumed trembling with renewed vigor.

“Useless. Are all sword cultivators like this? Stubborn, brainless, deaf to reason…”

Ji Ning ignored the sword’s silent protest and gathered spiritual energy in her palm to examine Qi An from head to toe—no, to check him thoroughly.

Smooth skin, refined bone structure, broad shoulders tapering to a narrow waist, six-pack abs, long legs—no denying it, sword cultivators were extraordinary specimens.

Ahem, got a bit off track there.

His body bore dozens of sword wounds, three dangerously close to vital points. Eight broken ribs, a shattered right arm, damaged internal organs, an injured heart meridian, and a mild concussion from overuse of his spiritual sense. Fortunately, his dantian was intact, and he still had a breath of life left.

Ji Ning patted his shoulder and said with a sigh, “Brother, you’ve got a tough life!”

But it seemed this was the end.

The injuries were too severe; Ji Ning had no spirit herbs, no medicinal pills, nor any healing spells at her disposal.

The spirit sword seemed to sense something and fell silent.

On the compass, the glowing orb also dimmed.

A terrifying silence seemed to consume the sword cultivator’s life, but it did not extinguish Ji Ning’s hope.

There was still a chance.

One: wait for members of the Xuanxin Sect to come searching. This man appeared within the sect’s mountain gate and was dressed unusually well—perhaps a disciple on a mission, or even an inner disciple.

But Ji Ning immediately dismissed that thought.

Putting one’s life in others’ hands was no different from waiting for death.

Two: use her mastery of the Wood attribute realm to revive him.

Ji Ning sat cross-legged, sinking her breath to her dantian, swiftly activating the Wood Spirit Technique. She converted all her internal spiritual energy into wood energy, channeling it along the meridians to concentrate in her palms, then infused it into the sword cultivator’s body through the Baihui acupoint atop his head.

Using external force to stimulate the flow of spiritual energy through his meridians, replenishing his dantian.

Once his energy restored, his spiritual sense would heal itself, and he would most likely regain consciousness.

However, the cultivator’s meridians were damaged like a sieve; if ten units of energy were poured in, over seven would leak away.

Ji Ning’s Qi Gathering Stage level four spiritual reserves were insufficient, but fortunately, the gourd water and the Wood Spirit Technique could replenish her energy continuously.

This world’s day and night were frozen—always stuck in the moment she entered—with no way to tell how much time had passed.

Eventually, the cultivator’s brows twitched, and his eyes suddenly snapped open. His body remained still, but the sword came first.

The cold, sharp blade pressed against Ji Ning’s chin, the tip pointing straight at her throat.

She swallowed cautiously, frozen in place, her heart pounding so fiercely it nearly leapt from her throat.

Ji Ning’s calm façade shattered completely.

“Seriously, do all sword cultivators train the same way? Always drawing swords first, with the mindset of killing first to avoid letting anyone escape?”

“Damn compass, I swear I’m never getting near a sword cultivator again!”

Ji Ning raged silently in her mind.

Qi An propped himself up against the statue, wincing from his injuries. Upon seeing Ji Ning, surprise flickered in his eyes.

As he circulated his spiritual energy to examine his body, he felt a trace of wood energy in his dantian—energy that exhausted itself only to endlessly generate more.

His replenished dantian then sent energy into his internal organs, meridians, and even his spirit sea, initiating self-healing.

Was it this young girl who saved him?

He sheathed his Wind-Running Sword and noticed the girl exhale heavily, patting her chest with a slightly relaxed expression.

Apparently, his sudden sword had frightened her.

Qi An smiled apologetically, struggling to form words, and finally asked, “Did you save me?”

“Obviously, is there anyone else here?” Ji Ning snapped back, her heart nearly giving out from fright.

“This array is strange. I was trapped here and ambushed, which caused me to lose consciousness. I had to be on guard. I apologize for the offense caused by my sword.”

“Oh, it’s the formation…”

“You speak as if you understand it well?” Qi An’s eyes gleamed with hope.

Ji Ning shook her head honestly, “No, I don’t understand it at all.”

Qi An was not discouraged, continuing, “Then how did you get in here?”

This place was remote, with few entering or leaving the sect’s inner grounds. He had stumbled in by accident while fleeing pursuers.

Ji Ning thought for a moment and said, “I was looking for something in the forest and just walked right in…”

That was the truth; she hadn’t lied at all.