The Desolate Era (Web Novel)
Book 5: Zifu Disciple Chapter 2: Lesser Thousand Sword Formation, Kill!

The Azure Firebird and the black serpent were currently high in the air, waiting impatiently. They were under orders to locate Ji Ning, but previously, the black serpent had already shouted three times, without any response at all.

“Can it be that the young master isn’t here?” The black serpent said frantically.

“Brother Black, look below.” The Azure Firebird spoke in the human tongue.

The black serpent looked downwards, only to see that on the formerly calm mountain, a large number of armored Dao-Soldiers had appeared, surrounded by frost and with fires blazing…those Dao-Soldiers and Xiantian lifeforms had forcibly formed into eight illusory Flood Dragons, and the power emanating from those illusory Flood Dragons caused even the Azure Firebird and the black serpent in the air to feel shock.

“Dao-Soldiers…thousands of them that can join together?” The Azure Firebird and the black serpent were shocked. The various local hegemons of Swallow Mountain weren’t capable of such things. Only the Grand Xia Dynasty’s soldiers that were stationed at Southmont City were capable of this. “Such power…even if the two of us were to go attack, we’d probably be easily annihilated.”

“Look, young master Ji Ning.”

In front of these thousands of Dao-Soldiers, appeared a beast-clad youth who was emanating an aura of incomparable wildness and savagery. It was Ning!

“Young master Ji Ning! How can he possibly oppose thousands of joined Dao-Soldiers?!”

“Ji Ning, quick, flee!” The black serpent shouted frantically in the air.

———————-

Those Xiantian lifeforms bound against the pillars within the mountain stared towards the outside nervously as well. Outside, the boundless amounts of flame and frost that had appeared caused them to be shocked as well.

“Young master Ji Ning, that Zifu Disciple is currently refining that evil magic treasure. For now, he can’t be distracted. Quick, flee!” Blindfish howled frantically.

“Ji Ning, quick, leave! If you dawdle, it’ll be too late!” Ji Jadewich roared as well, his throat going hoarse.

“Quick, leave!”

All of the Xiantian lifeforms of the Ji clan were shouting frantically. They had been bound here for so long, and often heard the conversation of those people, and saw some dread wraiths enter the depths of the mountain…they knew that there was a Zifu Disciple here refining an incomparably vile magic treasure. Once this person completed it and personally attacked, what would the repercussions be?

“What? Thousands of linked Dao-Soldiers?” The group of bound Xiantian lifeforms suddenly saw that those many Dao-Soldiers who were being burnt by fire or frozen by frost suddenly formed into multiple illusory Flood Dragons. They were only able to see a small portion, but this was already enough to shock them.

“Quick, flee”

“Ji Ning, leave now!” All of them were incomparably frantic.

————————-

Hearing the frantic shouts from his Uncle Black from the skies, as well as the voices of his Master Blindfish, Ji Jadewich, Poortile, Ji Shan, and the others who were bound deeper in the mountain, how could Ji Ning, already poisoned, not go even wilder? Flee? Why would he flee? Even if he fled, he would unquestionably die. If he could risk his life to kill that Zifu Disciple, he might instead have a chance at life.

“Kill!” Ning saw the thousands of Dao-Soldiers in front of him. Not hesitating at all, he released his most powerful killing blow.

Rumble….

More than three hundred sword-type magic treasures appeared out of nowhere around Ning, every single sword glowing dimly with white light, while at same time activating the power of the natural world. Ning had already reached a very high level of attainment in formations, and so his ability to execute the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] had clearly improved greatly as well. It wasn’t like in the past, where he controlled it by rote and by memory; he now understood some of the mysteries inherent within, and knew how to guide them more effectively.

“What are those?!”

“How can swords fly like that?”

“Flying magic treasures?”

The eight Xiantian lifeforms amongst those thousands of Dao-Soldiers were completely stunned. Seeing the hundreds of flying swords all hovering there, they instantly thought of something…Zifu Disciple! One had to at least be a Zifu Disciple in order to control magic treasures and fly on them. This was all but common knowledge. But now, this youth was actually flying on magic treasures.

But how could they have imagined that Ning’s soul had already reached the level of ‘divine will’, which was why he was able to accomplish this?

“He’s a Zifu Disicple, Master, he’s a Zifu Disciple. That youth is a Zifu Disicple!” Some of the Xiantian lifeforms in the Dao Battle-Armor were already beginning to cry out desolately.

“Die, then.” Ning instantly controlled that pulsating, glowing sword in front of him.

Swish!

That pulsating sword light immediately slashed out in an incomparably beautiful arc, leaving behind a desolate, beautiful line in the air. It easily chopped through that handsome youth’s chest, and the handsome youth stared, wide-eyed, in disbelief. “Zifu…Zifu…” Even in death, he couldn’t believe it.

“No!” The tall, muscular fellow just began to cry out, but before he finished it, he was pierced through by the sword glow as well.

Their Dao-Soldier formation hadn’t truly formed into a Flood Dragon, after all; they had only formed eight illusory Floor Dragons. Every single illusory Flood Dragon was formed from a single Xiantian lifeform Dao-Soldier and hundreds or a thousand Houtian Dao-Soldiers. In terms of defense alone, they were actually inferior to the combined forces of the nine Xiantian Dao-Soldiers of the second trial of the Aquatic Manor.

Ning was naturally capable of winning through close combat and using the True Meaning of the Raindrop, but doing so would be very tiring, and he would have to face a group attack.

But now…

By relying on this level four [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation], he was able to bring forth the power of an early Zifu Disciple using a ranked magic treasure. Even if the enemy truly had nine thousand Dao-Soldiers and nine Xiantian lifeforms and was capable of forming into a true Flood Dragon, Ning would still be able to fight. And now, when the enemy was like a platter of loose sand, unshaped and unformed, he naturally chopped through them as easily as chopping through vegetables.

“Zifu Disciple!”

“He’s a Zifu Disicple.”

The sword light slashed out in another graceful arc, piercing through those eight Xiantian Dao-Soldiers in sucession. No matter how those Xiantian Dao-Soldiers attempted to flee, their speed was incomparably slower than the speed of that sword light. Even though the nearby Houtian Dao-Soldiers all tried to help block, those Houtian Dao-Soldiers were simply executed as well.

“A Zifu Disicple!”

“Zifu Disciple!”

One desolate scream after another shook the entire mountain. These Xiantian Dao-Soldiers were filled to the brim with unwillingness to accept this. They hadn’t imagined that this youth named Ji Ning was actually a Zifu Disciple! Ordering them to battle against a Zifu Disciple? They weren’t able to accept that this was how they would die. If they had known, they wouldn’t have come out at all.

—————-

“What.”

“This….”

In mid-air, the Azure Firebird and the black serpent watched with wide eyes, their mouths hanging open. From below, Ning was controlling hundreds of swords which were hovering in the air, and then formed into a single sword light which was dominating everyone and everything. This was power on a completely different level. Much like how Xiantian lifeforms could massacre Houtian experts, that sword light effortlessly executed those eight Xiantian Dao-Soldiers, and with their deaths, those Houtian Dao-Soldiers naturally were unable to maintain their grand formation.

“Ning, he…he’s a Zifu Disciple?” The black serpent, who had watched Ning grow up since he was a child, was somewhat stunned as well.

——————

Even Blindfish, Jadewich, Shan, and the others trapped within the mountain who had been frantically calling for Ning to flee were stunned. From this angle, they couldn’t see Ning, but through the cave entrance, they were able to see many Dao-Soldiers. They personally saw those Dao-Soldiers dressed in black armor, which was to say the Xiantian Dao-Soldiers, be easily pierced through one by one by an incomparably brilliant sword light. All of those Xiantian Dao-Soldiers collapsed, dead.

In addition, as they died, all of them were howling with grief and rage, “Zifu Disciple!” “A Zifu Disciple!”

“A Zifu Disciple?” Blindfish and the others, including the other pitiable Xiantian lifeforms from the other powers here at the Swallow Mountain region, were all somewhat numb. Could it be that aside from Ning, there was another Zifu Disciple who was attacking?

But right at this moment…

Bang!

A black shadow suddenly leapt out from the already opened entrance to that dark underground cave. His green pupils swept those Xiantian lifeforms who were bound within this cave. There were still some ordinary servants here who hadn’t joined the battle. Two unlucky bastards, because they had been fairly close to the cave entrance, had their bodies immediately invaded by the black necromantic energy swirling around the black-furred zombie when it appeared.

“Ahhh!”

“Ahhh!” The two unlucky bastards hadn’t been able to become Dao-Soldiers. Naturally, they were quite ordinary in ability. As soon as the necromantic aura invaded their bodies, they let out desolate howls, then quickly dissolved into puddles of liquid.

The black-furred zombie had already, with a single step, moved past the cave entrance.

“Young master, be careful!” Blindfish howled frantically.

———————

Ning, after seeing that the Xiantian Dao-Soldiers had been executed, retrieved his three hundred plus swords. After all, he was still just an early stage Xiantian lifeform. The Xiantian ki in his body wasn’t dense enough! If he were to control thousands of swords, his ki would probably be used up in a single attack. If he just used these three hundred or so, he was still only able to execute it ten times.

His true opponent was that truly terrifying Zifu Disciple.

“Roaaaaar.” An angry roar rang out, and from the distance, a black shadow flew over.

“Is that the Zifu Disciple?” Ning’s wing-type magic treasure trembled, and he immediately flew out in an arc, putting some distance between them. With a smashing sound, that black shadow smashed into the ground, causing a massive, thirty meter wide crater to appear on the ground. When Ning saw this, the look on his face changed.

The black-furred zombie stared at Ning, that black, fog-like necromantic aura swirling around his body.

“This fellow is so strong, and his speed is very fast.” Ning was still stunned, and he even was reminded of that black-furred aberration who had served as the third trial in the Aquatic Manor. However, this black-furred zombie gave Ning an evil, baleful feeling, and had that black fog swirling around his body. That aberration who served as the third trial in the Aquatic Manor didn’t.

“Kill.” The black-furred zombie stared at Ning, then charged towards him.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Activating the wing-type magic treasures, Ning moved like a ghost, constantly dodging. Although each time he dodged, it was rather difficult, he was still able to evade. Occasionally, the Darknorth swords in his hands would land blows on the black-furred zombie, but only white smudges were left on it.

“This fellow seems quite similar to the black-furred aberration in the Aquatic Manor. His strength is great, his speed is fast, and his body is incomparably tough. However, his strength is much lower.” In their exchange of blows, Ning immediately discovered that the black-furred zombie’s method of using force was very clumsy, while the black-furred creature in the underwater estate has intelligence. In terms of both footwork and palm techniques, although each movement seemed simple, even with Ning’s miraculous evasion techniques, he still couldn’t dodge.

“Not even at the advanced level of technique. Definitely not a Zifu Disciple. The antidote to my poison is probably being carried by that Zifu Disciple. He hasn’t come out, which means he definitely isn’t able to be distracted right now. I have to seize the opportunity to get rid of him.” Ning understood that for the Zifu Disciple to still not come out meant the man was definitely in a tough situation.

While he was ill, go for the kill!

Swoosh!

The wing-type magic treasures on Ning’s back trembled, then took him in an arcing line, moving past the black-furred zombie. The zombie howled ferociously, wanting to attack Ning, but how could Ning, when using the [Windwing Evasion], be caught by the likes of him?

“Ji Ning?” A sinister, cold, sharp voice suddenly emanated out from the mountain. Ning immediately saw that midway in the mountain, at the ground in front of the cavern entrance, there was a man dressed in a loose black robe. This man’s hair was loosely bound, and his face was utterly ashen, without a hint of color. The oily green eyes the man had caused even greater shock to Ning than the black-furred zombie had.