Chapter 323

Chapter 323: Turns Out to Be a Sword Spirit (4000 Words, Combined Edition)

Ming and Shixin ventured into the Sama Cave.

The moment they stepped inside, Ming immediately sensed something amiss.

“What’s wrong?” Shixin turned her head, looking at Ming with confusion.

“Nothing, just that this place feels off,” Ming shook his head.

“Why?” Shixin had long noticed that Ming possessed an acute sensitivity to his surroundings. Any irregularity would be instantly detected by him.

“The direction of this cave is messed up; it seems like some magic arrays have been set up inside. These arrays are natural formations, so the map we have might be useless.”

As he spoke, Ming turned around and looked back at the entrance from where they came.

Then, Ming picked up a stone from within the cave and hurled it toward the cave’s opening.

With Ming’s strength, the stone should have flown five li away, yet they were merely 500 meters into the cave.

However, the stone collided with a wall, and the sound echoed from not too far away.

This indicated that their original path had completely changed.

“Let’s go check it out,” Ming suggested to Shixin.

“Hmm,” Shixin nodded.

For Shixin, no matter what decision Ming made, she would always agree.

Ming led Shixin back the way they came, but as they walked, they found themselves returning to the same spot.

This was problematic—it seemed this cave allowed entry but not exit, almost as if it had become its own miniature world.

“This is getting interesting. Looks like when the Rootless Mystic Realm collapses, many things inside have already begun to change.”

Previously, on Blood Bodhi Mountain, there was only one Blood Bodhi tree.

But unexpectedly, this time upon arriving at Blood Bodhi Mountain, there were dozens of Blood Bodhi trees, as if all the suppressed energy had erupted all at once.

And this time, coming to the Sama Cave, it was likely the same situation.

All the rare treasures in the Sama Cave were probably about to emerge en masse.

Moreover, it was rumored that the Sama Cave contained the most precious treasure in the Rootless Mystic Realm.

This treasure was extraordinary—compared to the main fruit of the Blood Bodhi or any other treasure, it wasn’t even worth mentioning.

Yet, previously, despite numerous people searching for treasures in the Sama Cave within the Rootless Mystic Realm, none had succeeded.

Now, with the Rootless Mystic Realm about to collapse, these treasures were bound to appear.

The more advanced a rare treasure was, the more likely it was to develop consciousness.

It was similar to how the flowers in the Valley of Ten Thousand Flowers had developed intelligence, let alone something of Xiānpǐn quality.

Xiānpǐn entities would definitely seek their own paths before perishing; they wouldn’t sit idly by waiting for doom.

Ming believed that if his guess was correct, the Sama Cave had now transformed into a trial ground.

That treasure would undoubtedly reveal itself soon, without a doubt.

“There’s nothing left to do but keep moving forward and see if we find anything good.”

Ming’s tone was incredibly relaxed, devoid of any anxiety.

Ming didn’t feel the need to panic because, in his view, there wasn’t much in this place that could genuinely threaten him.

What was key?

If he were the sharp spear, then Shixin was the strongest shield.

Shixin was no burden.

Although she had no ranking on the Azurecloud List, it was mainly because she rarely participated in any contests.

But if it came down to a fight, honestly, defeating Shixin wouldn’t be easy.

Just as Ming and Shixin moved forward, they suddenly encountered an ambush.

These people had also entered the cave, seemingly unaware of the dangers they faced, still intent on robbing others.

It was indeed amusing.

Unfortunately for them, they chose to rob Ming.

At this point, Ming was fully recovered, back at peak condition, and Shixin was right beside him.

Within two rounds, Ming effortlessly killed all of them, showing no mercy.

Shixin didn’t try to dissuade Ming because she was accustomed to it, knowing that trying to reason with him would be futile.

After Ming killed them, Shixin chanted scriptures for their souls.

The combination of Ming and Shixin was rather peculiar.

One was responsible for killing, while the other performed rites for the dead…

Honestly, no one knew how these two ended up together.

As Ming and Shixin continued forward, they encountered various groups attempting to ambush them, but all were quickly wiped out. So many that Ming’s storage bag couldn’t hold all the loot.

Ming thought about having Shixin store the items in her bag, so they wouldn’t go to waste.

But Shixin refused, unwilling to share in the spoils with Ming.

Ming didn’t insist.

If she didn’t want it, fine.

However, as Ming and Shixin walked for nearly an hour ahead, they suddenly heard strange laughter.

They continued forward, and the laughter grew clearer.

They identified it as belonging to a woman.

But the voice was hollow, not like that of a living person.

It sounded seductive but carried an eerie undertone.

“Hey, hey, where did this pretty monk come from?”

After walking less than half an hour, they encountered another group trying to rob them.

“Hand over everything valuable you have, leave the monk behind, and you can go.”

These men addressed Ming.

Shixin glanced at Ming a few times.

Ming chuckled coldly and stepped forward.

Before Ming took a few steps, Shixin tugged at his sleeve.

Ming turned around and looked at her.

Shixin blinked her eyes and said, “Can you leave some of their souls intact… please?”

Ming “…”

“Alright, I’ll indulge you this one time and leave some of their souls.”

Ming sighed helplessly.

He originally wanted to influence Shixin, but instead, it seemed like she was influencing him.

He was becoming somewhat saintly. Oh well, no harm done, might as well give her some merit.

“I understand. This time, I’ll do as you wish, leaving their souls intact. Consider yourselves lucky,” Ming told Shixin.

“Hmm…” Shixin nodded and released Ming’s sleeve.

On the other side, the attackers had clearly overheard Ming and Shixin’s conversation.

They thought these two were overly arrogant, considering their numbers and that all were at the Golden Core Realm stage. Based on the spiritual energy fluctuations earlier, one was a Dragon Gate Realm cultivator, and the other had just entered the Golden Core Realm.

Yet these two dared to determine their fate.

“You refuse kindness and invite punishment! Kill them!”

The leader glared coldly at Ming.

Ming raised his sword and swung twice.

These men intended to slowly torture Ming to death.

But they realized they couldn’t withstand even one of his strikes.

“Spare our lives! We apologize for not recognizing your greatness. Spare us, and we will never dare again. We’ll give you anything!”

When Ming approached with his sword, these men fell to the ground, retreating frantically.

Meanwhile, Shixin closed her eyes and began chanting scriptures for the deceased.

She was familiar with what was about to happen.

“Ha ha ha…”

Just as Ming was about to strike them down with his sword, that seductive laughter echoed through the cave again.

Ming furrowed his brow, then turned and swung his sword toward Shixin.

The intense sword qi terrified the would-be robbers, nearly causing them to wet themselves.

Only then did they realize that the previous strikes by the man were merely fifty percent of his true power, and he had held back.

Otherwise, that single strike would have obliterated them completely, leaving no chance for mercy.

Facing Ming’s sword qi, Shixin stood calmly without moving.

The sword qi passed by her, heading directly toward the woman in the red dress behind her.

The corner of the red-dressed woman’s mouth curved upward as Ming’s sword qi missed entirely.

Ming turned around again to see the woman extend her hand and rip out the heart of one of the men!

Blood dripped continuously from her fingers.

Then, with a firm grip, the fresh red heart in her delicate hand was crushed into a bloody mist.

This woman didn’t just kill the body; when she ripped out the heart, she also dragged out the soul, trapping it within the heart.

Thus, what she had crushed wasn’t just the heart but also the soul.

Ming raised his sword again and struck toward the woman.

But the woman dissolved into a red shadow and disappeared.

After she vanished, Ming’s sword qi struck another person, erasing them completely.

At the same moment, the red-dressed woman floated past the remaining individuals, extracting their hearts like plucking pineapples, crushing them into blood mists.

Everyone died utterly.

“What the hell is this thing?”

Ming frowned deeply. He didn’t care about the deaths of those people.

What annoyed him was that he had promised Shixin to preserve their souls, but this woman had killed them.

This made him lose face in front of Shixin.

Ming swung his sword again.

His blade was now wrapped in thunderous power.

Ming considered this red-dressed woman a ghost cultivator, and the Ten Thunder Heart Decree he practiced would naturally suppress her.

Unexpectedly, the woman didn’t dodge. Instead, she extended her hand, emitting a red aura that blocked Ming’s sword, preventing it from advancing further.

“Boom!”

Ming’s sword qi clashed with the woman’s red aura, scattering explosively into a cloud of mist.

In the next instant, a white hand reached for Ming’s heart.

Ming thrust his sword upward.

The sound of metal clashing rang out as his sword met the woman’s delicate palm.

Ming swung another sword qi, cutting through the woman’s red mist.

In the next moment, Ming positioned himself in front of Shixin, protecting her from any harm. However, Ming worried unnecessarily.

While Ming was concerned for Shixin, Shixin was equally worried about Ming.

When Ming approached her, Shixin exhaled in relief and immediately cast a spell, enveloping both of them in a golden bell cover.

The red-dressed woman tried to grab Ming’s heart but hit the golden bell instead, bouncing back.

“You take care of yourself. I’ll deal with her.”

Ming told Shixin.

In the next moment, Ming dashed out of the golden bell cover, charging toward the red-dressed woman.

The woman hadn’t expected Ming to act so decisively or possess such audacity to attack her.

A faint smile graced her lips, as if she’d discovered something amusing.

Ming’s sword repeatedly struck her with immense force.

Each collision produced the sound of metal clashing.

It was then that Ming truly realized:

This red-dressed woman was no ghost cultivator.

All she used earlier were manifestations of pure sword qi.

Her sword qi was incredibly refined.

How strange!

Turns out, this was a sword spirit!…

…

[On the second-to-last day of National Day, I climbed mountains and camped with my junior high school classmates.

We really haven’t seen each other for years, yet everyone still felt like our old selves, as if time had frozen, unchanging.

If there was any change, it was that everyone brought their significant others along.

Time flies so fast; over a decade has passed, and unbelievably, after more than ten years, we’re still able to gather.

I hope it’s not just today. I hope that after wandering for half our lives, we return as young as ever…]