Ze Tian Ji (Way of Choices)

Chen Changsheng's expression was serious and intent, but it was not confident, because right now his posture was rather strange.

If he were to use his umbrella as a shield and move forward with his dagger, then it would be like a brave warrior ascending onto the battlefield. However, right now, the umbrella was not being wielded in his hand, rather being dragged along the sand. He held his dagger upside-down at his wrist, while his knees were slightly bent. His body was leaned forward, as if he was ready at any time to flee. He seemed just like a little thief, a little thief ready to fight for his life.

Because he was almost at his breaking point, his physical strength had been used up to the extent that he could no longer hold up the Yellow Paper Umbrella for extended periods of time. He could only let it drag on the ground, only bringing it up to block when the attack was just about to arrive. The incredibly sharp dagger was in a similar situation. The remnants of his true essence were not enough for him to use those extremely formidable sword styles. Even such simple actions such as slashing and thrusting were very difficult for him to do.

The dagger being held upside down at his wrist meant that the sword-play he used was naturally not very open and sweeping. He could only use very fine movements. The two demon women had to have several close calls before they realized that he was actually using the Holy Maiden Peak's Icebreaking Sword. They could not help but be exceptionally shocked—this method had always been practiced by the disciples of the Holy Maiden Peak, so where did he learn it?

Whether it was the demon beauty with not a thread of clothes or that dignified woman wearing Qi Jian's robe, they each had very solemn expressions. The gazes that they focused on Chen Changsheng were also abnormally grave. It rather puzzled them, even giving them a faint sense of admiration, that a human youth could actually hold on for such a long time in this situation.

However, if the battle persisted, victory would eventually belong to the Spirit race.

Behind them were two large wings made of light, which quickly began to vibrate faster. There was only a whoosh on the beach, and then the demons disappeared. In the next moment, they appeared behind Chen Changsheng, their hands glowing with a ghastly green light as they came piercing at him.

With such terrifying speed, like bolts of lightning, these sly demons were like smoke. Their abilities far surpassed the imagination of the vast majority of humans. This was what Chen Changsheng had resisted for such a long time.

How did he do it? In the instant that those two wings appeared behind him, he moved. His true essence flowed through his damaged meridians and his feet moved seemingly very naturally, but in fact very precisely, to the left. His figure suddenly disappeared, and reappeared dozens of feet away.

Those two wings swiftly moved once more, bringing those two women to Chen Changsheng's back, and blocking him from the lake.

Chen Changsheng raised up the umbrella to block. With only a hiss, both sides launched a flurry of rapid blows against each other, then split apart.

The bodies of the two women were covered with sword slashes once again, which gradually disappeared, just like the numerous cracks Chen Changsheng had made on the wings at their backs.

The demon beauty stared at Chen Changsheng. Her face pale. "So it really was the Yeshi Step."

Previously they had been shocked by Chen Changsheng's abnormal movements. After several probing attacks, they finally confirmed what it was.

They were Nanke's maids and also her two wings. Moreover, they had extraordinary bodies, so they possessed a terrifying innate speed. Just in terms of leaping and rushing over short distances, they could truly be described as bolts of lightning. Ethereal Opening cultivators had no chance; even amongst true Star Condensation experts, there were very few people that could keep up with their speed.

Chen Changsheng had bathed in the true blood of the Black Dragon, allowing his strength and speed to reach the peak of Ethereal Opening, but even he was incapable of keeping up with their speed. However… he knew the Yeshi Step.

Yes, although his Yeshi Step was not perfect, since he only practiced a simplified version of his own making, it was enough to help him in those most dangerous moments when he needed to avoid their lightning-quick attacks.

This was the most important reason he had been able to live up to now.

Liang Xiaoxiao grasped his sword and stood in the forest. As he viewed this scene and heard that demon woman speak, his expression subtly changed.

As for those two women that had competed with Chen Changsheng in terms of speed and reactions many times, their expressions grew even more grave.

The reason why the Demon race's plan in the Garden of Zhou had yet to succeed was all because Chen Changsheng had exceeded their expectations: whether it be his many powerful magical artifacts or his body and sword techniques, or even his tenacious and unyielding will. However, what really made them nervous was that on the various details around Chen Changsheng, including his surpassingly sharp dagger, his extremely firm umbrella, or the precious Thousand Mile Button, and even his mastery of the Yeshi Step; the Military Advisor most definitely knew all about these. So why had the Military Advisor not given them any sort of warning before they had entered the Garden of Zhou?

The Military Advisor had not even brought it up.

It could not be that these were Chen Changsheng's secrets that not even the Military Advisor knew about. The Military Advisor was omniscient; this was a conviction that all demons cleaved to……then what was the Military Advisor aiming to do? Could it be that in this plot, there were still details that they were not aware of? Did it involve their master? They could not resolve this problem, so they were uneasy. In reality, their master, and even the great Demon Lord himself, were mystified about the true motives of the enigmatic Black Robe.

They suddenly realized that the wind blowing off the lake had became much colder. This brought their attention to the fact that the sun had almost set behind the mountains.

However, they had not received new orders from the Military Advisor, which meant that they had to extinguish the four flames floating in the life sea—to kill off those four people.

Chen Changsheng suddenly felt that the trees by the lakeshore were beginning to move.

Liang Xiaoxiao, his expression grave and his sword at his chest, unhesitatingly used the Mount Li Sword Sect's most powerful sword technique.

He had already crossed swords with Chen Changsheng several times. Regardless of how powerful his sword style, or how dense his sword energy, he had been unable to pierce through his opponent's Yeshi Step. Twice now Nanke's two maids had used their lightning-fast speed to entangle Chen Changsheng, at which point Liang Xiaoxiao looked for an opportune time to attack. Yet, both times, Chen Changsheng had easily broken through his sword moves.

Liang Xiaoxiao was unable to get the better of Chen Changsheng. He felt that no matter what move he used, it was as if this youth had already guessed it beforehand. Moreover, his opponent had always been able to execute the move which was most adapted to hurting him.

This sort of feeling was extremely uncomfortable, extremely disastrous.

This time was no exception. The dagger pressed up against Chen Changsheng's wrist was thrust towards that sky filled with sword wind. It easily found the most critical point of his sword energy and fell upon it. With a snap, this most simple and yet most effective action had stopped the sword move. Afterwards, the slightly gloomy forest by the lake was lit up by a sword glow. Liang Xiaoxiao was compelled to move backwards in order to avoid the attack.

All of the secrets of the Mount Li Sword Style now rested in the Orthodox Academy.

If Liang Xiaoxiao had been even more learned in the traditional Mount Li Sword Style, if he was even more skilled, how could he have gotten the better of Chen Changsheng?

His magical artifacts were many, and fortuitously so, but what he had the most of was still knowledge. Memorizing the entire Daoist Canon was one thing, but of the books on cultivation in the Orthodox Academy's library, the vast majority of them had become nutrients for his sea of consciousness within the very short span of one year. Countless sword arts had been committed to his mind. Besides Gou Hanshi and Guan Feibai, amongst this generation of young cultivators, who would dare say that they knew more sword styles than him?

If he were facing off some other demon experts, then even if it was one versus three, Chen Changsheng—with all of his treasures and methods to protect his body—could perhaps really have killed his way out, and maybe even obtained victory. Just like before…… He had broken through Liang Xiaoxiao's Mount Li Sword Style, then pretended to retreat into the woods. In reality, he gathered up the remnants of his true essence and burned it all up, pouring all his power into that dagger. With a flip of his wrist, it turned into a biting cold awl and stabbed at a tree branch in the air.

There was a sharp screech.

Those two women had just appeared in that place, their wings flapping.

With a whirlwind of blood, a deep sword slash appeared on their necks. If it were even deeper, one would even be able to see the bone.

The setting sun illuminated the forest by the lakeside. The wind brushed against the surface of the lake, and the waves gently splashed.

One hand held a dagger, the other an umbrella. Chen Changsheng's chest heaved up and down, and his gasps for breath slowly returned to normal.

In his eyes was a tinge of regret.

His move, although it had heavily injured those two woman, had not cut through the throat, so it was meaningless.

They could even regenerate severed hands, so what meaning was there to wounds on the body?

Why did that dignified woman have no horns? How was her blood red? How was it that when the naked demon beauty had used her charming arts, the demon horns on her head had disappeared of their own accord? All of it was because they were not humans, nor were they demons.

They were shamans. To be more precise, they were shaman spirits. Their bodies rested on the line between the real and the spiritual.

When they stood together, it was obvious that their facial features and appearance were completely different, and yet they gave the feeling that they were twins. It was because they had always been twins—they were a pair of wings.

Just like those two wings of light on their backs.

Those wings of light and their almost spiritual bodies allowed them to possess an unimaginable speed. Even if Chen Changsheng used the Yeshi Step, he still would not have been able to escape.

If there was only one wing, then it would have never been impossible to take flight. Just like how if those two were separated, they were just ordinary upper level Ethereal Opening experts. This was why in the center of the lake and the lakeshore, Chen Changsheng and the others had been able to severely injure them. If they were together, they could directly fly up into the blue sky, increasing their battle strength by more than ten times.

The most powerful Liu Wan'er and Teng Xiaoming, the demon general couple, had taken their leave to pursue Zhexiu and Qi Jian mainly because Qi Jian was their primary target, but there was also another reason. This was because that husband and wife could tell that due to some problem with his true essence or cultivation method, Chen Changsheng lacked the strength to instantly kill. So the only thing that lay in store for him was death.

Those two wings made of congealed light slowly flapped behind those two women. It was very beautiful.

In Chen Changsheng's eyes, those wings of light were just as terrifying. His grip tightened on his dagger as he attempted to find a means of escaping this encirclement, but he could not find one.

Those two women lowered their heads to look at the wounds on their necks, but they could not see it. Then they looked into each other's eyes, and then looked at Chen Changsheng's neck. All their actions were perfectly synchronized.

Monstrous green blood and gaudy red blood flowed incessantly from those two sword wounds.

They clearly felt the pain, and they had seen the shadow of death. They were truly angry, yet their expressions grew increasingly calm and solemn.

Those two wings suddenly began to beat much faster.

A massive wind rose up on the lakeshore.

In the twilight, there appeared one more magnificent streak of light.