The Bone-Slaying Immortal Needle

Inside the central arena.

A sealing formation covered the entire area. Xiao Lang in his purple robes and the crimson-clad Bo Yan Fairy stood facing each other from a distance.

“Haha, Bo Yan Fairy, if you feel you can’t hold on, it’d be best to concede early.” Xiao Lang’s laughter held a sickly edge. As he laughed, his skin began to turn flushed, as though molten lava were flowing just beneath the surface; his eyes, too, grew fiery red.

He raised one hand.

Whoosh.

Flames began to appear all around him, each blossom of fire bloody and scorching hot. In that moment, the area within the central arena seemed to transform into a world of fire. Though only scattered flames floated in the air, they made the sealed space blisteringly hot, the very air beginning to warp.

“Hmph.” Bo Yan Fairy let out a cold snort. Whoosh! A jade-green ribbon shot out with a piercing howl, circling around her layer by layer, instantly forming a tight protective barrier that spanned dozens of zhang. Meanwhile, endless watery mist spread out, and the space around Bo Yan Fairy became a world of water.

Around Xiao Lang, the temperature soared.

Around Bo Yan Fairy, mist and water densely churned. Water and fire began to collide. Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle—the sound of their clash filled the air.

“Your charm arts are useless against me.” Xiao Lang let out a shrill cry, his magma-red eyes blazing with madness. “Taste my Bloodflame Earthfire!”

With a piercing shriek, he suddenly opened his mouth.

Whoosh!

A torrent of flame, like flowing blood, rolled forth, blanketing heaven and earth. Guided by the floating sparks that had appeared moments earlier, it formed a massive array. In midair, a colossal grinding mill of Bloodflame Earthfire took shape, slowly rotating as it pressed down.

Rustle, rustle, rustle… The jade-green ribbon writhed and danced, looping in circles as its runes lit up. It buckled under the assault, then snapped back to lash at the flames. Incredibly tough, the ribbon somehow held against the Bloodflame Earthfire.

…

Outside the formation, Ji Ning and the others watched with rapt attention. Zhuanshui Xiaolou said, “Xiao Lang’s ‘Bloodflame Earthfire’ has already reached the first grade. Combined with this ‘Bloodflame Grinding Mill’ technique, it’s incredibly powerful. Even an ordinary Primal Daoist would have trouble withstanding its grinding pressure.”

Tiannong Quge smiled from the side. “Bo Yan Fairy just happens to counter him. Her ‘Heavenly Water Net Formation’ is renowned for its defensive strength. Breaking through it is no easy task.”

“Bo Yan Fairy’s methods are on the rarer side.” Zhuanshui Xiaolou shook his head. “She usually relies on the Heavenly Water Net Formation to defend herself, then uses her divine-sense charm techniques. Her charm arts have reached an extremely high level. But Xiao Lang is a madman—charming him is next to impossible.”

“Besides charm arts, Bo Yan Fairy also has other divine-sense techniques. If Xiao Lang gets caught by even one, she can instantly turn defense into offense,” Tiannong Quge added.

Ji Ning listened with great interest.

The intelligence from Heavenly Treasures Mountain had only offered a general overview. It was nothing compared to what Tiannong Quge and Zhuanshui Xiaolou knew about their respective friends.

…

“You crazy woman… Aaaagh!” Xiao Lang suddenly clutched his head and let out a savage roar.

Bo Yan Fairy only sneered in response. The layers of jade-green ribbon suddenly began to expand, and countless heavy droplets of water, each as weighty as a mountain, began to slam toward Xiao Lang!

“Eee-yaaah!” Xiao Lang shrieked in fury. Then, suddenly, four extra arms tore from his torso, and two more heads burst from his shoulders. Three Heads, Six Arms!

Each of Xiao Lang’s six hands now gripped a long black shuttle. Letting out a piercing howl, he shot forward like a streak of light, his Bloodflame Earthfire surging, and charged straight at Bo Yan Fairy. Every swing of the six black shuttles caused heaven and earth to distort, giving off the eerie sensation of space being punctured.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

With his three heads and six arms, Xiao Lang attacked like a madman, the massive Bloodflame Grinding Mill continuing to crush down around him.

“Get lost!” Bo Yan Fairy strained to unleash her divine-sense techniques. She was proficient in three major divine-sense techniques: charm arts, insidious sneak attacks, and direct soul-assaults. She had trained each of them to a very high level, and thanks to her status as a reincarnated Immortal with a powerful soul, she had carved out a fearsome reputation.

But if her opponent could endure her techniques… her chances of victory plummeted.

Boom! Carrying the Bloodflame Grinding Mill, three-headed, six-armed Xiao Lang charged forward like a relentless demon, finally breaking through a layer of the jade-green ribbon’s defense.

“I concede.” A voice filled with unwillingness rang out.

“Hahaha…”

Xiao Lang stopped his assault, withdrawing his Bloodflame Earthfire and retracting his three-headed, six-armed form. He laughed wildly, his entire body still radiating blistering heat. “Bo Yan Fairy, I told you you’d lose. Those divine-sense techniques of yours? Hah, trying to shake my soul—what a joke!”

The sealing formation was lifted. Bo Yan Fairy, her face cold, flew back to her seat without even glancing at Xiao Lang.

“Ji Ning, care to spar?” Xiao Lang turned to look at Ji Ning, exuding smug pride.

“No need,” Ji Ning said calmly.

“Hmph.” Xiao Lang flew straight back to his seat, savouring his triumph. People with twisted personalities often had Dao-hearts that were disturbingly firm. Xiao Lang was exactly that kind of twisted lunatic—someone who, even in the face of death, would never bow his head but would instead rage and laugh all the same. Though he had offended many people, he remained utterly unrepentant.

Still, he knew who he could and could not afford to offend. He never, for example, challenged Zhuanshui Xiaolou.

…

On the suspended walkway leading to the great pavilion where Ji Ning and the others were feasting, a bald old man appeared. It was the ‘Floating Cloud Immortal,’ his appearance now altered.

“Ji Ning.” The Floating Cloud Immortal strode down the suspended corridor, his mind now free of all distractions.

He had only one thought—kill Ji Ning!

When he had seen Ji Ning leading the group of golden-armored imperial guards into the Water Cloud Pavilion, the old man had understood that he had no other chance. At the Yan Estate, assassination was impossible. When Ji Ning traveled by ship, he was always surrounded by dozens of golden-armored guards. There was still no opportunity.

But now, Ji Ning was feasting and drinking with others. The regular servants and guards would have been sent elsewhere.

This was the Floating Cloud Immortal’s only chance.

Even though the Water Cloud Pavilion definitely housed powerful experts and was filled with layered formation traps, for the Floating Cloud Immortal, this was his final—and best—opportunity. If he hesitated any longer and Ji Ning returned to the Yan Estate for a day without leaving, the Floating Cloud Immortal would be destroyed, body and soul, by the backlash of his Heavenly Dao Oath.

“Last chance.”

“Ji Ning—either you die, or I do.” The Floating Cloud Immortal walked along the suspended walkway, heading straight for the main entrance of the thousand-zhang-tall pavilion.

Two Wanxiang Adepts stood guard at the main entrance, tasked with preventing any disturbance.

“Halt!” one of the guards immediately called out. “What business do you have?”

The soundproofing of the Water Cloud Pavilion was excellent. The noise from outside couldn’t be heard inside, and Ji Ning and the others continued their feasting and laughing, completely unsuspecting.

“I am here to see Young Master Zhuanshui,” the Floating Cloud Immortal said. Even as the words left his mouth, both Wanxiang Adept guards felt their minds go hazy.

The moment their minds went blank—

The Floating Cloud Immortal flickered and appeared before the main doors, pushing them open directly.

Boom!

The doors swung wide.

“Haha, Bo Yan Fairy, I’m not trying to be harsh, but your weakness is far too obvious. If your divine-sense techniques don’t work, you’re as good as beaten,” Xiao Lang crowed, still riding high from his victory. “And Ji Ning, you—you’ve only been cultivating for a little over thirty years. I think you’d better skip the Immortal Fortunes Assembly and save yourself the embarrassment. Practice for another three hundred years, why don’t you?”

“Enough.” Zhuanshui Xiaolou spoke.

Right at that moment, the main doors swung open.

“Hmm?” Zhuanshui Xiaolou, Tiannong Quge, Ji Ning, and the others all turned to look. The thousand-zhang-tall pavilion where they were feasting was designed so that food, wine, servants, and dancers all came and went via other passages, completely silently. It was rare for anyone to simply push open the main entrance.

Shk.

The figure that had pushed through the door, the Floating Cloud Immortal, took a single step and appeared right before Ji Ning. In his hand, a long, bone-white needle appeared. With a flick, the needle shot forth, flying straight at Ji Ning!

Instantly, the surrounding space solidified!

An intense aura of death spread out. The bone-white needle carried terrifying, boundless power as it hurtled toward Ji Ning.

“Bone-Slaying Immortal Needle!” Zhuanshui Xiaolou, Tiannong Quge, Ji Ning, Bo Yan Fairy, and even the triumphant Xiao Lang—everyone’s expression changed drastically.

In that instant, their hearts turned to ice.

They all knew the terror of the Bone-Slaying Immortal Needle. And they could see it flying straight toward Ji Ning.

“It must be the Shaoyan clan sending an assassin! And not just any assassin—a Loose Immortal! Only an Earth Immortal or a Loose Immortal could activate a Bone-Slaying Immortal Needle.” Zhuanshui Xiaolou immediately crushed a Dao-talisman in his hand, a stream of flowing azure light wrapping around his body. “Once that Bone-Slaying Immortal Needle hits, even Ji Ning’s Fiendgod body won’t save him. His soul will be destroyed completely. He’s finished.”

“Dead, dead, dead. It’s a Bone-Slaying Immortal Needle. Even some Loose Immortals die from it. Only the stronger Loose Immortals can withstand it, and even they’ll be injured. Ji Ning is done for.” Xiao Lang, in contrast, felt a sense of schadenfreude. He, too, guessed that the Shaoyan clan had sent the assassin.

At this moment, all four—Zhuanshui Xiaolou, Tiannong Quge, Bo Yan Fairy, and Xiao Lang—understood that Ji Ning was likely finished.

The golden-armored imperial guards that Ji Ning had brought were also horrified. “Protect the Young Master!” But they were fifty men who would need to form their Dao-soldier formation and charge over to save him—a process that still required a sliver of time.

But the Bone-Slaying Immortal Needle flew so fast! It gave no one any time.

No one could save Ji Ning. Everything depended on Ji Ning himself.

“The Shaoyan clan, of course.” Ji Ning understood instantly. At once, he activated his divine ability.

Boom!

Ji Ning’s body instantly expanded, becoming towering and mighty, with arcs of lightning crackling over his form like a colossal vajra. At the same time, four extra arms tore from his torso, and two more heads bloomed from his shoulders. Three Heads, Six Arms!

In his six hands, Ji Ning held three Northsea swords and three Heaven-ranked flying swords—all top-grade treasures left behind by Celestial Immortal Juhua, spoils of war from his past.

“Water-Fire Lotus!” Thanks to the treasures left by Shaoyan Nong, both his Earthfire and Cold-sha had reached the second grade.

A massive Water-Fire Lotus swirled around this three-headed, six-armed fiendgod.

“Starseizing Hand!”

All six of Ji Ning’s hands erupted with terrifying power!

“Domain of the Dao!”

The three-headed, six-armed Ji Ning, wielding six enormous Immortal-grade swords, his body crackling with lightning, his aura flooding the heavens, a lotus circling him, caused the entire pavilion to be engulfed in a world of sword-light. Boundless sword-qi instantly filled the hall, flowing and darting everywhere. The surfaces of the six swords in his hands gleamed with dazzling, golden light—the metallic killing edge of pure gold essence, now made manifest.

“Block!” With his three heads and six arms, Ji Ning swung all six Immortal-class swords simultaneously to intercept the Bone-Slaying Immortal Needle!