Chapter 124: Three Against One - Butterfly Wing Saber

Within the small courtyard, wisps of ghostly, hazy yin energy rose and billowed, shrouding the surroundings. The sounds from outside the courtyard grew fainter and fainter, as if cutting off this space from the rest of the world.

Sun Lingtong was short in stature, resembling a three-year-old child. He had a head of glossy, pitch-black short hair, large and distinct black-and-white eyes, chubby cheeks, and delicate, smooth skin.

He was surrounded in the middle of the courtyard.

Before him and behind him stood two demonic cultivators clad in black; one had triangular eyes, while the other had a hook nose.

To Sun Lingtong's right, a patch of shadow resembling a living creature condensed against one side of the courtyard wall.

Enveloped within the shadows, Han Ming flickered in and out of view.

Her delicate and pretty face was cast in a pale, ash-gray hue, and her expression, twisted by overwhelming resentment and hatred, made her look exceptionally ferocious.

"The situation is unfavorable!" Sun Lingtong thought to himself.

He could distinctly feel his isolation from the surrounding environment, akin to looking at a once-clear world suddenly filtered through a layer of frosted glass.

With this sensation, Sun Lingtong knew instantly that he had fallen into a formation.

The only reason the formation had not manifested outwardly was simply because his opponents were holding it in reserve.

"Three enemies against just me, and all of them are at the Foundation Establishment stage." Sun Lingtong observed the two black-robed demonic cultivators in front and behind, as well as Han Ming in the corner.

His gaze swept swiftly across them, pausing for a moment when it landed on Han Ming.

"Han Ming possesses innate corpse yin qi."

"Most of her body has already transformed into a jiangshi, so ordinary attacks will have no effect on her."

Weighing the situation internally, Sun Lingtong put on an expression of panicked urgency on the surface. "Wait, everyone, let's not be hasty."

"I am a disciple of the Unbounded Gate. You must consider the consequences of making a move against me!"

"If I die at your hands, a mark will surely be left behind. You had better think carefully about the future retaliation from the Unbounded Gate!"

The two black-robed demonic cultivators remained expressionless, while Han Ming gnashed her teeth. "Worried about the Unbounded Gate's retaliation? When you backstabbed me earlier, weren't you afraid of the Soul Devouring Sect's retaliation?"

Sun Lingtong hurriedly replied, "I didn't backstab you; that was never my original intention."

"Who could blame me when that Fringe-Bearded Guest offered such a high price? It was simply impossible to refuse!"

"The black smoke that knocked you out wasn't even cast by me. It was the Fringe-Bearded Guest. The one who imprisoned you and humiliated you was also the Fringe-Bearded Guest. Go after him!"

"We are not enemies. I'm just getting paid to do a job!"

"As long as you pay, I can be your comrade!"

"Comrade?"

Han Ming raised her voice, her face full of mockery and disdain. "Do you take me for a fool who falls for the same trick twice?"

"Still asking for money?"

"Hah, are you blind? Can't you see the current situation?"

"Forget it. Killing you and extracting your soul to search it yields the same result."

"Make your mo—"

"Hold on."

Sun Lingtong shouted, "I know you've set up a formation, but you need to get your priorities straight."

"This is Fire-Persimmon Immortal City."

"The formation you've laid down will inevitably trigger a reaction from the city's grand protective array. How long can you maintain it?"

"If I'm trapped in the formation and unable to leave, I'll definitely fight you to the death!"

"If that happens, won't that old bastard Fringe-Bearded Guest die laughing?"

"Let's sit down and have a proper talk. There's no need to fight to the death!"

Sun Lingtong reasoned with gentle words.

Under normal circumstances, his words might have had some effect.

Right now, however, ever since Meng Kui enacted his strategy of watching the tigers fight from the top of the mountain, the field of atmospheric fortune had already influenced everyone present.

Han Ming let out a sharp cry, "He's just buying time. Strike!"

As she spoke, she formed hand seals with both hands, opened her small mouth, and exhaled a stream of blackish-gray yin wind.

Hand seals, body seals, heart seals!

These were among the primary auxiliary methods for casting spells in the realm of cultivation.

The two black-robed demonic cultivators similarly executed the same spell, exhaling two additional streams of yin wind.

The yin wind appeared slow but moved swiftly, converging from three directions to encircle Sun Lingtong.

Sun Lingtong channeled his mana, and his figure instantly vanished from the spot.

When he reappeared, he was already by the courtyard wall on the left.

The yin winds missed their target and collided, merging into a vortex that pursued Sun Lingtong relentlessly.

This was the advantage of sharing the same master.

All three of them primarily practiced the Soul Devouring Art. Even though each person's mana possessed individual traits and minor differences, their essence remained similar.

This allowed their spells to briefly fuse rather than violently canceling each other out.

Sun Lingtong attempted to leap over the courtyard wall, but suddenly yin energy howled before his eyes, and the ground cracked open, spewing rolling streams of yin wind from the fissures.

The yin wind surged mightily, shooting straight into midair to form a yin wind wall five to six feet thick and two zhang high.

There was more than one such yin wind wall. The very next breath later, the courtyard walls were blown apart, replaced entirely by fiercely howling black-gray yin wind.

"Inside my Yin Wind Barrel-Narrowing Formation, where else do you think you can run, Sun Lingtong?"

The hook-nosed demonic cultivator laughed triumphantly.

With no path forward for Sun Lingtong, a chilling whirlwind bore down from behind.

He cursed softly, extended the five fingers of his left hand, and formed finger incantations to weave a hand seal.

The next moment, he flattened his left palm, conjuring a ball of crackling thunder light in the center of his hand.

Palmy Thunder!

Boom!

With a deafening explosion, the thunder light shattered the yin wind.

Yet the triangular-eyed demonic cultivator's fine-needle magical tool seized the chaos, silently piercing straight toward the back of Sun Lingtong's head.

Had that needle struck home, Sun Lingtong would have either died or suffered severe injuries.

At this critical juncture, a brilliant flash of spiritual light flickered in Sun Lingtong's eyes. He whipped around, locking his gaze firmly onto the fine-needle magical tool.

Since his left hand had just deployed thunder magic and could not be used, he thrust his right hand into his robe and whipped out a handkerchief.

The handkerchief flew forth, wrapping tightly around the fine-needle magical tool.

Sun Lingtong chuckled lightly, leaped forward, and grabbed the handkerchief with his right hand, forcefully trapping the fine-needle inside.

The triangular-eyed demonic cultivator's expression changed drastically.

He frantically poured mana and mental energy into summoning the needle back.

However, once the handkerchief wrapped around it, his connection with the fine-needle plunged by more than half.

By the time Sun Lingtong clutched it firmly, the triangular-eyed demonic cultivator could barely sense the needle at all.

The demonic cultivator's heart shook violently as he recognized the technique: "Unbounded Gate, Treasure-Trapping Art."

Inside the handkerchief, the fine needle staged its final, frantic struggle.

Just as Sun Lingtong was about to succeed, Han Ming pounced forward.

"Let go!"

Though her movements were stiff, Han Ming's speed was astonishing. With her fingers splayed wide, she lunged at Sun Lingtong.

Her fingernails were exceptionally sharp and possessed a dark-purple hue, carving ten razor-sharp light trails through the air as a sweet, sickening stench assaulted the nose.

Sun Lingtong's hair stood on end. He hurriedly released his grip, abandoning both the needle and the handkerchief, and blasted backward.

The needle and handkerchief plummeted to the ground.

Han Ming possessed a naturally ruthless disposition; she had sought vengeance even against Sun Lie in the past.

Having been backstabbed by Sun Lingtong earlier, she despised this Unbounded Gate disciple to the core.

Every single move she made targeted Sun Lingtong's fatal vitals.

Sun Lingtong retreated again and again, not daring to meet her blows head-on.

Relying on her innate endowment, Han Ming had concurrently cultivated the Immortal Corpse Transformation Great Art, essentially making her a body cultivator as well.

What Sun Lingtong practiced were the techniques of the Unbounded Gate. Having successfully reached Foundation Establishment, he focused primarily on his Spiritual Sea.

His foundation in the middle dantian (qi sea) and lower dantian (essence sea) could not compare to his upper dantian.

As Han Ming closed in relentlessly, fully displaying the might of her jiangshi body, she proved both vicious and insidious.

Sun Lingtong dodged left and right, his movements exceptionally agile. Even though his physical treasures were far inferior to Han Ming's, he managed to hold his ground.

The two Soul Devouring Sect black-robed demonic cultivators watching from the sidelines gradually began to see through the dynamic.

"Sun Lingtong's practical combat experience is exceptionally rich."

"Han Ming holds a massive advantage, but she lacks mastery over martial arts. Despite having the upper hand, she cannot secure a decisive victory in a short time!"

"Help her!"

The two communicated via sound transmission and reached a consensus.

The hook-nosed cultivator manipulated the Yin Wind Barrel-Narrowing Formation, causing the yin wind walls to close in.

The triangular-eyed cultivator recalled his fine-needle magical tool, having lost Sun Lingtong's handkerchief in the process, and once again exerted his divine will.

The fine needle flew out, arcing around to flank Han Ming and ambush Sun Lingtong.

Assailed from three sides, Sun Lingtong found himself stretched thin. He was struck by the fine needle several times, bringing his protective spells to the verge of collapse.

He was also grazed by Han Ming's poisonous fingernails, forcing him to swallow medicinal pills to counter the poison instantly.

Finally, as the yin wind walls compressed further, Sun Lingtong successfully cast his spell.

Space-Piercing Art!

He took a large step backward, ripples of space instantly materializing to envelop him from back to front.

After retreating, he vanished into thin air.

The next moment, he reappeared directly behind Han Ming and her companions.

Standing at the other end of the Yin Wind Barrel-Narrowing Formation, he finally managed to put some distance between them.

Sun Lingtong's expression was exceptionally grave.

Han Ming whirled around and sneered, "Sun Lingtong, knowing full well that you're from the Unbounded Gate, how could we not guard against your Space-Piercing Art?"

Sun Lingtong's childish face twisted into a fierce snarl for the first time. "Fine, fine, fine! Since you push me this hard, even if I lose my life, I'll drag all of you down to hell with me!"

Han Ming retorted, "Delusional!"

Channeling her mana, she formed hand seals with both hands and spat out a stream of ghostly-green ghost fire.

Sun Lingtong let out a sharp cry and retrieved a gourd from his robes.

A torrent of freezing water spewed forth from the gourd's mouth.

The ghost fire and freezing water collided, kicking up billowing mists across the sky.

Spiritual light bloomed in Sun Lingtong's eyes, easily piercing through the mist. Ignoring Han Ming, he charged directly toward the hook-nosed cultivator.

The hook-nosed cultivator was the one maintaining the formation; once he was killed, Sun Lingtong stood a chance of breaking the spell and escaping his predicament.

However, the three Soul Devouring Sect members had long guarded against this tactic. The hook-nosed cultivator retreated immediately, melting into the yin wind.

The triangular-eyed cultivator and Han Ming immediately pursued, engaging Sun Lingtong in a flurry of chaotic combat.

Discarding his previous strategy of evasion, Sun Lingtong ceased holding back his mana and spiritual essence, frequently casting spells and hurling various magical tools.

For a time, the two sides fought to an even match.

"This Sun Lingtong sure has endless trinkets," the hook-nosed cultivator muttered as he manipulated the formation to shatter a dart magical tool.

"People from the Unbounded Gate have sticky fingers. Having accumulated wealth in the black market for so many years, all these magical tools were definitely stolen," the triangular-eyed cultivator remarked.

Han Ming snapped impatiently, "Kill Sun Lingtong quickly. Once the battle is over, you'll have plenty of time to chat."

The hook-nosed cultivator scoffed coldly, "Han Ming, what kind of attitude is that? We're the ones who saved you!"

The triangular-eyed cultivator added, "Without us, you'd still be tied up in chains! This is your personal enemy, and helping you to this extent is already more than enough!"

Both the hook-nosed and triangular-eyed cultivators consciously held back their strength.

Through Sun Lingtong's fierce counterattacks, both black-robed demonic cultivators had developed a lingering sense of caution.

They preferred to let Han Ming take the vanguard and wear Sun Lingtong down further.

If they could trigger one or two of his trump cards onto Han Ming, wouldn't the two black-robed men be even safer?

Demonic cultivators excelled at solo combat and preferred it as well.

The defining characteristic of demonic arts was the ability to treat fellow cultivators of the same path as cultivation resources.

From this perspective, demonic sect martial brothers shared a strong underlying motive to turn on each other.

After jointly besieging Sun Lingtong for a brief moment, internal strife inevitably erupted among the trio from the Soul Devouring Sect.

The pressure plummeting instantly.

Sun Lingtong felt the change with crystal clarity.

This granted him a precious window to catch his breath.

A sharp gleam flashed in his eyes, and he reverted his combat style back to evasion, only occasionally triggering spells or artifacts to harass Han Ming or strike at the yin energy walls.

Defend for long enough, and a flaw is bound to appear!

Han Ming spat forth ghost fire, chilling Sun Lingtong to the bone and scorching his black hair to an ashen white.

Her fingernails remained exceptionally sharp, laced with corpse poison.

Sun Lingtong's entire body was riddled with numerous wounds.

The flesh around the injuries rotted away, emitting waves of foul corpse stench.

Han Ming's Soul-Capture Shuttle was what Sun Lingtong feared the most; he would rather take direct hits from other artifacts than allow the shuttle to come within close range.

"Hahaha, hahaha!"

"Sun Lingtong, when you framed me back then, did you ever imagine this day?"

"I will capture and kill you, extract your soul, and let you experience the soul tortures of our Soul Devouring Sect."

Han Ming's eyes were bloodshot. Vengeance brought her a sense of incomparable bliss, plunging her into a state of near-madness and excitement.

Sun Lingtong was forced back into a corner.

"Die!"

Han Ming shrieked, driving her mana to its absolute limit. The ghost fire flared violently, condensing into a serpentine monster of yin fire that opened its maw to swallow Sun Lingtong whole.

At this life-or-death juncture, Sun Lingtong suddenly let out a cunning chuckle.

"You want me dead?"

"Heh heh, the three of you are still far too naive!"

The next moment, his figure vanished abruptly!

"It's the Space-Piercing Art again!"

The triangular-eyed cultivator muttered in surprise.

"No matter, he's still trapped inside my Yin Wind Barrel-Narrowing Formation."

"Not good—"

The hook-nosed cultivator's expression suddenly underwent a drastic change.

The raging, howling yin winds abruptly ceased, and the storm walls collapsed with a resounding crash.

Since the hook-nosed cultivator had been maintaining the formation the entire time, the sudden collapse instantly subjected him to a terrifying backlash.

He coughed up a mouthful of blood, collapsed on the spot, and passed out cold.

"What's going on?"

Before the triangular-eyed cultivator could finish his exclamation of shock, Sun Lingtong flashed into existence directly behind him.

Screech! Screech!

A gleaming dagger, razor-sharp, effortlessly pierced through the triangular-eyed cultivator's lower back.

Following that, the dagger erupted with dazzling azure electric currents, fiercely ravaging the triangular-eyed cultivator's internal organs.

The triangular-eyed cultivator shuddered violently, resembling someone suffering from an epileptic seizure.

In the span of just a few blinks, he rolled his eyes back, tilted his head up, and exhaled a puff of black smoke from his throat.

Thud...

He too collapsed to the ground, unconscious!

"Only you are left!"

Discarding his previous battered demeanor, Sun Lingtong's eyes blazed with brilliant light, brimming with fighting spirit.

Han Ming flew into a rage. "Getting rid of those two dead weights changes nothing!"

With that, she lunged at Sun Lingtong.

Sun Lingtong took a deep breath, gripping a dagger magical tool in each hand as he continuously poured mana into them.

The blade lights flickered incessantly, fluttering outward like the wings of a butterfly.

The butterfly-like blade lights were dazzling, brilliant, and as exquisite as a painting, their mana aura restrained to the absolute limit.

This was Sun Lingtong's self-created blade technique—Butterfly Wing Blades.

The swarm of blade-butterflies encircled Han Ming completely.

Enveloped in howling yin winds and spitting ghost fire, Han Ming threw punches and kicks in an all-out assault, yet every single attack hit empty air.

The butterfly blade lights were agile to the extreme. Some gently grazed her skin, while others passed straight through her limbs, flashing out from behind her.

From the formation of the butterfly swarm to their attack and eventual dissipation, it took at most five breaths.

Han Ming stood frozen in place, not moving an inch.

Her eyes were wide open, filled with utter disbelief.

"Th-this is your true strength?" she forced the words out.

Scarcely had her voice faded when her head detached from her neck. Her torso was sliced diagonally at the waist, and the upper half crashed heavily onto the ground.

As she collapsed, her limbs severed as well, scattering across the floor.

Blood spurted freely, rapidly pooling into a crimson lake around Han Ming's corpse.