This Sword Cultivator is Somewhat Dependable

Chapter 121 Foundation Establishment Mid-Stage

Reflecting back on that day, the normally straightforward Xu Hao made a clear and firm promise in front of him, declaring that after this matter was settled, he would take Su Shu as his Dao Companion.

This rugged man showed rare delicacy, purchasing the Restriction Breaker that Su Shu had been longing for without her knowledge.

He even went so far as to record the words he was too shy to say in person, using a Sound Sealing Spell, waiting for the day he and Su Shu would become Dao Companions to give it along with the Restriction Breaker to her.

But now, they were separated by life and death.

Looking at the dispirited Su Shu, Lu Qingshan could only sigh softly in his heart.

Xu Hao's body, when he chose to sacrifice himself to block the strike from True Person Yushi, was burned to char by the furious True Person Yushi's black flame, unrecognizable in its features.

Yet on his charred skin, one could still see the fresh crimson flesh underneath, wounds caused by the explosion of the lightning beads.

Droplets of blood continued to seep from the wounds, scattering on the ground, then swiftly being devoured by the Asura Blood Formation, disappearing without a trace, much like Xu Hao's life.

Xu Hao's burly body, due to the devouring of his essence blood, gradually withered away.

...

Cough, cough!

Lu Qingshan covered his mouth and gave a light cough twice, unfolding his hand to reveal a crimson palm.

Severe burning pain was being transmitted from within his body's meridians, causing Lu Qingshan's complexion to turn quite unsightly; he hurriedly took out a Healing Pill to consume, and only then did the pure potency of the medicine provide some relief.

This time, in order to kill this mysteriously appearing Golden Core Cultivator, the losses were heavy indeed.

Firstly, the Crying Soul Sword that Lu Qingshan used as a convenient tool shattered; furthermore, his meridians had incurred great damage from the overload of channeling Spiritual Power, and it would require a long period of rest to recover.

And the lightning beads, which Lu Qingshan had reserved for a long time hoping to use as his most powerful trump card, were also completely consumed in one go.

The most painful loss of all, however, was that half of the Tiger Squad members perished here after this battle.

But even after paying such a heavy price, Lu Qingshan still felt a little lucky in his heart for being able to kill a Golden Core Cultivator.

Had it not been for everyone being in a tight, enclosed stone chamber, which allowed them to fully exploit the power of the lightning beads.

Had it not been for the King of West Mice just happening to awaken today, the sneakiness of its ability setting up the lightning beads silently.

Had it not been for True Person Yushi showing a slight lapse in concentration due to overconfidence, giving him a chance to seize the opportunity and to gain the time needed for the detonation of the lightning beads.

If any of these three conditions had been missing, even if he had a hundred more lightning beads, the one dying would not have been True Person Yushi, but them.

That is the might of a Golden Core Cultivator.

Still lacking in strength.

Lu Qingshan, having survived the calamity, was filled with mixed feelings, knowing that only with substantial strength could there be a margin for error, unlike now, where any unforeseen event could mean a difference between life and death.

Xiao Zhi was still moving rubble in the ruins, searching for something over and over.

He was looking for the bodies of Li Zu and Zhong Ming.

As for the Formation Point, after the bombardment of the lightning beads, it was already reduced to dust, much to the King of West Mice's chagrin.

"You go and scout around, if there's any situation, notify me immediately," Lu Qingshan instructed the King of West Mice.

Although he knew that staying here was not wise at this time, Lu Qingshan did not stop Xiao Zhi's actions.

If he were the one to die today, Xiao Zhi would definitely do the same as now, striving to retrieve his body.

Therefore, he had no reason to stop him.

However, at this moment, neither of the three were in good condition; he himself felt a suffocating anger in his chest, so the task of staying alert naturally had to be handed over to the King of West Mice, the one without any emotional fluctuations.

The joys and sorrows of people are inherently isolated from each other. Apart from Lu Qingshan, the King of West Mice was not close with the others; therefore, the death of Xu Hao and the two others indeed had no reason to be sad for it.

Let alone considering the racial differences, as a Demon Beast, the King of West Mice had seen the horrifying scenes of various monsters devouring humans in Zhenjiang City, and unlike the heavy hearts of the Tiger Squad cultivators, it had always felt nothing.

The King of West Mice nodded obediently, about to move, when suddenly, a fierce roar pierced through the air.

Hiss!

A dark figure, accompanied by a massive emerald fireball, shot towards the soul-lost Su Shu.

The air was thick with a murderous aura.

Green Cang Wolf!

It had trailed them for a long time, not daring to draw close, but upon hearing the booming noise from the thunder bead explosion, the Green Cang Wolf cautiously approached and witnessed the scene before it.

For some unknown reason, Tiger Squad, which initially had six members, was now down to three.

One stood still as if he'd lost his soul, another was frantically busy among the ruins, his mind unsettled, and the sword cultivator, who failed to ambush them, had disordered breathing, clearly suffering significant injuries.

Realizing the situation, the Green Cang Wolf immediately lashed out.

Wolves, vengeful by nature, have great patience. It finally had its chance for revenge.

Whoosh!

Like slicing through a breeze, a flying sword shot through the air at lightning speed, unleashing a chilling might that dominated the sky and earth.

Pop!

The flying sword cleaved straight through the exploding green fireball, scattering it apart.

The momentum of the flying sword, unfazed by the fireball, sliced into the body of the Green Cang Wolf as it leapt into mid-air, sending a massive shock from the sword and flinging the beast away.

A large gash appeared on the neck of the Green Cang Wolf, from which fresh red blood gushed out.

The fatally attacked Green Cang Wolf tried to unleash an angry roar but couldn't. The severe pain from deep within its throat mercilessly stifled its cries.

The Green Cang Wolf glared at Lu Qingshan, who managed the flying sword by harnessing spiritual power, blood trickling from the corners of his mouth, its ferocious eyes filled with confusion and unwillingness to concede.

It hadn't been wrong; the sword cultivator was indeed seriously injured. But how could he still launch such a fierce attack?

The Green Cang Wolf couldn't figure it out.

But it no longer had the chance to ponder, for blood gushed from its neck wound ceaselessly. The massive loss of blood made its vision darken, its body convulsed once, its legs gave way, and it fell lifeless onto the ground.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh!

The dawn's light flickered as the Peach Wood Sword danced in the air, leaving trailing shadows, its presence astonishing.

"A beast trying to ambush like a human? Merely adds to the ridicule." Watching the massive form of the Green Cang Wolf fall, Lu Qingshan let out a cold snort and retracted the Peach Wood Sword.

…

"[Returning Ruins Scripture] upgraded to lv4, spiritual power value +100!"

...

"[Returning Ruins Scripture] upgraded to lv7, spiritual power value +100!"

"Your rank has been raised to the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment, divine sense +10!"

The moment the Green Cang Wolf sprang into action, Lu Qingshan allocated all the substantial experience gained from killing the Golden Core Cultivator into the Returning Ruins Scripture, instantly raising the level of the cultivation technique by four.

The Foundation Establishment stage cultivation technique has a total of twenty levels, aligning with the four sub-stages of Foundation Establishment: the initial stage, mid-stage, late stage, and perfection.

With the perfection as the final two levels, each sub-stage is marked by six levels. Lv7 in Returning Ruins Scripture allowed Lu Qingshan to advance his rank to the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment.

The promotion of rank first brought about an increase in divine sense, doubling his initial ten points immediately.

Beyond that, as his cultivation steadily improved, the power of his Taoist-level cultivation technique began to unfold.

For each level the Returning Ruins Scripture ascended, the increment of spiritual power was almost double that of ordinary cultivation techniques.

Though Lu Qingshan had only just broken through to the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment, the depth of his spiritual power was already comparable to a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.

In terms of divine sense, Lu Qingshan was weaker than a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. However, in the purity of spiritual power, due to the Returning Ruins Scripture, Lu Qingshan was even more superior.

Overall, merely discussing cultivation, he who had just entered the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment was now no different from a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.

In such a situation, the potency of the Flying Sword Technique at lv10, when unleashed by him, goes without saying.

That a sword strike would fell the unguarded Green Cang Wolf came as no surprise.