Cultivation Retirement Plan (BL)

29. Sword and Shield

The summer leaves of the surrounding trees rustled with anxious whispers in the night. Only the light from the red lanterns illuminated the small courtyard, casting a hazy ring of yellow in front of the ancestral hall. The figure kneeling on top of the roof was dressed in black with head bowed, making it hard to see his features. But his moves were distinctive enough.

"Three Branches Sword Style," Mo Yixuan muttered to himself.

Thanks to his two months of leisure on Mt. Jingting, he had finally gotten time to read up on the cultivation world and some of its history. The story went that a group of renegade sword fanatics had broken away from their various sects to pursue the path of sword Dao together, ultimately establishing the Iridescent Radiance Sect in the western region of the Middle Realms. While other sects chased heavenly wisdom or paths to immortality, the IRS was content to watch and reign over the present world. In that way, their secular mindset was very similar to Star Pavilion's Four Peaks Alliance.

Their Three Branches Sword Style focused on the principle of Law and its practical applications in the battlefield. Each of the branches were respectively named Ruler, Executor, and Judge. Ruler created new laws that could take immediate effect in a fight, Executor upheld and maintained current rules, and Judge possessed the power to evaluate and veto pre-existing scenarios.

Such as Nan Wuyue's Extended Net formation.

Mo Yixuan's palm moved to steady his disciple by the shoulder as he caught his breath. They had agreed beforehand to let Nan Wuyue set up the array that could trap the ghost, firstly because it was good training, secondly so Mo Yixuan could be free to fight off any resistance. It had been smooth sailing until this interloper barged into the scene. His cultivation level was obviously high enough to injure Nan Wuyue; fortunately, the array drew on its own structure and mysteries to supplement its strength, thus managing to survive the first attack instead of dissipating entirely.

With the array interrupted mid-cast, Nan Wuyue had to gather his qi again to take control of it and guide it towards the ground. But the sword currently stabbed into the Extended Net was disrupting the normal flow of energy, making it impossible for him to reclaim the web without risking damage. Within it, the ghost girl continued to pray while the mass of demonic energy pulsed as a cloud around her, watching and waiting.

"Shizun," Nan Wuyue managed with some effort, "Get him...off."

Mo Yixuan raised his voice at the man overhead. "These are Su Clan grounds."

"So what are you doing here?" the stranger retorted. "Get lost."

Mo Yixuan's eyes narrowed. "If you're here to help Lady Bai, then we're on the same side."

"Help? With an array like this, you're obviously trying to send that ghost to the Netherworld," the stranger spat. "Don't even think about it."

"We're not—" Mo Yixuan tried to explain, but the other only stabbed his sword deeper into the net of stars, making its form dim and weaken.

In the cultivation world, there were two usual ways of dealing with threats: talking them down or beating them up. Obviously, their first option wasn't working out so well.

Tsk.

Abruptly, Mo Yixuan took to the skies and slashed towards the man on the roof, who let go of his sword to backflip out of the way. The peak lord dove towards the fleeing figure, only to swerve to one side as a metal chain came flying at his face.

A second weapon?

Mo Yixuan swiped at the chain with a sharp clang that sent the metal links lashing around the body of his blade. Expecting this, he tugged back harshly to drag its owner towards him, but the man resisted by the balls of his feet and growled out a second command.