Chapter 77 – Hold On!

  The wind screamed past them as Jun De and Shen Ruolan fell through the night sky. The burning wreck of the flying ship was a streak of flame as whatever kept it afloat failed, and it dropped like a stone in the distance.

  Shen Ruolan clung tightly to him, her long hair streaming like silk behind them while her face was pressed against his chest.

  Jun De’s heart pounded, and he was aware that anyone capable of helping them was currently fighting for their lives above. If he wanted to survive and protect Shen Ruolan, it was up to him.

  ‘Now.’

  Jun De cycled his Qi, drawing it smoothly from his Dantian and letting it flow through his meridians like a river of gold fire.

  He waved his hand and summoned the ‘Azure Kingfishers’ from his storage bag. The three sleek, slightly curved flying swords that he had purchased from the Yunlai City marketplace soared around him like the birds they had been named for.

  With a burst of spiritual energy, the first sword shot out beneath them. Jun De twisted in midair and placed his feet atop it. He angled his Qi to channel control and balance, slowing their descent into a gliding arc.

  The sword shuddered under the weight of two people, and Jun De’s Qi was struggling to hold the artifact in place. A Qi Condensation cultivator just didn’t possess the strength to fly under their own power, and Jun De was further burdened by Shen Ruolan.

  When the spiritual energy in the first sword began to flicker and fail, he sent out the second. Jun De shifted his weight and gracefully leapt onto it, timing his jump perfectly just as the first sword lost all power to slow his momentum.

  Landing on the second sword, their descent slowed once again. They weren’t flying, but now they weren’t plummeting toward the earth either.

  Shen Rulan’s breath caught as she realized what he was doing. Her wide eyes that had been filled with fear now shone with admiration.

  “You’re rotating your swords to descend! That takes incredible control, Jun De.” She murmured, and her voice was barely audible over the wind.

  Jun De didn’t respond; instead, he kept his focus entirely on manipulating his Qi to preserve enough of his strength for a safe landing. As the second sword’s Qi dimmed, he summoned the third and leapt again, cushioning the last portion of their fall to convert it into a smooth glide.

  They had descended far enough now that the shapeless blob of darkness that was the ground now had some detail from the lights above. They were gliding over a forest, the canopy a few hundred feet below them.

  Ruolan’s arms tightened around him, and she pressed her body even closer to Jun De. She was soft and warm against his chest, and he struggled not to become distracted.

  She looked up at him, her face flushed. Her heart was racing, and she was aware of how intimate they were standing together on the flying sword.

  ‘I’ve never been this close to a man before.’ Shen Ruolan thought, and her mind was filled with images of the pair of them together.

  Jun De’s expression remained calm as he stared at the ground that was rapidly approaching. He was searching for a place to land when he felt a sudden sense of extreme danger.

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  “Hold on!” Jun De shouted, and both his arms squeezed Shen Ruolan even tighter to him as he spun around to look at the sky above.

  He saw his death rapidly approaching.

  High above the battlefield, the sky was lit with explosions as Han Zhengwu and Xun Beiming fought. The City Lord had the upper hand as his sword clashed with Xun Beiming’s black spear again and again.

  Xun Beiming had been able to regain some ground when he destroyed the City Lord’s flying ship, using the distraction to strike a blow against Han Zhengwu that eliminated some of the advantage the more experienced cultivator possessed.

  But it wasn’t enough to turn the tide.

  The demonic cultivator was seeking any advantage, and he found it immediately. Han Zhengwu’s attention was partially on a pair of Qi Condensation cultivators that were gliding toward the ground on a trio of flying swords.

  When Xun Beiming realized that this pair of young people had City Lord Han’s interest, his twisted smile grew wider.

  “Let’s test that resolve of yours, Han Zhengwu.” He cackled madly.

  The black spear spun in his hand, warping the space around him. He hurled it with all the power he possessed, and it shrieked downward, aimed directly at the two figures clinging tightly to each other below.

  Han Zhengwu knew immediately what Xun Beiming was attempting to do, but he couldn’t allow his granddaughter to be harmed. He vanished immediately, reappearing between the spear and its target.

  Han Zhengwu struck out with his sword, using all of his Qi to stop the attack. The moment the two weapons collided, a terrible sound echoed across the sky. It was as if thousands of souls were screaming in agony.

  Han Zhengwu staggered backward in mid-air, blood bursting from his nose and lips. The sheer force of the impact sent him reeling, and although he deflected some of the spear’s momentum, he couldn’t fully stop it.

  The spear wrenched free with a keening wail and continued downwards. The darkness around it was significantly reduced, and it was falling far slower than it had been, but it still howled toward the earth like a falling star, burning with malevolence.

  Jun De looked upwards, and his eyes narrowed as he felt the oncoming approach of death. Even weakened, the strike held far more power than a Qi Condensation Cultivator could endure.

  He only had seconds to react, and Shen Ruolan was in his arms.

  “Jun De!” Shen Ruolan cried as Jun De protected her with his body.

  Jun De drew the talisman that Elder Mu had given him from his storage bag.

  It was inscribed with dense golden script, and it was sealed with her own Core Formation Qi. A faint crack marred its surface from its past use in the Hollow Stream Sect, but Jun De hoped it would be enough to protect them against the spear.

  He channelled his Qi and tossed the talisman forward. It ignited with a blinding radiance, and pale blue light expanded outward like a protective sun to wrap around them. The inscription flared as the talisman met the oncoming spear.

  A thunderous crack exploded through the air as they collided.

  The spear struck the light, and black Qi met pale blue as the earth shook and a screech erupted, splitting the sky.

  For a heartbeat, the talisman held as its radiance kept the demonic weapon at bay. But the crack in the surface of the talisman deepened, and the entire spiritual artifact glowed a bright red for an instant before the light shattered with a deafening snap.

  The spear, drained of its momentum and power, trembled as its energy flickered.

  Xun Beiming narrowed his eyes at the unexpected turn of events and recalled the weapon with a sharp gesture. The spear reversed direction with a shriek and vanished upwards to reach him in a moment.

  For Jun De, he barely had a moment of relief at seeing the talisman succeed before a surge of demonic Qi and spiritual force erupted from the clash. The shockwave struck Jun De like a hammer. Pain surged through him as his meridians twisted, his Qi spiralled out of control, and blood burst from his lips.

  The Azure Kingfishers lost all power, and their light flickered and was snuffed out.

  Jun De wrapped Shen Ruolan in as much of his body as possible, turning his back toward the earth to shield her as they plummeted once more toward the ground. He heard Shen Ruolan cry out, and he felt her hands gripping his robes in desperation.

  Trees rushed up to meet them. Jun De was aware of the sound of branches cracking, and he could feel the impact as they smashed through the forest canopy.

  Jun De bore the brunt of every blow, his back and shoulders slamming into the trees again and again before they finally struck the ground with a jarring, bone-rattling impact.

  He lay still, with his arms still around Shen Ruolan as his vision dimmed. He felt the faint warmth of her pressed against him, and he thought he heard her calling his name. But, above it all, was an agony so intense that nothing else existed apart from it.

  Then, there was darkness and the blessed relief from the pain.