Jiang Tong knew his intervention would not last long.
Ignoring the endless swarm of Demonic Cultivators surrounding them, he could hardly defeat Shen Dingyi alone; at most, he could rely on his Soul Power to stall for a moment. Once his Soul Power was exhausted, he would die, and his young disciple would die as well.
The only solution was for Jiang Yueliu to take the initiative to trigger the Sword Tribulation, completely transforming her Sword Embryo into a Sword Heart.
The Heavenly Dao’s Sword Tribulation fell indiscriminately. Regardless of one’s realm, if one were to be hit by several strikes while unprepared, they would be severely injured. It was truly a narrow escape from death.
“It is fine; I am here.”
Jiang Tong reached back and gently grasped the young girl’s small hand.
‘It will be alright,’ he thought. He was willing to be her final guardian.
Jiang Yueliu looked up at the sky, where black clouds mingled with heavy snow. In a daze, she seemed to see the lakeshore in the coming year, with willow catkins flying in the air. It should be just as beautiful as the scene before her eyes.
‘Master… Does this count as us watching the willows together?’
*Boom — !*
Thunder roared like a pale dragon, churning within the black clouds.
Shen Dingyi had an ominous premonition. The moment the thunder dragon surged, he waved his robes, unable to restrain himself from taking action. Wisps of black mist swept forward, carrying wails and sobs, while the surrounding Demonic Cultivators launched a coordinated attack.
With a surge of majestic Soul Power, Jiang Tong waved his hand and blocked all the incoming attacks. His soul body trembled continuously, visibly thinning to the naked eye. Yet, Jiang Tong did not retreat a single step.
“Courting death!” Shen Dingyi’s expression turned cold. “What good does protecting a Sword Embryo do for a soul like you? I will see how long you can last!”
Jiang Tong stood upright, his Soul Power churning around him as he calmly replied, “Then let us try.”
*Boom — !*
The thunder dragon roared, twisting and deforming. Eventually, within the pitch-black clouds, it formed sharp, purple lightning swords.
After several exchanges with Jiang Tong, Shen Dingyi looked at the increasingly transparent soul body. He should have been happy, but he could not find it in himself to be so. When he finally looked up, his scalp suddenly tingled, and a crazy theory began to take shape.
“Retreat!”
Before Shen Dingyi could think further, he let out a great shout, intending to turn and flee.
‘Crazy… This is truly insane.’
The shape of that purple lightning… there was no mistake; it was the Sword Tribulation recorded in the ancient records! This woman was actually forcing the Sword Tribulation upon herself. Was she not afraid of dying here?
Furthermore, lightning was the bane of souls, yet this soul stood motionless. Was he not afraid? Why would he not run? Was he truly willing to endure the pain of soul-burning for this woman?
Why?
Shen Dingyi could not understand. He had not considered the possibility of a Sword Tribulation at all until now, and fear finally set in. Within the range of the Sword Tribulation, even he would struggle to survive.
“Freeze.”
Shen Dingyi’s body halted just as he was about to fly away, trapped by a powerful, invisible Soul Power.
Looking back, he saw that Jiang Tong’s body had already become semi-transparent.
“Since you are here, then stay,” Jiang Tong said, his voice devoid of joy or sorrow. He bound Shen Dingyi at a great cost to ensure that the man could not escape.
“Master!”
Tears overflowed from the corners of Jiang Yueliu’s eyes. Her heart throbbed with pain; in the heavy snow, that blurred figure seemed as though it would disappear at any moment.
“Do not come over…” Jiang Tong’s back was toward her, and his soul body trembled slightly. “Be good, and focus on your tribulation…”
Hearing this, Jiang Yueliu bit her lip, wiped away her tears, and looked toward the impending Sword Tribulation. Her gaze grew firm as she gripped her longsword tightly. At this moment, anything else was useless. Only by surviving the Sword Tribulation and becoming strong could Jiang Tong have a chance at life.
*Boom!*
Having finished gathering its power, the first strike of the Sword Tribulation fell. Three purple lightning swords pierced through the sky, stabbing toward the young girl’s small figure.
Jiang Yueliu gritted her teeth and met the attack, her mind recalling the various sword techniques Jiang Tong had taught her.
‘Master, I am… a Sword Dao expert now.’
A flash of sword light erupted, and the girl spat out a mouthful of blood, her body sent flying. She stabbed her sword into the snow, forcefully stopping her backward momentum. She stood up silently and looked toward the sky.
Jiang Tong and Shen Dingyi were each struck by a bolt of the Thunder Tribulation. Jiang Tong swayed like a leaf in the rain; his soul body twisted for a moment under the strike, but it quickly returned to normal. His eyes remained fixed on his disciple.
Shen Dingyi glared at Jiang Tong with hatred. He had no time for anything else and put all his effort into resisting the Sword Tribulation.
The Thunder Tribulation faced by those in the Body Integration Stage was terrifying. Blood seeped from the corners of Shen Dingyi’s mouth. His first priority after defending was to activate a secret technique, attempting to forcibly break the Soul-Fixing Technique. But no matter how he tried, he failed.
The surrounding Demonic Cultivators who had not retreated in time were not so lucky; most were struck down, their bodies and souls destroyed. Within several miles, the black clouds were like mountains, filled with lightning and thunder.
*Rumble!*
The second strike of the Sword Tribulation crashed down violently toward Jiang Yueliu. This time, there were five purple lightning swords.
Large charred wounds appeared on Jiang Yueliu’s body, and cracks spread across her skin, yet she showed no fear. She raised her head, held her sword, and faced the destructive lightning. In her mind were the insights regarding the Sword Dao that Jiang Tong had shared with her.
The third, fourth, and fifth strikes of the Thunder Tribulation fell in rapid succession.
‘Master, I can certainly do this…’
Jiang Yueliu was blown back again and again, but she stood up each time. There was no longer a patch of intact skin on her body. Blood soaked the snow beneath her feet; it was impossible to tell if the falling flakes were snow or splattered blood. She glared at the heavens with no intention of backing down. Any weakness now would only fail her Master’s painstaking efforts.
‘Jiang Tong… I must make sure Jiang Tong lives!’
Within her sight was only red snow—snow stained by the blood of Demonic Cultivators until it was red to the point of turning black.
Jiang Tong’s soul body cracked several times, but he tenaciously pulled himself back together. The trend toward transparency became more severe.
Shen Dingyi was in a wretched state. Blood flowed from his nose and mouth as he used every life-saving method at his disposal, desperately seeking to survive the Sword Tribulation. He nearly broke the Soul-Fixing Technique several times, but at the critical moment, the Thunder Tribulation arrived as scheduled, forcing him to devote his entire being to resisting it.
Jiang Tong stared at Shen Dingyi indifferently. Once he let the man go, Shen Dingyi would undoubtedly return to kill them once the tribulation ended. Even if he died, he would keep Shen Dingyi here.
The sixth strike of the Sword Tribulation fell.
‘Strike her dead! Strike her dead!’
A voice screamed in the depths of Shen Dingyi’s heart. If she died, the Thunder Tribulation would stop, and he could focus on breaking the Soul-Fixing Technique before erasing this eyesore of a soul!
Jiang Yueliu was sent flying and lay prostrate on the snow, motionless. Shen Dingyi resisted the incoming lightning and spat out a mouthful of blood, his heart filled with joy.
However, he saw the girl bracing herself and slowly standing up, blood dripping from her entire body. Her Sword Embryo, however, had already begun to slowly transform amidst the tempering of the lightning.
‘She still has strength left?!’
Shen Dingyi’s pupils constricted. Looking at the seventh strike of the Thunder Tribulation brewing in the sky, he ignored everything else and turned to Jiang Tong.
“Fellow daoist, I do not know what you have suffered. Did this woman promise you some benefit? Come to my Saint Soul Sect! Within three years — no, one year — my Saint Soul Sect can find a perfect body for you!”
Shen Dingyi gritted his teeth, attempting to seek peace with this soul while feeling secret regret. He had thought that coming to the Shangyuan Sect would be an absolute massacre and that the Sword Embryo would be his. He never expected to stumble at the hands of a mere soul. If this seventh strike fell, it would damage his foundation. Once his foundation was injured, his path of cultivation would be hindered at every step. Shen Dingyi did not want to see such an outcome.
Jiang Tong looked at his young disciple, whose breath was as thin as a thread, and suddenly smiled with relief.
The thunder dragon was rolling and boiling as more and more lightning swords condensed. The dark sky was completely illuminated, looking like daytime snow. She probably could not endure the next strike.
Jiang Tong said slowly, “There is no need.”
“Why?” Shen Dingyi could not understand, his expression like that of a madman. “You fool! I am the Sect Leader of the Saint Soul Sect! I can give you conditions you cannot even imagine! Why would you die here for a woman?!”
He was afraid — afraid of an unstable foundation, losing his status, and even more afraid of dying here.
“For no particular reason.” Jiang Tong looked at the young girl, his gaze turning soft. “Simply because… she is my only disciple.”
‘Young disciple… No.’
‘Master.’
‘I have come back to find you.’