Chapter 40 Five Years

  Flight is only possible for scattered immortals, but it's not absolute. Cultivators in the Refining Qi realm can also fly if they obtain a flying sword, although the nature of their flight is completely different from that of scattered immortals, and their speed is far inferior to that of scattered immortals.

  Mentioning flying swords, it's inevitable to talk about the rank of magical artifacts.

  Fa Bao is something that cultivators refine and create to enhance their own strength. In the previous life, in the world where Ding Yan cultivated, Fa Bao was divided into three levels: Fa Bao, Ling Bao, and Xian Bao. Among these three ranks, there were five stages: Lower, Middle, Upper, Extreme, and Ultimate.

  In general, the lower-grade artifacts are the most common, because the refinement of lower-grade artifacts has no cultivation restrictions. As long as one can find the materials and add some time to refine them with the help of yuan force, they can be refined. As for middle-grade artifacts, they are much rarer, because only scattered immortals who have passed through the mortal tribulation can refine them. Therefore, in the sects, those who possess middle-grade artifacts are basically all high-ranking elders.

  In the above-mentioned top-grade spiritual treasures, they are even more scarce. Although the same loose immortals can refine them, the requirements for materials are extremely strict, and the refining time is also extremely long. Generally speaking, the number of top-grade spiritual treasures in a sect is extremely small, and only those with great power will have a large number of top-grade spiritual treasures. As for the extreme-grade and ultimate-grade spiritual treasures, they have already gone beyond the scope of ordinary loose immortals' refining abilities, and only those old monsters who have passed through the first trial of loose immortal can refine them.

  The skull that Ding Yan had obtained not long ago, logically speaking, the fluctuation of the law on it was extremely weak and should be at the level of a low-grade artifact. However, for some reason, Ding Yan always felt that this artifact was somewhat unusual and shouldn't be as simple as an ordinary low-grade artifact.

  Two days later.

  The army of Chu entered the range of Yishui Town.

  An army on the march is like a devouring locust, leaving nothing but desolation and ruin in its wake.

  "Let's go..."

  Ding Yan looked at the smoke rising from Yishui Town and took Ding Chen with him, turning around to follow the official road, gradually moving further away...

  Old Yang has died.

  The day before the Chu army arrived.

  After burying the old man, Ding Yan took Ding Chen with him and left this city that was already empty of people.

  ......

  Ding Yan took Ding Chen, who was only five years old, on a westward journey, gradually leaving Yishui Town further and further behind. Along the way, they saw too many injustices, with famine and plague rampant everywhere, not to mention roaming bandits and cruel officials and merchants.

  No pure land anywhere!

  At the same time, Zhao's second large army rushed to the front line again and confronted the Chu army. This lasted for five years...

  Five years later, Ding Chen was ten years old, and Ding Yan's appearance had also gradually entered a middle-aged state, with a black long beard under his forehead.

  The Zhao army was defeated again.

  Large tracts of cities fell again, and Zhao's defense line retreated again.

  Two days later, Ding Yan arrived at Ning Mountain City. This city was the twenty-first city that the uncle and nephew had been to in these years. Due to wartime curfew, all the city gates were sealed off, and many refugees who escaped here were isolated outside the city. On the city wall, soldiers wearing armor patrolled back and forth.

  "Damn you corrupt officials! Don't you have any regard for the common people? Are they not citizens of Zhao?" a burly man with a queue shouted from beneath the city wall.

  This man carries a long knife on his back, with bulging temples, and at a glance, it is clear that he is a master of external martial arts.

  "The general has given the order, but we didn't expect Chu's spies to infiltrate the city. Seal off the city gates! Anyone who dares to riot will be executed on the spot!" As he spoke, a deputy general-like officer from Zhao took down a longbow.

  He shot an arrow straight at the burly man with a queue who was about to speak.

  Han was shocked and immediately rolled on the ground, pulling out a long knife from behind his back, intending to knock open the long spear.

  Buzz!!

  The wind whistled, and it was not hard to see the power of this arrow.

  The burly man let out a loud roar and his arm muscles bulged as he charged forward, showing no signs of retreat.

  Tungsten!

  Sparks flew everywhere, the burly man with a long knife in his right hand had a burst of fresh blood at the tiger's mouth, and his fingers trembled non-stop. Not far from him, a long spear was inserted, which was chopped into two segments.

  "What great strength this person has!"

  "What a feat! He actually managed to split open the Broken Spirit Crossbow with one arrow..." The deputy general exclaimed in surprise.

  "However, you have disobeyed the immortal master's orders, so I naturally cannot let you stay."

  As they spoke, the deputy general drew his bow again, this time with three long arrows on it!

  "Immortals, immortals! You corrupt officials only have eyes for the immortals, when have you ever taken us common people into consideration?" The burly man roared in anger.

  Suddenly, a faint golden light flashed on his body, and where he stepped, a slight crack appeared.

  In an instant, the long knife in his hand danced into a golden bell shape, forcibly knocking open three long arrows. However, the force brought by the crossbow was enough to send him flying far away.

  "Indestructible Diamond Divine Power!"

  "This man is actually the ninth-ranked Zhaoren guest on the Tianji List!"

  On the city wall, the deputy general narrowed his eyes.

  "Men of Jianghu! Come, bring the stretcher!" The deputy general ordered with a wave of his hand.

  After a neat and uniform sound, dozens of broken divine crossbows suddenly appeared on the city wall, and all the crossbow arrows pointed at the position of the big bearded men.

  "Is it your Golden Strength being strong, or my Broken Spirit Arrow being swift?"

  Buzz buzz buzz!!

  More than twenty long arrows shot out with a whistling sound.

  Its earth-shattering momentum left people hopeless.

  At this moment, a dazzling sword light flashed by, and in an instant, all the long arrows were cut off. Looking back at the original place, I don't know when there was one more person.

  A man of about thirty years old, wearing a black long shirt, with a hair knot on his head, and holding a long sword in his left hand, pointing directly at the ground.

  "One sword cuts through the soul! This man is Xue Pan!"

  Here is the translation:

  It was Xue Pan, a traitor of the Blood Clothes Sect who had received a painting from Ding Yan five years ago in Autumn Water Town. Xue Pan was originally a highly talented person, which could be seen from the fact that the master of the Blood Clothes Sect had sent out the sect's second strongest expert, Xing Lao Mo, to hunt him down. After obtaining the painting given by Ding Yan, Xue Pan meditated and comprehended its meaning for three years, creating a set of sword techniques, and then re-entered the Jianghu, becoming famous in one battle.

  Xue Yi Men's master was killed by him with one sword, from then on, the name of "One Sword to Sever the Soul" became famous throughout Jianghu, and no one did not know. He was also ranked as the second highest expert on the Tianji List.

  "What a fast sword!" The deputy officer on the city wall gasped.

  With his eyesight, he surprisingly didn't see where the opponent came from.

  "Open the gate!" Xue Pan stood between the city gates, his long sword pointing directly at the deputy officer on the upper floor.

  Feeling Xue Pan's undisguised murderous intent, the deputy officer's expression changed slightly.

  At this moment, a terrifying breath came from behind the city building, and an arrow cart on top of the city building automatically flew up and smashed towards Xue Pan below.

  "What a big nerve you have, daring to violate the rules set by this immortal!"

  A stern voice came from the city wall.

  "Ah, the chariot is flying by itself!"

  "It must be the immortal master from within the city who has taken action."

  "In this..." The crowd murmured, and Ding Yan furrowed his brow.

  From atop the crossbow cart, he clearly felt a ripple of yuan force.