11 Sword Held across Knees, Sword Drifting among Blood (2/2)
That gray shadow looked like a streak of lightning. It was seen among the flying leaves first but instantly arrived at the Northern Mountain Road battlefield. The deep humming sound had now become a roaring storm in the blink of an eye.
The gray shadow was surprisingly fast, and its power had shattered all the leaves within its range. Those leaves formed a line behind the shadow, which aimed directly at the elder, who was now swordless.
”The Great Sword Master!”
Looking at the beam of gray shadow that had the power of a storm, the bodyguards who had been calm as stone finally got anxious and some of them yelled to watch out. When the most powerful elder used his sword to aim at that giant in the deep forest, the strongest enemy who had remained hidden all this time decided to show up at last.
And what a show it was!
The enemy sent two cultivators with extraordinary power, including a Great Sword Master, to assassinate the princess in the imperial territories. That was a terrifying fact, but the bodyguards showed no fear, only determination. Without hesitation, their leader shouted, ”Chop!”
”Zeng! Zeng! Zeng!” With the continuous ringing sound of the swords, about 10 sharp swords came from out of their sheaths. The bodyguards held swords to chop in the clear space in front of them, they had no fear to fight!
Each beam of sword light was quite sharp to cut the air and the intention from the hill. They were weaved into a closely meshed sword net to protect the old man who no longer had his sword.
Just when the high-speed gray shadow was about to be chopped down by those swords, it abruptly paused in mid-air. Strangely, it turned to another side to avoid the dense attacks and then flew away.
The shadow had already flown with thundering powder when it appeared in the Northern Mountain Road's forest, seemingly unstoppable. But no one imagined how incredibly smart and swift it could be in a real battle!
The gray shadow suddenly slowed down when it was turning around, and what it was could finally be figured out. It was like a dim shadow of a sword, so light that it could probably be blown away by the wind.
This sword shadow was as thin as a cicada's wings and not as firm as a piece of paper. However, it was highly difficult to catch since its trace was like a ghost. When it turned its direction, it avoided one bodyguard's sword blade and cut his neck, leaving behind a beam of light blood there.
That line of blood spread rapidly and then spurted out. The bodyguard held his sword with his right hand and put his left hand on his neck, but the blood still came out between his fingers. He stared at the depth of the forest and fell. He did not see that powerful Sword Master until his death.
The gray sword shadow drew a curve and came back to the battle at blinding speed. It flew with a trajectory that was unpredictable and quickly killed two bodyguards.
The bodyguard leader was still calm when he saw the blood drops flying slowly in the air. He held the hilt tightly and watched that beam of the gray sword shadow. Suddenly, his stepped forward with his left foot, chopped with his blade, and yelled, ”Gather!”
Upon this order, four bodyguards beside him waved their swords like flying snowflakes simultaneously, and they forced the gray beam of sword shadow into a small corner that was then condensed by the leader's sword power!
The gray shadow was moving very fast and suddenly paused in the small corner before being hacked by the leader's blade. The leader had prepared for that so he pushed the hilt with his left hand to tilt the blade upward and hit the gray shadow!
With a clunking sound, that smart gray shadow fell on the ground covered by mud and leaves, just like a snake caught by its neck.
This was the first time for Tang bodyguards to hit the Great Sword Master's sword shadow. But there was no time to celebrate because the shadow started to shake again. The leaves quivered strongly and arched like a giant snake moving quickly below the bodyguards' feet.
Suddenly, among the flying dead leaves and wet mud, the gray shadow came out like thunder and cut the aorta of a bodyguard in his thigh through his armor!
The bodyguards fell one by one as they let out painful moans. They could strike that gray shadow occasionally but they could not kill it. In spite of his sense of defeat and desperation, the leader still stepped forward with the sword in his hand and chopped again!
”Gather!” he roared angrily.
The remaining bodyguards all roared in unison while pouncing ruthlessly toward the gray shadow, hoping to build a final shield with their swords and their flesh.
After two piercing sounds, two lifeless bodies fell to the ground, hardly making a sound. The bodyguard leader had half of his earlobe sliced off in a clean cut, and a few more bloody wounds were added to his body, looking like the work of a drunken calligrapher.
After being hit by the bodyguards for the seventh time, the gray sword shadow finally slowed down, but it resisted falling and kept flying slowly across the blades, until it eventually got closer to the old man.
Then the gray sword shadow was finally able to be seen. It was actually a hiltless mini-sword with a dim and particularly thin blade that did not have a trace of blood on it.
The bloody bodyguard leader was on his knees, thinking disconsolately. One shot, only one shot, and he and his brothers would have accomplished the impossible mission. But after all, it was the Great Sword Master they were fighting against!
...
...
A long time seemed to have gone by, but in reality, it was merely the time it took a few blades to thrust, sword shadows to drift, and blood to splash. Throughout all this time, the old man in an old gown sat in the horse carriage with his eyes closed as if he had no idea of how much danger he was in.
Meanwhile, no one seemed to notice how the elder held his hands lightly above his knees as they were shaking slightly, his thumbs pressing against the pulp of index and middle fingers of both hands in very brief and subtle movements, as if performing some kind of intricate calculations.
When the hiltless mini-sword flew toward him and stopped just a few inches from his forehead, the old man finally opened his eyes.
Once he looked at the sword, it froze right there in the air!
The almost-forgotten giant in the deep forest was shocked by the shiny sword he had just crushed with his hands, and he finally figured out what was going on. He looked up and roared in panic, ”He's not a Sword Master!
”... He's a Psyche Master!”