Chapter 435: Perilous

"This Sword Control Technique... is truly a marvelous thing!" While Tang Yu was still outside the shop, intently studying the sports car, Li Lanruo and two other clerks walked out together.

"Boss, isn't there any place to practice here...?" The three of them had been studying the various spells and sword techniques in Legend of Sword and Fairy 3 every day, and their hands were clearly itching for action.

Looking left and right, they failed to find any spot where they could test their skills.

Outside the shop was out of the question; flight was strictly prohibited there, making it impossible for even spiritual artifacts to take flight.

As for shops requiring areas to test spiritual artifacts, they had to submit an application to lift the array restrictions on that specific zone.

Whether it would be approved, of course, was an entirely different matter.

Owner Fang scratched his head; in the past, everyone had tested things right outside the shop, so who could have anticipated this current predicament?

"Huh?! A flying sword can actually take flight inside the shop!" With his hands forming a sword incantation, Li Wuya somehow produced a flying sword, which remarkably began to float upward in a slow, steady manner.

Beside him, Li Lanruo gasped in surprise, "Guild Master! I can control the sword now!"

Owner Fang only saw a silhouette blur past him with a sharp whoosh.

Then, the entire figure crashed heavily into the glass door; the door remained perfectly unscathed, but as for the person...

Tang Yu, who was still admiring the car outside, suddenly heard a loud thud and looked up to see a figure plastered against the glass.

Unable to even slide down.

Owner Fang: "..."

Nearby, Xiaoyue and the Big White Deer, holding their milk tea, looked completely bewildered: "..."

Tang Yu: "..."

Then, as if nothing had happened, Tang Yu turned back to continue looking at the car.

"If you want to practice in the future, find your own place," Owner Fang said with a darkened face as he peeled the person off the door. "Don't turn my shop into a chaotic mess."

Fortunately, the system's determination of troublemaking was intelligent; otherwise, a bolt of lightning striking down on her head would have made for a disastrously amusing scene.

And yet...

Fang Qi stared curiously at the still-dizzy Li Lanruo. "Did you just fly using the Sword Control Technique?"

Although she was entirely unable to control it, she had indeed flown up with the sword, indicating that she had already set one foot over the threshold of mastery.

"Learning this quickly...?"

One had to know that back in Jiuhua City and Half-City, many people practiced controlling the sword for a very long time without even managing to fly.

If it were attributed to the superior innate talent of cultivators in Lingzhou... Fang Qi glanced at Elder Li Wuya beside him; the old man was still practicing just controlling the sword, and as for letting the sword carry him into the air, it probably wouldn't happen anytime soon.

Owner Fang immediately gestured to her. "Get in the car."

"Are you driving this spiritual artifact out?" Tang Yu quickly hurried over. "Brother, could you bring this young master along as well?"

Owner Fang's face twitched: Is this boss even close with this guy?

Seeing that Owner Fang's expression was a bit off, the young noble hastily added, "I heard that because of your shop, you've had some friction with the Nangong family? Don't worry, this young master will cover you. What do you say?! It's settled then!"

With that, he climbed straight into the car.

Owner Fang: "..."

He wanted to say that it wasn't just a minor friction over opening a shop; he had directly cut down more than a hundred of their people.

...

"Guild Master, where are we going?" Li Lanruo sat in the passenger seat, watching the streetscape flash past the window.

"Outside the city." With her sub-novice level Sword Control Technique, defying the power of the city's arrays was naturally impossible; only outside the city could she exert her full effort.

Beyond the southern gate of Yuanyang City lay a vast square amidst a sea of clouds, with absolutely no mountain paths leading downward; this city had never intended to welcome cultivators or martial artists who lacked even the ability to fly up.

Nearby was a mooring area for large spiritual vessels, while this square served as a landing ground for cultivators or smaller vessels.

The expanse of the square was already considered outside the city, free from any anti-flight arrays. Fang Qi drove his car to the very edge of the square and stopped; beyond lay a sheer, precipitous cliff towering tens of thousands of feet high.

The rivers within the city resembled an inverted Milky Way, cascading downward here in a torrential rush of roaring water. From time to time, spiritual vessels or cultivators riding the wind descended from the sky amid a bustling, incredibly magnificent flow of people.

Fang Qi got out of the car and said, "Try flying from here?"

The next instant, amidst a sudden gasp, she was pushed off the edge of the square by an invisible force.

Li Lanruo: "...Ahhhh!"

Yet before long, a woman in a turquoise dress was seen stepping upon a flying sword, soaring straight into the clouds!

"My goodness! Look at that sword radiance?!"

"What is that?!"

"So fast!"

The passing cultivators all around were left staring in sheer dumbfoundment.

Beside them, Tang Yu was equally bewildered, his eyes bulging as he cried out, "How is she flying like that?! This speed is actually not inferior to the Wind King Wings meticulously crafted by my Tang Family!"

The vastness of the sky was indeed far better suited for a novice practicing the Sword Control Technique; even if she could not turn a corner on short notice, there was no fear of crashing into anything. Amidst startled cries, the sword radiance traced a massive arc in the heavens, flying about wildly like a headless fly in a highly irregular and chaotic trajectory.

Gradually, however, the sword rider seemed to gain a tenuous grasp over her flight path. After a while, amidst misty clouds and spiritual light like fog, an azure sword radiance descended from the highest heavens. As it neared the square, the light slowed, revealing a woman in a blue dress standing upon the sword. Her figure was ethereal as if weightless, her clothes and hair fluttering, her eyes sparkling with sharp sword light, resembling a celestial female sword immortal descending from the heavens above.

The surrounding crowd was utterly spellbound.

Owner Fang clapped his hands. "Impressive, impressive! Utterly brilliant! You learned it quite fast!"

How could she not be fast?! She had been scared half to death!

And yet she still had to say, "Thank you, Guild Master... I think I know how to control the sword now!?"

After all, the senior had done it for her own good!

To want to strike someone while simultaneously having to thank them—it was hard to say what kind of feeling that truly was.

"Still... you really did learn quickly..." Owner Fang stroked his chin, sizing her up curiously before speaking, "Not bad. That academy exam shouldn't pose any problems now. If others try to hunt you down, at least you can make an escape."

Of course, if she wished to be like Owner Fang and leave them completely in the dust, she was afraid she was still a long way off.

"Escape?!" Tang Yu exclaimed loudly from the side. "With this kind of speed, it is enough to make most cultivators struggle to even catch a glimpse of her back, right?!"

"Is that so?" Owner Fang mused doubtfully. "The other day, I saw that Nangong whoever-it-was using a sword pellet, and that speed seemed quite fast. This current flying speed... still needs work."

"..." Tang Yu asked in astonishment, "Wasn't it just buying a shop? How did they end up using sword pellets?!"

Then he paused slightly, stunned. "A few days ago, rumors spread that the Nangong family lost over a hundred men trying to hunt down a minor clan... Could that have been you?"

A sharp gleam flashed in his eyes. "And you still plan to participate in the Haotian Academy exam?!"

Owner Fang replied, "She is participating. Is there a problem?"

"In this world today, there are not many factions that dare to openly challenge the Nangong family." Tang Yu finally shed his previous frivolous demeanor, speaking solemnly, "You people are truly... remarkable!"

He continued, "However, the Nangong family possesses countless hidden trump cards. Moreover, lives were lost this time, so they certainly won't let the matter drop. You all had best be careful. If this young lady is participating alone..."

He shook his head. "Though I, Tang, do not know what cards you hold up your sleeves, this venture will undoubtedly be fraught with extreme peril."

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