Volume One: Youthful Encounters in Humble Days, Chapter Ninety-Five: The Compassionate Life Sword

As soon as those words left his mouth, he intensified the assault of his talisman cone, determined that this single strike would shatter Li Yu's formation and obliterate him on the spot.

The talisman cone blazed with a brilliance even more dazzling than before, while one rune after another rose upon its surface, drifting and revolving around it in a slow, eerie orbit.

Li Yan watched, knowing that Li Xiqing intended to use this final blow to put an end to the nightmare that had haunted him for so many years. A thought flashed through his mind: was it really going to end like this? What about his own plan?

Fortunately, when the strike finally fell, it did not produce the result they had imagined.

Li Yu's original position had been taken by Xu Kaijiang. When Li Yu had laid out the formation, he had left himself a safeguard, fearing that some special circumstance might arise and render the array unable to withstand Li Xiqing and the others' attacks. So he had deliberately set up a way to shift the force of an attack elsewhere. He had not expected that, in the end, it would be used in precisely this way.

Xu Kaijiang had taken Li Yu into his arms and, by doing so, had naturally replaced him in that position. Thus the force aimed at the formation struck Xu Kaijiang instead.

With the attack diverted, they gained a little more time.

Li Yu had originally been unconscious, but in that dark haze he felt something warm streaming across his face. Struggling, he opened his eyes, and what met his gaze was Xu Kaijiang, bleeding from all seven apertures.

Li Yu stared at him in a daze. Just before he fainted, he had thought this time Xu Kaijiang would likely be dragged down with him, that the two of them would die together at the hands of the Li family.

He had never imagined he would wake again, and that upon waking he would see Xu Kaijiang shielding him beneath his body, taking the harm that was meant for him.

Xu Kaijiang had no cultivation at all; he could endure only by sheer force of will. The people of the Li family were even more enraged. They had thought that once Li Yu fell, they could break the formation, but at the crucial moment Xu Kaijiang had unexpectedly thrown himself into the fray and ruined everything. What infuriated them even more was that a mere mortal with no training at all could hold on for so long. Where were they supposed to put their pride?

Xu Kaijiang forced out a hideous smile. "You finally woke up. I was afraid you'd just sleep through it."

As soon as he finished speaking, he could not help vomiting another mouthful of blood, which splashed across half of Li Yu's face in a vivid scarlet.

Li Yu hurriedly struggled upright and was about to push Xu Kaijiang aside so he could take over supporting the formation, but Xu Kaijiang said, "Don't worry about me. I can still hold on a little longer. Think of a way quickly. If you can't handle it, then get out of here—don't mind me."

Yes, Xu Kaijiang was right. At this point they could only grit their teeth and endure. This formation was something only Li Yu knew how to control; Xu Kaijiang could not use it. In such circumstances, Li Yu had no choice but to harden his heart and let Xu Kaijiang bear it for now.

"Hold on a little longer. Don't worry, we'll get through this soon." Li Yu looked at him, his eyes red.

After speaking, he returned to the center of the formation, sat down cross-legged, and formed with both hands a profound and intricate seal while murmuring an incantation: "Head receives the light of heaven, feet gather the breath of earth; the spirits of the four directions move in response, and I alone am their master. Endless and unbroken, surging without cease; vast in its capacity, it gathers the hundred rivers as the sea."

Seeing this, Li Xiqing knew Li Yu was making a major move. His expression shifted, and he said with cold malice, "You're pretty tough. Let's see whether you can withstand this blow as well."

He produced another short sword. Ancient and unadorned, it radiated an exceedingly archaic and overbearing aura. The moment it appeared, those around him were forced back several paces. The others did not know what kind of magical weapon it was, but Li Yan did. He had once seen a record of it in the Li family archives. If he was not mistaken, it should be one of the Li family's eight clan treasures: the Compassion for Life.

That was indeed the case; the two characters for Compassion for Life were engraved in seal script on the hilt.

Li Xiqing still remembered the day his grandfather had handed him the sword and said, "This short sword has no owner, which is why I can give it to you for protection. Legend says that once its seal is lifted, the power hidden within it can rival that of an ordinary immortal sword."

When Li Xiqing heard this, he had been thrilled and asked why his grandfather would not simply remove the seal for him.

Li Zhonghong had answered, "Qing'er, not only can I not break this sword's seal, but even if it were broken, with your strength you would still be unable to control it. Instead, it would likely wound you."

Li Xiqing had been somewhat crestfallen. "Then why give it to me at all? Isn't this just a useless sword?"

Li Zhonghong said, "Even sealed, its sharpness still ranks among the top five famous swords in the world. More than that, it possesses tremendous destructive power against defensive formations. So long as it is not an earth-shattering grand array, you can use it to break it."

At this moment, Li Xiqing intended to use this sword to shatter Li Yu's defense.

After Li Yu finished the incantation, all the spiritual energy within its range converged upon him and was then poured into the formation. In an instant, three golden formation discs appeared out of thin air above the array, supporting one another and balancing one another.

Li Xiqing's sword struck toward Li Yu and the others at the same time.

Boom!

The light barrier merely shook violently, showing no sign of breaking.

Li Xiqing's expression grew even uglier, and he thought bitterly, Damn it, this really is troublesome.

Li Yan had some knowledge of formations. Unlike the other three, who only felt hatred and fury, he looked at the array before him with genuine admiration. His gaze then moved to Li Yu, and his expression became even more complicated. He thought to himself, The family has truly missed out on such a gifted cultivator. Even Compassion for Life cannot break it in a single blow. Just what level has his mastery of formations reached?

After that second strike, Xu Kaijiang's already colorless face turned even paler, and he spat out another great mouthful of blood. His whole body had begun to sway.

Li Yu watched, and the more he saw, the more unbearable it became. Tears had already begun to fall from his eyes without his noticing. He wanted to give up, wanted to share the burden with Xu Kaijiang, but Xu Kaijiang said, "Don't give up. If you give up, we lose."

Yes, how could Li Yu give up at this moment?

The moment Xu Kaijiang chose to shoulder the harm in Li Yu's place, he had already cast his own life and death aside. Especially after seeing that Li Yu truly had a way to turn the tide, his resolve only grew firmer.

For him, this battle was no longer a simple struggle for life and death. It had become a battle of dignity between a common man and those lofty cultivators above him.

He could die, but he could not lose!

Li Xiqing watched the two of them forcing themselves to hold on, then burned another spirit crystal and sent yet another strike toward Li Yu and the others.

Boom!

Under the second blow, cracks began to appear in the light sphere. It quivered unsteadily, as though it would not survive a third strike. Meanwhile, three more formation discs had been added above the array, forming a six-pointed star pattern.

Li Xiqing naturally saw this and said, "I thought you could last much longer. So this is all there is to it!"

The third strike arrived in an instant.

Boom!

A burst of light flashed, and the entire defensive array shattered at last. Xu Kaijiang could no longer hold on; like a puppet whose strings had been cut, he collapsed to the ground.

Fortunately, just before the formation broke, Li Yu had finally drawn in enough spiritual energy from all around to complete his grand array: the Nine-Origin Heaven-Execution Formation.

Above him, nine golden formation discs gleamed and spun without pause.

When Li Xiqing saw the great array before him, an intense unease rose in his heart. He knew this was absolutely not something favorable to him.

He could not help but grow even more resentful: why had he not killed Li Yu before the defense collapsed?

After completing the final step, Li Yu hastened to Xu Kaijiang's side and fed him the Purple-Gold Pill he carried with him.

He glanced at the four of them and knew this was not yet the time to strike, but Xu Kaijiang's injuries were severe. If he was not treated immediately, he feared Xu Kaijiang would not survive much longer.

With that in mind, Li Yu formed a seal with one hand. At once, nine formation discs sank from the sky into the earth, leaving only one to guard Li Yu's side.

"Li Xiqing, haven't you always wanted to kill me? Today I'll give you that chance. If you can break this formation, then I will let you do as you please." Li Yu spoke to Li Xiqing in a tone of condescension.

How could Li Xiqing tolerate such provocation? He replied, "No need for your hypocritical generosity. Your life, I will take it with my own hands."

Then he turned to the people around him and said, "None of you are to make a move. I will break his damned formation myself and make him kneel before me and beg."

Li Yu was clearly using a goad, how could he not see it? Yet every time he looked at that disdainful, contemptuous gaze, an nameless fire rose in his chest. He remembered that even as a child, Li Yu had been like this: clearly weak, clearly without status, and yet he would look at him with such placid eyes, as though looking at a dog.

The other three felt the same, and were likewise baffled. But given Li Xiqing's standing, even if they wanted to warn him, they could not speak.

Thus, Li Yu bought himself time. He quickly took out his golden needles and poured all the scant spiritual power he had left into Xu Kaijiang's body, mending the damaged meridians and internal organs.

After this round of treatment, Xu Kaijiang's injuries finally stabilized. He was no longer in immediate danger of death. But if he wanted to recover fully, that was beyond Li Yu's abilities at present.

During this time, Li Xiqing at last did not disappoint, shattering the golden radiance of the great formation and revealing Li Yu and Xu Kaijiang inside.

Li Xiqing looked at the two of them as though at slaughter-bound lambs and said, "Now then, what other tricks do you have?"

Li Yu settled Xu Kaijiang carefully. Then he lowered his voice and said, "Rest well for a bit. What we had to do—you helped me buy the time for it. From here on, leave it to me."

He stood up, looked at Li Xiqing, and sneered. "Not bad. You've improved a great deal compared to before. But you're still terribly stupid. If I were you, I would never have given me more time. You knew I was provoking you, and yet you still fell for it. Li Xiqing, it seems all these years have done nothing but add years to your age. Your brain, on the other hand, hasn't grown at all."

These words were plainly meant to strike at the heart, but unfortunately, Li Xiqing simply could not resist them.

As expected, Li Yu had provoked him once again.

Li Xiqing's face turned ugly. "Say another word, and I'll kill you!"