Red Heart Patrols the Sky
Chapter 73 - 73 69 Heading to the Summit_1

73: Chapter 69 Heading to the Summit_1 73: Chapter 69 Heading to the Summit_1 Vertical Brush Peak was named aptly—it stood like an upright pen, shooting straight into the sky, steep and formidable.

The path up the mountain was a single, rudimentary trail.

Standing at the foot of the mountain, one could fully imagine the difficulty the cultivators of Sanshan City faced in carving this path out.

Especially since it was once teeming with fierce beasts.

Every step was surely steeped in blood, each level a fall of souls.

The flesh and blood of those who fell became the steps, the spirits of the deceased protected the living.

Those who survived pushed on, finally reaching the summit, clearing it of the fierce beasts.

Two years later, new fierce beasts wandered in, and new cleaners appeared.

Jiang Wang was not unfamiliar with fierce beasts, but this was indeed his first time entering a legendary lair of such creatures.

Due to the rich rewards, many cultivators came to Sanshan City, but the vast majority chose to join the large forces of Sanshan City to clear Jade Balance Peak.

Only a few teams chose Vertical Brush Peak.

Li Jianqiu set out early in the morning with his team, so they encountered no fellow travelers on the way.

Under Li Jianqiu’s lead, the group climbed towards the peak.

The first half of the journey was stable, with only occasional scattered beast bones and nothing else.

The trail wound around the mountain, spiraling upwards—one side sheer cliffs, the other side abyssal drops.

Strange cries echoed through the valleys, causing one to break out in goosebumps.

“Be careful!” Li Jianqiu suddenly called out a warning, but he did not move.

A snake-like fierce beast suddenly sprang from the edge of the cliff.

Though it was called a snake, it was covered in scales that matched the color of the rocks.

This camouflage made it hard to notice when still.

Jiang Wang’s Longsword was first to leave its sheath, executing the first move of the Purple Qi Eastward sword technique, neatly slicing off the serpent’s tongue as its vast mouth opened.

His other hand, conjuring Dao Technique signs, promptly stuffed a Flame Bullet into the snake’s maw.

Spinning with his sword, he drifted back to the trail as the snake-like fierce beast fell down the cliff.

His actions were clean and efficient, devoid of any superfluous movement, pleasing to any onlooker.

With Dao Techniques integrated into his combat system, Jiang Wang’s combat capabilities had more than doubled.

“This type of fierce beast is known as a Rock Snake, with exceedingly strong scale armor for defense, but its mouth and belly are its weak spots,” Li Jianqiu explained as he moved forward, “Junior Brother Jiang handled it beautifully.

If the fierce beasts on Vertical Brush Peak today are of this strength and density, it seems we can reach the summit.”

“Li Brother, you seem to be quite familiar with this place?” Zhao Rucheng asked.

“Been here before,” Li Jianqiu’s voice came from up ahead.

He had deliberately refrained from acting earlier because he wanted to gauge the abilities of the others.

They had satisfied him.

Zhao Rucheng reacted swiftly, quickly adjusting his stance.

If Li Jianqiu was not mistaken, the way he gripped the sword was identical to Jiang Wang, suggesting that he, too, had been practicing the much-talked-about Transcendent Sword Canon—after all, Jiang Wang’s distinction as the champion of the Tri-City Dao Discussion was hard to ignore.

Huang Azhan was normally all giggles, but he had also readied his Dao Techniques in a very short span of time.

Of course, the biggest surprise for Li Jianqiu was Jiang Wang.

He had known that Jiang’s foundation would undergo a qualitative boost, but he hadn’t expected such a significant improvement.

Jiang Wang’s current strength had far surpassed his level at the Tri-City Dao Discussion.

With such a team, no one could say they were extraordinarily strong, but at least no one would drag him down.

Just as they were turning a corner, Li Jianqiu’s figure leaving their line of sight, an intense fluctuation of Dao Power suddenly came from ahead.

Jiang Wang hastened his steps around the bend, only to see the corpse of a centipede-like fierce beast, severed into several pieces and scattered around.

Li Jianqiu stood with both hands aflame, holding two burning swords of fire.

“Wind Centipede, it can fly,” Li Jianqiu offered an explanation, then added indifferently, “If there were many of them, it would be troublesome.”

Indeed, if they were to encounter a swarm of flying fierce beasts attacking, it would be challenging to deal with on the narrow mountain path.

Fortunately, only one Wind Centipede had appeared so far.

The continuous emergence of fierce beasts indicated they were now entering an area frequented by these creatures—everyone heightened their vigilance.

Huang Azhan, taking great care, layered himself with various states—Stone Skin Art, Solidify, casting a bunch of Dao Techniques upon himself.

Not only did he boost his own defenses, but he also extended them to Jiang Wang and Zhao Rucheng.

Finally, Li Jianqiu looked at him helplessly, “Do you have enough Dao Power for that?”

It was then that he sheepishly ceased.

Midway up the mountain.

The waists of women are graceful; the waists of men, strong.

The waist of Vertical Pen Peak is…

perilous.

The mountain trail ends here; there’s no path ahead, only rugged boulders and the strange branches of twisted trees.

And among those trees and stones, squatting or lying in wait, are no fewer than twenty fierce beasts.

Wolf-like, snake-like, bird-like—a variety not limited to one form, but all equally terrifying and fierce in appearance.

Fierce beasts lack intelligence, so this certainly is not an ambush.

More accurately, Jiang Wang and his companions had intruded upon their resting place.

And of course, they burst forth at the first opportunity.

The lure of four morsels of fresh, tender flesh drove them insane with hunger.

Li Jianqiu, wielding twin Flame Swords in reverse grip, crashed into the horde of fierce beasts.

With swords flashing, flesh and blood became indistinct.

Zhao Rucheng soared with his sword toward one side.

Unlike Li Jianqiu who charged headlong, he ensured he faced no more than three fierce beasts at once.

His sword flickered left and right, always slicing through vital spots.

Huang Azhan’s hands flew in spellcasting gestures; even as he buffed himself, Jiang Wang had noticed the speed of his spellcasting.

In this moment, Flame Bullets shot forth like a continuous barrage, practically screaming as they surged forward.

He produced an area-of-effect from what was a superior single-target Dao Technique.

Jiang Wang, certainly not to be outdone, completed his spellcasting gesture with his left hand, drawing forth a vine which aptly entangled a wolf-like fierce beast ahead, then his Longsword swept through, decapitating the creature.

With a kick, he sent the wolf carcass flying, crashing into another tiger-like fierce beast.

Meanwhile, he had already sprung backward, reclining in midair, forming a straight line parallel to the ground.

He was like a Longsword, and his own sword was the point.

The force of the Purple Qi Eastward Sword Technique vibrated the ordinary metal, allowing the sword to slice through the snake-like fierce beast as easily as a blade cuts paper.

The snake’s body split in two, and Jiang Wang, both man and sword, burst through the spraying blood, narrowly avoiding being splattered by even a drop of snake blood.

An eagle-like fierce beast swooped at him, barely missing the blood and was corrodied by it, emitting a sharp, agonized shriek.

Jiang Wang turned around and let his Longsword fly from his hand, piercing through the slender neck of the eagle beast and decapitating it with one strike.

This ordinary Longsword could no longer withstand such a level of combat and exploded in mid-air.

Jiang Wang was prepared, having been spellcasting for quite a while, he flicked his hand and a Flaming Sword was already taking shape.

Only by now had the snake blood finally hit the ground, corroding the rocks and leaving pitted marks.

Holding his Flaming Sword at an angle, Jiang Wang stepped forward, charging once more into the tiger-like fierce beast that had been knocked aside.

The Flaming Sword pierced through the heart, and Jiang Wang, grabbing the neck of the tiger-like fierce beast in his left hand, tossed it aside.

This series of battles was executed with dexterity and smoothness; without his mastery of the Path Origin given by the Control Yuan Decree, he could not have managed such a feat.

By now, Li Jianqiu had made two passes through the group of fierce beasts, and of the nearly twenty, only two remained alive—two Wind Centipedes.

They seemed to know no fear, and of course, they had no concept of retreat; they continued to dive in fiercely from both sides.

Li Jianqiu leaped into the air; his twin Flame Swords crisscrossing in flight, cutting the two Wind Centipedes into four pieces, which fell to the ground with him.

Zhao Rucheng had already sheathed his sword, appearing to be under no strain.

Huang Azhan…

“Elder Brother Li is mighty!”

Still energetically able to flatter, he must be in good condition as well.

Jiang Wang casually extinguished his Flame Sword; he did not have the abundant Path Origin of Li Jianqiu, so he saved it when he could.

His Star River Dao Spiral now naturally produced nine Path Origin beads daily, and along with his own Meridian Rush Practice, his accumulation of Path Origin was swift.

However, such high-intensity combat could still not be sustained for too long.

Li Jianqiu walked forward, stepping over the bodies of the fierce beasts.

Only when those fierce beasts were no longer obstructing the view did Jiang Wang notice a giant rock ahead with something carved into its surface.