Protect Our Patriarch

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Amidst the humming of swords, a beam of sword light suddenly shot out from the waist of Brother Lexian, hurtling towards Wang Liyao with lightning speed.

The sword light, like water, caressed the air with the gentleness of an autumn breeze skimming a lake's surface, yet its speed was astonishingly fast, reaching Wang Liyao's face in the blink of an eye.

The piercing cold sword force exploded with a sharp sound that tore through the air.

Wang Liyao's hair fluttered wildly as it was stirred by the sword qi.

Seeing this, the disciples of the Yuanshui Heavenly Lake lineage couldn't help but gasp in shock.

Everyone knew that Brother Lexian's "Linshui Sword" was a mid-grade spiritual weapon of extraordinary power. None had expected him to resort to his treasured spiritual sword right from the start!

The girl was surely in danger now!

Yet Wang Liyao just snorted coldly, showing no sign of panic.

With a flicker of her form, she glided away like a drifting stream.

Under the sunlight, her toes lightly tapped, and her figure soared with the grace and agility of a cascading waterfall, free from any trace of mundanity.

Like a shadow on water, untouched by floating catkins.

The incoming spiritual sword moved so fast it almost exceeded the limits of the naked eye, yet it failed to touch her, missing by a hair's breadth.

The howling spiritual sword continued its momentum unabated, striking a sunning platform behind her with force.

In an instant, stone chips flew, and the Yuanshui stone platform was punctured with a huge crater.

Wang Liyao herself remained unscathed, not even a speck of dust on her clothes.

"Water Shadow Technique!"

This elegant display of movement stunned all the disciples of the Yuanshui Heavenly Lake lineage present.

The Water Shadow Technique was their signature movement skill, practiced by everyone from direct disciples to the most common among them. As disciples of the Yuanshui Heavenly Lake lineage, how could they not recognize it?

"She even knows the Water Shadow Technique. Has she reached the realm of 'perfection'?" Brother Zhenghua was incredulous, "At her young age, to have mastered the Water Shadow Technique to this extent, impressive..."

To be honest, even if he were to perform the technique himself, he might not outdo her.

"Her movement skill is even better than mine? It's reached a level I can't even comprehend!" Lu Xianghui was also shocked. The Water Shadow Technique was his "specialty," and he had put in a lot of effort into it.

Compared to this junior sister, his Water Shadow Technique seemed like a joke, a waste of effort, leaving him utterly astounded.

However, they couldn't have imagined that Wang Liyao was actually the legendary "Great Genius" who had awakened four bloodlines at the Lingtai Realm.

With her Yuanshui Spirit Body, she naturally resonated strongly with the Yuanshui spiritual qi between heaven and earth, and her affinity with the laws of nature was higher, making her practice of Yuanshui techniques doubly effective and her progress swift.

This was the very reason why Basalt cultivators placed such importance on bloodline talents.

"Not bad! You do have some skills, no wonder you're so arrogant!" Brother Lexian, failing to hit his target, laughed angrily, "Unfortunately, private transmission of techniques is a great taboo in the academy, and no one can save you even if you've mastered it well! Once I capture you, it's not just you who will suffer, but also the person who taught you the technique!"

As his words fell, he formed hand seals, and the Linshui Sword flew back into the air like a bolt of lightning.

"Condense water into a sword, split waves into shadows!"

His hands moved rapidly through sword seals, and the rich water spirit qi gathered like rivers flowing into the sea. The mid-grade spiritual weapon "Linshui Sword" spun in the sky, and in the blink of an eye, it split into six identical sword shadows.

The sword shadows were like water, the sword light like snow.

The surging sword qi interlinked, forming a whole, and in an instant, a sword formation was established, emitting dazzling water-blue light.

The overwhelming sword qi swept out, clearing all the strong winds around, even the gentle breeze over the lake veered away on its own.

Brother Lexian's eyes hardened, and he sneered, "You think your movement skill is good? Now, let's see how you dodge this!"

With that, he pulled with both hands, and the sword formation roared out, enveloping Wang Liyao with its tremendous sword force.

The sword edge was piercing cold, the sword qi stern and deadly.

In an instant, the overwhelming power pressed down, and even the gentle breeze carried a chilling aura.

"It's Brother Lexian's best 'Water Shadow Sword Technique'!"

Seeing this, Lu Xianghui's eyes widened with anxiety.

The other disciples of the Yuanshui Heavenly Lake lineage were equally astonished: "Brother Lexian's Water Shadow Sword Technique has six sword shadows!"

It was well known that the "Water Shadow Sword Technique" of the Yuanshui Heavenly Lake lineage was easy to learn but hard to master. The more proficient one became, the more sword shadows they could split, and the greater the power.

However, at the recent grand competition, Brother Lexian had only managed to split five sword shadows, and now he could split six, which was...

Brother Zhenghua and Sister Yujun, who had previously competed with Brother Lexian for "Miss Nine," exchanged glances.

They had thought that five sword shadows were already Brother Lexian's limit, but who could have imagined that he had held back even during the grand competition?

Unfortunately, there was no time for them to dwell on this revelation.

In the short span of two breaths while they were talking, the surging sword force had already roared through the air, about to reach Wang Liyao.

Everyone's breath hitched.

However, Wang Liyao, who should have been the most tense at this moment, appeared the most relaxed.

In fact, she was not just relaxed but even curled her lips in disdain.

She had initially thought to give her opponent some face, considering her own fault, but since he was so ungracious, she couldn't be blamed for what came next.

In the blink of an eye, her hand finally rested on the hilt of her sword.

"Clang~!"

A long sword cry rang out, and the "Qiushui Sword" was unsheathed!

Yes, her current sword was the high-grade spiritual weapon "Qiushui Sword," which belonged to her mother, Liu Ruolan.

Before coming to the academy, Liu Ruolan, worried about Wang Liyao and considering that she rarely had the chance to draw her sword while staying with the family, decided to lend the "Qiushui Sword" to her daughter, saying that she could return it once she found a sword more suitable for herself.

Moreover, with Liu Ruolan's current level of cultivation, her need for the Qiushui Sword was diminishing. She was more inclined to seek a powerful magical treasure in the future.

Now was the time for the "Qiushui Sword" to shine.

Amidst the sword cry, Wang Liyao's aura surged.

The next moment, fierce sword qi burst forth, and the Qiushui Sword rose into the air, unleashing a torrent of sword qi.

"Condense water into a sword, split light into shadows."

Her hands formed sword seals, and her delicate jade-like fingertips pointed forward, performing the same "Water Shadow Sword Technique" as Brother Lexian.

Instantly.

A massive amount of water spirit qi converged as if responding to a call, and even the calm Yuanshui Heavenly Lake stirred, creating ripples without wind.

The next moment.

"Buzz~~~~~"

A prolonged sword cry sounded, and the Qiushui Sword vibrated, splitting into nine identical, illusionary sword shadows like water!

The sword formation activated, and the terrifying pressure exploded.

In an instant, the surrounding air seemed to be filled with countless fine sword qi, turning sharp and stern. Several petals twirled down from the sky, and before they could reach the ground, they were sliced into countless fragments by the surging sword light.

"Nine, nine sword shadows?!"

The disciples of the Yuanshui Heavenly Lake lineage widened their eyes in unison, their voices trembling.

Nine sword shadows were the limit of the Water Shadow Sword Technique!

Legend had it that mastering the Water Shadow Sword Technique to the point of splitting nine sword shadows gave one the chance to comprehend sword intent, breaking through the current realm and stepping halfway into the threshold of the Heavenly Man Realm.

This girl was only a few years old, and she had already mastered nine sword shadows?!

Only the Yuanshui Spirit Turtle Xiaojiu, who had been ordered not to get involved in this dispute, stared with wide turtle eyes, feeling both inevitable and extremely excited.

Truly worthy of being the chosen one spoken of by the Ancestor, the master was indeed powerful and impressive. How could that mere Lexian compare to the master?

Meanwhile.

Brother Lexian's face changed drastically, and a storm of shock surged within him.

Nine, she had conjured nine Yuanshui sword shadows... What on earth was happening?

Although he had anticipated that this girl was no ordinary person, he never imagined Wang Liyao to be so formidable. To be able to split the Water Shadow Sword into nine shadows at the Lingtai Realm was unheard of and unseen by him.

In an instant, a hint of regret flashed through his heart. No matter who this girl was, he should not have provoked her.

But it was too late for regrets now.

At this point, Lexian could only frantically channel his Xuanqi, pushing his Water Shadow Sword Technique to its limit, hoping that the sword shadows she had split were merely increased in number by force and that each one's power was far inferior to his.

In the blink of an eye, the two sword formations collided in mid-air.

"Boom~~!"

Amidst the deafening explosion, Lexian's six sword shadows lasted less than a breath before being shattered by the powerful sword formation of nine sword shadows.

Five of Wang Liyao's nine sword shadows were broken, but the remaining four continued their relentless advance towards Brother Lexian.

Lexian's face turned pale... How was this possible? Not only was he far inferior in the number of Yuanshui sword shadows, but the quality was also far from comparable.

In the split second, he managed to summon a low-grade Yuanshui spirit shield to protect himself, but his form was already engulfed by the sword shadows.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

A series of impacts echoed continuously.

Amidst the heavy sword shadows, Brother Lexian used all his might, conjuring a Yuanshui spirit shield to desperately protect himself while frantically changing direction like flowing water, doing everything in his power to dodge the sword shadows.

After finally neutralizing the remaining four sword shadows, he had exhausted most of his Xuanqi, and his internal organs were shaken to the point of boiling blood, with traces of blood seeping uncontrollably from the corners of his mouth.

The disciples of the Yuanshui Heavenly Lake lineage were stunned by this scene, and it wasn't until then that they finally reacted, erupting into a chorus of gasps.

"Hisss! So strong!"

"My god, isn't that too impressive?"

It was only then that someone realized that the spiritual sword in Wang Liyao's hand was a "high-grade spiritual weapon"! If it were just a high-grade spiritual weapon, that would be one thing, but her mastery and understanding of the Yuanshui Heavenly Lake lineage's Water Shadow Sword Technique were beyond their comprehension.

One brother, excited, grabbed the dumbfounded Lu Xianghui and urgently asked, "Lu Xianghui, tell us honestly, what's the background of this junior sister you brought back?"

"I, I, I don't know either~~"

Lu Xianghui was also completely baffled, the picture of innocence.

He had only encountered Wang Liyao by chance at Qianqiu Hall and became her mere guide after being "persuaded" by her. How could he know her background?

Had he known that Wang Liyao was so formidable, he would have treated her with the utmost respect from the start, instead of casually calling her "junior sister."

His scalp tingled, feeling like an old man who had eaten arsenic, tired of living. What kind of junior sister was this? Even Sister Yujun couldn't compare to her, right? If he had to give a name to his current feelings, he would rather call her—Ancestor!

"What goes around comes around." Amidst the exclamations of the crowd, Wang Liyao's voice, tinged with a hint of sternness, rang out again, "Brother Lexian, as a core disciple, you bully your peers and abuse your status, utterly disgracing the Yuanshui Heavenly Lake lineage."

"Today, I shall teach you a lesson on behalf of the Yuanshui Heavenly Lake lineage."

As her words fell, Wang Liyao lightly tapped her toes, and her figure soared into the air.

Reaching mid-air, her slender hand suddenly extended, and the Qiushui Sword automatically fell into her palm.

In an instant.

Her already formidable presence surged once more.

A massive amount of water spirit qi gathered, rushing towards her like rivers into the sea.

The thick water spirit qi swirled around her, becoming so dense that it emitted waves of water-blue light, and even without using spiritual sense, one could clearly feel the surging spiritual qi.

The wind billowed, her ink-black hair lifted by the breeze, her clothes fluttering, making her appear like a goddess in the water, exuding an aura of untouchable solemnity.

Under this aura, even her "ordinary" face seemed to become extraordinary.

The eyes of the crowd were drawn to her involuntarily, everyone holding their breath, almost forgetting to breathe.

Under the watchful eyes of thousands.

Wang Liyao flicked her wrist, and the Qiushui Sword traced an arc in the sky.

In that moment, a sword light like water cut through the air, streaking towards Brother Lexian.

The sword light was piercingly cold, yet it made no sound as it passed through the air.

Compared to the previous nine sword shadows' imposing presence, this single strike's pressure was less than a tenth, and the emitted spiritual light was not as dazzling.

However, within that sword light, there emerged an indescribable, ethereal realm, like the waves of autumn water, like the shadows of spring water, both light and water.

In an instant, the vast Yuanshui Heavenly Lake surged, countless spiritual fish startled, leaping from the surface, stirring up myriad ripples.

"Sword Intent!"

"It's actually Sword Intent!"

The disciples of the Yuanshui Heavenly Lake lineage were dumbfounded, their breath nearly stopping in shock.

Yuanshui Sword Intent! They had only occasionally witnessed it from the direct disciples in the Heavenly Man Realm!