He had already confirmed that defeating the blade ghost within the blade realm was an impossible task for him. Rather than trying to compete with other techniques, it was better to focus solely on blade skills.

 

Just like tonight, as long as he could show a bit of talent in the blade skills that the blade ghost was most proud of, he could definitely divert its attention.

 

Of course, he couldn't neglect the progress of his cultivation either.

 

Fairy Lingyue mentioned in her letter that one way to prevent the Ghost-Sealing Talisman from devouring blood energy was to improve one's cultivation.

 

"After taking the Grass Returning Elixir last night, I'll run the Danxia Technique for a couple of cycles today to see if it really doubles the speed of refining True Qi."

 

Immediately, he sat cross-legged and began to meditate and practice.

 

With the blade ghost inside the Ghost-Sealing Talisman, he didn't dare to slack off for even a moment. In the coming month, every bit of improvement in his cultivation strength would be an additional guarantee of survival.

 

…

 

In the blink of an eye, another month had passed.

 

In the courtyard in front of Fan Tower, behind Qi Yue Pavilion.

 

"Swish!…"

 

Baiyu's wings, sharper than any blade, suddenly slashed horizontally towards Xu Taiping.

 

The wing, enveloped in a clear and pure aura, moved at an incredible speed. From a distance, it seemed as if it was cutting the entire small courtyard in half.

 

"Clang!" At the moment Baiyu's wing slashed out, Xu Taiping swiftly drew his saber from its sheath.

 

Then, a massive blade shadow formed by the saber light met Baiyu's wing head-on.

 

"Bang!" With a loud collision, the blade shadow shattered, and Baiyu's wing was knocked back.

 

But it quickly regained its posture, its claws gripping the ground tightly, and its wings, like twin blades, slashed rapidly towards Xu Taiping.

 

Almost simultaneously, Xu Taiping's figure left an afterimage in place, and blade lights danced like snowflakes in the courtyard, intercepting nearly every strike from Baiyu.

 

For a moment, the courtyard was filled with the continuous sound of collisions.

 

"Bang!"

 

As Xu Taiping blocked Baiyu's final strike, both of them retreated a few steps before standing still.

 

However, once Xu Taiping steadied himself, he suddenly assumed a very peculiar stance, supporting himself on one leg while gripping the hilt of the Spring Tiger saber with both hands and lifting it high.

 

"Boom!"

 

At the instant Xu Taiping raised his saber in this strange posture, the spiritual energy within a ninety meters radius around him trembled violently. A force of heaven and earth compressed the spiritual energy, converging it into Xu Taiping's long saber.

 

Then, Xu Taiping slashed down.

 

With a piercing sound like a cicada's cry, the slash transformed into a thin blade shadow over thirty meters long, cutting towards Baiyu with a "swish."

 

Facing this slash, Baiyu's eyes showed a hint of surprise, but it did not flinch.

 

As Xu Taiping's saber descended, Baiyu gathered all its spiritual power, its wings dancing wildly to meet the blade.

 

"Boom!"

 

However, the blade shadow created by Baiyu's wings shattered almost instantly under Xu Taiping's slash.

 

What terrified Baiyu even more was that the force of Xu Taiping's blade, even before it landed, pressed down with a weight of a million pounds, pinning Baiyu to the spot, rendering it immobile.

 

"Xu Taiping, you bastard, stop!"

 

Seeing the blade shadow about to fall on its head and being unable to resist, Baiyu finally couldn't help but curse.

 

As soon as Baiyu finished speaking, the thin blade shadow, over ten zhang long, halted abruptly before its eyes and then exploded with a "boom."

 

The resulting shockwave stirred up a cloud of dust.

 

Feeling the oppressive blade force vanish, Baiyu, though somewhat frustrated, couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

 

"Xu Taiping, is this the Demonic Severing Blade you mentioned?"

 

Baiyu's form shrank to the size of a sparrow and landed on Xu Taiping's head.

 

"Yes." Xu Taiping nodded, grabbing Baiyu from his head and tossing it into the air. "This is the first form of the Demonic Severing Blade, 'Cicada's Cry.'"

 

"Duan Tianya is truly a genius to create such a bizarre blade technique."

 

Baiyu flapped its wings, looking rather dejected.

 

"Indeed, it took me over a month to execute this 'Cicada's Cry,' and I'm still far from achieving the 'Hundred Cicadas Crying in Unison' described in the blade manual."

 

Xu Taiping nodded, his tone filled with reverence.

 

The more he delved into the Demonic Severing Blade, the more he marveled at the mastery of the blade path possessed by the elder Duan Tianya.

 

"What is 'Hundred Cicadas Crying in Unison'?"

 

Baiyu asked curiously.

 

"'Hundred Cicadas Crying in Unison' means that one slash is equivalent to a hundred slashes."

 

Xu Taiping replied without lifting his head as he sheathed his saber.

 

"One slash equivalent to a hundred slashes… that's brutal!"

 

Baiyu felt a chill run down its spine.

 

Just one slash was enough to severely injure it. If there were a hundred slashes, it might as well be used to make dumplings.

 

"It seems it's time for me to start practicing the Sky Eagle Claw."

 

Seeing his cultivation almost caught up by Xu Taiping, and his martial skills falling behind, Baiyu felt an urgent sense of pressure.

 

"By the way, are you meeting the blade ghost again tonight?"

 

Baiyu suddenly asked Xu Taiping seriously.