583 36 Changes

A sword rang out harshly, and then a sword radiance quickly flew at Wan Zhaoyi.

Actually, the sound of his opponent's sword notified him of the attack.

The attack itself was far beyond the speed of sound.

"Awful."

Wan Zhaoyi's pupils contracted and he activated his Holy Qi. When he unfolded his arms, eight 1000-foot-long dragon souls instantly rushed out of his backbone to face the sword radiance in front of him.

"Bang!"

The sword Qi smashed the eight dragon souls in a flash.

Wan Zhaoyi spit out blood and lost control of his body. Abruptly, he flew backward and hit a cliff six miles away.

"Crash!"

The cliff, which was over 1,000 feet high, suddenly collapsed. Gravel fell down and buried Wan Zhaoyi under a mountain of debris.

He half knelt on the ground and gritted his teeth. With a roar, he sent forth golden light and the lofty mountain fell apart.

" Boom!"

He rushed out of the dirt and flew up 1000 feet. Then, he dropped to the ground again. The blood gushing out of his arms dripped from his fingertips.

"Scorching Sun Sword Technique, Nine Serenity Sword Saint."

He had recognized his opponent's sword technique. It was Nine Serenity Sword Saint's unique skill, called the Scorching Sun Sword Technique.

The voice of the Nine Serenity Sword Saint rang out from above. "Wan Zhaoyi, you were able to ward off my strike, so you can carry on living. Since Zhang Ruochen has died, I will leave now."

Hardly had his voice faded away before the Nine Serenity Sword Saint was already a thousand miles away.

...

...

An ancient misty river flowed out of a boundless forest, with a great roaring. The river was more than 200 yards wide. Sometimes, giant savage beasts came out of the water to breathe the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.

The ancient forest was 5000 miles away from the place where Wan Zhaoyi fought the Nine Serenity Sword Saint.

Right now, Zhang Ruochen stood face to face with the Nine Serenity Sword Saint down by the old riverside.

Zhang Ruochen immediately knelt down and bowed to the Nine Serenity Sword Saint. "Master, thank you for your help."

Nine Serenity Sword Saint's body shape and appearance slowly began to change. His long black hair turned grey. His face became a little thin, with a long beard on his chin and more wrinkles around his eyes.

In just a moment, he had turned into a completely different person. He was Zhang Ruochen's Master, Sword Saint Xuanji.

"Please stand up quickly."

Sword Saint Xuanji promptly stretched out his hands to help Zhang Ruochen up.

Sword Saint Xuanji said with a smile, "Even Wan Zhaoyi did not recognize me. How did you?"

Zhang Ruochen said, "Master, your Magic Change has reached the acme of perfection. I did not recognize you, of course. However, I know that among the Three Great Sword Saints of the whole Eastern Region, only my master would risk saving me."

Saving Zhang Ruochen was indeed risky. Once discovered, it would be considered an act of defiance of Empress Chi Yao's authority. The man who saved Zhang Ruochen would be punished as a traitor and villain.

Even the Nine Serenity Sword Saint might not dare to kill the person whose arrest Empress Chi Yao had ordered.

Sword Saint Xuanji heaved a deep sigh. "I thought for a long time, and I figured out this way to save you. Fortunately, I had already understood the Nine Serenity Sword Saint's Scorching Sun Sword Technique, so I could cheat Wan Zhaoyi."

Zhang Ruochen was a little worried. "Master, what if this matter is brought to light?"

Zhang Ruochen did not care about himself, but he did care about Sword Saint Xuanji.

If someone found out that Sword Saint Xuanji killed Royal Golden Armor Troops and saved a principle imperial court criminal, he would certainly come to no good end.

With hands clasped behind his back, Sword Saint Xuanji looked over the torrential river. He said with a smile, "Impossible. I did this after deep consideration. The imperial court will definitely think that you've been killed by the Nine Serenity Sword Saint. The Nine Serenity Sword Saint will think that the imperial court was jealous of real talents, and that it cast the blame on him after it secretly executed you."

Zhang Ruochen suddenly nodded and sighed secretly. Ginger really does get spicier with age. Everything's copacetic.

Sword Saint Xuanji said, "Since you've died, you can't appear as Zhang Ruochen in the future. Sorry to have wronged you."

Zhang Ruochen shook his head and smiled. "It's been uneasy for me to remain alive. So what if I change my appearance and conceal my identity?"

Chi Yao had noticed "Zhang Ruochen" from the Eastern Region. Now, he could deal with the changes calmly only by feigning death.

He had revealed his identity as a Time and Space Descendant. Even if Chi Yao were not to kill him, the Black Market and heresy, as well as other forces, would deliberately seek all means to frame and kill him.

Only with Zhang Ruochen dead could they feel at ease.

He was only worried about his relatives and friends. He guessed that they would be very sad at the news of his death.

Of course, as long as he died, they would be safer because nobody would do harm to them.

Sword Saint Xuanji glanced at Zhang Ruochen and asked, "What do you intend to do next?"

Zhang Ruochen's eyes were cold as he said, "I will go to the Eastern Evil Land to kill Di Yi. He hurt my mother and nearly killed her. As a son, how can I not get vengeance for her?"

Sword Saint Xuanji contemplated for a while and said, "The Eastern Evil Land has gathered numerous evil masters, including people from the Black Market and heresy. With rogues of all kinds running wild, the land is in chaos. It is the most dangerous, dark place in the Eastern Region."

"Your cultivation is powerful enough to go there. However, you need to know that the Eastern Evil Land is the base camp of the Black Market. Di Yi can mobilize countless evil masters to hassle you. Furthermore, he has many evil masters to protect him secretly. Are you sure that you can kill him?"

Zhang Ruochen answered, "Di Yi can play tricks in the East Region Saint City. Why can't I go to the Eastern Evil Land to kill him? Last time, he lurked in a secret place while I was in a public place. Right now, it's reverse. This trip is intended to take his life. I will succeed or die trying."

"That's great!"

Sword Saint Xuanji said he would fully support Zhang Ruochen if his will was so strong.

Sword Saint Xuanji said, "Actually, I made two plans for you. If you want to train in seclusion in the mountains, I can find an isolated cave for you where you won't be interrupted. You can concentrate on practicing the Tao of the Sword."

"Since you are going to the Eastern Evil Land, I can impart you with a special martial technique which may be helpful to you."

Zhang Ruochen asked, "What is it?"

"36 Changes."

Sword Saint Xuanji looked at Zhang Ruochen with a smile.

Zhang Ruochen was a little surprised. He felt as if he had heard of this name, but he could not remember anything about it.

Even after thinking carefully, he still could not recall it.

He shook his head and asked with confusion, "Master, what are the 36 Changes?"

Sword Saint Xuanji laughed, raised his right hand, and pointed forward with his index finger.

A rush of white frost flew out of his fingertip. Suddenly, a rushing river made a "Chi-chi" sound and was instantly frozen.

Sword Saint Xuanji walked on the ice. Every step he took, his appearance changed once. Sometimes he was a bearded, burly man, sometimes he was a handsome, young boy, sometimes he was a hunchbacked old woman...

He changed into 13 different people over a short distance. Every time he changed flawlessly. Even his aura changed. Sometimes it was strong, while sometimes it was weak. He kept shiting like the clouds, which was extremely strange.

Sword Saint Xuanji said to Zhang Ruochen, "This martial technique is called 'Change of 36 Forms', which is from the Chens' secret code, 'Four Nine Mysteries.'"

"In the medieval times, the book was divided into three parts: 36 exercises, 36 unique skills, and 36 changes.

"The Chens have experienced tens of thousands of years in the Eastern Region. During this period, they have encountered disasters a couple of times. Several times, they were almost overthrown.

"Because of those disasters, 'Four Nine Mysteries' was fragmented.

"Of all the 36 exercises, only 27 exercises in the first three volumes are well preserved. It's said that you discover the other 9 exercises for yourself.

"As far as I know, a smaller part of the 36 unique skills in the 'Four Nine Mysteries' has been lost. The 36 changes are completely lost to the world."

Zhang Ruochen was more curious. "The Change of 36 Forms has been lost among the Chens. How did you get the techniques?"

Sword Saint Xuanji said, "I found the Change of 36 Forms when I was exploring a medieval relic. Through my investigation, I finally determine that it was the 36 changes from the Chens' 'Four Nine Mysteries.'"

While speaking, Sword Saint Xuanji took out a fist-sized white jade stone and gave it to Zhang Ruochen.

The jade stone was engraved with more than 100,000 words. The words were small, and it was hard to read them.

Zhang Ruochen mobilized his Spiritual Power and read it with fixed attention.

"Swoosh!"

In a flash, white characters appeared before his eyes line by line.

The words at the top read, "Change of 36 Forms."

Zhang Ruochen withdrew his Spiritual Power and kept the jade book properly.

Sword Saint Xuanji said, "If one can practice the 36 changes to the Realm of Success, he can not only change into another person, but he can also change into birds, beasts, flowers, fish, and insects. Also, he can become water or fire and enter into a body of water or fire. The change is mysterious and unpredictable."

However, Sword Saint Xuanji immediately threw cold water on him. "Only if you practice 'Four Nine Mysteries' can you perform the 36 changes successfully."