Chapter 267: Lil Birdies, Come Here!

Chapter 267: Lil Birdies, Come Here!

At the fourth level of the Azure Phoenix Tower, even here, the space stretched boundlessly, vast and open.

Thick, dark mist, dense with demonic miasma, shrouded this level. Within the mist, massive azure shadows darted back and forth, their piercing cries echoing continuously. These shadows, emblazoned with runic formations and dazzling in their brilliance, were as fierce and proud as living creatures, striking against the inner walls of the tower like birds trapped in a cage.

At the entrance to this level, an island floated in the void, already crowded with a thousand onlookers. These were no ordinary folks; only disciples of the Peak Masters were worthy of observing the fourth level.

Three Sword Ruins Overseers, Feng, Yun, and Shuang, stood at the forefront, vigilantly guarding Exile Ling, allowing no errors.Updated from novelb(i)n.c(o)m

"A Rank 10 Azure Phoenix!" a girl in blue exclaimed, her gaze fixed on a purple-robed figure in the midst of the black mist. Admiration was written all over her pretty face. She wore a delicate blue flower in her hair, adding to her tender charm.

"This is Exile Ling's first visit, and in just a half moment, he has absorbed a Rank 10 Azure Phoenix. Such a feat will be recorded in the annals of the Sword Ruins, unmatched by any who come after," a young boy beside her remarked. Bald but with delicate and handsome features, he resembled a piece of pure, uncut jade, both beautiful and slightly otherworldly.

"Indeed. In the history of our young disciples, only a Heavenly Sun Child managed to absorb a Rank 6 Azure Phoenix before he turned eighteen, and that took him a whole month," the girl said dreamily, her eyes locked on the young man.

"Sikong Yan, I heard you once encountered Exile Ling when he was still a sword slave and even helped him once?" the bald boy asked with a smile.

"It was just a small favor, but Exile Ling told me he remembers it well," Sikong Yan replied, her cheeks coloring slightly.

"Hold on to that memory; you might just become his chosen one," the boy said, his smile widening.

"Ku Xin, don't jump to conclusions... Exile Ling was just being polite to me..." Sikong Yan mused, her heart fluttering like a startled fawn as she recalled the young man's intense gaze.

She vividly remembered their first encounter. Back then, she was oblivious to the fact that he was Ling Chen, the sword slave. She had casually scolded some bullies, inadvertently rescuing him from their clutches. To him, she was an ethereal fairy, high and mighty, the granddaughter of a Sword Ruins Overseer.

But how the tables had turned! The disregarded has risen to glory. Now, even the fairy had to lower her proud head, her cheeks burning with a mix of embarrassment and something deeper.

Sikong Yan and Ku Xin, the young man beside her, were both top-tier Sword Cultivators of the Eternal Sword Prison, ranked within the top twenty in the last Immortal Sword Rankings. This time, their rankings were poised to climb even higher.

Ku Xin was the grandson of Ku Xuan, the guardian of the Azure Phoenix Tower, and the great-grandson of the Withered Bone Keeper. Qingzan, his aunt, was a figure of renown in the Calamity Seal Purgatory.

"There are only eleven Rank 10 Azure Phoenixs in the Azure Phoenix Tower. With one absorbed, only ten remain. I wonder if Exile Ling will continue?" Sikong Yan said, her beautiful eyes filled with tension.

Typically, those who managed to absorb a Rank 10 Azure Phoenix were celebrated Overseers of the Sword Ruins. Even they had to exchange great deeds for a chance at a Rank 10 Azure Phoenix, and even then, one was their limit. But Ling Chen needed no such exchanges. His status broke all norms.

"He's continuing!" Ku Xin exclaimed, admiration evident in his voice. As a prodigy of the Withered Bone Keeper's lineage, he rarely admired anyone. But Ling Chen had earned his genuine respect.

"The primary components of an Azure Phoenix are the demon bones of a Hell Demon. The Hell Demons of the Primeval Demon Hell are as powerful as the top ten strongest Overseers of our Sword Ruins. They're two realms higher than us at the Dao Heart Realm, and four above Exile Ling. The fact that he managed to subdue a Rank 10 Azure Phoenix in mere moments proves his true might as a reincarnated true Immortal!" Ku Xin observed, his face calm but his heart thunderstruck with awe.

When Exile Ling had captured that Rank 10 Azure Phoenix, the uproar it caused was immense, audible even from the first level of the Azure Phoenix Tower.

The spectacle on the fourth level of the Azure Phoenix Tower had drawn a crowd, swelling to at least two thousand onlookers in no time.

"A true Immortal indeed, unlike another pretender..." Sikong Yan mused, but her words were cut short by a rustling noise from behind.

Even Sword Ruins Overseers like Feng Buhui were left wide-eyed, disbelieving what they had just witnessed.

"Damn," the Sword Warden muttered under his breath.

"A Rank 10 Azure Phoenix, absorbed just like that?" Sikong Yan's beautiful eyes trembled with disbelief, turning to Ku Xin. "Am I seeing things?" Before she could get an answer, the remaining nine Azure Phoenixes, as if queued up, plummeted one after another into the Heaven Burial Sword Soul.

Nine successive explosions of feathers and bones resounded across the island.

After the ninth explosion, the entire fourth level of the Azure Phoenix Tower was shrouded in darkness, as if the whole world had plunged into an abyss. The only source of light was an azure longsword, its brilliance piercing the gloom. A total of 10,001 layers of Sword Aura roared and surged around it, creating a tempestuous sea of sword energy that churned and crashed upon the Sword Soul.

Initially, the fourth level boasted eleven Rank 10 Azure Phoenixes, each crafted from the bones of top powerhouses of the Primeval Demon Hell. Ling Chen's capture of one had sent shockwaves through the Sword Ruins. But Yun Xiao? He devoured the remaining ten in an instant, even snatching one right out of Ling Chen's grasp...

"Damn, damn, damn..." the Sword Warden muttered, his repeated curses reflecting his disbelief. Even with his vast experience, he stood gaping at the young man in white, utterly dumbfounded.

His reaction mirrored that of the other Sword Cultivators, all of whom seemed to have their brains short-circuit. Even given a quarter of an hour, they couldn't wrap their heads around what had just happened.

"Ku Xin!" Sikong Yan suddenly grabbed the bald young man's hand in panic.

"Don't ask me; I think I saw it wrong too..." Ku Xin grumbled, his voice tinged with irritation.

Sikong Yan realized that it was improbable for two people to be mistaken, especially when every onlooker wore a similar expression of disbelief.

"An illusion?" she wondered aloud.

"With all ten Azure Phoenixes gone, where's the illusion?" Ku Xin retorted.

"..." Sikong Yan fell silent.

Amidst the silence, Ling Chen floated out from the depths of the mist, his deep eyes fixated on Yun Xiao's Heaven Burial Sword Soul.

"Brother Yun's Sword Soul is no ordinary weapon," Ling Chen remarked with a forced smile, taking a deep breath.

"It's alright, just a bit too big of an appetite," Yun Xiao replied, his eyes burning with fervor as he slowly retracted the Sword Soul, wincing as it merged back into his body.

"An appetite is a blessing." Ling Chen chuckled dryly. "Seems I'm outdone on this trip to Azure Phoenix Tower."

So, you think you won the Sword Puppet Forest, huh? Yun Xiao wanted to laugh, but he held himself back. He was in a hurry to move on to the next place and said to Ling Chen, "My Sword Aura has reached the peak of the Sword Ruins. It should be enough for now. If Brother Ling still needs more, the third level awaits you. I must take my leave."

"Please," Ling Chen responded.

The Sword Warden smiled faintly at this exchange, departing with Yun Xiao.

Finally, Yun Xiao walked ahead, leaving behind a thousand silent onlookers.

Finally, Sikong Yan murmured to herself, "So, a Sword Soul with a lot of layers of Sword Aura doesn't mean much, right...? RIGHT!? So what if it's got a big appetite"