Chapter 454 — The Eighteen Moves of the Supreme Art

The dragon-qilin frantically wheeled around and fled, crying in fury and panic, "The divine-power wielders of the Western Lands have gone mad! Cult Master, they have surely gone mad! Who ever heard of awakening an entire city and using it as a weapon?"

Behind them, wherever that Yun City passed, everything was razed flat.

The great city was like a living thing, striding forth on legs in mad pursuit, crossing mountains and valleys at extraordinary speed, and in its wake all was swept level.

This city was like a terrible maw, devouring all, crushing all—and more than that, within the city thousands of building-giants swung entire edifices like great hammers. Whatever Yun City could not bite apart, it swallowed into its belly, and there these giants smashed it to pieces!

And behind the city rose a rolling cloud of dust ground from all that had been pulverized.

The dust spread for a hundred li and more; within that thick smoke almost nothing could be seen.

This city devoured at the front and excreted at the back—one could well imagine the fate of anyone overtaken by such a great city.

Shen Mu urged them on without cease, and the dragon-qilin ran for its life. Just then, a great river came flying out of Yun City, lashing toward them like a long whip with a sharp *whap*.

The dragon-qilin hurriedly dodged, but that great river was exceedingly nimble, cracking and flailing wildly, striking until the dragon-qilin fled this way and that, its speed slowing again, and Yun City gradually gained on them.

"Big Brother…"

Xiong Qi'er's voice trembled as she looked back in terror. The earth shook, and stones taller than a man were rattled up into midair. Behind them, Yun City gaped open its massive gates, teeth lining the entire portal, snapping shut with a crunch and a crack.

"It's all right, Sister Qi'er, don't be afraid."

Shen Mu turned around. His sword pellet floated in the air before him. The dragon-qilin, harried by that great river, was finding it ever harder to evade, and was about to be devoured by Yun City.

"Who is it that blocks our way?"

Shen Mu gazed at the city gates and walls drawing ever nearer. The gates and walls kept rising and falling, and thick, sharp spikes like teeth jutted from them. He could not help but show a look of puzzlement.

"To deal with a divine-power wielder of my Six Harmonies realm, is all this force really necessary? With Bangong Cuo's connections, he surely could not have mobilized a treasure like Yun City, could he? Then who exactly is it that wants me dead?"

He suddenly thought of someone and smiled, murmuring, "It must be him. The young lord of Zhentian Palace. I snatched food from the tiger's jaws and rescued Xiong Xiyu and her daughter from him. We are old acquaintances by now. This time he means to give me a surprise, is that it?"

Just then, the dragon-qilin roared, "Cult Master, this is no surprise! This is a fright! Oh no…"

Another great river flew out from Yun City's mouth, and with a *whap* it coiled around the dragon-qilin's tail, dragging it toward that gaping maw. The dragon-qilin scrabbled wildly with all four hooves, but could not stop itself from being hauled toward Yun City's mouth.

Xiong Qi'er's face was grave as she said in her crisp, clear voice, "Fat Dragon, a hero cuts off his tail to survive!"

Tears streamed down the dragon-qilin's face. "Sister Qi'er, even if I cut off my tail I can't escape. Let me at least keep a whole corpse… though it seems a whole corpse is rather unlikely…"

The city towers and walls snapped shut like a great mouth, biting down with lightning speed, while the buildings and houses within the city transformed into giants that smashed down with thunderous *boom boom*. To keep a whole corpse was all but impossible!

Every spike glittered with cold light; each was as thick as a bowl's rim, like steel bars set into the city wall, but tipped with sword-points of incomparable sharpness, and the surfaces of the spikes were covered in strange patterns. Clearly, every one of these spikes was a primal weapon!

To be bitten once was equivalent to dozens of primal weapons piercing one's flesh—dozens of bowl-sized bloody holes torn through the body.

Add to that the tremendous force unleashed by the city gates and walls opening and closing, and one would in all likelihood be reduced to a bloody pulp in an instant.

Shen Mu was still lost in thought, murmuring, "But the young lord of Zhentian Palace shouldn't have the strength to awaken Yun City's spirit, should he? His cultivation realm may be higher than mine, but at most he'd be at the Seven Stars realm…"

"Cult Master!" The dragon-qilin was dragged into Yun City's maw.

Shen Mu snapped out of his reverie. His sword pellet suddenly erupted; countless sword-lights danced with a *zheng zheng zheng*, eight thousand swords simultaneously unleashing the Cloud Sword Form—what a magnificent spectacle it was!

The swords were like clouds, spinning around each spike beneath the city walls, and in an instant the countless sharp teeth in Yun City's maw were severed.

The city gates and walls still bit down heavily. With that terrifying bite force alone, they could easily crush the two of them into mud.

Shen Mu reached out and grasped a sword. The Wuyou Sword was in his hand. Though he could not activate this divine sword's divine might, with the Wuyou Sword's sheer sharpness alone, he could cut through anything!

The Wuyou Sword blazed in his hand—a single point piercing through, linking vast movements; within the Two Modes, yin and yang cycled in reverse!

The first form of the Dao Sword erupted with power in his hand. Sword-light split into black and white; yin and yang intermingled, spinning around each other in the shape of the Taiji—and this was merely the outward appearance created by the sword art.

This move was in truth the sword art displaying the highest attainments in the art of numbers. Every point and every line composing the Taiji diagram had been calculated with incomparable precision; each sword-light's trajectory contained mathematical and numerological complexities of extraordinary intricacy—it was the Daoist school's exposition of the mysteries of the universe.

Yun City clenched its teeth with all its might—and then, a section of city wall vanished within the alternating black and white of the sword-light.

Shen Mu leaped into the air, raising the Wuyou Sword high with both hands, channeling his mana to recall the swords. Eight thousand swords came flying, striking the Wuyou Sword with a *zheng zheng zheng*. The child-swords merged into the mother-sword; eight thousand swords became one, and he immediately felt the blade in his hands grow incomparably heavy and solid.

This was the sword pellet's second form.

The sword pellet had two forms: one was the sphere, the other the merged child-and-mother swords.

The merged Wuyou Sword was so heavy and solid that he could no longer use mana to activate any of its divine might.

Shen Mu raised the sword high with both hands. At this moment, he could execute only one motion.

Chop!

Chop forward!

Before him—behind the dragon-qilin's rump—the advancing Yun City had already dragged them into the city. A great river was coiling around the dragon-qilin, trying to drag it toward the streets.

And on both sides of the streets stood ranks of house-giants, building-giants, and tower-giants, already prepared, each hoisting a house and ready to smash it down.

At the center of Yun City, magnificent palaces had risen to their feet—palaces built not of wood or stone, but forged from dark gold, dark iron, and dark copper, meticulously crafted.

The divine-power wielders of the Western Lands did not seek to strengthen themselves; they borrowed power from heaven, earth, and nature, and in turn transformed nature. They harvested dark gold and dark copper to refine primal weapons—and naturally, they refined these primal weapons to be as powerful as possible.