Chapter 221 — Rescue
The Sword Questions the Heavens · Page 4 of 6
By now the coffin was entirely shrouded in gloomy black qi, rolling like clouds. How such a vast quantity of dark vapor could have gathered in an instant was impossible to say; all that could be seen was the blue light descending from above like lightning, the Tianxuan radiance flashing as it stabbed down, while the black qi below gave no ground, as though guided by an unseen hand, gathering from all sides toward the center of the coffin, forming a black wall before the Tianxuan Sword.
Just as the divine sword and the black qi were about to collide, the tip of the Tianxuan Sword touched that wall of black vapor and rebounded as if striking a spring. Lu Xueling's entire body drifted upward like a weightless feather, as though meeting no resistance at all. And in the very moment her form rose, her left hand suddenly pressed two fingers together like a blade; in an instant a faint golden light flickered through her elegant eyes and vanished, while from her palm burst a ray of azure light, the purest of the Taiji Mystic Purity Dao of the Canglan Sect, cleaving straight into the black qi from the side where it lay thinnest.
"Bang!"
The black qi churned violently, followed by several low, muffled thuds, as something shattered and broke apart.
Standing at the doorway, Xiao Bai's lips curved in a faint smile, and she gave a slight nod, as though in approval. On the other side, behind Xiao Wan and the Wild Wolf Daoist, Zhou Yixuan's brow suddenly furrowed, as though he had witnessed something puzzling; doubt and alarm flickered in his eyes, and then he sank into deep thought.
Having been caught off guard by Lu Xueling's unexpected strike, the black qi seemed not to have anticipated it either; in its fury it turned from defense to attack, massing into a dense dark cloud and charging upward at the white figure in midair.
Lu Xueling halted in midair, her hair streaming in the fierce wind. Without a moment's hesitation, her figure seemed borne upward by an invisible force and shot into the air. With a thunderous "boom" utterly at odds with her slender form, the entire ruined roof of the mortuary burst apart in an instant, shattered wood and debris raining down, dust falling like rain—only that white figure, like a drifting cloud, soared into the sky, all the more graceful and unearthly beneath the faint starlight of the heavens.
The black qi pursued her barely a zhang before it seemed to lose its strength; the night wind sweeping across the open plain scattered it in moments.
Lu Xueling paused briefly high in the air, gave a clear cry, and plunged once more toward the little house.
By now Xiao Bai had already leaped out from the doorway and stood at a distance with hands clasped behind her back, watching, while Zhou Yixuan and the other two looked far more bedraggled, frantically dodging the countless pieces of rotting timber raining down from the sky.
Amidst this chaos, Lu Xueling's figure had already charged back into the house. Her crisp, sharp shout rang out, and in an instant blue light blazed from within, shooting out from the house in countless rays. Moments later came a thunderous crash from inside, faintly accompanied by Lu Xueling's cry, tinged with delight: "Martial Uncle Tian, it really is you!"
Zhou Yixuan and the others, standing far off and satisfied they would no longer be struck by falling debris, turned to look back. The interior of the house, so utterly chaotic moments before, was now slowly settling. After a while, the dazzling blue radiance gradually faded, and then, from the doorway, a single figure stepped out first.
This person was not Lu Xueling, but a mysterious figure clad entirely in black, face covered as well, features impossible to make out. Zhou Yixuan and the other two did not recognize this person, but Xiao Bai gave a cold snort; without any visible movement, her body suddenly appeared in front of the Witch Demon just as it was about to move, blocking its path.