Volume One: The Emperor's Sword Chapter 148: I Call the Shots

Xue Xiu is indeed exceptionally beautiful.

With her tall, slender figure and an alluring charm, coupled with a flawless oval face, she could effortlessly draw countless gazes no matter where she went.

She believed that no man could ever resist her honey trap, especially in a perilous and desperate place like the Mirage Realm.

However, Yun Que simply did not care.

"What I want is not you, but your life."

Yun Que struck without warning, multiple flying swords piercing through the empty air to assail Xue Xiu.

It was not because Yun Que failed to grasp the situation.

Back in Yanmen Town, he had once played the tyrant, turning the entire small town upside down and robbing it of any peace for over a decade.

He had often been drunk on beauties' laps and woken up to brandish a killing sword; countless petty and vile characters had perished beneath his blade.

He was the Great Yan jinx, the Hanshui Marquis whom everyone cursed upon sight.

Yet he was also the son of the Yanmen Marquis, a brilliant young prodigy of the Yun family!

A person ultimately had to have a bottom line, and Yun Que's bottom line was quite simple, consisting of only two words: family.

Mu Qingyao was his family.

Whoever dared to harm his family—be it a peerless beauty or the supreme ruler of heaven—would pay in blood!

Seven flying swords sliced through the curtain of rain, drawing graceful arcs that converged like seven streams of starlight onto a single point.

The Seven-Sword Convergence!

The moment he attacked, Yun Que unleashed his full strength, holding nothing back.

Seeing Yun Que make his move, Yi Hongwen let out a long breath of relief, feeling immensely fortunate.

Zhou Yuanliang dragged the unconscious Wu Dachuan to the side and watched the battle intently.

Lando rubbed her wheat-colored cheeks, a sudden sense of balance rising within her heart. Since he didn't even want such a stunning woman, it was no wonder he had no interest in robbing her of her chastity.

Xue Xiu was utterly taken aback.

She had never expected that even when she was willing to surrender her body, this man would refuse such an easy advantage and reject a beauty!

Was a mere fiancée truly that important?

"Foolish," Xue Xiu scoffed with disdain, raising her Flower Spirit Sword to parry.

Her talent in the Dao of the Sword was truly extraordinary; in just a short span of time, she had managed to master this magical treasure belonging to the Mu family.

Relying on the might of the treasure, Xue Xiu blocked the seven sword beams. Although it looked somewhat strenuous, a trace of smugness bloomed on her face.

Nothing special!

Xue Xiu thought to herself, harboring her own pride.

As the chief sword disciple of the Crimson Glow Sword Palace, she had reached the Great Completion of the Qi Refining Realm and possessed exceptional talent in swordsmanship.

Even her master had praised her endlessly, calling her the most outstanding disciple of the Crimson Glow Sword Palace in a hundred years. Even placed among the upper sects, she would undoubtedly be considered a heaven-sent prodigy, matched by very few.

As a dazzling prodigy, Xue Xiu also possessed an undiscovered talent: the Water Spiritual Root!

With her Qi Refining cultivation, she could barely execute water-type spells that should only be accessible at the Foundation Establishment realm.

Though the sword rain within the Mirage Realm was not true rain, it still shared the characteristics of water, making it the perfect tool to defeat the enemy and claim victory.

Since Yun Que ignored her proposal and dealt such a ruthless blow, Xue Xiu no longer intended to hold back.

While using the Flower Spirit Sword to block the seven flying swords, she formed hand seals and covertly cast a water-type spell.

The surrounding sword rain suddenly condensed into one spot, forming ten sharp blades arranged in a neat row.

"Water Blades!"

With Xue Xiu's soft cry, the ten water blades sliced through the void, instantly enclosing Yun Que within their range.

"It's a spell!" Zhou Yuanliang, Yi Hongwen, and the others turned pale with fright.

Being able to use spells while still in the Qi Refining realm proved that she possessed supreme talent, and she was by no means an ordinary Qi Refining sword disciple.

With this ability, not to mention that no one in the four realms' sword palaces could rival her, she could at least find no match among her peers!

The Water Blade technique was a water-type spell.

It could condense sharp water blades to attack opponents, the number of blades determined by the strength of one's spiritual Qi, and it received a multiplier effect in rainy weather or near rivers.

Given Xue Xiu's Water Spiritual Root talent, she could normally condense at most five water blades. Now, aided by the sword rain, the number of water blades she could conjure doubled to a staggering ten.

Even five water blades were enough to kill an opponent at the tenth level of Qi Refining; Xue Xiu was confident she could obliterate Yun Que in a single strike.

"Ignorant of what is good for you."

Xue Xiu let out a silent, cold snort, glancing across the way to await the sight of her opponent's corpse.

Yet at this single glance, she froze in shock, rooted to the spot.

Forget a corpse; not even a single hair on the man had been harmed.

He was completely unscathed!

Xue Xiu hadn't even seen how he had blocked the water blades.

In truth, she could only blame her own bad luck.

Had she condensed any other type of water, it might at least have posed some threat to Yun Que, but she had foolishly chosen to condense the sword rain.

Sword rain was the very last thing Yun Que feared; no matter how much of it came, it mattered not, falling short of even a mild itch.

In the brief moment of Xue Xiu's astonishment, the seven flying swords struck again, and she hurriedly raised her Flower Spirit Sword to parry.

Soon, she realized that the force behind these incoming flying swords was all wrong.

They were far weaker than the previous ones!

Those seven flying swords earlier had been at least of high-grade tier, possessing astonishing might that could not be underestimated, whereas the offensive power of these current swords was merely of low-grade tier.

A trace of chill crept into her heart.

Xue Xiu finally managed to clearly see the flying swords hurtling toward her—they were actually seven green leaves!

Yun Que had employed the Thousand Leaf Sword; those seven high-grade flying swords from before had merely been a feint.

More green leaves followed closely behind!

With a swift rush, a violent wind surged.

Dozens of green leaves enveloped Xue Xiu within them, the sound of clanging striking ceaselessly against her.

A faint blue radiance constantly flickered across Xue Xiu's body; her outer garment was a high-grade defensive magical artifact, and when fully activated, it could completely block the shredding assault of dozens of green leaves.

"Is that all the tricks you have? Show me whatever else you can do!"

Xue Xiu stood proudly amidst the green leaves, her tall and slender figure resembling a proud princess.

Yet the next moment, all her pride was severed by a chillingly cold long sword.

The Snow Trace Sword, infused with a sword soul, was swung down heavily in Yun Que's hands.

"Break for me!!"

Following Yun Que's low roar, the power of the sword soul erupted instantly. This top-grade magical artifact, as if blessed with the weight of mountains, fiercely cleaved down onto the enemy's shoulder.

Xue Xiu vaguely caught sight of a towering, otherworldly figure wielding a heavy sword and bringing it down with ferocious momentum.

Crack!!!!!

A gash was brutally cleaved into her shoulder, the wound so deep her bones were visible. The spiritual Qi of her entire protective divine armor shattered completely, instantly rendering it useless.

Xue Xiu could no longer maintain her footing; she dropped to one knee as a mouthful of blood sprayed forth, and the Flower Spirit Sword slipped from her grasp!

She had never imagined that the opponent could unleash such terrifying might. The power of this single sword strike was something an early Foundation Establishment cultivator might not be able to withstand.

No wonder he wasn't even afraid of the Blood-Feather Spiders!

Xue Xiu had previously assumed that Yun Que relied solely on cleverness to lead everyone away from the spider webs, but upon truly engaging in combat, she realized how wrong she had been.

Wrong, utterly wrong!

The sheer strength of her opponent's combat power far exceeded the boundaries of the Qi Refining realm; even a chief sword disciple at the Great Completion of Qi Refining was no match for him.

Hastily raising her head, Xue Xiu saw the ice-cold blade descending toward her.

The wielder of the sword showed no mercy whatsoever, his expression as cold and detached as a butcher's!

Xue Xiu abruptly closed her eyes, awaiting death.

"Don't kill her!"

The weak plea from Mu Qingyao caused the sword blade to halt just an inch before Xue Xiu's neck.

At some point, Mu Qingyao had regained consciousness; she struggled to sit up and coughed up a mouthful of blood.

"She was right... Yun Que, only by joining forces with her will you have a chance to survive. It's not worth it to avenge me."

Mu Qingyao smiled bitterly, speaking weakly, "As long as you can live on, I can die with no regrets."

Yun Que remained silent, slowly withdrawing the long sword in his hand.

Xue Xiu managed a radiant, charming smile, speaking proudly, "Look, even your fiancée agrees that we should be together..."

Puff!!!!!

Before she could finish her sentence, ten sword apertures simultaneously appeared across Xue Xiu's delicate body, blooming like instantaneous flowers of blood.

Ten pillars of blood gushed forth!

Yun Que raised his hand to recall his flying swords, looked toward Mu Qingyao in the distance, and said:

"Whether it's worth it or not, I have the final say."