Volume One: The Emperor’s Sword Chapter 90: The Frostblade Technique

When Yun Que realized the origin of the silver monster bug, he was greatly astonished.

The mutual slaughter among more than a hundred corpse-eating bugs had unexpectedly resulted in the birth of a bug king!

This silver monster bug was entirely different from ordinary corpse-eating bugs, its body radiating the aura of a demon beast.

It was a genuine first-tier demon beast!

Ordinary corpse-eating bugs were not demon beasts, but rather a rare kind of mutant insect. They could devour corpses, but were impractical for combat, as they could be easily slain.

But this bug king was a different matter.

Having reached the level of a first-tier demon beast, the bug king was enough to pose a significant threat to Qi Refining cultivators; both its offensive and defensive capabilities far surpassed those of ordinary corpse-eating bugs.

Obtaining a bug king by chance left Yun Que both surprised and somewhat puzzled.

The person who previously disguised himself as Lan Yusheng had carried these corpse-eating bugs in a sack, yet there had been no signs of them turning on each other.

A moment’s thought brought Yun Que sudden clarity.

"The undying barbarian warriors!"

Barbarian warriors were fusions of human bodies and gu insects, akin to mutated humans. After the corpse-eating bugs had devoured a large number of barbarian warriors, early signs of mutation had appeared. Their subsequent mutual devouring accelerated this process, and within less than a day, a mutated bug king was born.

Having figured everything out, Yun Que released the silver monster bug.

The bug king crouched on the table, its tiny eyes darting about restlessly until at last they fixed upon the ghost seed suspended in midair.

Suddenly, a pair of wings unfolded from beneath the bug king’s hard shell—thin as cicada wings and usually pressed flat and hidden—and it took to the air, pouncing upon the ghost seed, tearing into it with wide jaws.

In no time at all, the bug king devoured the ghost seed entirely.

"It can even fly!" Yun Que hadn’t expected the bug king to possess wings. Because they were so thin and always pressed against its carapace, he hadn’t noticed them before.

A soft buzzing echoed through the room.

Having eaten the ghost seed, the bug king was still unsatisfied. It circled the room twice before setting its sights on Yun Que.

Confronted with the only living being present, the bug king lunged without hesitation.

Yet what greeted it was a flash of biting sword light.

Yun Que merely waved his hand, and the Alien Sword Soul—like a stream of light—slashed into the bug king’s body.

The bug king fell to the ground, curling its long claws and trembling in fear.

The Sword Soul had not harmed the bug king’s body; instead, it had delved into a deeper plane of spiritual awareness, suppressing the faint intelligence of the bug king.

The Sword Soul could manifest physically to kill foes or, in its spirit form, invade and erode an enemy’s consciousness.

To deal with the bug king, Yun Que naturally chose the latter.

Such a mutated bug king must be exceedingly rare; perhaps it would prove useful in the future. He intended to keep it and see how it developed.

He did not possess any true insect-taming arts, so for now, he could only use the Sword Soul’s oppressive power to temporarily subdue the bug king.

A crude yet highly effective method.

He could always seek a suitable insect-controlling technique when the opportunity arose.

“Ordinary corpse-eating bugs feed on corpses; the bug king even eats ghost seeds.”

Picking up the now rounded monster bug and placing it back on the table, Yun Que examined it thoughtfully. “If I fatten this thing up, perhaps one day it’ll go gnaw on a ghost king without hesitation.”

***

Demon creatures that devoured ghosts were exceedingly rare, even more so when it came to insects.

Yun Que placed the subdued bug king into his spirit beast space, then activated the restriction built into his storage ring. At once, the bug king was confined to a small space, unable to run amok.

He then produced the Thousand Leaf Sword.

In an instant, countless green leaves fluttered in the air, filling the room with a gentle breeze!

This treasure's marvel lay in its ability to split into a thousand small swords. For cultivators who could wield sword formations, it was a powerful ally.

Its sole drawback: it consumed spiritual energy at an alarming rate.

With Yun Que’s current cultivation at the fifth layer of Qi Refining, he could not sustain the artifact’s full power for long.

Even Mu Qingyao, when wielding the Flower Spirit Sword, could only unleash a fraction of its might—perhaps one-tenth or one-twelfth at most.

A cultivator’s level directly dictated the power of their treasures.

Fortunately, the Thousand Leaf Sword could be separated and used in parts, perfectly alleviating the problem of limited spiritual energy.

Yun Que tested it.

Controlling ten leaves at once was no problem; at most, he could manage about twenty before his spiritual energy was nearly drained.

Each green leaf was as strong as a low-grade magic weapon.

While each was not especially powerful, the sheer numbers made up for it. Against a horde of foes, the Thousand Leaf Sword’s sweeping attacks would be a tool of slaughter.

As his cultivation improved, Yun Que estimated that upon reaching the tenth layer of Qi Refining, he would be able to control a hundred green leaves at once.

A hundred leaves equaled a hundred low-grade flying swords!

Just imagining a hundred flying swords dancing through the air was enough to make the heart tremble.

With the sword in hand, the next step was swordsmanship.

“I wonder what unique style the sword techniques passed down in the Northern Pavilion possess. They seem formidable.”

Yun Que recalled the sword arts Xue Ziyi had used against the Golden Flood Python.

At that time, thirty-six flying swords moved unpredictably, like drifting frost and fine rain—utterly exquisite.

Especially the freezing power unleashed after the swords struck; even a fourth-tier demon beast had been frozen into an ice sculpture.

The memory of drifting frost and ice stirred Yun Que’s desire to practice.

He’d been busy with the fishing mission since then, with no time to seek proper instruction. Now that he finally had the chance, Yun Que went to the Northern Pavilion’s main hall before dawn and found his senior sister.

Upon explaining his purpose, Xue Ziyi readily agreed to teach him personally.

The sword technique was called “Frostfall,” the unique creation of Elder Yin Tianxiao of the Northern Pavilion, and comprised three forms.

The first form: Frost Flight.

The second form: Thunderfall.

The third form: Ice Execution.

In her battle with the Golden Flood Python, Xue Ziyi had used the first two forms—Frost Flight and Thunderfall.

After demonstrating all three forms, Xue Ziyi sighed ruefully:

“It’s a shame my talent is lacking. After all these years, I’ve never fully mastered the third form—I only grasp its surface. Otherwise, I should have been able to completely freeze the Golden Flood Python. Once Frostfall Sword Art is perfected, demon beasts of the fourth tier or below can be frozen for a long time, perhaps even killed outright by the chill.”

Though Xue Ziyi regretted not having perfected the technique, Yun Que was already more than satisfied with its power.

Never mind freezing a fourth-tier demon beast to death—even a moment’s immobilization was remarkable.

***

It must be understood: fourth-tier demon beasts were equivalent to late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators. None who reached this level were easy opponents.

Xue Ziyi handed Yun Que the sword manual that recorded the technique, along with her own insights and reflections.

“Thank you, Senior Sister!” Yun Que expressed his gratitude.

“There’s no need for thanks between us. You can study it here—if you have any questions, just ask me,” Xue Ziyi replied, showing not the slightest hesitation due to Yun Que’s status as a sword servant. On the contrary, she wholeheartedly supported his practice of the technique.

Though she knew that, in the end, as a sword servant he could only use the Overflow Spirit Ring to perform the most basic form of Frostfall, she still shared her insights and demonstrated the forms herself, without reservation.

Such sincerity was truly worthy of admiration.

“Frostfall Sword Art…”

Yun Que sat cross-legged in a corner of the main hall, utterly absorbed in the manual.

In the hall, the formation array hummed softly.

Grim ghostly faces floated just above the floor, their mouths twisting silently as if muttering curses.

Dawn’s first light tinged the sky.

In one corner, Yun Que absentmindedly fiddled with a longsword.

His senior sister remained unaware that he was hiding his true cultivation for the time being.

Swinging the sword repeatedly, Yun Que suddenly gained insight.

His wrist snapped, and with a surge of spiritual energy from the Overflow Spirit Ring, a blade of sword light burst forth from the sword’s tip—five zhang in length—sweeping across the hall’s upper reaches!

Xue Ziyi, who had been resting with her eyes closed, sensed the sword energy and opened her eyes abruptly.

When she saw the long, narrow wave of sword energy, she was utterly stunned.

Sword servants could indeed use Overflow Spirit tools to unleash sword energy, but only within a limited range—perhaps one or two zhang. Only the most accomplished sword servants, devoted to the sword for years, might reach three zhang.

But five zhang of sword energy? Unheard of!

In Xue Ziyi’s mind, three zhang was the utmost limit for a sword servant. Yet here was Yun Que, unleashing five zhang in a single stroke—how could she not be shocked?

But even greater astonishment was yet to come.

As that blade of sword energy dissipated, tiny fragments of white drifted to the ground.

Xue Ziyi reached out to catch some in her palm—where she felt an icy chill.

“Frost!” she gasped, overwhelmed.

Her junior sword servant had not only unleashed five zhang of sword energy—something unheard of—but had also mastered the first form of the Frostfall Sword Art in less than half a night!

At this moment, only a single phrase echoed in Xue Ziyi’s heart.

A peerless genius!

Engrossed in his sword practice, Yun Que and the astonished Xue Ziyi failed to notice the change at the heart of the main hall. The ghostly face, which had nearly been suppressed back into the earth, had—at some point—closed its mouth. Its expression had shifted from its usual anger to something altogether different: an approving smile.