Imperial Cultivation Chapter 1209 - 1205: Bait

A wry smile crept across Zhao Ruilin's face.

"Why, feeling reluctant?" Zhu Lingyun glanced at him indifferently.

With a deep sigh, Zhao Ruilin spoke, "Divine Venerable, if I claim the Giant Spirit Sword is missing, you surely won't trust me, right?"

"What do you expect?!" Zhu Lingyun snapped back in irritation, "Why didn't you vanish instead?!"

"Senior Brother, since you refined the Giant Spirit Sword as a Spiritual Artifact yourself," Sun Haoyang asked in confusion, "shouldn't you sense it even if it's gone?"

"It got stolen." Zhao Ruilin stated flatly.

Hu Chengxiang knitted his brows, "Whoever could snatch the Giant Spirit Sword... could it be that fellow?"

He turned to Zhu Lingyun, "Divine Venerable, could you take Senior Brother’s Giant Spirit Sword without him noticing?"

Zhu Lingyun gave a nod.

"It must be that guy then!... So sly and utterly maddening!" Hu Chengxiang declared.

Zhu Lingyun's expression darkened further, his voice icy as he asked, "Truly lost?"

Zhao Ruilin offered another bitter smile, "No matter my audacity, I'd never lie to the Divine Venerable. The Giant Spirit Sword has lost all connection, its location completely unknown."

"Definitely him." Zhu Lingyun sneered, "Seeking death!"

He thought briefly before saying offhandedly, "Grab a sword—ideally a fine one."

Zhao Ruilin drew the Longsword from his waist, "This is the longsword I wielded earlier; it's a Treasure Sword too."

The Longsword gleamed perfectly, radiating a snowy luster.

"Refine it once with the Sacrificial Refining Method for the Giant Spirit Sword." Zhu Lingyun instructed.

Without hesitation, Zhao Ruilin initiated the Sacrificial Refining Method, handling this blade just like the Giant Spirit Sword.

Soon after, a faint red glow emanated from the Sword.

The red light then seeped fully into the Sword.

Zhao Ruilin shook his head in disappointment.

Though a Treasure Sword, it wasn't the Giant Spirit Sword; missing true Spirituality, it failed to bond completely with his gathered aura.

Regardless of further refinement, it remained distinct, refusing to fuse intimately with his body.

"Wait a moment." Zhu Lingyun stated calmly.

With that, he shut his eyes, formed his palms into an odd handprint, and whispered incantations.

The trio shuddered abruptly, scanning their surroundings, yet detecting no oddities.

The air around them chilled instantly, as if plunged into a frozen cavern.

All eyes fixed on Zhu Lingyun.

Strange transformations rippled through Zhu Lingyun’s palms, hazy like objects beneath clear spring water.

His sealed palms appeared to ripple in liquid, light bending subtly.

A piercing chill radiated from his form, enveloping them in frigid depths.

Suddenly, Zhu Lingyun commanded, "Apply your heart’s blood to the Sword, then refine once more."

Zhao Ruilin bit his finger, drawing a drop of blood at the tip, and gently smeared it across the Sword.

Simultaneously, he began refining anew, as the Sword’s red light blended with the blood and absorbed into it.

Zhu Lingyun lightly flicked his left index finger.

The sword shot upward abruptly, floating before him.

He swiftly shaped handprints nonstop, directing them at the Longsword, then bit his fingertip to release a gold-red pearl.

Resembling a red pearl dusted with gold, it stood out strikingly.

The gold-red pearl dissolved into the air, creating a purple-gold mist that an unseen force guided to gradually shroud the Longsword.

Sun Haoyang's eyes bulged wide, murmuring, "What's he up to?"

Hu Chengxiang shook his head slightly.

Zhao Ruilin focused intently, eyes locked on the scene.

"Is he tracing the thief via the Giant Spirit Sword?" Hu Chengxiang speculated.

Sun Haoyang nodded emphatically.

Noticing Zhao Ruilin's silence, Sun Haoyang probed, "Senior Brother, isn't that it?"

"He’s likely using the Giant Spirit Sword to slay the foe directly," Zhao Ruilin murmured softly.

He sensed the frosty killing intent, immersing him in a aura thick with murderous chill.

Hence, this wasn't mere tracking, but a lethal technique.

"Kill the enemy without identifying them first? Don't you need to locate them?" Sun Haoyang questioned.

"Can't you figure it out? Probably tracking and striking at once," Hu Chengxiang replied.

"Does such a Miracle Technique even exist?" Sun Haoyang doubted.

He'd never encountered any such Miracle Technique.

Zhao Ruilin gestured dismissively, his gaze fixed on Zhu Lingyun.

Zhu Lingyun kept forming enigmatic handprints—elegant, archaic, odd, or sinister.

He murmured incantations in sync with the handprints' flow.

The suspended Longsword began shifting form, inching closer to the Giant Spirit Sword's appearance.

"Amazing, what masterful craftsmanship!" Sun Haoyang burst with excitement, crying out, "Incredibly mystical!"

Transforming a Longsword into something like a Short Sword via aura and handprints felt utterly implausible.

What immense power was this?

Zhu Lingyun's voice rang out, "Picture your Giant Spirit Sword clearly in your mind."

"Understood." Zhao Ruilin answered gravely.

He conjured an image of the Giant Spirit Sword mentally, striving to sense it vividly.

Zhu Lingyun’s chants grew louder, each syllable arcane, timeless, and deeply resonant.

Sun Haoyang tried mimicking one phrase but couldn't voice it.

The sounds proved too alien.

Abruptly, Zhu Lingyun halted a handprint, thrusting it toward the Short Sword.

His hands flared brilliantly, Golden Light coalescing into a tiny sword that streaked into the Short Sword.

The swords fused in an instant.

"Buzz!"

A silhouette materialized in the Void, pierced straight through the heart by the small sword.

"Bang!" A muffled thud reverberated from the Void.

The noise was subdued, yet upon hearing it, dizziness struck, their bodies quaking fiercely as they staggered backward.

"Humph!" Zhu Lingyun snorted sharply.

Their minds sharpened immediately, bodies steadying, no more stumbling.

"Done?!" Sun Haoyang's eyes sparkled, fixed on Zhu Lingyun.

Zhu Lingyun's face remained grave, shaking his head slowly.

Perplexed, Sun Haoyang asked, "Divine Venerable, did it fail to finish him?"

Zhu Lingyun snorted coldly, "No, he couldn't be slain—he's already refined the Giant Spirit Sword fully!"

"Impossible!" Zhao Ruilin exclaimed involuntarily.

Zhu Lingyun shot him a sharp look, "Why impossible?"

"Divine Venerable, the Giant Spirit Sword vanished only recently; refining it completely so fast is unthinkable," Zhao Ruilin asserted confidently.

He himself had needed an entire year for the Giant Spirit Sword's full refinement.

Refining demanded persistent effort, like water eroding rock.

Spirit and Sword Spirit merged slowly, no quick paths available.

Zhu Lingyun snorted dismissively.

"Senior Brother, we couldn't manage it, but the Divine Venerable might," Sun Haoyang pointed out.

Zhao Ruilin eyed Zhu Lingyun.

"He took a shortcut," Zhu Lingyun said icily.

"What kind of shortcut?" Zhao Ruilin inquired eagerly.

"A secret technique surging spiritual power instantly—not merging, but overpowering the Sword Spirit through sheer dominance," Zhu Lingyun explained.

"I see..." Zhao Ruilin grasped the meaning.

One approach merged harmoniously, the other subjugated brutally.

One allied with the Sword Spirit; the other enslaved it.

Contrasting mindsets, born from vast power disparities.

"Divine Venerable, does this mean we can't reclaim the Giant Spirit Sword?" Sun Haoyang wondered.

Zhu Lingyun snorted, "Slay him, and take back the Giant Spirit Sword!"

"Yes, eliminate him!" Sun Haoyang agreed fervently, "But how?"

Zhu Lingyun narrowed his eyes slightly, scanning nearby then distant horizons.

Inspiration struck Sun Haoyang, who quickly proposed, "Use us as bait?"

"That's the sole option available," Zhu Lingyun replied evenly.

Sun Haoyang clenched his teeth, "Reclaiming the Giant Spirit Sword is crucial. We have to kill him!... I'll serve as bait!"

"Ready to risk your life?" Zhu Lingyun questioned.

"If death comes, fine—no great loss!" Sun Haoyang declared, "As long as he's dead."

Zhu Lingyun looked toward Zhao Ruilin and Hu Chengxiang.

Both wore grim expressions.

"Divine Venerable..." Zhao Ruilin began, "Junior Brother Sun may not draw him out; allow me instead."

"Senior Brother!" Sun Haoyang protested hotly, "I'm disposable; you're not."

"Junior Brother, enough," Zhao Ruilin interrupted with a wave, facing Zhu Lingyun, "I beseech the Divine Venerable for a life-preserving treasure."

"Hmm..." Zhu Lingyun mulled it over, "I'll grant a secret technique doubling your strength, though it severely damages primordial energy, needing one or two years to recover."

"My thanks, Divine Venerable!" Zhao Ruilin bowed deeply with clasped fists.

A mile distant, Chu Zhiyuan overheard the scheme and chuckled, shaking his head.

This Divine Venerable wielded numerous secret techniques, yet his power fell short of the hype.

Most likely, his strength lay in spiritual power, but having grasped the Heavenly Yuan Technique's first layer, Chu Zhiyuan matched him there too.