Chapter 316 — Things Are Looking Bad
The Herdsman of the Wasteland · Page 2 of 4
" Clang, clang, clang, clang — locusts and sword-rain collided; the golden locusts' thin wings were like blades, while Shen Mu's flying swords were heavy and solid, and in an instant the collision filled the room with dancing sparks. Amid sword-light and locusts, Ban Gongcuo drove the Myriad Locust Banner deep into the floor, and stepping and flashing through the rain of swords and locusts, his figure darting left and right, closed on Shen Mu.
Shen Mu's footwork was unfathomable, and he too closed swiftly through the sword-rain and locusts.
The room was not large, and with locusts and flying swords clanging everywhere, one careless moment could draw blood, or even cost a life. These days both Shen Mu and Ban Gongcuo had been studying how to make their divine abilities finer and more precise; so in this small room, both kept their locusts and swords as small as possible — the flying swords no more than three inches long, the locusts no more than a hand's span.
But the smaller they were, the more perilous; to weave through the enemy's sword-rain and locusts required extremely keen eyes and judgment. The next moment the two met; fist and palm joined, force exploded, and a clear peal of thunder rang through the room.
Ban Gongcuo smiled: "With my present cultivation.
. .
hngh! " He grunted, feeling the other's dreadful strength, and was startled. These days he had trained hard and his cultivation had greatly increased; he had thought his cultivation must give him an overwhelming advantage — yet without using his full strength, Shen Mu actually held a slight upper hand!
How could that be?
Was this kid also a reincarnated soul?
But then he sensed something was off: Shen Mu did not surpass him in mana cultivation; rather, the fellow's vital essence had become purer and more refined, his mastery of moves and divine abilities had risen another level, and his physical body had grown much stronger.
That is, Shen Mu could use less vital essence to make his divine abilities erupt with greater power. He was ahead of Ban Gongcuo in the fineness of his abilities: when a strike missed, little power leaked away; when it landed, the divine ability burst forth more violently. Ban Gongcuo and Shen Mu had entered that mysterious corridor together; both had seen the marks of divine abilities and divine weapons upon the walls, but both had only glanced at them in passing, without deep study.
And now Shen Mu had surpassed him in this art.
"Bad!
" Ban Gongcuo's mind went blank, and he sensed the danger at once. Shen Mu's cultivation had risen, his vital essence had grown purer, he spent less mana, and his body had improved as well; in that case, Shen Mu's fighting power and endurance both clearly exceeded his. Though not by much — but exceeding by even a hair was enough to win.
In the short run it was fine, but as time dragged on, he would be in trouble. Sure enough, as the two exchanged great techniques, the Eight Thousand Swords and the Myriad Locust Banner consumed mana terribly, draining their vital essence at a furious rate, until the flying swords and locusts they could control dwindled sharply. Yet Shen Mu's physical body remained formidable; his moves were wide and sweeping, ranging freely, each punch and kick splitting mountains and shattering stone, terrifying in power, driving Ban Gongcuo back and back.
Suddenly Ban Gongcuo slammed backward, bursting open a cabin door, and took the chance to roll inside, then moved to shut the door. Before it closed, a tremendous force struck him, hurling him away, and with a smack he was pinned flat against the opposite wall!
"I only need to hold out until my subordinates find me.
Once they come, this kid is dead for certain!
" Ban Gongcuo remained calm. In these two months, to search out the treasures aboard the ship and that mysterious corridor, he had taught several Witch Kings how to calculate the method of joining space. Those Witch Kings would surely come searching!