Dao Companion Crippled, Coveters Move

Chapter 318 316: Mirage Dragon

Although Lin Qianyan and Qing Yueqiu were still apprehensive, Pei Yuhang's stance was firm, his gaze burning like a torch. He had clearly made his decision. The two exchanged a look and ultimately said nothing more.

Lin Qianyan reached to her waist and removed a Jade Pendant, carved with the lotus emblem of the Jade Pool Sacred Land.

She placed the Jade Pendant, still warm and fragrant from her body, into Pei Yuhang's hand and said softly,

"Brother Pei, if you encounter the Mirage Dragon, you must use this Jade Pendant to notify me. It also contains a sliver of my power and can protect you in a critical moment."

Pei Yuhang looked down at the Jade Pendant, feeling the lingering warmth from her fingertips, and a gentle warmth spread through his heart.

He gave her a gentle smile, reassuring her.

"Qianqian, you're the main force for this demon hunt... I still have to bring my disciple back to the Cold Palace Sword Mansion safe and sound. I certainly won't take any unnecessary risks."

Hearing this, a complicated expression flickered in Lin Qianyan's eyes. She looked as if she wanted to say more, but in the end, she just nodded lightly, took a step back, and swallowed her words.

Qing Yueqiu's lovely, crimson-tinged eyes were filled with worry as she looked at Pei Yuhang. Her lips trembled, as though she had a thousand words to pour out, but they ultimately condensed into a single, soft warning:

"Master, you must be extra careful."

Before they parted, she suddenly turned her head and shot a fierce glare at Ji Xichan, who stood off to the side. Her eyes held an undisguised warning.

Ji Xichan's expression remained placid, as if she hadn't even noticed Qing Yueqiu's threat.

She gave a slight shrug and turned her gaze to Pei Yuhang, a profound look flashing in her eyes.

'Pei Sword Immortal, soon you'll be all mine~!'

After Lin Qianyan and Qing Yueqiu departed, the yellow sands suddenly felt vast and desolate, leaving only Pei Yuhang and Ji Xichan behind.

A hot wind stirred the fine sand, brushing against the hems of their robes and, paradoxically, bringing a hint of a chill.

Pei Yuhang looked up at Ji Xichan, who stood a short distance away. Clad in a black dress, its hem swaying gently in the wind, she resembled a dark flower blossoming alone in the wasteland.

A complex mix of emotions churned within him.

After all, just two days ago he had spoken to her with such finality, acting as if they should never cross paths again.

But now, they needed to rely on one another.

He cleared his throat, breaking the heavy silence.

"Let's go, Ji Xichan. We need to search for the Mirage Dragon in the other direction."

Ji Xichan nodded, refraining from her usual intimate teasing of Pei Yuhang.

Her expression turned serious as she formed a hand seal, and the shadow at her feet pointed in a specific direction.

That was the true direction of the Mirage Dragon. The location Lin Qianyan had gone to was a decoy.

Ji Xichan didn't want a Void Refining Great Cultivator interfering with her plans.

...

...

Guided by the shadow, Lin Qianyan and Qing Yueqiu moved farther and farther away from Pei Yuhang.

She stared at the endless expanse of yellow sand before her, a growing anxiety gnawing at her heart.

Every moment she failed to find a trace of the Mirage Dragon was an agony.

'The higher the chance that I won't find the Mirage Dragon, the higher the chance that Pei Yuhang will.'

"Brother Pei, you have to be okay..."

...

...

"Well, look at that. Looks like we hit the jackpot."

Pei Yuhang held his breath, his eyes fixed on the behemoth half-hidden within the swirling sands.

As the sand slowly settled, the Mirage Dragon's true form was gradually revealed.

It was a vast and elegant creature, its body coiling like a mountain range. Its scales shimmered with an iridescent light under the sun. With every rise and fall of the great beast's chest, its scales opened and closed, producing a crisp, metallic CLINK-CLINK sound.

Simultaneously, a thick, golden mist emanated from the gaps between its scales. This mist refracted the sunlight into a rainbow of colors, encircling its body and making it appear all the more dreamlike and illusory, as if it didn't belong to this world.

This was Mirage Qi. If a mortal were to inhale even a single wisp, they would be lost forever in an illusory dream, their physical body left to wither and decay.

Compared to the grotesque Dragon Corpse Pei Yuhang had once seen on Tree Sea Dragon Island,

...the Mirage Dragon before him was far more beautiful, possessing the true divinity of a mythological creature.

"So, Pei Sword Immortal, are you confident you can handle this?"

Even the widely experienced Ji Xichan was seeing such a legendary creature for the first time. She took a deep breath, a hint of teasing entering her gaze as she looked at Pei Yuhang.

Pei Yuhang gazed at the mountain-sized figure crawling slowly through the sand. After a moment of silence, he said softly,

"We wait for Qianqian."

As he spoke, he activated the Jade Pendant in his hand, sending a signal to Lin Qianyan.

When Ji Xichan noticed this, her lovely eyes narrowed slightly.

'Pei Yuhang is even more decisive than I thought, notifying that woman Lin Qianyan right away.'

'In that case, I'll have to complete my plan before Lin Qianyan gets here.'

The shadow at Ji Xichan's feet slowly writhed. She silently opened a connection between her Shadow Space and the outside world. Sensing the Mirage Dragon's suppressive aura, the Demon Spirits within began to stir restlessly.

The Mirage Dragon feeds on Spiritual Energy such as Soul Spirits and pleasant dreams.

The Demon Spirits Ji Xichan had stored were imperceptible to Pei Yuhang, but to the Mirage Dragon, they were an exquisite delicacy.

The Mirage Dragon, which had been lazing on the dunes, suddenly stirred. Its whiskers twitched, and the golden layer of Mirage Qi it secreted grew even thicker.

It slowly turned its head, following the scent of the Demon Spirits and locking onto the sand dune where Pei Yuhang was concealed.

Instantly, Pei Yuhang's instincts screamed danger.

He snatched Ji Xichan and shot into the sky. An instant later, the dune they had been hiding behind was melted into vitrified crystal by the scorching dragon's breath from the Mirage Dragon!

"We've been discovered... How are its senses this sharp?"

Pei Yuhang had no time to ponder why. With one arm around Ji Xichan's slender waist, he used two fingers of his other hand to control the Silent Sword. In the sky, one sword became two, two became three, and three became a multitude.

Once, Qing Yueqiu had dazzled the Sect's grand competition by controlling thirty-six Flying Swords.

Now, Pei Yuhang would command three thousand six hundred Flying Swords at once to vanquish the demon!

SHIIIIING—

The swords fell like rain.

Thousands of Silent Swords descended in cascading layers, the sharp, cold light glinting off them so brightly it illuminated the entire sky.

The Mirage Dragon spewed scorching dragon's breath, attempting to melt the sky-spanning sword-rain into slag.

The searing golden flames dyed the clouds crimson-gold. Pei Yuhang set Ji Xichan down, and with both hands free, the three thousand six hundred Flying Swords he commanded moved even faster.

A colossal Celestial Spirit Thirty-Six Sword Array, covering several square kilometers, silently formed. Guided by Pei Yuhang's will, it pressed down on the beast below.

"Ji Xichan, this Mirage Dragon's body is too massive! I can only hold it in a stalemate for a short while... My Divine Soul Power will be continuously drained during this time. If it uses its Illusionary Divine Abilities, my mind might falter.

You have to help me guard my mind!"

"Alright~!"

Just as Ji Xichan agreed, the Mirage Dragon let out a deep, ethereal cry like that of a whale.

In that instant, both of them felt a sharp pain in their eardrums, and the world before them began to twist and blur.

They watched as a great gust of wind sent the billowing Mirage Qi from the dragon's body surging toward them like a tidal wave.

Once enveloped by that Mirage Qi, even a Void Refining Cultivator would be lost to an illusory dream! This was the Mirage Dragon's most terrifying power!

At that moment, Ji Xichan stepped in front of Pei Yuhang. Forming a series of hand seals, she began to summon a Great Demon Spirit.

Great Demon Cyan Phoenix!

As the Spiritual Qi was frantically drained from Ji Xichan's body, a magnificent, great cyan bird erupted from the shadow at her feet.

The Cyan Phoenix's body radiated a five-colored divine light as it unleashed its Gale Divine Abilities, blocking the billowing Mirage Qi from reaching them.

The two Divinity Transformation Cultivators, Pei Yuhang and Ji Xichan, were now locked in a stalemate with the Mirage Dragon.

In fact, they were slowly losing ground.

Although Pei Yuhang still had his trump card, the Pure Yang Divine Abilities, he would only use that in a life-or-death struggle. For now, he just wanted to hold out until Qianqian arrived with reinforcements, so he had to content himself with trapping the Mirage Dragon with his Sword Array.

Just then, Ji Xichan's eyes flickered, and she spoke again. "Pei Sword Immortal, I have far less Spiritual Qi than you. I can't hold on for much longer.

After I'm exhausted, you won't be able to hold the Mirage Dragon on your own. It might not be able to kill us, but it will most likely escape. If that happens, we'll never catch it!"

"What are you getting at?"

"I have a treasure that can paralyze this Mirage Dragon's body for at least half an hour."

'Paralyze the Mirage Dragon for half an hour?!'

Pei Yuhang shot Ji Xichan a surprised look. 'No wonder she only invited me on this demon hunt and didn't even bother calling on Chen Tiansheng, that Void Refining Saint Son from the Dao Sect.'

'If she can really paralyze the Mirage Dragon for that long, then even without Qianqian, I could probably sever its Dragon Head just by striking it repeatedly with the Silent Sword.'

"What do I need to do?"

The urgency in Pei Yuhang's voice made Ji Xichan rejoice internally. 'My Pei Sword Immortal has finally taken the bait,' she thought.

"Use your swords to carve a path for me, straight to the Mirage Dragon!"

At Ji Xichan's words, Pei Yuhang's gaze sharpened instantly, and the sky full of Silent Swords began to hum with urgency.

He might be passive when it came to romance, always getting manipulated by cunning women...

...but when it came to the sword, he never hesitated.

"Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Sect!"

Pei Yuhang roared. At his command, the swords filling the sky flowed backward like a great river, finally converging before him.

"GO!!"

As a drop of his Essence Blood shot from his fingertip, the surging Sword River descended from the heavens at an even greater speed. It was like a waterfall of Sword Qi from the galaxy itself, crashing down upon the Mirage Dragon.

Ji Xichan seized the opportunity, leaping onto the back of the Cyan Phoenix Demon Spirit. She spiraled forward, following the path of the sword-waterfall.

As the surging Sword Qi from the sudden outburst scattered the billowing Mirage Qi, Ji Xichan broke through their defenses with unstoppable momentum, arriving right before the Mirage Dragon.

The Mirage Dragon opened its abyssal maw, preparing to swallow the tiny ant who dared to offend it.

But just then, a semi-corporeal, jade-white arm extended from behind Ji Xichan. The Mirage Dragon instinctively sensed immense danger. Its pupils shrank, and it tried to retreat.

But it was too late.

VMMMM—

As the palm of the jade-white arm sank into the Mirage Dragon's forehead, its massive, mountain-like body instantly froze, as if it had simply crashed.

'The Goddess Statue has grabbed the Inner Core inside the Mirage Dragon's head!'

A crazed light flickered in Ji Xichan's lovely eyes, her heart pounding faster than it ever had before.

Just then, Pei Yuhang's concerned voice reached her from behind.

"Ji Xichan, we did it!"