Su Muyu led Bai Hehuai to the end of the secret passage. Above them was a stone door. Su Muyu channeled his true qi and forcefully struck out with his palm, pushing the door open. He looked down at Bai Hehuai and said, “I’ll go out first. Wait here for a moment.”
“Alright,” Bai Hehuai nodded.
Su Muyu leaped up and emerged from the secret passage. Outside, dawn was just breaking, with a faint glimmer of light. Looking up, Su Muyu saw a solitary pavilion standing before him. He recognized it as the Three Li Pavilion outside Jiuxiao City. He hadn’t expected the secret passage to be so deep that it connected directly from the Spider’s Lair to outside the city. The pavilion appeared empty at first, but when Su Muyu blinked, he noticed a white figure standing in its center.
A ghost? Su Muyu startled, then whirled around, swinging his sword. There was the sound of flesh tearing as his sword pierced straight through the figure’s chest. Yet the person made no sound, continuing to swing their sword at Su Muyu’s head. Su Muyu hastily withdrew his sword and retreated, his blade flashing rapidly. With clear, crisp clangs of metal on metal, the two exchanged more than ten moves in an instant. Su Muyu’s swordplay was more refined—after ten exchanges, he had wounded his opponent multiple times while remaining unscathed himself. Yet no matter what injuries his opponent sustained, they showed no reaction.
“Puppet Killing Technique,” Su Muyu muttered.
The white-robed figure in the pavilion laughed. “The Puppet Killing Technique and your Eighteen Sword Formation share the same origin. The difference is that you control swords, while I control people.”
“Mu Bai.” Su Muyu said coldly. “How did you know about the secret passage’s exit?”
“Have you forgotten? The Mu family’s influence can be found behind every formation in the Spider’s Lair. Though we cannot see the complete picture, there are always traces to follow.” The person waiting there was Mu Bai, son of Mu Family Head Mu Zizhi. He continued softly, “I’ve been waiting a long time for this battle with you.”
Su Muyu raised his foot and kicked away the puppet in front of him, then turned to swing his sword, meeting another puppet that had suddenly attacked. The two puppets quickly formed a pincer attack. Su Muyu leaned back sharply, avoiding an extremely dangerous strike.
“It’s a pity that you’ve already used your Eighteen Sword Formation. Now, with just a single sword in hand, it’s almost impossible for you to defeat my Puppet Killing Technique.” Mu Bai sighed with feigned regret. “Such a shame we cannot have a proper battle.”
Su Muyu remained expressionless at Mu Bai’s provocation, his sword moving lightly as he held his own against two puppets. With rare sarcasm, he replied, “If I hadn’t already used the Eighteen Sword Formation, would you have dared to face me in battle?”
Mu Bai narrowed his eyes slightly, then laughed heartily. “Ha ha ha ha! It’s rare to hear you speak this way. Usually when I meet you, it’s hard to see even the slightest emotional expression. It seems you’re truly anxious, trying to provoke me with such words?”
Su Muyu snorted coldly. “We both use puppet strings differently—you inherited the Mu family’s most exquisite Puppet Killing Technique, while I recreated the Su family’s Eighteen Sword Formation. In the Dark River, speculation about which of us is stronger has existed for many years. Most believe I am stronger because you merely inherited, while I recreated. What you know, Mu Zizhi also knows, but what I know, even the Su family patriarch has never seen!”
“Such arrogance!” Mu Bai waved his hand, and another particularly burly puppet descended from above, landing in front of Su Muyu. Though Su Muyu retreated in time, his chest still received a shallow sword wound. All three puppets wielded swords, and while their swordsmanship couldn’t compare to Su Muyu’s refinement, they matched first-class swordsmen. When the three puppets attacked simultaneously, their originally flawed sword techniques suddenly complemented each other, becoming impenetrable.
“Three form a formation?” Su Muyu’s thin sword struck out rapidly, like raindrops—minute and dense yet incredibly nimble. However, the advantage he had earlier vanished with the appearance of the third puppet.
In the secret passage below, Bai Hehuai listened to the sounds of clashing weapons above with worry. Although Su Muyu had rested briefly earlier, the sword wounds from his battle with Xie Buxie hadn’t fully healed. Now facing a strong enemy, he might struggle to hold his ground. After pondering for a moment, she made a decision.
Above, after exchanging hundreds of moves, Su Muyu had sustained three sword wounds, but he had figured out these three puppets’ sword techniques. While fighting, he said, “Your puppet technique cannot make them wield swords freely. All three puppets only know fixed sword techniques—one uses the Xie family’s Soul-Breaking Sword for offense, one uses the Su family’s Autumn Wind Fall for defense, and one uses the White Sleeve Sword technique adapted from the Mu family’s sleeve technique for sneak attacks. Three puppets form a sword formation, and since they cannot be killed, it’s almost impenetrable.”
Mu Bai frowned slightly. “As expected of the Umbrella Ghost—you could discern my Puppet Killing Technique’s sword formation composition in just a hundred moves. This makes it even more imperative that I kill you. But what good does understanding do? You’ll be dead before you can figure out how to break it.”
“Sword techniques are dead, but swordsmen are alive. Puppets use dead swords—even the most exquisite technique can be broken.” Su Muyu took a light breath. “Now is about the right time.” He leaped forward, flashing behind the puppet using Autumn Wind Fall for defense. The puppet using the White Sleeve Sword for sneak attacks struck its companion in front of Su Muyu, who smiled slightly and turned to face the puppet using the Soul-Breaking Sword.
Three sword strikes flashed out instantly. The Soul-Breaking Sword puppet’s weapon was knocked away by Su Muyu, who then swung his sword and directly beheaded the puppet.
Su Muyu then turned to face the Autumn Wind Fall defensive puppet. His sword energy suddenly changed, becoming incredibly domineering—closer to knife techniques than sword techniques. Again in three moves, the defensive puppet’s sword was knocked flying, and Su Muyu’s next strike destroyed its head.
Mu Bai was shocked. His right hand yanked sharply, pulling the last puppet back into Three Li Pavilion. He said gravely, “How did you find the solution so quickly?”
Su Muyu sheathed his sword, catching his breath. “I come from a place named for swords, where people specifically study and counter all the world’s sword techniques—breaking fast swords, attacking swords, defensive swords. My father once said that unless you’re a sword immortal, you have no right to even speak the word ‘sword’ in their presence.”
Mu Bai was stunned. “The No Sword City? You came from the No Sword City!”