Chapter Forty-Three: Swordmaster, Sword Song, Sword Formation!

“They’re here!”

Fang Yige could only abandon his attempt to decipher the magic circle—though it would have deepened his understanding of arrays. Clearly, now was not the time.

In truth, none of them had anticipated this. They had planned for everything, focusing their schemes on diverting the Nightwatchers and eliminating the Guardian as swiftly as possible. Yet, unexpectedly, the greatest obstacle turned out to be the treasury itself.

At this moment, Fang Yuan, Wang Tian, Wen Feng, and Wang Junfeng—the four close-combat specialists—were violently attempting to break through the gate. Only he could aid Yi Shisan now.

As a cultivator, he too possessed a flying sword and was naturally capable of sword flight. However, it consumed too much magical power, so he rarely used it. Only someone as flamboyant as Yi Shisan would insist on displaying his mastery, choosing to soar on his sword when a few steps would suffice.

Once airborne, Fang Yige did not hesitate; he immediately launched his attack.

As an array master, his most potent weapon was his mastery of formations. Using his Flame Immortal Sword as the core, he positioned the other three immortal swords at strategic points, swiftly deploying the Four Symbols Sword Array.

The black-furred ape, previously perched at the highest vantage, suddenly found its “home” vanished. With a furious, guttural roar, it pounded its chest with both fists in rage.

The roar carried immense power, and even the Four Symbols Sword Array could not wholly insulate them from its sound. Maintaining the array, Fang Yige felt his mental strength depleting rapidly.

“Hurry up, I can’t hold on much longer!” he called out to Yi Shisan, struggling to sustain the formation.

“I know, I know!” Yi Shisan replied irritably, gulping down a potion as he arranged his thirteen flying swords into formation.

Everyone knew that Sword Song was a swordmaster—an exceptionally rare one who wielded multiple weapons as a swordcase adept.

The self-proclaimed swordmaster, recognized in the Tower of Wonders as a Thought Adept, fancied himself a cultivator traversing the azure skies, riding the winds and wielding swords. In truth, his so-called sword flight was nothing more than manipulating the swords telekinetically.

But now, his playful manner vanished as he earnestly began to deploy his sword array.

A Thought Adept, when focused, was truly terrifying—much like a mage with mana remaining is an ever-present threat. As long as their psychic power persists, a Thought Adept is always dangerous.

“Done!” Yi Shisan called out, his form vanishing alongside his flying swords.

At his shout, Fang Yige released the Four Symbols Sword Array. Expecting an array master to directly confront a brute who broke through magic with force was far too demanding. Array masters always favored meticulous planning before acting.

The Guardian, seeing its domain restored, beat its chest in excitement and leapt down from the rooftop. Yet, before it could land, it vanished midair—trapped within Yi Shisan’s sword array.

Fang Yige did not intervene, instead rushing to join Wen Feng and the others. His flying sword lashed out repeatedly at the iron gate, but each time, an invisible shield deflected the blade.

“It’s no use,” Wang Junfeng shook his head. “The door is forged from mythril, impervious to all supernatural force. Unless you can unleash enough power in a single strike to exceed its threshold, it’s pointless. Only brute strength can force it open.”

“So troublesome?” Fang Yige frowned. Time was running out; every moment lost increased the risk of being discovered.

“Watch me!” Fang Yuan declared confidently, shifting into his Iron Gold Ape form—a secondary transformation at that.

With a thunderous crash, the massive Iron Gold Ape slammed into the gate, making it tremble as the gap between the doors widened.

Emboldened, Fang Yuan backed up, then charged and crashed into the doors again.

This time, the result was even better, though the impact sent Fang Yuan flying backward from the force.

“My turn!” Wang Tian was not to be outdone. His hair flared red as he activated the Bloodline of the Slayer. With power gathered, he delivered a simple, close-range shoulder strike—thunder rolling across the ground—and the gap widened enough for a small child to squeeze through.

Suddenly, the pounding of drums resounded.

Everyone present felt their strength surge.

Looking up, they saw Wang Junfeng had switched weapons, striking the Thunder Drum, bestowing them all with a powerful boon.

Had the four Paladin brothers been present, their blessings would have made all this unnecessary. But under current circumstances, this was all they could do.

Thankfully, with Fang Yuan and Wang Tian in the team, breaking the door was not so insurmountable. Under their alternating onslaught, the gate opened wider and wider.

Meanwhile, within Yi Shisan’s sword array, the black-furred ape endured a relentless storm of attacks. Countless miniature swords surged in from all directions, hacking at its body again and again. Though unable to break its defenses, the sheer force of impact inflicted excruciating pain.

Despite its furious bellows, the black-furred ape had no means to reverse its predicament.

Yi Shisan, too, was frustrated—awkwardly realizing he could not breach the creature’s defenses.

At present, he was little more than a novice, all attributes at five, standing at the threshold of the first rank, while the black-furred ape was already at the second rank, excelling particularly in physical attributes. Though it had weakened considerably, it was still beyond his ability to subdue.

For now, all he could do was monitor the others’ progress while keeping the Guardian contained. Their mission was to seize the treasure, not necessarily to slay the beast—an objective far more difficult by comparison.

Finally, after repeated collisions, the great doors were forced open; the sealing power at the threshold faltered, growing dangerously unstable.

With a final thunderous crash, both iron doors swung apart, and the invisible barrier dissolved.

The black-furred ape, roaring in fury, beat its chest as its body expanded yet again—its strength increasing with its size, now reaching a towering ten meters.

Yi Shisan immediately retreated, relinquishing his hold on the array. If the beast broke the sword formation, his flying swords would suffer immense damage, and he himself could be injured.

With the doors open at last, all that remained was to rush in, seize the prize, and escape—no need to concern themselves with anything else.

Thus, Yi Shisan felt no guilt about releasing the black-furred ape.

Such things were common enough in the Tower of Wonders; risking his life for a mission was out of the question.