Chapter 1753: The Guardians
As Ling Feng continued forward, the route map Xiao Juanyun had given him became completely useless.
For someone with Ling Feng's terrible sense of direction, it might as well have been a blank sheet of paper.
At this point, he had no idea where he was anymore.
The only thing on his mind was simple.
Keep moving forward.
Just then, at the entrance to a passage, Ling Feng spotted a blurry figure radiating astonishing sword qi.
"Intruder. Defeat me before you may proceed."
The shadow immediately locked onto Ling Feng. A longsword condensed in its hand, and without another word, it slashed straight at him.
"A guardian[1]?"
Ling Feng narrowed his eyes and smiled faintly. The Eradicator of Realms flashed from its sheath, and the phantom dispersed into nothingness in the next instant.
Ling Feng stood calmly with his hands behind his back. A guardian of this level wasn't enough to stop him.
Although he couldn't mobilize a trace of elemental force right now, he would never fear anyone when it came to the skill of the sword!
***
Meanwhile, throughout the countless tunnels, the other martial artists who had entered the ruins encountered the same challenge.
Most managed to defeat their opponents. However, some were still unable to adapt after losing access to their elemental force and were defeated by the phantom swordsmen.
Fortunately, losing to one of those white phantoms didn't mean death. Instead, they were immediately teleported outside the ruins, losing only their qualification to continue searching for treasures.
Compared to many other ancient ruins, the elimination system of the Great Desolation Ruins was relatively merciful.
***
After defeating the first guardian, Ling Feng continued deeper inside. Every time he advanced another section, a new guardian would appear. With each level he passed, the next guardian became noticeably stronger.
After breaking through four consecutive levels, Ling Feng could clearly feel how dramatically the guardians' abilities had improved.
Just then, a startled cry echoed from behind him. It was a woman's voice, filled with panic as she fled for her life.
By sheer coincidence, she happened to be running straight toward him.
Why does her voice sound so familiar? Ling Feng's eyelid twitched. A moment later, he remembered. Isn't that Yue Huaqing?
He turned around and, sure enough, saw Yue Huaqing fleeing desperately with a guardian close on her heels. With how strong she was, the second level was already her limit. The first two trials had left her utterly disheveled.
"Junior Brother Ling!"
The moment Yue Huaqing saw Ling Feng standing ahead, joy flooded her face. She immediately burst into an even faster sprint toward him.
Ling Feng could only smile helplessly. Since they had run into each other, there was no way he could simply stand by and watch.
His figure flashed forward as he rushed toward Yue Huaqing. With her strength, even being grazed by the third-level guardian's sword qi would probably cost her life.
At the same time, the guardian standing before Ling Feng had already locked onto his aura.
Seeing Ling Feng retreat, it assumed he was trying to flee and immediately chased after him with a sword in hand.
In the blink of an eye, the two guardians closed in from opposite directions, trapping Ling Feng and Yue Huaqing between them.
As though moving with a single mind, they swung their swords at the exact same moment.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Yue Huaqing let out a terrified scream. She was only a few meters from Ling Feng when the crushing sword pressure descended upon her.
Her legs nearly gave out beneath her, but Ling Feng sprang into the air at the critical moment. He caught Yue Huaqing around the waist with his left arm and thrust his sword forward with his right.
With a single strike, he deflected both guardians' blades. He then spun in one fluid motion, his sword flashing like a cold star across the night sky as it swept through both Guardians' throats.
Bang!
Bang!
The two guardians shattered and vanished instantly. The passage behind them was completely sealed off, while ahead, another three-way intersection quietly awaited.
1. This is more like a guardian of a checkpoint ☜