Dragon Tamer

Chapter 123 - 124: Sword Spirit Dragon

Indeed, such a sight would scare any Sword Sect Disciple’s soul out of their body, as some longswords were mysteriously oozing blood, sinisterly crimson!

Zhu Minglang did not immediately run away; instead, he let the sword shadows whirl and zip by his side.

Closing his eyes, he used his spiritual awareness to sense the true “specter” within the Abandoned Sword Forest. Zhu Minglang wanted to know the reason behind their restlessness—could it be that they had really grown resentful due to being forsaken and neglected in this place?

Every abandoned sword here had once accompanied him. Zhu Minglang still recognized some of the inscriptions on their blades. If they truly became swords of resentment, Zhu Minglang believed he could appease them… “Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang!!!!!!!!”

Finally, the swords in the forest started to move. They pulled themselves out from the earth and crossed blades in the air. Thousands upon thousands of abandoned swords, as if wielded by just as many Sword Masters, clashed in exhilarating duels right there.

“Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding!!!!!!!!”

Countless sparks flew as blades glinted repeatedly. Zhu Minglang felt as if he were in the midst of an ancient battlefield of sword cultivators, unseen yet evidenced by their swords that incessantly replayed and relived the ancient wars.

A thunderclap tore through the sky above the Abandoned Sword Forest, the dazzling white forcing Zhu Minglang to shield his eyes.

The lightning did not so much illuminate everything in the dim forest as it seemingly devoured it all with its intense light.

A normal person facing such a bizarre scene would have likely fainted by now, unable to remain conscious.

But Zhu Minglang still did not leave.

He believed that if these swords had souls, they would not harm him.

He slowly opened his eyes, and upon looking at the centuries-old Abandoned Sword Forest once more, he found the dim woods empty, the ground-sown abandoned swords mysteriously vanished!

In the bamboo forest, not a single sword remained to be seen; they seemed to have escaped into another void, mysteriously disappearing right before his eyes.

Lightning tore through the dim night, illuminating the sinister Abandoned Sword Forest. Suddenly, an ominous presence rushed over him, and what caught Zhu Minglang’s eyes was the towering shadow of a ghastly sword, standing like a mountain before him!

The sword was rust-red, soaked in blood, as if it had been immersed in a blood-red abyss for countless years with every inscription within it stained in this crimson hue!

What truly terrified Zhu Minglang was not the sudden appearance of this sword peak, but the sensation that the evil sword seemed to be gazing at him!!

This evil sword did not seem like a mighty magical artifact; it felt more like a living entity. Being so close to it, Zhu Minglang could even feel its vitality.

“Tool Demon??”

Zhu Minglang could hardly believe his own eyes.

He had once heard from Mr. Dumb that such beings, called Tool Demons, existed in this world.

These so-called Tool Demons were powerful artifacts that absorbed the essence of heaven, earth, sun, and moon, turning into demons, cultivating into devils, and even ascending to sainthood.

But calling this evil sword a ‘demon’ seemed a misfit.

Many swords within the Abandoned Sword Forest had lifespans of over a thousand years, not to mention that this evil sword was clearly the soul of all the abandoned swords here.

It was a Tool Devil!

Possibly even a Tool Saint!

A Holy Spirit with ten thousand years of cultivation!!

“That’s not right, that’s not right, the aura it’s giving off isn’t that of a demon…” Zhu Minglang shook his head again.

The aura of the evil sword was incredibly peculiar; if he had to compare it to a living creature, Zhu Minglang felt…

Just then, the evil sword approached him. Its towering stature began to shrink as it drew nearer to Zhu Minglang, revealing its true form.

Finally, the evil sword appeared before Zhu Minglang.

Its shape was identical to that of a sword, but for some reason, Zhu Minglang felt that what stood before him was a living being!

Its aura…

Dragon!!

The aura was unmistakably that of a dragon!!

Zhu Minglang’s heart surged violently.

This sword had first attained a demon cultivator, becoming a Sword Spirit…

Then, this Sword Spirit had even crossed the Dragon Gate!!

Sword Spirit Dragon!!

All things in this world could transform into dragons…

An Artifact Spirit was already an exceedingly rare existence, but for an Artifact Spirit to transform into a dragon was even more of a fantastical tale.

“Swoosh-—”

The sinister Sword Spirit Dragon drew close to Zhu Minglang, circling him gently as if carefully discerning something.

As if sensing a familiar aura on Zhu Minglang, the Sword Spirit Dragon, rare in the world, cautiously approached him like a child.

Suddenly, the Sword Spirit Dragon swiftly flew over Zhu Minglang’s palm, slicing a bloody wound across his palm.

The wound seeped fresh blood, which quickly dripped down, and the Sword Spirit Dragon immediately brought its sword-tipped tongue close, absorbing Zhu Minglang’s blood drop by drop into the Crimson Blade…

Just a few drops of blood were enough for the rust-like dirt to scatter like dust in the wind from the Sword Spirit’s body. Thick layers of rust acted as chains holding it back, and as its blade shone bright crimson, its edge revealed, the Sword Spirit was utterly revived in that moment!

Another bolt of lightning split the sky, once again illuminating the entire Abandoned Sword Forest.

Not a single abandoned sword was left in the forest, except for the Sword Spirit, trembling as it drank blood. Behind it lay a vast expanse of wilder forest, casting its shadow, a shadow that now unfurled sword wings, stretched out its sword form, standing tall and majestic like a mountain, awe-inspiring!!

What Zhu Minglang had seen was its Sword Soul’s shadow.

It had its own soul!

It was a dragon!

The Sword Spirit Dragon, created from the collective will of countless discarded swords, had cultivated itself from a Sword Spirit into a dragon of swords!

“Was it my blood that turned you into the Sword Spirit?” Zhu Minglang still couldn’t calm down from the shock.

It had just drunk his blood and then dissolved the rust from its body.

It was telling him that it recognized him, it knew where it came from.

“That sword shadow darting to and fro, was it the sword mark I once slashed across the sky?”

“That intertwined battlefield, was it the sound of swords I practiced with day and night?”

“You were waiting for me here, but you turned into a dragon?”

Zhu Minglang looked at the Crimson Sword before him, recalling the scenes he had witnessed, and his eyes immediately moistened.

The so-called ghost stories of the Abandoned Sword Forest had persisted in the Sword Sect for some years.

But these were all the true Sword Spirits of the Abandoned Sword Forest conveying a message to the outside world, waiting for his return at every dawn and dusk.

“I am no longer a Sword Master.”

“Nor are you just a Sword Spirit.”

Zhu Minglang wiped away the tears that were about to spill from his eyes with his hand.

Fate’s cruel jest, had Zhu Minglang returned as a Sword Master, the Sword Spirit Dragon would no longer be able to become a sword in Zhu Minglang’s hand, for it had transformed into a dragon.

But Zhu Minglang had lost the Power of God and Mortality, no longer able to wield true Sword Intent, he had become a Dragon Shepherd…

Bit by bit, a Spirit Bond formed in Zhu Minglang’s heart, like drops of rain falling into a lake, from the initial ripples to a full lake of wave patterns. Zhu Minglang could even sense some of the Sword Spirit Dragon’s emotions!

It was the blood just now.

It had created a soul connection between them.

When it recognized him, it was nearly as joyful and tearful as he was.

Because he was a Dragon Shepherd.

It was a Sword Spirit Dragon.

They had almost missed each other.

But they would miss each other no longer!

Zhu Minglang slowly extended his hand, thinking he would never touch a sword again in this lifetime, yet he never imagined holding one in such a way.

His arm was trembling, his fingers were trembling, both the palms and the back of his hands were the same, but Zhu Minglang still grasped the Sword Spirit entwined with his own destiny!

In the moment of his firm grip, Zhu Minglang opened his fourth Spirit Contract. With the previous blood bond, even though the Sword Spirit Dragon’s cultivation base was higher than Zhu Minglang’s Dragon Shepherd Realm, they still slowly established a soul connection, their minds, spirits, and souls coexisting!

The Sword Spirit Dragon had a tail.

Like long strands of sword fluff, as Zhu Minglang’s soul connected with it, the Sword Spirit Dragon’s tail grew like vines along his arm.

The growth continued, and as Zhu Minglang looked down, he noticed that inscriptions had appeared on his arm, glowing densely and covering his entire arm as if imprinting some ancient power into his bloodstream…

Zhu Minglang suddenly felt his blood surging, boiling, as if it were igniting into flames.

As if in a crucible, the crucible spewed endless strength, making him feel that with just one swing of the sword in his hand, he could slice through all things in heaven and earth!

“Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle–—-—-—”

The inscriptions grew brighter, like metal tempered with fire. As the Sword

Spirit inscriptions climbed towards Zhu Minglang’s arm and chest, the Sword Spirit Dragon seemed to sense something urgent, hurriedly swinging its sword form and extracting itself from Zhu Minglang’s arm!

At this extraction, the inscriptions on Zhu Minglang’s arm faded instantly, and Zhu Minglang, steaming with heat as if he had just stepped out of a furnace, was drenched with sweat and his skin was flushed red.

“Only this arm can endure the force of the myriad inscription Sword Souls for now.”

“It seems that even though it was my blood that turned you into a Sword Spirit, we still need more time to adjust to each other,” Zhu Minglang said, catching his breath, to the Sword Spirit Dragon.

The Sword Spirit Dragon’s crimson and upright sword form hovered beside

Zhu Minglang, its tail-like sword fluff lightly floating.

Harmonizing was merely a matter of time. Having waited to be transformed by the one who would become the Sword Spirit, it was already very happy.

Moreover, by signing the Spirit Contract with Zhu Minglang, it could leave the Abandoned Sword Forest and reveal its edge once more.

It was the spirit embodiment of all the discarded swords. If a sword could have a soul, it would never want to lie rusting in the woods, eroded by the years, slowly decaying.

“Whoosh—-”

“Whoosh——”

The Sword Spirit Dragon continuously darted around Zhu Minglang, and even without wings, it resembled a metal flying dragon with a sleek body.

But its speed was so fast, in others’ eyes, it probably seemed no different from teleporting.

“I remember, the sword that stayed with me the longest was named MO Ye.”

“Sword Spirit Dragon… I’ll call you MO Ye.”

The Sword Spirit Dragon came to a halt, suspended in front of Zhu Minglang. Its crimson glowing blade reflected Zhu Minglang’s face.

“Whoosh!”

It disappeared in an instant.

It flew into Zhu Minglang’s Spirit Realm.

The Sword Spirit Dragon must have liked the name.

(For those nostalgic for the past, cast your votes.. Do you like the Sword Spirit Dragon?)