BXBX NOVEL Chapter 257: Flying Sparks of Fire
Chapter 257: Flying Sparks of Fire
Yesterday, Wen Yulong had mentioned this sword god, and today, the same person was being praised by Lin Bei. Yet, his name remained a mystery to everyone.
"I have no idea," Lin Bei answered. "Which is strange. This has been told as a legend for years, yet his name was never known on Mount Shu. But he should be around the same age as your teacher and Daoist Yan. Why don't you ask your teacher?"
Wen Yulong stroked his chin as he speculated, "Perhaps an accident happened to that senior. Otherwise, with his talent, it's impossible that his identity would remain unknown on Mount Shu today."
"Then I won't bring it up with my teacher for now," Chu Liang said, looking up and gazing into the sky.
A dozen beams of white light streaked back at lightning speed, producing a series of sonic booms.
Today marked the preliminary round of the Flying-Sword Race, with over a hundred participants ready to compete. They were divided into ten groups of eleven, each vying for advancement to the next stage. Only two from each group would advance to the next stage in the Flying-Sword Race.
And the race for Chu Liang's group would be happening soon.
Wen Yulong, standing nearby, advised, "I just checked, and only Chen Zheng from the Astral Inferno Peak is exceptionally strong. Even if you can't beat him, your advancement to the next stage is still secured."
Chu Liang nodded gently as he looked over at Chen Zheng, the guy that Wen Yulong had pointed out.
There, by the hill, stood a disciple of short and diminutive stature. With deeply tanned skin and bright eyes, he emanated a robust and vigorous aura.
A few disciples of the Astral Inferno Peak cheered him on, one of whom held a sword box. Inside should be the flying sword specially crafted for racing, known as "Flying-Stars Sword," part of the legacy of the Astral Inferno Peak.
"Hey, no need to admire others and undermine our own strength right now," Lin Bei encouraged, giving Chu Liang's shoulder a reassuring pat. "With a little effort, you'll surely surpass him!"
"I will try my best," Chu Liang said with a smile.
This was just a recreational competition, and he didn't feel much stress about it.
"Yeah, just give it your all," Wen Yulong added. "It's just a recreational competition. You'll only win some sword coins. No need to stress about it."
Yes! Chu Liang thought.
The moment Wen Yulong said that, Chu Liang suddenly straightened his back, as if a blazing flame of determination had ignited within him!
"Oh, no," Lin Bei muttered, covering his face. "By saying that, you've got him fired up to race like his life depends on it."
...
"All participants, please line up and await the signal. When the command is given, activate your swords simultaneously! No rushing ahead; anyone who violates this rule will be disqualified."
An attendant from the Hall of Weapons raised his hand high and scattered a sparkling herbal powder into the air, which fell evenly onto each disciple.
They were currently on the cliff with a sea of clouds right ahead. However, at this moment, the sea of clouds had been cleared away, revealing a specially designated path of white clouds. During the race, participating disciples would have to navigate their swords along this cloud path. If they strayed from it for even a moment, some of the sparkling powder scattered on them would fall off their bodies.
If all the sparkling powder fell off their bodies by the time they reached the finish line, their performance in this race would be considered invalid.
This rule was set to ensure that the participants followed the designated path. Without it, with the sea of clouds around, there would be no way to determine if the participants had attempted to take shortcuts.
"Fly!"
At a single command, over ten disciples, with their hearts pounding with anticipation, simultaneously infused their foundational qi and activated their flying swords.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh...
Suddenly, a steady stream of flying sword sounds echoed through the air, as if rending through the fabric of space itself!
The first streak of sword radiance slashed through the vast sky! Leaving behind a long trail of flames!
It was Chen Zheng from the Astral Inferno Peak.
He rode on the Flying-Stars Sword, his ankles securely tied to the sword with the Feet of the Azure Dragon. As his sword soared forth, the sword qi trailing behind him seemed to ignite into flames!
Flying sparks of fire!
Chu Liang activated the Dustless Sword and followed closely behind. With the Cloud of Determination sword qi that also contained the dragon breath, he instantly caught up to the Flying Star. It almost seemed as though he would overtake Chen Zheng in the blink of an eye.
The speed was crazy!
He was extremely fast!
If it weren't for the Feet of Azure Dragon tightly coiled around his ankles, Chu Liang might have been thrown off the sword the moment he took off!
In a normal fight, flying his sword at this speed would have been impossible! If he were even briefly distracted, he would have lost control of his sword! Even though he was securely tied onto the sword, it wasn't completely safe.
Both of his ultimate-tier Golden Cores were operating at an incredibly rapid pace. Within a split second, there were no more flying swords in front of him.
"That dude is not that skilled," Lin Bei said as he watched the fight. "Look! Chu Liang has already overtaken that Flying Star, right?"
"Senior Brother Chu has abundant cultivation energy, which is why he has the upper hand when it's a full propulsion. But just going fast in a straight line doesn't mean much..." Wen Yulong said, shaking his head. "The real skill is being fast around turns."
...
Boom!
The race track for this preliminary round wasn't very long or complicated. In this path of clouds, Chu Liang just had to fly around four peaks. He only needed to complete one loop around each peak to reach the finish line.
In the blink of an eye, Chu Liang arrived at the first turn. With full concentration and using his divine intent, the chains from the Hands of the Azure Dragon popped up, and the four silver chains wrapped around his wrists, securing him to the flying sword, allowing him to navigate the turn!
With the intense speed, he was almost thrown off the path of clouds by the centrifugal force. In fact, he felt his body being torn by the combined forces. [1].
However, in this very instant, a flying sword of fire appeared in front of him.
Swoosh!
The Flying-Stars Sword didn't slow down; instead, it suddenly accelerated. With the sword's tip pressing down, carving out a semicircle, Chen Zheng completed the overtaking maneuver in an instant!
When the Dustless Sword and the Flying-Stars Sword both returned to the straight path, Chu Liang was already a dozen zhang behind!
Flying such a short distance would typically take less than a blink of an eye. However, with Chen Zheng also flying at a high speed, overtaking him despite being only a dozen zhang ahead, it felt like an eternity for Chu Liang!
He exerted all his strength, causing his two Golden Cores to stir up massive waves in his Sea of Qi, creating a roaring surge!
Finally, he managed to reduce the distance by half.
However, the next turn was already approaching.
Whoosh!
The Flying-Stars Sword executed a deft maneuver around the corner, swiftly widening the gap once again!
Boom!
Every time Chu Liang made a turn, he had to grapple with the immense force, frequently on the brink of slipping off the sword. He exerted all efforts to adjust his foundational qi, struggling to stabilize it. As a result, he had to slow down.
Yet Chen Zheng, riding the Flying-Stars Sword, seemed to effortlessly glide through every turn, showing no signs of such struggle.
Chu Liang was certain that there must be some secret technique or trick that he didn't know about.
After four turns, the gap between him and the Flying-Stars Sword had widened to several dozen zhangs. By the time they completed the final lap around the peak, it was impossible for him to catch up.
Swoosh!
With a trail of fire and lightning, the Flying-Stars Sword zoomed past the finishing line, clearly securing the first place in the race.
Boom!
The Dustless Sword crossed the finishing line just a second after the Flying-Stars Sword, securing the second place.
After a moment, the participants behind him crossed the finishing line. Streaks of light flashed across the horizon.
"Phew..." Chu Liang sheathed his sword and landed on the ground,
This was too exciting.
Unknowingly, Chu Liang's clothes were drenched in sweat. The race, with its lightning-fast flying swords, required him to constantly control the wildly speeding sword, leaving him oblivious to the intense feeling of nervousness.
As he turned around, he realized that Chen Zheng was right behind him. He had no idea when he appeared.
"You're quite fast," he remarked, smiling as he stared at Chu Liang. "I can tell you're new to flying sword races. Keep practicing. I look forward to competing with you again in the final round."
"Absolutely," Chu Liang replied with a smile.
Chen Zheng then left with the other disciples of the Astral Inferno Peak. At this moment, Wen Yulong and Lin Bei gathered around Chu LIang.
"We were close," Lin Bei said. "Just try harder next time, and I'm sure we will win."
Chu Liang pondered for a moment before explaining, "It's not as simple as it seems. He was using the momentum from the turns to drift along the trajectory while accelerating with the fire enchanted formation inscription. His speed was incredibly fast. If I can't bridge these gaps, I'll never stand a chance against opponents of this level in the race."
As he was just about to head back and contemplate further, he heard noises of commotion coming from the public square of the Heaven-Reaching Peak.
He glanced over and heard someone shouting, "The members of the Celestial King Sect and the Thunderbolt Stronghold are fighting!"
"Eh?" Lin Bei was taken aback. "Are they really fighting?"
1. Physics time? I hate physics but let's talk about it. So Chu Liang is making a turn. The chains should be pulling him inward and keeping him moving along the curved path so I guess that's the centripetal force? And then, we have the centrifugal force. From Chu Liang’s perspective, this feels like there's an outward force pushing him away from the center of the curve. And the third factor should be the resistance due to inertia, causing his body to continue moving in a straight line tangent to the curve. This is really just contributing to the centrifugal force. These factors creates the forces trying to tear his body apart. ☜