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Chapter 270: Feeling Relieved

Lackey A frowned and said, "He probably just had an extraordinary encounter. He's getting ahead of himself, but he's not that strong.

Lackey B added, "He has never faced a truly strong opponent before. Otherwise, he would have learned his lesson."

Shang Ziliang, who was at the side, remained quiet. His expression was horrible. While they were talking, his face was flushing red and paling. It seemed as though he wanted to say something, but was feeling ashamed.

Chu Liang, standing in the center of the small group, had a smile on his lips.

He was naturally a supporter of Jiang Yuebai, but he wouldn't be angered by Ling Ao's response. After all, he knew that the outcome was determined by what would happen on stage.

There was nothing wrong with being arrogant. This was a mere personality. If he were to win, he would just be labeled as a rebellious and recklessly bold person. If he were to lose, he would just be considered a clown. These were the consequences.

Chu Liang looked over at Jiang Yuebai and saw that she was still dressed in that clean white attire, untouched by the dust stirred in previous matches. Despite Ling Ao's taunt to the entire crowd, Jiang Yuebai remained as calm as ever.

She made only one move.

She drew her flying sword.

The three-chi sword conveyed more than a thousand words ever could.

As the tip of the sword traced a half-circle like a crescent moon, sparks of fire flew. Immediately, there was a sense of danger.

Seeing this, the Supervising Elder in the center of the arena realized that the atmosphere had reached its peak. With a clear understanding of the situation, he had no desire to steal the spotlight. After shouting a command, he immediately stepped back.

"The first match of the semifinals! Ling Ao from Solitude Peak versus Jiang Yuebai from Azure Falling Peak!"

"Start!"

Boom!

Before the attack started, the invisible clashes of qi were already occurring. The benefit of a solo match was that one could focus their entire mind and spirit on the enemy before them, with divine intent as sharp as a saber.

Jiang Yuebai's eyes gleamed with brightness. Unexpectedly, she attacked first this time, which was very rare in previous fights.

But she raised her hand not to attack! She sent her sword flying up into the sky, transforming into hundreds of beams of swordlight that formed a shield in front of her with a resounding whoosh!

All these beams of swordlights stood in front of her like a barrier!

In the very next second, a shadowy figure clashed with that shield of sword.

Bang!

From the spectators' perspective, Jiang Yuebai first used the Thousand Sword Seal as a shield and Ling Ao clashed onto it then.

But in reality, Jiang Yuebai had sensed through the flow of qi that Ling Ao's fierce qi was charging through the air towards her. It was this awareness of his impending attack that prompted her to set up a defense.

She formed a shield of a thousand swords!

Ling Ao continued with his usual tactic, charging forward and then throwing a punch!

Crack!

It felt as though lightning streaked across a clear sky. Countless beams of swordlight flashed and cracked. The punch shattered the shield of swords.

As Ling Ao did a flip and landed, he lost his momentum.

This first attack was just a test. If Jiang Yuebai's ability had been merely a facade boosted by her fame, she would have been instantly defeated by that punch. However, when she blocked it, Ling Ao finally showed an expression of caution.

Since he started participating in the Mount Shu Summit, this was the first time he felt unable to break through!

Her defense was strong, but more importantly, she had constructed the shield of swords before he even began his attack. She had essentially predicted his path of attack!

Is she just good at guessing? Ling Ao wondered.

Ling Ao's eyes were as sharp as a saber. His body moved left and right, leaving two afterimages on the stage, as if two figures had appeared, one on the left and one on the right. At that moment, he dashed toward Jiang Yuebai!

Which side will you block!

...

The fight began with intense energy. The crowd in the spectator stands widened their eyes, their hearts in their throats.

In many of Ling Ao's previous fights, he had always defeated his opponents with a single strike, never using any divine techniques or skills. However, the fact that he used a new technique right from the start this time indicated that he wasn't a one-trick pony. He simply hadn't needed to use other techniques before.

"External Manifestation?" Someone exclaimed out of shock.

"No! That's a martial arts technique of the Great Astral Sect, the Shadow Fighting Style," a petite girl corrected. This girl was Tang Shi, and the person next to her was Yun Chaoxian. Naturally, they wouldn't miss the semifinals.

"With only two afterimages, his performance of the Shadow Fighting Style is a bit sad. He clearly started learning at the last moment after an enhancement of his physical strength," Yun Chaoxian analyzed, his eyes gleaming with intelligence. "However, as long as he's fast enough, it will still be effective."

The weakness of a Martial Arts cultivator would always be their shorter attack range. Most of the time, a martial arts cultivator would try to close the distance between themselves and their opponents during the fight. If they succeeded, it meant victory for them. If they failed, their opponent would win.

Martial arts cultivators had developed many methods to close the distance between themselves and their opponents for situations like this. The Shadow Fighting Style was one of these methods. It was a technique developed by a senior at the Great Astral Sect. While dashing forward, the user would generate thousands of afterimages, with only one being real. This left the enemy almost defenseless.

Although Ling Ao only produced two afterimages, he was dashing forward at such a fast speed that the small arena seemed too short for him. He could reach the edge in an instant. Even if Jiang Yuebai wanted to launch an attack, she could only eliminate one of the afterimages.

If she chose the wrong one, the other one would get close to her!

If she tried to defend against both afterimages, her strength would be divided, and whether she could truly block this attack would be uncertain.

What would she choose?

Jiang Yuebai very quickly gave the answer.

She raised her hand and swiftly traced intricate patterns in the air with her flying sword, forming the talismanic script of ice.

Jiang Yuebai had been teaching Chu Liang the Dao of Talisman-Making and Talismanic Sword Seal, so her own mastery was naturally advanced. She immediately unleashed the Thirteen-Character Talismanic Sword!

Crack!

With the power of the Thirteen-Character Talismanic Sword, the attack moved at a slower speed. Wherever it touched, frost spread, covering the ground with ice crystals and causing water droplets to condense in the air. Within a radius of several dozen zhang, the temperature dropped sharply in an instant!

Ling Ao once again lost his forward momentum. He had to twist his body to narrowly avoid the incoming sword. As the sword swept toward him again, he struck downward with a fierce punch, hitting the spine of the flying sword!

Bam!

The flying sword was driven downward by the impact, its blade piercing into the platform. However, it still contained some spiritual energy. In the next second, more than a dozen ice walls rose from the ground, completely surrounding Ling Ao!

After this exchange of attacks and counters, all the afterimages on the other side of the arena had already disappeared.

With just a glance, Jiang Yuebai identified and targeted the real Ling Ao.

Ling Ao, now trapped within the ice walls, temporarily disappeared from sight. Through the frosty surface, only a shadowy figure could be seen. The walls were not merely confining him; they were continuously closing in, intent on trapping him inside.

Jiang Yuebai's divine techniques and sword skills were powerful, but she was also extremely proficient in other forms of techniques. Her Transcendent Spirit constitution naturally attracted spiritual qi, allowing her to manipulate it with far greater ease than others.

However, would Ling Ao be someone easily trapped by a few thick walls?

Suddenly, the shadowy figure behind the ice wall suddenly unleashed a powerful burst of energy. Instantly, this crimson-gold aura surged up!

Boom—

The thick ice walls shattered completely from all sides! Four figures of Ling Ao burst out, each burning with a crimson-gold aura that smelled like blood, their qi blazing like raging flames!

There were now four of them!

Choose again! Ling Ao shouted inwardly.

...

"It's useless. No matter how many afterimages he generates, he won't be able to get close to Jiang Yuebai," Scholar Sun said, shaking his head.

"The Omniscient Sword State." Elder Huang said with a smile. "It is truly surprising for someone her age to understand this state of Sword Dao, but I guess it’s normal if it’s Jiangjiang."

"There is a reason why the constitution of the Transcendent Spirit is desired by countless demons and devils. The benefit of the affinity with the heavens and earth might not be obvious, but this benefit is really comprehensive," Scholar Sun explained. "She can practice and learn any divine techniques and skills with ease."

The so-called affinity with the heavens and earth would include an affinity with spirit beasts, spiritual qi, and the Great Dao... In short, it meant being favored by the heavens and earth throughout one's life.

The Omniscient Sword State was the ultimate technique of Daoist Yan.

Strictly speaking, this was not a divine ability or technique, but a state of Sword Dao.

A reactive defense happened when you acted after seeing the opponent’s sword strike. However, if the opponent had not yet struck but you could detect where the attack would come from through their flow of qi, line of sight, divine intent, karma, and other subtle cues, this resulted from being in the Omniscient Sword State.

Jiang Yuebai, who was currently in this profound state, could clearly identify the real Ling Ao that would attack her. Therefore, no matter how many illusions he generated, they would be meaningless.

"I was worried about Jiangjiang earlier, but now I feel relieved," Elder Huang said. "She’s not only exceptionally talented but also incredibly dedicated in her training. Her strength undoubtedly places her among the top prodigies in the nine provinces."

But just as Elder Huang finished speaking, the situation in the arena changed abruptly.

The four afterimages of Ling Ao rushed toward Jiang Yuebai from different directions. Just as they were about to close in, Jiang Yuebai's eyes flickered. With a wave of her sword, the fallen flying sword once again broke through the air, blocking the path of one of the Ling Aos. At the same time, the ice spiritual qi in the air rapidly increased, turning the entire arena as cold as an ice cellar.

Even the audience in the spectator stand far away from the arena started to feel the biting chill.

Obviously, the one blocked by the flying sword was the real Ling Ao.

However, instead of dodging, he allowed the sword to stab at him. The sword was about to pierce through his chest when suddenly, he moved and grabbed the sword with his bare hand.

With flesh and blood, he held the indestructible sharpness in his grip!

Slash—

The result was just as expected.

He started bleeding but the blood was crimson and golden, flowing out and instantly staining the sword.

Jiang Yuebai was not going to show any mercy. She was just about to control the sword and continue attacking when she found herself unable to use her divine intent. It was as though she had lost her divine intent and nothing was responding.

The flying sword, tainted with golden-red blood, suddenly lost all its spiritual energy, and its divine light dimmed.

Though Ling Ao's hand was bleeding profusely as he gripped the sword, there was no pain in his eyes. Instead, they conveyed a sense of satisfaction.

His blood contained powerful and aggressive spiritual energy. Once it tainted the sword, it immediately overwhelmed the sword's spiritual nature. The blood on the sword began to boil and burn fiercely, like a poisonous fire.

Upon seeing this, Chu Liang's pupils dilated.

No one knew better than him what this was—the smell of dragon blood!

After cultivating the Secret Dragon Blood Technique, the concentration of dragon aura in his body increased, causing these changes to his blood.

Ling Ao indeed had a connection to the True Dragon of Solitude Peak.

But Chu Liang had no time to ponder further as he focused his attention on the stage. With a swift motion, Ling Ao seized Jiang Yuebai's flying sword and, in an instant, stepped in front of her.

She appeared frozen in shock, unable to react in time, as Ling Ao, without hesitation or mercy, thrust the sword through her body!

Thunk.

The blade pierced through her, making a dull echoing sound.