Chapter 274: A Wind Rises

Qiu Tong stood with his saber in hand, lips pursed; he glanced at the mangled corpse of Fan Baolong at his feet, knowing full well that with the slightest carelessness, he could very well meet the same end.

In order to enter the Taiyi Sect, many were willing to pay an unimaginable price; what did killing a person matter?

Xiao Yu had already drawn her saber and charged over!

She was wearing her usual escort attire, with her waist bound and legs wrapped—clean and agile!

Xiao Yu unleashed the Cloud Snake Step in coordination with the Five Tigers Flock of Sheep Saber; her toes tapped rapidly on the Plum Blossom Stakes, her figure flickered, and blade light flew everywhere as she attacked Qiu Tong from both sides!

Qiu Tong's gaze was focused; he held his saber to defend his vitals, struggling to hold on, refusing to retreat!

Both were using fast-saber styles, but Qiu Tong was clearly inferior to Xiao Yu; he was barely defending, and under the siege of Xiao Yu's fierce, flickering Blade Shadow, the transitions between Qiu Tong's saber moves had become somewhat stiff and chaotic.

Xiao Yu grew more ferocious, and soon, finding a gap in Qiu Tong's chaotic saber moves, she used the flat of her Qingling Saber to strike hard against the back of Qiu Tong's blade from the side, then leaped forward, her Blade Shadow following the momentum to slash toward Qiu Tong's right shoulder!

Qiu Tong was greatly alarmed and flipped his saber up to protect himself, but it was too late to see it coming; Xiao Yu's Blade Shadow had already touched his shoulder!

Qiu Tong's gaze turned ruthless; he flipped his left sleeve, and several throwing darts shot out like stars!

A cold light suddenly flared!

Qiu Tong's hidden weapon technique was actually not weak!

This was the secret reliance Qiu Tong had in his heart for daring to fight this series of life-and-death wheel battles!

His calculation was to find an opportunity to strike suddenly, use his hidden weapons to achieve victory, defeat Xiao Yu, and then fight Luo Zhoucheng with all his might!

However, he had not expected Xiao Yu to be so fierce; before he could find the right moment to use his hidden weapons, Xiao Yu had already spotted her chance, and it looked like one strike would slice off his shoulder!

This forced Qiu Tong to unleash his hidden weapons in this mutually destructive manner!

The moment the cold gleam flashed from Qiu Tong's sleeve, Xiao Yu's heart was greatly alarmed. Her saber momentum was about to succeed, and Qiu Tong shooting them at this moment was clearly meant to force her to retreat!

Xiao Yu's gaze was cold; she twisted her right wrist, and the Qingling Saber instantly performed a blade flower, slicing a large piece of flesh from Qiu Tong's shoulder. As blood splattered, the Qingling Saber used the momentum of the blade flower to turn back, and with a series of chaotic, crisp clangs, it knocked away the cold gleam that had been shot at her!

In a moment of crisis, Xiao Yu had performed a blade flower to slice a piece of flesh from Qiu Tong's shoulder, but had she not performed the blade flower and kept her original saber momentum, it would not have been just a piece of flesh—she could have sliced off nearly half of Qiu Tong's shoulder!

But in that case, Xiao Yu would inevitably have been wounded by the throwing darts! The cold gleam, consisting of several throwing darts, was scattered toward her chest and waist, and many of the targets were lethal!

Qiu Tong had practiced his hidden weapons bitterly for four or five years for this very strike!

Only his father, Qiu Yan, knew the hard work he had put into his hidden weapon technique!

He had never revealed it in front of others, all for the sake of achieving success on the Zeying Tai!

Qiu Tong's hard work had not been in vain; although Xiao Yu's fierce and dazzling blade flower had knocked away a cluster of throwing darts with a clatter, one dart still grazed past the Blade Shadow and pierced through her left calf!

Xiao Yu felt the pain in her calf and frowned, looking at Qiu Tong not far before her, whose right shoulder was now a bloody mess and whose face was covered in cold sweat!

Xiao Yu's gaze was ruthless; ignoring the injury to her calf, she forcibly exerted her movement and attacked Qiu Tong with her saber!

Qiu Tong's right shoulder was severely injured, and his muscles could not exert any strength at all; he forcibly raised his saber, but the moment they made contact, his weapon was sent flying!

Next, Qiu Tong saw a cold Blade Shadow, like a life-reaping ghost, whistling toward his chest in a horizontal slash under the brilliant afterglow of the setting sun!

Qiu Tong thought he was going to die!

"Miss Xiao, please show mercy!" Qiu Yan, the master of the Black Tiger Martial Hall, suddenly stood up in the viewing gallery and shouted.

Seeing the blade edge pressing against him, Xiao Yu's wrist suddenly twisted, and the flat of the Qingling Saber slapped against Qiu Tong's chest, sending him flying backward as he spat blood!

Qiu Yan leaped from the viewing gallery like a man pulling an onion from dry land and caught Qiu Tong as he flew back from the Zeying Tai.

Qiu Yan landed while holding Qiu Tong; Qiu Tong was already unconscious, blood spilling from the corners of his mouth. But after a brief examination, Qiu Yan knew that Qiu Tong was not in any serious danger; although his chest ribs were fractured and his internal organs were slightly shaken and damaged, he would recover after a period of rest.

Below the Zeying Tai, Qiu Yan cupped his hands to Xiao Yu and said, "Many thanks, Miss Xiao, for sparing my son's life!"

Qiu Yan saying this was by no means a mere gesture!

Qiu Tong had wounded Xiao Yu with hidden weapons; firstly, he had harbored the intent to kill, and secondly, now that Xiao Yu was wounded, she still had to face a life-and-death battle with Luo Zhoucheng, meaning Xiao Yu's own life was also hanging in the balance!

That she could refrain from killing Qiu Tong in such a situation and merely knock him unconscious was indeed showing mercy!

Xiao Yu glared at Qiu Yan and said coldly, "Get lost!"

As she spoke, she had already pulled the throwing dart from her calf, and blood immediately began to ooze from the bloody hole in her fair, tender leg!

Although Qiu Yan's expression was unsightly, he remained silent; he picked up the unconscious Qiu Tong, left the front of the County Office, and headed toward the Medical Hall.

Xiao Yu tore off a piece of fabric from her leg and simply bandaged the wound on her calf; she had just finished bandaging it and had not yet stood up when Luo Zhoucheng, clutching a Ghost Head Blade, jumped up!

Luo Zhoucheng naturally would not give Xiao Yu time to treat her wound; as soon as he jumped onto the Plum Blossom Stakes, he immediately attacked Xiao Yu.

Xiao Yu took a deep breath, gripped her saber, gathered her Internal Breath, and met him!

Luo Zhoucheng was wielding a Ghost Head Blade!

The Ghost Head Blade had a heavy body and a wide back, so the handle had intricate patterns to prevent it from slipping from one's hand!

The handle was round and thick with intricate patterns, which at first glance looked like a ghost's head, hence the name.

The two began to fight instantly; Luo Zhoucheng knew that Xiao Yu's left calf was injured, so he kept attacking Xiao Yu's left side!

After Xiao Yu's calf was injured, her movement was greatly affected; yet this Luo Zhoucheng was not weak, so even if she suppressed the wound and exploded with power, it would be very difficult to take down Luo Zhoucheng, and it would also consume a great deal of her own Internal Breath.

As the two fought, it turned into a battle of attrition!

While Xiao Yu was hindered by her injury, Luo Zhoucheng also did not want to take risks; he felt that since Xiao Yu was injured, he could slowly grind her to death!

Xiao Yu soon sensed Luo Zhoucheng's intentions and subsequently adopted a defensive strategy of remaining unmoved!

Since her calf was injured, she stood firmly at a certain spot in the middle of the Plum Blossom Stakes and stopped moving!

Her calf had been pierced by the throwing dart, and every time she channeled Internal Breath into her leg, the wound would ooze blood!

Xiao Yu stood there; when Luo Zhoucheng attacked, she responded with saber moves, and when Luo Zhoucheng retreated, she never pursued!

But even so, Xiao Yu's strength was ultimately greater than Luo Zhoucheng's; every time he attacked, he was in constant danger, and had it not been for Xiao Yu's restricted movement, he would have been defeated long ago!

Xiao Yu slashed her saber toward Luo Zhoucheng's throat, her eyes cold and her blade light like fire!

By this time, dusk had fallen, and torches were burning brightly all around the Zeying Tai!

Luo Zhoucheng lowered his blade to retreat, his figure pulling back violently, only then managing to put some distance between himself and Xiao Yu!

Cold sweat beaded on his forehead; that last strike from Xiao Yu had been far too fast, and he had even felt a chill on the skin of his throat!

Luo Zhoucheng watched Xiao Yu not far away with a wary gaze; Xiao Yu stood there motionless, like a reef by the sea.

His attacks came in wave after wave, but the reef never moved!

A wave of bitterness filled Luo Zhoucheng's mouth; his Internal Breath was no longer as powerful as it had been at the start, and the might of his blade techniques had weakened, yet Xiao Yu's Blade Shadow remained as fast as a ghost...

Luo Zhoucheng was very doubtful: if this continued, who would be the one to fall first?

A layer of fine sweat beads had also appeared on Xiao Yu's forehead; in truth, her condition was even worse than Luo Zhoucheng's, as her Internal Breath was already on the verge of exhaustion.

Once her Internal Breath was exhausted, that would be the moment of her defeat and death!

Xiao Yu realized she had to take a gamble; perhaps there was still a glimmer of survival!

Otherwise, at most three more attacks from Luo Zhoucheng, and she would surely die under his Ghost Head Blade!

Luo Zhoucheng gasped for air a few times, his energy recovering slightly; he looked at Xiao Yu, his eyes reigniting with fighting spirit!

He knew that Xiao Yu had already fought two matches in a row; he was having a hard time, and Xiao Yu would not be having an easy time either!

Luo Zhoucheng's gaze hardened, and he swung his blade to slash at Xiao Yu once more!

The two instantly clashed together; Xiao Yu's Blade Shadow remained exceptionally fierce, flickering like lightning!

Luo Zhoucheng retreated again, but this time Xiao Yu suddenly lunged forward, pursuing him; her Blade Shadow was like a ghost, flickering repeatedly, each strike aimed at Luo Zhoucheng's vital points!

Luo Zhoucheng was greatly alarmed!

He had not expected Xiao Yu to suddenly change her tactics! It was a sudden outburst, with every blade strike lethal!

Under the threat of life and death, Luo Zhoucheng's potential erupted instantly; he parried Xiao Yu's blade moves while retreating violently. After a thrilling sequence, he finally managed to put distance between himself and Xiao Yu again!

Xiao Yu's body trembled, and she nearly fell off the Plum Blossom Stakes because, due to her forced outburst just now, the blood flowing from the wound on her lower leg had already stained her shoes and socks red.

But this was not the most fatal thing; the most fatal thing was that her Internal Breath had been completely exhausted!

And just now, with that final blade strike, she had nearly sliced open Luo Zhoucheng's throat, but it was precisely then that her Internal Breath ran dry, and her blade momentum slowed, allowing Luo Zhoucheng to dodge it by a hair's breadth!

Luo Zhoucheng was drenched in sweat; with a look of terror, he touched his neck, where there was a shallow line of blood! If it had been any deeper, he would have been dead!

The Internal Breath in his dantian was also nearly exhausted; he looked at Xiao Yu, many thoughts churning within his heart!

Duan Rong stood beneath the Zeying Tai, his Divine Sense suddenly released, piercing through the bodies of Xiao Yu and Luo Zhoucheng!

Xiao Yu had no Internal Breath left at all, while Luo Zhoucheng still had a sliver of combat strength!

The outcome was already decided, but Xiao Yu was still holding on, causing Luo Zhoucheng—whose Internal Breath was also nearly exhausted—to be unaware of the true situation!

However, Duan Rong was certain that Luo Zhoucheng would definitely strike again, draining every last bit of his Internal Breath to gamble on one final strike!

The temptation of being a Sect Registered Disciple was too great; no one would be willing to give up!

As long as Luo Zhoucheng unleashed that final strike, Xiao Yu would surely die!

Luo Zhoucheng's breathing gradually steadied; he looked at Xiao Yu. Xiao Yu's face was deathly pale, and although no panic could be seen in her gaze, Luo Zhoucheng knew that Xiao Yu was also nearing her limit!

If it hadn't been for that last strike where Xiao Yu's blade momentum suddenly slowed, he could never have dodged it!

Wait!

That last strike?

Luo Zhoucheng suddenly looked at Xiao Yu; he suddenly understood that Xiao Yu's outburst just now had already drained her, and she was merely standing there, putting on a show!

That's right! He was certain this was the case!

Luo Zhoucheng's hand gripped the hilt of his blade!

Although he was also nearing his limit, there was still a sliver of Internal Breath in his dantian; he would use this last bit of Internal Breath to kill Xiao Yu!

The beauty was about to meet her end!

Just as Luo Zhoucheng was about to attack, a great wind suddenly rose!

The great wind made the flames of the torches crackle and roar!

Duan Rong knew Xiao Yu was in crisis; the last sliver of Internal Breath in Luo Zhoucheng's dantian had already begun to circulate!

Just at this moment, the great wind suddenly rose!

Duan Rong's gaze suddenly brightened; he could not watch Xiao Yu die miserably before his eyes!

Duan Rong suddenly walked to Shen Mizhi's side and smiled, saying: "Congratulations, Miss Shen, on breaking through to the Great Accomplishment realm!"

At the same time Duan Rong spoke, he lifted his sleeve, and a pinch of Medicine Powder scattered into the wind, blowing onto Luo Zhoucheng's face along with the breeze!

Shen Mizhi was slightly stunned, not knowing why Duan Rong had suddenly walked over to strike up a conversation with her.

The slight unpleasantness she had once had with Duan Rong had already passed more than a year ago, and she had let it go.

That Duan Rong, a mere child of a humble family, could actually achieve the Great Accomplishment realm and, in one stroke, become a Sect Registered Disciple, also made her look at him with new eyes.

Furthermore, because she had tortured Fan Baolong to death, no one had spoken a word to her since she walked over, and even Xia Shuangshuang had stayed far away after handing her a handkerchief.

At this moment, Duan Rong coming over to speak made her heart feel slightly warm.

Shen Mizhi said: "Tempered by life and death, I gained a little something!"

Duan Rong smiled: "That is also because Miss Shen had accumulated enough in the past, allowing you to break through in one stroke by a stroke of luck!"

Shen Mizhi smiled and said: "My breakthrough is no big deal, but you, Painter Duan—a year ago at your painting stall, if I recall correctly, Painter Duan hadn't even achieved the Inner Breath Realm Second Layer! To break through several realms in this one year is truly inconceivable!"

Duan Rong said: "For a poor family, there is only the path of bitter cultivation. Duan is merely cultivating with his life on the line!"

Duan Rong's words were not just an excuse to Shen Mizhi; nine hours of bitter practice a day was nearly self-torture!

Upon hearing this, Shen Mizhi's expression shifted slightly! Cultivating with his life on the line?

Ximen Kankan stood beside Xia Shuangshuang and suddenly saw Duan Rong go over to talk to Shen Mizhi, his eyes flashing with curiosity; he did not think Duan Rong was interested in Shen Mizhi.

As for that madwoman, who in their right mind would like her?

On the Zeying Tai, the great wind blew and then ceased. Luo Zhoucheng was just preparing to swing his blade to attack, but he suddenly felt his vision go black, and the next moment, his body tilted, and he fell off the Plum Blossom Stakes. The Ghost Head Blade slipped from his hand and fell, with a *thud*, stabbing into the ground, the blade buried more than halfway in!

"Zhoucheng!"

Luo Zhoucheng's father, the owner of the Leather Goods Shop, Luo Yuxi, suddenly leaped over from the viewing stand, stepped onto the Plum Blossom Stakes, rushed to the spot where Luo Zhoucheng had fallen, jumped down, and caught Luo Zhoucheng in his arms.

Luo Yuxi checked Luo Zhoucheng's breathing and, finding it steady and that there was no major harm, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Everyone watching the battle felt that Luo Zhoucheng had fainted from exhaustion, and Luo Yuxi was no exception, because Luo Zhoucheng's current symptoms were exactly those of fainting from exhaustion; even if you brought the best physician, no one would be able to tell he had been drugged.

Shen Ping's anesthetic is not only colorless and odorless, but it also dissolves and vanishes the moment it enters the human body...

But at this moment, in the spectator seats, A Mo's nose suddenly twitched repeatedly, and she murmured, "Miss, it seems there is the scent of Medicine Powder!"

Lv Qingzhu's gaze shifted; A Mo's sense of smell was far different from an ordinary person's, so she definitely could not have smelled it wrong!

Medicine Powder?

Lv Qingzhu looked toward the spot where Luo Zhoucheng had fallen from the Plum Blossom Stakes, and her eyes suddenly brightened.

Just a moment ago, she had noticed that Duan Rong had walked from the right side of Ximen Kankan to the left side of Shen Mizhi, and Shen Mizhi had already been at some distance from those few people to begin with!

Duan Rong standing beside Shen Mizhi happened to be at the windward side of where Luo Zhoucheng had fallen from the Plum Blossom Stakes when the strong wind blew!

"Miss..." A Mo still wanted to speak.

Lv Qingzhu's gaze tightened as she said, "Don't speak."

A Mo immediately fell silent.

Lv Qingzhu's gaze swept across the face of the beautiful Xiao Yu, and she thought to herself: If Mo was the one who truly sprinkled the Medicine Powder, was it for the sake of this beautiful young lady?

(End of this chapter)