Chapter 829: Narrow Victory

Boom!

The instant Li Luo swung the banana leaf fan in his hand, thunder and gales roared across heaven and earth; first, emerald tempest winds surged forth like a tidal wave, razor-sharp, instantly tearing countless deep gashes into the crystal plaza beneath their feet.

Amidst the emerald tempest winds, thunderous orbs appeared, each containing violently explosive thunder energy, each capable of effortlessly destroying a Da Tian Xiang Jing cultivator.

The emerald wind-thunder orbs collided immediately with the deep blue water stream piercing through empty space.

In their first impact, the deep blue water stream revealed terrifying penetration power—the tempest winds were pierced through, the thunder orbs shattered.

Yet the speed of the deep blue water stream was slowed, carving its path through the wind bands, directly aimed at Li Luo.

"Li Luo, Grand Flag Captain, this should be your third Jiu Zhuan technique, correct? Truly astonishing—I hear even Li Li Qingfeng, Grand Flag Captain, has mastered only two Jiu Zhuan techniques."

"You've only returned from Outer Shenzhou a few months ago, yet you've achieved this—truly extraordinary," Qin Yi observed the raging tempest winds and thunder, clearly sensing the ferocious, staggering power within, yet Li Luo, merely a Zi Shen Jiu Marquis, had managed to delay her "Ten Thousand Thread Water Kill."

She herself was famed for defeating opponents above her rank, yet now she, a superior cultivator, was halted by Li Luo, whose strength was weaker—this undeniably stirred complex emotions within her.

Yet the gap remained undeniable, and she was no fool; to overcome her with just one Jiu Zhuan technique, Li Luo likely could not.

Under Qin Yi's gaze, the deep blue water stream swiftly pierced through the emerald wind and thunder orbs, drawing near Li Luo.

At that moment, an unusual thunder orb appeared before the deep blue water stream—this orb was encircled by tempest winds, its core pulsing with thunder, clearly fusing both forces together.

Its power was even greater.

The tempest wind-thunder orb collided directly with the deep blue water stream.

At the instant of impact, Qin Yi's calm expression shattered.

In her cold, lake-like eyes, shock surfaced.

For she saw that upon collision, her deep blue water stream, as if struck by some terrifying force, ruptured outright.

Countless high-speed spinning water threads split apart, then were engulfed by boundless emerald wind and torn to shreds.

Within mere seconds, the once devastating deep blue water stream was utterly shredded, while the tempest wind-thunder orb, riddled with cracks and seeming near collapse, blasted through the air toward Qin Yi behind it.

Qin Yi snapped back to awareness; even with her icy composure, she was momentarily stunned—she could not fathom how Li Luo had shattered her attack.

She hadn't even understood why her "Ten Thousand Thread Water Kill" had suddenly self-destructed—it felt as if, upon contact, it had encountered something horrific.

But there was no time to ponder now; Qin Yi swiftly raised her jade hand, vast Xiang power howled forth, forming a black Zhu Xuan Turtle before her.

The black turtle crouched like a mountain of obsidian, guarding her front.

"Zhu Xuan Turtle Shield Mountain!"

This was Qin Yi's defensive technique, possessing immense defensive power; the tempest wind-thunder orb, already cracked from colliding with the "Ten Thousand Thread Water Kill," surely had little residual force left.

As she thought this, the cracked tempest wind-thunder orb struck the mountain-like back of the Zhu Xuan Turtle.

The orb shattered as expected, dissolving into countless streaks of thunderlight.

Yet before Qin Yi could exhale, she saw cracks suddenly spreading at terrifying speed across the black turtle's shell.

Qin Yi's pupils contracted slightly.

This time, she finally sensed a strange fluctuation.

When the thunder orb shattered, a barely perceptible peculiar force pierced into the black turtle—this force alone had effortlessly pierced through the turtle.

That force was exceedingly faint, yet seemed impervious to any obstruction.

"What on earth was that?!"

Qin Yi's heart surged with turmoil; the next instant, a prickling pain surged across her skin—her cultivated "Water Jade Flawless Body" had sensed danger and issued a warning!

But at this moment, any action was too late.

Qin Yi could only watch helplessly as that strange force pierced through the black turtle, then contacted her palm's skin the next instant.

Hss!

The faint sound echoed—Qin Yi's Water Jade Flawless Body was breached; that force penetrated directly into her body.

Immediately, Qin Yi sensed a terrifying, razor-sharp sword qi erupting violently within her.

Faced with such devastating sword qi destruction, even Qin Yi's Water Jade Flawless Body suffered catastrophic damage in an instant; though her Ji Pin Water Xiang immediately activated powerful healing, Qin Yi still endured immense agony.

Pfft!

Qin Yi's surrounding energy instantly became chaotic; her previously rosy, delicate face turned pale, and she could no longer suppress a jet of blood spewing from her lips.

The blood struck the ground and immediately pierced countless fine holes into the floor.

Fine cracks also appeared on her snow-white, jade-like skin, yet were swiftly repaired.

But no matter what, Qin Yi knew—she had been utterly defeated.

The sword qi raging within her, though not vast in quantity, was extraordinarily tenacious; even with her Zi Shen Jiu Pin Water Xiang's power, she struggled immensely to purify or dissolve it.

Li Luo, watching Qin Yi suddenly freeze, her Xiang power in chaos, exhaled a relieved breath—apparently, the "Star River Sword Intention" was even more potent than he'd imagined.

Qin Yi, caught off-guard, had the sword intention invade her body—she'd have a hard time recovering from this.

This clash, it seemed, had ultimately ended with him barely edging ahead.

Yet this did not bring Li Luo any sense of pride; instead, it intensified his pressure, for only after battling Qin Yi could he truly grasp how formidable the top prodigies of the Li Li Tianwang faction truly were.

If they fought purely on their own strength, without relying on "He Qi" to amplify power, Li Luo admitted he would not be Qin Yi's match.

Only after he broke through and entered the Sha Ti Jing might he gain the power to resist her.

Moreover, Qin Yi was not at full strength—she had diverted extra power to maintain this "Shuidian" to trap Li Li Qingfeng and others.

Thus, Li Luo would never underestimate these top prodigies of Inner Shenzhou merely because he barely bested Qin Yi this time.

Li Luo gradually calmed his thoughts, then turned to Qin Yi; though her condition was dire, he carefully kept his distance, fearing she might go berserk and use her last strength to eliminate him along with herself.

And he still needed to collect "Dragon Qi!"

Li Luo smiled, then spoke no further words to Qin Yi; he turned directly toward the rear gate of the Zuodadian, where water shimmered, and light patterns drifted across its surface.

This was the exit of the Shuidian.

With Qin Yi no longer blocking him, Li Luo moved through this place without hindrance.

He slashed out with a single knife blow—the Shuidian gate shattered, and radiant light poured in.

Li Luo stood in the light, turned around, and looked at Qin Yi, who stood frozen in place; a brilliant smile appeared on his face.

"Miss Qin Yi, will your mother beat you after you return?"

Qin Yi's jade hand clenched tightly, as if veins were throbbing on her smooth back; in her gaze fixed on Li Luo, there were signs of fire spewing forth.

Li Luo let out a loud laugh, stopped provoking her, and turned to step out the main gate.

His eyes were filled with anticipation.

Now that Li Li Qingfeng and the others have not yet left the Shuidian, does that not mean the six coiled-dragon pillars are at his disposal to choose from?!

(End of this chapter)