Chapter 245

Seeing Pei Ye looked at the man opposite him with an indifferent expression, gripped the hilt of his sword, and actually drew his sword one step ahead of the tripod's chime.

It was truly a far cry from his previous gentle demeanor.

Shang Huaitong straightened up and smiled lightly at Seeing Pei Ye's actions.

After grasping the Ghost Life section, the hidden gloomy and fierce Qi on the man seemed to have disappeared by more than half. At this time, he held his sword horizontally in his hand and smiled with a clear and harmonious voice: "Why bother?"

"The ring is not a place to decide life and death. If you have this wish, we can make an appointment to have a match at another time and place." Shang Huaitong lowered his head and calmly drew his sword; this was also a rare good sword treasured by the Qijiao, appraised as 【Ding Superior】 by the East Sea Sword Furnace. As the blade appeared, it was as if mirror light had been spat out from the scabbard, "But here, the ring match can only be a ring match. Sparring and testing the sword is originally a wonderful thing; why mix other things into it?"

"Seeing Pei Ye," the man performed a sword flower and looked at the young man seriously, "I know there is enmity between us, but in the thing called 'sword,' we have the same talent and piety. I have practiced the sword for eleven years and have counted all the swords in Bowang; there is really no one worth watching, until I saw you unleash your sword three times, each time making me itch to press my sword, my spirit soaring... Seeing Pei Ye, to understand the sword, one must be quiet; to prove the sword, one must compete. Is this place not the place to prove the sword?"

This was indeed Shang Huaitong's true thought. When he stood on the ladder to heaven and looked down at his surroundings, he suddenly saw another ladder reaching straight to the blue clouds beyond the eaves of the building—on the Guanlu Terrace, he recognized this young man's sword at a glance; it was precisely the peak of the Clumsy Realm.

At that moment, he was truly excited to meet an opponent, his heart hot like fire, his eyes bright like light.

Of course, he wanted to have a serious match with such a sword, and of course, he wanted to defeat him head-on and uprightly; in the things he was confident and proud of, he never lacked such courage.

Therefore, in the previous six rings, he faced withered grass; only in this ring did he perform a proper sword salute to the young man, a ritual he had thought he would not perform again before reaching the Sword Academy.

Shang Huaitong raised his arm and held his sword, pointing it flatly at the young man in front of him, and said slowly: "I, too, will only use sixteen meridians."

Seeing Pei Ye gripped his sword and looked at him indifferently, waiting for the sound he was waiting for.

The sound of the name calling resounded throughout the arena: "Bowang Prefecture Golden Autumn Martial Arts Competition, final championship match, who knows the intent of the ghost? I see the moonlight—Qijiao's Shang Huaitong, Fenghuai's Seeing Pei Ye!"

——The tripod chimed instantly.

Seeing Pei Ye swept up.

This time, 【Breaking the Soil】 was no longer the starting move; the light and agile sword was like moonlight flashing and disappearing on a stone.

【Treading Water to Pluck the Scales】

A purely offensive sword, stabbing straight at Shang Huaitong's brow!

Shang Huaitong exhaled lightly, his black eyes looking straight ahead, his long sword pointing flatly without moving, his face becoming serious. The moment this sword entered within three feet of his body, the man moved suddenly, his long sword tilted, lightly sliding onto Seeing Pei Ye's sword body.

Although he promised to use sixteen meridians of True Qi, that was a concession in speed and power; in terms of eyesight and reaction, the man still stood firmly at the six-life level.

Moreover, this sword was sudden and light, suitable for close combat from behind; when it came remotely from the front, it was actually not difficult to receive.

The sword touch was weak; this was an opportunity to suddenly exert force to make the opponent's sword body lose control, but Shang Huaitong understood Seeing Pei Ye just as he understood himself—for a sword wielder at the peak of the Clumsy Realm, "making the sword lose control" was truly a ridiculous thing. As long as there was a little room for maneuver, the power you rashly exerted would become the opponent's help to slash at yourself in the next moment.

Shang Huaitong's long sword just touched Seeing Pei Ye's sword body lightly; the two bright fish-like blades seemed to cross and swim past, one fast and one slow, and in the next moment, Shang Huaitong suddenly twisted his wrist and turned his sword; the bright fish immediately split into seven, scattering into seven vertical white lights arching up.

A long cage cast of bright satin formed on Seeing Pei Ye's sword body.

Passed down from the Qijiao Cave, 【Seven-Practice Iron Lock】.

Almost the most difficult sword move to master in the sect, using such an extremely rigid object as a sword to reach an extremely soft realm, seven light slashes, wrist twists, and sword pauses, completing the locking of the opponent's sword, making it unable to advance or retreat, the sword momentum immediately dissipated, as if tied and entangled by messy white silk.

Flowing like a shadow, soft like silk, bright like the moon; such a gorgeous group bloomed between the black cloak and blue clothes, and stunning cheers suddenly rose on the field.

Everyone had always heard that Young Master Shang was the number one in the sword path of Bowang Prefecture, the so-called peak of the Clumsy Realm, but since going onto the ring, the man had never shown such a side to people; those easy victories were only related to strength and height.

And now people knew that such a sword was not unique to those blue clothes; in this martial arts competition, there was a second person who could have such exquisite control!

But such gorgeousness only existed for a moment.

The next moment, unimaginable violence exploded from the long cage; the seven white silks immediately snapped, Seeing Pei Ye's expressionless face appeared behind the fragments of light, and a sword light brighter than all the white silks suddenly broke out from the cage.

More than three times stronger than before it was locked!

Those tightened entanglements seemed to be springs that had been wound up for him; like an actor changing faces, a moment ago it was a delicate willow, but after a flash, it had become an angry Vajra!

Shang Huaitong's toughness, known for its exquisiteness, seemed to be just a fan to help him complete his technique.

Shang Huaitong's pupils shrank slightly, and he immediately retracted his sword to block; on the way back, the sword body still touched Seeing Pei Ye's sword lightly, trying to take a bit of help from the retraction.

But under such an incomparably tyrannical sword light, this touch brought him not a trend in the same direction, but an unspeakable obstruction!

With just a moment of obstruction, the blocking sword was already too late to block this attack; Shang Huaitong made a decisive decision, he immediately straightened his arm like a tiger, exerted force forward to stab the sword, attacking with an attack, and thus that obstruction instantly became help.

And this sudden sword in his hand was equally aggressive like fire!

【One Fire Burns Life】

A sword violently strangled Seeing Pei Ye's throat.

It was originally an explosive move used to start in the "Pulling Grass," although it no longer had the blessing of the fire on the plain, it could still make people smell the scorching dryness.

The heat wave and fire smell rushed towards him, and the whole battle situation was suddenly swallowed by this surging heat, but the next moment, a clear and resonant sound suddenly rose, washing away all the dust and irritability.

Shang Huaitong's sword, which had just exploded, suddenly stagnated, and the long sword in his hand trembled like a chime under the touching sword body; Shang Huaitong's pupils shrank suddenly, his face taut.

He had seen the young man use this sword many times, inferring that it was mostly a martial principle of secretly storing power and then suddenly exploding. This kind of sword is very dependent on the suppression of the sword path realm; that is, those with a lower realm will be completely unable to defend against the opponent's power-storing move, and may not even be able to detect it at all. But in front of those with the same or even higher realm, some power-storing actions will only become opportunities for the opponent.

From the start of the ring to now, he clearly hadn't detected any place where power was stored.

But a 【Clear Cry】 had already suddenly rushed out before his eyes.

Shang Huaitong struggled to retract his sword and retreat, his figure sweeping like a hawk; the sword is heavy and slow, and this retreat opened up a distance of at least three steps. The power in Seeing Pei Ye's sword suddenly retracted, the clear cry stopped, turning heavy into light, 【Treading Water to Pluck the Scales】 was on the sword, and the person had instantly approached the man's face again.

This transition between retreat and advance, heavy and light, was precisely the opportunity for maneuver that Shang Huaitong was looking for—since the long sword is light, it can be broken by force.

Fierce fire suddenly swept out of the sword body.

Seeing Pei Ye's figure tilted, and he had already avoided this sword path; the long sword floated like a curved bow, and a straight sword move suddenly turned into a side stab.

It was precisely 【Shedding the Shell】.

This kind of simple and sudden change of moves was finally no longer catching Shang Huaitong off guard; his offensive sword also flowed smoothly and retracted.

However, it was only retracting the sword, not retracting the attack.

The sword light suddenly converged, but the sword body was placed on the forearm; the first half pressed Seeing Pei Ye's incoming sword, and the second half still did not change its momentum, turning into a gloomy, dangerous stab.

Fire sword turned into a cold dagger; it was precisely the second fire of 【Three Fires Hiding Life】!

【Seven Fires No Life】 is certainly a stronger sword move, but that day on the Guanlu Terrace, what Shang Huaitong demonstrated for Sui Zaihua was this third move, precisely because it was the essence of the "Pulling Grass," and also the sword move Shang Huaitong was most proud of and showed the depth of his sword path.

This sword move requires three stages of space for retracting and releasing; the strength of the attack, the suddenness of the change, first mobilizing, then exploding, and finally suddenly pulling from gloomy to magnificent; when Sui Zaihua said it was full of murderous intent that day, it was really not an exaggeration.

Now Seeing Pei Ye was using a light sword to force a change, while Shang Huaitong was using retreat as storage; at this moment, 【Three Fires Hiding Life】 was precisely the move to reverse the situation.

The first fire forced Seeing Pei Ye's light sword open; Seeing Pei Ye's response was calm, avoiding and attacking in one move; but the second fire pressed the sword to attack again; Shang Huaitong's sword was a level higher, but Seeing Pei Ye's offensive momentum had already declined, and at this time there was absolutely no second clear cry, so he could only retreat the sword to defend.

And to defend, he had to face the third sword, which was as powerful as a heavy cavalry charge.

Seeing Pei Ye indeed retracted his sword and returned.

Since the start of the match, this was the first time the young man's continuous offensive had been interrupted.

Thus Shang Huaitong's third stage of the sword was like a fire wave rushing through a wall.

It was precisely no avoiding, no flashing, only straight, only advancing, because he was strong enough, so he just had to force you to clash head-on with this sword!

Seeing Pei Ye stuck to the blade and retracted his sword.

The long sword brushed against Shang Huaitong's blade, making a chime; the fire wave was like a thousand troops and horses, unstoppable, and his sword was like a ghost floating on the edge of this ten thousand troops.

At a certain moment, the two sword tips were on the same line.

Just like a ghost floating behind the leading general.

Seeing Pei Ye lightly paused his wrist and slashed.

The ghost suddenly revealed its fangs; with a "snap," it was as if the middle button had been picked off by a sharp blade; the power of the three strands twisted into a bundle suddenly collapsed, the fire wave dissipated from the center, and the thousand troops and horses collapsed like flying sand.

With his expression changing drastically, Shang Huaitong's long sword suddenly lost control!

In an instant, the empty gate, the lost sword, and the exhaustion—if it were on the field of life and death, he would already be in a state of being slaughtered.

The bright sword light rose like a bright moon, sweeping through all the chaos, and instantly approached Shang Huaitong's throat.

It was truly going to cause a penetration that would see blood and bone!

His heart suddenly clenched, and the meridian tree sprayed violently; Shang Huaitong twisted his wrist, and the chaotic power in the long sword was suddenly twisted into a bundle by the strong True Qi! In the blink of an eye, he retreated! Leaned back! Retracted the sword! With a "ding" chime, he narrowly blocked this sword in front of his throat.

Shang Huaitong slowly raised his head, his pupils already shrunk to needle points.

Seeing Pei Ye looked at him indifferently.

That day on the Guanlu Terrace, the danger-thinking style of 【Three Fires Hiding Life】 made everyone purse their lips and sigh, and Sui Zaihua said it was "full of murderous intent, but because it lost its intensity, the moves appeared crude."

And such crude things had already appeared in front of him three times.

——

On the stands, the breath that people had already held was now even more deeply stifled.

Many people with cultivation heard Shang Huaitong's opening words—"I, too, will only use sixteen meridians."

This was clearly a powerful response to the heated debate in Bowang City before—since we are only discussing the attainments of the sword path, then we will only look at the attainments of the sword path.

Both were at the peak of the Clumsy Realm, with consistent states, consistent True Qi, and even Shang Huaitong's original mysterious sword was not there at this time; thus, the two people standing at the two ends of the balance truly brought an unprecedentedly wonderful sword fight to this ring.

Holding one's breath and not daring to breathe was by no means an exaggeration, let alone that the blue-clad young man had pulled the battle situation to the most intense level from the very first move.

Surpassing Li Piaoqing and Yang Yan, the depth of the sword-fighting ideas and the excellence of the sword-fighting techniques of both sides in this match had already stood far above the sword wielders of Bowang.

——As soon as they clashed, the two were not exchanging moves, but were constantly competing for the height and strength of the sword momentum.

There was no "round" at all, or rather, it was always the first round; 【Treading Water to Pluck the Scales】, 【Seven-Practice Iron Lock】, 【One Fire Burns Life】, 【Clear Cry】, 【Shedding the Shell】, 【Three Fires Hiding Life】—there was no boundary between the entanglement of the moves. Except for the two of them, no one in this competition could use the sword like this, unleashing the sword back and forth five or six times in such a small space, and every move was so sturdy, solid, complete, and stunning.

However, such a profound and stunning battle situation ended within five moves.

And it showed a clear tendency from the beginning, without the slightest wavering until the end.

Seeing Pei Ye unleashed a total of five moves, which were four attacks and one break; every sword achieved a clear suppression of the situation, and the final break won; Shang Huaitong countered four moves, two attacks and two defenses, without a single success.

This young man, who had always given people a gentle temperament, showed unprecedented sharpness in this match; from beginning to end, he never stopped attacking and suppressing.

Advancing again and again, advancing and advancing! Breaking blocks when encountering blocks, breaking attacks when encountering attacks; this was not sword fighting at all, this was clearly and forcefully crushing!

However, people had no time to be surprised and talk, because the battle on the ring simply did not stop.

There was no interval or pause, nor was there any paragraph; the so-called "Battle of the Four Lives" had always been only Shang Huaitong's own words!

At the "clang" sound, after Shang Huaitong stopped this sword with his full six-life strength, the sword tip that Seeing Pei Ye was pressing on Shang Huaitong's sword body suddenly exerted force and pulled down, cutting a gorgeous spark on the sword body.

A downward slash that could break bears and tigers!

Once it left the sword body, this slash immediately retracted this terrifying performance, turning into a sharp, silent, bright crescent moon, but the decisive force that could break everything just now had already been exposed in everyone's eyes.

When Seeing Pei Ye learned the "Yellow Jade," he did not follow the steps. In two days, the first thing he learned was the simplest first style, and the fifth style that was most similar to the meaning of the Sparrow section.

It was Yellow Jade · 【Breaking the Leaf and Returning Waves】

Such a close and dangerous explosion, this sword would split Shang Huaitong in half from the chest down!

There was no conversation, nor was there any eye contact; he could clearly have retracted his sword and retreated, standing firm with a smile.

Shang Huaitong would really have yielded this championship to him; when he said those words, although he hadn't expected this result, he was also prepared to face the consequences.

But now, Shang Huaitong's face was cold as ice.

Tomorrow's update should still not be on time; everyone wait for the evening!

(End of chapter)