Chapter 589: 542 The Tiger and the Donkey

Sword Art—Golden Tiger!

A golden tiger drifted out from his sword edge, and the moment it touched the ground, it roared at the top of its lungs.

That tiger was entirely golden, as if it were the scorching sun. The Sword Light of Wangliang Mountain seen before had been pure white, but the tiger at this moment was already golden; although it was not as bright as the Sunlight in the Nether Sea, possessing only a hint of pale gold, it still indicated that this tiger was no ordinary object.

Furthermore, this Golden Tiger had a fierce Momentum, sharp teeth and claws, the character for "King" on its forehead, and a tail like a whip—what a majestic, awe-inspiring air of a mountain lord! That tall Wangliang Power warrior was its cliff, and it was the king of the high mountains!

However, the audience looking up from below, along with the Sword Guests in the shed, watched this tiger and a thought flashed through their minds simultaneously:

Just this?

The tiger was indeed majestic, but it would have been better if it were a bit bigger.

The tiger before their eyes, from head to tail, was only about a foot long; it wasn't even as big as a cat. Some children's tiger-head pillows were even larger than it, and no matter how it roared, it felt a bit like a cat "puffing up its fur."

Even Jiang Shenyi and the others had never seen this Sword Art.

This was something Tang Zhao had developed at the Zhaoyang Camp after he became a Sword Hero and combed through his own Sword Techniques and Sword Arts; he had never used it in combat, and no one knew why he had developed it into this miniature form.

Jiang Shenyi was momentarily stunned, finding it strange that since he had decided to use a Sword Art, why did he not choose his most proficient one, but instead chose this new and immature Sword Art? But immediately after, he felt a sense of realization: it was like playing small cards first when playing a game of cards, right?

54 The "King Bomb" should be later, right?

Over there, the Golden Crow saw the little tiger and clicked its tongue in dissatisfaction, muttering, "Although there are indeed those who call the sun a Golden Tiger, aren't there more who call it a Golden Crow? How did this kid gain enlightenment in his sword, only to realize a big cat?"

On the contrary, it was Xinglao who recognized this little tiger. He still remembered that this little tiger had once blocked a Golden Bull that he had struck with his full strength; it was like a mantis trying to stop a chariot, yet it was as steady as a towering mountain.

It should... be very strong, right?

Following a roar from the little Golden Tiger, it took the lead and pounced toward Gui Rong, its momentum as fierce as a savage tiger descending from the mountains!

Gui Rong was furious, feeling he had been looked down upon. The Sword Qi of the long sword in his hand flared intensely, surging like a wild gale to meet the savage tiger.

The savage tiger was fast, but his sword was faster. Just as he saw the sword edge flick, about to pierce the tiger through, suddenly a flash of Sword Light appeared before his eyes—it was Tang Zhao also pouncing over.

Tang Zhao's approach was even faster than before. In the blink of an eye, Gui Rong saw what looked like a trail of light behind him, like a comet streaking through space!

One man and one tiger, attacking simultaneously from two directions!

Both were incredibly fast!

Gui Rong's one sword could only block the attack from one direction. Although his Sword Qi could provide Body Protection, the incoming enemies both had the strength to pierce through his protective Sword Qi, and they formed a pincer formation, sealing off the direction of his retreat!

If this were a wanderer of the Jianghu, encountering such a pincer attack would mean they had reached a life-or-death moment; caught in a dilemma, they would have to make a choice, forced to take one attack head-on while defending with all their might against the more lethal one.

But if it were a Sword Guest, this scene would not count for much. He would only need to release a Sword Art to turn the situation around; perhaps a displacement Sword Art could turn danger into safety, a wide-range Sword Art could turn defense into offense, or there might be other more peculiar Sword Arts or even Sword Techniques that could win the battle in one strike within this desperate situation.

And Gui Rong...

Gui Rong stood his ground and swung his sword.

Like a Jianghu fighter, he chose to focus on dealing with one side, taking the blow from the other head-on.

And facing the man's sword and the tiger's claws, he chose—the tiger.

He chose to block the tiger and take Tang Zhao's sword head-on!

Ssh!

Gui Rong's sword clashed head-on with the tiger's claws. The Sword Qi was surging and fierce; the tiger roared loudly within the Sword Qi, transforming into scorching Sword Light and dissipating, with a portion staining the sword.

Gui Rong's sword suddenly turned red, like a branding iron placed in a high-temperature furnace. The hand Gui Rong used to hold the sword trembled slightly, and a look of pain flashed through his eyes and vanished, but from beginning to end, he gripped the sword hilt tightly, never letting go, and no one saw the change in his expression.

As for the sword strike behind him, it narrowly missed him along with his rapid forward sword strike, merely shaving off a wisp of his hair. At the same time, Gui Rong turned his palm and struck, sending thick Sword Qi out from his palm, aiming straight for Tang Zhao. Tang Zhao paused, dodged, and his figure left behind a trail of white light once again.

This attack returned without success.

Gui Rong gripped his sword again and pointed it at Tang Zhao, returning once more to a state of calm and composure.

Tang Zhao stood in the air; the two trajectories of his rushing and flying still had not dissipated, circling in the air like silk ribbons, just like the contrails left behind after a jet plane flies past.

In the battle just now, although Gui Rong had barely dodged and it had become a draw, it was, after all, Tang Zhao's moves that had forced him into such a sorry state. At this moment, Tang Zhao's momentum was even greater, wrapped in brilliance, his bearing elegant, as if he were an exiled immortal.

Yet a cold sneer appeared on Gui Rong's face. Looking down at Tang Zhao, he suddenly pointed his finger at him and laughed loudly: "Hahaha, do you know why I chose to fight that tiger and ignored you?"

"Because I know you won't hurt me, you don't dare to hurt me! Even if I expose my vital back to you, you wouldn't dare touch a single hair on me. Because you are afraid!"

"During the sword fight just now, you discovered that I was luring you to attack, so you guessed that my Sword Art was related to a counterattack. You then didn't dare to attack proactively, fearing that if you hit me, you would end your own life instead. Thus, you didn't dare to attack, didn't dare to hurt anyone, didn't dare to make a move, and only dared to conjure a little cat to sneak attack. Even when you saw my fatal flaw during the sneak attack, you still didn't dare to attack, just like someone with bound feet stopping there, letting the opportunity slip away."

He laughed even more wantonly, saying: "You've lost, you've already lost! Now you don't dare to do anything, timid and suspicious, you are already a piece of trash, you cannot win! Haha, even if I scold you like this, you will still suspect whether I am provoking you or luring you to attack, so you still won't dare to make a move! You can only stand there motionless, cowering while being scolded by me, you trash, you coward, you chicken! What kind of sword do you hold, what kind of Sword Guest are you? You aren't even fit to hold a hoe to till the land!"

"Since you don't dare to move, just stand there obediently and wait for death!"

Tang Zhao looked at him calmly and said: "Empty City Strategy?"

Gui Rong frowned slightly, and Tang Zhao said: "You don't read many books, so you don't understand this allusion. Let me explain: it was when the wise man of the previous generation, Zhuge Kongming, opened the city gates in a desperate situation to bluff, which instead made the enemy think there was an ambush and retreat without a fight. It seems you deliberately left your gates wide open, exposing a fatal flaw, to make people afraid to take advantage of the situation. This is a very good psychological warfare tactic."

In fact, this allusion was a story from Chen Zong's hometown; regardless of whether Gui Rong read many books or not, he would not have known it. However, Gui Rong indeed did not read many books and could not distinguish the origin of this story. He actually thought Tang Zhao was showing off his learning, and only felt that this pedantic face was extremely detestable, even if he praised his own strategy as brilliant, he did not feel it was a compliment.

Tang Zhao said thoughtfully: "However, even for the Martial Marquis Zhuge, it was because he had lost Jieting and fallen into a desperate situation that he used this bold strategy, in order to survive in a dead end. Does that mean you were indeed in a desperate situation just now? If I had thrust that sword over, would you really have died?"

Gui Rong's eyebrows twisted. Tang Zhao suddenly laughed out loud and said: "It couldn't be, could it? I haven't even made a move yet, and you're already in a desperate situation? Is this the 'donkey of Guizhou exhausting its tricks'? Oh, the so-called 'donkey of Guizhou exhausting its tricks'—even if a donkey encounters a tiger, it can still kick its heels; it can still put on a show for a moment or two. You haven't even fired a single sword strike and you've already exhausted your tricks? Isn't this even worse than a donkey?"

Gui Rong was furious. He felt more and more that this person's face was extremely detestable, and suddenly he remembered the expression this person had when he first came up and showed him pity.

He had never seen such a disgusting person. Especially since this person was not only the kind of person he hated most, but he clearly knew where his hated points were and kept jumping on those points. For example, relying on his good luck to have read a few books, he would quote classics at every moment, look at him with the eyes of someone looking at a dropout, and drag out all sorts of messy allusions to remind him that he was an illiterate.

Disgusting, too disgusting!

Must destroy him! Destroy him, grind his bones to dust, not even a bit of ash can remain!

Tang Zhao said: "Of course, I guess you wouldn't be limited to this; after all, as a Sword Hero, you must have your 'three axes'. You've played the pig to eat the tiger to such a degree, and you're still bent on tricking me into making a move, and you insist that I give you a fatal blow. I suppose you're still holding back a massive Sword Technique, wanting to take me out in one wave? Well, such persistence is moving. Then I shall—fulfill your wish!"

He suddenly opened his eyes wide, pointed his sword forward, his expression solemn yet high-spirited:

"Sword Technique—Molten Gold and Melting Stone!"

A tiger's roar resounded in the sky.

If the previous roar of the little tiger was somewhat like the first roar of a suckling tiger, this roar surpassed the roar of the king of a hundred beasts, and even surpassed the roar of a dragon!

This was the sound of nature.

As the roar entered the ears, it was as if one heard the sound of burning, heard the sound of scorching, heard the earth cracking under the scorching sun, heard the stones being melted into magma...

That was the sound of the earth under the shine of the sun, the scorching earth turning into a savage tiger, roaring at the sun with its head raised!

At the same time, the heat steamed up from the bottom to the top!

On the spectator stand dozens of zhang below, the crowd felt a sudden burst of intense heat, and sweat poured down like rain instantly. Some Sword Guests were fine, but those who were not Sword Guests, if not shielded by the Sword Essence of a Sword Guest nearby, immediately felt dizzy and parched, even on the verge of fainting.

One must know that heat is lighter than air, and the heat in the sky rises; even with convection, it should not be this fast, and those below were merely receiving a bit of thermal radiation. Yet even so, the ground had instantly become a place unfit for humans to stay; how hot must it be in the high sky shrouded by that Sword Technique?

I fear it is no less intense than the alchemy furnace of Tai Shang Lao Jun.

"It is indeed a Sword Technique, not a Sword Art. The abilities of a Sword Hero ought to have such power."

Although Jiang Shenyi had undergone training, he had not yet fully transformed; he only felt his vision darken and his legs go weak, when suddenly someone pulled him, and the heat vanished instantly.

It turned out that Jin Wu saw that several of his companions who were not Sword Guests could not endure it, so he pulled them behind him and spread his shaped wings to protect them, instantly isolating the rolling heat outside.

Jiang Shenyi was grateful for Jin Wu's protection and bowed to Jin Wu, then concerned about the situation overhead, he looked up again, only to see that the wind and clouds in the sky had changed; although it was clear, he still felt his vision blur and blurted out, "Tigers! They are all tigers!"