Chapter 327: The Fall of the Feiying

Qu Ao is a first-class expert and Grandmaster of the Tiele; although his heart was filled with anger and hatred, the moment he made his move, his state of mind immediately returned to a state of stillness like an ancient well.

His hands transformed into thousands of claw shadows, and amidst the wild surging of his power, he shrouded the three-zhang radius of ground centered on Yu Liancheng. This made it clear to all onlookers that this was a fierce and sharp technique that forced his opponent to meet it head-on with no room to dodge.

Yu Liancheng's expression remained unchanged; the Ding Shi Whip in his palm suddenly uncoiled, tearing through the air with lightning speed and emitting a sharp, whistling sound.

Five dull collision sounds rang out in succession. At the very instant the whip and claws clashed, Qu Ao, with speed so rapid it was hard for the naked eye to perceive, used his five fingers to strike the Ding Shi Whip one after another with exquisite techniques of darkening, striking, sweeping, and piercing.

Qu Ao's expression changed; he felt two types of True Qi, both containing an extraordinary chill and coldness, surge in from the long whip. He hurriedly borrowed the force to retreat several zhang, his toes landing on a long pillar and leaving behind a series of shattered cracks, only then barely managing to neutralize this force.

And at the moment Qu Ao retreated, his three disciples, Zhang Shumou, Hualingzi, and Gengge Hu'er, followed closely behind.

Gengge Hu'er's energy surged, the floor beneath his feet shattering inch by inch, and he himself charged toward Yu Liancheng like a cannonball.

He held a long sword in his palm; the sword light was like a flying rainbow, yet the power within the sword was contained rather than revealed. It held the "Mad Wave Seven Turns" taught by Qu Ao, and every strike could absorb a small portion of the opponent's internal power to enhance his own sword momentum, which was extremely strange and treacherous.

Hualingzi was a wild and coquettish Hu woman dressed in a provocative manner; she drew two short blades from her sleeves, her body moving like a flying arrow as she attacked Yu Liancheng from the other side.

The Hu woman's figure was as fast as lightning, and her eyes flashed with a cold, sharp glint. One short blade in her hand seemed to rotate and change, her moves complex and bizarre, while the other short blade stabbed straight forward, making the air feel as if it were being sliced apart and emitting a "chi-chi" sound.

Although Hualingzi was a woman with a slender and graceful figure, she moved like a female leopard, full of explosive power.

As for Qu Ao's eldest disciple, Zhang Shumou, he was the most astonishing.

He took out two golden shields, injecting his violent and surging True Qi into them. He swept them across the air, and the sky-filling airflow rolled out like a tide, one wave after another. This strike possessed the force of a thousand jun, yet it contained a continuous flow of energy, giving people the feeling of being crushed by layer upon layer of waves, impossible to resist.

Qu Ao stood tall upon a rockery; although his expression appeared grave, he could not help but nod with self-satisfaction as he watched his three disciples' methods.

Ever since his crushing defeat by the "Martial Venerable" Bi Xuan, he had lost the heroic spirit to dominate the grasslands, indulging in wine and women, and his profound cultivation had been like a river breaching its banks.

But he had not become completely decadent; instead, he had poured all his ambition into his son and three disciples. His efforts had not been in vain, especially with his eldest disciple, Zhang Shumou, who had obtained eighty percent of his true teachings and would surely become a top expert capable of leading the Tiele in the future.

With three disciples joining forces, their tacit understanding was perfect, their offensive seamless, and with him, the "Tie Le Feiying" himself, could they not defeat this so-called Imperial Tutor of the Great Sui?

Yu Liancheng moved his wrist, and the nearly two-zhang-long whip completely uncoiled, transforming into streaks of whip shadows that shrouded Gengge Hu'er, who had attacked first.

Gengge Hu'er was confident in his mastery of the "Mad Wave Seven Turns"; his sword momentum unchanged, he fiercely stabbed into the whip shadows, intending to pierce and neutralize this seemingly sluggish whip momentum.

Little did he know that this seemingly soft Ding Shi Whip had suddenly transformed into a soaring, dancing poisonous dragon. A single lash could easily shatter gold and split stone. And if it were to truly strike a person's body, it would not be as simple as skin tearing and bones breaking; it could even twist a person into two halves.

Gengge Hu'er's long sword clashed with the Ding Shi Whip, and he immediately recoiled, his face as pale as paper.

Even more terrifying was that the thousand-times-tempered long sword in his hand seemed unable to withstand the power of the long whip; amidst a cracking sound, it shattered with a boom.

The long whip broke through the sword momentum, and before Gengge Hu'er could react, his waist was already wrapped by the Ding Shi Whip. Then, pulled by the long whip, his entire body involuntarily veered off course and smashed toward Hualingzi on the side.

Hualingzi frowned, just about to stop her attack and catch Gengge Hu'er. Yu Liancheng suddenly glanced at her, causing a roar to erupt in her mind and leaving her dazed.

Although it was only for a moment, it was enough to be fatal.

With a "bang," Gengge Hu'er collided with Hualingzi.

Gengge Hu'er was pierced in two vital points in his chest by Hualingzi's two short blades, and he knelt limply on the ground, clearly beyond saving.

Hualingzi was sent flying by the immense force carried by Gengge Hu'er, soaring seven or eight zhang like a rag doll before snapping a tree in half, her breath nearly extinguished.

The next moment, Yu Liancheng struck out with a backhand palm, the force like a thunderbolt, whipping up a hurricane that made even the oncoming Zhang Shumou feel it difficult to breathe.

Seeing his junior brother and sister die, Zhang Shumou was not only unafraid but instead let out a roar like a wild beast, shaking the sky.

He poured all his True Qi into the golden shields, which immediately erupted with blinding golden light, as if they were the shell of a mysterious turtle; not only did they contain unspeakable mysteries, but they could also withstand any attack from heaven or earth.

Zhang Shumou was also full of confidence in this strike of his.

But when the golden shield made contact with Yu Liancheng's palm, all his confidence shattered. He felt waves of indescribable force coming through.

This power was simply too strong, like a mountain collapsing, a tsunami, the sky falling, the earth sinking...

And his golden shield, before this strike, was like a sheet of thin paper, instantly torn into fragments. The palm momentum did not cease, striking Zhang Shumou's chest like a lightning bolt crossing the sky.

"Qu Ao, stop dazing off, come over and die." Yu Liancheng retracted his whip and palm, looking at Qu Ao with a smile on his lips: "Of course, if you don't have the guts now, then forget it."

Qu Ao stared blankly at the scene before him, his eyes blood-red.

He could never have imagined that his three great disciples would all be killed in an instant, without even time for him to rescue them.

His body was trembling, as if he were terrified to the extreme, or perhaps angry to the extreme.

Just by seeing his three disciples die so cleanly at the opponent's hands, Qu Ao understood that he was definitely no match for Yu Liancheng.

And the moment Yu Liancheng's gaze fell upon him, Qu Ao found himself involuntarily recalling the situation when he challenged the "Martial Venerable" Bi Xuan back then.

He was a martial arts prodigy; at twenty-three, he controlled seven acupoints throughout his body, and ten years later, he practiced one more, which was the basis for his two self-created Innate Qi techniques: "Mad Wave Seven Turns" and "Violent Tide Eight Folds."

By the time Qu Ao reached forty-one, he could control all the acupoints in his body at will, naming it the "Condensing True Nine Changes."

"Nine" did not mean nine acupoints, but rather that "nine" was the extreme of numbers, implying its infinite use.

From then on, his martial arts were perfected. Qu Ao believed that while he might not be invincible in the world, he was not far off, and his confidence soared, leading him to challenge one of the Three Great Grandmasters, the Martial Venerable Bi Xuan.

He lost.

He lost miserably.

He fled like a stray dog.

If Bi Xuan had been willing, he could have easily hunted him down.

But Bi Xuan did not.

Perhaps Bi Xuan disdained to hunt down a defeated opponent, or perhaps he felt that Qu Ao had the potential to advance further and might be able to challenge him, Bi Xuan, again in the future.

But regardless, from that day on, Qu Ao lived in the shadow of that miserable defeat. Both his mind and body were tormented every moment.

And at this moment.

Seeing with his own eyes Yu Liancheng kill his three disciples without any effort, that terrifying sense of fear surged from the soles of his feet to his heart once again, making his whole body tremble.

Is this... is he going to run again this time?

If he ran away this time, his spirit would be tarnished once more. Then, let alone recovering to his peak of that year, he might even plummet, falling below the level of a First-class Expert.

Furthermore, he knew that he would never be able to wash away the shame of that battle with Bi Xuan in his lifetime, so he had placed all his hopes on his son and three disciples.

Now, his son and three disciples had all been killed by this person.

Rather than living a cowardly life, it would be better to have a magnificent battle, so that all the experts in the world would remember that there was still a person named Qu Ao in this world.

Once this thought occurred, Qu Ao's eyes became as sharp as an eagle's.

"Die!!"

Qu Ao's eyes were blood-red; as he let out a long howl toward the sky, he swooped toward Yu Liancheng like an eagle.

At this moment, Qu Ao transformed his hatred and anger into power, evolving it into the final killing move of the Condensing True Nine Changes, launching a final life-or-death struggle with Yu Liancheng.

At this moment, Qu Ao exerted his full strength to drive the "Condensing True Nine Changes," and every acupuncture point on his body erupted with endless True Qi, filling his limbs and bones.

At this moment, Qu Ao swept away the dust of decades from his heart; his body and soul attained an unprecedented elevation, and he even felt he had returned to the peak state he was in when he once fought Bi Xuan.

He was no longer anyone's defeated opponent, but the Tie Le Feiying who made countless experts tremble with fear.

In the blink of an eye, Qu Ao had pounced to the kill.

His hands spread wide, his energy whistling, his ten fingers like hooks, carving out streaks of shrill, cold light; the ear-piercing sound of breaking wind vibrated and rang out, the momentum terrifying to the extreme, making one's hair stand on end.

He wanted to unleash the "Condensing True Nine Changes" to the fullest, and when combined with the seamless "Ying Bian Thirteen Styles," it was indeed a killing move that even the Three Great Grandmasters would have to treat seriously.

"Good, this seat underestimated you after all." Yu Liancheng offered a word of praise. As he spoke, his five fingers curled into a fist, one punch like lightning tearing through the long sky, striking from below to meet Qu Ao's "Ying Bian Thirteen Styles."

And as this punch blasted out, a current of air seemed to surge from the ground, like a tornado, meeting the attack along with the fist, intending to sweep away everything.

Bang!!

Amidst the exploding energy, this punch from Yu Liancheng shattered Qu Ao's "Condensing True Nine Changes," blasting thoroughly into his chest, his internal organs shattered in that instant.

"Walk well on the road to the Yellow Springs." Yu Liancheng's fist pulled out from Qu Ao's chest, the blood on his fist peeling off on its own and falling to the ground.

"No grievance! No grievance..." Qu Ao coughed twice, his gaze dimming, and he fell straight down.

"Imperial Tutor has good martial arts, truly not a name without substance, but since you hunted my prey, this prince will have to make you pay." A vigorous voice rang out; it was none other than the Tuyuhun prince, Fu Qian.

Fu Qian and Qu Ao had long-standing grievances and were originally meant to have a duel tonight, but now it had been disrupted by Yu Liancheng.

A cold sneer hung on the corner of Yu Liancheng's mouth: "Stop the nonsense; if you want to seek death, just come."

"Hmph, since that is the case, I shall respectfully obey; this prince will send the Imperial Tutor to his death right now." Fu Qian was not even angry; he laughed aloud and leaped down from the railing.

This Tuyuhun prince was by no means a reckless person; he had come this time, just like other foreign experts, wanting to stir up the Central Plains so as to get a share of the spoils.

But with Yu Liancheng, this Imperial Tutor, present, the Great Sui remained standing despite its decline, so he had to eliminate the Imperial Tutor for Tuyuhun to have a chance.

And in his view, although Yu Liancheng had cleanly killed Qu Ao and his three disciples, his own True Qi was exhausted, and his energy had not yet readjusted.

At this moment, it was clearly the best time to strike.

And even if he could not kill Yu Liancheng, as long as he could force him to retreat, it would also gain Fu Qian immense prestige. Conversely, he was a Tuyuhun prince, and Yu Liancheng was the Imperial Tutor; no matter what, he would not dare to kill him and provoke a conflict between the two nations.

Since it was a business with steady profits and no losses, why not do it?

"Imperial Tutor, watch my punch."

Fu Qian did not delay for a moment; he swung a punch and blasted it toward Yu Liancheng. This punch had no fierce wind; it was silent, but every expert present knew that this was more chilling than any fist force or palm wind. Because this fist wind was not absent, but concentrated into a pillar.