Chapter 840: The Third Young Master's Sword and the Third Young Master's Dream

"Over this past half-month, I have perused the Demon Sect's collection of books, and I have gained a certain understanding of the Divine Blade Slash. I invite the Demon Sect Leader to offer a critique or two."

Yu Liancheng held the Crescent Moon Blade, a smile on his face, and suddenly slashed out.

Divine Blade Slash!

A casual wave, without any preamble.

It was as if a gorgeous flower had bloomed out of thin air, without roots deep in the earth, without green leaves to receive the sunlight.

The moment this flower bloomed, everything between heaven and earth lost its color, leaving only a streak of sword light spitting from the heart of the flower—stunning and ethereal, with no front or back, no top or bottom, no left or right. It came from the void and returned to the void, slashing toward Bai Xiaolou in an arc that no mortal could comprehend.

As the Demon Sect Leader, Bai Xiaolou had experienced countless battles in his life and long possessed a temperament that would remain calm even if the sky fell. Furthermore, he was the person in the world who understood the Divine Blade Slash best, and every change in this strike was clear in his heart. Yet at this moment, he felt a sense of helplessness. He only felt a cold, murderous intent descending from the sky, as if countless hellish ghosts were rampaging through the mortal world, pouncing from every direction, sealing off all paths of retreat and change.

Bai Xiaolou's whole body was cold and stiff, his face deathly pale.

The only thing he could do was wait for death.

However, just as the blade light severed a strand of his dancing hair, it suddenly vanished into thin air. Along with the blade light, Yu Liancheng also disappeared. And that Crescent Moon Blade, filled with demonic nature, fell to the ground, its blade still humming.

"This strike..."

Bai Xiaolou suddenly realized that his back was already soaked with cold sweat.

He finally understood the deficiency in his own blade technique.

It was that he had always been controlled by the blade, unable to truly control this strike himself.

The Divine Blade Slash was inherently a blade technique filled with demonic nature, and the Crescent Moon Blade was a cursed demonic blade.

The two complemented each other, and the demonic nature was profound; he had assumed he was the master of this blade and could wield the Divine Blade Slash with ease, but upon careful reflection, he was the one being controlled by the blade.

Just like his previous encounter with Xiao Shiyilang—although Xiao Shiyilang was an uninvited guest who had broken into the library, the other party had not dealt a lethal blow to the Golden Lion Protector, and there was also the mysterious and unfathomable Yu Liancheng behind him. In any case, that previous Divine Blade Slash should have been a show of mercy. But he had been tainted by the demonic nature, and the strike had been delivered without mercy.

Yet he had not even been able to perceive it, thinking it was he himself who wanted to deliver that strike.

He was merely a servant to that demonic blade.

In contrast, Yu Liancheng's previous strike was not only several levels higher in power, but it was also wielded with complete freedom of heart, truly subduing that demonic blade.

In Bai Xiaolou's mind, he kept replaying the strike Yu Liancheng had delivered; such a blade technique, even with only one or two parts of its true essence, would be enough to roam the world, and could be called the "God" among blade techniques.

The moonlight spilled down, and Yu Liancheng walked out of the wine cellar of the Demon Sect's main altar, holding a jar of wine in his hand; with a tap of his toes, his figure drifted away.

He had already finished reading the Demon Sect's ten great demonic arts and the classics he was interested in; he had intended to leave the library today anyway, otherwise he would not have let the Golden Lion Protector discover him.

Treading on a wisp of a breeze, Yu Liancheng had already left the Demon Sect's main altar and stood on the mountain peak. He took a sip of wine while facing the crescent moon above his head.

"It cannot be denied that Bai Xiaolou is a heaven-sent genius. If he can comprehend the method of the person controlling the blade from that Divine Blade Slash, I fear no expert in the Central Plains could contend with him. Can this be considered aiding a tyrant? The Demon Sect is hardly a good thing." Yu Liancheng rubbed his chin, and soon a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth: "Now, I should go visit an old friend and give him a boost."

"That fellow used to be very pretentious, abandoning the status and position of the Third Young Master; he was a coward without responsibility. Now he has become much more steady, and is even a pillar of the martial arts world."

"Come to think of it, he and Yan Shisan were supposed to have a duel, but I messed it up. Without this catalyst, he might not reach the height he was supposed to. Since that is the case, I will return this opportunity to him. In the future, when he and Bai Xiaolou fight to the death on the peak of Qilian Shan, it will be worth watching to see who wins and who loses."

A gust of wind blew, and Yu Liancheng's figure had already vanished.

Cuiyun Peak, Lüshui Lake, Shenjian Shanzhuang.

Shenjian Shanzhuang is the seat of the Xie Family, one of the Four Great Families; it is a holy land in the martial arts world and a forbidden zone for those in the Edo.

The Third Young Master of the Divine Sword, Xie Xiaofeng, is the current master of the villa; he is the God of the sword, the World's Number One Divine Sword revered by everyone in the Central Plains Martial Arts World!

But even the Third Young Master Xie Xiaofeng has times of trouble.

He had just received a message sent by carrier pigeon from the abbot of the Shaolin Temple.

The gist of the letter was that the Demon Sect was restless and would inevitably move east within half a year at most. Facing the most mysterious and terrifying organization in history, there was surely no one who would not feel a headache. The letter also mentioned the Demon Sect Leader, Bai Xiaolou, who seemed to have mastered the most terrifying demonic blade technique of the Demon Sect. Perhaps by then, only the Third Young Master in the entire Central Plains would be able to contend with him.

Xie Xiaofeng had long been weary of the Edo and truly did not wish to get involved, but when the nest is overturned, no egg remains unbroken.

He shook his head, put down the light yellow envelope, and was just about to go to the courtyard to practice his sword, when he suddenly felt muddled; his mind became extremely chaotic, his eyelids felt as heavy as a thousand catties, and infinite sleepiness surged up. He actually ended up supporting his head with his hand and fell asleep.

He did not know how much time had passed when Xie Xiaofeng heard the sound of water.

He opened his eyes and found himself sitting on a covered boat.

The river flowed endlessly, the thick fog on the river was like smoke, and the reed flowers on the riverbank rustled. This scene was somewhat familiar, yet he had no memory of it at all.

"You are awake, Brother Xie." A clear, bright voice sounded.

Only then did Xie Xiaofeng discover that there was actually another person sitting on the boat.

Dressed in green, with a smile on his face, his bearing was transcendent and refined.

Upon seeing this person, Xie Xiaofeng's pupils dilated, and his expression revealed astonishment.

"It is you..." He naturally recognized this person. Years ago, when he was drifting aimlessly, he had fought a peerless swordsman in that border town; that was the only defeat in his life, a defeat that was etched into his heart. After returning to Shenjian Shanzhuang, he had used the power of the villa to search for information on this person, but other than learning that this person was called "Yu Liancheng," there was not much valuable information.

"I am honored that the Third Young Master, the World's Number One Divine Sword, still remembers a nobody like me," Yu Liancheng chuckled.

"In front of Brother Yu, I dare not claim to be the 'World's Number One Divine Sword'," Xie Xiaofeng gave a bitter smile and shook his head: "I have always kept that crushing defeat from years ago in my heart."

Yu Liancheng laughed: "I am but a traveler from beyond the heavens; that Brother Xie narrowly lost to my sword is really nothing worth mentioning."

"A traveler from beyond the heavens?" Xie Xiaofeng was startled at first, then looked around, revealing a puzzled expression: "I clearly remember being in Shenjian Shanzhuang, how did the world change in the blink of an eye? Where is this?"

Yu Liancheng smiled slightly: "This is in your dream."

"In a dream?"

"Indeed, this is your dream."