Chapter 98: Epilogue

"So... you are prepared to make a move against me?"

"You are very eager to fight me?" Yu Luosha's tone carried a hint of confusion.

"Of course!" At this moment, Yu Liancheng carried an unprecedented fighting spirit.

He longed to cross hands with Yu Luosha.

He also longed to dispel the dark cloud that had been hanging over his heart ever since he arrived in this world.

"Very well, I shall grant your wish."

Yu Luosha moved.

His movement technique was ethereal like an immortal, dreamlike as mist; even with Yu Liancheng's keen eyesight, he could only see a faint human silhouette flying toward him.

In the blink of an eye, the mist-like figure crossed a distance of several zhang and appeared above Yu Liancheng, his right palm flipping over as he struck downward with a "Boom." This strike not only carried the momentum and speed of thunder, but was also drifting and vague, like smoke and mist, as if the attack were launched from the void itself.

He had actually fused the essence of the "Wind Thunder Eighty-One Styles" and the "Yuluo Light Mist Palm" into one, transforming it into an incomparably exquisite move.

Yu Liancheng's fighting spirit grew even more intense; he threw his head back and laughed, his long black hair flying.

His right hand opened, then suddenly clenched into a fist; the air squeezed out from between his fingers seemed to condense into substance, striking the ground and leaving four shallow pits.

He raised his fist upward, as if a mountain were rising across the sky.

Boom!!

In an instant, surrounded by lightning and wind-thunder, the fist and palm collided without any pretense.

The space shook violently, and visible ripples spread in all directions like a raging hurricane, directly sweeping away the surrounding mist.

"Good, I had already held you in high regard, but I did not expect your martial arts to have reached such a realm."

Yu Luosha floated in mid-air, his eyes—indifferent as mist and devoid of almost any emotion—seeming to reveal a look of surprise.

"But I know that this is still far from your true ability." The ground beneath Yu Liancheng's feet sank inch by inch, collapsing for the most part, and his entire body suddenly shot upward, leaping into the air like an angry dragon ascending to heaven.

Boom!!

The two figures became entangled in mid-air, fists and palms clashing; in the time it took to breathe, they had exchanged hundreds of blows.

Violent tremors echoed along the long street; the town's residents were startled from their sleep, shivering as if their souls were unknowingly shrouded in immense fear.

The two figures continued to fight, their forms cutting through the sky and shooting off in one direction like meteors.

In the blink of an eye, the two had vanished from the long street, with only the continuous, rumbling sounds of their collision echoing from afar, until before long, they could no longer be heard clearly.

"Half-master..."

Shangguan Xueer's figure drifted out.

She had already returned to the inn, but the commotion of the two fighting was truly astonishing; worried for Yu Liancheng's safety, she had flown back, carrying the "Duoqing Sword" in her palm with great difficulty.

At this moment, her face revealed worry and hesitation.

She was worried that her half-master had encountered an unprecedentedly powerful enemy.

She was hesitant about whether she should pursue them and lend her master a hand.

But with her martial arts, the gap between her and the two combatants was simply too vast.

To rashly assist would likely only make her a burden.

"Master told me to return to the inn earlier; had he already anticipated this fight? But if Master and his opponent are truly only separated by a hair's breadth, if I do not go, wouldn't Master be in danger?"

After pondering for a moment, Shangguan Xueer reached a decision: "I will simply deliver the 'Duoqing Sword' to Master, then watch from afar; once Master falls into a disadvantage, I will find a way to help him."

The young girl unfolded her movement technique and flew toward the place where Yu Liancheng and Yu Luosha had vanished.

Among the martial arts Yu Liancheng had taught her, she had learned his lightness skill the fastest and the best.

But she was carrying the Duoqing Sword, and the weapon was too heavy, so even when exerting her lightness skill to the fullest, her speed was much slower than usual.

It took her a full quarter of an hour to catch up to where the two were fighting.

This was in a forest; the surrounding trees were snapped and broken, a scene of utter devastation as if a natural disaster had passed through; it was hard to imagine this was caused by two people fighting.

In reality, when top-tier experts fought, their internal energy was usually restrained and condensed, so such scenes were rare.

But both Yu Liancheng and Yu Luosha had cultivated their external martial arts to an extremely profound realm, and combined with their own deep internal power, they were violent and overbearing, making every move full of destructive power, thus creating the scene before her.

Shangguan Xueer stepped onto a large tree and gazed into the distance, where she could already see two figures moving like wind and lightning, with incredible speed.

Even with her eyes focused and aided by the moonlight, she could only see two blurry shadows, unable to see them clearly.

Especially Yu Luosha; even while fighting, his entire person seemed to be shrouded in a thin layer of mist, appearing both real and illusory.

Bang!

Suddenly, the internal energy exploded, and one figure was sent tumbling backward—it was Yu Luosha.

The ethereal mist on Yu Luosha's body dissipated quite a bit, but his true face remained unclear; he said in surprise, "You have actually brought the 'Ruyi Heavenly Demon Art' to Great Completion?"

"Indeed, that is correct."

Yu Liancheng stood with his hands behind his back on a blue stone, his massive Qi and Blood permeating the air and surging toward the firmament; the temperature within a ten-zhang radius rose sharply under the impact of this vigorous Qi and Blood. Faintly, a sense of evil intent and demonic will seemed to radiate out, twisting people's minds and souls.

At this moment, he had finally fully activated the "Ruyi Heavenly Demon Art," and his whole person felt like a lawless Heavenly Demon, unrestrained and flamboyant.

"Come, let us fight with all our might."

His fist swung once more; this punch seemed to sever mountains, the airflow erupting like a tsunami and emitting a continuous series of explosions.

Yu Luosha let out a cold snort, his palm extending; the vigorous palm force was like a heavenly river pouring backward, meeting the attack head-on, while his figure became even more ethereal and unpredictable, as if he might dissolve into clouds and mist at any moment.

"Do not forget, the 'Great Brightness Canon' was compiled by me. No one understands the patterns and flaws of every martial art within it better than I do; you are destined to lose."

"Heh, if you truly had confidence, you would not say such things; you have grown old."

In the time it took for the two to take a single breath, they could erupt with over a dozen exchanges.

They were not only battling with their physical bodies; their minds and Qi were also in constant conflict.

As for the Heavenly Phenomenon, it seemed that even the heavens were watching this fight; the gentle breeze gradually turned into a howling gale, and the world was filled with the sound of wailing ghosts. The clouds rolled and churned, stained with ink-black, obscuring the light of the stars and moon, leaving the world in darkness.

Crack!

A bolt of lightning tore through the sky, slashing across the firmament, and a torrential downpour descended, covering the earth.

Shangguan Xueer's entire body and mind seemed to be trembling.

She bit her lip, clutching the sword to her chest, suppressing the fear in her heart as she darted toward where the two were fighting.

She did not know how much time had passed, but drenched to the bone, she finally saw two blurred figures illuminated by a flash of lightning; just as she was about to think of a way to throw the Duoqing Sword to Yu Liancheng, she heard a loud boom.

A figure smashed heavily from the sky onto the ground with the force of a meteor, making the entire ground seem to shudder.

Another figure also drifted slowly down from the air.

——Yu Liancheng.

Shangguan Xueer had never seen this half-master of hers in such a disheveled state.

His hair was disheveled, his clothes were torn, blood was trickling from the corner of his mouth, and his body seemed to be swaying, as if he might collapse at any moment.

But he did not collapse after all.

"Master, are you alright? This is... the Duoqing Sword," Shangguan Xueer shouted.

"You have grown old. This time in seclusion, you still did not dare to break through the Huanyu Jue. Although you have founded the Rakshasa Cult, you have never dared to enter the Central Plains. You even need to use schemes and tricks just to maintain the operation of the Rakshasa Cult. A heart that has grown old is more terrifying than anything else."

Yu Liancheng looked at Yu Luosha, who was staggering as he slowly rose from the ground, and sighed: "Although my martial arts originate from the 'Great Brightness Canon', I have long since broken through the cage. Even if you understand my martial arts, you still cannot control me."

Looking at the aged face and weakening aura of Yu Luosha, an unspeakable fear and sorrow suddenly welled up in his heart; time truly defeats heroes.

"Very well, let me send you on your final journey."

Yu Liancheng beckoned with his hand, and the Duoqing Sword in Shangguan Xueer's arms flew out.

Clang!

The sword left its sheath.

The sword light was like lightning.

One sword, stealing emotion.

"Farewell."