Chapter 270: Feeling Relieved

Chapter 270: Feeling Relieved

"This dude is too arrogant. If it's not because I can't win, I would have punched him a few times."

The entire crowd at the spectator stand was triggered by that one gesture of Ling Ao. Many of them reacted with shock and there were many who reacted with anger. In fact, even Lin Bei was saying words of anger.

Lackey A frowned and said, "He probably just had an extraordinary encounter. He's getting ahead of himself, but he's not that strong.

Lackey B added, "He has never faced a truly strong opponent before. Otherwise, he would have learned his lesson."

Shang Ziliang, who was at the side, remained quiet. His expression was horrible. While they were talking, his face was flushing red and paling. It seemed as though he wanted to say something, but was feeling ashamed.

Chu Liang, standing in the center of the small group, had a smile on his lips.

He was naturally a supporter of Jiang Yuebai, but he wouldn't be angered by Ling Ao's response. After all, he knew that the outcome was determined by what would happen on stage.

There was nothing wrong with being arrogant. This was a mere personality. If he were to win, he would just be labeled as a rebellious and recklessly bold person. If he were to lose, he would just be considered a clown. These were the consequences.

Chu Liang looked over at Jiang Yuebai and saw that she was still dressed in that clean white attire, untouched by the dust stirred in previous matches. Despite Ling Ao's taunt to the entire crowd, Jiang Yuebai remained as calm as ever.

She made only one move.

She drew her flying sword.

The three-chi sword conveyed more than a thousand words ever could.

As the tip of the sword traced a half-circle like a crescent moon, sparks of fire flew. Immediately, there was a sense of danger.

Seeing this, the Supervising Elder in the center of the arena realized that the atmosphere had reached its peak. With a clear understanding of the situation, he had no desire to steal the spotlight. After shouting a command, he immediately stepped back.

"The first match of the semifinals! Ling Ao from Solitude Peak versus Jiang Yuebai from Azure Falling Peak!"

"Start!"

Boom!

Before the attack started, the invisible clashes of qi were already occurring. The benefit of a solo match was that one could focus their entire mind and spirit on the enemy before them, with divine intent as sharp as a saber.

Jiang Yuebai's eyes gleamed with brightness. Unexpectedly, she attacked first this time, which was very rare in previous fights.

But she raised her hand not to attack! She sent her sword flying up into the sky, transforming into hundreds of beams of swordlight that formed a shield in front of her with a resounding whoosh!

All these beams of swordlights stood in front of her like a barrier!

In the very next second, a shadowy figure clashed with that shield of sword.

Bang!

From the spectators' perspective, Jiang Yuebai first used the Thousand Sword Seal as a shield and Ling Ao clashed onto it then.

But in reality, Jiang Yuebai had sensed through the flow of qi that Ling Ao's fierce qi was charging through the air towards her. It was this awareness of his impending attack that prompted her to set up a defense.

She formed a shield of a thousand swords!

Ling Ao continued with his usual tactic, charging forward and then throwing a punch!

Crack!

It felt as though lightning streaked across a clear sky. Countless beams of swordlight flashed and cracked. The punch shattered the shield of swords.

As Ling Ao did a flip and landed, he lost his momentum.

This first attack was just a test. If Jiang Yuebai's ability had been merely a facade boosted by her fame, she would have been instantly defeated by that punch. However, when she blocked it, Ling Ao finally showed an expression of caution.

Since he started participating in the Mount Shu Summit, this was the first time he felt unable to break through!

Choose again! Ling Ao shouted inwardly.

...

"It's useless. No matter how many afterimages he generates, he won't be able to get close to Jiang Yuebai," Scholar Sun said, shaking his head.

"The Omniscient Sword State." Elder Huang said with a smile. "It is truly surprising for someone her age to understand this state of Sword Dao, but I guess it’s normal if it’s Jiangjiang."

"There is a reason why the constitution of the Transcendent Spirit is desired by countless demons and devils. The benefit of the affinity with the heavens and earth might not be obvious, but this benefit is really comprehensive," Scholar Sun explained. "She can practice and learn any divine techniques and skills with ease."

The so-called affinity with the heavens and earth would include an affinity with spirit beasts, spiritual qi, and the Great Dao... In short, it meant being favored by the heavens and earth throughout one's life.

The Omniscient Sword State was the ultimate technique of Daoist Yan.

Strictly speaking, this was not a divine ability or technique, but a state of Sword Dao.

A reactive defense happened when you acted after seeing the opponent’s sword strike. However, if the opponent had not yet struck but you could detect where the attack would come from through their flow of qi, line of sight, divine intent, karma, and other subtle cues, this resulted from being in the Omniscient Sword State.

Jiang Yuebai, who was currently in this profound state, could clearly identify the real Ling Ao that would attack her. Therefore, no matter how many illusions he generated, they would be meaningless.

"I was worried about Jiangjiang earlier, but now I feel relieved," Elder Huang said. "She’s not only exceptionally talented but also incredibly dedicated in her training. Her strength undoubtedly places her among the top prodigies in the nine provinces."

But just as Elder Huang finished speaking, the situation in the arena changed abruptly.

The four afterimages of Ling Ao rushed toward Jiang Yuebai from different directions. Just as they were about to close in, Jiang Yuebai's eyes flickered. With a wave of her sword, the fallen flying sword once again broke through the air, blocking the path of one of the Ling Aos. At the same time, the ice spiritual qi in the air rapidly increased, turning the entire arena as cold as an ice cellar.

Even the audience in the spectator stand far away from the arena started to feel the biting chill.

Obviously, the one blocked by the flying sword was the real Ling Ao.

However, instead of dodging, he allowed the sword to stab at him. The sword was about to pierce through his chest when suddenly, he moved and grabbed the sword with his bare hand.

With flesh and blood, he held the indestructible sharpness in his grip!

Slash—

The result was just as expected.

He started bleeding but the blood was crimson and golden, flowing out and instantly staining the sword.

Jiang Yuebai was not going to show any mercy. She was just about to control the sword and continue attacking when she found herself unable to use her divine intent. It was as though she had lost her divine intent and nothing was responding.

The flying sword, tainted with golden-red blood, suddenly lost all its spiritual energy, and its divine light dimmed.

Though Ling Ao's hand was bleeding profusely as he gripped the sword, there was no pain in his eyes. Instead, they conveyed a sense of satisfaction.

His blood contained powerful and aggressive spiritual energy. Once it tainted the sword, it immediately overwhelmed the sword's spiritual nature. The blood on the sword began to boil and burn fiercely, like a poisonous fire.

Upon seeing this, Chu Liang's pupils dilated.

No one knew better than him what this was—the smell of dragon blood!

After cultivating the Secret Dragon Blood Technique, the concentration of dragon aura in his body increased, causing these changes to his blood.

Ling Ao indeed had a connection to the True Dragon of Solitude Peak.

But Chu Liang had no time to ponder further as he focused his attention on the stage. With a swift motion, Ling Ao seized Jiang Yuebai's flying sword and, in an instant, stepped in front of her.

She appeared frozen in shock, unable to react in time, as Ling Ao, without hesitation or mercy, thrust the sword through her body!

Thunk.

The blade pierced through her, making a dull echoing sound.