“You traitor, how dare you teach the ultimate techniques of the Sky Sword Sect to an outsider…” Yuan Xiang roared in fury, convinced that the Skyfall Sword used by Bing Ming must have been taught to him by Xue Hengzhi… He immediately intensified his strength, and the ancient long sword in his hand quivered in the void, unleashing a brilliant sword blossom from its tip, followed instantly by a second, then a third…
In the blink of an eye, seven sword blossoms had unfurled, drifting towards Xue Hengzhi. Though they seemed to float, they arrived before him in an instant…
Xue Hengzhi started, dismissing Yuan Xiang’s accusation, and rapidly shook his own long sword. He managed to produce four sword blossoms, though each one was slightly smaller than Yuan Xiang’s…
“After all these years, this is all you amount to? Truly disappointing. Sky… Shatter… Sword…” Seeing that Xue Hengzhi could only muster four blossoms even at his full exertion, Yuan Xiang sneered. As his words fell, the seven sword blossoms, entirely condensed from true essence power, exploded, instantly transforming into countless streaks of fierce sword energy that pierced towards Xue Hengzhi…
The four sword blossoms conjured by Xue Hengzhi also burst forth simultaneously, their myriad sword energies interweaving with a sizzling sound…
The surrounding trees were instantly shredded into dust by the sharp sword qi. Flowers, grass, and stones were pulverized. Within dozens of meters of them, no object remained intact…
Even the ground was pierced with countless holes…
As for Xue Hengzhi, he was lacerated all over by the savage sword qi. His shoulders, lower abdomen, waist, thighs, chest, and arms were all crisscrossed with gashes. His clothes were cleaved into ribbons, fluttering without wind with a swish, swish, swish sound…
His appearance was even more shocking than that of the Beggar’s Gang leader…
Yuan Xiang, however, had only suffered one graze from a sword qi on his arm. In a single exchange, the difference in mastery was starkly evident…
Seven sword blossoms signified that the Sky Shatter Sword had reached the seventh level of mastery. Xue Hengzhi looked coldly at the smug Yuan Xiang nearby, knowing his cultivation was utterly inferior to Yuan Xiang’s. But could he yield?
Setting aside the potential disruption to Ye Jingyu’s arrangements, the miserable life he had endured over the years dictated that he absolutely could not stop here. Even if it meant death, he had to kill Yuan Xiang…
His eyes filled with grim resolution. Ignoring his injuries, Xue Hengzhi forcibly mobilized the true essence power within his body, and the long sword held in his left hand began to hum again…
Faintly, a dazzling light erupted, growing brighter with every passing breath until it formed a massive sword projection…
It was the starting stance of the Skyfall Sword…
Though not as powerful as the projection Bing Ming had unleashed earlier, it still contained terrifying force…
Yet, Yuan Xiang’s face remained laced with mockery. He merely flicked his long sword, and bursts of dragon roars echoed as a dazzling sword projection instantly ignited…
In that instant, two colossal swords materialized between heaven and earth. Neither combatant bothered with flourishes; they simply hacked fiercely at each other…
Yuan Xiang’s sword projection spanned seven or eight zhang, smaller than Bing Ming’s, and its light was less intense, but compared to Xue Hengzhi’s projection, which barely stretched over three zhang and was dim, Yuan Xiang’s was vastly superior…
It hurtled towards Xue Hengzhi with almost unstoppable momentum…
The moment the two sword projections clashed, the one formed from Xue Hengzhi’s true essence power shattered. The scattered sword qi, before it could even exert its full force, was completely swallowed by the gigantic projection…
The massive projection continued its merciless descent, striking Xue Hengzhi squarely, cleaving him into fragments…
But Yuan Xiang showed no joy; instead, surprise crossed his features. What he had struck was merely an afterimage…
Just then, he felt a chilling sensation descend from above. Looking up, he saw a black speck plummeting towards him. The speck grew closer, and in a flash, he recognized it: a sword, a colossal sword—a great Heavenly Sword…
Heavenly Sword Art…
Heavenly Sword Art…
Yuan Xiang’s heart shuddered violently… Xue Hengzhi actually knew the Heavenly Sword Art, a technique lost to the Sky Sword Sect…
How was this possible?
Hadn’t the manual for the Heavenly Sword Art been lost long ago? How could anyone in this world still practice it? And why him?
His shock eclipsed all other thoughts, and he watched helplessly as the giant sword lunged towards him…
Xue Hengzhi held his long sword aloft, pouring continuous true essence power into razor-sharp sword qi that sprayed outward. At this moment, he was no longer a man but a sword—a sword that had not yet been drawn but already exuded terrifying power…
Man is sword, sword is man, all things in the world are swords—this was the profound essence of the Heavenly Sword Art…
Countless streaks of sword qi erupted from Xue Hengzhi’s body, coalescing into a single enormous sword that stabbed straight down at Yuan Xiang below…
Before the sword could strike Yuan Xiang, jets of blood began to spray from his body. Such ferocious sword qi was impossible for Xue Hengzhi to fully control; how could his body withstand such violent power…
He knew the consequences of unleashing the Heavenly Sword Art, but he didn't care. As long as he could kill Yuan Xiang, as long as he could have his revenge, what did losing his own life matter?
With utter resolve, Xue Hengzhi merged entirely into that colossal Heavenly Sword, plunging towards his mortal enemy, the Master of the Sky Sword Sect, Yuan Xiang…
The razor-sharp sword qi ripped through the air, tearing Yuan Xiang’s cheek. Only then did Yuan Xiang snap out of his shock. At this moment of life and death, the true essence power within him circulated frantically, gathering at maximum speed in the sword hand. Without time to consider, he thrust out the strongest sword of his life toward the sky…
Regrettably, this sword was not meant for killing, but for self-preservation…
The two immense sword projections collided. There was no massive explosion as expected, only faint, intermittent sizzling sounds. Faintly, black fissures could be seen appearing in the air—signs that the void itself was being torn apart…
The terrifying Heavenly Sword drove Yuan Xiang’s body deep into the ground. Under the immense pressure, blood spewed simultaneously from his nostrils, mouth, eyes, and ears. The sword hand trembled uncontrollably, starting to shatter inch by inch from the palm, seemingly on the verge of complete disintegration…
At the exact moment of their clash, Ye Jingyu’s figure had already swept toward the carriage. Facing the guards below the carriage and Qin Yunxiao standing atop it, he didn't hesitate. Raising his blade with both hands, he sent his innate true qi surging madly, unleashing his full power in a strike aimed at Qin Yunxiao. He was confident that such a brilliant, lightning-fast cut would be impossible for even Qin Yunxiao to evade, let alone the trash below…
Yes, the Startling Thunder Blade Art was fast as lightning, and Qin Yunxiao truly had no time to react before the blade arrived before his forehead. Yet, there was no trace of fear in his eyes. Just as the blade’s qi sliced through a single strand of his hair, a hand suddenly emerged from the carriage—a slender hand, white as jade…