Chapter 385: Zhao Ya, Your Sword!
Chapter 385: Zhao Ya, Your Sword!
Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97
Huala!
Might gushed out from his palm in the form of a blinding radiance, heading straight for Zhang Xuan.
Zhizun realm, otherwise known as the Ten Thousand Ding realm, was the final realm of the 9 dans of Fighters. At this realm, one's physical body and zhenqi would reach the very limits of a mortal, and the strength that one possessed would be unmatched by any Zongshi.
Lin Ruotian was only a Half-Zhizun, but the strength he wielded was reminiscent of a huge river, ceaseless and overwhelming. Before his attack could reach Zhang Xuan, the zhenqi he emanated had already reduced the surface of the stone floor to dust, as though a massive whip striking ceaselessly on it.
Having driven the zhenqi in his body to the maximum capacity, a shrill call - similar to a whistle - sounded in the air.
"Harmonization of Breath and Blood, Emanation of Zhenqi. This... is the distinctive trait of one who is about to reach Zhizun realm!"
Mo Tianxue's face paled.
He was the number one expert among the Zongshi realm pinnacle in Tianwu Kingdom, and he had a deep understanding of the Zhizun realm. It was said that those who had reached that level would possess blood as thick as mercury, and when one drove one's zhenqi, the call of a whistle would sound in the air.
All along, he thought that Lin Ruotian, who had achieved a breakthrough with Xuanyuan Kingdom's help, would possess an unstable cultivation, making him of little threat. But upon seeing this sight, he realized that...
He couldn't be any more wrong!
The other party's strength could be considered to be at the top even among the Half-Zhizuns. Under his current state, there was a possibility of him breaking through the final barrier at any moment to reach the pinnacle of the Fighter realm!
It was no wonder why he, despite possessing the cultivation of Half-Zhizun realm and the backing of Xuanyuan Kingdom, chose to poison the guardian beast secretly... It wasn't that he was afraid of the vengeance from Tianwu royal family, but that he wanted to confuse them.
By the time he reached Zhizun realm, he would be able to crush all that stood in his way in Tianwu Kingdom easily. Even the Master Teacher Pavilion would be helpless before him then.
If Guild Leader Liu hadn't forced him to show his hand, he could have taken that final step within several months!
By then... He could simply openly demand the throne and no one would be able to stop him.
Scary!
Cold sweat drenched Mo Tianxue's back, and he trembled in fear.
If not for this Guild Leader Liu charging straight at Lin Ruotian, Mo Tianxue would never have discovered this secret.
It was laughable how he thought that as long as the guardian beast managed to survive, the other party wouldn't dare to make a move.
"Guild Leader Liu... won't be a match for him..."
Amidst his fright, he was filled with worry for the latter.
Guild Leader Liu might be powerful even among Zongshi realm pinnacle experts, but he was still lacking in comparison to experts of Lin Ruotian's caliber.
Putting everything aside, just in terms of strength, Lin Ruotian should have already reached 9000 ding. That would be more than sufficient for him to subdue Guild Leader Liu.
Thinking so, he returned his attention to the duo's duel.
...
"Incredible..."
Facing Lin Ruotian's might face on, Zhang Xuan's face turned grave.
At Zongshi realm pinnacle, his strength had risen to 5000 ding, making him on par with an ordinary Half-Zhizun. However, Lin Ruotian had reached the peak of Half-Zhizun realm, making him a difficult opponent for Zhang Xuan.
At the first encounter, Zhang Xuan could already feel heavy pressure from the other party's might.
The other party's zhenqi gushed at him as though a burst dam, and he couldn't avoid it even if he wanted to. Thus, he could only forcefully face it head on.
Deng deng deng deng!
Retreating seven to eight steps backward, Zhang Xuan's internals were slightly rattled under the immense force.
Even though Zhang Xuan knew that he was at a blatant disadvantage, he didn't panic. Instead, a slight radiance glowed from his eyes, and lines of Insight Energy slowly drifted into appearance.
Eye of Insight!
But soon, Zhang Xuan frowned and shook his head in frustration.
The gift from becoming a Celestial Master Teacher was formidable, allowing him to peer into the flaws of a cultivator, but... it came with a fatal flaw. The effects of the Eye of Insight were limited by the cultivation of its user.
In other words, the Eye of Insight couldn't perceive the flaws of those stronger than him, making it completely useless against Lin Ruotian.
"Forget it. Flaws!"
Upon realizing that his newly-earned talent was useless here, he immediately turned his eyes to his other gift.
Hu!
His mind jolted, and a book appeared in the Library of Heaven's Path. He quickly browsed through the book.
A moment later, a slight smile crept onto his lips, "No wonder his body feels so energetic, he consumed the blood of a spirit beast!"
Different from the Eye of Insight, the Library of Heaven's Path could perceive the flaws in all cultivators, regardless of how high their cultivation was, as long as they displayed their battle technique before Zhang Xuan.
The strength, battle technique, and cultivation technique of the head of the Lin Clan was recorded in detail in the book.
The reason why he was able to achieve a breakthrough so quickly and achieve such overwhelming strength wasn't because he consumed some formidable pill, but because of... the essence blood of a spirit beast!
Spirit beast was an existence above that of savage beast.
Even the weakest spirit beast possessed strength surpassing that of a Zhizun realm. A drop of blood essence from this powerful lifeform could potentially induce a Bloodline Evolution in a Half-Zhizun savage beast, allowing it to successfully reach Zhizun realm.
It was through this that Lin Ruotian managed to reach Half-Zhizun from Zongshi realm pinnacle. On top of that, under the effects of the blood essence, his zhenqi became violent as though a feral beast, and it felt ceaseless as though a river flowing relentlessly.
"How can I defeat him?"
Many of the other party's flaws were recorded in the Library of Heaven's Path, but not only was the other party's stamina way above that of his, his violent-natured zhenqi made it difficult to get close, needless to say, injure him.
Upon crossing blows with an expert of this level, Zhang Xuan suddenly realized that he was lacking in battle techniques too much. Against those who were stronger than him, his disadvantage became apparent.
Be it Heaven's Path Fist Art or Heaven's Path Movement Art... All of them were centered around subduing one's enemy in a single blow.
His moves could work wonders in close quarters, but if he couldn't approach the other party, it would all be for naught. On top of that, under the nourishment of the spirit beast blood essence, Lin Ruotian's defense had become as strong as a savage beast. It was another question whether Zhang Xuan would be able to defeat him even if he were to close in on him.
Perhaps, even when Zhang Xuan's zhenqi was sapped dry, he would only be able to injure the other party. Killing him seemed nigh impossible.
In the end, the Heaven's Path battle techniques sapped one's physical stamina and zhenqi tremendously. Even though Zhang Xuan had reached Zongshi realm pinnacle, he still was still severely limited by this flaw.
"Forget it, I won't use the Heaven's Path battle techniques for now. I don't believe that he can sustain his battle state for too long!"
Having seen through all of the other party's battle techniques through the Library of Heaven's Path, while it would be difficult for Zhang Xuan to subdue Lin Ruotian in a single blow, it was completely impossible for the other party to wound him as well. At most, he just had to slowly grind away at his opponent.
Even if he had consumed the spirit beast blood essence and reached Half-Zhizun, he didn't possess endless stamina.
...
As Zhang Xuan's thoughts were flying about the place, Lin Ruotian felt so stifled that he could spurt blood.
The youngster's movements were bizarre and swift. The reason why he blasted his zhenqi out as soon as he made a move was simple; it was to prevent the other party from getting close to him and to hinder his movements...
Initially, he thought that under his powerful offense, no matter how strong the other party could be, it would be impossible for him to hold on for too long.
Yet, he couldn't have imagined that...
The other party was as slippery as a loach! It seemed as though he knew of the flaws in his movements and cultivation technique in advance, and with very slight movements, he easily stepped into the blind spots of his offense. His violent strength splashed at the surroundings, destroying the stone floor and blasting the air, but... he couldn't even touch a single hair on the other party!
In fact, even the emanation of his raging zhenqi failed to touch a hair on the other party.
Instead of fighting, that fellow seemed as though he was on a vacation. All of Lin Ruotian's feints and sudden twists... were completely useless! All of those traps that any other cultivators would have fallen for was totally ineffective on him...
Every single movement of the other party seemed to be well-calculated, causing all of Lin Ruotian's attacks to fall empty.
It was as though grabbing onto a massive chopper and trying to hack at the only party, only to miss by several millimeters each time... Putting aside how the other party wasn't injured in the slightest, Lin Ruotian was already about to puke blood from exhaustion and frustration.
Is this a game to you?
We are fighting and a life and death battle here! We have already crossed over a hundred blows, yet we haven't even touched the corners of each other's clothes yet... What the heck are you up to!
"This..."
"Are the two of them... really fighting?"
"Why doesn't it seem like it?"
...
While Lin Ruotian was on the verge of going into a frenzy, the crowd was struck dumb by the sight.
In a usual fight, two cultivators would collide with one another and cross blows.
Even if the weaker side could hold on, it wouldn't be able to hold on for too long, especially when there was a huge disparity in strength.
But... the heck! What was wrong with these two?
No matter how they looked at it, it didn't seem like those two were fighting, but...
Dancing!
Most of the time, before Lin Ruotian could make a move, Guild Master Liu would have jumped to the side and look at the other party idly. Then, following soon after... the former's attack would land on the spot where the latter was standing before.
In other words, even though Lin Ruotian was conducting the offense, in the eyes of the crowd, it seemed as though he was attacking wherever Guild Master Liu was jumping from, as though Guild Master Liu was leading him on.
To retreat and advance with such harmony... Even professional dancers don't have such synergy!
Could it be that the duo had already known each other, and they were familiar with the fighting methods of one another?
But that couldn't be it! Seeing how Lin Ruotian was ready to bite at the other party at any moment, it was impossible for him to be so bored as to intentionally perform such a show before everyone else!
"It's Guild Master Liu who is seeing through Lin Ruotian's movements in advance and messing with the other party's tempo..."
Principal Xie said with a grim look.
Given that a teacher of their academy was wreaking havoc at the Lin Clan, he had no choice but to rush over upon hearing the news. However, as soon as he arrived, this show immediately appeared before him, and a dizzy spell immediately struck him then.
To see through the other party's movements and evade to a safe zone before he could launch his offense, rendering the other party's raging might to fall empty...
How in the world did he do it?
Even 3-star master teachers didn't possess such fearsome abilities!
Unless... This Guild Master Liu was Lin Ruotian's father or teacher, and was well-versed in his offense, otherwise, it was impossible for him to make such precise judgements!
But... how could Guild Master Liu be Lin Ruotian's father or teacher?
This matter was completely impossible!
He knew that Guild Master Liu was a talented person, and bizarre matters seemed to shroud around him, but he didn't think that it would be to this extent!
To force the attacks of a stronger opponent to fall empty each time, regardless of how profound the movements were... Just the thought of it made his head go blank.
...
"You... Do you dare to face me head on!" Lin Ruotian bellowed; he was on the verge of exploding. The more he fought, the more frustrated he got.
"A head-on battle? Isn't that what we're doing now?" Zhang Xuan said leisurely as he continued dodging.
You attack while I evade, I advance while you retreat... Since you've been facing me all this while, how is this not a head-on battle?
Upon hearing those words, Lin Ruotian nearly spurted a mouthful of blood. He knew that if he were to continue arguing with the other party, he would definitely die of anger before the other party could do anything.
Thus, flicking his wrist, a sword appeared in his hands. Then, with a slight jerk, ripples appeared in the air, as though a paper had been cut apart.
"Do you dare to face me in a weapon duel then?"
"Weapon? Sure!"
Zhang Xuan was frozen for a moment before the edges of his lips curved up. Glancing backward, he chuckled, "Zhao Ya, your sword!"