Chapter 1183: Chapter 1181 Nineteen Peaks Open_1
"Liu Ruofei," called out a voice, "the Sword Talismans for you, the Blade Talismans for me, how about that?"
In midair, floated five Sword Talismans, six Blade Talismans, and three Martial Talismans, clearly indicating it was the site of a substantial Light Talisman eruption.
The martial imagery around them dissipated and reformed, evidencing a great battle had previously taken place. Now, only two figures stood: an elderly man with a ruddy complexion, wearing a headband, and a grave swordsman dressed in white.
"The weak have no right to bargain," said the swordsman in white, indifferently.
"What do you mean by that, Liu Ruofei? It seems you do not take the Ageless Mountain Man seriously," the latter fumed with rage.
How could he not? Even among all the experts of the South Sea, whether overt or covert, he ranked within the top two hundred—a status not be slighted by some youngster.
"Whether I’m worthy of your regard, only a trial will tell."
A flash of white light!
Liu Ruofei’s sword left its sheath. Under its swift arc, distance seemed to lose its relevance, and in one ten-thousandth of a blink, the sword’s tip reached the Ageless Mountain Man.
The Ultimate Killing Sword.
"Endless Youth in Long Spring!"
A verdant screen of light, bursting with vitality, intercepted the sword’s tip.
The Ageless Mountain Man’s pupils contracted sharply; Liu Ruofei’s speed was beyond his expectations. In his opinion, there were fewer than ten swordsmen in the South Sea who were faster.
What astonished the Ageless Mountain Man even more was that Liu Ruofei’s spiraling swordsmanship had reached the zenith of mastery, marking him as a Forbidden Martial Emperor!
Zzz... zzz...
Amidst the sound of the sword’s tip grating against a steel plate, the green screen punctured. Dual Sword Unity—Liu Ruofei was able to wield this transcendent skill, mastering the double-edged strike!
"Ageless Unyielding Palm!"
Hair standing on end, without the luxury of thought, the Ageless Mountain Man forced all his strength to his palms, shooting out one after another, stamping the void with palm imprints cleaving deep rifts.
Liu Ruofei’s figure was quickly engulfed, but he moved like a fish through water. Despite the raging storm, he always went with the flow, inching closer to his target.
Sword Qi, killing intent, and even Liu Ruofei’s spirit converged on the sword’s tip, honing the blade to unprecedented sharpness and power. Like a glimmer in the darkness, it was too quick to follow, yet cold enough to pierce the soul.
The sound of a deadly blade sinking into flesh whispered, then silence fell. Liu Ruofei, with his back to the Ageless Mountain Man, took all the Light Talismans.
"Wait, that strike just now, what do you call it?" The Ageless Mountain Man, clutching the bloody hole in his chest, still wore his undispelled shock.
"Limitless Killing Sword."
Leaving those words behind, Liu Ruofei vanished without a trace.
"Such a Limitless Killing Sword, there are no more than fifty in the South Sea who could withstand it. Hahaha, what a number one genius swordsman of the South Sea."
With around two hundred Forbidden Martial Emperors in the South Sea, the majority of them had martial prowess at the middle phase of perfection, a good portion at the late phase of perfection.
Only a handful had comprehended Supreme Martial Arts to the pinnacle of perfection or the early phase of the eleventh level and less than ten to the middle phase.
Given Liu Ruofei’s talent and ingenuity, he could definitely rank within the top fifty of the South Sea, and the Ageless Mountain Man was almost certain the former still had hidden strengths. Considering this, Liu Ruofei would rank even higher.
Terrifying, truly terrifying!
Shaking his head, the Ageless Mountain Man left the scene, his excitement growing for the upcoming battle at Nineteen Peaks. With old monsters emerging and new talents rising, he was eager to see who would shine the brightest.
...
In a world where water and fire intertwined, the Water and Fire Emperor staggered back in a sorry state. Even in the water-fire martial path, his understanding fell far below that of a young man, much further behind.
He had thought Shi Xiaole’s power ranked just beneath Xuanyuan Di and Qi Muchu among the younger generation in the South Sea, but he didn’t think so anymore.
The South Sea’s Ten Prides, the true chosen ones—how could they be inferior?
Judging by this, aside from Luo Zijiao, the other few would likely not lag in their growth either.
The Water and Fire Emperor seemed to glimpse the future—these youngsters dominating Nineteen Peaks, leading a new era in the Martial World.
"Water and fire martial path has finally advanced a step further; fortunate to have discovered the Supreme Imagery, or else I would have been left behind."
Water and fire merged into a Taiji disc from which Luo Zijiao emerged at the center, wearing a broad smile.
He never took chances, not assuming that others wouldn’t find Supreme Imagery just because he hadn’t. Even with his boosted water-fire martial path, Luo Zijiao still treated every contender with caution.
The grand battle at Nineteen Peaks was no joke. Only by striving to become stronger could one stand out.
...
At the same time, in various corners, a few figures emerged from Supreme Imagery, some laughing loudly, some with boundless passion, some brimming with confidence.
Supreme Imagery was rare, but compared to the entirety of the land of Fate, there were still some to be found, if one was only fortunate enough to discover them.
Compared to others, Shi Xiaole’s luck could only be described as utterly horrible.
After reuniting with Illusion Orchid Tower’s owner and others, he did find a Supreme Imagery, but it was one of power, completely incompatible with the path of life and death, and the Demon Martial Way, rendering him unable to enter.
"Could it be because, before me, no one had comprehended the paths of life and death and the Demon Martial Way?"
Shi Xiaole suddenly had a whimsical idea.
He remembered that when he first arrived in the South Sea, Ling Zixin had mentioned that the top forces in the South Sea had a method to cultivate their juniors to comprehend the Supreme Martial Arts. Though the success rate remained dismally low, given the countless population, there were still some who succeeded.
Because of this, most people’s Supreme Martial Arts bore similarities to those of their predecessors.
If the martial intent found in the Fate Lands had formed from the mixture of the martial spirits of the South Sea experts who had died there, then that would basically explain it.
Finding a Supreme Intent related to oneself in that place was becoming increasingly difficult.
In fact, it was not just in the South Sea. Even in East Victory Continent and the lands of Miaojiang, it was feared that no one had ever comprehended the martial arts of life and death or the Demon Martial Way before.
Although there had been no breakthroughs in the two Supreme Martial Arts, signs of a strong breakthrough were emerging in the Wind Sword Way, and it seemed likely to happen soon.
During this period, Shi Xiaole noticed that the eastern part of the Fate Lands was gradually shrouded by a layer of a heaven-covering thick fog, as if something were about to happen.
"The Wall of Fate has appeared, the Nineteen Peaks are about to open,"
Ling Cunyi drew in a cold breath.
If he remembered correctly, it had only been three years since they entered the Fate Lands. The fact that the Nineteen Peaks were going to open in only three years broke the record of the past and might be difficult to surpass in the future.
Afterward, Shi Xiaole and the others discovered that the Fate Lands seemed to be constantly shrinking, the spatial distances becoming shorter. Many martial intents mixed together, resulting in chaos.
The result was that encounters between experts became more frequent, greatly favoring those with formidable strength. They fiercely fought over the Light Talismans, and there were frequent killings.
Within half a month, Shi Xiaole and his group had witnessed three fierce battles, and some even targeted Shi Xiaole.
"Excuse me for a moment,"
Shi Xiaole stopped a young man.
"What is it?"
The young man was full of wariness and a hint of panic in his eyes, evidently recognizing Shi Xiaole.
"I mean no harm, I simply wish to exchange a Blade Talisman for your Martial Talisman," Shi Xiaole said.
Among those accompanying him, probably only the master of the Illusion Orchid Tower had a chance to ascend to the Divine Martial Peak. Her strength was barely sufficient, but she was still seven Martial Talismans short.
Upon hearing Shi Xiaole’s offer, the young man let out a sigh of relief, hurriedly taking out the Martial Talismans he had, five in total. Shi Xiaole exchanged five Blade Talismans with him. After the young man left, pleased with himself, Shi Xiaole took out two more Martial Talismans and passed them to the master of the Illusion Orchid Tower.
"You..."
The master of the Illusion Orchid Tower was surprised and also somewhat moved. The Nineteen Peaks were enveloped with the essence of the great path. Just stepping onto them brought benefits, but how many people could be so fortunate in each session?
"Thank you,"
she said solemnly as she took the Light Talismans. She wasn’t a foolish person; it made no sense to refuse an opportunity. But in doing so, her debt to Shi Xiaole only increased. With two life-saving favors and now this, she really didn’t know how she could ever repay him.
The others were obviously envious, but said nothing. After all, even An Rumei, the one with the most Light Talismans among them, only had five. It was not reasonable to expect Shi Xiaole to collect them for everyone.
Days passed one by one.
The brutal battles progressively reached their climax. If before they encountered a battle every few days, it had now turned into several times a day.
Thankfully, by this time, most top-level experts had acquired the Light Talismans they deserved and were conserving their energy without participating in battles anymore. What remained were mainly top-notch Heaven Realm Martial Emperors.
An Rumei, Fairy Yunni, and others, as well as Ling Cunyi, joined in the fray. With Shi Xiaole covering them, they had no burdens and, after several battles, they also acquired a considerable number of Light Talismans.
After that, Shi Xiaole finally met the Flying Snow Sword Emperor again.
By then, the Flying Snow Sword Emperor had already collected twenty Sword Talismans. He not only declined the Light Talismans that Shi Xiaole offered but instead took out his own to be distributed among the others.
As a result, aside from the master of the Illusion Orchid Tower, even the Inheriting Heaven Sword Emperor, An Rumei, Ling Cunyi, and Ling Cunwei all had enough Light Talismans to ascend to the Nineteen Peaks.
Boom!
That day.
The mist in the east suddenly parted, revealing the scene beyond. Vaguely, nineteen peaks with varying shapes and auras appeared before everyone’s eyes. Like the embodiment of the great path, they resonated with heaven and earth.
"The Nineteen Peaks have opened!"
"Hahaha, I’ve been waiting for two hundred years!"
One figure after another shot into the peaks.
"Let’s go too," Shi Xiaole said to the others, not delaying.
As for those who couldn’t enter the Nineteen Peaks, Shi Xiaole secretly implanted a psychic seed in some individuals, granting them one-tenth of his fighting power, which was enough to help them handle crises.
Moreover, without the Light Talismans and martial intents, battles were unlikely to occur, unless there were existing feuds.
"So comfortable, so exhilarating!"
Fu Shuijing had an expression of enjoyment, while two withered corpses lay on the ground. A gust of wind blew, turning the bodies into flying ash.
It was evident that Fu Shuijing’s aura had grown significantly stronger, several times more than before. With every breath he took, it seemed as though he carried a sweet scent of blood, tempting one into the depths of sin.
"Now it’s my time to shine, hehehe," he said as he gazed toward the Nineteen Peaks, his eyes deep and profound.
