Chapter 183: Chapter 183: Xin Riyuan’s Killing Move
This strike was sudden, but not abrupt, struck at the moment while the strength of Tao Baichuan and his companions has not yet dissipated. It punctured the blood membrane accurately. The accuracy of timing and fierceness of the sword technique caught Tao Baichuan and others by surprise.
"Well done!"
Tao Baichuan laughed loudly.
By this time, Li Wufeng’s gaze had fallen on a youth in green clothes like jade not far away. Even as he casually stood, he emanated an exceptionally free and easy aura.
"It’s Brother Shi Xiaole."
A disciple of the Spring Thunder Sect shouted.
Fu Yusheng, Fang Yao, and others all showed surprised expressions. Because the power of that sword just now far exceeded their imaginations, and even surpassed their previous impressions of Shi Xiaole.
"Could he be that Shi Xiaole?"
Regaining his senses, Xin Riyuan’s face turned a bit pale.
Thump, thump.
The body which was pierced showed angry-looking red eyes as if its primitive brute nature was aroused. It yanked and broke the sword, then charged at Shi Xiaole like a whirlwind.
The sword just now was merely flung out by Shi Xiaole after picking it up from the ground. At this moment, with the attack arriving, he drew his Greenedge Sword from his right hand and used the Moon Concealing Sword Technique once again.
The hazy, green sword light, unpredictable and formless, made it hard for people to grasp, let alone the mindless pre-red Poisonous Stiff. Every slash was lethal.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh.
Under the stunned expressions of the crowd, Shi Xiaole kept striking the already broken blood membrane. The sword energy penetrated into the flesh of the pre-red Poisonous Stiff and caused continuous stirring, making puffing sounds.
"Who is this person? His swordsmanship is so impressive?"
"Somehow it looks like he’s even more powerful than Xin Riyuan."
"Tao Baichuan and his companions are at the fifth tier of Qi Absorption, but this person is only at the third tier, yet his aura isn’t weak at all."
The crowd was talking, and the sound passed into Xin Riyuan’s ears, making his face gloomier.
Shi Xiaole’s swordsmanship was indeed sharp, but the bodily structure of the pre-red Poisonous Stiff was extremely strong. Even its flesh was solidified by the poison, making it hard to exterminate its life force. Seeing this, Tao Baichuan and his companions once again unleashed their respective killer moves.
For a moment, the four young masters formed a battle line, the coordination was seamless.
The fiercely wild pre-red Poisonous Stiff was forced to spray poison continuously, but the four people fought brilliantly, evading and immediately transforming evasion into attacks, bit by bit eroding the resistance of the pre-red Poisonous Stiff.
"Damned creature!"
Seeing this scene, Xin Riyuan was both shocked and resentful.
Not to mention Tao Baichuan and his companions, as they were the top masters of the previous Young Hero’s Ranking, but the eye-catching performance of an unknown newcomer made him feel humiliated. Was this an intentional attempt to earn fame at his expense?
Boom!
The four of them cooperated and unleashed a heavy blow. Their powerful force was injected into the body of the pre-red Poisonous Stiff one after another. Amid a burst of blood mist, the pre-red Poisonous Stiff howled and slowly collapsed to the ground, dead beyond doubt.
"They really killed it."
"The geniuses of the Young Heroes Rankings cannot be judged by ordinary standards. However, the young man in green clothes is brilliant, but unfamiliar. It seems that he is a newly rising standout."
"I heard that there are many talents in the martial world this year, and excellent newcomers have emerged everywhere. The upcoming Hero’s Grand Tournament next year is expected to be very lively."
"Hahaha, hearing you say this, my blood is already boiling, and I can’t wait."
The martial artists had the advantage in numbers, and those who entered the poisonous forest were not mediocre. Combined with their efforts, those black Poisonous Stiffs were quickly wiped out.
Various gazes fell on the four people in the middle, and most of them landed on Shi Xiaole in the green outfit.
"Your swordsmanship is impressive. I really want to test my skills against you."
Also a swordsman, Li Wufeng was excited at the sight. His gaze was locked on Shi Xiaole. At the same time, an intangible aura was radiating from his body, focusing on Shi Xiaole.
If it comes to the efficiency of destroying the pre-red Poisonous Stiff, Li Wufeng admits that he is not as good as Shi Xiaole. However, it’s because the latter’s swordsmanship embodies the realm of Chaotic Heart.
Swordsmen are strong in mind and will. Li Wufeng doesn’t think Shi Xiaole’s realm would play much of a role if they spar.
"I would be glad to."
A sharp aura cut through Li Wufeng’s air of coercion. Shi Xiaole faced him directly.
The two of them were rare talents. Although they didn’t possess the majesty that only masters who had reached the ninth tier of Qi Absorption had, they already showed signs of that potential. In their confrontation, they didn’t affect themselves, but instead affected many people nearby, who instinctively backed off, looking at the two with wary eyes.
"Next time we meet, I am bound to learn from you."
In the end, Li Wufeng still managed to hold back his impulse to make a move.
If you want to fight, you have to win. But there’s a voice in his heart telling him that it is not easy to defeat Shi Xiaole, and he might even have to expose his trump cards. It’s not worth it.
Tao Baichuan, Song Wuji, Li Wufeng, the three of them surveyed Shi Xiaole, while Shi Xiaole was also observing these three top masters from the Young Hero’s Ranking.
Somehow, he suddenly thought of Bai Yuxue and Shen Canghai from the Cloud Triangle.
Because of their age, the two had already become masters at the seventh tier of Qi Absorption. But four years ago, they still lost to these three, which showed how powerful these three are.
"Brother, your strength is impressive. I’d like to learn from you."
At this moment, Xin Riyuan suddenly approached and said.
He had been outdone by Shi Xiaole just now in public which made him very uncomfortable. He wished to compete with Shi Xiaole right away and regain his prestige in direct combat.
Like Li Wufeng, Xin Riyuan also believed that Shi Xiaole had taken advantage of the Chaotic Heart realm. When facing someone with a strong will like him, Shi Xiaole’s swordsmanship would certainly decrease in power.
Shi Xiaole glanced at him and said, "If you want to fight against me, I’m afraid now is not the time."
"Could it be that you’re afraid?"
As if catching the other’s weak spot, Xin Riyuan immediately sneered.
"The two red Poisonous Stiffs are heading here. Brother Xin, high-spirited as you are, you also need to consider the occasion."
Tao Baichuan, who had been silent from the beginning, suddenly made a surprising comment.
"What, red Poisonous Stiffs?"
The crowd was startled and instinctively wanted to run, including Xin Riyuan, whose face changed color. His perception was not as acute as Tao Baichuan’s.
But soon, the crowd found that neither Shi Xiaole nor Tao Baichuan and his companions had moved.
The next moment, a swift sound of breaking wind came from afar. At first, it was hundreds of meters away, but within the blink of an eye, it was close by. Five men with incomparably strong aura stood there. Their mere presence caused some bystanders to suffocate.
Luckily, the five quickly reigned in their aura.
"Greetings, Master."
Li Wufeng was the first to walk up to a sword-carrying man.
These five were the same Xuanqi Realm masters who fought with two red Poisonous Stiffs a few days ago.
They should have been still healing from their injuries, but knowing that Li Wufeng was always adventurous and the place where they were had the periphery of the poisonous forest, they headed there immediately to prevent any unexpected events after hearing the huge noise.
"Wufeng, you guys stand back a bit."
The man with the sword on his back nodded and looked ahead.
Two massive black poisonous winds were rolling in from there, filled with evil and violence, those were the two red Poisonous Stiffs.
The red Poisonous Stiffs retained a part of their consciousness but still were not as cognizant as normal humans. They need to hibernate to recover from their injuries. No one would be foolish enough to awaken them by provoking them, but this also caused them to be unresponsive to changes in the outside world.
By the time they realized something was wrong, it was too late.
"Our injuries have recovered over the past few days, and it is a good opportunity to fight these two beasts again."
Laughing, the five Xuanqi Realm masters leapt a hundred meters, launching themselves towards the two red Poisonous Stiffs.
Crash...
Various colored internal powers intertwined and boiled like waves. The ground underneath cracked like spider webs and extended several tens of meters out. Mixed with poisonous gas and fierce wind, a wolf’s howling-like tearing noise emerged, making the people’s heads whirl even from afar.
"So this is the power of Xuanqi Realm masters?"
This was the first time Shi Xiaole really understood how terrifying Xuanqi Realm masters could be. Although the middle-aged man had shattered over a dozen black Poisonous Stiffs that night, he had not used his full force, which was nowhere near as shocking as the current situation.
Shi Xiaole estimated that, given his current power, he might not be able to withstand even one move from a Xuanqi Realm master.
After all, Xuanqi Realm masters were almost nonexistent in the Cloud Triangle. In the Floating River Area, they were on par with the sect masters of the top four sects. While the martial arts level in the Yunfeng Domain was higher, masters of this level were still rare.
The intense battle up ahead lasted for half of the two-hour period. The layer of soil within a hundred meters circle was replaced, and many rotten and withered tree trunks were broken in the middle.
Given that the Poisonous Stiffs’ chaos in this area had been basically controlled, the five masters became calmer and adopted a guerrilla warfare tactic, unlike the life and death struggle of last time.
Red Poisonous Stiffs found it difficult to attack them. They wanted to attack others but were immediately thwarted, which infuriated them. In the end, following their instincts, they helplessly retreated back into the deep parts of the poisonous forest.
The five masters did not pursue as they could not kill the two red Poisonous Stiffs at the moment. They could only wait for the sixth Xuanqi Realm master to arrive.
Thus, a disaster was averted.
The crowd went out of the poisonous forest in a grandiose manner. The government officials looked over with curiosity, evidently interested in the previous rattling. A man dressed like a bailiff came forward, exchanged a few words with the five masters, and then started smiling.
"Brother Shi, with no concerns lying ahead, this humble one still wishes to learn from you."
With a loud shout, Xin Riyuan blocked Shi Xiaole’s path.
He had been suppressing this for a long time, and his chest was about to explode.
Xin Riyuan knew that if he didn’t respond, once the incident of the day got spread out, he would surely become a stepping stone for Shi Xiaole’s fame. This was something he couldn’t accept.
Many people stopped and looked over with interest, wanting to see how Shi Xiaole would respond.
People like Tao Baichuan, Song Wuji, Li Wufeng, and even the bailiff and the five masters heard the sound and couldn’t help but look over.
"Well, Xin Riyuan is not weak after all. Maybe he could force out Shi Xiaole’s moves."
Li Wufeng crossed his arms over his chest and smiled slightly.
"Are you serious?"
Shi Xiaole looked at Xin Riyuan.
He could clearly feel a person’s kindness or malice towards him, so concerning Xin Riyuan, Shi Xiaole didn’t bother pretending.
"Brother Shi, I, Xin Riyuan, am indeed serious. You have always been avoiding a fight."
Sensing the eyes of the crowd, Xin Riyuan realized this was an opportunity to recover his loss. He couldn’t even suppress a nobody, yet he still dreamt about breaking through the list of young talents. That was a joke.
As for possibly exposing his trump card, trump cards were always changing. There was still a year before the competition of the talented. He might even have stronger trump cards by then.
Of course, it was very challenging. But compared to being stepped on by others, Xin Riyuan would prefer the former.
The disciples of the Spring Thunder Sect were all looking at each other.
The Fifth Elder had heard about the situation inside. He wanted to dissuade Xin Riyuan, but knowing all eyes were on him, it would inevitably make others think that he doubted Xin Riyuan’s abilities, needlessly weakening their momentum.
"If Riyuan wants to win against that youngster, he must use his newly created killing move, which is too extravagant. But if he doesn’t win, given Riyuan’s current state, I’m afraid he will develop demons, which is not good for future cultivation. Oh well, let him be."
The Fifth Elder thought to himself.
"Since you insist, I will accompany you."
Hand on his sword hilt, Shi Xiaole said.
Hearing this, Xin Riyuan burst out laughing: "Good, you really do have backbone. Take my move!"
As soon as his voice fell, Xin Riyuan’s attack arrived.
Under the empowerment of the sixth layer of the Spring Thunder Divine Skill, his palms radiated a faint blue arc of light. During the crackling, the arcs of light turned into clusters of electricity that pierced through the void, faintly burning the air into a thick tar-like smell, horrifyingly so.
"Thunder Intent Realm?"
Tao Baichuan frowned.
Most strong warriors on the Young Heroes List have understood the Intent Realm, including him.
But he did not expect Xin Riyuan to have comprehended the Thunder Intent Realm silently. There are countless Intent Realms in the world, but the Thunder Intent Realm is definitely one of the top ones.
Although Xin Riyuan’s comprehension seemed low, it was not to be underestimated.
In fact, this Thunder Shocking Earthstroke was a killing move Xin Riyuan had comprehended with the guidance of his masters and achieved second-tier level.
He believed that even if he used it against the likes of Tao Baichuan, he could gain an advantage, let alone against Shi Xiaole.
So he prepared to achieve success in one stroke, defeating Shi Xiaole swiftly was the only way for him to regain his lost face.
