Chapter 402: Chapter 401 The First Person of the Eight States
"Combined Strike True Intent."
Shi Xiaole, having seen the two elders in action several times, naturally knew that they had mastered the Combined Strike True Intent.
This particular True Intent was unique as it required two people to be in harmony to execute, and could often exert several times more power.
Indeed, either of the two elders on their own was far from a match for the Jade Fan Scholar. However, they were equal opponents in every encounter because of this unique Combined Strike True Intent.
Not wanting to hesitate and give away his plan, Shi Xiaole unsheathed his Hidden Edge Sword. His perfected Faceless Divine Skill lay dormant, ready to strike with one swift jab.
The Sword Qi, swift as the wind, surpassed everyone’s perception. The two elders immediately split apart.
With a hiss, a streak of Sword Qi struck another mountain peak dozens of feet away. Those with keen eyes saw an unfathomable hole instantly appear on the mountain.
"Shadow and Figure, Combined Strike!"
The two elders were taken aback. They held their hands high, their movements in perfect symmetry as if they were looking into a mirror.
As their palms striked, two chains of Internal Power solidly restrained Shi Xiaole. One in front and the other behind. The Internal Power from the rear pushed the front, making the latter even more powerful. By the time it reached Shi Xiaole, it had doubled in strength!
A pinpoint of swordlight pierced the Palm Force, and Shi Xiaole lunged forward, wielding his sword twice in rapid successions. With his current power, he feared no one across the eight states.
Whoosh, whoosh.
The two elders quickly dodged, leaving behind two sword marks that were several feet long at the spot they stood.
Before the elders could react, Shi Xiaole was already above the Left-eye Elder, swinging his sword down at him.
"Combine and Transform!"
The Left-eye Elder remained calm, and astonishingly received the blow with his bare hands. In the void, it seemed as though an invisible channel connected him to the Right-eye Elder, and Internal Power from the Right-eye Elder flowed into his body.
Shi Xiaole could win by clashing Internal Power with the two elders, but that would likely expose his Faceless Divine Skill. Besides, it wasn’t necessary.
With a turn of his body, Shi Xiaole was already behind the Left-eye Elder, changing his swing to a thrust.
The Left-eye Elder harrumphed.
The Combined Strike True Intent was not just a united attack, but also a united defense. As long as the Right-eye Elder could block for a moment, not only could he dodge, but also counterattack with maximum strength.
However, in the next moment, the expression on the Left-eye Elder’s face changed dramatically.
Shi Xiaole’s swordsmanship was so peculiar that it seemed as if it had no mass. It managed to sneak through the air currents created by Combined Strike True Intent without any effort.
How is that possible?!
The two of them passed by each other.
Shi Xiaole stood in his original place, his Hidden Edge Sword already sheathed.
"Why didn’t you kill me?"
The Left-eye Elder watched the young man in green not far in front of him in shock as his calm heart began to churn tumultuously.
At that moment, he felt the imminent approach of death. If the other party wanted to, he certainly wouldn’t have been able to fend it off.
It was also at that moment that the Left-eye Elder saw the difference between Xie Xiaofeng and Shi Xiaole.
The former’s strength lay in his Internal Power and True Intent, which easily crushed all obstacles and often defeated opponents head-on. However, Shi Xiaole was horrifying due to his phenomenal observational skills, bizarre swordsmanship, and exquisite sword techniques.
Compared to the others, Shi Xiaole was more like a pure sword genius, possessing the sharpness and calmness of a swordsman.
The Right-eye Elder was also terrified.
The defeat of the Left-eye Elder had caused their Combined Strike True Intent to fall apart, he feared he couldn’t even take a single strike from Shi Xiaole.
Could this top genius of the Righteous Path actually be so terrifying?!
"I hope our duel can proceed as planned."
Shi Xiaole said calmly.
Upon hearing this, the two elders sighed, their faces gloomy as they retreated back into the crowd.
The battle just now started abruptly and ended even more swiftly, the whole process only lasting a blink of an eye. Many people could not even see clearly, only seeing the two elders defeated and left speechless.
However, unlike the elated heroes of the Righteous Path, the masters of the Devil Path turned pale. They began to waver, worrying about the Red Dragon Divine Monarch.
"I am seeing things."
The Jade Fan Scholar had guessed that Shi Xiaole was very powerful, but he didn’t expect him to be this formidable. His understanding and application of swordsmanship far exceeded his understanding.
"This kid, even in the talent-rich Xuanwu State, wouldn’t be considered bad at all."
The Jade Fan Scholar thought to himself.
Half a two-hour period passed.
Suddenly, Shi Xiaole said, "Xie Xiaofeng."
Everyone turned their attention to the distant mountain peak, as the clouds there were suddenly swept away by a gust of wind, revealing a figure in a red cape. However, because the distance was too great, they could only vaguely see him.
"Shi Xiaole."
The figure in the distance said. The experts of the Devil Path recognized it as the voice of the Red Dragon Divine Monarch Xie Xiaofeng.
With a flash.
Shi Xiaole moved faster than anyone else. Under the reinforcement of Wind True Intent, like a bird, he flew out, easily touching several mountain peaks. He was already close to Xie Xiaofeng as he swung his sword.
"Pi!"
A wave of blue swordlight erupted like a tidal wave, blocking everyone’s view.
Then came the earth-shaking roar of a dragon, teeming with killing intent. A red dragon sword Qi roared wildly, tearing apart the blue swordlight.
"It’s his Red Dragon Sword."
The Devil Path expert exclaimed.
Bang, bang, bang.
The distant mountains were illuminated by the intertwining green and red colours. The quickly changing Wind True Intent clashed with the frighteningly vicious Demonic True Intent, exploding again and again. Even the nearby clouds were dyed green and red. It seemed as if the earth and sky had changed their hue.
"In the glow, Shi Xiaole was the sole performer in this one-man-show.
Ordinary people, even if they have grasped two True Intents, cannot use them simultaneously.
But Shi Xiaole was different. His soul was the fusion of two lives, giving him unique capabilities that no one else possessed. Thus, nobody questioned him.
Of course, using both separately would naturally reduce their power. However, under the full force of the Faceless Divine Skill, the scene was still terrifying enough to make the hearts of those in the distance tremble with fear.
As for the previous Xie Xiaofeng, it was a dummy that he had prepared a long time ago. The voice just now had been transmitted through a Sound Recording Stone.
Shi Xiaole had no choice but to do this.
If the Righteous and Devil Paths go to war, this would bring unprecedented harm to the countless innocents in the eight states, and it would also cause great harm to the martial arts world of the eight states.
However, since ’Xie Xiaofeng’ reached great achievement with his martial arts skills, the voices within the Devil Path, wanting to attack the Righteous Path, have become louder and louder.
Shi Xiaole could certainly suppress them forcefully, but he would definitely not be able to suppress them for too long. Instead, it could potentially cause unrest among the people and consequently, he might lose control over the Devil Path in the eight states, leading to a re-chaos in the martial world.
Therefore, this fight was inevitable.
He wanted to use this fight to deter the Devil Path, preserve the current peaceful status quo, and then employ the method of boiling frogs in warm water to gradually eliminate the dissidents in the Devil Path, thereby solving the difficulties of the martial world.
The green and red glow faded away, the crowds on the mountain peak kept chasing, but the distance between the two sides remained far apart.
After thousands of moves...
Light erupted, turning into large ripples of red and green, wildly spreading and clearing away the surrounding clouds.
To their horror, the crowd saw the person in the red cloak kneeling on the ground.
"I lost."
Said the figure in the red cloak.
"Lost?"
The practitioners of the Devil Path were all taken aback.
"The disgrace of today will be redeemed in the future. Everyone, let’s go!"
The figure in the red cloak stood up and flew away. At this moment, he was none other than Shi Xiaole, while the figure in green was just a scarecrow wrapped in clothes.
The scattered clouds reassembled, obscuring the figure in green clothes.
The next moment...
A green light flashed in the cloud layer, and Shi Xiaole flew back, landing on the mountain peak where everyone else was.
"Ha ha ha, our Righteous Path won again."
"Sword Marquis is indeed the top martial artist in the martial world of the eight states. Who can compete with him!"
The heroes of the Righteous Path all came forward to welcome him, wearing smiles of joy.
The practitioners of the Devil Path in the distance turned gloomy and silent. Some even had the urge to launch a surprise attack, but recalling the scene just now, they suppressed their impulsive behavior.
Nowadays, Shi Xiaole is truly the number one martial artist in the eight states. Who could hurt him through a sneak attack? Are they tired of living?
"Sword Marquis Shi, temporary victory does not represent permanent victory. You and the Divine Monarch are destined to have a final battle. I hope you will be prepared for it then."
After taking a deep look at Shi Xiaole, the Demon Marquis withdrew his gaze, leading the Devil Path practitioners down the mountain. Success might have temporarily slipped away, but as the Demon Palace’s external steward, the Demon Marquis had done all he could.
"My lord, will the Righteous Path try to kill us?"
Some uneasy voices reached the Demon Marquis’s ears.
"No."
The Demon Marquis replied calmly.
"Elder Jade Fan, with Sword Marquis Shi present, we might as well take these people and leave."
At the same time, a martial arts expert from the Righteous Path spoke to the Jade Fan Scholar via telepathy.
The Jade Fan Scholar’s eyes flickered with a brilliant light, but he shook his head in the end: "Doing so will inevitably trigger a life-and-death conflict between the Righteous and Devil Paths. Though our Righteous Path is powerful, it’s only by a slight margin. Now isn’t the right time."
The horrific battle six hundred years ago had been too brutal, resulting in an astronomical amount of loss of life. Unless absolutely necessary, no one wished to experience that again.
That included many people from the Devil Path.
Those who had previously called for an attack on the Righteous Path and secretly ’forced’ Shi Xiaole to act were essentially ruthless killers who had no regard for life or death. They were the non-conformists that Shi Xiaole vowed to eradicate!
The battle at Absolute Cloud Mountain finally drew to a close.
Upon hearing the news, the martial world of the Righteous Path celebrated all around, with cheers everywhere.
Meanwhile, the eager Devil Path forces fell silent, and their previously high-spirited morale suffered a great setback.
The martial world returned to its previous ease once more. No, it was even more lively than before.
Everyone knew that as long as Shi Xiaole held Xie Xiaofeng at bay, the Devil Path wouldn’t dare to act recklessly. The martial world would eventually belong to the side of righteousness.
...
Lele City.
Having been absent for several years, Shi Xiaole returned here once more.
Outside the city tower, except for the guards responsible for security, all the top experts from Lele City gathered together to welcome the slowly approaching young man. The grandeur of the scene was truly unprecedented.
"Lele."
When they were hundreds of meters apart, Su Yanru, dressed in red and looking even more charming after a special dress-up, had already flung herself towards him, completely disregarding her City Lord’s poise, and rushed into Shi Xiaole’s arms.
"Auntie, long time no see."
Shi Xiaole hugged her gently and laughed.
Su Yanru’s shoulders trembled slightly, as she breathed in the pleasant scent of the young man which reminded her of fresh grass. She felt so comfortable that she didn’t want to say a word.
No matter how powerful or amazing this young man was, at this moment, he was no longer the Sword Marquis admired by thousands, nor the number one man in the eight states revered by all.
He was just Shi Xiaole, the child she had raised since he was young, the boy she had poured all her feelings into.
