Chapter 411: Chapter 410: Confronting the Master of the Dragon Gate Realm
Most invincible masters at the Spiritual-Passage Realm have the potential to ascend to the Dragon Gate Realm. One primary reason for stagnation at the Spiritual-Passage Realm is due to insufficient Internal Power quality.
Why are top-tier martial arts so incredible? It’s because they are rare in Mirror State or even in Xuanwu State. These martial arts are typically only possessed by top-level forces.
Shi Xiaole’s Faceless Divine Skill has already reached perfection, which allows him to walk unopposed in the Spiritual-Passage Realm. Combined with his current Sword Realm and true intent, once he uses his full strength, unless the opponent’s true intent or martial arts realm far surpasses him, they would find it difficult to avoid instant defeat.
But a martial arts realm and true intent are tied to a martial artist’s cultivation level. In other words, if the cultivation level is not high enough, it may affect a martial artist’s comprehension of higher martial arts realms and true intents.
At the Spiritual-Passage realm, having a martial arts realm or true intent much higher than Shi Xiaole would be such a great potential that, even without top-tier martial arts, they could forcibly cultivate to the Dragon Gate Realm, hence it’s impossible to stagnate in the Spiritual-Passage Realm.
So, Shi Xiaole is virtually invincible in the Spiritual-Passage Realm, at least for now.
"Damn, why is my luck so bad?"
The white-haired old man stopped the pursuit.
First, there was a mysterious black-clothed young girl, and now, an even more unfathomable young man in a green shirt. When did these two little monsters appear in the Martial World of Mirror State?
The other two invincible masters at the Spiritual-Passage Realm were even more ridiculous - turning on their heels to run, not daring to linger for fear that Shi Xiaole would release more sword strikes to take their lives.
"Maple Leaf Stone, it doesn’t seem to be anything special."
In the woods, Shi Xiaole looked at the Maple Leaf Stone he was holding in his hand.
The Maple Leaf Stone was about the size of an egg with a red surface covered in a thin layer of grey. As he ran his fingers over it, it felt somewhat soft.
Shi Xiaole unconsciously applied some pressure, and with a pitter-patter sound, the Maple Leaf Stone shattered, revealing a red maple leaf wrapped at its center.
The moment the red maple leaf appeared, Shi Xiaole felt a pull at his heart as if he was being summoned by some distant place.
"In life, we continually meet people whom we have known before. Brother Shi, we meet again."
A whiff of pleasant fragrance wafted about, and Shi Xiaole looked up to see the black-clothed young girl approaching. The girl’s every move, every frown and smile held a captivating charm that momentarily stunned Shi Xiaole despite his usual composure.
Compared to the last time, she seemed even more beautiful.
"Seeing you is not necessarily a good thing," Shi Xiaole replied indifferently.
During the last pursuit by the Purple Beauty Sect, he was embroiled because of the black-clothed young girl. Later, on Duan Xi’s painting boat, those young fellows attacked him under this girl’s instigation.
"Unexpectedly, within a few years of absence, not only has Brother Shi’s skills improved exponentially but so has your ability to bargain. You blackmailed my lady for ten secret books, and I haven’t yet settled this score with you."
The face of the black-clothed young girl turned stern, then she burst into laughter. "Never mind, let bygones be bygones. If we dwell on past issues, it only shows my narrow-mindedness."
Young Master Xuanmu, who was by their side, witnessing their familiarity, especially the black-clothed girl’s friendlier attitude towards Shi Xiaole, felt a twinge of jealousy.
"Is there something you need? Otherwise, I’ll take my leave," said Shi Xiaole, not wanting to get entangled with the black-clothed young girl.
At that moment, he thought of Xia Yunxi. She was also lively, but unlike the black-clothed girl, she was less cunning and more kind-hearted.
"Brother Shi, just by utilizing one Maple Forest Red Leaf, it would take you at least ten times longer to find the Maple Forest Cottage," said the black-clothed young girl with a smile, twirling a red leaf that was identical to the one Shi Xiaole held in his hand.
In fact, before Shi Xiaole had arrived, she had been around Half Moon Lake for over half a month and successfully obtained a piece of Maple Leaf Stone.
However, she was aware of more than average folks. While the Array System of Maple Forest Cottage was indeed high-level and robust, if the Maple Forest Cottage drifted too far away, the Maple Forest Red Leaves would lose their perception.
Therefore, theoretically, the more Maple Forest Red Leaves one collects, the stronger the sense will be, and the higher the chances of finding the Maple Forest Cottage.
As if to validate the black-clothed girl’s words, at this moment, the sensing power of the Maple Forest Red Leaf in Shi Xiaole’s hand began to fade again. Shi Xiaole halted in his tracks and asked, "From what you’re saying, it seems you wish to cooperate?"
The black-clothed girl nodded. "You, me, and Young Master Bai each hold a Maple Forest Red Leaf. If the three of us act simultaneously, our sensing power will be significantly enhanced. Of course, considering Brother Shi’s character, you’ll probably want to try it alone first, but I’m certain you will agree to cooperate."
Shi Xiaole looked at the black-clothed young girl.
His instinct told him that she was a very dangerous woman, even incomprehensible to him. Yet Shi Xiaole trusted her honesty, as there was no reason for her to stop him - she could’ve gone straight to the Maple Forest Cottage.
"Alright, we’ll search for it together."
The black-clothed girl applauded with a laugh, "Brother Shi always talks straight, my lady likes it."
The three of them brought their red leaves together, instantly felt a strong sense in their hearts, as if an invisible bridge was bridging them towards an unknown destination.
The three of them moved swiftly.
About a few days later, that feeling got stronger.
"The Maple Forest Cottage relocates periodically, fortunately, it is currently situated not far from here," said the black-clothed girl with a gleam of excitement and anticipation in her eyes.
However, Shi Xiaole’s face turned solemn and he yelled, "Dodge!" then first moved to one side.
No sooner had the word "dodge" been spoken, the black-clothed girl felt a pricking sensation, as if she had been shocked by electricity. She started up full force, darted to the other side, and in doing so, gave an assistive gentle palm force to Young Master Xuanmu to propel him forward.
Just as the trio had repositioned, an imposing and immense force hammered down from the sky.
With a thud, a large area of the earth caved in, forming a giant handprint three feet deep, as if it had been ruthlessly imprinted by a road roller.
"Grunt!"
Young Master Xuanmu spat out a mouthful of blood, rolling on the ground like a rag bag before finally coming to a stop.
Shi Xiaole and the girl in black were unharmed, but the aftershocks from the palm strike made them retreat backward.
A hand reached from the sky, aiming for the three Maple Forest Red Leaves in Shi Xiaole’s hand. The angle was tricky, the power immense, putting Shi Xiaole on high alert.
"Wind Rolling Building Remains."
His body twirled, and the surrounding earth and leaves were caught up by Shi Xiaole, forming a powerful tornado.
As the hand casually landed, the tornado immediately collapsed. A figure shot out from it, rushing into the distance at a speed that blurred before the eyes.
"The kid is sly."
A snicker echoed, the owner of the hand pressed them together, and a terrifying thing happened. Two unbreakable forces squeezed from the left and right side, blocking Shi Xiaole’s escape route from a distance of several hundred meters.
A Dragon Gate Realm master.
The person who appeared was a Dragon Gate Realm master!
"Are you ’Iron Cloud Hand’ Qu Buping?"
After recognizing the opponent’s move, Young Master Xuanmu hollered out in utter shock.
Dragon Gate Realm masters, unless they are reclusive oddities, are hard not to draw attention. There are only a few hundred Dragon Gate Realm masters in Mirror State, each one well-known and memorized by those in the Martial World.
The bad news is, ’Irony Cloud Hand’ Qu Buping in front of them is one of the Dragon Gate Realm masters. The good news is, his power is only at the first level of the Dragon Gate Realm, otherwise, the trio would’ve perished from the previous hit.
In front of Qu Buping, a Maple Forest Red Leaf bobbed in the air.
Within a certain distance, Maple Forest Red Leaves could sense each other.
Shi Xiaole had discovered this earlier than Qu Buping, but his opponent was far too powerful - by the time he’d discovered it, it was too late to flee.
Without uttering a word, Qu Buping lifted his hand and took a swipe at Shi Xiaole.
To Dragon Gate Realm masters, anyone beneath their level, no matter how high their natural talent, is no more than an insignificant ant, at best, a slightly stronger ant.
Transitioning from Spiritual-Passage Realm to Dragon Gate Realm may seem like a single step, but the difference in strength is astronomical.
Because when Internal Power is wholly transformed into Inborn Gang Qi, it causes a miraculous change in the body and enhances their overall potential.
In the entire Flying Horse Dynasty, there are countless prodigies who can cross-level battle in the Spiritual-Passage Realm, but rarely has anyone heard of a Spiritual-Passage Realm practitioner challenging someone from the Dragon Gate Realm.
These people are geniuses among geniuses. Throughout the 365 states of Shuntian and countless Martial World sects, gathering just a handful would be a challenge.
The terrifying palm strike was hurtling toward them. With no time to evade, Shi Xiaole’s black hair was blown straight backward by the powerful wind, but there was no panic on his face, only calm and cold defiance.
With the Hidden Edge Sword in his hand, Shi Xiaole charged forward and slashed at the incoming palm strike.
"Ignorant fool."
Qu Buping sneered.
Shiiish...
But the very next moment, Shi Xiaole’s sword connected with the palm print. It didn’t shatter but acted like an invincible saw blade, tearing down from the top, creating a chain of sparks.
Immediately after, the palm print was split cleanly in half, whooshing past Shi Xiaole and shattering the trees behind.
"Blocked it?"
The sneer on Qu Buping’s face froze.
"How is that possible?"
At the behest of the girl in black, Young Master Xuanmu fled swiftly forward. But when he glanced back and saw this, he was dumbfounded in disbelief.
Shi Xiaole had already deeply shocked him by defeating the unbeatable Spiritual-Passage Realm master with a single sword strike. And now, he had surprisingly survived an attack from a first-tier Dragon Gate Realm master.
Compared to Shi Xiaole, he, the first genius of the Mirror State, felt like a joke.
Not reveling in the achievement, Shi Xiaole turned and fled as soon as he pulled out the sword.
What he knew better than anyone was that Qu Buping had not released his full power in the previous attack. The attack had left him with blood and qi churning. If he continued to struggle, he’d be killed before he could land ten moves.
Although Shi Xiaole was extraordinarily talented, he had only entered the Spiritual-Passage Realm a few short years ago. He hadn’t yet reached his peak within the Spiritual-Passage Realm.
"Think you can escape?"
Qu Buping’s eyes narrowed, and he promptly pursued.
If at the start, he had made a move for the three Maple Forest Red Leaves in Shi Xiaole’s hand, now he harbored a murderous intention towards Shi Xiaole.
With such skills at such a young age, wouldn’t he become a major enemy when he grows up?
