Chapter 482: Chapter 481: Hua Yunshang
Having effortlessly defeated Xiahou Liang, Shi Xiaole showed no signs of self-congratulation. He sheathed his sword and prepared to return to the ship.
"Wait a moment."
As these words were spoken, a crisp female voice rang out.
A flash of yellow swiftly descended onto the ground, alighting on the ground a mere 30 feet away.
"Brother Shi, your swordsmanship is impressive. I, Hua Yunshang of Xuanwu State, have come to learn from you."
The petite woman in yellow had her hair styled in a high bun. While her facial features were not considered stunning, she had a pleasant appearance. Whether it was an illusion or not, Shi Xiaole had a feeling that her gaze upon him was rather complicated.
"So, you’re Hua Yunshang, the top talent of the Clear Water Sect and the wielder of the ’Mysterious Emotion Sword’!"
"Hua Yunshang’s swordsmanship has reached an unpredictable level, the past few years’ heartbreak has made her devote all her efforts to martial arts. Her current strength probably ranks her fourth or fifth among all the young swordsmen in Xuanwu State."
"A battle with her would truly test Shi Xiaole’s abilities."
Recognizing the figure that emerged, the onlookers’ excitement flared up.
"Senior Sister is still not over it."
On a ship, disciples from the Clear Water Sect were gathered. The speaker was none other than Tan Qingyan, who once fought Shi Xiaole in the ancient ruins.
Tan Qingyan had borne a grudge against Luo Wenxu because Luo abandoned Senior Sister Hua Yunshang, with whom he had a long-standing affectionate relationship.
When Tan Qingyan learned that Luo Wenxu was killed, she initially thought that her Senior Sister would quickly move on from her deceitful lover and start anew. However, not only did she not proceed as expected, but she also became even more moody and obsessive in her martial arts training, to the point of neglecting sleep and food.
"Senior Sister, don’t take out your anger on others."
Tan Qingyan sighed helplessly.
After a long pause, Hua Yunshang sent a telepathic message to Shi Xiaole, "Tell me honestly, did you kill Luo Wenxu?"
"What difference does it make, whether I did or didn’t?"
Hearing Hua Yunshang’s name, Shi Xiaole had an inkling of what was going on and answered calmly.
Hua Yunshang furrowed her beautiful eyebrows. He neither admitted nor denied it - what did he mean by that?
However, it didn’t matter. She could no longer settle scores with Luo Wenxu, so she would defeat the one who did!
"Take this!"
A tri-colored sword light swirled around Hua Yunshang, floating overhead like a rainbow cloud, covering an area of sixty feet in radius.
Within the cloud, Sword Qi was tearing everywhere, every single one powerful enough to critically injure or even kill a low-level martial artist in the Spiritual-Passage Realm.
Shi Xiaole unsheathed his sword with his left hand, sliced through the rainbow cloud, and stepped out.
"The Rainbow’s Still!"
Hua Yunshang soared into the sky. Under her energy control, the broken rainbow cloud quickly reformed, swirling strands of cloud wove into a net of several dozens of strands, falling towards Shi Xiaole.
"What intriguing Rainbow True Intent. It’s certainly superior to any we’ve seen before in regards to the level of mastery."
Zhuo Feifan applauded and praised.
The Rainbow True Intent, with the Rainbow Sword Technique of the Clear Water Sect incorporated into it, has both excellent offensive and defensive abilities, hard to destroy.
Much to Zhuo Feifan’s surprise, the level of True Intent Hua Yunshang demonstrated was approaching up to 30%, fully justifying her position as one of the top five genius swordsmen in Xuanwu State!
Swish swish swish.
He repeatedly struck with Heavenly Dragon Sword Qi. Each hit softened when it met the rainbow cloud, causing a sound similar to a foot stepping into the snow.
"Unless your power surpasses mine by more than half, don’t even dream of breaking through my Rainbow Sword Qi."
Hua Yunshang admitted that Shi Xiaole was strong, but she believed that her years of relentless martial arts training had far exceeded everyone’s expectations. Today, her victory was certain.
"Rainbow in the Middle!"
Her petite frame spiraled, Hua Yunshang dodged the Heavenly Dragon Sword Qi like a fish swimming in water, her sword slashing towards Shi Xiaole.
Clang.
Shi Xiaole raised his sword to block.
However, the next moment,
The path Hua Yunshang had previously taken abruptly formed a trail of lingering rainbow, which, once stretched, shot towards Shi Xiaole like a sharp arrow, at the exact moment when their swords clashed and Shi Xiaole was wide open.
A wave of gasps rose from the crowd.
Even the disciples of the Clear Water Sect couldn’t help but stand up.
They had seen some elders in the sect perform the Rainbow Sword Technique before, but none displayed the aesthetic and deadly power of their Senior Sister. In other words, her swordsmanship had surpassed that of many elders in the sect.
What a terrifying reality!
"The cloud is shapeless and inconstant. Even if I could withstand this attack, numerous following variations would occur. From then on, I would inevitably fall behind and fight passively."
Gazing indifferently at the incoming rainbow-colored Sword Qi, time seemed to slow down in Shi Xiaole’s mind.
If Hua Yunshang knew that in such a dangerous moment, Shi Xiaole was still in the mood to analyze her techniques, she would feel a chill in her heart.
Although confident that he could withstand her attack and the subsequent attacks, Shi Xiaole had no interest in trying.
A slight tremor ran through his left arm, and his swordsmanship changed - what was once a roar of a dragon, had now become the breeze, leaving no trace of either the sword aura or its trajectory.
Clang!
A spark briefly illuminated, like a firefly in the darkness of the night. Many did not see clearly what happened when suddenly a soft cry was heard, and Hua Yunshang was retreating unstably.
Apparently, the supposed indestructible Rainbow Sword Qi, under Shi Xiaole’s Wind Sword Qi, dispersed and gathered repeatedly, eventually covering the approximately 650 feet of the Glazed Fairy Platform. Although the area was large, its power had greatly weakened.
"Twenty percent mastery of the Wind True Intent, and your proficiency isn’t lesser than mine."
Hua Yunshang’s beautiful eyes widened, for the first time she felt alarmed.
No matter how advanced Shi Xiaole’s sword technique was, how fast his reflexes were, all she had was admiration, but definitely no fear.
At Hua Yunshang’s level, how could she not understand that, cultivation, martial arts, intent, and even martial realm are the real foundations of a martial artist’s strength.
Technique, can only be the icing on the cake.
So when Shi Xiaole demonstrated Intent on par with hers, Hua Yunshang realized that this was a truly worthy opponent that required her full effort, otherwise she could lose.
Her aura retracted, all gathered back inside Hua Yunshang’s body. At this moment, if people closed their eyes, they would definitely not sense the presence of Hua Yunshang, instead, they would feel only a light cloud.
"No, something’s wrong!"
Yang Feng found himself confused, Hua Yunshang didn’t disappear, in fact, she was everywhere on the Glazed Fairy Platform, too numerable to count.
"Such a remarkable girl, combining Sword Qi with colorful cloud intent to mimic cloud characteristics, confusing the enemy’s senses."
Even the Crown Sword Marquis, with his vast experience, couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration.
Xiahou Liang’s Shadow True Intent, likewise, had the effect of confounding an enemy’s perception. But in comparison with Hua Yunshang, it was undoubtedly an amateur versus a pro, too superficial and simple.
If Shi Xiaole wanted to, with his strength, he could easily suppress Hua Yunshang, regardless of her fabulously intricate moves, one sword stroke could easily break them.
However, this was not what Shi Xiaole wanted.
The fight was not about winning, it was about enjoyment. To suppress his strength to the same level as his opponent, and then defeat the opponent purely with technique was one of Shi Xiaole’s greatest joys in life.
Ignoring the numerous illusions created by the colorful cloud intent, Shi Xiaole thrust his sword forward. His graceful Wind Sword was like a blooming flower bud, suddenly sprouting from countless directions, piercing through the Rainbow Sword Qi.
Chuchuchu...
"You are wrong."
Hua Yunshang appeared, before her sword could make a sound, it was already at the tip of Shi Xiaole’s throat.
"No, you are the one that is wrong."
Amidst the flower petals burst forth the core, it was the Sword Qi integrated from countless Wind Swords. With a faint dip of his head, Shi Xiaole’s move hit right at the tip of Hua Yunshang’s sword.
In the deafening metallic clash, Hua Yunshang hastily retreated, her arm tingling.
"How is it possible?"
The incoming Sword Qi was released by Shi Xiaole ahead of time, so how could he have predicted her positions? Could he predict the future?
Or could it be, his sword technique has really reached an unthinkable level of remote controlling of Sword Qi?"
Hua Yunshang stopped thinking, as the man across from her, Shi Xiaole, initiated his first offensive move.
With one stroke of his sword, a dazzling sharp beam formed unmatchably fierce, causing a terrifying sound in the vacuum like a buzzsaw cutting through wood. Hua Yunshang from ten feet away only felt chilline everywhere, it was as if every pore was being itched by the Sword Qi like fine needles.
"Celestial Cloud Cover!"
Her delicate body spun around, and a three-colored Sword Qi, like a spiral staircase, rose from around Hua Yunshang, finally enshrouding her. When the Wind Sword’s beam made contact, a heavy thud could be heard, but it did not penetrate.
"Celestial Cloud Cover, is the strongest defensive technique in the Rainbow Sword Secrets, endlessly looped with no flaws. Even if the opponent was of a level nothing could break through it."
By reaching a state beyond perfection in executing the ’Celestial Cloud Cover’, Hua Yunshang gave her disciples of the Clear Water Sect a sigh of relief. Currently, their Senior Sister was at a disadvantage, but she was at least unbeatable with this move.
"It’s an excellent defensive move."
Shi Xiaole waved his sword while his right index finger prickled at his palm, with a flick.
Zing!
The three-color shield trembled violently.
"Was that a sword technique projected from a finger, with Sword Qi concentrated to a single point to increase single-point destructive power?"
Yu Wen Cang laughed.
If at first Shi Xiaole was slightly noticeable, now, he began to appreciate him a little.
Variety of moves are executed effortlessly and freely. In Shi Xiaole, Yu Wen Cang saw a kind of exuberant imagination and flowing control that he admired.
"Any move has a flaw, it just depends on how the user executes it."
With the frequent waving of his left hand, Shi Xiaole coldly watched his opponent.
Under his twofold attack of Sword Qi and finger Sword, while initially hoping to use her defense technique to catch a breath and create an opportunity for a counterattack, Hua Yunshang was in a difficult position she couldn’t discuss, she was thrown into a complete defensive mess.
Against anyone else, the Celestial Cloud Cover is an unbeatable shield. But in the face of Shi Xiaole, adopting a purely defensive stance only speeds up her process of defeat.
At this moment, Hua Yunshang saw in Shi Xiaole a kind of spirituality detached from flamboyance, returning to its essence.
His every move, there was never any excess, everything was done for the sake of victory.
Unconsciously, Hua Yunshang felt as if she was facing an insurmountable mountain. His gaze was not deliberately looking down, but it was like a puppeteer controlling a puppet, making it hard for her to resist.
"So that’s how it is, the connection of this move is not before the release, but by pulling with the breath ahead of time, secretly embedded the timing of exertion several breaths ahead."
If it were the suzerain of the Clear Water Sect or a sword fighter of a higher realm to execute this move, Shi Xiaole definitely wouldn’t have been able to discover the secret of the ’Celestial Cloud Cover’. What a pity.
His sword sloped down from the lower left side, after a few breaths, another flick of his finger.
Shi Xiaole put his sword back in its scabbard.
Peng Peng.
Opposite him, Hua Yunshang was first disorientated by the Sword Qi, missing the optimal timing for breathing. Just as she wanted to smoothly delay it, she was again hit by an accurately placed finger Sword, hitting the aim of her sword move, immediately causing her Qi to go haywire, her move couldn’t be properly completed.
Hua Yunshang stumbled back dozen steps, nearly losing grip of her long sword, falling onto the platform.
