Chapter 551: Chapter 550: Concealing One’s True Strength
"Eight Fingers Mysterious Lord?"
From Elders to disciples of Lele City, everyone felt dizzy.
Eight Fingers Mysterious Lord, although not among the top fifty masters of Shuntian Capital, could definitely rank in the top hundred. He was a top-tier Senior Lord, far superior to those of Elder Yan’s level.
Since the man in yellow was Eight Fingers Mysterious Lord, then the one with him...
"Elder Yan from the Yellow Springs. I also invite Young Master Shi to join me for a discussion," said the elder with a bamboo hat, who appeared behind Shi Xiaole at some point, sneering.
Yellow Springs Lord was no less powerful than Eight Fingers Mysterious Lord; he was also one of the top hundred masters of Shuntian Capital.
The two men stood front and back, their unspoken pressure locking in all directions, thoroughly blocking all possible escape routes for Shi Xiaole.
"This is bad! They came prepared!"
Yu Fangge turned deathly pale, deeply worried for Shi Xiaole.
Because of the existence of the Martial World gathering, the people of Lele City, unlike in the past, were quite familiar with the famous masters of Shuntian Capital.
Elder Yan’s rank was that of a common Senior Lord.
Whether it was Eight Fingers Mysterious Lord or Yellow Springs Lord, both had cultivated to the ninth level peak of the Dragon Gate Realm, had perfected a second-class martial art, and had understood the top-notch True Meaning to the peak of eighty percent. Both had practically reached the limit of their capabilities and were top-ranked Senior Lords.
If it had only been one of them, Shi Xiaole might have been able to fight them off using the Undying Seven Illusions, gradually wearing them down. But with the two of them joining forces, the situation was far from promising!
"Everyone, prepare for battle!"
Su Yanru was the first to react, rushing out of her room without hesitation, clad in a flamboyant red gauze dress with a curved knife at her waist, showing no fear.
Zhu Ling bit her lip. Although she was somewhat scared, she stood firm behind Su Yanru.
Many Elders and disciples also flew out.
However, quite a few people were hesitant and didn’t make a move.
Eight Fingers Mysterious Lord laughed heartily. "Young Master Shi, it seems your people are not united. I’m giving you one last piece of advice, come with me willingly, or if you delay and put me in a bad mood, I’ll ensure everyone pays with their lives for your delay."
As he spoke, an intense killing intent radiated from his body, engulfing several nearby large ships. Everyone on board was so frightened that their legs gave way. They found it difficult even to breathe, let alone muster their Qi.
Upon seeing this, Yellow Springs Lord also let out a string of sinister laughter and produced a nearly transparent fishing line from his sleeve.
Both of them had thoroughly investigated Shi Xiaole’s background; they even knew that he had killed Elder Yan in the Eight States.
However, what of it? Either of them could easily kill Elder Yan, and Shi Xiaole had just managed to grind the latter down with his mysterious Martial Art.
In fact, if it hadn’t been for the fear of Shi Xiaole’s superior Flying Skill, Yellow Springs Lord would never have partnered with anyone else; it would be better to act alone.
Observing the reactions of the people around him, Shi Xiaole’s eyes blandly swept over them and resolutely said, "The Martial World is indeed hazardous. If you’re not strong enough, you can’t even protect the lives of the people around you, alas!"
His sigh carried a deep sense of fear, and moreover, a cold intent.
"It seems you’re prepared to fight to the death. Fine, I’ll show you the power of a true Lord!"
Unwilling to waste time, Eight Fingers Mysterious Lord let out a shout and raised his left hand. Three fingers rhythmically plucked the air again and again.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Like the sound of broken guitar strings, three black finger lights, each about three feet thick, suddenly descended from the sky. Two aimed at Shi Xiaole and the third at the direction where Su Yanru and others stood. Like divine punishment, their terrifying force sent everyone’s minds blank — they lost their senses, and all they could do was stand still and brace for impact.
Su Yanru just looked at the distant figure as if this was her last sight in the world.
The masters from Lele City standing further away were scared out of their wits, and their only thought was to flee regardless of everything. Unfortunately, the residual force of the finger lights had left them powerless. They could only watch the tragedy unfold.
"This attack is indeed much stronger than Elder Yan’s."
If this had taken place a few months ago, Shi Xiaole might have been at a loss. But now, he swung both hands, and a circle of silver-grey rings appeared around him. They deflected the two incoming finger lights in different directions.
Splash! Splash!
Two water columns hundreds of meters high shot up into the sky. The water droplets exploded into a mist, quickly spreading all over.
At the same time, the silver-gray circles overlapped, each sending out wave after wave of force. This quickly formed another larger circle above the heads of Su Yanru and others. The black finger light started spinning as it hit it and was deflected away.
"Hmm?"
Eight Fingers Mysterious Lord’s triumphant expression froze.
Although he had only used eighty percent of his strength in that strike, Shi Xiaole had handled it too easily.
"Yellow Springs Fishing."
Just then, an invisible fishing line shot out like lightning. A sharp hook was attached to its end. Driven by the rotation of Yellow Springs Lord’s elbow, it evaded the power of the Undying Seven Illusions, striking towards Shi Xiaole’s right arm.
As the fishing hook was released almost simultaneously with the finger light, Shi Xiaole, who had already blocked the finger light, would undoubtedly fail to block the fishing hook!
"Hehehe, using this move, I’ve killed countless masters. Consider it an honor to have your right arm severed by it."
Inside, Yellow Springs Lord sneered as he envisioned Shi Xiaole’s right arm being severed.
Clang!
In that critical moment, countless Sword Qi rushed towards the fishhook, with Shi Xiaole unleashing the Heavenly Sword Realm.
"Just as I expected."
The Yellow Springs Lord smiled without a change.
Under the impact of the Sword Qi, the fishhook in mid-air suddenly swirled around and hooked towards Shi Xiaole’s shoulder blade from another direction, its speed increasing by more than fifty percent.
"Back off!"
Shi Xiaole remained motionless on the spot, barely glancing a look.
When the hook approached, the previous Sword Qi had not dissipated and was already waiting in front. With a clang sound amid the spurting sparks, the hook bounced back into the hands of the Yellow Springs Lord.
"Your Sword Qi?"
In the early stage of the Heavenly Sword Realm, Sword Qi absolutely couldn’t last this long. Could it be that this young man’s sword realm was approaching the middle stage? The pupils of the Yellow Springs Lord slightly contracted.
"Fending off the attacks of two superior lords at the same time?"
The people of Lele City on several ships around felt like they had returned from the brink of death. They kept looking at Shi Xiaole with changing expressions.
However, as soon as they realized they had regained their mobility, many of them flew out first and plunged into the river. Shi Xiaole’s astonishing strength was undeniable, but who knew if it was just good luck just now?
In most people’s minds, they didn’t believe Shi Xiaole could resist the joint efforts of two top hundred masters.
When in grave danger, even couples must fly separately. Although they were people of Lele City, they didn’t have to sacrifice their lives for Shi Xiaole. Escaping was the best strategy.
There was no time to blame these people because the remaining people on the scene were already drawn by the intense battle in the center.
"Lie down for me, Eight Calamity Divine Finger!"
Eight Fingers Mysterious Lord was quite humiliated that he couldn’t take down Shi Xiaole with one move. His skill-level rose to full capacity, with both hands stretching out and constantly striking.
Plunk, plunk, plunk...
Eight intersecting beams of finger light, just like a square branding iron, trapped Shi Xiaole in the middle. Each one contained intense destructive power, enough to severely injure a junior lord.
"Yellow Springs has fish!"
In terms of speed, the Yellow Springs Lord wasn’t slower than the Eight Fingers Mysterious Lord. His movements of flapping his arms with the fishing line made countless twirling turns. One moment the fishhook was far away on the horizon, and the next it was right in front of you. It aimed for Shi Xiaole’s right arm, treating him like a fish in the water.
Having failed to land a hit, the two each utilized their ultimate skills to save time.
The wide river occasionally had a few boats close by. Both the martial artists and merchants aboard couldn’t help but look at their ceaseless brawling, all intimidated by the terrifying pulsations of energy.
Facing the combined fatal attacks of the two superior lords, Shi Xiaole’s response was simple – he wielded just one sword. With one sword, the surging azure Sword Qi was like a torrential storm, ruthlessly engulfing everything in sight.
Boom!
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The eight beams of finger light seemed to have been eroded by the wind. They kept melting away and disintegrating. By the time their power was reduced to fifty percent, they finally exhausted the power of the Sword Qi. However, by that time, the finger light itself had shown flaws, which Shi Xiaole easily evaded.
At the same time, the fishhook was also constantly clanked by the endless Sword Qi, greatly affected in its trajectory. It was difficult to even get close to Shi Xiaole, let alone injure him.
"Heavenly Sword middle stage?!"
The Eight Fingers Mysterious Lord and the Yellow Springs Lord yelled in unison, as if they had seen the impossible happening.
The middle stage of the Heavenly Sword, Shi Xiaole’s Sword Realm had actually reached the middle stage of the Heavenly Sword.
All through Shuntian Capital, fewer than twenty swordsmen had comprehended the Heavenly Sword. The ones who reached the middle stage of the Heavenly Sword weren’t more than five. How was this young man comparable to those peerless swordsmen, who had reached this stage after years of cultivation?
"Fierce Wind Hundred Turns."
Before the two could come back to their senses, Shi Xiaole swung his second sword.
Under the reinforcement of the middle stage of the Heavenly Sword Realm, the swirling Sword Qi started slowly but gradually picked up speed. It was like a greatly enlarged blender. The attacks of the finger light and the fishhook did not weaken it but instead made it stronger, while entrapping both the Eight Fingers Mysterious Lord and the Yellow Springs Lord within.
Two bangs.
The two superior lords got out of their predicament, their faces dark like water.
The offensive power of Shi Xiaole was indeed not on par with theirs but it was very close. The gap could be negligible and his sword moves were particularly strange, as they could get stronger along with the enemy’s attack.
"It seems you two are going to be disappointed today."
Shi Xiaole casually said.
"Whether we’re disappointed or not is not for you to decide."
The two superior lords were reluctant to accept defeat and continued their all-out attack. Shi Xiaole faced them head-on. With a sweep of his long sword, a deep wound that revealed the bone appeared on the arm of the Yellow Springs Lord even before he could brandish his fishhook. Blood poured out profusely.
"What?"
Shocked beyond belief, the Yellow Springs Lord clutched his arm and kept retreating, struggling to comprehend all that had happened.
After a few leaps, Shi Xiaole launched his attack on the Eight Fingers Mysterious Lord again. He unleashed three swords from different directions. For the fourth strike, he suddenly swiped upward.
Swish!
The Eight Fingers Mysterious Lord cried out as a bloody hole appeared on his chest. He stared at Shi Xiaole in shock, exclaiming, "You actually held back your strength?"
