Chapter 707: 706
In the arena, two figures stood twenty feet apart.
"My friend, if you’re not feeling well, I don’t like an improper victory,"
Gazing at the seemingly distracted Shi Xiaole, Zhu Tang offered a gentle smile that was humble on the surface but hinted at a stronger undertone of mockery.
"Young Master Shi, previously everyone only knew the tip of the iceberg about you, even Ren Mengzhen was almost deceived by you."
These sighs echoed in his ears, plunging Shi Xiaole’s heart down dejection, yet he could do nothing about it.
Murdering to silence them?
With his abilities, he might be able to achieve it unexpectedly, but what about afterwards? The Left Sect’s experts lurking around wouldn’t let him off the hook.
Running away?
That’s even more absurd.
Shi Xiaole’s face darkened, not because of being cornered, but because his best leverages had unexpectedly fallen into Ren Mengzhen’s hands.
Even without deliberately looking, he could imagine Ren Mengzhen’s smirk of triumph at this moment.
"Zong Wei, what are you doing?!"
Another stormy reprimand full of concealed anger transferred from his ear, Shi Xiaole turned his head, directly meeting Yun Chuoxi’s puzzled and icy stare, which cleared his mind.
Yes, since the secret is already revealed, why overthink it, it is already like this anyway!
At least one thing is certain that Ren Mengzhen wouldn’t spill it out for now.
With a dominant expression reappearing on his face, Shi Xiaole returned to his simple, Zong Yue-style smile, motioning to Zhu Tang, "What did you say just now? I didn’t catch it. But it doesn’t matter. After all, you’re just a defeated pawn."
"What did you say?"
Zhu Tang’s smile disappeared. Is something wrong with this man, one moment he was hesitant, the next moment he was wildly arrogant, was he playing mind games?
With his hand on the blade, Zhu Tang’s aura retracted into his body, exploding again in an instant, like an invisible heavenly sword, brutally crashing down on Shi Xiaole. From the beginning to the end, he never looked down upon his opponent, after all, any finalist would have some abilities.
"Heaven-Slicing Saber Gang, Zhu Tang really thinks highly of that guy."
"He probably wants to make the other party a big joke. Who let him act so high and mighty?"
The four young masters of the Langyao Sect are secretly communicating, as if they’ve already pictured the scene of Shi Xiaole being crushed.
Heaven-Slicing Saber Gang is a unique saber art created by Zhu Tang himself. He himself is a middle-tier Earth Immortal, but even a high-tier Earth Immortal would find it hard to bear the saber’s attack without revealing their weaknesses. As it directly attacks the mind.
Zhu Tang’s knife is ready, as soon as Shi Xiaole shows a hint of weakness, he intends to teach him the power of the Wind Blade!
Clearly, everyone in the pavilion saw how terrifying this move was, their expressions changing.
Especially those of the Left Sect, from Yun Chuoxi to the five Ghost Guards, all carried furious expressions. They were planning to defeat Zong Yue in one move, that was too disrespectful to the Left Sect!
But they couldn’t deny that Zhu Tang’s move was indeed terrifying. Even Xiao Yujian was conjuring feelings of relief, glad that he wasn’t on the receiving end of that move.
Boom!
The shocking knife’s momentum descended, just like countless blades slashing through. Even the bravest person in the world will naturally retreat when faced with a thousand cuts.
Zhu Tang’s blade was swung, but the smile on his face froze.
Because he was shocked to discover that there were no flaws in Shi Xiaole’s defense.
"I possess great courage and fearlessness. How can such petty skills deceive me?"
Shi Xiaole strode forward, his huge body appearing like a moving mountain. He went through the illusory and faint knife momentum and appeared in front of Zhu Tang in an instant.
If we talk about weaknesses, there are fewer people among his peers than Shi Xiaole. It’s not just rare but also unseen. Besides, with Shi Xiaole’s real strength, there are at least several ways to break the opponent’s saber momentum, why would he let himself be taken advantage of?
He threw a punch, Shi Xiaole’s Phantom Fist aimed at his opponent.
"Swift Wind Blade!"
Zhu Tang’s shout was drowned in the shadow of the punch. The Heaven-Slicing Saber Gang was his weapon and also his biggest weakness. Once it is countered, he himself would be full of flaws.
The blade light had just appeared halfway, and Shi Xiaole’s punch broke through it. The remaining strength pushed further and hit Zhu Tang out of the ring.
"This..."
The crowd was greatly shocked.
Even Helian Ba stood up, his aura raging wildly.
"I was not defeated, Continuous Attack of Nineteen Swift Blades!"
Regardless of his torn clothing, Zhu Tang got up from the ground, mustering all his strength to launch nineteen continuous attacks at Shi Xiaole.
Thud!
A heavy punch landed, making Zhu Tang look like a cooked shrimp. His face turned red and he curled up on the ground, even the Swift Wind Blade fell aside.
"What a powerful illusion!"
Helian Yong’s face showed a hint of surprise.
From the moment Zhu Tang revealed a flaw, he fell into the other party’s illusion. Even the so-called Continuous Attack of Nineteen Swift Blades was just a move he imagined.
Making Zhu Tang completely unaware was partly because he was careless, but isn’t it also indicative of the brilliance of Shi Xiaole’s illusion?
Everyone in Left Sect looked at each other in astonishment. Could it be that the more arrogant a person is, the stronger their will, so they just ignore the knife momentum?
Only Ren Mengzhen remained expressionless, simply smiling at the people outside the pavilion.
"Lin Ke, go teach that kid a lesson."
Helian Ba found Shi Xiaole’s arrogance intolerable, bellowing loudly in protest.
The square-faced young man named Lin Ke had also reached the peak of the second phase of the Divine Barrier Realm. However, from the way he looked into the eyes of the Langyao Sect members, it was evident that he was far more fearsome than Zhu Tang.
"What is your name?"
Lin Ke leapt forward, asking his question.
"From the Upper Sect I am Zong Yue."
Shi Xiaole suddenly shook his head, "That’s not enough."
Just as Lin Ke was puzzled by his comment, Shi Xiaole pointed at the remaining two Langyao Sect disciples and five Dreamy Sect disciples. He calmly declared, "All of you should come at me together. Otherwise, there won’t be any chance left."
The crowd gasped!
His words, as explosive as a bomb, drastically altered the expressions of everyone present. Even Helian Yong couldn’t hide his annoyed frown.
Lin Ke, enraged, chuckled, "Take this!"
A series of shadows gushed out from his body, eagerly surrounding Shi Xiaole. The shadows resembled black holes, consuming all sunlight and turning the once lively square dark all of a sudden.
This darkness went beyond mere physical obscurity; it aimed to consume the mind, preventing mental perceptions from expanding.
"This is the Dark Martial Way. Although Lin Ke has only mastered it to about 30%, it should be sufficient against most lowlifes," Helian Ba said, looking pleased at the surprised expressions of the crowd.
The Dark Martial Way undeniably belongs to the top Martial Ways -- and it’s not just any average kind. In its pinnacle, it can even consume everything in the world.
Lin Ke, of course, was far from reaching such a state, but he could still manage to consume the senses of his enemies. With his current power level, even top Third Tier Earth Immortals may not be able to match him.
"Dark Martial Way?"
Shi Xiaole was taken aback momentarily. In a certain sense, the Dark Martial Way was even more formidable than the Wind Martial Way as it could affect both material and spiritual aspects.
If Lin Ke could comprehend 40% of it, even he might face a bit of a struggle. But now, Lin Ke wasn’t quite there yet.
A thick layer of illusion energy suffused the air, entwining the shadows. Instantly, the shadows multiplied tenfold, but a major portion was then reversed back toward Lin Ke, disrupting his offense.
"You think you can deceive me with these low-level illusions? Dark Night Heavenly River!"
Rather than retreating, Lin Ke charged forward, a black mist forming around him. The mist suddenly turned moist, and the shadows naturally fused into it, swiftly engulfing Shi Xiaole. The remaining energy spread out, causing seasoned masters in the gazebo to briefly lose their mental clarity.
"What a powerful technique. If I were the one on the battleground, I would only have a 60% chance of enduring it," said a black-clad traveler from the Dreamy Sect, looking serious at Lin Ke’s move, which he did not dare underestimate.
As this thought flashed through his mind, his eyes widened in shock.
At that moment, Shi Xiaole appeared amidst the black tide, multiplying from one to ten, and then from ten into hundreds within the blink of an eye -- a sea of human figures. They began to infiltrate the black tide, aggressively advancing toward Lin Ke.
"What?!"
Lin Ke couldn’t believe it. It was an illusion, it had to be! He closed his eyes, ignoring the illusions around him. Pouring his energy into driving the black tide, he aimed to block Shi Xiaole off at his previous position.
In front of his Dark Night Heavenly River, the opponent couldn’t possibly escape using bodily movements.
"You’re too slow."
A sneering, magnetic voice reverberated through the air. Shocked, Lin Ke turned his head, only to find that the imposing figure of Shi Xiaole had somehow materialized behind him. With a sweep of his fists, Shi Xiaole sent Lin Ke flying several meters away.
"How did you do it?"
Lin Ke yelled out loudly.
"From the beginning, it was my shadow you were hitting. You couldn’t hurt me no matter how many times you struck."
Having faced the ordeal at Tri-Pole Palace, Shi Xiaole had a solid excuse to fully unleash his Illusion Martial Way. With his mental capabilities, deceiving Lin Ke would’ve been effortless.
With a single step forward, thousands of figures formed around Shi Xiaole, some charged upward, some sidestepped, and some retreated backward. This caused a momentary lapse in the crowd’s vision.
"Dark Night Wall, block!"
Unable to distinguish reality from illusion, Lin Ke roared angrily. The surrounding black mist condensed into a ring-shaped black barrier. When the illusions collided with the barrier, almost half were immediately swallowed, and the rest were gradually disintegrated due to the loss of a power source.
"It’s useless."
Shi Xiaole lifted his gaze. The illusion energy condensed and shot through the black barrier in a flash.
Although the Dark Martial Way could consume spiritual powers, it needed the right circumstances. Just as water can put out a fire, if the fire becomes too powerful, it could evaporate the water into nothingness.
Lin Ke’s mastery over the Dark Martial Way was significantly lower.
"Ah!"
With a horrified scream, Lin Ke fell back in a ragged state, his forehead full of cold sweat as the black barrier dissipated.
"You’re not even nearly my match. Even if everyone joined forces, you’d still just barely be worth my time."
Standing still, Shi Xiaole shook his head. His condescending tone was so apparent that even a fool could pick up on it.
Suddenly, the young masters from both the Langyao Sect and the Dreamy Sect felt their blood boil, each wishing they could descend onto the battlefield and personally teach the arrogant fool a lesson.
"Little brat, don’t be too presumptuous. Unparalleled Dominant Fist!"
Arriving just as his fist struck, the first one to attack was surprisingly Helian Ba. Driven by the peak Vigorous Air of his Divine Barrier Realm, his fist, formidable as the hand of God, crushed everything in its path.
"Void Silence Blade!"
Almost concurrent to his attack, an invisible and insubstantial blade sliced through the air toward Shi Xiaole. The one who made the move was a man dressed in black from the Dreamy Sect.
