Chapter 848: Chapter 847: The Mysterious Cave_1
"Junior Brother Shi, how much effort did you just use?"
As her body landed on the mountaintop, An Rumei asked through clenched teeth. The mere three moves had left her greatly shaken. If he had wanted to, she doubted she could have even withstood a single move.
But she was even more certain that Shi Xiaole hadn’t used his full power. As for how much he had used, she was desperate to know – was it fifty percent, or sixty percent?
"I used seventy percent."
Shi Xiaole said.
Madam Xi shook her head again.
An Rumei smiled, whether out of anger or embarrassment, "With your ability to contest the top Eighth Tier Earth Immortals, you needed seventy percent of your power to deal with me, at the Seventh Tier of the Divine Barrier Realm? Tell me, how much was it really? If you lie, it means you pity me, and I hold grudges!"
Shi Xiaole felt helpless for a moment; it seemed that even trying to spare her feelings had become a fault. Seeing An Rumei’s fierce demeanor, he realized he couldn’t just bluff his way through.
"Young Master Shi, just tell the truth. Only by doing so can An Rumei truly understand her situation, which would be beneficial for her,"
Madam Xi said from the side, curious about Shi Xiaole’s true capabilities as well.
Shi Xiaole felt a stir in his heart, indeed, for someone like An Rumei, a little provocation might actually motivate her. Well-intended concealment could lead her to misunderstandings, but he hoped the provocation wouldn’t be too much for her.
"I used forty percent effort."
As the words reached his mouth, Shi Xiaole still discounted his effort. In reality, he had only used thirty percent, but to say so would be too shocking for the world to accept.
"Forty percent?!"
An Rumei’s heart trembled violently.
She had estimated the lowest he would go was fifty percent. Though there seems to be just a ten percent difference between forty and fifty percent, the higher one’s power, the more exaggerated each ten percent becomes.
Frankly, with Shi Xiaole’s strength, each ten percent represented a distinct level. Even the top-ranked Eighth Tier Earth Immortals in the Martial World wouldn’t dream of defeating someone at the Seventh Tier of the Divine Barrier Realm with just forty percent effort, let alone do so with such ease.
"He must be bluffing?"
Zhang Xiaoting couldn’t help but gap.
She never believed that An Rumei’s combat prowess at her tier was unparalleled in the world, but that Shi Xiaole could crush her in three moves with just forty percent effort seemed too much.
But reason told her that Shi Xiaole was not bluffing. If he had wanted to boast, he wouldn’t have claimed seventy percent in the first place.
"Junior Brother Shi, I am about to use my true power. Don’t say I’m bullying you because of my higher power level."
Her face flushed, An Rumei decisively abandoned the idea of a match at the same tier. She wasn’t the type to be unreasonable; in any case, she had only wanted to test him. Her power recovered to the Ninth Tier of the Divine Barrier Realm, and her Sword Dao of Wood ascended to the early stages of eighty percent, An Rumei unleashed her long sword.
In an instant, countless petals fell, densely enveloping Shi Xiaole, each petal possessing the power to slay a Seventh Tier Earth Immortal.
"Chaotic Wind Cloud."
With her power at eighty percent, the Red Left Sword became the source of a fierce wind, effortlessly tearing apart the sea of flowers, creating a vast passageway that charged directly at An Rumei.
"Woodland Sword of Severed Love!"
The same move, when executed by An Rumei at that moment, brought silence to heaven and earth. Only the patchy light from the sword’s rings pulsed, slicing through the void, through all things.
"Wind Mastery’s Trial."
Unfortunately for An Rumei, all the sword-light rings were pierced by a streak of azure light and then exploded into pieces. At the forefront of the azure light, Shi Xiaole’s swordplay was like a flurry, striking hundreds of moves in an instant, forcing An Rumei to retreat repeatedly.
"This guy!"
An Rumei was beyond shocked and had no choice but to unleash her Wood Sword Dao at eighty percent of its latter stages. Not only did she withstand Shi Xiaole’s attacks, but she even gained a slight upper hand.
But she felt no excitement because she was already using eighty percent of her power at that point.
"Indeed, a top-ranked Eighth Tier Earth Immortal, and even surpassing most of the top-ranked ones,"
Madam Xi’s breath became slightly disturbed.
Speculating was one thing, but witnessing it firsthand was quite another. Madam Xi had never seen someone like Shi Xiaole. If he continued to grow at this rate, perhaps he would one day surpass the three big titans?
Seeing An Rumei, even with her power restored, fail to take down Shi Xiaole, Pei Qiuyan and the other three women were already stunned, unsure of what to say.
"My speed of attack and reaction time both exceed An Rumei’s, but the power of my sword moves is still lacking, at least by several tens percent."
The power of sword moves was determined by one’s strength and martial arts. Being inferior in both aspects, Shi Xiaole naturally couldn’t overcome An Rumei. However, through this battle, he roughly understood his own strength and the gap between himself and a regular Ninth Tier Earth Immortal.
Perhaps once the Wind Mastery was complete, he could put up a fight?
"Junior Brother Shi, I’m going to use my killing move now, ’Sky-Supporting Tree’!"
An Rumei had lost interest in continuing the battle and just wanted to quickly test her killing move because the scene was too humiliating. For her, it was nothing short of disgraceful.
She was enveloped in a layer of vibrant vitality, and with a flick of her long sword, countless sword filaments spread like delicate branches, branching out and transforming into a towering tree in the blink of an eye. By the time Shi Xiaole realized it, he was trapped at the center of the tree, facing an endless onslaught of attacks.
"Star Stab!"
A comet-like sword light whizzed by, and with a thunderous boom, the large tree was not pierced, merely cracked. However, for Shi Xiaole, these small openings were enough. His body spun, employing Wind Mastery perfectly to withstand the sword Qi from all directions.
Clang!
The mountains cracked, and a shadow flew back thousands of feet before managing to stand still; it was none other than Shi Xiaole.
"Thank you, Senior Sister An, for showing mercy. I am not your match."
Shi Xiaole sheathed his sword and bowed with a fist in palm.
An Rumei stared at him for a long time, then said resentfully, "You truly are a monster!"
Just now she had only used eighty percent of her strength, but even so, the strength of a Ninth Tier Earth Immortal at eighty percent should not be something a top Eighth Tier Earth Immortal could withstand.
What was even more frustrating was that her killing move had also been caught by him, posing no great threat. Overall, crossing hands with this youngster was simply seeking discomfort for herself.
However, upon further thought, this youngster was after all an exception. To a certain extent, being able to push him back that far was already enough to prove the power of her killing move.
"Young Master Shi, in the future do not reveal your strength recklessly, especially in the presence of the two major forces of the Ghost King Ruins and Floating Blood Palace. You need to be extremely cautious."
Any hostile force would not sit idly by and watch someone like Shi Xiaole grow. Madam Xi did not wish for him to fall prematurely.
Unfortunately, Wuyuan Palace was set to open in less than two years, leaving Shi Xiaole with too little time; otherwise, he might really compete with the three great leaders.
"Don’t worry, predecessor."
Shi Xiaole nodded.
No one was more cautious than he was. Perhaps in the eyes of Madam Xi and the other ladies, he had shown his strength too flamboyantly, but they didn’t know he was already holding back significantly.
Perhaps spurred on, Pei Qiuyan and the other ladies also measured up against each other, gaining a full understanding of their own strength.
The Mirage Mountain Range was fraught with dangers. After receiving an invitation from Madam Xi, Shi Xiaole simply decided to travel with them, and since he had no need for the Enlightenment Fruit, the group wandered for days, avoiding several disasters.
One day, a bright light suddenly pierced the sky, its brilliance attracting almost all the warriors in the Mirage Mountain Range.
Some were close by and, as the light stabilized, approached a smooth mountainside to see a polished, complete grey stone cave.
But these people did not know that deep inside the cave at that very moment, two earth-shattering figures stood, each in front of a stone stele.
Boom!
The figure shrouded in a sea of blood pushed forward, and the nine-sectioned stele lit up to the eighth section before his body instantly disappeared.
On the other side stood a majestic, upright figure in blue clothing, with a gold mask on his face. Even his fluttering clothes exuded elegance and tranquility, while his demeanor awed the onlookers.
The man in blue clapped softly.
The stele lit up brightly, climbing from the lowest to the very top section, and when the light faded, the blue-clad figure had also vanished.
...
Shi Xiaole and his companions arrived several days later.
Projecting his spiritual power outwards, Shi Xiaole easily perceived the scene within thousands of meters inside the cave, replete with mechanisms, hidden weapons, and array systems, but none posed a difficulty for him.
Madam Xi seemed to have mastered some secret technique, and after deliberation, decided to enter. After all, if anything went wrong, they could always retreat immediately.
The cave was thirty feet wide and its length unknown.
Upon entering, Shi Xiaole felt a chill throughout his body because the scene inside the cave was completely different from what he had sensed. Madam Xi also changed color, but before they could act, the entrance had already disappeared.
"We have fallen into a trap. Now we can only take one step at a time and see where it leads."
Madam Xi smiled wryly.
If she was not mistaken, going forward would be no different from going back. Following their instincts, the group continued on.
After walking a few hundred meters, a sudden and immense pressure struck them. It was as if a mountain was collapsing and a tsunami was approaching. Just as Shi Xiaole raised his Vigorous Air for protection, it shattered with a crack, and the pain felt like countless steel needles ruthlessly piercing into his pores. It seemed that taking one more step would cause his body to be torn to pieces, scattering into countless cells on the ground.
What was more terrifying was that blood really started flowing from his pores!
Shi Xiaole pressed on with difficulty. Although the pressure intensified further ahead, causing more pain, the blood flowed less.
A distance of several tens of meters took him half a 2-hour period. As he proceeded, the pressure grew, and bulging veins popped out all over his body, while every muscle twitched incessantly from overexertion.
When he staggered forward for a hundred meters, the pressure disappeared, and Shi Xiaole collapsed to the ground, panting heavily with sweat soaking the ground.
"Demon Bone?"
As his consciousness returned, Shi Xiaole was startled to realize that the dark grey bone inside him, which had been dormant for years, seemed to have undergone a subtle change. The color now had a faint glimmer of silver light.
What kind of place was this, and why did it affect the Demon Bone?
Shi Xiaole barely got up and then realized that Madam Xi and the others had disappeared. Worried for their safety, he could only move forward alone with his doubts.
Swish, swish, swish.
These were invisible blades, against which Vigorous Air provided no defense. Each time they struck Shi Xiaole, his body felt nothing, but his mind and will suffered horrendous damage.
The three great martial arts within him were simultaneously activated, and three distinctly different forces shielded his will. Each time the intangible blade shattered this defense, it would immediately reform.
After a quarter of a 2-hour period, Shi Xiaole passed through the blade winds relatively more easily than when facing the oppressive force field. But the piles of bones along the way told him that this obstacle was far more dangerous.
Perhaps because he held three kinds of martial arts, he had surpassed the caliber of this challenge.
