Daqian Martial Saint

Two streaks of blade light shot out at almost the same instant, aimed at Xing Rongzi.

Without the slightest hesitation, Xing Rongzi flicked the longsword in his hand, unleashing a brilliant arc of light that shot toward Zhao Zhiteng’s attack.

To him, the threat from Zhao Zhiteng’s attack was undoubtedly far greater!

The arc of light and the blade light clashed violently, merging and trembling intensely.

And at that exact moment, Chen Ping’an’s attack had already reached Xing Rongzi’s side.

WHOOSH~

Facing the incoming attack, Xing Rongzi countered with a backhanded palm strike!

He was a Sword Master, but that didn’t mean he hadn’t cultivated other Martial Arts. It was just that, compared to his talent for the Sword Dao, his achievements in other arts were sorely lacking.

For instance, this palm strike of his was mediocre and unremarkable. He had barely managed to cultivate a Palm Technique to the Minor Success Realm.

But even so, Xing Rongzi was confident enough.

’A mere Third Stage of Inner Qi practitioner dares to attack me!?’

’Even if my Palm Technique is sloppy, with such a vast difference in our Great Realms, stopping this attack will be easy enough!’

HUMMM~

Amidst a surge of True Qi, Xing Rongzi’s palm strike quickly collided with Chen Ping’an’s blade light.

WHOOSH!

”What!?” The instant they made contact, a look of shock appeared on Xing Rongzi’s face.

This streak of blade light was impossibly dense, far exceeding his estimations of the combat power of someone at the Third Stage of Inner Qi.

BANG!

With a loud bang, Xing Rongzi was thrown back several steps.

THUD! THUD! THUD!

Xing Rongzi steadied himself, his eyes filled with shock as he stared at Chen Ping’an.

”Profound Light Realm power!”

He couldn’t help but glance down at his palm, where a bloody gash had appeared. If he hadn’t protected it with his True Qi, his hand would have been crippled!

’I completely misjudged him!’

The attack from the boy before him had solidly crossed the threshold into Profound Light Realm power.

”Who are you?”

’To unleash an attack at the Profound Light Realm level while only at the Third Stage of Inner Qi... this boy can’t possibly be a nobody.’

Chen Ping’an’s answer was another streak of blade light—an attack imbued with Profound Light Realm power that instantly slashed down before Xing Rongzi.

This time, Xing Rongzi didn’t dare to be careless. He swept his longsword, unleashing a flash of crescent-shaped light.

After unleashing his sword strike, Xing Rongzi glanced at the approaching reinforcements, Zhao Zhiteng and Chu Long, and abandoned any thought of teaching the boy a lesson.

”Hmph! You’re lucky!”

With a cold snort, he bolted toward the stone chamber without a backward glance.

BANG!

The sword light and blade light collided. The blade light held for only an instant before shattering. The lingering remnants of the sword light shot toward Chen Ping’an.

SWISH!

With a flash of a blade, the remnants of the sword light were utterly dissipated in mid-air.

”Are you okay?”

Blade light shimmered on Zhao Zhiteng’s long saber. He was the one who had made that last strike.

”I’m fine!” Chen Ping’an shook his head.

”That’s good.”

Zhao Zhiteng dashed past Chen Ping’an in pursuit of Xing Rongzi, leaving only his retreating figure behind.

No one noticed that during the brief exchange between Chen Ping’an and Xing Rongzi, a nearly invisible powder hidden within the blade light had taken the opportunity to settle on Xing Rongzi’s body during the impact.

”Retreat!”

Having fled to the entrance of the stone chamber, Xing Rongzi let out a sharp cry before darting inside.

Gu Wu, who was locked in a fierce battle with Sheng Yanshan, glanced in Xing Rongzi’s direction. With a sweep of his long spear, he unleashed a flurry of spear lights, forcing Sheng Yanshan’s assault back.

SWOOSH!

Gu Wu’s figure blurred as he disengaged and fled.

”He’s running? Son of a bitch!”

Sheng Yanshan felt utterly frustrated. When he fought Soul-Breaking Spear, he had assumed the man had only just entered the Profound Light Realm, perhaps without even having consolidated his new Realm.

He thought that by going all out, he could have quickly established an advantage and broken the stalemate.

But who would have thought...

...that after a round of fighting, his opponent hadn’t fallen behind in the slightest. In fact, every move was so sharp that it forced Sheng Yanshan to fight defensively, leaving him feeling constrained and incredibly frustrated.

HUMMM~

Sheng Yanshan beckoned with his hand, and the Blood Drop flew back into his grasp.

”Chase!”

SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!

Several figures flashed across the great underground hall.

Watching the others give chase, Chen Ping’an’s eyes flickered, and he joined the pursuit as well.

Eight Steps Chasing Cicada!

His footwork shifted. Even though he activated it with only the power of his Celestial Rain Descending Realm Perfection, his speed was not the least bit slow.

On the other side of the great underground hall was a large cluster of stone chambers, and the figures weaved continuously between them. Though they were spread out, they coordinated with one another, ensuring no one lost the trail.

”So damn persistent!”

Xing Rongzi’s figure flickered, and he soon arrived in a stone chamber. Unlike the others, this one had a massive opening in its wall. It was the escape tunnel Gu Wu had opened earlier!

SWOOSH!

Without a hint of hesitation, Xing Rongzi dove into the opening.

Less than a breath later, Gu Wu’s figure appeared in the stone chamber, and he too entered the opening.

The next moment, Zhao Zhiteng arrived. He scanned the room, his gaze falling upon the opening. After a brief hesitation, he finally plunged in after them.

Chu Long, Sheng Yanshan, and Chen Ping’an followed right after.

With Zhao Zhiteng leading the way, the rest of them charged into the opening.

The passage was a winding, tortuous path leading deep into the mountain, clearly another tunnel carved from the rock.

Fleeing ahead, Gu Wu, the Soul-Breaking Spear, would periodically strike the tunnel walls to hinder Zhao Zhiteng’s pursuit.

However, boosted by his Burst Secret Technique, Zhao Zhiteng’s power had firmly reached the Profound Light Middle Realm, rendering Gu Wu’s disruptions largely ineffective.

With Zhao Zhiteng taking the lead, the pressure on those behind him was even less.

They moved quickly and soon burst out of the tunnel.

The other end of the tunnel opened onto the side of the mountain, surrounded by dense, lush forest and thick undergrowth.

”Split up!” Xing Rongzi yelled, darting off to the southeast.

Now at the Profound Light Middle Realm, he could cross dozens of yards in a single leap. The mountainous terrain had little effect on him.

Upon hearing the command, Gu Wu fled to the northwest.

”Chu Long, you’re with me. We’ll chase Yin Tribulation Sword! Yanshan, you go after Soul-Breaking Spear!”

True Qi surged around Zhao Zhiteng. His eyes were completely blood-red, giving him a terrifying appearance.

”Yes!” Chu Long and Sheng Yanshan acknowledged the order and sped off in pursuit.

Watching the two groups pursue their targets in opposite directions, Chen Ping’an chose to follow Gu Wu, the Soul-Breaking Spear, without a moment’s hesitation.

The Profound Light Realm. Even within the vast territory of the Daqian Dynasty, reaching this level meant one had truly crossed the threshold to become a Powerhouse, earning the title of a true Martial Arts Master. The abilities they displayed were naturally extraordinary.

SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!

Their figures flashed through the dense mountain forest, each leap covering a vast distance.

Gu Wu, the Soul-Breaking Spear, led the way, with Sheng Yanshan in hot pursuit and Chen Ping’an trailing further behind. The three of them formed an almost perfect line.

Sheng Yanshan’s body flickered as he moved, his gaze locked on the fleeing figure of Gu Wu, the Soul-Breaking Spear, his face filled with killing intent.

”Soul-Breaking Spear! I will kill you today!”

The battle just now hadn’t gone as he’d expected, leaving him incredibly frustrated. But it had also given him a clear idea of Gu Wu, the Soul-Breaking Spear’s, true capabilities.

His opponent’s Spear Technique was surprisingly impressive, and his overall combat performance was remarkable. In their brief clash, they had been evenly matched.

’But that was only a brief exchange. If the two of us were to fight a prolonged battle, the outcome wouldn’t be so certain!’

’He had every reason to believe that with his own deep-seated foundation in the Profound Light Realm, Soul-Breaking Spear would be no match for him in a battle of attrition!’

Of that, he was absolutely confident!