Immortal Sword Master

Chapter 199: Chapter 196: Young Magnate, Qing Province Assembly

”Quick, look! What is that?”

Around the arena, some disciples cried out in alarm.

Behind Ning Jiang, a black light slowly began to emerge.

Before the astonished eyes of the crowd, the black light gradually condensed, finally unfurling into a pair of black wings.

The Heaven-Devouring Sparrow’s Wings had appeared before the eyes of the world for the first time.

SWOOSH.

Ning Jiang’s figure blurred. He was now several times faster than before, transforming into a streak of black light that brought him in front of Liang Xiao in an instant.

”You said I couldn’t even touch the hem of your clothes?”

Ning Jiang didn’t attack right away, instead looking at Liang Xiao with a half-smile.

”Hm? To think you’ve also cultivated a Dharma Gate for increasing speed.”

Liang Xiao’s pupils shrank, but he didn’t panic. ”In that case, I’ll let you see my full speed as well.”

WHOOSH.

A great wind surged, gathering behind him and finally forming a pair of wings made of air.

”The Wings of the Wind, a Spirit Level Middle Grade Martial Technique. With this technique, Senior Brother Liang Xiao’s speed is even faster than some flying Demon Beasts.”

A disciple from the Cyan Splendor Sect said.

In this world, some Martial Artists are extremely difficult to deal with, and the fast ones are chief among them.

Liang Xiao’s attack power was actually comparable to Ma Yan’s, but his speed was on a completely different level.

When Ma Yan fought Liang Xiao, he couldn’t even touch him and was treated as a mere punching bag. That was why Liang Xiao was the trump card for this trip.

”With the Wings of the Wind, he can even contend with a Spirit Realm Middle Stage Martial Artist for a while.” Grand Elder Hong Lie nodded, showing his confidence in Liang Xiao.

”So fast.”

At that moment, the crowd gasped. After Liang Xiao activated the Wings of the Wind, his body flickered and vanished completely.

The naked eye could no longer track such speed.

Even those masters who had reached Spirit Realm Cultivation could only see a blurry afterimage.

”Against this kind of speed, the only option is to use a wide-area killing move,” an Elder said, shaking his head.

Yuan Tao, the fourth-ranked Core Disciple, gave a wry smile. This speed was completely beyond him; he estimated he wouldn’t even last three moves.

’Perhaps only the top three Core Disciples could fight him?’ Yuan Tao thought.

”Can you still keep up with me now?”

Liang Xiao’s voice echoed from all directions, making it impossible to tell where he was—left, right, up, or down.

”A petty trick.”

With a flap of the wings on his back, Ning Jiang also vanished from everyone’s sight, just like Liang Xiao.

”How is this possible?”

Just a breath later, Liang Xiao’s utterly shocked voice rang out, as if he had just encountered something unbelievable.

”What happened?”

The crowd was bewildered. The two were moving so fast that no one could see them clearly.

”Good! Good!”

Grand Elder Meng Nanfeng exclaimed, his face filled with pleasant surprise. His Cultivation was the highest, so he could see everything clearly.

In his sight, Ning Jiang stuck to Liang Xiao like a shadow, like a maggot clinging to bone, always maintaining a distance of three steps.

No matter if Liang Xiao went left or right, no matter what trick he tried, he could not shake Ning Jiang.

Without a doubt, Ning Jiang was faster than Liang Xiao!

”I don’t believe it!”

Liang Xiao roared. Speed had always been his greatest pride. It was what allowed him to rank among the first tier of the younger generation, with only the young titans able to suppress him.

But now, he was the one at a disadvantage.

”Faster! Faster! Faster! I can be even faster!”

His eyes became bloodshot and veins bulged on his forehead. At this moment, his only desire was to surpass Ning Jiang in speed.

But no matter how he accelerated, Ning Jiang simply matched his pace.

’The Heaven-Devouring Sparrow isn’t primarily known for its speed, but the pathetic Wings of the Wind is just a trivial technique by comparison,’ Ning Jiang thought.

When it came to speed, a Demon Beast like the Heaven-Devouring Sparrow wasn’t truly at the apex. The fastest was the Golden-winged Roc, which could fly ninety thousand li in a single beat of its wings—the very definition of extreme speed.

The most crucial aspect of a Demon Beast like the Heaven-Devouring Sparrow was its Devouring Power. It was just that the current Ning Jiang lacked the ability to manifest its complete Dharma Body.

However, even with just a pair of wings, surpassing Liang Xiao’s Wings of the Wind was a simple matter.

”That’s enough. It’s time to end this.”

Having played around enough, Ning Jiang swung one of his wings down like a blade.

The Heaven-Devouring Sparrow’s Wings could also be used as a weapon. In terms of hardness, they were no worse than a Spiritual Artifact.

SCHLICK.

The air was split apart. The black wing descended like a Celestial Blade, incomparably sharp.

”Stop!”

The Cyan Splendor Sect’s Grand Elder Hong Lie roared, but it was too late to stop it.

Before everyone’s eyes, Liang Xiao’s body froze in place. His eyes were wide open, and a thin line of blood appeared, starting between his brows and extending down his chin, his neck, and his chest.

Finally, his entire body split in two.

”Yes!”

A sky-shattering cheer erupted from the Yanyue Sect disciples. Although the scene was a bit bloody, as Sect Disciples, they were long accustomed to slaughter. A situation like this wasn’t enough to scare them.

”You little brat, your methods are truly vicious.”

Hong Lie flew into a rage, and a wave of killing intent washed over Ning Jiang.

Ma Yan’s death had pained him, but it hadn’t driven him mad. Liang Xiao’s death, however, made his heart bleed.

This was a top-tier genius of the Cyan Splendor Sect, someone who could rank in the first tier across all of Qing Province, with a bright future ahead of him.

Even among the Five Great Sects, there weren’t many young geniuses in the first tier. Each one was a treasure, entitled to enjoy the Sect’s best resources.

It was no exaggeration to say that the Cyan Splendor Sect had poured an immense amount of effort and resources into cultivating Liang Xiao.

With Liang Xiao dead, the entire Cyan Splendor Sect would be in an uproar.

”Elder Hong, please conduct yourself with dignity. This is the Yanyue Sect, not a place for you to run wild. Besides, Liang Xiao died because his skills were inferior. How can you blame the Ninth Elder?”

Grand Elder Meng Nanfeng took a step forward, his aura surging.

”They’re not going to fight, are they?”

”This is our Yanyue Sect. The Cyan Splendor Sect shouldn’t be that arrogant.”

Feeling the clash of auras between the two Grand Elders, many of the surrounding disciples’ faces paled.

Hong Lie’s gaze hardened. Though his killing intent was surging, he suppressed it. ”Fine. The Cyan Splendor Sect will remember this. We will repay this debt one day!”

”Hmph. The Yanyue Sect will be waiting,” the Grand Elder said coldly.

”Heh, Meng Nanfeng, don’t be so arrogant. I’ve heard your Sect Leader ran into some major problems during their tribulation. When the Qing Province Assembly convenes, let’s see what the Yanyue Sect can do then. We’re leaving.”

After speaking, Hong Lie had the other Cyan Splendor Sect disciples take the two bodies and leave the Yanyue Sect.

”Pah! Who do they think they are? The piddling Cyan Splendor Sect actually dares to come to our home and act so outrageously.”

An Elder cursed angrily, displeased with Hong Lie’s attitude.

”Regardless, we’ve completely offended the Cyan Splendor Sect this time. We’ll need to be careful from now on.”

”Beyond that, we also need to properly prepare for the Qing Province Assembly. I fear it won’t be a peaceful one this time.”

At the mention of the Qing Province Assembly, the expressions of the several Elders grew solemn.

Some of the disciples in the know clenched their fists.

”If he hadn’t killed Liang Xiao just now, we wouldn’t have offended the Cyan Splendor Sect.”

A disciple said worriedly. The Yanyue Sect was already in a precarious situation; making an enemy of the Cyan Splendor Sect was not a good thing.

”You’re wrong. Killing him or not killing him would have led to the same result.”

Yuan Tao spoke up at this moment. ”The Cyan Splendor Sect came here looking for trouble in the first place. If we hadn’t killed them, do you think they would have been grateful to us?”

”On the contrary, they would have just thought the Yanyue Sect was weak! They came here to bully us and call us trash. If we didn’t even dare to kill them after that, who would ever take the Yanyue Sect seriously again?”

”The Ninth Elder’s action was to defend the dignity of our Yanyue Sect! He was telling everyone that the Yanyue Sect will not be humiliated!”

”Disciple Yuan Tao pays his respects to the Ninth Elder.”

Yuan Tao’s expression was solemn as he bowed respectfully to Ning Jiang.

”That’s right! So what if he killed him? What’s there to be afraid of? The Ninth Elder did well to kill him! This disciple pays his respects to the Ninth Elder!”

Many of the disciples present echoed the sentiment, agreeing with Ning Jiang’s actions.

After this battle, they had completely accepted Ning Jiang in their hearts.

Although Ning Jiang was not yet twenty—younger than more than ninety percent of them—his strength was enough to earn their respect.

”The Yanyue Sect may be in decline, but it has great potential.”

Ning Jiang murmured. He could see that when facing external enemies, the Yanyue Sect was extremely united and stood together as one.

This was a precious quality. The thing a Sect feared most was a scattered will among its people; that was a sure path to decline.

But if they knew how to be united, to be branches from the same tree, then the result would be completely different.

”Alright, everyone, you are dismissed for now. We still have some matters to discuss with the Ninth Elder,” Meng Nanfeng said loudly, clearing his throat.

”Yes.”

The many disciples took their leave.

After the crowd had left, Ning Jiang asked, ”What is this Qing Province Assembly you mentioned earlier?”

”The Qing Province Assembly is essentially a gathering of all the major sects. It’s led by the Five Great Sects, but the other smaller sects also attend. The assembly determines the entry quotas for a certain Secret Realm, and it will be held in a few months,” Meng Nanfeng explained.

”Our Yanyue Sect’s talent has withered. I’m afraid we will suffer a great loss at this assembly,” another Elder said, his face full of worry.

”Currently, our Yanyue Sect only has three young experts of the first tier. Compared to the other Four Great Sects, that’s far too few.”

At the mention of these matters, the Elders all felt a bitter taste in their mouths.

In Qing Province, the experts of the younger generation are divided into the third tier, the second tier, the first tier, and the young titans.

The other Four Great Sects have at least ten or so first-tier experts each, and the Star Sword Sect has more than twenty.

More importantly, each of the Four Great Sects has young titans.

Only their Yanyue Sect had none.

The young titans were the true peak combat power of the younger generation.

”Heh, everyone, there’s no need to worry. I believe our Yanyue Sect will soon have a young titan of its own,” the Grand Elder said with a smile.

”Oh? Grand Elder, are you referring to the Ninth Elder?”

”That’s right. With the Ninth Elder’s current strength, ranking in the first tier is no problem. Moreover, he is only at the Innate Realm. Once he breaks through to the Spirit Realm, his strength will surely reach the level of a young titan.”

Meng Nanfeng had complete confidence in Ning Jiang.

”The Spirit Realm... I will break through,” Ning Jiang said, then changed the subject. ”Earlier, Hong Lie mentioned that the Sect Leader ran into major problems during their tribulation. What was that about?”