Urban Martial Saint

Seeing Fu Qingping being blown away, everyone exclaimed in shock, especially those on Ye Qing’s side. Watching Fu Qingping being struck, their hearts sank as well. The Immortal Lord’s strike was enough to kill Fu Qingping, could it be that this legendary swordsman is going to die at the hands of the Immortal Lord like this?

”Master!” Ye Qing shouted aloud, running towards the mountain summit, wanting to check on Fu Qingping’s condition on the mountain, but was stopped by Shen Tianjun beside him.

”You can’t go up!” Shen Tianjun said solemnly. He knew very well that under the current circumstances, if Ye Qing went up the mountain, he would definitely fall into the hands of the Immortal Lord. After defeating Fu Qingping, the Immortal Lord would likely turn against them. The most crucial thing now is to find a way to leave here, to escape from the immediate crisis first.

Helian Tiehua and the others had the same thought, after all, they were also enemies with the Wanyan Family. If Fu Qingping truly died in battle, their only option would be to flee. If they didn’t flee, who could guarantee that the Immortal Lord wouldn’t start a massacre here?

Ye Qing felt extremely distressed, but he also understood that Shen Tianjun stopped him for his own good. But how could he stand by and watch as Fu Qingping lay on the mountain, his life or death unknown?

The people at the foot of the mountain also began to murmur among themselves, no one had expected that Fu Qingping, who initially held the upper hand, would end up defeated so humiliatingly. He couldn’t even keep his life. It seems the gap between a peak master and a beyond peerless master is still too vast. Attempting to challenge someone beyond the pinnacle is practically a death wish!

At the mountain peak, the Immortal Lord floated in the air, while Fu Qingping lay by a massive rock on the cliffside. For such a long time, Fu Qingping showed no signs of movement; it seemed he’d already perished.

”Hahaha...” The Immortal Lord laughed coldly, his face full of smug satisfaction. Killing Fu Qingping had dispelled the gloom of his previous injuries and completely washed away his prior disgrace.

Everyone was stunned by the outcome of this battle; no one noticed that the mass of clouds in the night sky was growing larger and larger. Moreover, those clouds were so low they seemed to be hovering directly over the mountain peak, almost within arm’s reach.

Far off on the hillside, a few people from the Sword Saint Sect were making their way down, but the servant kept glancing back at the mountain peak. When Third Master had looked at the night sky earlier, he too had taken notice, and so he had noted the state of those clouds. Watching those clouds slowly pressing down over the mountain peak, he was greatly astonished. How could there be clouds appearing in such a night sky? Moreover, they were positioned precisely over the mountain peak, covering only that particular area—what exactly was happening?

”Third Master, look at those clouds over there, how strange,” the servant murmured.

Third Master turned his head for a glance, slowly smiled, said nothing, and proceeded to head down the mountain. The servant didn’t understand what Third Master meant, but he was still thinking about what Third Master had said earlier, that the Immortal Lord had already been defeated. But how could he have been defeated?

The servant mulled over it, unable to reach a conclusion, and just as he was about to follow after Third Master and the others, he suddenly heard a commotion from the mountain below. He immediately turned his head to look. There, on the mountain peak, Fu Qingping, who should have been dead, was slowly sitting up!

”He... he’s not dead!?” the servant exclaimed involuntarily, as if witnessing something most unbelievable.

The few people walking ahead heard this and turned their heads simultaneously. Upon seeing Fu Qingping sitting up, they also wore expressions of disbelief. The only calm person was Third Master; he didn’t even turn around, nor did he glance back, as if everything was within his expectations.

Meanwhile, the people over by Mount Tai were also exclaiming in shock, especially the grief-stricken Ye Qing below. At this moment, seeing Fu Qingping actually rising again, he too widened his eyes, his mouth agape, completely unsure if he was experiencing an illusion.

Fu Qingping sat there on the massive rock, assuming a posture from the Innate Nine Diagrams. Above his head, clouds gathered densely, with faint flashes of electricity, like a summer thunderstorm. However, the dark clouds were pressing so low that the lightning seemed to be gathering overhead. Looking up, it felt like doomsday, truly terrifying.

”This... this... this...” The Immortal Lord’s eyes widened with a face full of shock, indeed bordering on fear, as if he had seen something terrifying. He stared at Fu Qingping without making a move, unsure if he had forgotten to act or was too fearful to do so, but he just remained there watching. His words were stammering, unable to speak a complete sentence for a while, appearing utterly dumbstruck.

Everyone was equally astonished, not just because Fu Qingping had sat up, but because of the shock of the dark clouds massing. However, Fu Qingping seemed entirely oblivious. He slowly changed to a second posture, still seated on the giant rock. As he switched within the Innate Nine Diagrams, the clouds above grew increasingly dark, gathering more and more. When he shifted to the ninth position, a sudden thunderclap rang from within the clouds, and a bolt of lightning shot directly from the clouds, aiming straight for Fu Qingping’s head.

”Ah!” Everyone exclaimed, even Ye Qing widened his eyes, completely unaware of what was happening. Fu Qingping wasn’t dead, he sat up to practice, but why did the lightning suddenly descend? What on earth is going on?

Looking at the momentum of the lightning, it was extremely terrifying. Will Fu Qingping be able to survive a strike like that? Could it be that Fu Qingping, who wasn’t killed by The Immortal Lord, is instead going to die from this natural disaster?

Everyone had the same thought as Ye Qing, truly unable to figure out what was happening. Some even had a look of pity in their eyes. Was Fu Qingping just unlucky enough to die like this?

The crowd’s thoughts only lasted an instant, as the lightning had already struck, hitting Fu Qingping directly. They only saw a flash of white light, and Fu Qingping’s silhouette was completely covered by it, with no understanding of what transpired within.

Ye Qing’s heart was suspended as well; the white light was blinding him so he couldn’t see the situation within. However, his heart sank again. Faced with such white light and such intensity, how could Fu Qingping possibly survive?

Suddenly, a sound thundered from within the white light. Immediately following, a white Sword Shadow about ten zhang in length soared upward, countering the lightning, and directly rushed into the dark clouds. The Sword Shadow swept across, dispelling the clouds entirely, leaving no trace. The full moon filled the sky, still bright and pristine. In the night sky, not a single cloud remained, as if that previously overcast sky never existed, leaving no mark.

Back on the mountain peak, Fu Qingping had already stood up, hands behind his back. Beside him, a white Sword Shadow stood alongside him, hovering in mid-air. This Sword Shadow was nearly identical to the one that had just dispelled the clouds, only much smaller.

Without a doubt, the Sword Shadow that dispelled the clouds was unleashed by Fu Qingping. Though no one knew what had happened, anyone could tell that Fu Qingping had undergone a significant change from before!

Seeing this, Ye Qing widened his eyes again. Fu Qingping wasn’t dead!? Moreover, his strength seemed to have greatly increased. What on earth is happening?

At this moment, Ye Qing had no time to ponder why, his eyes were slightly reddened. Just moments ago, he genuinely believed Fu Qingping was dead and was nearly set on fighting The Immortal Lord recklessly. Who could have foreseen things would take this sudden turn, with Fu Qingping surviving after all!

The people on the mountain were in an uproar. Even the servant far away on the mountainside was somewhat agitated. Although the Sword Saint Sect regarded Fu Qingping as an enemy, seeing him stand up stirred some excitement. This signaled that even a Peak Master could challenge a beyond peerless master!

The Immortal Lord was most surprised, staring at Fu Qingping standing before him and the white Sword Shadow beside him, frowning tightly.

”Fu Qingping, how… how did you do this?” The Immortal Lord asked in a deep voice, his tone slightly trembling. The aura emanating from Fu Qingping had already struck terror into him. Confronted by Fu Qingping, he was no longer confident as before.

”My power has reached the realm of beyond peerless, but my state of mind hasn’t caught up yet. So I had to witness the strength of beyond peerless to understand this realm better!” Fu Qingping looked at The Immortal Lord, saying, ”Just now when you attacked with full strength, it let me witness true beyond peerless power, allowing my state of mind to finally reach that realm. Only then did I truly break past the acme’s shackles and become beyond peerless!”

The Immortal Lord’s expression changed; no wonder Fu Qingping kept challenging him before — this was the reason all along! Fu Qingping intentionally wanted to witness beyond peerless power. No wonder he said he was still just a bit short earlier; turned out that the feeling was the only thing he lacked.

The Immortal Lord took a deep breath, speaking solemnly, ”Seems like I ended up fulfilling you?”

”You could say that!” Fu Qingping slowly walked up to The Immortal Lord, saying, ”You merely allowed me to enter the realm of beyond peerless prematurely. Without you, I’d have to explore myself, and who knows how long that would take!”

The Immortal Lord’s face turned cold; he understood the situation, having undergone the same experience as Fu Qingping now. Back in the day, he obtained a Demon Sect Secret Technique, his power rapidly increased, reaching the beyond peerless realm early on. However, his state of mind hadn’t caught up until his lifespan was nearly exhausted, when he finally broke through the acme’s shackles. He had challenged the Corpse Ghost Dragon then, seeking to experience the beyond peerless realm to elevate his state of mind. Fu Qingping was experiencing the same now.