Chapter 664: Sure Loss? Not Necessarily.
The lake water surged for a long time, rising up and down. The reflection of the blue sky and white clouds distorted as if the lake had deep undercurrents.
Soon, Xiao Chen landed stably on the water surface. Then, he looked calmly at Gui Wu, who was on the opposite shore.
Indeed, Gui Wu had broken through the bottleneck of Inferior Grade Martial Monarch and become a Medial Grade Martial Monarch.
For Gui Wu to make so much progress as a newcomer inner sect disciple, he was rather capable. However, that was all there was to it.
Gui Wu’s cultivation realm was not too much of a shock. Xiao Chen’s target had never been Gui Wu; gunning for him would only have been a waste of effort.
Xiao Chen generally did not lose his temper. However, once angered, he would trample his opponent permanently, settling it once and for all. This was now how he did things.
Gui Wu’s thin face was cold and expressionless. Murderous intent surged in his eyes as he stared at Xiao Chen. “I knew that you would not submit so willingly. However, I didn’t expect you could cause such a big commotion.”
Not only had Xiao Chen refused to hand over the Spirit Gathering Pearls, but he had also trounced all his subordinates. His actions had dealt a severe blow to Gui Wu’s faction.
As a result, Gui Wu lost credibility and prestige. The leaders of the other factions were all currently gathered here, hidden in the crowd.
If Gui Wu could not defeat Xiao Chen, the other factions would immediately attack his faction, eliminating it forever.
Finding him funny, Xiao Chen retorted indifferently, “Submit? This word does not exist in my dictionary. You are just taking things for granted.”
“Xiao Chen, let me ask you one more time, are you really going to go against me? If you apologize to me for that day’s matter and hand over the Spirit Gathering Pearls, I can let you off today,” Gui Wu shouted coldly, released his aura and pressing it on Xiao Chen. Clearly, he wanted to subdue Xiao Chen using his aura first.
Letting that seemingly solid aura surge over, Xiao Chen did not say anything.
The berserker aura was as heavy as mountains, causing the lake water to surge endlessly; waves rose up and down.
The inner sect disciples who had gotten the news that Gui Wu leaked out all watched without blinking for a moment.
These inner sect disciples really wanted to know where Xiao Chen, an unheard-of disciple from the Sky Dome Realm, got his confidence from. Where did he get the courage to challenge the newcomer giant of the inner sect, Gui Wu?
“Who do you think will win?”
The leaders of the original five big factions of the inner sect stood in an unremarkable corner to watch the battle covertly.
The one who spoke was the strongest of the five leaders, Yu Zhiqiang. Beside him were Meng Hongguang, Feng Wuheng, Bai Zihao, and Lan Feichen.
Hearing this, Lan Feichen, who had exchanged moves with Gui Wu before, said, “There is nothing much to guess. Xiao Chen will definitely lose. Gui Wu practices a bizarre defensive technique. I only managed to defeat him after a thousand moves and exhausting his Quintessence.
“Furthermore, at that time, Gui Wu was still an Inferior Grade Martial Monarch. Now that he has advanced to Medial Grade Martial Monarch, he would only be stronger.”
Feng Wuheng added calmly, “In our eyes, this Gui Wu may be nothing. However, it should not be hard for him to defeat this Xiao Chen.”
Bai Zihao and Meng Hongguang also expressed similar thoughts. They believed that Xiao Chen would definitely lose.
Yu Zhiqiang smiled gently and asked, “In that case, why are you all here to watch this meaningless battle?”
The four smiled embarrassedly. Bai Zihao said, “Everyone probably has the same intention. The selection for the next true inheritor will begin in a few months. This Xiao Chen must have some capability since he could kill the Seven Black Wind Killers.
“It’s a good thing for him to test out Gui Wu’s strength. You all probably want to see the extent of Gui Wu’s growth, right?”
Feng Wuheng sighed softly, “These two fellows from the lower realms are indeed surprisingly outstanding. Situ Gang’s strength speaks for itself. This Gui Wu is a great threat to us as well.”
As the few spoke, Gui Wu slowly lost his patience. Despite him pressing on Xiao Chen with his aura, Xiao Chen did not show any signs of discomfort at all.
Xiao Chen remained calm and relaxed. As the wave surged up and down, his white robes fluttered in the wind. He stood there like a mountain, not moving at all.
“Let’s see how long you can carry on this pretense!” Gui Wu shouted ferociously and drew his sword. The tip of his sword trembled as he casually sent out a sword Qi and leap over to Xiao Chen.
As Gui Wu moved, that sword Qi brushed by Xiao Chen and sank into the lake.
When Xiao Chen dodged that sword Qi, Gui Wu had already arrived before him. His sword flickered, its aura withdrawn as it stabbed at Xiao Chen.
“Dang!”
Xiao Chen quickly drew his Lunar Shadow Saber and casually deflected the ferocious attack.
“Bang!”
Suddenly, a water pillar burst out of the water behind him. The sword Qi that Gui Wu had sent out earlier exploded in the depths of the lake.
The huge eruption created a whirlpool. The surrounding water dipped two meters. Xiao Chen suddenly dropped towards the bottom.
The instant Xiao Chen sank, Gui Wu laughed maniacally. He created a flower of swords and pulled back his right hand.
Hundreds of sword images suddenly merged, and Gui Wu’s sword gave off a dazzling, resplendent glow surging with sword intent.
It turned out that the first attack that Gui Wu launched had not been done casually but to create this opening.
Seeing such a situation, Meng Hongguang could not help saying, “Excellent. With this, this battle will be ending soon.”
Since the opponent did not have any opening, Gui Wu created one himself. Then, he caught hold of the opportunity to suppress his opponent in one move. Gui Wu’s schemes were impressive.
Xiao Chen’s expression turned serious. Indeed, this Gui Wu could not be underestimated. Gui Wu could create such an ideal opportunity for himself in two moves.
Seeing that he would not be able to dodge the sword tip approaching his chest in time, Xiao Chen did not bother trying.
He circulated his Quintessence and infused his sixty-percent-comprehended saber intent into his saber, creating a dense saber Qi, and clashed head-on with the sword in midair.
“Bang!”
Something strange happened. Gui Wu had seized the initiative and taken advantage of the instant Xiao Chen sank and could not move to attack. However, Xiao Chen’s counter knocked him back. Gui Wu’s feet skidded on the lake surface, kicking up a wall of water on both sides as he moved back.
“What is going on?”
Everyone was astonished; many could not understand what happened. Gui Wu had held the absolute advantage just now. How had Xiao Chen forced him back?
Lan Feichen, who had exchanged moves with Gui Wu, was even more astonished. “That is impossible. Given Gui Wu’s defensive technique and Xiao Chen’s low cultivation, Gui Wu should be able to defend against the Quintessence of this attack.”
Turning around, Xiao Chen pushed off the air and caught his breath. Then, he immediately rode an Azure Dragon image, rushing at Gui Wu.
The shock in Gui Wu’s heart could not be described with words. Unexpectedly, the defensive technique he had relied on failed to dissipate the force of Xiao Chen’s counterattack.
Before Gui Wu could be shocked for long, Xiao Chen was already pressing forward with his perfect sixty-percent-comprehended saber intent infused into his saber. Thunder boomed.
Xiao Chen executed the first move of the Four Season Saber Technique—the Spring Saber Chop. Still in disbelief at what had just happened, Gui Wu circulated his Quintessence and tilted his body to the side, intent on dissipating all the force of this attack.
“Bang!”
Gui Wu vomited a mouthful of blood and flew back, landing on the surface of the water in a somewhat miserable state.
“Burning to Desolation!”
Having pushed Gui Wu back in one move, Xiao Chen rode his momentum to execute the move of the Four Season Saber Technique with the most explosive power.
“Bang! Bang! Bang!”
Xiao Chen executed the Four Season Saber Technique relentlessly. He was only an Inferior Grade Martial Monarch, but he continuously forced Gui Wu back, eliminating Gui Wu’s previously ferocious aura.
Such a scene had everyone goggling in shock. The expected scene of Xiao Chen’s defeat did not occur. Instead, they saw this.
“Fated Person in Autumn Waters!”
A gentle saber light flashed, like a beautiful girl smiling faintly, and knocked Gui Wu to the bottom of the lake like he was a cannonball.
Xiao Chen rode an Azure Dragon image in midair for some time. His face was expressionless as he scanned the now calm lake like he was searching for something.
The inner sect disciples at the lakeshore were shocked speechless. Four moves…Xiao Chen used only four moves to rout Gui Wu. No one expected such a result.
“Cycle of Seasons, Endless Growth!”
Xiao Chen’s gaze suddenly stopped at an area of the calm lake. Mysterious phenomena of spring, summer, autumn, and winter appeared in a cycle as a seven-colored saber light appeared.
“What is Xiao Chen doing? Is the battle not over yet?” The many inner sect disciples could not help but feel curious. They could not understand Xiao Chen’s actions.
“Boom!”
Before they could finish voicing their doubts, an enormous whirlpool appeared on the lake. A colossal pillar of water three hundred meters wide shot several kilometers high into the sky.
The sound was ear-shattering like the end of the world. This ‘boom’ startled the onlookers before they had the chance to brace themselves.
When the inner sect disciples looked up, they saw a person in tattered clothes at the apex of the pillar of water. It would be hard for this matter to be covered up. Tossed kilometers high in the air, that person fell limply to the ground like a sandbag.
Gui Wu landed on the shore. The massive impact produced a loud explosion. His exposed body bounced solidly on the ground a few times before coming to a stop.
Blood poured out of a corner of Gui Wu’s lips. Wounds completely covered his body. He was extremely weak, his vision now hazy.
“Xiu!”
The Azure Dragon image below Xiao Chen roared as it moved up and down, instantly arriving before Gui Wu. The surrounding disciples immediately shrank back, the gazes directed at Xiao Chen filled with fear.
Earlier, Xiao Chen had clearly defeated Gui Wu already, leaving Gui Wu to sink into the lake in a sorry state without the guts to show himself. However, he did not let Gui Wu off. He forced Gui Wu out of hiding from the bottom of the lake.
From this, it was plain that the seemingly even-tempered White Robed Bladesman was also a ruthless character.
Gui Wu, who was on the ground, recovered a little. When he saw Xiao Chen before him, fear filled his heart. He scrambled backwards on his hands nonstop.
Xiao Chen said indifferently, “Do you think I need to submit to the current you?”
Today, Xiao Chen had utterly defeated Gui Wu, beating him up ruthlessly before everyone. Gui Wu would not be able to recover from his injuries without half a year to recuperate. As for the shadow in his heart, he would never be able to overcome it.
Xiao Chen merely did not bother making a move. However, when he made a move, it would be decisive and ruthless. He would trample his opponent ruthlessly, never letting him rise again.
Seeing Gui Wu’s pathetic state, Xiao Chen smiled coldly and dismissed him. He gently turned around and pushed off the ground to fly back to his courtyard.
Suddenly, on the other side of the lake, the strongest of the five big factions’ leaders, Yu Zhiqiang, exclaimed, “That is a perfect sixty-percent-comprehended saber intent!”