Facing Xiao Yuanqing’s interrogation, Beichen Yue spat out a mouthful of blood, propping herself up with her sword. She glanced faintly at Dongfang Xiaotian and asked, “How long has it been?”
“Ninety-three breaths,” Dongfang Xiaotian replied evenly.
Although it seemed like a fierce battle had just taken place, the speed of cultivator combat was much faster, especially with Beichen Yue deliberately dragging out the fight with conversation.
With Xiao Yuanqing clearly not going all out, Beichen Yue had only managed to hold on for about a minute and a half.
“Mm, you may continue.”
Beichen Yue bit down on her silver teeth and tried to stand, but the moment she straightened, a sweet taste surged up her throat, and she spat out another mouthful of blood.
Xiao Yuanqing’s sword strike and throw were far more severe than Beichen Yue had imagined; she could barely hold on for even a second before collapsing back down.
Dongfang Xiaotian saw this and could only sigh in slight resignation. The body of a pure sword cultivator was just too frail—taking just two strikes and she could endure no more.
“All right, I’ll take over from here.”
Dongfang Xiaotian looked at Xiao Yuanqing and said, “Next, it’s my turn. Is that fine?”
Xiao Yuanqing pondered for a moment, then let out a long sigh. “Brother Dongfang, I thought your five years of wandering would have shown you the world’s myriad evils. It seems I was mistaken.”
“Without sufficient strength to oppose evil, your ideals are but a daytime fantasy!”
“Come, receive my sword! Let me show you the difference between reality and dreams!!”
Xiao Yuanqing swung his longsword, releasing a wave of blue sword qi.
Though he still hadn’t used his full strength, this was nevertheless an attack at the peak of Foundation Establishment, the tenth level in its entirety!
“Young Master Dongfang, hurry, draw your sword!”
Beichen Yue couldn’t help but scream. Even just receiving a single sword strike left her hands nearly unable to grip her sword; Dongfang Xiaotian could only resist by giving up his long-accumulated attack!
Even if his spell had failed, at least he could save his life.
Just before the sword qi struck Dongfang Xiaotian, a talisman flew out from his hand, transforming into a golden shield that blocked the attack.
“I’ve taken your sword.”
Dongfang Xiaotian continued gathering spiritual power with his longsword and said helplessly, “Brother Xiao, what do you think?”
“A third-grade Vajra Bodyguard Talisman?”
Xiao Yuanqing frowned slightly, then broke into a smile. “Plus that Control Talisman Technique you just displayed—Brother Dongfang, you’re actually a third-grade talisman cultivator?”
“As you see.”
Dongfang Xiaotian directly pulled out a thick stack of yellow talisman papers in his hand, smiling. “Brother Xiao, do you still think I’m just daydreaming?”
Beichen Yue stared wide-eyed at the thick stack of talismans in Dongfang Xiaotian’s hand.
She’d thought Dongfang Xiaotian was short on spirit stones, and that he would have at most three or five such precious talismans. Who would have thought he’d pull out such a thick pile…
A third-grade talisman cultivator—wasn’t that comparable to a Golden Core cultivator?
Then why hadn’t he taken action from the start? Why force her to battle Xiao Yuanqing first?
Beichen Yue suddenly felt that spitting up all this blood had been a little unjustified, but quickly consoled herself that Young Master Dongfang certainly wasn’t such a petty person.
Could it be that Young Master Dongfang was deliberately tempering her? Making sure she didn’t think that just because she had inherited his sword intent she could be invincible in the world!
Yes, Beichen Yue immediately began to regret her arrogance over these few hours of Foundation Establishment.
Even earlier, she’d let that evil cultivator at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment escape, causing unnecessary trouble for Young Master Dongfang.
As for Tushan Bingxian, she too had fought a mid-stage Foundation Establishment opponent; though she was badly injured, with half a step into Foundation Establishment she had managed to kill her foe across realms, without troubling the Young Master in the least.
***
Meanwhile, what Dongfang Xiaotian was actually thinking was: minus five hundred spirit stones… my heart aches.
Damn! That was a third-grade talisman! Each one cost five hundred spirit stones!
Xiao Yuanqing was too ruthless! With just half a step into the Golden Core realm, he could shatter a Vajra Bodyguard Talisman that could even block a Golden Core strike.
True, Dongfang Xiaotian had activated the talisman’s weaker defensive mode just now—a broader shield with lower defense, but requiring no manual control.
But even so, a third-grade Vajra Bodyguard Talisman should be able to withstand a Golden Core strike, yet Xiao Yuanqing broke it with a single burst of sword qi—sword qi that was considered less powerful among sword cultivators… Do all geniuses act so wantonly?
Although grumbling inwardly, Dongfang Xiaotian still maintained an air of composure.
“As expected of Brother Dongfang. Even though your cultivation is gone, your means are still impressive.”
Xiao Yuanqing cast a look of admiration at Dongfang Xiaotian, but his smile remained unchanged. “But all you have are Vajra Bodyguard Talismans, right?”
As he spoke, over a dozen blades of sword qi slashed toward Dongfang Xiaotian like wind blades, but, just as before, each one was blocked by Dongfang Xiaotian’s talisman shields.
Xiao Yuanqing watched as Dongfang Xiaotian used up another Vajra Bodyguard Talisman and chuckled.
“When you insisted I make a move earlier, I realized it. You must not have any offensive third-grade talismans… otherwise, why resort to spending spirit stones to call for help?”
“Maybe I just think spending spirit stones is cheaper?”
Dongfang Xiaotian wasn’t annoyed, simply stalling for time.
“If you do have any, Brother Dongfang, I’ll gladly take them on.”
Xiao Yuanqing squinted slightly at the snapped Azure Dragon Sword in Dongfang Xiaotian’s hand.
“But your charging technique really is troublesome… there’s about a hundred and eighty breaths left, isn’t there? No, given Brother Dongfang’s cautious nature, perhaps a hundred breaths is the true time.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t let you unleash that sword!”
With those words, Xiao Yuanqing moved. In a flash, his figure dissolved into a wisp of blue smoke, vanishing from his original spot, and was followed by sword qi coming from all directions.
This time, the sword qi was even fiercer than what had struck Beichen Yue earlier!
Beichen Yue saw the sword qi and cried out inwardly—bad!
Xiao Yuanqing could break a third-grade Vajra Bodyguard Talisman’s defense with a single blow. With so many attacks at once, how could they possibly all be blocked?
Dongfang Xiaotian was well aware that such sequential attacks from Xiao Yuanqing would eventually overcome him, so several talismans instantly flew from his hand, each one crashing precisely into a stream of sword qi!
With a series of shattering sounds, each blast of sword qi was easily blocked.
The Vajra Bodyguard Talisman, as one of the most practical talismans, had two modes: Vajra and Bodyguard.
The Bodyguard mode formed a light shield—no need for hand control, but a guarantee of baseline defense.
The Vajra mode focused all defense onto a single point, raising the upper limit, but required special methods to guide—sacrificing breadth for strength!
Seeing his attacks blocked, Xiao Yuanqing’s expression froze momentarily, then he immediately smiled. “Control Talisman Technique—again!”
Beichen Yue half-knelt beside Dongfang Xiaotian, watching as sword qi from all directions became more and more numerous and dense. She was amazed at Xiao Yuanqing’s insight into fast sword techniques!
The sword qi moved so quickly that even watching from afar, Beichen Yue’s eyes blurred—she couldn’t even begin to count how many attacks Xiao Yuanqing unleashed in just a few breaths!
From all sides, the dense waves of sword qi swept toward Dongfang Xiaotian, causing Beichen Yue to unconsciously hold her breath.
But in this dazzling rain of sword qi, talismans continuously flew from Dongfang Xiaotian’s hand, each one intercepting the oncoming sword qi with precision.
Each talisman only activated when the sword qi was very close, and each one could block over a dozen attacks from a single direction!
That pinpoint accuracy at such close range made Beichen Yue feel as though the sword wind filled with intent was brushing right past her face.
“Brother Dongfang! Do you know the greatest weakness of talisman cultivators?”
Xiao Yuanqing’s attacks came like a raging storm, relentless.
“Talisman cultivators are weak themselves, relying only on their talismans to fight! I can make countless mistakes, but you only need to fail once—and you’ll lose!”
Feint!
“Whether you can strike me or not will depend on your swordsmanship.”
Dongfang Xiaotian, holding his longsword in one hand, carefully watched Xiao Yuanqing’s every move.
Sometimes he blocked with talismans, sometimes he dodged; occasionally, forced back by a sword strike, he remained vigilant against any tricks.
Beichen Yue also thought Xiao Yuanqing’s analysis was spot on—Dongfang Xiaotian could only withstand one of Xiao Yuanqing’s blows; if Dongfang Xiaotian was struck even once, it would be over.
All Xiao Yuanqing needed was to keep attacking, waiting for Dongfang Xiaotian to make a single mistake, and the outcome would be decided!
Beichen Yue watched with her heart pounding; as a sword fanatic herself, just watching from afar made her realize the sword skills of the two before her far surpassed her own.
Xiao Yuanqing’s sword arts, the Fast Sword of the Xiao Sect, the Azure Nether Sword Technique.
This sword art was famous for its speed; though its power was only on par with ordinary techniques, in Xiao Yuanqing’s hands it could unleash strength far beyond the typical tenth-level Foundation Establishment cultivator!
Ordinary cultivators at this level would need to use a big, charged-up attack to break Dongfang Xiaotian’s Vajra Bodyguard Talisman, but Xiao Yuanqing could do it with a single skill, forcing Dongfang Xiaotian to keep burning talismans to rebuild his defense!
But the more formidable Xiao Yuanqing was, the more Beichen Yue realized the depth of Dongfang Xiaotian’s swordsmanship!
Intercepting sword qi from the east!
Blocking a surprise attack from the southwest!
When the shield broke, stepping aside to avoid the sword qi!
Blind spot at the back—shield shatters, dodge!
Without supreme insight into swordsmanship, it would be impossible to block every attack at such close range and come away unscathed.
“So this is the world of geniuses…”
After watching this battle, Beichen Yue finally realized just how ordinary she truly was.
A half-step Foundation Establishment cultivator like Tushan Bingxian could kill a mid-stage Foundation Establishment opponent; under the Golden Core realm, she was unmatched, and even above Golden Core, could go one-for-one with Xiao Yuanqing.
And in those images, the fourteen-year-old Jiang Li could already battle experienced Foundation Establishment evil cultivators to a standstill.
And right now, before her, was Young Master Dongfang, whose cultivation was ruined yet whose understanding of the sword far surpassed that of ordinary people…
Every one of them was stunningly talented! She felt she could only look up at their backs.
As Beichen Yue marveled, suddenly, a torrent of spiritual energy erupted, snapping her back to reality.
In a daze, the three hundred breaths were up!
Yet what Beichen Yue sensed was not a formation, but a terrifyingly sharp sword intent.
“So it really was three hundred breaths.”
Xiao Yuanqing looked at Dongfang Xiaotian, who still had a quarter of his talismans remaining, and sighed helplessly, ceasing his attacks in regret.
“It seems that in terms of swordsmanship, I really am inferior to Brother Dongfang.”
“It’s too late to concede now.” Dongfang Xiaotian looked at the broken sword in his hand, which had already begun to hum.
“Not too late. You can only strike once anyway.”
Xiao Yuanqing remained calm. “It’s not as if I can’t dodge.”
Beichen Yue was stunned when she heard this—Sword?
Wasn’t Young Master Dongfang setting up a formation?
And was Young Master Xiao being a bit shameless? He was going to dodge a sword from someone at the seventh level of Qi Refining?
Do all top experts do this?
“Do you dare to dodge?”
Dongfang Xiaotian shot back.
Xiao Yuanqing smiled. “Why wouldn’t I dare?”
The Azure Nether Sword Technique prioritized speed; besides the sword art, there was a corresponding movement technique—dodging a single sword strike was more than doable.
“Brother Xiao, let me tell you something else.”
Dongfang Xiaotian said, “I’m not just a talisman cultivator, I’ve also dabbled in formations. These three hundred breaths weren’t just my charging time, but also the time I used to break the formation!”
“The formation’s core is over there, isn’t it?”
Dongfang Xiaotian revealed a sly smile, and at the same time, Xiao Yuanqing’s expression grew serious.
“Brother Xiao, you’d best prepare for this strike!”