Chapter 267: Chapter 262 Qian Sword Dao
Raging Fire Force strongly suppressed Ling Wujue, with flames rolling fiercely, sweeping across the sky, and suddenly enveloped the Great Circle Sword.
"Swoosh!"
Amid the sound of the sword, a rainbow reappeared, dazzling like the sun, causing the temperature, which had dropped due to the weather, to rise once again. The Sword Rainbow flew diagonally, brilliantly and swiftly, entering within a three-feet radius in an instant.
Fast! Fierce! Strong!
While the all-encompassing theory of the Great Circle Sword states that anyone can wield its full power, the Sword Rainbow it emitted at that moment was far stronger than the previous one from Xuanming.
However, it was still not enough to pose a threat to Jiang Li.
Using the Emperor’s Qi Observation Skill, Jiang Li foresaw the move before the Sword Rainbow appeared, reacting as if he had foreseen it. With one hand still behind his back, he shifted half a step to the left while the Heavenly Will Battle Sword on his hand dazzled with lightning, slicing down in a half-arc.
Accompanied by the shrill sound of friction, the sword tip struck the Sword Rainbow, sparking countless sparks, causing the Heavenly Will Sword to tremble violently, tearing through the Sword Qi and revealing its clear blade once more.
"Clang!"
In the flash of lightning, a figure moved to Jiang Li’s side amid the blaze, changing from diagonal sweeping to an upward thrust. As the swords collided and rubbed against each other, sparks flew about, and the intense momentum of the swords burst forth, cutting through the flame and revealing the fiery figure within.
"Gongsun Qingyue!" Ling Wujue exclaimed in a stern voice.
Having heard the sound, he had already guessed it, but it was hard for him to believe until she appeared.
Simply because she was too powerful.
Her strength far surpassed the Sixth Rank Ling Wujue, making it hard to believe that she had also been of the Seventh Rank before.
It wasn’t just Ling Wujue who felt this way, even Yun Jiuye was somewhat solemn at the moment.
Gongsun Qingyue was Yun Jiuye’s main rival. The stronger she was, the bigger the threat to Yun Jiuye. On the other hand, Jiang Li’s threat wasn’t that significant.
Assuming Jiang Li wasn’t found to have any Ji Family bloodline...
Above the light screen, Gongsun Qingyue smiled charmingly and said, "I’ve come to decide the outcome with you."
Her beautiful face radiated a surprising charm, and at this moment, Gongsun Qingyue’s aura seemed capable of rivaling Jiang Li.
At close range, her lips moved slightly, speaking silent words that only Jiang Li could see.
—[If you win, I’ll listen to you from now on; if I win, you’ll remain beneath me for life.]
"Hiss—"
Jiang Li gasped slightly.
Having drawn out a bunch of abilities from the Karma Collection, he was naturally proficient in reading lips, so he effortlessly understood his senior sister’s meaning.
But because he understood, he was shocked.
When did she become so capable?
Was this really the same Gongsun Qingyue who couldn’t use the chances given to her? Could this be Elder Tianxuan in disguise?
But looking at fate, it was exactly the same as Gongsun Qingyue.
"No, fate can also be hidden or even disguised. I’m not yet proficient enough in Yi Dao to see through everything, so..."
Jiang Li activated [Breast Recognition]...
The assessment finished. They weren’t padded.
Could it really be his senior sister?
While pondering in his mind, the operation of Innate Qi wasn’t slow. The Battle Sword in Jiang Li’s hand trembled, using the special enhancement of the Heavenly Will Sword along with the Thunder Technique, ready to further unleash the power of the Divine Sword Thunder Protection High-frequency Technique.
But Gongsun Qingyue suddenly withdrew her sword and stepped back, drifting backwards like a light crane, exiting the confrontation, leaving only a scorched trace of the sword in the air.
"Guangming Daoist, may I know if I can wield the sword and contest my junior brother?"
After retreating, Gongsun Qingyue was the first to ask Guangming Daoist.
Guangming Daoist didn’t dawdle, nodding directly, "Of course you can. Xuanming, step down for now."
Success or failure in the sword duel depended on the sword itself. As long as the Great Circle Sword remained undamaged, even if the Sword Holder lost, someone else could easily replace him. With the Great Circle Sword accommodating everything, the number of potential Sword Holders was limitless.
Guangming Daoist didn’t need to worry about Gongsun Qingyue holding back since he had plenty of replacements.
The sword was almost impossible to destroy, and Sword Holders could be freely switched. Considering this, the Retro Party was not just in an invincible position but could even secure the victory.
Because compared to the Great Circle Sword, the Heavenly Will Sword had strict conditions of use. By the time Jiang Li was unable to continue, it would likely be hard to find another person who could fully demonstrate its powers.
Thus, Guangming Daoist wasn’t worried at all, even if Xuanming failed, showing only a look of regret and not really losing composure.
"First secure the undefeatable, then strive for victory, that can indeed be described as conservative."
A three-zhang tall giant let out a disdainful sneer.
Long Yue, as a Great Master of Mo Sect, could of course see this dynamic, and immediately opposed them.
"Once your sword breaks the Great Circle, then come and mock my caution," Guangming Daoist replied calmly.
Currently, the Retro Party was clearly in the lead, and however much Mo Sect ridiculed them, they would only be seen as the wails of defeated dogs.
Seeing this, Master Long Yue became even more displeased, and the people of Mo Sect also showed worried expressions.
Above the light screen, Xuanming reluctantly glanced at the Great Circle Sword, clutching his injured hand as he exited the stage, leaving the space to Jiang Li and Gongsun Qingyue, the fellow disciples. The atmosphere suddenly shifted.
"It looks like Senior Sister is full of confidence,"
As Jiang Li spoke, he discreetly grabbed the Wind Queen Compass from the magic artifact in his wrist guard with his left hand, covering it with his sleeve.
A careful journey ensures a lasting ship, don’t let Senior Sister turn the tables.
"Junior Brother, are you testing the waters with your words because you are afraid?" Gongsun Qingyue’s eyes curved into a smile as she spoke, "If you are scared, admit defeat now, and Senior Sister might still allow you some dignity."
As the two conversed, the Qi Mechanism subtly wandered, expanding from beneath their feet like a spiderweb.
Their verbal spar, the setup of the Array Plate—it didn’t seem like a simple sword duel, but rather like using the duel as a pretext to determine who was superior.
If it were merely a sword duel, it would involve straightforward and continuous direct combat with swords, without this complexity.
Their current actions were not just about swordsmanship; it was about the person as well.
The wind started to blow.
In this open space surrounded by mountain walls, a breeze suddenly stirred, invisible strands of Wind Force blew from behind Jiang Li towards Gongsun Qingyue.
Changes occurred at that moment.
The Array Plate suddenly solidified, and a similar breeze arose around Gongsun Qingyue, swirling forward. The two Wind Forces intertwined like chaotic water currents, colliding and twisting around each other to form a massive vortex.
Jiang Li’s Array Plate overlapped partially with Gongsun Qingyue’s at the same time. Their domains collided, and instantly, Qi Veins began to twist.
With the Wind Queen’s Strange Gate, the positions shifted fluidly: oneself was like the handle of the Dipper, mastering the Circulation, realizing changes through the Circulation, forming a domain. When two practitioners of the Wind Queen’s Strange Gate fought, the first thing to determine was who could dominate and control the Circulation.
The Eight Trigrams shifted continuously: sometimes Kan and Li opposed each other, Water and Fire counteracted; sometimes they complemented each other, with Thunder and Wind harmonizing.
In an instant, Wind and Thunder merged, overcoming and giving birth to new forms, disregarding creation and destruction, maximizing change.
Streams of Qi Force wrestled; the vortex of air currents became the crux of the entwined Qi forces, expanding even more.
’Senior Sister has truly advanced to Sixth Rank; her power has doubled compared to before. It’s only because I have cultivated "Qi Tomb" that I can suppress her power at Seventh Rank.’
As Jiang Li fought, he silently assessed Gongsun Qingyue’s strength, realizing just how greatly his Senior Sister had progressed, almost to the point...
Before he could ponder further, Gongsun Qingyue suddenly straightened her body, her True Qi burst forth like roaring flames, the Great Circle Sword turned red like fire, with a purple-red line running down its center to the tip, resembling a blood groove, and flames ignited in the sphere at the hilt.
The Great Circle Sword underwent a subtle transformation; it didn’t morph like the Heavenly Will Sword, but it manifested the nature of the user’s True Qi.
"Li Sword Path."
The sword followed the heart, evolving into roaring flames, countless Sword Qi spread like wildfire, instantly piercing through the vortex of air currents.
"Boom!"
The air exploded, turning into numerous chaotic currents, while the Sword Qi truly spread like wildfire, dividing into spirals of flames, twisting like a flood dragon, piercing towards Jiang Li.
’This computational power... she’s caught up to me.’
A surprised thought emerged in Jiang Li’s mind as the Heavenly Will Sword began to change in his hands.
With flames abounding and growing, even the powerful Divine Sword Thunder Protection High-frequency Technique couldn’t completely block them. Jiang Li immediately allowed the Heavenly Will Sword to change its form, his arm pulsating with blood, revealing Red Patterned Dragon Scales.
Transforming from a Battle Sword into a dark, edgeless Heavy Sword, Jiang Li’s knuckles deformed like dragon claws gripping the hilt, the blade danced, raising fierce winds.
Innate Qi simultaneously transformed into two forms, Earth Qi and Mountain Qi within him, and with a slash forward.
"Roar!"
The wildfire suddenly split open, creating a wide pathway, countless Sword Qi were crushed under extreme force, Jiang Li stepped forward, closing the distance like a startled swan, dragging the Heavy Sword along the light screen, severing one after another Qi Veins, making it difficult for the Array Plate to take shape.
"Xun Sword Path."
Gongsun Qingyue converged her sword momentum, transforming Li into Xun; the Great Circle Sword also changed accordingly, shifting from fiery red to pale green, as a gentle breeze coiled around the blade.
She controlled the sword with Qi, pinched a sword formula, and the Great Circle Sword suddenly dispersed, turning into several strands of gentle breeze, twisting like wandering dragons, striking toward Jiang Li.
The Great Circle Sword, being a sword refined to void, seemed solid, but it was actually illusionary like Sword Qi, having a physical form yet stabilizing its essence, thus could withstand the corrosion of the Five Vile Qi. Now Gongsun Qingyue was utilizing its essence, transforming the sword into wind, where each breeze was like a sword, intricately blocking Jiang Li’s paths.
Xun Sword Path’s changes were unpredictable, supported by the Great Circle Sword, its profound and sharp momentum approached in twists and turns, the piercing Qi Mechanism forced Jiang Li to hastily alter his sword form again.
The Heavenly Will Sword suddenly shifted from heavy to slender and light, resembling a sheet of paper, a beam of light, its color a golden yellow, like a golden feather.
Jiang Li wielded his sword like the wind, mercury spilling onto the ground, his body all sword shadows, extraordinarily splendid.
"Clang clang clang..."
The sound of clashing sword tips resounded relentlessly, the Heavenly Intent Gold Sword faster than the wind, like light, like shadow, cutting down invisible wind swords один за одним.
But Gongsun Qingyue’s offensive did not cease.
Her sword formulas altered, the Wind Queen’s Strange Gate’s Array Plate took the opportunity to expand, utilizing the Human Plate simultaneously.
"Qian Sword Path."
Jiang Li suddenly experienced a strange illusion, feeling the heavens and the earth continually expanding, showcasing the vastness of the universe, while he kept shrinking, minute as an ant, a magnificent sword intent surrounding him, his perception from the Emperor’s Qi Observation Skill distorted.
’This computational power... my Senior Sister can’t possibly be this strong!’
You should know that Jiang Li was covertly using the Wind Queen Compass to assist him, yet he still fell short on the Strange Gate, if there weren’t any tricks involved, Jiang Li might as well swallow the Heavenly Will Sword right there and then on the spot.