Chapter 216: Chapter 213 Divine Sword Thunder Protection High-frequency Technique
"Fellow Daoist has good eyesight," Zhang Daoyi circulated his spiritual mechanism, transforming the dirt Qi into spiritual energy, smoothing the turbulent True Qi, and as he faced Jiang Li, he marveled, "Impressive cultivation."
Ever since he refined the first strand of spiritual energy with the "Nine Heavens Demon Clearing True Technique," he had embarked on a different path from others. The combination of ancient cultivation methods and the Dao Fruit system had granted Zhang Daoyi power far beyond those of the same realm. Jiang Li was the first peer he had encountered who could stand against him in combat.
In their last brief exchange, the depth of his power was not revealed. Now, having fought today, he knew the reputation of "Qi Tomb" was well-deserved.
However, if the battle were drawn out, the victor would certainly be Zhang Daoyi, without a doubt.
That was because Zhang Daoyi could transform the Five Vile Qi to replenish his True Qi, while Jiang Li could only restore his True Qi by consuming elixirs and refining them.
Although his Divine Farmer’s appearance allowed him to quickly digest the potency of the elixirs, fearing no accumulation of toxins, admitting to taking an elixir in this brief exchange could be considered an admission of defeat.
Therefore, to win, one cannot engage in a prolonged battle.
Moreover, the Five Vile Qi could erode True Qi. Jiang Li’s magic techniques would mostly be ineffective; he couldn’t even use his transformation into the Yinglong Dragon, nor could he project his True Qi outward; he was forced to fight at close quarters.
’However, it’s not necessarily the case that nothing can be put to use.’
Jiang Li controlled his sword with his thoughts; the long sword left his hand, and his palms came together, displaying the pattern of the talisman in the center of his hands.
"Tianpeng, Tianpeng, Nine Elements Evil Child."
The Thunder Technique was deployed, the Qi moving the heavenly phenomena.
The thunder clouds that had been dispersed by Yang Ji now gathered again, drawn by Jiang Li’s Thunder Technique and the Rain Master Token. Streaks of electric snakes surged and roamed, changing the color of the sky as the wind and clouds converged.
"Thunder Technique?" Zhang Daoyi’s eyes narrowed.
Was he planning to use the Thunder Technique to break through the Five Vile Qi?
Indeed, using the Five Vile Qi for defense was formidable. Still, it could not exceed Zhang Daoyi’s limits; if he summoned too much of it, he would first be eroded by the evil Qi himself.
Therefore, beyond close-quarters combat, there was also the option to overpower the Five Vile Qi with sheer strength.
Great force could send bricks flying, one force subduing ten sessions—it was the simplest yet most overpowering technique. All it required was sufficient strength.
Yet, with Jiang Li’s current level of power, he should not be capable of that level of force.
Judging by Jiang Li’s Martial Arts prowess, he should not be able to best Zhang Daoyi in a close fight either.
He practiced both magic and martial arts, proficient in each, but when it came to close combat, he relied more on aiding martial skills with magic rather than pure Martial Arts. In Martial Arts attainment, Jiang Li was not Zhang Daoyi’s match.
Jiang Li could not succeed with either method, so he had to consider a third.
Before Zhang Daoyi could reflect further, the thunder clouds surged, and the electric snakes intersected. A massive bolt of thunderlight struck down from the sky, landing on the floating Mo Wu Sword.
With the might of heaven, the sword redirected it.
The raging thunder splashed on the blade, the Mo Wu Sword firmly containing it. Jiang Li reached for the sword, streaks of electricity transferring to his body, flickering with high speed as if the Thunder God had descended.
Jiang Li flashed forward, a streak of electric light approaching swiftly—the Mo Wu Sword had turned into a Thunder Sword. As he swung his dragon-like arm, a blinding ray of light slashed down from above.
"Yin and Yang are the origins."
Zhang Daoyi stepped back, lowering his body into a bowing stance, the Qiushui Sword held upright, its tip precisely touching the tip of Jiang Li’s sword, the sword power combining hardness with softness like Yin and Yang, generating life through their interaction.
This was Zhang Daoyi’s probing move, for he could not see through Jiang Li’s intentions.
The sword styles shifted between reality and illusion, hardness and softness, Yin and Yang—all were intricately delicate. Jiang Li could see through them, but they were difficult to break.
’I don’t need to break them.’
At the moment of contact with the sword tip, the ingenious sword style crumbled instantly, the Sword Qi shattered, and even the sword tip seemed unable to withstand the sharpness, showing signs of being blunted.
Regardless of the changes, Jiang Li could break it all with a single stroke.
His sword carried a unique sharpness, nothing could withstand it, nothing could stop its cut.
A chill struck Zhang Daoyi’s heart; he retreated and sheathed his sword, the Five Vile Qi swirling around him, confronting the Thunder Sword, and instantly the thunderlight dimmed. However, that unusual sharpness remained undiminished.
"What swordsmanship is this?"
Zhang Daoyi stepped back, asking with curiosity.
It seemed as though the sword was guiding the thunder, lacking the might of heaven, not exhibiting the hard force of thunder. Rather, there was a peculiar sharpness. The sword’s edge swept across the ground where Zhang Daoyi had just been, and the rock bore molten traces.
This was the Five Finger Mountain, after all.
Although it was unclear how someone had managed to turn a massive hand into a mountain, this mountain was in no way inferior to real ones, in both stability and hardness it far surpassed them. After all, underneath the mountain lay the Giant Snake Baqi, whose body was like a range of hills; an ordinary mountain couldn’t suppress it.
Zhang Daoyi’s earlier fight with Yang Ji had brought down heavenly thunder, scorching the ground. Only the final blow had shattered a layer of soil and rock.
But that was it.
Yet now, the sword in Jiang Li’s hand cut through the ground as easily as a hot knife through butter, revealing the sharpness of its edge.
"High-frequency."
Jiang Li let out a laugh, presenting a strange name.
Thunder and lightning raced along the blade, controlled staunchly by Jiang Li, confined within the sword, granting the blade high-frequency vibrations, endowing it with extreme temperature and lethal power.
This is the high-frequency blade, this is the High-frequency Sword.
Zhang Daoyi had the Five Vile Qi, while Jiang Li had the Law of Physics.
Although Jiang Li was not a physics expert in his past life, in this different world, he need not follow physical laws completely. With his mastery over the Innate Qi, the variability and malleability of the Innate Qi, and the Emperors’s Qi Observation Skill’s insight ability, he could gradually realize some things by simply understanding the principles.
It was much simpler than Yin Yang Transformation, purifying from the impure, or evolving clarity from the turbid. After understanding the principles and gradually exploring, with Jiang Li’s startling wisdom and the Karma Collections’s solidified cause and effect, achieving this was not too difficult.
Jiang Li’s figure flickered as he ran swiftly through the wind like a specter, in pursuit of Zhang Daoyi.
Zhang Daoyi too leaped and dashed diagonally, executing the Yu Step with his footwork in the Big Dipper constellation, his speed not inferior to Jiang Li’s.
"Zzt—"
The air emitted a sound like tearing silk as lightning streaked. The sword in Jiang Li’s hand was already drawn.
Zhang Daoyi concentrated his True Qi and Sword Qi; the Qiushui Sword reemerged with its black hole-like depth. The sword drew a half-arc in the air like a dark crescent moon, meeting the Thunder Sword head-on.
When the swords clashed, the sizzling sound was incessant, sparks flew everywhere, and Zhang Daoyi perceived an extreme heat.
"Zzt—"
Electric light surged and flickered with an abrupt intensification of the sound, and Zhang Daoyi suddenly felt his sword momentum collapse.
’Shock Position!’
He observed his surroundings and alarmingly discovered that Jiang Li was now in the Shock Position, which enhanced the might of thunder.
The Qiushui Sword swung back while the Mo Wu Sword sped past through thin air, its extreme searing energy hitting Zhang Daoyi’s face at close range.
Below the Sixth Rank, few could block this sword, and Zhang Daoyi himself estimated that even using Three Flowers Gathering at the Top would be risky.
The killing power was too strong, concentrated into a single line. Zhang Daoyi truly had little confidence against it.
The electric light whitened his face; Zhang Daoyi bent his body slightly, allowing the Sword Light to skim over his head. A few strands of hair blocked the sword tip before being instantly severed. Even the Five Vile Qi that gathered around him seemed unable to withstand it, creating a fiery-red sword mark in mid-air.
The Five Vile Qi could erode Essence Qi, but it was difficult to deal with such physical attacks. This time, Zhang Daoyi indeed encountered his bane.
"Your magic contains all things, but it is not invulnerable."
Despite the situation, Zhang Daoyi had not fallen into a losing position. Unity of Heaven and Man kept his mental state detached, while the preserving silence heart technique from the Daode Sect made his mental state vacant and still.
While he spoke, he stepped and shifted, changing his position to evade the Shock Position.
But Jiang Li shook his body and entered the Xun Position.
His body followed the wind, the sword moved swiftly; with the Emperor’s Qi Observation Skill that perceived the Three Talents, Jiang Li’s sword moves fell like a fierce storm, forcing Zhang Daoyi to deflect and block repeatedly before sweeping into another position, the Li Position, where the sword was like fierce flames, aggressively intrusive.
Whether it was ahead or suddenly behind, Sword Light was everywhere.
Even when fighting at close quarters, Jiang Li could still use all matter and harness the force of the world for his own use.
He was like one of the escapees, shifting through numerous positions, each change creating new variations, overwhelming Zhang Daoyi with the rapidity of his movements.
What was crucial though was the lethality of Jiang Li’s sword. Just taking one hit could seriously wound Zhang Daoyi, who dared not meet the strikes directly.
And as Jiang Li continued to attack, his momentum built up. His Spiritual Power fused with the force, continuously pressing on Zhang Daoyi’s will, making him gradually more fatigued.
Even with Unity of Heaven and Man to stabilize the mind, fatigue was inevitable.
When the momentum reached its peak, Jiang Li’s sword cut across the sky, leaving a trail like flames. The particles in the air were scorched by the sword tip, and the vibration frequency of the sword also reached its limit.
This sword could not be blocked.
Zhang Daoyi’s spirit was also suppressed by Jiang Li’s overpowering presence, and he suddenly saw darkness, as if the night swallowed the moonlight, a foreboding sensation in his heart.
However, in the end, the sword did not land on Zhang Daoyi’s body.
Jiang Li’s other palm shot out from beneath the sword, pierced through the Evil Qi, broke through the Protective True Qi, and pressed onto Zhang Daoyi’s Lower Dantian.
Because the sword tip was undefeatable, Zhang Daoyi had not used Three Flowers Gathering at the Top, allowing this palm to firmly strike the target. Then, Innate Qi converted into various potent elixir effects, pouring into Zhang Daoyi’s body, causing his blood and Qi to churn, and his Qi Mechanism went into disarray.
"Not good."
The first thing Zhang Daoyi did was execute Three Flowers Gathering at the Top to protect himself.
But in that instant, while his blood and Qi were in turmoil, Jiang Li had already allowed the Innate Qi to touch Zhang Daoyi’s Qi of Dantian and extracted a strand of True Qi back.
"Boom!"
Palm force launched, sending Zhang Daoyi flying backward, all the way to the side of Yuan Zhen who caught him.
"Fellow Daoist," Yuan Zhen asked, "are you unharmed?"
Despite their conflict, Yuan Zhen was quite concerned about Zhang Daoyi’s safety, as after all, he was a fellow sect member.
Yet, Zhang Daoyi sprang up as if his backside was on fire and hastily said, "Don’t come near! I’m fine!"
He felt the heat arising within him, circulated his Qi again and again, trying to balance Yin Yang, while secretly grinding his teeth, ’What kind of surreptitious technique is this? It actually...’
Having been struck by such a technique and with Yuan Zhen, suspected to be Longyang Jun, approaching, Zhang Daoyi could no longer maintain a stable mental state, his mind greatly disturbed and thus failing to ponder the previously odd occurrence or detect Jiang Li’s subtle movements.
Meanwhile, Jiang Li dispersed the thunder and lightning, cupping his fists with a smile, and said, "Thanks for going easy."