Instead of following behind, he had charged to the front instead. The moment Zhong Ruochen passed by him, she sensed something was wrong and had already been on guard. As the fatal sword came slashing towards her, she merely raised a hand casually and flicked it aside.
Clang!
A deafening crash rang out.
The sword edge struck the metal glove. The sneak attack failed, producing nothing more than a shower of sparks.
For Yu Qing, however, closing the distance to Zhong Ruochen was enough. Otherwise, suspended in mid air with nothing to push against, he would have had nowhere to borrow force. Using the momentum from that strike, the movement technique of the Swimming Dragon Art unfolded, and with it came an endless stream of sword attacks.
The moment he began attacking, he did not dare hesitate in the slightest. The memory of Xiang Zhen’s sword being snatched away was still vivid in his mind. Afraid of suffering the same fate, he unleashed his sword at full speed from the very beginning, determined to cut his opponent down.
As soon as the sword technique appeared, Zhong Ruochen was greatly shocked. She had guessed that his sword speed would be fast, yet it still exceeded her expectations. It was so fast that she could not find the slightest opening to catch the blade with her iron hands. Her body spun and flipped through the air. In an instant, countless palm shadows poured in every direction like torrential rain, blocking and deflecting every strike.
Yu Qing’s sword became so fast that his figure blurred. Circling Zhong Ruochen, he attacked from every direction, creating the overwhelming pressure of a siege by himself alone.
The sharp, metallic clangs echoed continuously through the air, each impact piercing the ears.
This was the basic move of the Dust Sealing Sword Technique, thirty six swords in a single breath. It was the first time Yu Qing had ever unleashed its complete form against a single opponent.
It was not that he had never wanted to use it before, only that he had never found the right opportunity. Sparring with Nan Zhu and Mu Aotie had been pointless, because neither of them could withstand it. They could not even defend halfway through the sequence, making it impossible for him to display the technique in its complete form.
After mastering the complete version of the thirty six swords in a single breath, this was truly the first time he had used it in battle.
He had never imagined that the first time he unleashed it would also be at full power. Nor had he imagined doing so before countless spectators, and while fighting in mid air.
In an instant, blurred figures danced endlessly around Zhong Ruochen, surrounding her from every direction.
Encircled at the centre, Zhong Ruochen’s body spun, twisted, and flipped continuously. She rotated as fast as a whirlwind, her pair of iron palms forming an impenetrable iron curtain that kept every deadly sword strike from advancing another inch.
Yu Qing could not break through Zhong Ruochen’s defence, while Zhong Ruochen did not dare launch a counterattack against such a dangerous sword technique, fearing that the slightest flaw would be exposed.
Outside the spherical iron curtain formed by her palms, the cold flashes of sword light circling around her resembled beautiful snowflakes drifting through the air.
Yet the sound of those snowflakes was an endless, thunderous symphony of clashing steel.
The speed of their descent also began to slow.
With every strike, Yu Qing was not only attacking but also borrowing force, allowing him to maintain the complete form of the thirty six swords in a single breath while suspended in the air.
Zhong Ruochen was doing the same. She was not using any flying technique either. Every palm strike borrowed force to spin her body and launch the next attack.
The spectacle below left the audience utterly stunned.
It was as though the two of them were battling in the heavens.
The spectators below could feel that the spinning tornado had already stopped.
The wind had died.
Without the upward force carrying them, the two instead continued their fierce battle high in the air, locked together without falling.
Yu Qing’s figure in particular became impossible to distinguish from a distance. Combined with the shimmering distortion caused by the sunlight, no one could tell how many Yu Qings were dancing across the sky.
Those countless afterimages resembled celestial sword immortals descending from beyond the heavens, all striking a single point. At the same time, they looked like flying dragons playing with a pearl. Visually, it seemed as though more than a dozen Yu Qings were attacking Zhong Ruochen from every direction. The sight was breathtaking.
“Could it be that neither of them is using flying techniques, but is simply floating through the strength of their cultivation?”
“How could that be possible with Initial Profound cultivation? Unless Kunling Mountain is going easy on them. Unless neither of them is actually at the Initial Profound Realm.”
“Even Upper Profound cultivators cannot do this. Surely Kunling Mountain has not secretly allowed two High Profound cultivators into the Sunrise Tournament?”
“Just how agile is Zhang Zhichen’s movement technique? He truly looks like an immortal descending from the heavens.”
“Exactly. No wonder he dared jump up first and claim the champion’s platform.”
“Anyone bold enough to fight for first place really is extraordinary.”
The stands buzzed with discussion, filled with cries of amazement. Every Initial Profound cultivator present felt the enormous gap between themselves and the two fighting in the sky.
Wen Xin and Xiao Hong repeatedly looked towards the sky, then secretly listened to the discussions around them. Gradually, they understood.
The A Qing they had once known had already reached a level worthy of admiration.
On the host platform, Qin Fujun gazed into the sky, deeply shaken. She too felt the enormous gap between herself, an Initial Profound cultivator, and those two. It was no longer merely a difference in techniques or combat skills, but a difference in talent.
Kunling Mountain was no ordinary sect. As the final disciple of one of its Enforcement Elders, she had access to many advanced teachings and possessed considerable insight.
She knew very well that the way those two fought was not something that could simply be achieved through cultivation methods alone.
Even if the exact same cultivation manuals were placed before her, she doubted she could master them in ten or twenty years. She might never achieve such a level in her entire life.
Cultivation had always been like this.
Talent and comprehension were everything.
Most cultivators would spend their entire lives stuck at the Initial Profound Realm. Even disciples with identical resources would ultimately see only a tiny handful break through into the Upper Profound Realm, let alone the High Profound Realm.
As for those capable of reaching the Half Immortal Realm, they had always been as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns.
People were different, and so were their destinies.
Cultivation methods alone could never make up for everything.
Nan Zhu and Mu Aotie stared into the sky with their mouths hanging open.
It was also their first time witnessing the complete form of the thirty six swords in a single breath, and at full power.
Only now did they realise just how enormous the gap was between themselves and Old Fifteen.
Shi Dao, standing among the crowd, wore an expression of admiration.
Now, when he returned home, he could at least explain himself to his relatives and friends.
Losing to someone of this calibre was nothing to be ashamed of.
Wu Ronggui and Xiao Changdao exchanged glances from time to time. The latter felt even more convinced that he had narrowly escaped disaster.
Kui Kui stared at the battle overhead and muttered to himself,
“The Sunrise Tournament actually has this many experts of this level. Four people stayed in my courtyard, and two of them turned out to be monsters like this. Am I really that weak?”
He could not help glancing back at the challenge plaque marked Number One on the background wall.
Earlier, he had confidently declared, “Another person trying to steal first place from me.”
Now he felt too embarrassed even to hang his own plaque beneath the first place position.
Knowing full well that he would only make a fool of himself, yet still charging in anyway, would that not be stupidity?
Looking skyward, Wen Ruowei was equally stunned.
She had thought her brother in law was finished this time, certain that her elder sister would teach him a harsh lesson.
Instead, he had actually fought her sister to such an incredible level that she could only look up to him in awe. Her scalp tingled from watching.
Her brother in law, the world’s greatest literary talent, had completely surpassed her imagination.
The phrase accomplished in both literature and martial arts was no longer enough to describe him.
“Wow. Wow. Amazing. Wow. Wow. As expected of someone fighting for first place.”
On the VIP platform, Princess Chaoyang waved her arms excitedly, watching with great enthusiasm.
From time to time she asked her mother, “Mother, it looks like Shang Yue has completely lost the ability to fight back. Is she about to lose? Is she going to lose?”
Her tone clearly showed that she hoped Zhong Ruochen would lose.
There was no helping it.
Zhong Ruochen was a woman, while Yu Qing was a man.
Yan Yi watched the battle overhead, her brows slightly furrowed, seemingly surprised.
Although her daughter asked repeatedly, she paid little attention to the questions, merely replying calmly,
“Not necessarily.”
Li Chenghu looked at Princess Chaoyang’s behaviour and could not help smiling.
He could easily guess what his niece was thinking.
Her change of affection had certainly been swift.
He also realised that his sister in law had indeed found an excellent solution.
Turning his gaze back to the sky, he sighed.
“I never expected Longguang Sect to produce such a talent. Expelling someone like this is truly a pity. I wonder whether Longguang Sect simply refuses to adapt, or what they were thinking.”
Hearing this, Zhao Dengzi quietly glanced at Xiang Lanxuan.
He knew that Xiang Lanxuan was aware Zhang Zhichen was an impostor, yet neither the Empress nor the Prince seemed to know.
He only dared ponder the matter in silence.
Who knew whether it involved some affair between the Directorate of Great Enterprises and the imperial court?
Xiang Lanxuan, who was also watching the battle overhead, was somewhat surprised.
She had not expected the situation to reverse so suddenly.
Unlike everyone else, she had learned some of the inside story much earlier.
The moment Yu Qing entangled Zhong Ruochen and forced the battle into close quarters, she immediately realised that Zhong Ruochen was in trouble.
After observing Zhong Ruochen’s true strength for a while longer, she became convinced that, barring any accidents, she already knew how this battle would end.
Long Xingyun, staring into the sky, found the corners of his mouth twitching.
His expression had become thoroughly distorted.
His fingers repeatedly squeezed and twisted the folding fan in his hand.
Yin Shanhe, seated in the stands, wore a grave expression.
After watching for some time, he lowered his gaze towards the Young Pavilion Master Long beneath the host platform.
He let out a quiet sigh.
At this moment, Yu Qing himself was astonished.
He had believed his sword speed was already fast enough.
He had never imagined that Zhong Ruochen’s palm strikes could be just as fast.
He had never expected that the very first time he unleashed the complete form of the thirty six swords in a single breath, he would meet someone whose attack speed matched his own.
The Zhong Ruochen before him resembled a thousand armed deity.
She seemed utterly impossible to break.
If this stalemate continued, Yu Qing knew he could not endure for long.
The complete form of the thirty six swords in a single breath consumed an enormous amount of magical power.
Maintaining the Swimming Dragon Art at this level without pause naturally came at a tremendous cost.
Meanwhile, blood had begun seeping from Zhong Ruochen’s arm.
The sleeve around her wound had already been stained red.
Yet she did not dare slow down for even an instant.
She knew that the slightest delay would likely lead to irreversible ruin.
She too was shocked by Yu Qing’s sword speed.
She had known it was fast, but she had never imagined it could reach such a terrifying level.
After all, he was creating the pressure of an entire siege with a single person.
The fact that one man alone could produce such an encirclement had already exceeded everything she had imagined.
Even more terrifying was that he could trap her in mid air with a single sword, leaving her no opportunity to escape and reducing her to nothing but defence.
Over the years, she had worked hard to make up for her lack of combat experience.
Her master had also provided every possible condition to support her.
Yet she had never once heard of a sword technique like this.
She knew perfectly well that, in terms of speed alone, she was actually inferior to him.
He was moving across a vast area, while she only had to defend a fixed point.
Anyone with common sense could tell which demanded greater speed.
Even while holding the advantage, she had still been forced entirely onto the defensive.
The bitterness in her heart was impossible to describe.
She had no time to dwell on it.
She could only grit her teeth and endure.
She knew they were not far above the ground.
Once they struck the earth, his attack pattern would inevitably be disrupted, giving her the chance to seize an opening and counterattack.
Yu Qing also realised they were only about a hundred zhang above the ground.
He was not worried about exposing a weakness.
What worried him was that he could not sustain this pace.
Even after landing, he would soon exhaust himself and inevitably lose.
His eyes flashed with determination.
He decided to gamble everything.
He chose to abandon the hard won advantage he had gained.
He chose to give up the encirclement he had established over his opponent.
In an instant, the countless flashes of sword light surrounding Zhong Ruochen vanished.
Zhong Ruochen, who had been continuously defending herself, found herself momentarily unable to adjust.
Why would her opponent voluntarily abandon such an overwhelming advantage?
Standing beside the VIP seats, Xiang Lanxuan’s eyes flashed.
In a voice so soft that only she could hear, she murmured,
“Here it comes!”