Chapter 25: Elder Liu Yang
“We… actually won…”
Apart from a few junior sisters who once again swooned, everyone was utterly shocked.
The inner disciples who had been present from the start were even more astounded. They watched as Jiang Ning made his move, saw him suppressed, saw him wounded and nearly crushed—and now, witnessed Yang Xiangtian defeated.
“Is the title of Idle Cloud Sect’s foremost genius about to change hands…”
There was no longer any doubt about Jiang Ning’s strength!
Zhang Liyan’s lips trembled; for the first time, she regretted listening to Wang Shuo’s suggestions, regretted seeking trouble with Jiang Ning. She had always invested in relationships, ever searching for powerful patrons, forgetting that one day she would stumble and fall.
“Senior Brother Jiang Ning is truly the top talent of our Idle Cloud Sect!”
“He’s so handsome!”
Some junior sisters in the crowd couldn’t help but shout.
Everyone else was speechless.
Yet among the remaining female cultivators, many eyes shone with new light—strong and handsome, Jiang Ning had captured many hearts in that moment, all forgetting how he and Lin Qian had recently walked out together as a pair…
…
“Azure Spirit Seal…”
Jiang Ning floated in the air, his white robes stained with blood.
Inside, he was far from calm. The Azure Spirit Seal had struck directly into his body, and only through the endless accommodating power of his Immortal Spirit Physique did he manage to neutralize it. Without such a constitution, he would have long since been scattered to dust by now…
“Dao arts truly are tyrannical.”
Yang Xiangtian’s Dao art wasn’t even complete—it could only be fully unleashed at the Tempered Body Realm. At the tenth level of the Open Meridian Realm, he could only wield half its power.
Yet even half was enough to wreak havoc inside Jiang Ning, leaving him struggling for a long moment before he could suppress the urge to cough up blood.
In contrast, Yang Xiangtian, after vomiting blood skyward, suddenly seemed drained of all strength, no longer able to fight.
Strangely, he bent forward in the air but did not fall; his face beneath the black hair was pale, lips twitching, and the icy aura that surrounded him seemed to fade, replaced by that former indomitable spirit, as though he would cleave the heavens with a single sword…
The two auras swirled—cold as death on one hand, and on the other, a vibrant, unyielding vitality.
They wove together in an uncanny dance, suspending him midair as if some mysterious force were holding him in place, his entire form frozen in time.
“Something’s not right…”
Jiang Ning steadied his breath, roused his bloodline power, and let the passive inheritance technique slowly heal his wounds. Glancing back, his pupils contracted—this was far from normal.
“What’s happening to Senior Brother Yang Xiangtian?”
“Has he suffered a blow?”
“The pride of a genius is easily broken.”
The crowd noticed Yang Xiangtian’s change, marveling in confusion.
“Erhuang…”
Jiang Ning decided not to pursue it further—now was not the time to probe into others’ secrets. He focused his bloodline and deepened his sense of Erhuang’s presence. After lingering for a while, Erhuang seemed to be moving rapidly in his direction.
And it was incredibly fast!
“I have to go see!”
He was just about to set off when suddenly, a rainbow arc of spiritual energy slashed toward him!
“Get out of my way!”
Jiang Ning’s face instantly turned cold. Hidden within that arc was a killing intent—a dagger shrouded in gray mist!
He struck with his fist; a thunderous collision erupted!
Dust and spirit energy billowed, shrouding Jiang Ning’s figure. The onlookers were stunned; no one expected someone to attack Jiang Ning right after such a fierce battle.
“It’s Wang Shuo!”
“He’s attacking!”
Wang Shuo’s face was icy as he soared atop the rainbow arc, his gaze fixed on where the energies clashed, hoping to see Jiang Ning battered and beaten.
At the same time, his spatial ring flashed, and several flying swords appeared, shooting directly into the vortex of spirit energy and detonating in unison!
“Take this!”
He produced a gourd, uncorked it, and unleashed a raging inferno!
In an instant, he revealed all his trump cards.
But then his pupils shrank—he snatched the gourd back, ready to flee.
“Wang Shuo!!!”
Blood trickled from the corner of Jiang Ning’s lips. The dagger hidden within the rainbow arc was a half-grade spirit artifact, and Wang Shuo had detonated it outright!
He wanted Jiang Ning dead!
“Even under the flames, he’s not dead!”
Wang Shuo was badly shaken.
Jiang Ning spat blood, his eyes burning with murderous intent—he’d never wanted to kill someone so much before!
The attack was relentless from the start. If not for the Immortal Spirit Physique suppressing the flames that invaded his body, he would have long since perished.
A killing blow right from the outset!
Clearly, Wang Shuo aimed to strike while he was wounded and finish him off.
“Hand over your life!”
First battered by the spirit artifact’s explosion, then forced to refine the raging flames that invaded his body—Jiang Ning was suffering, but Wang Shuo had to die!
He was too great a threat to leave alive.
Wang Shuo rode the rainbow arc, trying to escape, but Jiang Ning was faster. Though he coughed up more blood, his bloodline power surged, and he closed the gap in an instant.
“He’s suppressing me with his cultivation!”
Wang Shuo was terrified. In truth, this was bloodline suppression—he lacked Yang Xiangtian’s grand Dao might to withstand it, and now he could barely move.
“He’s already here!”
In a flash, Jiang Ning was upon him. Wang Shuo dared not use the gourd, for fear of burning himself.
He summoned another flying sword, desperate to detonate it, but Jiang Ning was faster, seized the hilt, and swept it in a single motion.
A slicing sound—
Wang Shuo’s head separated from his body. In his last moments, his eyes were wide with disbelief and regret.
He’d seen the battle between Yang Xiangtian and Jiang Ning and knew he was no match for Jiang Ning. His Dao heart was fractured, so he’d tried to exploit Jiang Ning’s weakness to pave his own way forward.
He never expected to lose his life instead…
…
Though it seems lengthy, all this happened in the blink of an eye.
One move!
Wang Shuo was decapitated.
“He’s far too strong…”
Even the junior sisters who’d rushed forward were struck silent.
Wang Shuo was, after all, at the sixth layer of the Open Meridian Realm, and after his seclusion to recover from injury, he was on the verge of breaking through to the seventh. Now, with a single blow, he was dead.
…
Jiang Ning’s body trembled. He snatched up the gourd and stowed it in his spatial ring in a flash, taking Wang Shuo’s ring as well, while the corpse tumbled into the mountain ravine.
He hadn’t expected Wang Shuo to have such deadly treasures, even a half-grade spirit artifact—something Yang Xiangtian had never revealed in their duel.
Now, the flames within Jiang Ning still burned fiercely. He drew upon his bloodline power and the Immortal Spirit Physique to steadily wear them down.
Yet blood still spattered his lips, and all who saw it realized how gravely he was wounded.
“He’s seriously injured!”
But at this moment, none dared approach. Some wished to defeat Jiang Ning to solidify their own paths, others wanted to mend the cracks in their Dao hearts, like Zhang Zebing.
But no one dared face Jiang Ning now.
A struggle showed on Zhang Zebing’s face, but eventually, he gave up. He knew the crack in his Dao heart would only widen.
He simply lacked the courage—who knew if Jiang Ning might erupt with power once more?
Jiang Ning hovered midair, coughing blood.
Whatever flame raged within him was violent beyond measure—he had to fight it with everything he had.
At that moment, Jiang Ning looked to the horizon.
He sensed that Erhuang’s presence was near.
“So you’ve found a weak spot in the sect’s protective array…”
But his pupils shrank in the next instant!
Appearing before him was a white-haired elder!
In his hands was Erhuang, gravely wounded and barely clinging to life.
“It’s Elder Liu Yang!”
A shocked uproar erupted!