In those few careless strokes, Guan Bai had seen Zhou Ziheng's lone boat, his sword rising from the heavens, its aura truly majestic.
But he could even more clearly see Chen Changsheng's sword.
That sword was one word.
Just one word.
It was like a great dam, like an iron chain, like a rock, like a sword cutting one's throat.
Guan Bai's chest throbbed in pain.
If his junior brother could understand the principle of this sword and take the straight path in all things, how could he have ended up like this?
He looked at his confused schoolmates and said, "Chen Changsheng has practiced this sword at least ten thousand times."
The confused students of the Heavenly Dao Academy asked, "This is enough?"
"According to what I know, Chen Changsheng has only been practicing the sword for a year. In such a short amount of time, he has practiced such a simple sword ten thousand times."
Guan Bai expressionlessly said, "Since such a clumsy person with the sword has agreed to discuss the sword with Zhou Ziheng, how could Zhou Ziheng's sword possibly win?"
After saying this, he shook his head, got up, and walked out of the room.
The Heavenly Dao Academy had a picturesque scenery. No matter where one walked, there was scenery, such as the lake and mountains in front of them.
A middle-aged man with a very lonely figure stood by the lake.
He was the Principal of the Heavenly Dao Academy, Zhuang Huanyu's father.
He turned around and said to Guan Bai, "You have a very high evaluation of Chen Changsheng."
Guan Bai replied, "Since they are destined to be opponents, my evaluation should be even more calm and objective."
Principal Zhuang looked at him and said, "If you knew that Chen Changsheng had only learned that sword for thirty days at most, would your evaluation of him be even higher?"
Guan Bai fell quiet for a very long time at these words, then said, "I don't care what Sir thinks, but Huanyu is still my junior brother. I have to do a few things for him."
Principal Zhuang sighed, "It seems that you must participate in the Boiling Stone Summit."
Guan Bai replied, "Yes, because I want to know, if Chen Changsheng is given another three hundred days, just what level his sword can reach."
… …
… …
At the gate of the Orthodox Academy, Zhou Ziheng's sword was accompanied by a sky full of wind and rain, its momentum imposing. If the Li Palace priests had not laid down the array last night, the spectators on the outside would probably have been injured by his sword energy.
Just as Guan Bai had seen through that sketch, Chen Changsheng had only struck once.
Of course, it was impossible for him to truly only use one sword. The one sword here referred to him repeatedly using that sword technique. From the moment Zhou Ziheng's sword arrived with the wind and rain, to the moment the momentum of the gale and the huge wave was formed, he had always used that sword.
In Guan Bai's eyes, he was clumsy with the sword, so his use of the sword was naturally somewhat clumsy.
It was the Third Sword that Su Li had taught him.
This sword had a very stupid name: Stupid Sword.
This sword looked very stupid. Sometimes it looked like he was carrying a pole, sometimes it looked like he was leading a horse, and sometimes it looked like he was about to commit suicide. In short, it didn't look like he was drawing a sword.
The edge of the sword was never pointed outwards, and the body of the sword was always straight in front of him.
This seemingly simple sword was actually not simple at all, because not even Su Li had managed to learn it. In reality, Chen Changsheng was the first person to learn the Stupid Sword.
To learn this sword, nothing was needed. Talent, comprehension, nothing was needed. All one needed was constant practice, clumsily repeating it, and a firm belief that one could do it.
Zhou Ziheng's sword was truly very powerful. The sword energy was like the waves of the sea, constantly lashing out, but no matter what, it could not pass this sword.
The sword in Chen Changsheng's hand became an iron chain pulled taut by a massive boat, a stubborn poplar tree.
Zhou Ziheng's sword was like a lonely boat, but it was blocked.
Zhou Ziheng's sword was like the wind and rain, but it was still blocked.
No matter how exquisite Zhou Ziheng's sword techniques were, they were still unable to break through Chen Changsheng's defense. The edge of the sword stabbed against Chen Changsheng's sword countless times, sending out countless sparks.
The two swords clashed, emitting a limitless brilliance. The vast majority of spectators were blinded by the light as they thought in shock, Zhou Ziheng is truly worthy of being a Star Condensation expert. His sword was like the wind, and in an instant, Chen Changsheng was forced to retreat step by step.
Ordinary people could not understand the situation on the battlefield, but there were naturally people who could.
In the instant that Chen Changsheng attacked, cries of surprise suddenly rose up from the pergola. When the painter from the Pavilion of Divination was drawing his second painting, the tip of his brush actually began to tremble!
In that tea house in Hundred Flowers Lane, Xue Xing Chuan sat by the window, gazing at the blazing sword glows. He silently thought of his younger brother's letter and thought to himself, this child's sword style has actually improved again.
The sword glows were so blinding that they were like countless bolts of lightning.
In between them were countless peals of thunder.
In the next moment, the rumbling sounds of the swords clashing suddenly stopped.
Zhou Ziheng sheathed his sword. Looking at Chen Changsheng, who had already retreated to the courtyard gate, he felt an indescribable shock.
He had never imagined that Chen Changsheng would actually be able to block so many of his sword strikes!
It must be known that his Stormwind Solitary Boat Sword emphasized momentum and was incomparably tyrannical. Not to mention that he was at the Star Condensation realm while Chen Changsheng was only at the Ethereal Opening realm!
Even if Chen Changsheng's sword style was incomparably exquisite, with his cultivation, how could he be able to block so many of his sword strikes without being injured? Not even the hand holding the sword had trembled!
In the next moment, the shock in his eyes was replaced by viciousness. His somewhat damaged confidence became firm once more.
Because Chen Changsheng had retreated.
He did not let Zhou Ziheng's Stormwind Solitary Boat Sword fall on his body, but he also could not stand still.
In the end, he was only at the Ethereal Opening realm. Even if he had bathed in dragon blood and possessed a body and strength comparable to the Star Condensation realm, there was still a disparity that could not be made up for.
Especially since his meridians were severed, the amount of true essence he could output, let alone compare to Zhou Ziheng, was far from enough to compare to cultivators of the same level.
Zhou Ziheng recalled the details of the previous battle. Every time the two swords clashed, the vibrations sent back by the swords confirmed this fact.
In the tea house, Xue Xing Chuan and the other important figures under the pergola also clearly saw this fact.
Chen Changsheng's sword style truly was exquisite and his strength was even more unimaginable, but he did not have enough true essence.
He did not have enough true essence to support a battle of this level.
These people were not weaker than Guan Bai, and there were even people like Xue Xing Chuan who far surpassed Guan Bai, but they were still not people of the sword.
They could not understand Chen Changsheng's self-confidence from his sword style.
Zhou Ziheng was a person of the sword, but he was also a player, so he also did not understand.
He believed that he had seen through Chen Changsheng's weakness, so his confidence was reborn.
He looked at Chen Changsheng, a mocking smile appearing on his lips as he prepared to say a few words.
Chen Changsheng did not give him the chance. His sword stabbed forward.
At this moment, the gate of the Orthodox Academy was very quiet. It was like the time before dawn, or like the time before the storm.
At these times, there would often be the cry of a bird or the low flight of a swallow, and then the dawn would come and a torrential downpour.
This was a sort of rhythm.
Chen Changsheng's sword had very simply broken this rhythm.
Whether it was Zhou Ziheng or the spectators, they all felt extremely uncomfortable because their rhythm had been broken.
The dawn had come too quickly, and the torrential downpour had suddenly descended.
Too sudden.
The sounds of tables and chairs toppling could be heard from under the pergola.
In the tea house, Xue Xingchuan suddenly stood up, his face filled with disbelief.
In battle, breaking the rhythm of one's opponent was a very common occurrence.
The problem was that very few people could do it as naturally as Chen Changsheng.
The true reason for their shock lay in this, because it was highly likely that this meant that the rhythm of this battle … had always been in Chen Changsheng's grasp.
The gap between the Star Condensation Realm and Ethereal Opening Realm was extremely large. In this sort of battle, the latter could struggle bitterly, engage in a bloody battle, could explode with talent, could even be like Wang Po in the past, miraculously breaking through in the midst of battle. But for Chen Changsheng, the weaker side, to be able to control the rhythm of the entire battle from start to finish, to completely face his opponent with the attitude of an expert, just what sort of self-confidence was this!
Just why was he so confident!
A few people in the pergola understood, so they threw away the teacups in their hands in absolute shock and kicked over the tables and chairs in front of them.
In the tea house, Xue Xingchuan also understood, so he suddenly stood up, so shocked that he couldn't speak.
Chen Changsheng's self-confidence lay in his sword.
This sword of his.
His first sword at Zhou Ziheng.
This sword was wondrous to the point of nature.
This sword could not be dodged.
This sword had already cut off all paths of retreat for Zhou Ziheng.
… …
… …
In the instant that Chen Changsheng attacked, if Zhou Ziheng had retreated as quickly as possible, he might have had a sliver of a chance, but he did not.
Because he was at the Star Condensation Realm and Chen Changsheng was only at the Ethereal Opening Realm. He had represented the Temple Seminary in challenging the Orthodox Academy. Everyone felt that he was bullying the weak and looked down on him. In these circumstances, if he had been forced back by Chen Changsheng's sword, he would have lost even more face. Of course, he knew that Chen Changsheng's sword was assuredly very strong. Whether it was rumored that he was the Pope's junior or that he had traveled with that grandmaster of the path of the sword for many days, this sword was assuredly not simple. As a result, he did not choose to meet it head-on, but prepared to dodge.
Yet he shockingly discovered that Chen Changsheng's sword gave him a feeling that it could not be dodged.
Just what sort of sword was this?
At this most dangerous moment, Zhou Ziheng finally gave up on all his obsessions and returned to his heart as a swordsman. With a clear whistle, his longsword flew through the air and slashed out several times in front of him.
An indescribable barrier appeared along with his sword aura, separating him from Chen Chang Sheng.
On that barrier, beautiful starlight faintly flowed. This starlight came from his sword, but its source was an even higher place — the sky.
This was the most powerful technique of a Star Condensation expert, and also the reason why the Star Condensation realm was called Star Condensation.
Star Condensation experts were able to forcefully convert their true essence back into starlight, as if their Fated Star had entered their body, forming their own domain. This was called the Star Domain. The Star Domain formed its own world. Within it, the radiance of the stars flowed endlessly, almost perfect. It could be said to be indestructible, and could only be crushed by a higher cultivation level or stronger true essence.
A cultivation genius at the Meditation realm still had a chance of surpassing cultivation levels to defeat an Ethereal Opening expert. For example, Luoluo's innate talent in her bloodline was extremely tyrannical. At the Meditation realm, she could easily defeat an ordinary initial stage Ethereal Opening cultivator. But for an Ethereal Opening cultivator to defeat a Star Condensation cultivator, it was basically impossible. This was because of the existence of the Star Domain.
Unless absolutely necessary, Zhou Ziheng definitely did not want to use the Star Domain, because that would make him look too unsightly.
But at this moment, he had no choice but to use it, because Chen Changsheng's sword was truly too terrifying.
In front of the Orthodox Academy, the starlight glowed as if it wanted to compete with the sun in splendor.
Cries of alarm rose from the crowd, and one could faintly hear the sound of cursing.
In the awning, some people sat back down, especially those important figures that supported the Tianhai clan, who all revealed faint smiles.
Xue Xingchuan did not sit down, but continued to watch.
In the Star Domain, Zhou Ziheng's complexion was very unsightly. Even if he won today's battle, it would be too unsightly a victory.
However, victory was always better than defeat.
Separated by the faint radiance of the stars, he gazed at Chen Changsheng's sword. He very much wanted to tell his opponent, although you can't defeat me, you can still be proud that you were able to force me to use my Star Domain.
These words were not bad. They had the demeanor of a senior expert.
As Zhou Ziheng thought this, he was prepared to wait until Chen Changsheng's sword was blocked by the Star Domain and his own sword easily won. He would then say these words in front of the crowd.
Then, he heard a squelch.
What was this sound?
It was the sound of a sword stabbing into a body.
It was the sound of Chen Changsheng's sword stabbing into his body.
Without the slightest pause, Chen Changsheng's sword pierced through his Star Domain, stabbing into his chest!
His face instantly paled. In his mind, he was in disbelief and shock as he madly yelled, "How could this be!"
Several shouts of shock rose from the awning, "What's going on here!"
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(I'm still fifteen hundred characters short. I'll do it as quickly as possible.)
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