Chapter 160: Qing Shan
The white world of sword Qi transformed into a crimson fog. Within the blood-red mist, Hua Xiaocheng gazed upon Shi Feizhe, whose entire body emanated a bloody haze.
“A futile struggle!” he declared.
A gleaming longsword materialized in his hand.
“Go!”
The longsword left his grasp, hurtling towards Shi Feizhe like a streak of light. He no longer intended to hold back, for there was no point in doing so.
The blood mist emanating from Shi Feizhe coalesced around him, forming a hazy armor. One could faintly discern the shape of chainmail.
Facing the imminent sword light, Shi Feizhe’s hand grasped a pitch-black iron staff, adorned with golden hoops at each end!
This staff was Shi Feizhe’s true Divine Image!
He intended to use this staff to utterly obliterate everything inhuman!
Thus, with bloodshot eyes, he raised the iron staff against the radiant sword light and swung with all his might!
“Clang!” Despite the clash of two Divine Images, the sound resembled the collision of metal and stone.
This signified the unyielding, iron-like wills of both individuals!
However, Hua Xiaocheng was stronger!
He had been exploring ways to break through the Heaven’s Barrier, and the number of True Realm martial artists he had consumed exceeded the number Shi Feizhe had even encountered.
He was not on the same level as Shi Feizhe, who had yet to reach the True Realm but possessed combat prowess comparable to one!
Therefore, the sword light pierced through Shi Feizhe’s iron staff, penetrating his jawbone and leaving half his face drenched in blood!
Yet, Shi Feizhe did not flinch. Leaping into the air, he mustered all his strength and delivered a mighty blow towards Hua Xiaocheng with his staff.
This strike was called “Thousand Jun”!
The pitch-black iron staff instantly transformed into a colossal iron rod, so massive that Hua Xiaocheng could clearly see the patterns on its golden hoops. Facing this heaven-shattering attack, Hua Xiaocheng remained unfazed.
He once believed such attacks were formidable, but after facing Hua Chonglang, he knew they were feeble.
He effortlessly raised his right hand and caught the colossal staff!
The contrast between the gigantic iron staff and his tiny hand was stark.
“Weak! Too weak!” Hua Xiaocheng now understood how Hua Chonglang felt when facing him.
“Too boring! Too pathetic!” he shook his head and remarked.
A brilliant sword light erupted from his hand, transforming into a colossal sword that cleaved the heavens and earth, directly splitting the iron staff in his grasp. The sword light continued its trajectory, piercing through Shi Feizhe and causing a dark red blood mist to explode from his body!
This sword Qi nearly cleaved Shi Feizhe in two!
Damn it!
Shi Feizhe cursed inwardly as he realized even his full strength was insufficient to overcome Hua Xiaocheng!
The gap between him and Hua Xiaocheng remained vast!
After all, he had only been practicing martial arts for three years!
Now… he could only retreat.
He glanced at the Qing Shan Martial Academy, now reduced to rubble. Months of effort, all gone!
Despite the vastness of the Jianghu, there was no place for him to pursue his goals!
Time was running out, leaving him no room to dwell on these matters.
Shi Feizhe’s figure flickered, splitting into dozens of identical figures enveloped in blood mist.
Within the world of sword Qi, he could utilize sword Qi to create illusory copies of himself. Similarly, within this blood mist, he could use his own blood to conjure illusions.
Dozens of Shi Feizhes brandished their iron staffs and charged towards Hua Xiaocheng.
“Trying to escape?” Hua Xiaocheng instantly recognized Shi Feizhe’s intent upon seeing these illusions.
These were merely trivial distractions.
“Go!” He released a brilliant sword light from his hand, which exploded mid-air, fragmenting into dozens of smaller sword lights.
Each minuscule sword light accurately pierced through Shi Feizhe’s illusions, while the largest one continued towards the heart of the blood mist.
A burst of dark red blood erupted from the blood mist, which then dispersed into over a dozen blood shadows, fleeing in all directions!
“Heh…” Hua Xiaocheng chuckled coldly, waving his hand and releasing another dozen sword lights that accurately obliterated the fleeing blood shadows.
Escape was not so simple!
However, the blood mist enveloping the Qing Shan Martial Academy gradually dissipated. Shi Feizhe had escaped!
He hadn’t noticed that one of the dozen sword lights he had unleashed had flown exceptionally far.
“Who is this fellow? His martial arts aren’t that impressive, but he sure knows how to run!” Hua Xiaocheng remarked to Hua Xiaomei.
✿✿✿
“Shi Feizhe, a Grand Medicine I cultivated previously.” Hua Xiaomei murmured.
Observing Shi Feizhe’s combat prowess within the blood mist, he understood. None of them had forced Shi Feizhe to reveal his true abilities!
Shi Feizhe had been waiting for them, intending to instill despair!
Had Hua Xiaocheng not appeared, the three of them would have been slaughtered!
For some reason, he felt as if he could hear someone whispering in his ear, “Three against one, and you got counter-killed? Do you even know how to fight?”
How ridiculous, how amusing, how hilarious!
And he was the one who had inadvertently triggered this amusement!
“…”
Upon hearing that Shi Feizhe was a Grand Medicine cultivated by Hua Xiaomei, even with his clear sword heart, Hua Xiaocheng was at a loss for words.
“I’m heading south to find Hua Chonglang. Take care.” Hua Xiaocheng said to Hua Xiaomei.
“Big Brother…” Hua Xiaomei was stunned by his words.
“I have some questions for him.” Hua Xiaocheng said, gazing southward.
“Big Brother! You…” Hua Xiaomei wanted to say a lot, but all that came out was, “We don’t blame you!”
“…”
Hua Xiaocheng remained silent, simply turning and walking south.
Elsewhere, Xiong Ba stared blankly at Jiang Ning.
Jiang Ning, buried beneath the rubble, was in a sorry state.
“What are you looking at?” Jiang Ning struggled to her feet, leaning against a wall for support. Her injuries were severe.
In the past, Xiong Ba would have helped her up, but now he only watched.
The woman before him was no longer the same person.
He didn’t even know why he had come.
“I’m wondering why you’re not dead yet!” Xiong Ba said blankly.
Jiang Ning no longer became angry at his words. In the past, she might have erupted in fury and cursed him out.
Now, she simply said, “Almost. Move aside, you’re in my way.”
Xiong Ba silently stepped aside, brushing past Jiang Ning as they had before ascending the mountain.
He watched as she limped away, her gait mirroring his own as he had climbed the mountain.
So similar!
But “similar” meant there were still subtle differences.
Xiong Ba looked at the Qing Shan Martial Academy, now a desolate wasteland resembling the aftermath of a natural disaster. It belonged to the Jiang or Hua families once again, destined to become another Ghostly Manor.
Qing Shan remained, but the Qing Shan Martial Academy was gone.
Xiong Ba stared blankly, lost in thought. He recalled his time spent there, the moments shared with Jiang Ning.
Throughout his life, few things had truly captured his attention. However, he had etched every day of his experiences at the Qing Shan Martial Academy into his memory.
“Sigh!”
For the first time in his life, he sighed.
As the sun began its descent, Xiong Ba limped towards his family home.
The Jianghu was ultimately not for him!
It was time to return home.
Qing Shan still stands.
