Chapter 295 - 146: Prodigy
On the fighting stage.
Luo Zhan thrust his spear forward, but Liang Cheng did not draw his saber.
He simply turned his body slightly, raised his right hand, and cupped his fingers as if holding a blade. With a casual motion, he swiped lightly at the spear’s tip.
CLANG—!
The sound of metal on metal exploded!
Luo Zhan felt a strange Power travel up the spear’s shaft. At first, it was as heavy as a mountain, forcing his arm down. But at the moment of impact, it erupted with a swift vibration like thunder and wind!
The spear’s trajectory was involuntarily deflected by three inches, grazing past Liang Cheng’s temple.
Luo Zhan pulled back, his eyes filled with shock and uncertainty.
That swipe from his opponent had seemed casual, yet it was terrifyingly precise.
Even stranger was the way his Gang Qi had changed...
"Interesting."
Luo Zhan’s expression turned serious. "It seems your arrogance isn’t unfounded."
Liang Cheng remained calm. "Please."
Luo Zhan no longer held back. With a shake of his long spear, the Cultivation of a True Gang Peak expert erupted from him!
Jet-black Gang Qi spread out like ink, faintly coalescing behind him into the phantom image of a profound turtle—imposing, steady, and indestructible.
"Profound Turtle Spear—Thousand Waves!"
An afterimage of the spear came like a tide, wave after wave, pressing down on Liang Cheng with overwhelming force!
Each wave of the spear contained the majestic Gang Qi of a True Gang Peak expert, powerful enough to shatter mountains and crack stone!
This time, Liang Cheng finally drew his saber.
The Zhenxian Saber left its sheath. Azure Gang Qi flowed along the blade, accompanied by the faint sound of wind and thunder.
He used no flashy moves—only simple horizontal slices, vertical chops, and diagonal slashes. Yet every strike landed precisely on the weakest point of the spear’s waves.
Each strike was as heavy as a mountain, yet at the moment of impact, it would erupt with a swift Power like wind and thunder!
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG—!
The sounds of the saber and spear clashing blurred into one as sparks rained down!
The two blurred into afterimages on the stage, their Gang Qi crisscrossing as the ground continuously cracked beneath them.
Thirty moves!
Fifty moves!
Eighty moves!
For a time, they were evenly matched!
The crowd below was already dumbfounded.
"Senior Brother Liang can actually go toe-to-toe with Luo Zhan?"
"Is his Saber Technique Elder Chen’s Mountain-Breaking Saber? Why does it look similar yet different? It’s so strange!"
"Look at Luo Zhan’s spear! Every time it seems about to hit Senior Brother Liang, it’s intercepted by his saber!"
On the high platform, a sharp glint flashed in Chen Xuanfeng’s eyes.
’What a kid. To think he created his own Saber Technique! Such comprehension! If this were reported to the Penglai Sect...’
Chen Xuanfeng quickly suppressed the thought. For now, he would just watch Liang Cheng’s fight and worry about other things later.
Ye Zhiqiu clenched his fists and murmured, "Junior Brother... you’ve actually come this far. It seems I can’t fall too far behind."
On the stage, the longer Luo Zhan fought, the more alarmed he became.
This Liang Cheng’s Saber Technique seemed simple and unadorned, yet it always managed to intercept his spear’s momentum at the most critical moments. In a head-on clash, he wasn’t losing ground at all!
’I can’t drag this out any longer!’
He had come here to temper himself. If he couldn’t even defeat someone at the bottom of the Main Courtyard’s Dragon and Phoenix List, wouldn’t he become a laughingstock if word got out?
"Liang Cheng, take my final spear strike!"
He roared, his body retreating rapidly as he raised his long spear high.
The profound turtle phantom behind him roared at the sky as black Gang Qi frantically poured into the spear’s shaft.
At the spear’s tip, a point of ultimate black light condensed, as if it could devour all light.
"Profound Turtle Spear—Sea-Suppressing Heaven-Covering!"
This spear strike was the culmination of his life’s Cultivation, a secret killing move from Profound Turtle Island!
As the spear thrust out, the very heavens and earth seemed to change color!
The black spear light swept across the entire stage like a tsunami. Wherever it passed, the ground shattered layer by layer, and the crowd below held their breath.
This spear strike...
It was too strong!
A grave expression also appeared in Liang Cheng’s eyes.
But he did not retreat.
Instead, he took a step forward.
He slowly raised the Zhenxian Saber. Azure Gang Qi frantically circulated along the blade, and the sound of wind and thunder grew loud.
In that instant, his five senses became incredibly clear.
He saw the very core of the spear light.
And he saw where he needed to strike.
’Nine Heavens Mountain-Breaking Saber!’
’Broken Sea!’
"Break!"
With a low roar, Liang Cheng brought his saber down!
There were no magnificent light effects, no overwhelming aura—only a single, extremely condensed azure Saber Aura, like a bolt of lightning striking down from the nine heavens, or a ten-thousand-foot mountain collapsing!
Wherever the Saber Aura passed, the wave of black spear light was forcefully split down the middle!
It was as if a real tsunami had been severed by an invisible chasm.
Luo Zhan’s pupils contracted!
He wanted to change his move, but it was already too late.
The azure Saber Aura was already upon him!
"Block it!"
He roared, pouring all his Gang Qi into the spear’s shaft and holding it horizontally to block.
CLANG—!!!!
Amidst the deafening explosion, the long spear in Luo Zhan’s hands snapped in two!
The Saber Aura’s momentum did not diminish as it viciously struck the Protective Gang Qi on his chest.
PFFT—!
Luo Zhan spat blood as he was sent flying backward, slamming heavily against the barrier of light at the edge of the stage before sliding to the ground.
He struggled to stand, but only managed to cough up another mouthful of blood before finally falling to one knee.
He looked down. The robes on his chest were completely shredded, and a shallow saber mark ran from his collarbone to his abdomen. If it had been half a fraction deeper, he would have been disemboweled.
Meanwhile, Liang Cheng stood with his saber in hand, breathing lightly, its tip pointing diagonally at the ground.
At this moment, victory and defeat were decided!
The entire arena fell deathly silent.
After a full three breaths—
"He won!!!"
"Senior Brother Liang won!!!"
"He only just entered the True Gang realm half a year ago, yet he defeated Luo Zhan, a True Gang Peak expert!!!"
"As expected of a prodigy from our Main Courtyard!"
Cheers like a mountain collapsing and a tsunami roaring erupted in an instant!
Kneeling on the stage, Luo Zhan looked at the broken spear in his hands, then at the saber mark on his chest, a complex expression on his face.
Shock, confusion, defeat...
It all finally melted into a bitter smile.
He struggled to his feet, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and gave Liang Cheng a solemn fist-and-palm salute.
"I’m impressed."
After a pause, he asked, "What is that saber strike called?"
"Nine Heavens Mountain-Breaking."
Liang Cheng sheathed his saber.
"Nine Heavens Mountain-Breaking... a good name."
Luo Zhan gave Liang Cheng a deep look. "At the Immortal Ascension Conference in half a year, I will fight you again."