Chapter 98 97: The Young Man Now
"Alright, fight without holding back!" After a moment of contemplation, Ling Fei spoke to Shangguan Qingmu. He, too, wanted to fight to his heart's content.
"In that case, prepare yourself!" Shangguan Qingmu nodded. Then, he took a great stride forward and struck with his sword once more.
The sword strike was the same as before—fierce and just as powerful.
A single sword movement could stir the winds and clouds.
SWOOSH!
The Sword Momentum was immense, its aura like a brilliant rainbow.
"Cold Chi True Qi!" This time, Ling Fei gathered his power. Cold Qi billowed from his body, and wherever his Sword Momentum reached, the turbulent winds in the air seemed to freeze over.
This time, he was clearly focusing his Cold Chi True Qi, intending to unleash the full power of its Cold Qi.
In fact, Ling Fei had used Cold Chi True Qi in his previous attacks as well.
However, upon reaching this Realm, everything depended on Sword Intent. Only by projecting one's intent could the full might of one's True Qi be unleashed.
Otherwise, the True Qi's power would remain untapped, making it impossible to bring out its full potential.
'Your Sword Qi is like Gang, but my Sword Qi can seal the heavens, and my momentum is like a dragon!' Ling Fei's eyes narrowed as Sword Intent continuously gathered around him.
Then, his Long Sword moved.
As he struck, a vast Sword Momentum surged forth like a great river.
But within that Sword River, a peerlessly sharp Sword Qi lay dormant, like a dragon in the water.
BANG!
The two swords clashed, starting with the collision of the Sword Rivers.
The impact of the Sword Rivers created terrifying, massive waves.
Then, from within the Sword River, a glint of sword light flashed and broke through the waves.
This was the true killing move.
From within Shangguan Qingmu's Sword River, a Sword Qi as solid as Gang broke through the massive waves and slashed toward Ling Fei.
Meanwhile, from Ling Fei's Sword River, a stream of Cold Essence Sword Qi, like a dormant True Dragon, suddenly burst from the waves. An astonishing aura erupted with it. Wherever the Sword Qi passed, Cold Qi flared, and the turbulent waves of the Sword River ahead began to freeze solid.
'This…' As the waves in front of him were sealed in ice, Shangguan Qingmu immediately noticed the change, a look of astonishment appearing in his eyes.
And just as he watched in shock, the two streams of Sword Qi clashed.
CLANG!
The clash of Sword Qi—it was a duel between peak experts.
Shangguan Qingmu's Sword Qi was like Gang, powerful enough to slash through the Void itself.
But Ling Fei's Sword Qi was as wild and domineering as an Overlord Dragon, and it forcefully blocked the might of this strike.
After withstanding the blow, a wave of Extreme Cold Qi spread out and began to seep into Shangguan Qingmu's Sword Qi.
Under the invasion of this Cold Qi, his Sword Qi faltered, showing signs of being frozen solid.
'Ling Fei actually possesses such a domineering Cold Essence Sword Qi.' Shangguan Qingmu's pupils shrank abruptly.
He had heard before that Ling Fei's Cold Qi was incredibly potent, leaving Zhao Chen and the others with grievous injuries that were difficult to heal.
But without experiencing it firsthand, one could never truly appreciate the might of this Cold Chi Sword Energy.
Only now, in this clash, did he understand just how terrifying Ling Fei's Cold Qi was.
One had to understand that his Sword Qi was specially refined using the Celestial Spirit Sword Technique, making it far superior to that of an ordinary Cultivator.
Logically, a Cultivator of the same level should have found it difficult to compare their Sword Qi to his.
Yet now, his Sword Qi was on the verge of being frozen.
Even though he wasn't using his full strength, it was still deeply unsettling.
After all, he was a senior student who had been in the Late Stage of Innate for a long time. He was about to reach the Late Stage Innate Perfection Realm.
But Ling Fei had just entered the Late Stage of Innate. How could he possibly compare to Shangguan Qingmu?
The reality, however, was that this youth who had just entered the Late Stage of Innate was not the least bit inferior to him.
The Sword Qi gradually froze over. Although it wasn't completely sealed in ice, it still caused the momentum of Shangguan Qingmu's attack to diminish sharply.
As one waned and the other waxed, Ling Fei's Sword Qi seized the advantage, surging forward like an Overlord Dragon and crushing its opponent.
SWOOSH!
Then, the sword light howled, carrying the True Dragon Momentum as it swept toward Shangguan Qingmu.
Seeing this, Shangguan Qingmu's figure flickered, and he hastily dodged.
"Not bad. You're even stronger than I imagined." After dodging the strike, Shangguan Qingmu couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
At the same time, he landed on a Watchtower Pillar and began gathering his power once more.
'If I could merge my True Dragon Momentum, Momentum of Cold Essence, Momentum of Heaven and Earth, and Sword Momentum, the power of this attack could be enhanced even further.' After forcing Shangguan Qingmu back with a single strike, Ling Fei didn't grow complacent. Instead, he began to ponder, feeling that there was still room to improve the might of his Sword Form.
"Last time, I only used fifty percent of my Sword Intent. This time, I will use seventy percent," Shangguan Qingmu announced after gathering his power.
In his first attack, he had only used thirty percent of his Sword Intent.
That time, he had already put Ling Fei in a difficult position.
The second time, he used fifty percent, but Ling Fei had instead gained the upper hand.
Ling Fei's improvement was clear at a glance, so Shangguan Qingmu didn't dare to be careless. For this attack, he raised his Sword Intent by another twenty percent.
"Good!" Ling Fei nodded. His own aura was steadily coalescing. Right now, he was like a True Dragon, continuously building up its power.
SWOOSH!
After speaking, Shangguan Qingmu attacked.
His Sword Momentum intensified, causing the raging waves ahead to scatter before being drawn into his attack.
At the same time, this attack had follow-up moves, unlike the simple, single strikes from before.
Ling Fei also attacked. His eyes narrowed, and a low voice followed.
"Celestial River Nine Swords!"
This time, he unleashed the Celestial River Nine Swords, intending to go all out and have a satisfying battle with Shangguan Qingmu.
However, with this attack, the power of Ling Fei's Celestial River Nine Swords had also grown stronger.
With one strike, Sword Qi transformed into waves and swept forward.
The Sword Wave was like a True Dragon, its aura immense. Extreme Cold Qi billowed out, causing the temperature over the lake to drop.
Against this offensive, Shangguan Qingmu surprisingly failed to gain an advantage. The moment they clashed, his Sword River was shattered.
Fortunately, his Sword Momentum was also incredibly sharp, and he continuously struck out, neutralizing Ling Fei's Cold Qi.
But Ling Fei's Celestial River Nine Swords consisted of nine waves, each more powerful than the last. The further he got, the stronger his aura became.
Ling Fei's fusion of True Dragon Momentum and Sword Intent was also becoming more and more effortless.
And so, at the Celestial River Windy Pass, Shangguan Qingmu and Ling Fei fought fiercely. Their Sword Momentum stirred the winds and waters, kicking up monstrous waves from time to time.
The spectacle was enough to make one's heart pound.
Beyond the heart-pounding action, the crowd was also utterly astonished.
Because, in their view, with Shangguan Qingmu making a move, Ling Fei should have been quickly overwhelmed.
But the result was that the two fought more and more fiercely, and the waves stirred up in the lake grew increasingly violent.
From the looks of it, they were clearly evenly matched, with no clear winner.
This was shocking.
One must remember, Shangguan Qingmu was the seventh-ranked expert on the Celestial List!
He had been in the Late Stage of Innate for a long time. Even a casual attack from him should have been enough to crush those who had just entered the Late Stage of Innate.
But that wasn't what was happening. How could people not be shocked?
"I never thought Ling Fei would be this powerful right after entering the Late Innate Stage," many people murmured, their eyes wide with surprise.
"Five months ago, when Young Master Ling first grasped Sword Momentum, I was the one who sparred with him. But now... now it's Brother Qingmu sparring with him." Shangguan Yurou stood on the Wangfeng Tower, her autumn-water-like eyes fixed on the scene ahead. Watching the turbulent waves kicked up by the great battle, she sighed with deep emotion.
Now, she had clearly lost the right to be this young man's sparring partner.
The change was so fast that she found it difficult to process.
The young man of today was quickly becoming someone she had to chase after.
The nearby Mu Xue and the others could only look upon this young man with admiration.
Ahead, figures flickered as Ling Fei and Shangguan Qingmu's battle grew ever more intense.
"Celestial River Nine Swords, Ninth Sword—True Dragon Emerges from the Sea!"
The low words escaped Ling Fei's lips.
Afterward, the waves on the lake ahead howled as if struck by a massive force.
Ling Fei attacked, slashing out with his sword. He seemed to transform into a True Dragon, pouncing toward Shangguan Qingmu with a terrifying, chilling aura.
"What a powerful aura!" At this moment, Shangguan Qingmu's expression was grave. He held his sword and attacked with his full strength, meeting the blow with a strike of his own.
By this point, he was clearly using one hundred percent of his power.
Originally, when he was using ninety percent of his power, he could still handle Ling Fei's Celestial River Nine Swords.
But after several clashes, Ling Fei had grown stronger and stronger, and now he was forced to use his full power.
"Celestial River Transformation Gang!"
Shangguan Qingmu attacked. His body seemed to transform into a Celestial River, a fierce river that became like a Gang Qi Sword, slashing toward Ling Fei.
The power of Shangguan Qingmu's current strike was now approaching the level of the Late Stage Innate Perfection Realm.
At this moment, the waves ahead were torn asunder, unable to withstand the might of Shangguan Qingmu's sword.
Then, Ling Fei's churning Sword Qi clashed with it.
BOOM!
A heaven-shaking sound erupted. The Sword River, like a Gang Sword, slashed down, only to be blocked by Ling Fei's True Dragon-like Sword Wave.
This clash kicked up terrifying waves to the side, accompanied by a thunderous rumbling.
Under the violent impact, both of their attacks continuously weakened.
Shangguan Qingmu's all-out attack hadn't gained him the slightest advantage.
Finally, the sword light disintegrated, turning into a sweeping Sword Wave.
But the Cold Intent within Ling Fei's Sword Qi remained, sweeping forward like a True Dragon.
Under this domineering Sword Qi, the waves of Shangguan Qingmu's Sword Qi gradually fell apart.
Then, the Sword Wave swept forth, surging toward Shangguan Qingmu.
'This...' Seeing this, Shangguan Qingmu frowned and retreated repeatedly.
But that last exchange had been truly immense—an all-out strike from both of them.
The aftershocks of the Sword Wave surged forward with overwhelming force. Even though he was as fast as the wind, retreating at top speed, his body was still struck by the wave of Sword Qi.
BANG!
As if struck by a True Dragon, Shangguan Qingmu was sent flying backward. In that instant, his pupils shrank, his face a mask of disbelief.
His body flew back, reappearing in everyone's line of sight.
At the corner of Shangguan Qingmu's mouth, a trickle of blood was clearly visible.
"Shangguan Qingmu was forced back?" Seeing this, the people on the lake wore looks of astonishment.
The atmosphere on the lake shifted.
Countless gazes were locked tightly on the turbulent waves ahead.
At that moment, the waves there parted, and a young man broke through.
This young man was none other than Ling Fei.
But at this moment, Ling Fei's aura was like a rainbow—intimidating to behold.
In contrast, Shangguan Qingmu flew backward and landed on the lake's surface.
However, his feet touched the waves without sinking. Using the momentum, his body drifted backward, landing on a Watchtower Pillar.
But from this contrast, anyone could see that in the last battle, Shangguan Qingmu seemed to have... lost!
Seeing Shangguan Qingmu knocked away, Ling Fei did not press his advantage.
'The True Dragon Momentum is truly powerful.' Ling Fei broke through the waves and landed on a Watchtower Pillar. Seeing the blood at the corner of Shangguan Qingmu's mouth, his heart stirred. 'If it weren't for the boost from the True Dragon Momentum, it would have been incredibly difficult for me to block that last strike from Shangguan Qingmu.'
'Without it, my Cold Essence Sword Qi wouldn't have been able to take effect, let alone defeat him.'
