Chapter 170: Victory or Defeat

Chapter 170: Chapter 170: Victory or Defeat

Sword Wind Breaker glanced at Yi Xiaoyao in surprise. As their Sword Momentums clashed, he could actually feel that his opponent’s had a stronger presence than his own.

Sword Wind Breaker had only ever experienced something like this once before, from Shangguan Tianjian. Now, he was feeling it again from the junior brother standing before him.

With that, Sword Wind Breaker no longer dared to underestimate him in the slightest. His expression grew serious.

"Junior Brother Yi, to have reached the peak of Sword Momentum at your age, and to have mastered it to such a degree... even I feel humbled in this regard."

A sharp glint flashed in Sword Wind Breaker’s eyes as he spoke to Yi Xiaoyao.

After all, on the entire Hidden Dragon List, only Shangguan Tianjian and Sword Wind Breaker had brought their Momentum to its peak. Now, Yi Xiaoyao had become the third.

"Senior Brother Dao, you’re too modest. Please, make your move," Yi Xiaoyao said with a smile, raising his sword.

Sword Wind Breaker nodded. With a sharp *SHING*, he drew his blade, which began to shine brilliantly.

"Junior Brother Yi, even if I only use fifty percent of my strength, it’s not something an ordinary Hidden Dragon List expert can withstand. You’d better be careful!"

The moment he finished speaking, his blade flashed. A powerful gale instantly erupted with Sword Wind Breaker at its center, raging wildly.

Although the surrounding crowd was quite far away, they were still blown about, staggering and swaying.

"Wind-Breaking Frenzy Slash!"

A furious roar echoed from the storm. A massive, sword-shaped attack burst from the gale, howling as it tore through the air. The very earth cracked in its wake.

It was composed of countless strands of Sword Qi, and each strand was coated in an incredibly sharp Wind Blade. Although this was only fifty percent of Sword Wind Breaker’s strength, any one of those Wind Blade-infused Sword Qis could easily obliterate a Golden Core Ninth Realm expert.

"So strong! Is that slash really only fifty percent of his power?"

"I’m finally lucky enough to see Senior Brother Dao in action today. He’s incredible!"

"Second place on the list truly lives up to his reputation. No wonder he once fought and killed a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator. To be this powerful with just fifty percent of his strength..."

Almost everyone in the surrounding crowd had never seen Sword Wind Breaker fight before, and all were stunned by this move.

Even Su Xiang, ranked sixth, couldn’t help but gulp. ’I wonder if that Yi Xiaoyao can take this attack,’ he thought.

Yi Xiaoyao watched the approaching sword-shaped attack, his gaze tightening and his expression turning extremely grave.

’Block this slash using only fifty percent of my power?’

He murmured to himself. Although he felt a great deal of pressure, he felt even more anticipation.

Because only by surpassing Sword Wind Breaker would he be qualified to contend with Shangguan Tianjian. The thought made him eager for the challenge.

"Nine Swords of Slaughter, Fifth Technique!"

As his low roar faded, the surrounding blood-red Killing Intent rapidly converged on the Bloodthirsty Sword.

Then, he slashed down. Strands of black Sword Qi merged with the blood-red Killing Intent, and his peak-stage Sword Momentum focused it all into a single point, which shot out as a straight, blood-red line!

The Fifth Technique of the Nine Swords of Slaughter, executed with fifty percent of his power, was even stronger than the slash that had defeated Ye Qingqing and blasted through a mountain peak.

The moment this sword strike appeared, cries of astonishment erupted from the crowd.

"It seems this Yi Xiaoyao is incredibly strong too! His slash concentrates all its explosive power into a single point. That level of control over his power is astonishing!"

"It seems the power of Yi Xiaoyao’s slash is no weaker than Senior Brother Dao’s, is it?"

"So you’re saying that when Yi Xiaoyao defeated Hua Yunfeng just now, he barely used any of his real strength? If he had used this move, Hua Yunfeng would probably be dead."

The crowd discussed heatedly, but their eyes were glued to the two attacks heading toward each other.

In an instant, the shadow of the sword, wreathed in Wind Blades, and the blood-red line of Killing Intent collided violently.

A series of grating, explosive sounds echoed through the air as both attacks came to a sudden halt.

The Wind Blades and the condensed Killing Intent neutralized each other, while their respective Sword Qis tore one another apart. For a moment, they were locked in a stalemate in mid-air.

During this process, stray strands of Sword Qi and sword light shot out wildly in all directions. The Black Robe Hall Master continuously waved his sleeves, blocking these aftershocks.

CRACK!

Just then, a piercing shattering sound came from mid-air. The blood-red line had actually pierced through the shadow of the sword and shot down toward Sword Wind Breaker like a bolt of lightning.

Similarly, although the shadow of the sword now had a hole through it, it continued on toward Yi Xiaoyao with its remaining power.

Yi Xiaoyao and Sword Wind Breaker’s expressions both changed. They erupted with Spiritual Power, raising their blade and sword respectively to defend as they retreated rapidly.

BANG! BANG!

The light of Spiritual Power flared in front of them both. After the explosions, both attacks finally dissipated.

SCREEECH—

The two figures halted their rapid retreat, but their feet still couldn’t stop sliding backward.

Once they came to a stop, the crowd burst into an uproar.

"Is it a draw? They both blocked each other’s attacks, and neither of them fell!"

"That Yi Xiaoyao actually managed to be evenly matched with Sword Wind Breaker? That’s incredible!"

"No, in any fight, there’s always a winner and a loser. Look at the distance each of them retreated at the end."

Someone spoke up to remind them, and the disciples all turned to look at their positions.

One of them had retreated more than three hundred zhang from his original position.

While the other... had retreated less than a hundred zhang!

Because they were forced to retreat while resisting each other’s attacks, it was natural that the one who retreated a shorter distance had the upper hand.

Everyone was stunned for a moment, their expressions turning strange.

Because the one who had retreated less than a hundred zhang was none other than Yi Xiaoyao, while Sword Wind Breaker had been pushed back over two hundred zhang more than him.

"Yi Xiaoyao retreated a shorter distance than Sword Wind Breaker? Does that mean Yi Xiaoyao is actually a bit stronger than Senior Brother Dao?"

"No way, right?"

"I find it hard to believe too, but what we’re seeing right now is the truth!"

While the crowd was discussing with various expressions, Yi Xiaoyao also noticed this and raised an eyebrow slightly.

On the other side, Sword Wind Breaker also realized he had retreated much farther than Yi Xiaoyao. A look of astonishment crossed his face, and he shook his head, dissatisfied with himself.

CLAP! CLAP! CLAP!

The Black Robe Hall Master clapped his hands, his eyes filled with delight. He laughed, "Haha! Excellent! With the strength you two possess, I have even more confidence in you for the upcoming competition!"

WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

Yi Xiaoyao and Sword Wind Breaker both flew over and glanced at each other.

"Junior Brother Yi, in that last exchange, you won!"

Although Sword Wind Breaker’s face remained largely expressionless, a hint of resignation showed in his eyes as he spoke.

Yi Xiaoyao smiled faintly. "I’d say I was just lucky to have a slight edge. If we were both using our full strength, the winner would still be uncertain."

At this moment, Su Xiang walked over and said with a deliberate smile, "Sword Wind Breaker, looks like you’ve already been surpassed. I’m afraid your second-place rank is in jeopardy."

Sword Wind Breaker shot him a glance. ’This guy is clearly trying to get back at me.’

But then he recalled saying something like, ’Yi Xiaoyao will surpass him sooner or later, but not now.’ At this thought, Sword Wind Breaker shook his head with a wry smile.

"If his strength is greater than mine, I naturally have nothing to say if he takes my rank," Sword Wind Breaker replied calmly.

These words made Hua Yunfeng and the other three twitch. They had previously doubted if Yi Xiaoyao even had the strength to rank eighth, and now he was about to snatch second place from Sword Wind Breaker!

But in the next moment, Yi Xiaoyao smiled at Sword Wind Breaker and said, "Senior Brother Dao, your second-place rank won’t change."

Everyone was baffled. The rankings weren’t something Yi Xiaoyao could just give away. What right did he have to say that?

Yi Xiaoyao didn’t explain, merely lifting his head slightly to look at the sky.

’Since I can defeat Sword Wind Breaker, it means my strength is sufficient to challenge Shangguan Tianjian.’

’In the upcoming battle for the Heaven and Earth Fire Essence, I will inevitably face Shangguan Tianjian. Once I kill Shangguan Tianjian and become number one on the Hidden Dragon List, Sword Wind Breaker will naturally remain number two.’

’And besides, the Heaven and Earth Fire Essence will be mine!’ Yi Xiaoyao declared inwardly.

He had witnessed the power of the Heaven and Earth Fire Essence, which made him all the more eager to see how much his strength would increase if he were to obtain it.

...