Chapter 1002: A Head-On Clash

Luo Changqing, clad in blue-violet brocade robes, ignored Qin Wushang. He couldn’t be bothered to speculate about Qin Wushang’s relationship with Li Guanqi. He simply assumed that Li Guanqi’s mysterious background had prompted Qin Wushang to seek a closer relationship with him.

Even the Eight Generals seemed to favor Li Guanqi. Luo Changqing knew that someone had rescued Hong Zhi after she was gravely injured and that she had later recovered at the Daxia Sword Sect. Long Hou, meanwhile, had caused the Hell Rivers across the Soaring Heavens Continent to vanish overnight. Many who investigated the incident concluded that he had likely intervened to save Li Guanqi.

None of that concerned Luo Changqing. He had come to take Luo Siyang away and meet Li Guanqi while he was here.

With a cold, imposing expression, Luo Changqing stood high in the air, looking down from above.

A trace of displeasure flashed in Qin Wushang’s eyes. Without warning, he burst into motion and unleashed a terrifying streak of sword light.

The streak of sword qi shot diagonally upward straight toward Luo Changqing’s head. Luo Changqing’s expression shifted as he immediately lowered himself.

“Come down here,” Qin Wushang said coldly. “I’ve got a bad neck. I don’t feel like looking up.”

Luo Changqing narrowed his eyes. The thumb of his left hand slowly slid up to his saber’s hilt.

Qin Wushang sneered as he stepped forward. The longsword in his hand trembled softly, releasing a faint hum. “What? Want to try me first?”

His face showed no trace of fear. His eyes sparkled with a wild eagerness for battle, igniting Luo Changqing’s fighting spirit.

Li Guanqi could only regret letting Qin Wushang come. If he’d known this would happen, he would have told him to go away.

“I’ve long heard of the Qinhuang City Crown Prince’s strength,” Luo Changqing said coldly. “We’re both candidates for the Eight Generals. I’m curious to see what the Sword Commandant’s candidate can do.”

Standing off to the side, Li Guanqi clicked his tongue in resignation. He casually waved a hand, and the four lightning pillars overhead contracted violently, crushing Luo Siyang’s limbs into a bloody mess. The agony jolted Luo Siyang awake.

“Go ahead and fight. I’ll play with him for a while.” Li Guanqi spoke quietly, but both men could hear him clearly.

Luo Changqing clenched his jaw and shot a sharp look at the lightning pillars sealing Luo Siyang in the distance. “A sealing spell? These are… the Four Heavenly Pillars!”

Only then did he turn to Li Guanqi. “Enough. If he dies, there’ll be no settling the grudge between us.”

Qin Wushang burst out laughing. As he’d expected, Li Guanqi opened his left hand toward Luo Siyang several hundred zhang away and clenched it.

Boom!

“Aahhhhhh!” Luo Siyang’s agonized screams echoed through the sky as the spatial sealing force crushed his limbs to pulp.

“Li Guanqi, how dare you!” Luo Changqing roared furiously.

At the sound of Luo Changqing’s voice, tears welled up in Luo Siyang’s eyes. He writhed desperately, trying to turn toward his brother. “Mmph! Mmm! Waaah!”

Qin Wushang looked at Luo Siyang’s mangled limbs and smirked. “Did you honestly believe you could have resolved your grudge with him? This is why I told you to spend less time in seclusion and pay more attention to what’s happening in the outside world.”

Luo Changqing glared at him. Golden light flashed beneath his feet as he shot toward Luo Siyang. Just as he began to draw his saber, Li Guanqi appeared one chi in front of him.

“So fast!”

Clang!

The saber slid one chi free of its sheath. Before Luo Changqing could pull it farther out, a purple-scaled fist smashed into his wrist.

Boom! Clang!

Luo Changqing’s expression changed sharply. The tremendous force shattered his wrist and slammed his saber back into its sheath. He thrust a knee toward Li Guanqi’s jaw, but Li Guanqi easily slapped it down, clenched the same hand into a fist, and threw a punch.

Luo Changqing hurriedly brought his saber across his body and raised his forearm to shield his chest.

Boom!

Luo Changqing was blasted backward like a cannonball. His body curled like a cooked shrimp.

“Pffft!”

Blood sprayed from his mouth. He now had a broken arm, a shattered wrist, and two broken ribs. He could hardly believe it. The punch had struck with the force of a giant dragon’s tail.

Qin Wushang rose from his chair on the mountaintop. He stared intently at Li Guanqi’s right hand, which was covered in dragon scales that gleamed like metal.

Luo Changqing finally came to a stop after carving two dark fissures through the air with his feet. He stared at Li Guanqi and muttered coldly, “Dragon scales?”

Li Guanqi didn’t deny it. He had studied the Qilin Transformation Technique during his seclusion after obtaining it. The art had three levels, but he had modified it with the help of Nine Heavens’ true dragon essence blood. Dragon Transformation was now a more fitting name.

Together with the Dragon-Elephant Subduing Sutra, it let him partially transform both arms into dragon limbs, greatly enhancing his physical strength.

Luo Changqing’s expression grew increasingly grave. He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. His left hand healed within a few breaths, and he said coldly, “Release him. I won’t make things difficult for you.”

Qin Wushang shook his head. Luo Changqing really was an idiot. Li Guanqi wouldn’t have captured his brother for no reason. If Luo Changqing had asked what had happened, apologized, and offered compensation, he might have settled the matter. Instead, he’d come in throwing his weight around.

Sure enough, Li Guanqi gave a derisive laugh and took Luo Siyang by the head. “He’s right here. Come and take him.”

Boom!

Powerful pressure erupted from Luo Changqing. His razor-sharp metal power formed a golden storm dozens of zhang across, swirling around him. “I gave you a chance!”

Whoosh!

Luo Changqing moved even faster this time, vanishing in the blink of an eye.

Clang!

A sharp saber cry echoed across the heavens. Without looking back, Li Guanqi casually thrust the dead branch in his hand toward his side.

Boom!

The sky darkened. Storm clouds spread for a hundred li in every direction. Spirit qi churned violently.

Clang!

The withered branch met the saber’s edge head-on. The clash shattered the void for hundreds of zhang around them.

Qin Wushang sat on the mountaintop with one leg crossed over the other, sipping wine and eating peanuts as the stray shockwaves from the fight pulverized the boulders beside him. “This is way more fun than staying home. Tsk. Li Guanqi really is strong now.”

The instant their weapons met, Luo Changqing realized his strength fell far short of Li Guanqi’s. His eyes flashed, and he changed his saber technique. Dazzling golden saber lights shot in all directions. Gradually, the golden light faded as he concentrated his power into the saber’s edge.

Qin Wushang curled his lips. “Luo Changqing’s control over his power is still far inferior to Li Guanqi’s.”