Chapter 457 - 457: Clear the Area
On the island, a terrifying pressure pervades, and the closer one gets to the center of the island, the stronger this pressure becomes.
Du Guman advanced a hundred steps, and within her sea of consciousness, it felt like she was enduring a relentless mental assault from the creature. The frequency of these attacks grew more terrifying as the distance between them diminished.
Du Guman looked ahead, and it was as if there was a towering giant standing in the center of the island, gazing down at her from above.
The pressure in the giant’s gaze was so overwhelming that it seemed to compel one to kneel down and continuously worship, just to alleviate the heart-pounding fear it induced.
“Break!”
Du Guman uttered a low shout, and countless sword lights flickered, instantly dispersing the surrounding pressure. She continued to advance a hundred more steps, drawing closer to the center of the island.
Dai Yuqiu closely followed behind Du Guman. Because someone was leading the way, Dai Yuqiu faced minimal attacks.
At this point, the true form of the creature finally revealed itself before the two.
In a pool of water, numerous vines floated on the surface, densely intertwined. From a distance, it strangely gave off a feeling of a human brain.
“Is this the true form of that creature?” Du Guman frowned as she observed the creature’s appearance.
The vines floated up and down on the water’s surface, occasionally some of them swaying gently. The water in the pool appeared clear, but there was always a lingering crimson hue that couldn’t be shaken off.
“This creature should excel in mental attacks, but we can’t rule out the possibility of other abilities,” Dai Yuqiu whispered.
“Don’t worry!”
A spirit sword landed in Du Guman’s hand as she was about to approach. Suddenly, she furrowed her brow and turned her head to look behind her.
Dai Yuqiu’s perception was slightly weaker, but upon seeing Du Guman’s actions, she instinctively turned around and saw a figure breaking through the mist and stepping onto the island.
Chen Fei watched the two individuals in the distance, his expression subtly changing. He hadn’t expected someone to arrive here ahead of him.
Evidently, this creature must have something special about it to attract the attention of others.
“We discovered this creature first, and we kindly request that you leave,” Dai Yuqiu addressed Chen Fei, raising her voice.
If it were someone with lower cultivation, Dai Yuqiu might have directly cleared the area. However, Chen Fei’s Pinnacle Aperture Tempering realm aura was quite obvious, and Dai Yuqiu didn’t have the capability to force him to leave.
Chen Fei remained silent and instead turned to look to the side. In the next moment, a figure cut through the mist and landed heavily on the island.
A sharp blade aura swept through the surroundings, and his gaze locked onto the creature in the center of the island. He paid no attention to Chen Fei, Du Guman, or Dai Yuqiu nearby.
“After searching for so long, I finally found it!” Geng Wangsheng’s face revealed a faint smile as he held the blade in his hand and took steps towards the creature.
“This creature was discovered by us first, and we kindly request that you leave,” Dai Yuqiu said loudly, observing Geng Wangsheng’s actions.
“I’ve seen it, so this thing belongs to me!” Geng Wangsheng turned to look at Dai Yuqiu, pointed his finger, and grinned menacingly. “Say one more word, and I’ll kill you right now, get lost!”
An astonishing aura erupted from Geng Wangsheng, causing the creature’s aura on the island to scatter. Not only that, a hint of his blade intent crossed dozens of steps, directly slashing towards Dai Yuqiu.
Dai Yuqiu’s expression changed involuntarily, and she was about to retreat when Du Guman’s figure appeared in front of her, and a sword was swung forward.
“Hum!”
Mental clash, and waves were stirred without wind, creating ripples in the air, leaving marks on the ground.
“Geng Wangsheng, it’s true that meeting you in person is not as good as hearing about you!” Du Guman’s hoarse voice rang out as she stared closely at Geng Wangsheng. He was ranked seventh on the Hidden Dragon and Young Phoenix Ranking, known as the Mad Blade. Du Guman recognized his identity as soon as he set foot on the island.
Seeing his blade intent being nullified, Geng Wangsheng also took a serious look at Du Guman, his expression subtly changing.
“I was wondering who it was, turns out it’s Du Guman from the Du family. What’s the matter, do you want to challenge me today?” Geng Wangsheng recognized Du Guman’s identity, a rising star from the Du family and the tenth-ranked on the Hidden Dragon and Young Phoenix Ranking.
“This creature was found by me first. If you have the guts, come and try to take it!” Du Guman’s spirit sword pointed diagonally towards the ground, and a mighty sword intent enveloped the surroundings.
“Hahaha, are you telling me about first come, first served? Natural treasures belong to whoever has the bigger fist!” Geng Wangsheng laughed loudly and continued, “First come, first served? Your Du family’s current territory used to belong to the Qian family back in the day. How come I don’t see you returning it to them? It’s ridiculous!”
“Geng Wangsheng, the matters of the Du family are not up for discussion by you!” Du Guman’s voice grew even deeper, and countless sword marks silently appeared on the ground around them.
“Du family, I can’t move you now, but you, Du Guman, have no right to talk about first come, first served in front of me.”
Geng Wangsheng looked at Du Guman, his gaze filled with coldness, and said, “Now, either leave or face a few strikes from me. Let me see how much of the essence of the Du family’s techniques you’ve mastered!”
“How arrogant!”
Du Guman’s eyes narrowed slightly as she was about to make a move when suddenly her brow furrowed, and she looked to the side. It seemed that someone else had arrived here as well, possibly because the creature had revealed its hiding place after being injured earlier.
Two figures simultaneously landed on the island. Although there were two individuals, their auras were remarkably similar, to the point where some parts of their auras seemed to merge, as if they were one person.
“Where did all these people come from? You all, either leave now, or don’t blame me for showing no mercy with my blade!” Geng Wangsheng’s expression became extremely impatient as he pointed his blade at Chen Fei and the two newcomers, shouting loudly. His formidable aura swept through the surroundings, even causing the creature’s aura to temporarily retreat.
It was as if Geng Wangsheng was the true owner of this island.
“It’s the Mad Blade!”
Mei Baiping and Mei Baizong, the two brothers, saw Geng Wangsheng and couldn’t help but change their expressions. Their cultivation levels were approaching the peak of Foundation Establishment, but they hadn’t truly reached it.
Although the two of them working together could contend with an ordinary Pinnacle Aperture Tempering realm cultivator, when compared to a top-ten-ranked figure on the Hidden Dragon and Young Phoenix Ranking like Geng Wangsheng, they would likely meet their demise.
“We’re leaving now!”
Mei Baiping and Mei Baizong both bowed slightly to Geng Wangsheng and then their figures disappeared from the island.
“You’re not leaving? Then you’ll never leave!” Seeing that Chen Fei remained unmoved, Geng Wangsheng’s eyes narrowed slightly. He snorted and instantly directed his overwhelming aura towards Chen Fei.
Some people don’t shed tears until they see blood. But when Geng Wangsheng’s blade tasted blood, it wouldn’t be as simple as shedding tears!
“Hum!”
Around Chen Fei’s body, it seemed like a fierce wind had sprung up, lifting his hair backward and causing his clothes to cling tightly to his body.
Chen Fei gazed calmly at Geng Wangsheng, ranked seventh on the Hidden Dragon and Young Phoenix Ranking. Chen Fei had seen his portrait and sensed his aura before. Geng Wangsheng was a prodigious figure, likely destined to reach the Combined Aperture Tempering realm stage in the future, and possibly even advance a few steps beyond that, rather than simply staying in the Aperture Tempering realm stage.
“What’s this ‘never leave’ technique?” Chen Fei chuckled softly. Faced with Geng Wangsheng’s aura, he remained as composed as a mountain.
“How daring!” Seeing that Chen Fei was unaffected by his aura, Geng Wangsheng’s eyebrows twitched slightly. He then burst into laughter and appeared right in front of Chen Fei. The long blade in his hand transformed into a streak of moonlight, enveloping Chen Fei from all sides.
Moonlit Blade Art! Body like the moon, heart like a blade.
With this blade technique, Geng Wangsheng had fought his way to seventh place on the Hidden Dragon and Young Phoenix Ranking. At that time, if he hadn’t been overly ambitious and challenged the first-ranked individual directly, his ranking would have been even higher.
Unable to defeat the top-ranked opponent, Geng Wangsheng had chosen not to challenge anyone else on the list, living up to his title as the Mad Blade. His arrogance was unmatched, and he didn’t even regard his peers in the same realm.
At the pinnacle Aperture Tempering realm, how many lives had Geng Wangsheng taken?
And today, another soul would be added to the list beneath his blade!
Chen Fei watched Geng Wangsheng’s blade intently. Others might not be able to see Geng Wangsheng’s attack clearly, and the person would already be struck down before they knew it. However, in Chen Fei’s eyes, every detail of Geng Wangsheng’s technique was displayed clearly.
Over the past year, Chen Fei hadn’t been able to open any more apertures. He had only brought the 108 apertures closer together, seemingly increasing his elemental power by a small amount.
However, in terms of his mental control, the Thousand Threads Technique from the Alchemist Alliance had already been cultivated to the ninth level, the state of Great Completion.
This allowed Chen Fei to reach a whole new level in his mental control. Thus, even against the attack of the seventh-ranked individual on the Hidden Dragon and Young Phoenix Ranking, Chen Fei could see everything clearly.
The Moonlit Blade Art, cultivated to Geng Wangsheng’s level, should have no flaws. There should be no real weaknesses in Geng Wangsheng’s technique. However, the absence of flaws didn’t mean that the technique had no vulnerabilities.
In any person’s technique, there would inevitably be strong and weak points. A master would exploit the strongest aspect of their own technique against the weakest aspect of their opponent’s.
“Clang!”
The Qianyuan Sword rang out, arriving slightly later but striking first, piercing Geng Wangsheng’s blade seven inches from the hilt.
“Boom!”
Blades and sword shadows clashed, and the explosive sound echoed into the sky.
Geng Wangsheng’s expression held an incredulous look, and his entire body involuntarily moved backward. Under that single strike, he found himself at a disadvantage.
When Chen Fei had initiated his sword attack, Geng Wangsheng had sensed something was amiss and tried to change his technique on the spot. However, the Qianyuan Sword was like a shadow, still nailing him at the weak point in his technique.
This sensation was something Geng Wangsheng had only felt once before, and it was with the top-ranked individual on the Hidden Dragon and Young Phoenix Ranking. It was that heavy defeat that had made Geng Wangsheng lose interest in challenging anyone else on the list.
Geng Wangsheng hadn’t expected that today, he would experience this feeling once again, this time against an unknown individual.
“Boom! Boom! Boom!”
Geng Wangsheng took several steps back, each step leaving a deep pit in the ground.
Not far away, Du Guman and Dai Yuqiu watched this scene with incredulity in their eyes. Under a single strike, it wasn’t Chen Fei who was sent flying, but Geng Wangsheng who found himself in an overwhelmingly weaker position..