novelraw Chapter 233 - 231: One Sword Cuts the Edge of Heaven and Earth
Chapter 233 - 231: One Sword Cuts the Edge of Heaven and Earth
The Elemental Power abruptly contracted as if space itself were collapsing. Ning Zhiquan shot Wang Meng a grave look, secretly alarmed. ’If I had blindly taken that last sword strike, I would have suffered a major loss.’
But now...
KILL!
Ning Zhiquan’s anger flared; he was done playing around. Light radiated from his Sacrificial Sword as his immense Elemental Power magnified the blade several times over, and he chopped down at Wang Meng.
BOOM...
Having just used his Five Elements Sword, Wang Meng could only defend. He was sent flying back more than a hundred feet by the blow, and before he could even regain his footing, Ning Zhiquan’s next attack arrived.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
If the defensive Skill Technique had no weaknesses, then he would just use brute force to shatter it.
Ning Zhiquan’s Sacrificial Sword technique was all wide, sweeping motions, pressing forward with every step and giving Wang Meng no opening to counterattack.
The disciples of Dao Guang Hall watched, their blood boiling, and cheered loudly. They shook their fists toward the Thunderlight Hall’s side in a show of dominance.
BOOM...
Another heavy sword strike made Wang Meng’s hand tremble. Ning Zhiquan lashed out with a kick, and a wave of Sword Qi followed, slicing across Wang Meng’s chest.
SHING...
Wang Meng’s body crashed heavily to the ground, which was now covered in blood. Ning Zhiquan pointed his sword at the floor, the corner of his mouth curling into a victor’s smile.
But the smile didn’t last long, as Wang Meng immediately climbed back to his feet. A gash ran diagonally from his chest down to his ribs, looking as if the Sword Qi had flayed the flesh open.
Wang Meng just wiped at the wound. ’That sword strike was just a hair’s breadth away from killing me.’
A light began to glow in Wang Meng’s eyes. He licked his lips and, with a vicious flick of his Broken Heaven Edge, roared, "Kill!"
BOOM...
Five Elements Sword—Five Elements Deficiency!
A smile played on Ning Zhiquan’s lips. This time, he did not evade with his Sacrificial Sword.
THWUMP...
A slight tremor...
’It didn’t work???’
"A truly excellent Sword Technique, but unfortunately for you, you’ve used it too many times!"
That last strike was a complete feint; the Elemental Power Ning Zhiquan displayed was fake. The Five Elements Deficiency technique’s backlash was stronger the more powerful the opponent’s attack, but... the Sacrificial Sword was already chopping down on his head. Wang Meng only had time to turn sideways. SHING...
Another wound appeared on his chest, forming a massive X-shaped gash.
Ning Zhiquan kicked him square in the chest. THUD...
Wang Meng was blasted backward, but he stubbornly remained on his feet.
"Too light! Too light! It’s too light!" Wang Meng hammered his chest with his left fist, seemingly driven into a frenzy.
The disciples from Thunderlight Hall watched in stunned, sorrowful silence. ’Ning Zhiquan is too strong,’ they thought. ’The Twenty-Ninth Layer... how the hell is he supposed to fight that?’
Yang Ying’s face was pale with anxiety. ’He shouldn’t keep going on like this. If he persists, someone’s really going to die.’
"Junior Sister Hu, you have to stop him!"
Yang Ying said anxiously. At a time like this, Hu Jing, as the senior sister of Thunderlight Hall, had the authority to concede the match. ’Something’s wrong with Wang Meng’s condition!’
Hu Jing was probably even more anxious than Yang Ying, but she bit her lip hard and said, "This is Wang Meng’s battle. I can’t do something he’ll regret for the rest of his life."
Hu Jing understood Wang Meng better than Yang Ying did. She knew he would never, ever bow his head and admit defeat. He had been like that in the mortal world, and he was the same here in the Holy Hall.
Zhang Xiaojiang clenched his chubby fists. "Nobody interfere! You guys don’t understand Brother Meng at all. This right now is his optimal combat state!"
He said as much, but Zhang Xiaojiang was worried too. This wasn’t the mortal world, after all, let alone some street brawl.
Wang Meng charged forward, only to be quickly beaten back by Ning Zhiquan again. Ning Zhiquan was starting to get impatient; if this dragged on, he might actually deliver a killing blow.
BOOM...
Wang Meng was sent flying once more, his body a bloody, mangled mess. It was rare for a Holy Hall battle to become this gruesome.
The entire arena fell silent... and once again, Wang Meng stood up. ’Surrender?’
’If you admit defeat once, you’ll spend the rest of your life admitting defeat.’
’Better to die on your feet than live on your knees.’
A layer of golden light appeared on Broken Heaven Edge. He raised it high. "KILL!"
BOOM...
Broken Heaven Edge met the Sacrificial Sword. Ning Zhiquan snorted coldly. "You’re courting death!"
BOOM...
Ning Zhiquan was blasted back two steps, but this time, Wang Meng surprisingly didn’t retreat at all.
Five Elements Sword Skill’s Metal of the Five Elements—Creation from Nothingness.
Broken Heaven Edge pulsed with intense offensive power—the Metal of the Five Elements, the most violent of the Five Elements.
KILL!
BOOM... BOOM... BOOM...
Three consecutive strikes sent Ning Zhiquan flying. The third blow shattered his defense and landed on his left ribs.
Facing the charging Wang Meng, Ning Zhiquan let out a thunderous roar and activated his Sacrificial Sword!
Unity of Man and Sword! BOOM...
With every collision, ripples of Elemental Power spread in all directions. Both fighters were thrown back, only to clash again in the next instant, faster and more ferocious each time, until a fierce vortex of Elemental Power formed on the Dueling Platform.
For a situation like this to occur during a tournament between disciples was indescribable, simply unimaginable.
All eyes were fixed on the waves of Elemental Power on the Dueling Platform, where they could only make out two blurry figures and hear their explosive roars.
KILL!
KILL!
Wang Meng would not give up; he didn’t even know the meaning of the word. After enduring countless hardships to reach the Holy Hall, after surviving a great calamity, he sure as hell wasn’t going to change who he was now!
Ning Zhiquan’s Sacrificial Sword was just as ferocious. He had dominated the Jiufen Hall for years; there was no way he would be the one to fall!
THWUM... THWUM... THWUM...
BOOM...
Two figures came tumbling out of the blast wave, staggering as they landed. Ning Zhiquan had long since lost his composed demeanor and was now covered in wounds. But *this* was the true Ning Zhiquan, the wielder of the Sacrificial Sword from all those years ago.
The Sacrificial Sword: a battle to the death.
A smile touched Wang Meng’s lips. ’This is so damn satisfying.’ He was even starting to like this Ning Zhiquan guy.
It had been a long time since Ning Zhiquan had had such a gratifying fight. In all these years, Wang Meng was the first to give him one.
At almost the same instant, both threw their heads back and laughed. "Kill!"
They smashed into each other again. Only one of them would be left standing!
Either Ning Zhiquan would reign supreme over the Holy Hall.
Or Wang Meng would burst onto the scene and create an immortal legend.
The six Ancestral Masters nodded continuously. Wang Meng’s almost unreasonable dominance and Ning Zhiquan’s well-rounded skills made them both worthy of becoming future pillars of the Holy Hall.
The Holy Hall needed Ning Zhiquan’s brand of steady power, but it needed Wang Meng’s arrogant, untamed drive even more. The Holy Hall needed passion.
KILL!
KILL!
The disciples cheered, no longer knowing who they were cheering for. They were simply cheering for the battle itself, for the two men on the stage.
Regardless of who won or lost, a legend would be forged today. This was their first battle, but it definitely wouldn’t be their last.
Zhou Luodan glanced at Wu Fatian and Thunderbolt, who were cheering loudly with no regard for their image. She suddenly realized, ’Weren’t we just like Wang Meng and Ning Zhiquan back in the day?’
BOOM...
Ning Zhiquan was sent flying, his face pale, while Wang Meng staggered backward. Ning Zhiquan wasn’t a god; he had finally been hit by one of Wang Meng’s Five Elements Deficiency attacks.
The combination of Five Elements Deficiency and Creation from Nothingness was simply the most lethal of Sword Techniques.
One was the epitome of yielding, the other the epitome of force. Even in its embryonic form, it left Ning Zhiquan at a complete loss.
Most critically, Wang Meng’s ability to adapt to sword techniques was terrifying. A move that injured him once would rarely work a second time. In contrast, one careless slip against his bizarre Sword Techniques could lead to a major loss, and even if you knew what was coming, there was simply no time to react and change course.
Against Creation from Nothingness, one had to attack with full force. Against Five Elements Deficiency, one had to retract their Elemental Power. But if you made the wrong call, there was no time to change your move.
Ning Zhiquan forced his Elemental Power to surge, suppressing the blood that had risen to his throat, and executed his Aerial Skill.
Wang Meng wasn’t in much better shape. Ning Zhiquan’s advantage in Elemental Power was immense; Wang Meng was fighting on pure willpower.
It all came down to a razor’s edge—whoever couldn’t hold on, whoever gave up first, would lose.
"Brother Li, that boy Zhiyuan is about to use the Sacrificial Sword. Shouldn’t we stop him?"
Zhou Luodan said, looking at Ning Zhiquan in the air.
Li Xiuwen shook his head. "A sharp sword is forged through tempering. I haven’t seen a tournament like this in many years; it makes me feel young again. Let them decide the outcome for themselves."
Floating in mid-air, Ning Zhiquan looked down at Wang Meng. "In all these years, you are the first opponent worthy of receiving a blow from my Sacrificial Sword!"
The name "Sacrificial Sword" didn’t come from the rumored Sacrificial Battle, but because there was an actual Sword Technique called the Sacrificial Sword!
Wang Meng stood proudly, looking up at Ning Zhiquan in the sky. At some point, he had shifted his Broken Heaven Edge into a reverse grip.
Sword Formulas drifted through the air as a brilliant light erupted from Ning Zhiquan’s body. The Sacrificial Sword, as its name implied, involved sacrificing one’s own body and consuming one’s potential. In his current state, Ning Zhiquan could only use it once a month and required a long recovery period, so he was reluctant to use it.
But today, he was going to use it.
"Sacrifice the body to feed the sword... Sword! Decides! Heaven! And! Earth!"
In the sky, Ning Zhiquan transformed into a radiant meteor, plummeting toward Wang Meng.
The violent wave of Elemental Qi sent the surrounding disciples flying.
Wang Meng flashed his signature, predatory grin, and Broken Heaven Edge transformed into a streak of light.
In his fragmented memories, there was a vision of unparalleled dominance: One Sword Cuts the Edge of Heaven and Earth!
KILLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!
RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE...
As if the heavens were collapsing and the earth were splitting apart, the Dueling Platform exploded, sending stone fragments flying everywhere. Amidst the boundless light, the disciples saw only a sudden, blinding flash.
After a long moment, everyone’s vision returned, and they stared, dumbfounded, at the scene before them.
The Dueling Platform was gone. Even the area around the Dao Guang Hall was in ruins.
Amidst the ruins stood two people: one with a broken blade, and one with the Sacrificial Sword.
Who? Who could it be?
Ning Zhiquan stared at the Sacrificial Sword in his hand, his gaze filled with rippling emotion. "What is that move called?"
He was as calm as if he were speaking to an old friend.
Wang Meng gazed at the sky, as if he could see through its vast expanse to the ethereal Grand Thousand World beyond.
"Broken Heaven Edge."
"A good man, and an even better sword. One Sword Cuts the Edge of Heaven and Earth."
CRACK...
A crack appeared on the blade of the Sacrificial Sword, and in an instant, it shattered into fragments. In that same moment, it felt as though the hearts of the Dao Guang Hall disciples shattered right along with it.
It was still that same abandoned, broken blade from the corner, only now it had a name everyone knew—Broken Heaven Edge.
Zhang Xiaopang hugged Zhou Qian tightly. "Little Zhou, did Brother Meng win? Fuck, did he win?!"
Zhang Xiaopang’s eyes were squeezed shut, and he refused to open them no matter what.
Zhou Qian was nearly being squeezed to death, but he didn’t seem to notice. "I think... he won."
"Damn it, what do you mean, ’I think’?!" Zhang Xiaopang couldn’t take it anymore, but as he opened his eyes, he saw that everyone around him was staring ahead as if they had lost their souls.
THUMP...
Ning Zhiquan’s body swayed once, then collapsed with a crash.
In that instant, it wasn’t just his body that fell, but decades of glory for the Dao Guang Hall.
Wang Meng felt as if his body was no longer under his control. That final exchange had been evenly matched; it was just that he had been in this kind of half-dead state from fighting someone to the bitter end more than once.
That, he supposed, also counted as a kind of experience.
He had arrived at the Holy Hall as if in a dream, and now, he had won. At this moment, he was struck by an intense longing for his parents. He wanted to go home.
ROOOOAAAARRRR!
Wang Meng raised Broken Heaven Edge to the sky and let out a long roar. Instantly, the crowd in the Dao Guang Hall erupted, going absolutely wild.
A legend was born. Wang Meng of Thunderlight Hall, with an eight-match winning streak, had achieved a miracle unheard of since the founding of the Holy Hall!
Zhang Xiaojiang and the others rushed forward wildly. Thunderlight Hall, Hundred Herbs Hall, Beast Hall, Fire Cloud Hall, Flying Phoenix Hall... (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian.com and vote with recommendation tickets and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)