novelraw Chapter 1333: Underestimated Them and Me
Chapter 1333: Underestimated Them and Me
Having no other choice, Lu Zhenhuan could only retreat, rapidly retreating at top speed. Zirong, having gained the upper hand, naturally wouldn’t let him off, so he pursued closely, like a shadow.On the other side, Tang Bufan also faced Pei Qiuyi head-on. Although his power was the weakest among them, his fighting spirit was the strongest.
His eyes had turned blood-red, like a wounded beast, having lost all reason, with only the desire to kill remaining.
The sword in his hand attacked Pei Qiuyi again and again, frantically, without defense, without retreat; each strike was a mutually destructive sword technique, a sword technique that left no room for survival.
Among those around Jing Jianjue, Pei Qiuyi’s defense was the strongest. With the powerful defense of the Qingshuang Sword Shield, except for Jing Jianjue and the enhanced-strength Qin Ba, even when facing Liang Qian and Lu Zhenhuan, he wouldn’t show any sign of defeat. But when confronted with the crazed Tang Bufan, he was tied down.
Yes, his defense was strong. Even if Tang Bufan risked his life, it was difficult to gain an advantage, but his offensive power was weak, which was his biggest flaw. At this moment, Tang Bufan was full of openings. If Pei Qiuyi wanted to kill Tang Bufan, he could do it with one sword, but it wouldn’t be without cost, because every sword from Tang Bufan held the thought of mutual destruction.
Relying on the strength far surpassing his opponent, he still managed to leave several bloody wounds on Tang Bufan, but in order to avoid being injured by Tang Bufan, these strikes, whether in angle or strength, were not satisfactory at all and did not cause fatal harm.
And Tang Bufan, despite being wounded, seemed to feel no pain at all, roaring angrily, appearing like a mad demon, his attack became even more fierce, even more fearless.
For a moment, the dignified Eighth Rank Sword Master Pei Qiuyi was surprisingly deadlocked with Second-level Sword Master Tang Bufan.
Below the platform, everyone was so shocked that they couldn’t say a word. Who could have imagined that the burden everyone underestimated and even ignored, once truly unleashing his power, could be so terrifying.
Looking again at Huayue and the others, everyone’s expressions changed. Only now did they realize how wise it was for Lv Junran, Yi Xingtian, and the others not to choose to attack them in the competition two days ago. If they had really chosen to go against Huayue and the others first, they would have lost even faster and more miserably!
Jing Jianjue’s expression also changed slightly. He too hadn’t expected that although Huayue and the others’ cultivation wasn’t high, their true strength was so frightening.
Watching Jing Jianjue attacking head-on, a faint smile appeared at the corner of Mu Hanyan’s mouth. Huayue and the others had successfully restrained Qin Ba and the others, and now it was her turn.
"I admit, your followers are indeed very strong, I underestimated them. But unfortunately, your strength is still too far from mine," Jing Jianjue took a deep breath and said.
"Are you talking about the strength you enhanced through the temple’s magic artifacts? Unfortunately, you not only underestimated them, you underestimated me too!" Mu Hanyan replied with a proud smile.
"Heavenly Kill, Absolute Sword!"
"Star Fall, Eight Desolates!" The two longswords, carrying the momentum of breaking the sky, slashed out simultaneously.
The Sword Light soared, the tempest raged, and a fierce wind passed, as if the end of the world had come.
"Boom!" In a loud crash, the entire competition platform trembled violently.
The two figures crossed and separated, both forced to retreat by the powerful Qi.
One step, two steps, three steps... nine steps, each retreated nine steps, and both came to a stop.
In their first clash, they were unexpectedly evenly matched.
As they looked at the two proud figures, everyone was stunned once again.
Although this strike ended in a draw, it was clear to everyone that Mu Hanyan was merely at the Sixth Rank Sword Master cultivation, while Jing Jianjue’s strength after enhancement was that of a Great Sword Master.
Just as there is a tremendous difference between a Great Swordsman and a Ninth-Order Swordsman, there is also a qualitative difference between a Great Sword Master and a Ninth Rank Sword Master. Mu Hanyan was only a Sixth Rank Sword Master, and even if she had the ability to challenge across ranks, she shouldn’t be able to contend with a Great Sword Master, and yet she didn’t suffer any disadvantage at all.
To know that for the vast majority of cultivators in this world, the gap between a Ninth Rank Sword Master and a Great Swordsman is an insurmountable chasm.
Mu Hanyan, how did she do it?
Not to mention others, even Jing Jianjue himself was shocked, almost having "impossible" written on his face.
Without giving him time to think, Mu Hanyan attacked again.
"Nine Heavens, Star Fall!" The first draw gave Mu Hanyan a great boost of confidence, so she didn’t use the Star Falling Eight Desolate Sword again. Although in the previous battle with Yi Xingtian, another part of the Aolai Divine Beast’s memory inheritance had awakened, giving her a deeper understanding of the Star Falling Eight Desolate Sword to the extent of harnessing sixty percent of its power, the Qi consumption remained unchanged, still allowing only three uses. She didn’t want to deplete her stamina too early.
"Heavenly Kill, Absolute Sword!" Jing Jianjue hadn’t figured out the secret behind Mu Hanyan’s sudden increase in strength, and seeing Mu Hanyan’s Sword Light coming at him again, he could only set aside distracting thoughts and face her once more.
The swords clashed, ringing crisply, Jing Jianjue was again forced back six or seven steps, while Mu Hanyan retreated eight or nine steps. The power of Nine Heavens Star Fall was, after all, significantly weaker than Star Falling to Earth.
Before she could steady her stance, Mu Hanyan twisted her waist and wrist, launching into the air once more.
"Clang, clang, clang, clang..." She attacked with seven consecutive strikes, and with each one, Jing Jianjue was forced back six or seven steps, while Mu Hanyan retreated eight or nine.
After the seven strikes, both had already retreated to the edges of the competition platform.
Although Mu Hanyan was slightly at a disadvantage with each sword, she was obviously unharmed. She calmly brushed a lock of hair from her forehead, maintaining a composed demeanor.
And everyone below the stage, including Jing Jianjue on the stage, wore expressions full of disbelief.
"How did you do it?" Jing Jianjue exhaled slowly and asked.
His face lost its earlier arrogance and turned notably more serious.
He had initially thought that with the aid of the temple’s magic artifacts, upgrading to the Great Sword Master realm in prowess, even without Qin Ba and the others’ support, suppressing Mu Hanyan would be an effortless task. Unexpectedly, their first clash ended in a draw, failing to gain any advantage at all, and even during the subsequent Six Sword Continuous Slash, although Mu Hanyan clearly reserved her strength, he still couldn’t inflict the slightest injury.
At this point, Jing Jianjue dared not underestimate Mu Hanyan in the slightest, treating her entirely as an equal opponent.
"Do you think you’re the only one with magic artifacts?" Mu Hanyan smirked casually.
Only then did Jing Jianjue notice that on Mu Hanyan’s wrist, a crystalline bracelet was radiating a magical glow, with a rich and substantial Heaven and Earth Power congregating around it, enveloping Mu Hanyan from the outside.