Chapter 1101: Defeated in One Move
Since these ladies were elite disciples, the murderous sword dance was much stronger than what Long Fei faced on the jade bridge and harder to deal with.
Due to the direction of the murderous music, this set of the Lunar Palace’s ancient Bright Moon Sword Dance underwent a change worth more than ten thousand years of revision. It truly lived up to its fame.
With the ten grandmaster-level Martial Sages cooperating with Fang Qingxuan’s flute music, it did not just merge these people’s strength. Instead, there was a multiplier effect.
Even a Holy Scion would get entangled in a bitter battle if they got trapped in the sword dance.
Most of the outstanding talents did not go in early mainly because they were not very confident of breaking through this sword dance in a short time. Even if they won, they would expend a lot of effort.
Unexpectedly, Xiao Chen made the first move; hence, these outstanding talents scolded him in their hearts for his arrogance.
Several people smiled coldly, wanting to see how the arrogant Xiao Chen would fall in this murderous sword dance, losing his chance to obtain the Dragon’s Gate’s mountain tablet in his attempt to snatch the initiative and limelight.
However, would Xiao Chen reveal his trump card in fear of wasting too much time after getting trapped by this murderous sword dance?
Clearly, he would not. Since he could not find an opening, he would forcibly make one.
Just as the murderous sword dance surrounded Xiao Chen, he smiled faintly before opening his mouth to roar.
The Magic Energy in Xiao Chen’s sea of consciousness burned as he executed the Dragon Tone Art at full power. The resulting dragon roar instantly shook the sky, even more horrifying than the thunder of heaven.
A beam of light pierced the clouds, scattering them. Then, it landed on Xiao Chen, causing the white-clad Azure Dragon King to radiate a golden light that dazzled onlookers everywhere.
In short order, the clouds for five thousand kilometers fled like leaves swept away by the autumn wind. The light coming from Xiao Chen’s body spread to the entire area.
In that instant, it was like the entire region became several times brighter because of Xiao Chen—piercingly brighter.
Only he, the Azure Dragon King, could tear the skies with one roar echoing everywhere and scattering the clouds for five thousand kilometers!
The Bright Moon Sword Dance did indeed not have any weakness. However, if one grasped the opportunity properly, one could create an opening in a simple manner.
Naturally, the opening came from Fang Qingxuan’s murderous flute music.
The Dragon Tone Art had mainly been used to counter the Deity Race’s Mental Energy Martial Techniques. However, Martial Techniques were dead while people were alive.
As long as it could be used to disrupt the opponent’s rhythm, any Martial Technique was appropriate. This was the principle of creatively combining learning with usage.
The moment the clouds scattered and the sunlight hit the ground, Xiao Chen made his move. He charged over in a straight line and knocked back the white-clad disciples in his way, sending them flying like sandbags.
The rhythm of the Bright Moon Sword Dance was already broken. Before Xiao Chen, these Lunar Palace disciples were just ordinary grandmaster-level Martial Sages now. Naturally, they could not last a single round against him.
He continued onwards, charging at Fang Qingxuan in an instant. As the person playing the flute, Fang Qingxuan suffered the most from his Dragon Tone Art.
At this moment, she was pale, and blood trickled out from a corner of her lips. She had just grasped her sword when Xiao Chen struck her wrist, disarming her.
Xiao Chen did not stop moving, pressing on. He threw another heavy palm strike. Just as the palm strike was about to land, he reined it in somewhat on second thought.
When Xiao Chen’s hand landed on Fang Qingxuan’s right shoulder, some force came from it but only enough to knock her back, not injuring her at all.
A dragon roar echoed endlessly in the place. Xiao Chen had easily broken the famous Bright Moon Sword Dance.
The situation of Xiao Chen getting stuck in a protracted fight, which many people expected, did not happen. On the contrary, he quickly dealt with the Bright Moon Sword Dance, cutting through it at lightning speed.
As a strong wind blew, Xiao Chen did not let things drag out at all, quickly finishing the battle cleanly.
His white robes fluttered as he stood on the most eye-catching arena. If not for the clouds for five thousand kilometers that were slowly regathering in the sky, most people would suspect that they just saw an illusion.
“Thank you for going easy!”
Xiao Chen turned around and performed a cupped-fist salute to the white-clad female disciples in the arena.
The Moon Palace disciples elegantly bowed in response and flew away, looking like fairies dancing in the air. They always appeared very pleasing to the eye.
The various Holy Scions in the jade pavilions were all shocked. They had not expected that Xiao Chen could break the Bright Moon Sword Dance so easily.
All of the Holy Scions remained silent as if they could not accept this reality.
In the jade pavilion where the Cyclic Astral Palace’s group was, Chu Yang had a sullen expression as he stood up, prepared to charge down. Fu Hongyao and a group of elders quickly stopped him.
“Holy Son, don’t rush. This is just the beginning. He will not be able to stand strong for long,” a Cyclic Astral Palace elder with a goatee advised.
Fu Hongyao said softly, “Senior Brother, there is indeed no need to rush. There are many experts in the hundred small arenas below. Several of the outstanding talents from the previous Four Seas Hero Gathering are there too. These people are forty-odd years old, and their cultivations are not low at all.
“They will definitely be able to force Xiao Chen to draw his saber. At that time, we will be able to see all his trump cards.”
Chu Yang’s expression changed as he slowly sat down. “I’ll let him remain cocky first. When he climbs too high, I will ruthlessly trample him.”
In the jade pavilion where the Five Poison Sect was, the Five Poison Sect’s Holy Son showed an uncertain expression. Soon, he decided to continue watching a bit more.
In the Myriad Fiend Island’s group, Yan Shisan said with some shock, “I forgot that he knows the Dragon Tone Art. We should wait longer, until he draws his saber. Only then can we see his true strength.”
“Bang!”
Just as the white-clad female disciples left the arena, someone flew over in a rush. This person stood across Xiao Chen while holding a heavy staff.
“It’s Wang Meng!”
[TL Note: This Wang Meng is a different one from the Wang Meng of the seven giants. The Chinese characters for the Meng are different as well.]
“In the previous Four Seas Hero Gathering, he ranked fourth. Now that twenty years have passed, he already reached quasi-Emperor long ago. He is no doubt Xiao Chen’s match!”
The moment this person appeared, a great commotion immediately broke out after several people recognized him.
Xiao Chen took a look and saw that this person’s cultivation was indeed vast, comparable to some of the Holy Scions’. It was just a pity that this person was older and had already exhausted most of his potential.
Without any fortuitous encounters, Wang Meng would have extreme difficulty advancing to Martial Emperor.
Wang Meng slammed his staff on the arena. Countless cracks immediately bloomed on the floor. As a strong wind surged, his aura soared continuously.
Then, he twirled his staff with one hand, strengthening the gust even further. This simple movement boosted his aura to the peak.
Under the pressure of Wang Meng’s aura, the air turned solid and pressed down on Xiao Chen like it was a mountain.
“I am Wang Meng. I have not heard of the Azure Dragon King. Today, I come forward to have a battle with you. Sorry for the offense!”
Right after Wang Meng spoke, he shouted a war cry and soared into the air. Then, he thrust his staff towards Xiao Chen.
Wang Meng’s body was like a mountain. The moment he pushed off the floor and soared up, the arena tremble intensely, unable to tolerate the force.
When the staff smashed over, a mysterious phenomenon instantly appeared: three huge mountains gathered in the air. These mountains were so huge that everyone was flabbergasted at them.
Indistinct cracks appeared in the air, which went to show how mighty this staff strike was.
Just when everyone thought that Xiao Chen would take out his saber to face this strong Profound Martial Technique, to everyone’s surprise, he took out a staff as well.
The staff in Xiao Chen’s hand whirled like the wind. A gale howled, and an aura that could topple mountains and flip seas surged out. The sky instantly turned dark. Thunderclouds filled the sky, making it looked like the Armageddon.
Bolt after bolt of lightning tore through the sky. Just as Wang Meng’s staff was about to smash down, the staff in Xiao Chen’s hand suddenly stopped, no longer spinning around.
The gale led more than ten thousand lightning bolts forward from behind Xiao Chen. It looked like he was pulling ten thousand ancient ferocious beasts as he dashed through the air—a vast and shocking scene.
Xiao Chen’s feet did not stop moving as the staff in his hand collided with Wang Meng’s. The power of wind and lightning suddenly erupted at this moment.
Xiao Chen was like a king commanding an army ten thousand strong. His white robes fluttered in the blood-dyed battlefield, looking very elegant and outstanding.
With Xiao Chen’s staff strike, the three mountains pressing down immediately shattered and dissipated.
Wang Meng, who arrived with a strong and ferocious aura, vomited blood in midair and fell to the floor on one knee.
“Whoosh!”
Xiao Chen used the staff like it was a spear and leaped into the air. The instant Wang Meng landed, Xiao Chen charged over.
Wang Meng retreated continuously. However, the tip of Xiao Chen’s staff remained a constant two centimeters away from his throat. The terrifying aura forced him to keep backing away quickly in a fluster.
Wang Meng gave ground until he reached the edge of the arena. Just as he was about to fall off, Xiao Chen stomped on the ground and suddenly pulled the staff back.
Wang Meng’s heart thumped loudly as he thought to himself, How close! If I really fell off, I would completely embarrass myself.
“Thank you for going easy!”
Xiao Chen performed a cupped-fist salute. He did not display any arrogance at defeating his opponent or any hypocritical posing. He was as calm as still water, as polite as he should be.
Wang Meng felt a burning sensation on his face. Without saying a word, he turned around to leave; he was simply left speechless.
Before Wang Meng ascended to the arena, his thoughts had been very simple. He wanted to trample this has-been Azure Dragon King and become even more famous in this Four Seas Hero Gathering.
If he really pulled that off, then in the future, when others discussed his life, there would be a part where people talked about how he became the Northern Sea outstanding talent that dealt the final blow to the Azure Dragon King.
However, the reality was rather cruel. He could not handle even one move from Xiao Chen. Furthermore, he would have lost in a much more unsightly manner if Xiao Chen had not held back at the last moment.
Not only Wang Meng but also all of the many cultivators of the Heavenly Starry Ocean could not accept such an ending.
How could a seasoned outstanding talent of the Heavenly Starry Ocean not be able to withstand even one move of this outsider? Furthermore, he lost to a Staff Technique, the thing he was best at.
The entire plaza immediately fell silent. No one said a word like they were all struck dumb. They had been hoping to see the arrogant Xiao Chen trampled.
However, the reality was like a slap to them. How could they accept this?! How could they?!
The extraordinarily bustling Four Seas Hero Gathering never had such a scene happen in the past ten thousand years. Everyone remained silent, leaving the place very peaceful and quiet.
After a long while, three more outstanding talents of the previous Four Seas Hero Gathering entered the arena. However, Xiao Chen defeated them all in one move.
Whatever weapon his opponent used, Xiao Chen would use. With the imitation of the Changing Character Formula, his skill at every weapon was no weaker than his opponent’s.
The Four Seas Hero Gathering slowly proceeded in silence. No one shouted or cried out anything. No one had anything to say or to discuss.