Chapter 157: Battle Against the Holy Son
The mountain wind rose suddenly, stirring the lingering sword aura across the dueling platform, producing a low, wailing hum.
Xiao Chen and Zhou Xuanxiao stood facing each other, the invisible collision of their auras freezing the air between them. Every disciple below held their breath, not daring to make a sound, afraid to miss even a single instant of this world-shaking duel.
"Xiao Chen, I hope you won't disappoint me," Zhou Xuanxiao said. His white robe fluttered as a thread of azure spiritual energy coiled around his raised fingertip like a roaming dragon.
Xiao Chen sneered. "Enough nonsense. Make your move."
A deafening boom erupted.
In the same instant, both figures vanished from sight.
The next moment, a blinding spiritual light exploded at the center of the platform. Two figures clashed with speeds beyond mortal eyes, sword aura sweeping wildly as spiritual power roared and collided. Each exchange caused the air to detonate, shaking the protective barrier around the platform violently.
"What speed!" a disciple cried out.
"This is a true battle between peerless geniuses!"
For a time, they were evenly matched.
Xiao Chen's sword struck like a dragon, each thrust carrying thunderous force. Zhou Xuanxiao's movements were graceful and precise, his bearing befitting that of a Holy Son. In mere moments, the two had exchanged over a hundred blows, yet neither could gain the upper hand.
"Nine Heavens Thunder Movement—Heavenly Tribulation!"
Xiao Chen suddenly changed tactics. His sword drew upon the thunder of the nine heavens, a brilliant violet sword light descending like divine punishment.
Zhou Xuanxiao's pupils contracted as he hastily summoned a bronze ancient mirror.
Ripples spread across the mirror's surface, reflecting the thunderous sword light skyward.
A thunderous explosion followed.
The deflected sword energy burst within the clouds, triggering earth-shaking thunder. Above the Tianyun Sect, lightning flashed endlessly, as though doomsday had arrived.
"The Nine Heavens Thunder Movement Sword Technique?" Zhou Xuanxiao's expression shifted. "It truly lives up to its name."
Seeing his technique deflected, Xiao Chen did not falter. But Zhou Xuanxiao's lips curved into a faint, sinister smile.
"This is where it ends."
A surge of power far greater than before erupted from his body. Azure spiritual energy transformed into tangible flames, blazing fiercely around him. More terrifying still, his aura had already surpassed the Realm of Return to Oneness.
"The Realm of Longevity! Senior Zhou has broken through to the Realm of Longevity!"
"Heavens! He just turned one hundred last year—a Longevity Realm cultivator at one hundred!"
The crowd burst into an uproar. Even the usually stoic elders rose to their feet in shock.
Lin Qingyue stared blankly at the stage, her emotions in turmoil.
At last, she understood—she had been living within someone else's scheme all along.
Yet now, for reasons she could not explain, she found herself worrying for Xiao Chen.
In an instant, Xiao Chen was driven into a desperate situation.
Across the Xuan Ying Continent, geniuses capable of battling across realms were not rare—but only before reaching the Realm of Return to Oneness.
The Realm of Longevity was different.
Between the Return to Oneness and Longevity Realms lay a gulf that had buried countless prodigies.
If Return to Oneness represented the peak of mortal cultivation, then Longevity was the threshold of transcendence—the first step beyond the boundary separating immortals from mortals.
The difference between the two was not mere accumulation of power, but a transformation of one's very essence of life.
Under the oppression of a Longevity Realm aura, Xiao Chen was swiftly overwhelmed. Each strike from Zhou Xuanxiao carried crushing force, splitting his tiger's mouth and spilling blood down his sword hilt.
"Admit defeat. Hand over the Xuantian Cauldron, and I'll spare your life," Zhou Xuanxiao said coldly from above.
Xiao Chen spat a mouthful of blood and grinned. "In your dreams."
"Stubborn fool!" Zhou Xuanxiao snorted, his hands forming seals. "This is a duel to the death. Even if you die, your sect has no grounds to complain!—Azure Sky Dragon Transformation Technique!"
His hands weaved complex seals as the spiritual energy of heaven and earth gathered toward his palms like being seized by an invisible giant hand. A blinding azure light surged upward, tearing a rift in the clouds as though the heavens themselves opened an eye.
"Azure Sky Transformation—Suppress!"
With a sharp command, the azure light twisted and expanded, transforming into a colossal dragon hundreds of meters long. Its scales gleamed like blades, its eyes shone with divine brilliance, each scale inscribed with ancient runes. As its claws tore through the air, they emitted piercing shrieks. The entire dueling platform quaked violently beneath the overwhelming pressure, the barrier formations cracking audibly.
The disciples below stumbled backward, some crushed to their knees by the dragon's oppressive might.
"This… this is a forbidden art only those of the Longevity Realm can use!" an elder exclaimed in disbelief.
Lin Qingyue's face turned pale, her nails digging deep into her palms. She could feel it clearly—the dragon's power was enough to level an entire mountain.
At the brink of death, Xiao Chen's robes were torn apart by the dragon's aura, fine beads of blood seeping from his skin. His bones creaked under unbearable strain, as though they might shatter at any moment.
This was true mortal peril.
Ordinary cultivators facing such overwhelming might would either crumble in terror or fight desperately to the death. Yet Xiao Chen suddenly curved his lips into a faint, almost maniacal smile.
"So that's how it is…" he murmured softly. "So this is what it feels like to touch death."
At the very instant the azure dragon's claws were about to crush his skull, Xiao Chen did something that left everyone utterly dumbfounded—
He closed his eyes.
Closing his eyes was not surrender, but a way to heighten every sense to the extreme.
The roaring of the dragon vanished from his ears, the burning storm of spiritual power faded from his skin, even the fear of approaching death disappeared. His consciousness sank into absolute darkness, where only a single thread of sword intent flickered within the void.
At the brink of life and death, Xiao Chen instead closed his eyes.
In that moment, his awareness returned to the Immortal Spirit Valley.
The words of The Ballad of Youth engraved upon the stone wall appeared vividly in his mind:
"…The young nobles of Wuling ride east through the golden market,
Silver saddles, white horses, crossing the spring wind.
When all the falling blossoms are trampled beneath their hooves,
They laugh as they enter the tavern of the Hu maid."
At the edge of death, the sword intent he had once only half-understood suddenly became incomparably clear.
He seemed to see his master again, carving those verses into the cliff face with his sword as a brush, each stroke carrying the profound truth of heaven and earth.
"So that's it… I finally understand!"
A knowing smile curved at the corner of Xiao Chen's mouth.
Just as the azure dragon was about to devour him, an entirely new power erupted from within his body.
A thunderous explosion followed.
Brilliant golden light soared into the heavens, shattering the dragon's spectral form completely.
"He broke through in battle!" someone cried out. "Half-Step Longevity Realm!"
Zhou Xuanxiao's expression twisted. "Impossible!"
Xiao Chen slowly opened his eyes, within which starlight seemed to flow. The sword in his hand hummed joyously, as if celebrating its master's ascension.
"Zhou Xuanxiao, it's over."
Those simple words sent chills down every spine present.
"Nine Heavens Thunder Movement—Divine Heaven!"
This strike transcended the limits of sword techniques. It merged with the artistic conception of The Ballad of Youth and embodied Xiao Chen's complete understanding of the Sword Dao.
Where the sword light passed, even space itself distorted.
Zhou Xuanxiao hastily activated all his defensive treasures, yet the instant they touched the sword light, they shattered one after another.
"No—!"
Before the stunned eyes of all present, Zhou Xuanxiao coughed blood and was flung backward, crashing heavily against the edge of the dueling platform.
In the next instant, Xiao Chen's sword tip rested against his throat.
The entire arena fell silent.
"You've lost," Xiao Chen said calmly.
Zhou Xuanxiao's face turned ashen. He could not believe he had been defeated by someone who had only just broken through to the Half-Step Longevity Realm.
Lin Qingyue gazed at the tall figure standing upon the stage, tears blurring her vision.
At last, she understood what she had truly lost.
Xiao Chen sheathed his sword and raised his hand. The Heavenly Treasure Cauldron flew from Zhou Xuanxiao's arms and landed steadily in his palm.
"As agreed, this cauldron belongs to me."
With that, he turned and walked toward the edge of the platform without looking back.
There, Medicine Elder stood, stroking his beard with satisfaction.
This battle not only ended a decade-long feud but also made Xiao Chen's name resound throughout Qingzhou.
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