Chapter 394: The Fight After Comprehension
Liu Wencai’s victory made him the first among Jiang Chen’s group to enter the final sixteen.
Next to take the field was Tang Hong. He faced candidate number 24, a female disciple from the Flowing Wind Sect. It was obvious that her strength was far from Tang Hong’s.
His battle strength had grown even more wild and ferocious after being changed by the Redscaled Firelizard’s blood. The female disciple wasn’t able to put up a fight for long before she was defeated.
Just as Jiang Chen had expected, Tang Hong and Liu Wencai had both successfully made it into the top 16.
On the third day, it was finally Jiang Chen’s turn in the ring!
“Xinghan, remember your master’s words. If you cannot obtain an accomplishment in this fight, then don’t bother leaving the ring!” Master Shuiyue’s tone was as cold as the frozen tundra.
She only had Long Juxue in her sights now. Even her once favored first disciple, Ceng Shi, had been placed in a secondary position, not to mention Chu Xinghan, a disciple who’d never fawned on her and was highly principled.
Chu Xinghan’s potential was lower than Long Juxue and Ceng Shi’s, he kissed up less often than Hai Tian, wasn’t as thoughtful as He Yang, nor skilled at fathoming the honored master’s opinions.
Apart from being competent and quick with tasks, Master Shuiyue indeed did not have much goodwill towards this disciple.
Chu Xinghan suddenly halted and turned back, bowing deeply to his master. “Honored master, this is the last time your disciple will hail you as a honored master in this life. With this farewell today, your disciple only hopes that the honored master’s dao heart is clear and bright, unmarred by outside factors. Your disciple only wishes to tell honored master that even an ant has its own dao and wishes to be the master of its own fate, not someone else’s pawn.”
Chu Xinghan had long given up any thoughts of living, and had decided to let loose with everything.
Master Shuiyue’s expression grew cold when she heard these words. She was about to denounce angrily him when Chu Xinghan bounded into the ring at lightning speed.
“Honored master, this Chu Xinghan has a renegade nature.” Long Juxue said coldly. “Judging from his attitude, he seems quite dissatisfied with honored master’s arrangements.”
“Hmph, his life exists because of me, so it’s only right I should control his destiny as well. He is a traitor to my Shuiyue faction if he doesn’t respect my wishes!”
Master Shuiyue tone was cold. It was obvious that her experience in the earth quadrant had instilled in her a bone deep hatred for Jiang Chen. This kind of hatred wasn’t any less than Long Juxue’s enmity for Jiang Chen.
He was meeting Chu Xinghan again three years later.
Jiang Chen had no other stray thoughts in his mind as the scenes of the Second Crossing flew through his mind.
Looking at Chu Xinghan again, although his footsteps were resolute, there were traces of hesitation and desolation within them. Although these details didn’t look like much to an ordinary cultivator, they were all completely exposed to Jiang Chen when he employed God’s Eye and Psychic’s Head.
He was a bit surprised. The Chu Xinghan of his memories hadn’t been the sort to drag his feet like this.
He’d been quite dashing and carefree when he’d come and gone back then.
He hadn’t lost his bearing even when he’d been faced with a mysterious threat.
The dao heart of this kind of person should be very strong indeed, why was he in a state? This kind of opponent made Jiang Chen’s brow furrow slightly.
An unstable dao heart in the ring was equivalent to asking for death!
“Chu Xinghan has the urge to seek death?” Jiang Chen was quite perceptive and quickly identified that Chu Xinghan had come with a death wish.
If any ordinary cultivator had come with a desire to die, he would’ve done so valiantly and spiritedly, giving one a feeling of martyrdom.
But Chu Xinghan’s demeanor wasn’t one of fighting to his death, but as though he was heading for the gallows.
“This isn’t Chu Xinghan’s style!”
Though a bit surprised, Jiang Chen remained silent.
Although he admired Chu Xinghan a bit, their position now were enemies. He never sympathized with his opponents.
“Jiang Chen, I cannot defy my master’s orders, so I have come here to die. I have sought virtue and acquired it, you need not show me mercy. However, to expect me to pave the way for that b*tch Long Juxue and detonate my spirit ocean to harm you, I’d rather die than do so! I hope we can fight fairly. I hope, that I can die befittingly in battle!”
Chu Xinghan scowled as he silently sent this message over.
Jiang Chen was slightly startled and responded in the same manner, “You’ve recognized me?”
“The entire Purple Sun Sect recognized you in the earth quadrant. Jiang Chen, I didn’t think wrongly of you. You are indeed a genius. Come!”
Chu Xinghan had thoroughly seen through and comprehended everything. His emotions were quite ethereal now, and he wasn’t drowning in tragedy and sorrow.
He only asked for one fight, a most satisfying fight!
Throwing his head back in a howl, Chu Xinghan’s cry ached with the desolation in his heart, as if the very sun and moon would grieve with him.
“Fight!”
Chu Xinghan flourished his longsword as the air current behind him formed a river from the heavens, as radiant as the galaxy.
This radiant river of stars was a method exclusive to Chu Xinghan. When he called upon his spirit power, it would form a forcefield as if a river of stars.
However, Jiang Chen also wasn’t the same person he’d been three years ago.
Although Chu Xinghan’s cultivation had been steadily increasing, it was naturally nothing compared to Jiang Chen’s rate of improvement.
Chu Xinghan’s cultivation was also that of a newly broken sixth level spirit realm. Dazzling silver white dots of light coalesced into a sword aura that shot into the heavens.
The sword light formed an aura that surged amongst the skies.
“Sword aura rising to the heavens!”
When it came to using the sword, Chu Xinghan’s sword aura was grand and magnificent. That resplendent and majestic aura wasn’t just a cover for an empty shell.
Chu Xinghan had already truly mastered the art of the starscape’s sword aura.
When he directed this sword aura, it instantly sent seething killing intent fiercely mincing its way towards his opponent.
The sword aura suffused the field and roiled towards Jiang Chen like groups of falling stars descending from the heavens.
“Well met!”
Jiang Chen shouted as his eyes snapped sideways, standing with hands crossed over his chest.
Suddenly, he stepped to the side and flourished his sleeves, punching out with a fist.
“Nine cycles of blooming and wilting, reincarnation is indestructible.”
Bam!
Jiang Chen’s boxing aura collided hard with the boundless sword aura, giving rise to countless spirit power ripples. In this punch, Jiang Chen had used the Divine Aeons Fist as the catalyst and melded into the magnetic, metal essence, water, and fire powers.
The strong boxing aura formed an explosive energy and swallowed the sky covering sword aura whole. The air in the ring, that had been filled with the endless sword aura, returned to normal.
Only Chu Xinghan knew how powerful the mysteries of his stroke had been. He’d thought that even if he was unable to destroy Jiang Chen with this blow, he could at least throw Jiang Chen into disarray and then gain the upper hand with a string of attacks.
It was true that Chu Xinghan held a death wish, but that didn’t mean he’d lost his drive to win.
He was of a mindset that he should die to repay his debt of gratitude to his master.
He didn’t want to use the crazy method of detonating his spirit ocean because he didn’t want to betray his own principles. If he could use the sword in his hand to win fair and square, then he would have a clear conscience, with no feelings of guilt to the heavens or his own heart, to Master Shuiyue or to Jiang Chen.
Chu Xinghan also knew the saying that a man who has been away three days must be looked at with new eyes.
He had tried his best to overestimate Jiang Chen’s strength, but after this exchange, he’d tragically discovered that he’d underestimated the perverse strength of this secular genius.
This had seemed a simple collision.
But there had been many mysteries contained within.
He had made the first move, whereas Jiang Chen had reacted to what he’d brought out. This meant that Jiang Chen had been just reacting, and his control and reactions were incredible.
A careless punch had easily dispelled the starscape sword aura that Chu Xinghan was most proud of!
Chu Xinghan believed that even Long Juxue would be unable to do so this easily.
Jiang Chen’s might once again provoked Chu Xinghan’s desire to fight. His sword flicked upwards and became one with his body, transforming into a beam of light and chopping down on Jiang Chen as if a shooting star falling to the earth.
If his sword aura couldn’t contain Jiang Chen, he would opt for close quarter combat then!
His sword light flashed as he swung at Jiang Chen’s neck.
When the concentrated sword aura neared a meter away from Jiang Chen, Chu Xinghan suddenly felt himself lose control as his sword aura seemed to have hit an invisible wall, its motion and speed decreasing noticeably.
Jiang Chen smiled faintly and stepped out fearlessly, flicking lightly with his middle finger from his thumb.
Fssht!
An enormous sound shattered the air.
The art from that finger flick landed on the longsword and emitted a crisp sound, ringing without stop, as if the sword had been shocked by the flick.
The mournful ring from the sword was exceedingly ear piercing.
Chu Xinghan quirked his eyebrows and changed the motion of his sword, chopping and slicing in multiple moves as if a raging storm, attacking Jiang Chen’s vitals like screaming winds and hurtling rain.
Chu Xinghan had already ascertained the gap between himself and Jiang Chen. He was privately shocked at Jiang Chen’s strength while feeling a kind of sorrow for himself.
Jiang Chen was as dashing as ever, only changing his footwork as he smiled, his finger continuing flicking like he was plucking flowers. Each hit landed unerringly on Chu Xinghan’s sword, neither too soft nor too heavy.
Each blow however, utterly nullified Chu Xinghan’s sword aura’s chances to advance, completely destroying the rhythm of his attacks and making him unable to call upon his sword aura from beginning to end without stopping.
This kind of fight made Chu Xinghan tragically aware that his opponent wasn’t even exhibiting the fullest of his strength as he sealed off all of his long and short range attacks.
“Again!”
Although Chu Xinghan recognized Jiang Chen’s might, it also provoked his boundless battle intent. He had entered a clear state of mind at this point and could look death calmly in the eye.
Therefore, when his posture changed again, he didn’t even leave an avenue of retreat for himself. He took a purely offensive stance with no defense in it at all. He only hoped to strike out satisfyingly with his strongest attack and determine the outcome of the battle with Jiang Chen.
To conquer, or die!
When Jiang Chen saw Chu Xinghan’s reckless positioning, he suddenly understood Chu Xinghan’s earlier words. It looked like Chu Xinghan had been forced by that old woman Master Shuiyue to enter the ring and pit his life against Jiang Chen.
However, this proud man disdained self detonation as a way of fighting for Long Juxue.
And sadly, his gratitude towards Master Shuiyue was as weighty as a mountain.
Chu Xinghan’s death wish was only to repay that debt!
“That old woman Shuiyue has eyes but is blind! Her reason had been completely clouded by that b*tch Long Juxue.”
When Jiang Chen saw Chu Xinghan’s ferocious attacks, he sighed in his heart. Master Shuiyue was shunting such a good disciple to the side and had been completely turned all around by someone with that blasted innate constitution!
