Chapter 298: Chapter 144: Divine Hundred Miles, A Qualitative Change

’In a life-or-death battle, who would waste time talking so much nonsense?’

Seeing Shen Bai about to turn and leave, Ouyang Sword quickly raised a hand. "Lord Shen, we’ll fight, of course we’ll fight. But we should at least find a proper venue. It wouldn’t do for the common folk to see us brawling out here."

Shen Bai had considered various scenarios on his way over, including one where Ouyang Sword would try to act all high and mighty, only to get caught and thrashed by him.

But he hadn’t considered this particular detail.

Still, Ouyang Sword had a point. It truly wasn’t appropriate for commoners to witness their fight.

With that in mind, Shen Bai headed toward the Martial Arts Arena.

"Follow me."

Ouyang Sword didn’t press the issue further. He simply followed Shen Bai deeper into the Martial Arts Arena.

The numerous Observatory members exchanged glances upon seeing this and followed along as well.

Throughout the entire affair, Elder Mu was nowhere to be seen, clearly wanting to avoid his martial nephew.

Before long, Shen Bai led Ouyang Sword to an open area.

The Martial Arts Arena had plenty of open spaces. He casually picked a ring, stepped onto it, and beckoned to Ouyang Sword behind him.

"Let’s go. Time to fight."

Ouyang Sword cut the chatter, walked onto the ring, and slowly raised the longsword in his hand, a blade named "Ice and Snow."

Shen Bai thought the fight was about to begin, but to his surprise, Ouyang Sword started talking again.

"The Swordsmanship I employ is Qi Sword Control. It focuses on using the various transformations of Qi to induce changes in my sword techniques. Lord Shen... wait! Lord Shen, have you no honor?!"

He didn’t get to finish because he sensed that Shen Bai had already made his move.

Blood Red Sword Qi coated the blade of Cold Moon, a terrifying Sword Qi pulsating, contained but ready to erupt.

The overwhelming aura of Sword Qi made Ouyang Sword’s breath catch in his throat.

Although Shen Bai hadn’t actually struck, his attack was clearly imminent.

This wasn’t the first time the surrounding Observatory members had witnessed Shen Bai’s Swordsmanship.

By all rights, they should have grown accustomed to it by now, perhaps even a little desensitized.

Yet every time they saw it, the shock was somehow even more profound.

Shen Bai said, "Since this is a contest of Swordsmanship, I’ll stick to pure Swordsmanship. That way, you’ll have no complaints when you lose."

Not long ago, Elder Mu had told him to just teach the man a small lesson and not blow the matter out of proportion. For that reason, Shen Bai didn’t plan on using any of his other Divine Powers.

If he couldn’t hold back and ended up seriously injuring the man, it would be an embarrassment for Elder Mu.

Hearing this, a serious look entered Ouyang Sword’s eyes. "Impressive Swordsmanship. I sensed the power of Lord Shen’s sword earlier, and now that I see this Sword Qi, I know my initial feeling was correct."

As he finished speaking, Ouyang Sword extended his index finger and ran it along the blade of his longsword.

As his finger slid across the blade, a dense layer of chilling Qi materialized over the longsword.

Ouyang Sword started his spiel again. "This technique simulates the Attribute of Cold Ice with my Qi. When channeled through the longsword, it freezes everything in its path."

"Enough talk. Let’s go," Shen Bai said, his patience wearing thin.

The next moment, Shen Bai slowly thrust Cold Moon forward.

With that single thrust, countless streams of Blood Red Sword Qi blossomed from Cold Moon.

The Sword Qi was immense and overwhelming. Though it was the color of a blood moon, a brilliant, righteous aura surged within it.

At the same time, a thousand streams of Sword Qi hovered in the air, densely encircling Shen Bai.

The swirling Sword Qi made Shen Bai look like a deity in command of all swords.

"Magnificent Swordsmanship!" Ouyang Sword spread his arms wide. "Lord Shen, your technique possesses a righteous aura as vast as the blazing sun, yet it takes the form of a blood moon in the sky. Such a stark contrast! In that case, let’s see how you handle my blade."

With that, Ouyang Sword thrust his longsword forward.

As the longsword named "Ice and Snow" moved, the air seemed to fill with falling snowflakes.

Illusory images blossomed around the blade as a single beam of Sword Qi, condensed from a chilling gleam, shot straight toward Shen Bai.

Shen Bai held Cold Moon in his right hand. With his left, he simply pressed his index finger down slightly.

’He could have just swung his sword, but he felt this looked way cooler.’

’Just imagine: right hand holding the sword, left index finger pressing down, and the Blood Red Sword Qi rains down like a torrential downpour.’

’The very thought of it was delightful.’

’This line of thinking might seem a bit superficial, but he’d earned these Divine Powers by grinding like crazy every single day. What was wrong with showing off a little?’

’What’s the point of all that painstaking Cultivation if you don’t get to use it? It’d be a complete waste.’

The Blood Red Sword Qi fell like rain, sweeping toward Ouyang Sword.

Ouyang Sword’s chilling beam was instantly pierced by the rain of Blood Red Sword Qi, and the remaining streams converged on him to finish the job.

At that very moment, Shen Bai was ready to halt the Blood Red Sword Qi on a dime.

But suddenly, two beams of Sword Qi, condensed from a chilling light, appeared beneath Ouyang Sword’s feet.

The moment they appeared, they lifted Ouyang Sword into the air, allowing him to stand high above the ground.

Ouyang Sword stood suspended in the sky.

In their pursuit, the streams of Blood Red Sword Qi gradually dissipated as the distance grew.

Ouyang Sword burst out laughing. "Lord Shen, this is the unique feature of Qi Sword Control! I can use Sword Qi to achieve flight. Now that I have air superiority, I’m already in an invincible position. You can consider this your loss."

Even now, Ouyang Sword’s insufferably smug aura hadn’t diminished in the slightest.

Many of the Observatory members exchanged surprised glances.

"To be capable of Flying at the Meridian Realm... that’s truly terrifying."

They looked toward Shen Bai with a hint of worry.

After all, his opponent now controlled the air; Shen Bai was the one at a disadvantage.

His Sword Qi couldn’t reach that far, while his opponent could use flight to find the perfect vantage point to attack.

Everyone wondered how Shen Bai would get out of this.

Some of the Observatory members even began to think that Shen Bai might actually lose this fight.

But Shen Bai simply looked up at Ouyang Sword in the sky, holding Cold Moon at a casual angle, and spoke faintly.

"Oh? You can fly?"

The words had barely left his lips when, before everyone’s eyes, Shen Bai transformed into a streak of light and shot straight into the heavens.

"Sorry. I can fly, too."