As the blade slashed out, it made almost no sound.

It was like a bird soaring through the sky.

This was the effect of Breaking the Sky. It minimized air resistance, elevating the speed of his swing by a full notch.

But Gao Yuan had been through countless life-or-death battles and possessed a beast’s intuition.

A sudden chill shot through him.

Gao Yuan let out a low roar, circulated his Qi Power, and threw himself into a forward roll!

SHLICK!

A flash of blade light slashed violently into his shoulder, cutting down across his chest, splitting the skin and tearing the flesh.

’Such tough muscles!’

Han Yuan felt his Cold Blade cutting into something like tough leather. It had barely broken the surface without reaching the bone.

Failing to kill Gao Yuan in one blow, Han Yuan didn’t panic. He put force into his arms and unleashed a torrent of blade flashes, a chaotic dance of light that whistled as it enveloped Gao Yuan.

Bloody gashes appeared one after another on Gao Yuan’s body.

But none of these wounds were fatal.

Gao Yuan seized the opportunity, drawing his own blade with a reverse grip. Kneeling, he spun like a top, kicking up a glint of cold steel.

CLANG!

Han Yuan’s Cold Blade came chopping down.

The two long sabers slammed into each other.

Han Yuan instantly felt an immense force rush toward him, forcing him back three steps.

Gao Yuan seized the chance to quickly create distance.

"Han Yuan!!!"

Gao Yuan’s face twisted, his eyes filled with vicious fury.

’He was so close!’

If he had hesitated for even a moment just now, Han Yuan’s blade would have slit his throat.

A Body Tempering Martial Artist was still human, after all.

A slit throat and massive blood loss would kill anyone.

"As expected of Chief Constable Gao. To think you even dodged that strike of mine."

Han Yuan gripped his saber with both hands, assuming the offensive stance of the Thousand Falcons Blade Technique, and smiled.

"Why did you try to assassinate me?" Gao Yuan growled.

"My brother... you killed him, didn’t you?" Han Yuan said faintly.

"So... you know."

Gao Yuan narrowed his eyes.

"If you don’t want anyone to know, you shouldn’t have done it."

"Tonight, you will pay for that with your life!"

As Han Yuan spoke, a flash of lightning streaked across the sky, painting his face a ghastly white.

"You alone?"

Gao Yuan scoffed.

He violently ripped open his tattered black clothes, revealing more than a dozen bloody, gruesome slashes.

The gash running from his neck to his chest was particularly ghastly, skin split and flesh gaping, with blood streaming from it ceaselessly.

"Just me," Han Yuan grinned.

The two men gripped their sabers, eyes locked on each other.

The next instant.

They both moved at once.

Gripping his Cold Blade with both hands, Han Yuan thrust it straight forward. It shot out like a falcon streaking across the sky, aimed directly at Gao Yuan’s heart.

SWOOSH!

The flash of the blade was incredibly swift, like a bolt of white lightning.

Gao Yuan was quick on the uptake. His own long saber swung down in a fierce chop, transforming into a streak of light that crashed against the Cold Blade.

CLANG!!!

Sparks flew.

A sharp pain shot through Han Yuan’s wrist, and he couldn’t pull his Cold Blade back in time.

Gao Yuan let out a sinister laugh. With a flick of his wrist, his blade swung upward toward Han Yuan’s chin.

Han Yuan took a sudden step back, deftly dodging the attack. At the same time, he yanked his Cold Blade free and began to slash wildly!

Falcon Dance in the Sky!

The Cold Blade unleashed a flurry of dazzling flashes, chaotic and seemingly without form.

Gao Yuan said nothing, swinging his long saber in heavy, powerful chops.

The Blade Technique he cultivated was called the Fierce Tiger Saber, and its momentum was as ferocious and terrifying as a great tiger.

SCREEE~~

ROOOAR~~~

From within the ruined temple, the eerie sounds of a fierce bird’s screech and a savage tiger’s roar could be faintly heard.

The two men fought with abandon, their long sabers clashing again and again in a furious exchange.

At this point, any failure to keep up with the tempo would mean instant death by the blade!

The longer Gao Yuan fought, the more alarmed he became.

He had originally thought he could completely crush Han Yuan with his strength at the stage of Body Tempering Great Success.

But as they fought, he discovered that his opponent’s Qi Power was in no way inferior to his own, and his stamina showed no signs of flagging.

Even his use of the Blade Technique was terrifyingly exquisite, as if he were a veteran Blade Master with decades of practice.

"Die!!"

After dozens of furious attacks, Gao Yuan finally found an opening. His long saber chopped down like a tiger descending a mountain.

A chill ran through Han Yuan. As he dodged, he tensed every muscle in his body.

SHLICK!

Gao Yuan felt his long saber slice into something like tough tree bark.

"Chief Constable Gao... that cut of yours really hurts!"

Han Yuan dodged backward. He glanced at the bloody wound stretching from his chest to his abdomen and grinned.

This was only because he had practiced the Arhat Iron Cloth Shirt. His muscles were exceptionally tough, preventing the blade from reaching his bones.

"You’ve also reached the Body Tempering Realm?" Gao Yuan exclaimed.

"Just figured that out?" Han Yuan grinned, swinging his saber at Gao Yuan’s head.

But Gao Yuan gave a strange smile. He dodged his head to the side, allowing the Cold Blade to slam deep into his shoulder.

Han Yuan seemed to sense Gao Yuan’s intent and tried to pull his saber back, but his opponent charged forward into the blow.

SHLICK!

The Cold Blade sliced deep into Gao Yuan’s muscle, only to be clamped down tight.

"So what if you’re at the Body Tempering Realm?"

"I’m at Body Tempering Great Success!!!"

As savage as a wild beast, Gao Yuan swung his saber fiercely at Han Yuan’s neck.

Han Yuan roared in response. The muscles and sinews all over his body seemed to writhe as if a great serpent were awakening, especially along his spine, which bulged prominently.

He actually let go of his saber’s hilt. All his Qi Power gathered in his right arm, and his fist seemed to swell a size larger as he threw a vicious punch.

Mountain-Breaking Hammer!!!

Empowered by his Divine Power, the punch created a dull, explosive boom.

Gao Yuan never imagined Han Yuan knew a Fist Technique.

And the sheer domineering ferocity of this Fist Technique caught him completely off guard.

BAM!

His saber hadn’t even finished its swing...

...when the fist slammed brutally into his chest!

It was like being hit by a thousand-pound sledgehammer.

Even Gao Yuan’s physique, at the peak of Body Tempering Great Success, couldn’t withstand it.

His entire body trembled. It felt as if his heart had been shattered, and he coughed up a great spray of blood.

"Die!!!"

Han Yuan’s eyes turned blood-red. He half-spun, smashing his left elbow into Gao Yuan’s head.

BAM!

The blow caved in his opponent’s nose.

Gao Yuan was beaten nearly unconscious, his head throbbing and disoriented.

Han Yuan roared like an uncontrollable beast, unleashing a wild flurry of punches!

BAM BAM BAM BAM!!!! 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Gao Yuan was beaten to a bloody pulp. His eyes bulged from their sockets, his bones and sinews were shattered, and his flesh was mangled.

Still not sated, Han Yuan grabbed Gao Yuan’s head and began smashing it furiously into the ground.

THUD THUD THUD!!!

Han Yuan didn’t stop until Gao Yuan’s head was smashed like a ruptured watermelon.

"Gao Yuan, where is my brother’s body?"

Han Yuan hauled Gao Yuan up.

Gao Yuan’s consciousness was fading. Hearing Han Yuan’s question, his lips moved slightly.

"Cough, cough, cough... Hahaha!!!"

"I’ll be waiting for you in hell!"

Han Yuan’s face was devoid of expression. He threw a punch at Gao Yuan’s skull.

CRACK!

Gao Yuan’s entire head split apart like an exploding watermelon.

Blood splattered all over Han Yuan’s face.

"You think I can’t find out just because you won’t talk?"

Han Yuan looked down at Gao Yuan’s corpse and scoffed.

This battle had been a close call, though.

Gao Yuan had lived up to his reputation as a warrior at Body Tempering Great Success; his physique was incredibly durable.

Even with a sharp weapon like the Cold Blade, it had been difficult to land a vital blow.

He had only been able to contend with him by relying on his two Martial Arts Divine Powers: Breaking the Sky and Divine Power.

In the end, it was his trump card, the Mountain-Breaking Hammer, that allowed him to finally kill Gao Yuan.

’Of course... I still have another ace up my sleeve.’

A faint bluish-purple tinge began to appear on Gao Yuan’s corpse.