Chapter 156: Chapter 153: Sword Qi Thunder Sound, I Can Do It Too

Gasps of astonishment filled the air. Countless eyes stared in awe at White Eyebrow Sword Sect.

Sword Qi Thunder Sound. This was an exceptionally high achievement in the Sword Dao.

In all of Cyan Cloud Country, Sword King Chu Bai was the only person known to have achieved Sword Qi Thunder Sound.

Now, there was another—White Eyebrow Sword Sect!

"White Eyebrow Sword Sect has achieved Sword Qi Thunder Sound. With his current power, I’d say he’s on par with Sword King Chu Bai from a decade ago."

"With his strength now, he should be qualified to vie for the top three on the Innate List and contend with those three Kings, right?"

People chattered excitedly. Even the few prominent Alchemy Grandmasters present showed a trace of respect.

He might not be part of their alchemy circles, but his mastery of the Sword Dao was enough to earn anyone’s respect.

"Pill King Valley truly is a top-level power with deep fortune. With White Eyebrow Sword Sect here, they can surely resolve this crisis."

Initially, given the terrifying power Ning Jiang had displayed, many thought that even White Eyebrow Sword Sect might not be able to defeat him.

But now that White Eyebrow Sword Sect had achieved Sword Qi Thunder Sound, advancing his Sword Dao even further, such power was enough to suppress anyone.

"Good, good! It seems the heavens are still on the side of my Pill King Valley."

Wei Tianchen, who had been reeling from Ning Jiang’s power and ’regretting provoking such a monster,’ felt his mood shift entirely with the arrival of White Eyebrow Sword Sect.

’No matter how strong Ning Jiang is, can he really be stronger than White Eyebrow Sword Sect, who has achieved Sword Qi Thunder Sound?’

’After all, with his current strength, he could have competed with Sword King Chu Bai for the top spot on the Innate List a decade ago.’

"Shuangying, the man you like... I’m afraid he’s in grave danger now."

Mrs. Yan shook her head and sighed. She had thought Ning Jiang might actually pull off the incredible feat of suppressing Pill King Valley, but now, it seemed hopeless.

"I believe in him."

Yan Shuangying said firmly, biting her lip.

’Even a Spirit Realm Powerhouse couldn’t kill Ning Jiang. Could White Eyebrow Sword Sect possibly be stronger than that?’

"Sigh..."

Mrs. Yan sighed softly. She still didn’t have faith in Ning Jiang’s chances, thinking her daughter’s feelings for him were making her blindly optimistic.

"Li Shiyu, he’s going to lose this time."

Liang Xiyue’s expression was complicated. The youth in the sky was so magnificent and peerless; she had to admit that even her senior brother was far inferior to Ning Jiang.

"Who can say what will happen until the very end?"

Li Shiyu shook her head. From the moment she met Ning Jiang, he had given her one surprise after another.

After the past few days with him, she hadn’t come to understand him better at all. Instead, the mystery surrounding him only seemed to deepen, making him as unfathomable as the heavens and the earth.

"The times have truly changed. To think Cyan Cloud Country has produced another one of your generation... But for you to storm Pill King Valley and go on a killing spree is to go too far."

At this moment, all the other Elders had retreated. In the sky, only White Eyebrow Sword Sect and Ning Jiang remained, facing each other from a distance.

"This all started because Wei Tianchen took someone of mine. For that, Lu Changsheng owes me an explanation. Tell him to come out!"

Ning Jiang said calmly, completely unafraid even though his opponent was a top-level powerhouse who had mastered Sword Qi Thunder Sound.

White Eyebrow Sword Sect shook his head. "I am a Protector of Pill King Valley. You have come here on a killing spree, so I have no choice but to apprehend you and hand you over to the Pill King. Will you surrender and admit your guilt, or must I force you?"

"Forget you, even if Sword King Chu Bai himself were here, he couldn’t do a thing to me. What makes you think you can?" Ning Jiang’s tone was astounding, his presence vast enough to swallow the horizon.

"Such shameless boasting! Your strength is indeed great. Perhaps before, I would not have been a match for you. But now, you are most certainly not my opponent!"

Holding the blue ancient sword, White Eyebrow Sword Sect said coldly, "Enough talk. Today, I will show you the terror of Sword Qi Thunder Sound!"

With that, he raised the ancient sword and slashed down.

The sword was the Blue Thunder Ancient Sword, a Top Grade Treasure Artifact.

ZZZRAK!

A thousand-foot-long blue sword aura blossomed, accompanied by the rolling sound of thunder that rumbled throughout the entire, vast Pill King Valley.

A strike like this was enough to make even the powerhouses on the Innate List tremble in fear.

The fierce, immense thunder sounded as if the heavens themselves were raining down lightning to execute demons.

Imagine it: in the middle of a fight, a sword strikes with the sound of celestial thunder. The sheer, overwhelming power of it would be enough to shatter anyone’s will to fight.

"A strike like that... no matter how strong he is, he’ll be seriously injured, right?"

"Huh? He’s actually trying to counter with his own sword."

"He may have been known as the master of the White Head Sword Sect, but compared to the current White Eyebrow Sword Sect, there’s a considerable gap. For him to use a sword now is just showing off in front of a true master."

In full view of the crowd, Ning Jiang slowly raised the Red Lotus Sword.

Its blade was a deep vermilion, covered in a web of ice-like cracks.

"Sword Qi Thunder Sound? I can do that, too..."

As he spoke, he slashed his sword down!

A red sword aura, like a rainbow piercing the sun, shot across the sky.

RUMBLE!

It exploded like thunder, seeming to startle all of creation.

The explosion echoed in everyone’s ears, but it resonated like a shockwave through White Eyebrow Sword Sect’s mind.

’This is...!’

White Eyebrow Sword Sect’s eyes flew open, his pupils constricting as he cried out in his heart.

’Ning Jiang has also reached the realm of Sword Qi Thunder Sound!’

Amidst the earth-shattering thunder, the two sword auras collided violently. In an instant, the entire sky was split into vast, surging oceans of blue and red.

More than a dozen breaths later, everything finally grew calm.

A dead silence had fallen over the valley.

Countless horrified eyes stared at Ning Jiang—at the white-haired youth whose hair whipped about in the sky!

"A monster... That man is a monster."

The Grand Elder’s trembling voice broke the dead silence.

The other Pill King Valley Elders and Alchemy Grandmasters were normally people who remained composed through honor and disgrace, who wouldn’t flinch if a mountain collapsed before them.

But now, every single one of them was horrified.

"Good! Excellent! You’re full of surprises! To think I would encounter a peerless prodigy like you the moment I came out of seclusion!"

White Eyebrow Sword Sect’s mind reeled. He gripped the Blue Thunder Ancient Sword so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

His spirit surged, and he could barely contain himself.

Ning Jiang had also achieved Sword Qi Thunder Sound, and he was so young—young enough to send a chill down his spine.

’This man... he’s even more terrifying than Sword King Chu Bai!’

A sudden sense of defeat washed over him—a spiritual blow. He had thought that after breaking through to Sword Qi Thunder Sound, his only rival left in all of Cyan Cloud Country would be Sword King Chu Bai.

But now, a junior, so young, was his equal.

But White Eyebrow Sword Sect was, after all, the head of the Four Great Sword Sects. His battle intent didn’t diminish; on the contrary, it surged even higher.

As a Sword Cultivator, he had long ago forged a spirit that only knew how to press forward.

’A Sword Cultivator must never retreat!’

"Ning Jiang, I admit, you are the greatest opponent I have ever faced. But that only makes defeating you more interesting! This is my ultimate killing strike. If you can block it, you win."

White Eyebrow Sword Sect held his ancient sword, his aura growing sharper and more intense, rising layer by layer.

In that moment, the only thing in his eyes was his opponent, Ning Jiang. Nothing else mattered.

"Silent!"

As the sword moved, the air grew still. The sound of thunder vanished.

The strike had erased all sound. Heaven and earth fell preternaturally silent.

To progress from sound to silence was another realm entirely. Sometimes, silence is more profound than sound.

This was White Eyebrow Sword Sect’s strongest strike, his ultimate killing move. He had originally intended to use it against Sword King Chu Bai, never expecting to reveal it today.

"He has to win!"

The Grand Elder and the others clenched their fists, their expressions strained. If even this strike couldn’t stop Ning Jiang, then who in Pill King Valley could?

Wei Tianchen’s eyes were wide, staring intently, praying for Ning Jiang to fall to this strike.

Amid the hopeful gazes of the Pill King Valley members, the silent strike shot toward Ning Jiang, moving faster than the eye could see.

"A little interesting. But a pity... before me, it’s still not enough."

Ning Jiang didn’t move. In the span of a single thought, the sword light from White Eyebrow Sword Sect’s strike was upon him.

The sword light was completely stable, shaped like a crescent moon. Its tip carried a Thunderous Force as it slashed forward. It was impossible to describe just how fast, how sharp this strike was.

Just as the sword light was about to connect, Ning Jiang made his move.

With a wave of the Red Lotus Sword, it was not a red sword aura that blossomed forth, but a brilliant gold.

Great Sun Sword Technique—Broken Mountains and Rivers!

The golden sword light rippled like water. As this strike was unleashed, space itself seemed to fall silent.

It seemed as if this single strike could sever all of creation—mountains and rivers alike.

BOOM—

The two sword auras collided with a violent impact, erupting in a brilliant shower of sparks at their point of contact.

A breath later.

CRACK.

The silent strike shattered. The golden sword aura dimmed slightly, but its momentum was unbroken as it continued its horizontal slash.

White Eyebrow Sword Sect’s body flashed as he narrowly dodged the golden sword aura. It grazed past him and struck a distant mountaintop.

SHRRRAK!

Before everyone’s shocked eyes, the mountaintop was sliced clean in two, the cut surface as smooth as a mirror.

"Hiss..."

Countless sharp intakes of breath could be heard. That single strike had first destroyed White Eyebrow Sword Sect’s ultimate killing move, then cleaved a mountaintop in two. What kind of terrifying power was that?

"So he was holding back before."

The faces of the Grand Elder and the others turned deathly pale. If Ning Jiang had used such a strike earlier, they would all be dead.

"Mother, I told you he would win!"

Yan Shuangying couldn’t help but cheer in relief. Her beautiful eyes were filled with the sight of that white-haired figure.

No matter how much she had believed in Ning Jiang, it would have been impossible to say she wasn’t the least bit nervous.

Mrs. Yan’s mouth hung open, as if she had forgotten how to speak.

"Even White Eyebrow Sword Sect was defeated... In all of Cyan Cloud Country, who else can stand against him? The top three on the Innate List?"

Countless people stared at Ning Jiang, a mixture of terror and awe on their faces.

Was this young man truly going to suppress the entire Pill King Valley with just a single sword?

"Lu Changsheng, if you don’t show yourself, then everyone in Pill King Valley will die because of you!"

The ruthless voice rang out. Ning Jiang’s figure seemed like a Divine Demon. At that moment, fear was plain in the eyes of everyone from Pill King Valley.

"Your Excellency’s mastery of the Sword Dao is world-shaking. This old man is impressed!"

An ancient voice rang out from the highest palace in Pill King Valley.