Struggling to endure his injuries, Ye Qingchen circulated his Soul Power to control the hidden streams of Shadow-extinction Sword Qi. He had three streams of Sword Qi at his command, but to be safe, he decided to release only two at first, aiming them at Wang Meng’s back.

Although Wang Meng had mastered the use of nature’s spiritual energy, the stealth of the Shadow-extinction Sword Technique was still formidable, and the two streams of Sword Qi rapidly closed in on him. However, when the Sword Qi came within a five-meter radius of Wang Meng, he still sensed it. For the Shadow-extinction Sword Qi, a distance of five meters was crossed in the blink of an eye, but in that same instant, Wang Meng had already reacted.

With a slight raise of his eyebrows, Wang Meng relied on his years of combat experience to swiftly turn and thrust his hands forward, summoning his two Golden Sharp Swords once again. Due to his haste, the two swords hadn’t absorbed much of nature’s spiritual energy before they collided with the two streams of Shadow-extinction Sword Qi.

BOOM! BOOM!

Two loud blasts resounded. Even though the two Golden Sharp Swords had not displayed their full power, the sheer gap between the Martial Emperor Realm and the Martial King Realm allowed Wang Meng to block Ye Qingchen’s two streams of Shadow-extinction Sword Qi, completely unscathed.

Ye Qingchen inwardly marveled at the power of a Martial Emperor. As Wang Meng moved to counter the first two streams, he covertly controlled the third stream of Sword Qi, directing it to circle around and slam into Wang Meng’s back at the precise moment he committed to his defense.

Wang Meng was already acting hastily to deal with the first two streams of Sword Qi and never expected a third, hidden one behind him. By the time he detected it, it was already too late to react. He could only instinctively dive forward, hoping to create some distance.

However, the aftershocks from the two previous explosions were still raging. Gritting his teeth, Wang Meng had to plunge into their wake, allowing the residual blasts to batter his body as he spun around to fend off the final stream of Sword Qi. It had to be said that Wang Meng’s reaction during his first encounter with the Shadow-extinction Sword Technique was nearly perfect. Even Ye Qingchen himself felt that if he weren’t relying on his Dual Pupil Martial Soul, he certainly couldn’t have handled the situation as well as Wang Meng had.

What surprised Ye Qingchen even more, however, was that Wang Meng, despite being in an extremely rushed state, still managed to mobilize his spiritual energy to collide with the final stream of Sword Qi.

BOOM!

Another loud bang echoed as Wang Meng blocked Ye Qingchen’s final stream of Sword Qi. He was only forced back three or four steps. His body was covered in dust from the explosions, making him look a little disheveled, but that was all.

Despite expending all his strength and leveraging the element of surprise from his movement technique and the Shadow-extinction Sword Technique, Ye Qingchen had only managed to push Wang Meng back a few steps, inflicting no substantial harm.

Is the Martial Emperor Realm really this powerful?

A sense of powerlessness and helplessness washed over Ye Qingchen as he faced Wang Meng. He even felt he had absolutely no chance of winning against a Martial Emperor master before he himself broke through to that realm.

However, Ye Qingchen quickly shook his head, casting the thoughts from his mind.

As long as I can master how to use nature’s spiritual energy, a Martial Emperor’s advantage over me will be negligible! But what do I do now? This Wang Meng clearly has no intention of letting me go. How should I handle this?

Although Ye Qingchen’s attack hadn’t harmed Wang Meng, the man himself felt that being forced back by a Martial King was a profound disgrace. For the first time, Wang Meng began to take Ye Qingchen seriously.

Based on the combat power he just displayed, even ten Wang Tengs would be no match for him. No wonder Wang Teng was pushed into such a pathetic state by him. But it all ends here.

Wang Meng shed his contemptuous attitude. Stretching out both hands, a sword even more substantial than the previous Golden Sharp Swords materialized out of thin air and cleaved directly toward Ye Qingchen.

Watching the sword grow larger and larger before him, Ye Qingchen continuously used Fire Spirit Charm Shadow to change his position. But the sword seemed to have locked onto him; no matter how he moved, it followed him like a shadow. Moreover, as the sword flew, nature’s spiritual energy continuously flowed into it, relentlessly increasing its power.

Ye Qingchen understood that if he kept fleeing, he would not only fail to evade the attack but would also become even more passive. With this thought, he instantly used Willow Curtain Drooping Green, forming a massive, resilient protective shield that enveloped his body. At the same time, his Double Pupil Sword slashed out repeatedly, executing the Wind Blade Sword Technique again and again to try and diminish the attacking sword’s power.

Despite Ye Qingchen’s best efforts to dodge, the spiritual power sword summoned by Wang Meng still struck him with immense force.

BANG!

Like a kite with a broken string, Ye Qingchen’s body flew backward for dozens of meters before crashing heavily beside Zi Xing.

Zi Xing hurriedly took out a Spirit Pill and fed it to Ye Qingchen, who was coughing up mouthful after mouthful of blood. Clearly, the injuries he had sustained from that blow were terrifyingly severe. This was even after Ye Qingchen had used over a dozen Wind Blade Sword Techniques to diminish the sword’s power by a third. Furthermore, Willow Curtain Drooping Green had blocked the brunt of the attack for him. Yet, the remaining force was still far more than the current Ye Qingchen could withstand.

Seeing Ye Qingchen coughing up so much blood but not dying on the spot, Wang Meng found it rather incredible. His last move would have likely killed even a first-level Martial Emperor expert in a single blow. For Ye Qingchen, who was only a fourth-tier Martial King, to have survived such an attack was simply inconceivable.

However, upon seeing Zi Xing continuously feeding Ye Qingchen Spirit Pills, Wang Meng sneered, "Feeding Spirit Pills to a dead man walking. How extravagant of you."

Although Ye Qingchen surviving his attack had surprised him, Wang Meng still considered him as good as dead. After all, he refused to believe that Ye Qingchen could possibly withstand another attack in his current condition.

Zi Xing’s eyes were bloodshot. Worried sick about Ye Qingchen, he confronted Wang Meng.

"Senior Brother Wang Meng, we are both disciples of the Central Celestial Academy. The academy’s rules forbid disciples from killing one another. Are you planning to violate the academy’s regulations?"

"The academy’s rules are nothing compared to my brother’s life," Wang Meng scoffed. "Besides, I don’t believe the academy will punish me for a mere fourth-tier Martial King!"

Wang Meng’s words left Zi Xing speechless. After all, Wang Meng had been decisive and ruthless since his arrival. Someone who cared about the academy’s rules wouldn’t have acted this way.

Since pleasantries had failed, the only option left was to fight. Even though Zi Xing knew he was no match for Wang Meng, he would absolutely not stand by and watch Ye Qingchen be murdered.