Upon hearing this, Luo Wei said no more. He stepped back a few paces, clearing the field.

The onlookers, both inside and outside the surrounding teahouse, held their breath, their gazes fixed on the two men in the center of the field.

"In that case, let’s settle this with our skills!"

Before Miao Zhicheng’s words had even faded, his right hand was already on the hilt of the oddly arced Curved Saber at his waist.

The blade trembled, emitting a low hum, as if a malevolent spirit was awakening, poised to strike.

Profound Yuan True Qi erupted from his body, and the swirling, cold wind grew harsher, feeling like a blade scraping against one’s face.

Chen Qing’s expression was calm, his grip tightening on the Cloud-Coiling Spear.

’I’ve already got my prize. You think I’m just going to cough it back up!?’

’Absolutely not!’

’Not unless an Astral Force master from Golden Sand Castle shows up personally.’

A fierce light flashed in Miao Zhicheng’s eyes. Without another word, he lunged like a predator pouncing on its prey. His Curved Saber cut a frigid arc of light that tore through the air with a piercing shriek, slashing straight for Chen Qing’s neck!

The wind from the blade howled. Before the Qi Force even reached him, the terrifying pressure was already whipping Chen Qing’s robes into a frenzy. They snapped and billowed as if he and his spear were about to be blown away.

"So ferocious!?"

Seeing this, the spectators Xu Qi and Zhao Stone stared wide-eyed, their hearts leaping into their throats.

Chen Qing’s expression remained tranquil, like the surface of an ancient well.

Just as the wind from the blade was about to strike, he executed a nimble shift in his footwork. Using the Startled Swan Escape Shadow Technique, his body drifted back half a step like a phantom, perfectly evading the fatal strike.

Simultaneously, with a flick of his wrist, the heavy Cloud-Coiling Spear let out a low hum. The spear’s tip quivered, blurring into a dozen points of cold light, like a viper striking. He had moved second, but his attack would arrive first, aimed precisely at Miao Zhicheng’s vital spots—his wrist, shoulder, and neck. It was the brilliant counter-attacking move from the Mountain Prison-Suppression Spear: Thousand Peaks Locking Clouds!

Miao Zhicheng saw a field of cold stars flash before his eyes. Before the spear tip even arrived, the condensed, forceful wind stung his skin and completely sealed off all of his follow-up attacks.

’Such a fast spear!’

He shuddered inwardly. ’So this Chen Qing isn’t just famous for nothing,’ he thought, his mind racing.

Miao Zhicheng’s wrist dipped sharply. The oddly arced Curved Saber coiled back as if alive, its blade glinting like a venomous python twisting its body. With breathtaking risk, it parried several of the deadly starlike points of light!

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

The tips of the saber and spear collided several times in an instant, unleashing a rapid, piercing series of clashes as sparks flew!

A wave of incomparably sharp Profound Yuan Blade Qi slammed down the shaft of the spear. Chen Qing felt a slight numbness in his palm, and the hum of the Cloud-Coiling Spear abruptly became dull and sluggish.

’What a bizarre Saber Technique!’

’This Profound Yuan True Qi is really something else,’ Chen Qing thought.

He circulated his Cyan Wood True Qi, and a heavy, mountain-like True Qi surged forth, instantly neutralizing the invading Profound Yuan Blade Qi.

At the same time, he used the momentum to spin his body. The Cloud-Coiling Spear shifted from a thrust to a sweep, its shaft carrying immense Power, like a Mountain-Shaking Iron Pillar. Accompanied by the dull roar of wind and thunder, it swung straight for Miao Zhicheng’s midsection!

The sweep looked simple and unadorned, yet the wind it generated was powerful enough to kick up clouds of dust, its sheer force astonishing.

Miao Zhicheng’s pupils contracted. He could tell this move was immensely powerful and not to be blocked directly.

He tapped the ground sharply with his toes, his body floating backward as if weightless, while the Curved Saber in his hand danced in a blur!

Golden Soul Shattering! Thousand Threads Slash!

Instantly, a piercing light exploded from the blade—not a single slash, but dozens of frigid, crisscrossing arcs of light as fine as silk threads!

These threads of light were no illusion. Forged from highly condensed Profound Yuan True Qi, they were sharp enough to slice through gold and jade. They formed a net of blades, intended not only to intercept the sweeping spear but to envelop and shred Chen Qing himself!

Before the net of blades even arrived, its grim, sharp aura sent a chill across the onlookers’ skin, as if they were being pressed by invisible knives. Under the teahouse awning, countless fine slash marks silently appeared on several tables and chairs!

Xu Qi and Zhao Stone watched with bated breath, their palms slick with cold sweat.

Miao Zhicheng was no nobody; he was a renowned prodigy in Lin’an Prefecture.

Facing this vicious net of blades capable of dismembering a person, Chen Qing’s gaze hardened. Instead of retreating, he took half a step forward, sinking into a low horse stance.

The muscles on his arms bulged as the True Qi within him surged like a mighty river, all of it pouring into the Cloud-Coiling Spear.

The sweeping spear froze in mid-air, then its shaft began to rotate at high speed, becoming an impenetrable, whirling black barrier!

Mountain Prison Suppression! Iron Lock Cross River!

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG—!

A deafening series of impacts, as dense as a torrential downpour, exploded outward!

Countless fragments of Profound Yuan Blade Qi struck the spinning spear shaft, erupting in blinding bursts of sparks and scattering Qi Force that made it impossible to look.

Miao Zhicheng’s Thousand Threads Slash, a move powerful enough to shatter souls and split gold, was utterly crushed by the mountain-steady Spear Force!

The stalemate lasted but an instant.

In that fleeting moment, just as the Saber Momentum was fading and the Spear Momentum was shifting from defense to offense—

Chen Qing’s spinning spear came to a sudden halt. Seizing the infinitesimal opportunity, he thrust it forward like a striking dragon!

A single point of cold light pierced through the lingering afterimages of the saber slashes, stabbing straight toward the vital point in Miao Zhicheng’s Central Palace!

The ferocity and precision of the attack were such that it seemed Chen Qing had already predicted all of Miao Zhicheng’s possible counters!

Miao Zhicheng’s expression changed in horror. It was too late to bring his saber back for a full-forced block. He had no choice but to gather Profound Yuan True Qi in his left arm and slap the spear shaft, using the impact to propel himself backward.

RIP!

Though the spear tip hadn’t struck him directly, the focused wind from the thrust still tore the front of his robes, leaving a shallow, bloody line across his chest.

Miao Zhicheng landed and stumbled back several steps before steadying himself. He glanced down at the wound on his chest, a grave expression forming in his eyes.