Zhaang Ye remained silent, his eyes narrowing slightly.

The aura emanating from this gaunt young man was even stronger than Sang Fan’s. In other words, the gaunt youth’s cultivation was even more powerful than Sang Fan’s!

The gaunt youth noticed the cautious look in Zhaang Ye’s eyes and said nonchalantly, "My name is Fang Dong. Just like Sang Fan, I can only use ten percent of my True Qi. Show me what you’ve got." 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Zhaang Ye nodded slightly, taking the Heavy Saber in hand.

SWOOSH!

Zhaang Ye shot forward, moving like a cloud as he swept toward Fang Dong.

Although the Dragon Elephant Skill Zhaang Ye cultivated was immensely powerful, he had only reached the mid-stage of the 5th Layer, so his long-range attacks lacked any real force. Therefore, to defeat his opponent, Zhaang Ye had to find a way to close the distance and engage in close-quarters combat.

Zhaang Ye intended to close the distance quickly and defeat the gaunt youth in one fell swoop.

Seeing Zhaang Ye dash toward him, a faint, cryptic smile appeared on the gaunt youth’s face. He unhurriedly raised one hand and clenched it.

BOOM!

Zhaang Ye had just closed to within thirty feet of the gaunt youth when he abruptly sensed something wrong in the air. Startled, he instantly slashed out with his saber. A loud bang echoed as a surge of True Qi from an unknown source detonated mid-air, the force of the blast knocking him back several steps.

"Binding Qi into Thunder!"

Recalling what had just happened, Zhaang Ye couldn’t help but exclaim in shock.

Binding Qi into Thunder is the act of highly condensing and compressing one’s True Qi to attack an enemy. This highly condensed True Qi is completely invisible to the naked eye. Once it detonates, it’s like a bolt of Celestial Thunder, pulverizing anything it touches. Its power is astounding, and it’s almost impossible to guard against.

What Zhaang Ye had just encountered was a mass of highly condensed True Qi. Fortunately, he had noticed the anomaly in time and reacted. Otherwise, if that burst of True Qi had struck him, no matter how tough his body was, his skin would have been split and his flesh torn. He would have been grievously wounded, perhaps even unable to continue the fight.

Zhaang Ye’s expression turned grave when he realized the gaunt youth possessed such a technique. Binding Qi into Thunder was terrifying even for masters of the Martial Arts Fifth and Sixth Layers. ’Just imagine,’ he thought, ’he casually waves his hand, and an invisible True Qi Thunder instantly appears, just waiting for me to run into it. How am I supposed to fight this?’

Fang Dong smiled faintly at Zhaang Ye’s astonished expression.

Fang Dong’s strength had reached the late stage of the Martial Arts Seventh Layer. Even though he could only use ten percent of his True Qi, his powerful control over it still allowed him to use the "Binding Qi into Thunder" technique. He just couldn’t use it continuously.

The Binding Qi into Thunder technique wasn’t particularly scary to Martial Artists at or above the Martial Arts Seventh Layer. To those below it, however, it was terrifying. If an opponent couldn’t sense the True Qi Thunder he unleashed, he could knock them off the stairs in a single exchange, leaving them unable to fight.

’This kid’s Body Refining Techniques and Saber Technique aren’t bad,’ Fang Dong thought. ’But his cultivation is just too low. I only need to toss out one or two more True Qi Thunders to blast him right off these stairs.’

Zhaang Ye, oblivious to Fang Dong’s thoughts, was silently contemplating a counter-strategy.

’This Binding Qi into Thunder technique is just too powerful. If he can keep using it, I don’t stand a chance...’ Zhaang Ye analyzed silently. ’My strength might not be on par with Situ Houtu’s, but I’m not that far behind. If even I can’t get past him, then the people behind me have no hope at all. The True Hall wouldn’t post a guardian this overwhelmingly strong. Therefore, there must be a limit to Fang Dong’s Binding Qi into Thunder...’

As this thought occurred to him, an idea sparked in Zhaang Ye’s mind. He silently executed the Cloud Stepping Technique and unleashed a Gentle Wind Slash with his Heavy Saber, flying toward Fang Dong.

The Gentle Wind Slash Zhaang Ye executed was a technique where one slash multiplied into a hundred. The moment he unleashed it, a dense net of saber shadows materialized before him. Not even a tiny insect could fly through his Sword Force, meaning the hidden True Qi Thunder in the air couldn’t possibly escape his Saber Technique either.

But every advantage has a disadvantage. Because the Gentle Wind Slash’s Sword Force was dispersed, its power was naturally diluted, making it unable to deal with the highly condensed True Qi Thunder. Fortunately, Zhaang Ye wasn’t trying to destroy the True Qi Thunder right now, but rather to test the waters. He wanted to probe Fang Dong’s true capabilities.

"Hm?"

Fang Dong chuckled when he saw the Saber Technique Zhaang Ye was using. With a flick of his hand, a True Qi Thunder instantly landed within Zhaang Ye’s Sword Force.

BOOM!

The moment the True Qi Thunder fell into Zhaang Ye’s Sword Force, his Heavy Saber struck it, and it exploded violently.

Zhaang Ye was prepared for this. The instant the True Qi Thunder exploded, he abruptly retracted his Heavy Saber and executed a Reverse Flow Slash. A jet-black Sword Qi swept out, deflecting the blast of True Qi from the explosion to the side.

Zhaang Ye’s reaction was fast, but the True Qi Thunder’s explosion was faster. Though he managed to sweep most of the resulting True Qi aside, a portion of it still struck him. Even after using a Force-Dissipating Technique, he was still knocked back several steps by the impact, the qi and blood in his body roiling.