Chapter 368: This Sparring Match, I Am Very Satisfied

A pure black sword energy descended from the sky like a curtain of night, obscuring all light. It carried a terrifying chill that could freeze one's spiritual consciousness, landing directly on Chen Mobai's head.

An antique bronze mirror flew out, its polished surface glowing with golden divine light. It instantly transformed into a spherical light shield, enveloping Chen Mobai's entire body. This was the defensive spell attached to the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror, the Profound Yang Divine Light Shield.

The Frost's Darkness Slash struck the divine light shield, instantly triggering a terrifying, trembling spiritual energy fluctuation. As the expressions of everyone at the Martial Artifact Daoist Academy changed in alarm, the Profound Yang Divine Light Shield was pierced by the pure black sword energy, slowly indenting and appearing on the verge of cracking.

However, the power of a defensive magical artifact lies in its ability to endure as long as the incoming force does not exceed its limit, sustained by a continuous supply of spiritual energy. Although the Profound Yang Divine Light Shield continuously indented under the pure black sword energy's assault, it gained immense staying power after Chen Mobai removed the restrictions, allowing it to draw upon the 130 drops of liquid immortal spiritual energy stored within the artifact using the Rejuvenation Secret Art. The previously indented light shield, now fully supported by spiritual energy, became round and smooth again, even pushing the pure black sword energy back.

After absorbing the sword energy into her body, Pei Qingshuang's state became remarkably similar to Fang Cunshu's. However, while Lou Fengcheng was extremely calm, she seemed to have transformed into a sword, her heart like frost, her very being dominated by the blade. Seeing her Frost's Darkness Slash blocked by the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror, Pei Qingshuang clenched the five fingers of her left hand, which controlled the sword energy.

Chen Mobai felt the pitch-black sword light instantly disintegrate before his eyes, as if the night sky was being torn open. It then poured down and enveloped the Profound Yang Divine Light Shield like a dark, icy current. Instinctively sensing danger, Chen Mobai instantly retreated. After issuing a command to the artifact, he withdrew from the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror's protective range from behind, just before the dark, icy current completely enveloped the Profound Yang Divine Light Shield.

Once he landed on the lake surface, a gigantic sealed black sphere descended from the sky, crashing heavily onto the half-frozen lake. With a cracking sound, the ice surface, centered around the black sphere, split into numerous fissures. Chen Mobai tried to control his primary magical artifact, but found no response. The black sword energy had completely covered and enveloped the mirror, forming a perfect seal that severed his spiritual consciousness and senses.

*Is Frost's Whiteness a freezing power, targeting sword qi? And is Frost's Darkness focused on sealing the mind, intended to counter my Divine Imperial Slash?*

After two rounds of sparring, Chen Mobai instinctively began to constantly think during the battle. At the same time, he uncorked the yellow gourd at his waist, and an orange-red glow, like a wisp of mist, rose from it. This power, capable of slicing through anything and reducing it to ash, coiled and cut towards Pei Qingshuang in mid-air.

However, facing the attack of the Primal Yang Sword Qi, Pei Qingshuang stood motionless in mid-air. As Chen Mobai widened his eyes, intending to redirect the Primal Yang Sword Qi's attack, the ancient sword floating beside Pei Qingshuang seemed to sense its master's danger and automatically unsheathed itself.

With a clang! The blade was only half-drawn, and invisible sword light flickered on and off. Yet, at that very instant, the Primal Yang Sword Qi that had rushed towards Pei Qingshuang was severed into two streams of brilliant light. Chen Mobai felt a sharp pain in his forehead, realizing that his spiritual consciousness attached to the Primal Yang Sword Qi had suffered a heavy blow. The severed orange-red brilliance dispersed into scattered specks of Fiery Yang Qi across the sky.

The Azure Frost Sword's main body had struck, directly obliterating Chen Mobai's Primal Yang Sword Qi, even annihilating his spiritual consciousness and returning it to its origin. Although she couldn't fully control the Azure Frost Sword, the sword itself would eliminate any power that threatened her. He needed to avoid the Azure Frost Sword.

Chen Mobai endured the throbbing pain in his spiritual sea. Under these circumstances, he entered an inexplicable combat state, all details of the battle flashing through his mind as he began to ponder his path to victory.

"Frost's Azure!"

At this moment, Pei Qingshuang seized the advantage, unleashing her third wave of sword energy! This sword energy was a pure azure, but it carried a terrifying sharpness that made Chen Mobai's spiritual consciousness tremble. He had a feeling that if he were hit by this sword, his physical body would lose all sensation.

A leaf-shaped spiritual talisman flew out. Infused with Chen Mobai's incredibly pure immortal spiritual energy, it transformed into a verdant leaf, blocking the pure sword energy unleashed by Pei Qingshuang's hands. This was a Tier 3 Spirit Leaf Talisman, crafted by Ancestor Zhou of the Divine Wood Sect. This talisman was reputed to block all attacks below the Golden Core stage, but Pei Qingshuang's sword energy truly possessed Tier 3 power. Thus, it only managed to hold for three breaths before dissipating into wood spiritual energy.

However, Chen Mobai had used this time to lift the seal on the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror. A wisp of pure white flame broke through the Frost's Darkness seal, shattering the entire black sphere in an instant, as if a chain reaction. Before escaping the seal, Chen Mobai activated the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror's offensive spell, Pure Yang Fire.

Under normal circumstances, the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror would naturally be unable to break through Frost's Darkness. However, within this mirror, Chen Mobai had stored a vast amount of immortal spiritual energy to conceal his cultivation. After he released the spiritual consciousness barrier, allowing the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror to absorb freely, combined with the external restraint of Frost's Darkness, the power of the Pure Yang Fire erupted to its extreme. Even if a Golden Core cultivator were to activate it, its power would likely be the same.

The pure white flame, after breaking through Frost's Darkness, had not yet fully dissipated. Under Chen Mobai's spiritual consciousness control, it transformed into a vivid, lifelike long fire snake, centered around the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror. It appeared to open its maw and shoot across the air, intercepting Pei Qingshuang's pure sword energy and swallowing it whole.

However, as the third wave of sword energy, Frost's Azure was more powerful than the previous two combined. The long fire snake, an illusion formed by the Fire Snake Art, after swallowing the pure sword energy, began to crumble inch by inch from its head, disintegrating into sparks, flames, and embers that rained down from mid-air.

But Chen Mobai knew that retreat was absolutely not an option at this moment. He soared into the air, pressing the five fingers of his right hand onto the back of the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror. He poured all of his remaining 35 drops of liquid immortal spiritual energy from his dantian's Qi sea into this primary magical artifact, adding to the 50 drops that had not yet burned completely within the artifact. This vast and pure immortal spiritual energy acted like fuel, making the Pure Yang Fire even more vigorous.

The antique bronze mirror seemed to have been doused in oil, igniting into raging flames in an instant. Like a fiery meteor, it shot straight up, firmly resisting the pure sword energy that was cutting straight down. Amidst thumping sounds, the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror was slowly pushed down by the sword energy. Concurrently, the long fire snake crumbled inch by inch into countless fiery sparks, turning into nothingness, and Chen Mobai's body continuously descended. However, with his unreserved expenditure of spiritual energy, the power of this Tier 3 artifact was pushed to its limit. When only 16 drops of immortal spiritual energy remained, it finally resisted the pure sword light, preventing it from descending further.

As the clear radiance dissipated, Chen Mobai was already submerged in the mud of the lake island. The sleeve of his right hand, which was pressing against the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror's surface, had begun to burn. Even this Tier 2 Martial Artifact Red-Black Robe could not withstand the temperature of such Pure Yang Fire.

Chen Mobai retrieved the Six Yang Divine Fire Mirror, which had reached its limit, and looked up at mid-air. The fourth and final wave of sword energy had already taken shape in the palm of the pale-faced Pei Qingshuang.

"Frost's Violet!"

Before this sword even struck, dark clouds rolled across the sky, and thunder appeared. However, unlike other explosive lightning, the lightning that appeared this time carried a chill. Recalling the reputation of "Violet Lightning and Azure Frost," Chen Mobai guessed this was ice lightning.

The violet sword energy descended slowly from Pei Qingshuang's palm, yet it filled all spectators with a crushing sense of oppression. It felt as if this single sword strike had locked onto everyone, making escape impossible. The moment "Frost's Violet" was unleashed, Chen Mobai felt himself locked by the sword energy. He knew that no matter where he fled, to the ends of the earth, this sword would pursue and strike him down.

Rumble!

Before the violet sword energy arrived, the pervasive lightning struck first. The ice lightning, triggered by the sword energy, condensed into a gigantic ice sphere, three to four times larger in diameter than Chen Mobai's previous lightning orb. Before receiving the fourth wave of sword energy, he first needed to deal with this ice lightning.

Chen Mobai's eyes flickered with clear, shimmering light, and at that instant, he saw through the ice lightning's power composition. It was also a Tier 3 lightning spell, but this ice lightning was naturally formed by the elemental forces triggered by the sword energy, and Pei Qingshuang could only roughly control it.

With a tearing sound! With his left hand, Chen Mobai tore off the still-burning sleeve of his right arm. As his right hand, covered in fiery burn marks, clenched in a loose fist, a sizzling sound accompanied the instant condensation of brilliant azure lightning. However, unlike the previously explosive lightning, this one was as docile as water. The lightning in Chen Mobai's palm transformed into a long spike, which, like an antenna, pierced into the descending ice lightning.

In the disbelieving eyes of all spectators, the two disproportionate lightning spells underwent astonishing changes. The Azure Frost Ice Lightning instantly disintegrated into countless small ice spheres. Meanwhile, the Wood Divine Lightning Spike, with an unstoppable momentum, shot skyward and directly struck the slowly descending violet sword light.

However, compared to the ice lightning, the fourth wave of sword light unleashed by Pei Qingshuang was more powerful than the previous three combined. The Wood Divine Lightning was pushed down inch by inch, finally dissipating completely.

*Is it over?!* This thought flashed through the minds of the Foundation Establishment cultivators from the Daoist Academy upon witnessing this scene. Some wore expressions of regret. *Would the undefeated combatant finally be defeated?!* However, if the opponent was the Azure Frost Sword, enduring until the fourth wave of sword energy with mere Foundation Establishment cultivation was already a remarkable achievement.

“I never thought that my first misjudgment after mastering the Star-Gazing Art would be about him,” Ding Chunzhi slowly sighed as he watched the scene unfolding before him on the platform of the Star-Gazing Academy. Chen Mobai was ranked first on his foundation list, and he hadn't expected him to lose to the second. However, he couldn't be blamed. After all, he dared not directly observe the Azure Frost Sword and could only estimate its power by multiplying Pei Qingshuang's strength by a certain coefficient, yet it still proved to be a conservative estimate. Ding Chunzhi had estimated that Pei Qingshuang could unleash at most two and a half sword strikes!

“It's not over yet,” Just then, the successor of the Divine Mechanism Pavilion uttered four words that surprised Ding Chunzhi. *Like this, and it's still not over?! Could Chen Mobai really prefer death by Azure Frost Sword energy rather than conceding defeat?*

At that moment, an astonishing azure flame lit up in Ding Chunzhi's eyes, and he immediately turned to look. He saw Chen Mobai once again activate the Azure Flame Sword Qi, apparently expending all his spiritual energy. At this moment, the azure-colored brilliance surged by an astonishing thirty percent compared to its first activation, becoming even brighter and more dazzling.

“It's useless. Even the Primal Yang Sword Qi was extinguished. What can a mere Azure Yang Sword Qi do…” As Ding Chunzhi shook his head and sighed, he suddenly noticed something amiss. His eyes widened as he carefully watched the increasingly terrifying and exaggerated sword qi swelling before Chen Mobai.

“Junior Brother, losing a sword qi permanently for a mere sparring match's outcome is not worth it!” On the platform of the Martial Artifact Daoist Academy, Bian Jingchun, who had suffered from this very move, widened her eyes and sent a telepathic message to Chen Mobai, urging him to stop using "Flame Explosion Art."

“The glory of the Daoist Academy lies in this single sword. Let me recast it!” Chen Mobai, however, only spoke these words. Then, he gently pushed the Azure Flame Sword Qi, which had surged to its peak, towards the descending violet sword light. The moment the two forces met, the Azure Flame Sword Qi was completely detonated! The life-risking spell of the Pure Yang Scroll did not merely add power; it multiplied it!

“Oh no!” At this moment, Wenren Xuewei also sensed that something was wrong. She immediately communicated with the Divine Great Chinaberry Tree beneath her feet, sparing no expense to her origin. A vast and profound power, like the boundless earth, surged forth, instantly forming fourteen massive light shields that enveloped all Foundation Establishment cultivators in the Daoist Academy.

Boom! At this point, the entire lake island had completely boiled over, and only violet and azure colors remained in the sky. Under the terrifying high temperature, the violet sword light slowly melted away, finally shattering and dispersing completely just before it reached Chen Mobai's eyes. The aftermath of the sword light and sword qi spread out, evaporating all the water from the entire lake island. Yet, a bone-chilling cold condensed the water vapor into individual snowflakes.

On this day, snow fell across Wood God Island. The students of the Jumang Daoist Academy, who had never witnessed such weather phenomena, were delighted and began to play in the snow. In the Alchemy Chamber, Qing Nü watched the falling snow outside the window with a solemn expression.

With a thud, Pei Qingshuang fell. If not for the Azure Frost Sword catching her, she would likely have collapsed into the mud at the bottom of the lake.

“I lost,” she said, breathing shallowly, uttering those three words.

“Isn't that obvious?” Chen Mobai said this, then collected the Fiery Yang Qi that had been extinguished and dispersed by the Azure Frost Sword back into the yellow gourd at his waist, before turning and leaving the now-dried-up lake island.

“However, you are the first opponent who has forced me to go all out. I am very satisfied with this sparring match.”