Chapter 2010: Beating the Elder Hall (Part 2)

"You..."

"He's too arrogant. Why do I feel like punching someone?"

"Me too. I've lived for two hundred years and seen countless geniuses, but I've never encountered anyone so infuriating!"

"Was it a mistake to seek him out?"

Hearing this, Sect Master Han, Elder He, and the others were so infuriated they almost questioned their life's purpose. They had heard someone comprehended the Divine Sword Intent, searched everywhere, even breaking rules to find him... and the result, after bringing him here, was utterly infuriating!

He was implying that he could beat each of them one by one, with just a single sword?

Arrogant!

Presumptuous!

"I'm very low-key..." Nonsense!

"Defeating Elder Chou in one move, despite using the Elder Hall's formation, still demonstrates a profound understanding of combat. Let me try..." Elder He, suppressing the rage that threatened to explode in his chest, stood up.

"He wants to challenge all of us," Sect Master Han Jianqiu said, shaking his head as he stood up, "so let's all go together!"

"Sect Master..." The remaining elders' expressions all stiffened. They were all peak experts on the continent. Challenging a mere Nascent Ascendant Realm junior together while suppressing their cultivation... if word got out, they would lose too much face!

"Comprehending the Divine Sword Intent means his spirit can communicate with deities. It won't be disgraceful for us to act together!" Han Jianqiu said.

"Understood!" After a moment of hesitation, everyone finally nodded. This was the Fallen Continent, a place abandoned by deities. Comprehending the Divine Sword Intent indicated that his spirit had reached an extremely profound level, one that they, despite their powerful cultivation, could not compare to. Otherwise, it wouldn't be the case that in the thousands of years since the Cloudy Sword Sect was founded, only the Ancestral Master had succeeded.

Clang!

The group simultaneously entered the main hall, each drawing a longsword. Sect Master Han Jianqiu, Elder He, Elder Bai Ye, and two other elders – a total of five individuals. These five represented the absolute peak of the Cloudy Sword Sect, and on the continent, they could definitely rank among the top thirty!

"Don't rush yet..." Zhang Xuan wasn't nervous; instead, he sighed in relief: "Since you've all agreed to spar with me together, why don't we set some terms beforehand... Let's make a bet!"

"A bet?" Elder Bai Ye's eyebrow twitched, and an ominous premonition arose in his heart. Surely this money-grubber isn't planning some new trick, like a robbery? The Sect Master of one of the Six Great Sects, combined with four elders, being robbed again... They truly wouldn't have the face to live on. If word got out, it would definitely become the greatest joke in the continent's history!

"A bet? What kind of bet?" Sect Master Han Jianqiu looked over.

"It's simple. If I win, I'll ask you about something, and if you know, just answer truthfully! If I lose... I'll apologize to you!" Zhang Xuan said.

"As long as it's not about money..." Hearing that the other party didn't mention money, Elder Bai Ye breathed a sigh of relief. To be honest, he had been thoroughly intimidated by the other party's betting.

"Asking about something? If it's something we can tell you, there's no harm in answering!" Han Jianqiu nodded: "However, you don't need to apologize if you lose. Just keep today's events a secret and don't speak of them outside!"

"It's a deal!" Zhang Xuan nodded.

"It's a deal!" Han Jianqiu said.

"Let's begin!" Taking a deep breath, Zhang Xuan flicked his wrist and drew his longsword from its scabbard. The bet, of course, was to inquire about Luo Ruoxi. Since the other party agreed, the rest would be easy. Therefore... he absolutely could not lose this spar!

He spoke lightly, but he knew that the strength of these individuals... Defeating one would be easy, but successfully defeating all five in a combined attack was far from simple.

"Begin!" Sect Master Han nodded to the others: "He has comprehended the Divine Sword Intent; we must not underestimate him! Use your full strength from the start!"

"Understood!" Everyone's expressions turned solemn. The founding Ancestral Master was able to snatch half a word from the Divine Temple, demonstrating the terrifying nature of this sword intent. Although the opponent was only at the Nascent Ascendant Realm primary stage, they still couldn't let their guard down.

Sect Master Han's longsword sprang forth, thrusting first. Although suppressed to the Nascent Ascendant Realm, his ceaseless sword intent was like an ocean, engulfing people instantly, as if they had fallen into an abyss, unable to escape.

Zhang Xuan's pupils contracted. As expected of the Sect Master, his understanding of the Sword Dao was far superior to that of Elder Chou Huo from before. With a single move, he exerted immense pressure on Zhang Xuan.

"Flaws!" Without rushing to make a move, Zhang Xuan communicated with his mind. The main purpose of challenging so many people at once was to discern their weaknesses, and now was the perfect timing. With a soft hum, a book appeared in his mind. With a tap of his finger, knowledge flowed into his consciousness.

"Han Jianqiu, the twenty-third Sect Master of the Cloudy Sword Sect, a Pseudo-God Realm expert! He has comprehended the Green Wave Tide Sword Intent, his swordsmanship is continuous and endless, with twelve flaws, which are..."

"A Pseudo-God Realm expert?" Zhang Xuan came to a realization: "So, above the Immortal Monarch Realm, is the Pseudo-God Realm!" He had noticed before that this Sect Master's strength far surpassed Elder Bai Ye, Elder He, and the others, but only now did he understand that he had already reached the Pseudo-God Realm. Although it carried the word 'pseudo,' the presence of 'god' in the realm name itself indicated its terrifying power! However, while his strength was formidable... when suppressed to the Nascent Ascendant Realm, his true qi was only comparable to Zhang Xuan's, or even far inferior. As for his sword art... if Zhang Xuan had been clueless before, now with the twelve flaws appearing in his mind, there was no longer any pressure in combat.

His longsword trembled, thrusting towards one of the flaws. Sword qi surged like a dragon, carrying the invincible might of the Divine Sword Intent. The sword intent he had comprehended, when his cultivation was low, he could not utilize much of it. But now, having reached the peak of the Nascent Ascendant Realm, it had perfectly integrated with his body, allowing him to easily unleash seventy to eighty percent of its profoundness!

"Hm?" Unexpectedly, with a single strike, this individual saw through the flaws in his technique. Han Jianqiu was momentarily stunned and involuntarily took a step back.

"Attack together!" The others were also ready. Without further ado, four swords simultaneously thrust from four directions. Immediately, sword light whistled, and a wailing sound emanated from within the room.

"Flaws!" With a slight movement, Zhang Xuan dodged the combined attack. The Library of Heaven's Path vibrated, and four books dropped. He quickly gained a clear understanding of all four individuals.

Elder He was the highest cultivated among them, apart from Sect Master Han, having reached the Half-Step Pseudo-God Realm. Elder Bai Ye and another elder named Huang Qing had similar cultivation levels, both at the peak of the Immortal Monarch Realm, on the verge of breaking through to Half-Step Pseudo-God. The remaining one shared his surname, named Zhang Wushang. His cultivation was clearly lower than the others, only at the Immortal Monarch Realm late stage. However, lower cultivation didn't mean he wasn't powerful. On the contrary, his swordsmanship was even superior to Elder He's; although not comparable to Sect Master Han, it wasn't far off. Therefore, if their cultivations were suppressed to the same level, he would pose the greatest threat.

"All five individuals' sword techniques have flaws and loopholes, but... their vision and reactions are simply too fast. Before I can even break one move, another will supplement their attack..." After several consecutive exchanges, Zhang Xuan's expression grew increasingly solemn. He had already felt it wouldn't be easy to win, and now it seemed that was indeed the case. As expected of the peak figures of the Cloudy Sword Sect, which had been passed down for thousands of years. He Jingxuan and the others paled in comparison, by an unknown number of times.

"It seems I can only treat them as a single entity to calculate their flaws..." With a thought, another book appeared. On the Master Teacher Continent, he had experimented with fighting multiple opponents and breaking combined attack methods. By treating the opponents as a single entity, it was more convenient than simply defeating individuals. As the book appeared, its countless flaws densely filled his mind.

"So that's how it is..." Knowing the weaknesses of the five-person combined attack, Zhang Xuan moved among them, his understanding growing clearer.

A piece of black cloth appeared in his palm.

"What is he doing?" Han Jianqiu and the others, who were in the midst of planning how to attack to injure the opponent without losing, saw his action and all frowned, utterly bewildered.

"Sect Master, Elder He, attack quickly! He's going to... blindfold himself!" Elder Chou Huo, who was not participating in the fight from the side, couldn't help but shout.

"Blindfold himself?"

"With all five of us attacking him, he still wants to blindfold himself?"

"Damn it... I'm going to kill this brat..." The group was first stunned, then each of them grew so furious that steam seemed to rise from their heads. "This is utterly insulting!"

"It's already humiliating enough for all five of us to attack together, and yet you want to fight us blindfolded..."

Swish, swish, swish, swish! In their rage, the five individuals' sword glints became even fiercer, completely sealing off Zhang Xuan's every direction – up, down, left, and right. A single misstep would result in several punctures, leaving him no idea how he died. Yet... for some unknown reason, as the other party tied the black cloth over his eyes, he simultaneously dodged with his feet. Every step was as if measured with a ruler, perfectly precise. Even though the attacks were like a relentless tide, leaving no trace, they simply couldn't touch him in the slightest. The opponent was like an insulator, swimming within their thunderous fury without suffering the slightest injury.

With the black cloth over his eyes, Zhang Xuan continued to move, his movements even more fluid. Without visual interference, he didn't need to bother with feints or the opponent's deceptive maneuvers in their attacks. He simply thrust sword after sword directly at the flaws identified by the Library of Heaven's Path.

Clang, clang, clang, clang! With their flaws struck, the five individuals' combined formation immediately began to crumble. Four of the five had similar strength, while Sect Master Han Jianqiu's cultivation was the highest. This disparity, the 'barrel principle,' was their biggest weakness!

"Break!" With a flick of his longsword, infused with the Divine Sword Intent, he thrust out eight consecutive strikes. Each strike aimed precisely at a vulnerability in their combined attack.

Clang! Clang! Clang! A series of longswords clattered to the ground. All five top experts felt a numbing sensation in their arms, and the swords in their palms simultaneously fell. Zhang Xuan, in the center, seemed to transform into five streaks of light, five streams of sword qi, each precisely aimed at their throats. The slightest movement would cause them to pierce straight through! While their Immortal Monarch Realm physiques would ordinarily be impervious to sword qi of this level, for their current Nascent Ascendant Realm state, it was a different matter! If the other party truly wished, they could have delivered a fatal blow with a single strike!

"We lost..." Feeling the chill from the sword glint before his neck, Han Jianqiu gave a bitter smile. The Sect Master and four top elders of the Cloudy Sword Sect — their five strongest individuals — had actually been utterly defeated by a single opponent, with one sword, while he was blindfolded... This Zhang Xuan's strength... seemed even more terrifying than imagined!