Chapter 1341: Draw

Early the next morning, they were in an open area strewn with gravel. Wang Ruyan and Li Ling'er stood in the distance, while Wang Changsheng and Wu Chang faced each other, three hundred zhang apart.

Wang Changsheng's expression was solemn, while Wu Chang's eyes gleamed with fervor. During their last sparring match, Wu Chang had been overly confident and lost to Wang Changsheng. Now, having reached the mid-Nascent Soul stage, he was confident he could defeat Wang Changsheng and redeem himself.

"Fellow Daoist Wang, this time I will not hold back, so please be careful," Wu Chang said with a grave expression. A dazzling red light appeared on his body, and the surrounding temperature sharply increased.

Wang Changsheng nodded. "Fellow Daoist Wu, please proceed," he said. "I am also eager to witness your new divine ability."

Wu Chang flipped his right hand, and with a flash of red light, a three-chi long red axe appeared. Its handle was crystalline and transparent, while the axe blade shimmered with flashing runes and a chilling gleam. Red light surged from his body, accompanied by a cacophony of cracking bones. He visibly grew taller, his magic robe gleaming brightly and expanding with him. His arms became noticeably thicker and larger, veins bulging with raw power.

With a swing of his arms, Wu Chang unleashed two red axe shadows, each over a hundred zhang long. They cleaved through the air with a resounding roar and instantly appeared before Wang Changsheng.

Wang Changsheng unsheathed his Taihao Spirit-Slaying Blade. He cleaved the empty space above his head, unleashing a golden blade over a hundred zhang long.

Boom! The golden blade was shattered by the two red axe shadows, unleashing a powerful shockwave that sent a torrent of gravel flying. Wang Changsheng’s figure flickered, causing the two red axe shadows to miss. After two thunderous impacts, two massive grooves, over a hundred zhang long and more than ten zhang deep, appeared in the ground.

Wu Chang wielded his double axes and charged towards Wang Changsheng. Wang Changsheng showed no fear; blue light surged from his body as he met the charge.

The Taihao Spirit-Slaying Blade clashed with the two red axes, producing a dull clang of metal on metal and a shower of sparks. Powerful shockwaves rippled outwards in all directions, lifting vast quantities of gravel high into the air before scattering them back to the ground. The rumbling continued as red light relentlessly clashed with blue, an evenly matched struggle.

The blade of the Taihao Spirit-Slaying Blade struck one of the red axes. The blade glowed with white light, emanating a large burst of biting white cold mist. The red axe visibly froze, and the ice layer spread rapidly. Wu Chang let out a soft grunt. The red axe flared with countless red runes, spewing forth a torrent of flames that swiftly melted the ice layer.

An earthy-yellow spiritual light flared beneath his feet, transforming the earth into sand. The ground for several miles around quickly became loose quicksand. As the wind howled, vast quantities of yellow sand flew up, transforming into countless incredibly sharp yellow flying swords that assailed Wang Changsheng from all directions. Wang Changsheng became an afterimage, drifting rapidly backward like a wisp of breeze. The yellow flying swords immediately changed direction, pursuing him relentlessly. There were thousands of yellow flying swords, their sheer number causing one's scalp to tingle.

Wang Changsheng flicked his hands, and the blade of the Taihao Spirit-Slaying Blade turned golden, producing a loud tearing sound as numerous sharp golden blades shot out. Boom! A series of explosions erupted as the yellow flying swords disintegrated, scattering into a shower of yellow sand in all directions.

An overwhelming heatwave surged forward. With a thunderous roar, a crimson volcano, over a hundred zhang tall, hurtled towards Wang Changsheng. Wang Changsheng twitched his arm, sending out a vast array of golden blades that intertwined to form a colossal golden net, hundreds of zhang wide, which enveloped the crimson volcano. Amidst an earth-shattering roar, the crimson volcano shattered into pieces, sending flames splattering in all directions.

The sky abruptly turned fiery red as a colossal, heaven-rending axe, over a hundred zhang long and wreathed in surging flames, descended from above. Before the heaven-rending axe even struck, an unbearable heatwave washed over them, creating the sensation of being inside a volcano. The Taihao Spirit-Slaying Blade in Wang Changsheng's hand burst forth with dazzling blue light, as a vast cloud of water vapor materialized around him. He cleaved the empty space above, and the countless water vapors converged, forming a colossal, entirely blue, heaven-piercing blade that surged to meet the heaven-rending axe.

The heaven-rending axe and the heaven-piercing blade, crimson fire and blue water vapor, collided, erupting in a vast cloud of white mist. Following an earth-shattering roar, both the heaven-rending axe and the heaven-piercing blade dissipated into nothingness. A powerful white shockwave engulfed an area of ten li, causing winds and clouds to swirl wildly and countless pieces of gravel to scatter.

A piece of gravel behind Wang Changsheng suddenly burst with dazzling yellow light, and Wu Chang abruptly materialized. The red axe in his hand had vanished, replaced by a pair of gleaming red gauntlets. A torrent of crimson flames erupted from his hands, carrying an overwhelming heatwave as he lunged towards Wang Changsheng. Wang Changsheng had been prepared; he spun around abruptly, his hands now encased in golden gauntlets. Clenching his fists, enveloped in a vast azure glow, he slammed them forward to meet the attack.

The four fists met, crimson fire clashing with azure water vapor, unleashing a powerful shockwave. Countless pieces of gravel were flung into the air by the force, and the ground tore open, revealing a groove hundreds of zhang long and over twenty zhang deep. Both men's hair whipped wildly in the wind.

Almost simultaneously, both Wu Chang and Wang Changsheng recoiled, each taking three steps backward. Wu Chang's face flushed crimson, while Wang Changsheng's breathing grew slightly heavy before quickly returning to normal.

"I didn't expect Fellow Daoist Wang to also be a body cultivator; your immense strength is no less than mine," Wu Chang said, a hint of surprise in his voice. On the surface, the match was a draw, but in reality, he had lost. His cultivation was a minor realm higher than Wang Changsheng's, which suggested Wang Changsheng's physical body was superior. This could mean Wang Changsheng had either encountered a rare opportunity or was cultivating a high-grade technique. It was rumored that the Azure Lotus Immortal Couple excelled at combined attacks. Wu Chang analyzed that Wang Changsheng's cultivation technique was at least Earth-grade, possibly even Heaven-grade. While rare treasures and exotic fruits could temporarily boost strength, only a cultivation technique would continuously enhance a cultivator's power as their cultivation advanced.

"Fellow Daoist Wu, you flatter me," Wang Changsheng said modestly. "I merely had a fortunate encounter in my younger years. Let's call it a draw! What are your thoughts, Fellow Daoist Wu?" He thought about the Kuisui True Scripture, which used spiritual water to temper the body. The fourth-tier spiritual water obtained from Tianxu Dongtian was of excellent quality. He had cultivated with it for four years, and his physical body and strength had improved considerably. This was still after a relatively short cultivation period; if he fully refined all the fourth-tier spiritual water, his physical body and strength would undoubtedly increase even more significantly.

"Exactly my thoughts; let's call it a draw!" Wu Chang readily agreed. With Wang Changsheng's physical body being stronger, there was little point in continuing the fight.

Wang Ruyan smiled faintly. "Now that the sparring is over, let's go back and have tea!" she said enthusiastically. "We have something we'd like to discuss in detail with Fellow Daoist Wu."

Less than a quarter of an hour later, the four of them were in a secluded courtyard, sitting in a stone pavilion, sipping tea and chatting.