Brandishing his sword, Cai Hong disappeared from his position and clashed with Lord Tong He. He was using the rules of gale to counter the speed of Lord Tong Heâs sword.
As they clashed, Lord Tong Heâs eye emitted a strange light. There was a trace of excitement in his eyes. It was as though it had been a long time since he had fought someone who was of the younger generation and who was strong enough to counter his attacks.
Even though he knew Cai Hong was a newly promoted Saint Emperor, he still found him very strong, unlike the others. As a peak Saint Emperor and a rogue cultivator who climbed his way up the ladder without anyoneâs help, he was aware of how hard it was to become a peak Saint Emperor without someone supporting him.
This was why everyone only had positive impressions of him because of his bravery and courage to go against what was conventional.
Yang Lujia blended in with the others and stared at the fight while asking the others about this Lord Tong He. After asking them, he was astonished by the manâs story. This was clearly one of the protagonistâs stories.
A man who had been abandoned by his parents at a young age, with his perseverance and determination to gain more power, had become one of the strongest beings in Da Shikong.
âLord Tong He never feared any large powers. He even once offended a sect from the Autonomous Region because he later found out about his parents being slaughtered by those people and, after knowing they never abandoned him, he was beyond furious and that became his drive to become the strongest and annihilated that sect with only a Saint King overseeing it,â the man beside Yang Lujia explained.
âWow, thatâs quite a story,â said Yang Lujia, completely astonished by his discovery of this man. âFortuniel, what do you think of that man?â He asked Fortuniel for his opinion.
However, Fortuniel remained silent. It seemed like Fortuniel also did not know about this manâwhether it was luck that brought him up to this point or not.
âHost, Fortuniel cannot deduce that personâs identity nor his origins. However, the rumor about his parents, who were ruthlessly slaughtered, might even be something set up by someone or by his parents to instigate, stabilize, or fasten his growth. These were the only things Fortuniel could infer.â
CLANG!
The sound of swords clashing against each other sounded fierce to the audience. However, astonishingly, they did not suffer any backlash, despite being quite near to the ensuing battle.
That said, only those who were near Yang Lujia were shielded. That was because his power spanned a mile, although that was already his most controlled one.
All of the people were confused. However, they chose not to linger on this fact too much. Instead, their attention was swiped back to the ongoing fight.
âAre those sword rules?â Cai Hong asked, astonished. It was because the rules of the sword were almost the same as his rules of the gale.
Not only that, the rules of the sword even contained a touch of space and time rulesâthe reason why it could contend with the speed of his gale rules.
No wonder no matter how much he fought against this Lord Tong He, he would never be able to get ahead of him.
However, this was not the extent of his strength yet. Hence, he continued the fight, only to receive a fierce smile from his opponent.
It seemed like Lord Tong He was enjoying this fight so much.
Although they were just exchanging swords, all the trees around them were already razed to the ground, not to mention the cultivators who were not protected by Yang Lujiaâs power were ruthlessly killed or severely injured.
The two were simply too powerful. They might even raze the entire Third Region if they wanted to. This was the might of the Saint Emperors, peak Saint Emperors at that.
Filled with amazement, Yang Lujia was also hoping that heâd be able to fight to his heartâs content in the future. After all, he was nursed by Zhuquan De, his adoptive grandfather, since he was an infant. Compared to people like Lord Tong He, he was simply a baby.
If it wasnât for his heaven-defying strength and talent, he would have long perished in this worldânot to mention his grandfather had already left him.
He had confidence in himself. However, he was uncertain whether or not his strength would be sufficient enough to turn the tables or save himself and the others he held dear in this world. After all, he had already seen that old tree and those three seniorsâall of them arousing his instincts that they were beyond his capabilities.
Throwing his attention back to the battle, he realized that this scale of destruction might have already alerted some strong powers. Nevertheless, Yang Lujia now believed that he could handle them with ease. His Chaotic Dragon form was as large as that old Void Tree. He even felt that he could slightly injure the Void Tree in that form.
âHowever, that form of mine⦠I still canât use it without limits. I actually felt like all my qi was used up because of the process⦠â
As they continued, Cai Hong actually found it difficult to defeat this man, who people called Lord Tong He. Cai Hong believed that he was very strong, but this man before him could actually fight toe-to-toe.
âYouâre actually so strong. I have to give you credit for that,â Cai Hong complimented without restraint.
âLikewise,â the man replied, with a smile on his face. âHowever, I know that you havenât gone all out. Pull out all the tricks you have under your sleeves. This lord will naturally hold back as well.â
âI see,â Cai Hong said as he slightly nodded at the man. âThen, forgive me for this impoliteness.â
The moment Cai Hong said those words, the surrounding gale raged. It was like the harbinger of death had come to slaughter everyone in the area.
As Cai Hong released his peak aura, so did Lord Tong He. While Cai Hong was using the wind to form sharp blades, Lord Tong He was using his sword rules to counter Cai Hongâs rules.
âTheyâre actually almost equal,â Yang Lujia said, surprised. âHoweverâ¦â
âIs this all youâve got?â Cai Hong asked, his voice skeptical when he saw the peak aura, the strongest he had encountered in his entire life apart from His Highness. However, his tone was one that was looking down on the other.
âHmph!â Lord Tong He snorted and almost instantly arrived in front of Cai Hong. The latter dodged his fast attack and even landed gracefully on the ground without a scratch on his bodyâdespite the unfavorable environment brought about by their control of the rules.
Cai Hong utilized an art he had learned after entering the Void Ground three times. It was called the Slashing Gale Art. It was one that was so powerful that even Lord Tong He could not help but furrow his brows.
âThis brat is truly capable,â Lord Tong He mumbled as he continued to look at how Cai Hong was preparing himself to attack him.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
For the second time, he snorted and also mobilized his strongest artâparrying the incoming attack of Cai Hong. When the two slashes collided, the ground trembled due to the impact. Even the ferocious beasts were driven awayâshivering in fear that they would get caught up in this fight.
âThatâs a good counterattack!â Cai Hongâs eyes shone in delight as he saw an opportunity to contribute to His Highnessâ number of subordinatesâespecially someone like Lord Tong He. âIf thatâs your most powerful attack, however, you wouldnât be able to defeat me at all. You should just concede, Lord Tong He.â
Even the way Cai Hong addressed changed. It astonished even the person he called with such a name.
âBrat, you actually know how to respect your elderly?â
âWhat respect? My respect for you comes from your strength alone. Moreover, why do you call yourself an elderly when youâre only less than a hundred years older than I am!â Cai Hong refuted.
Lord Tong He was stunned, but it was only momentary.
âHmph! It still doesnât change the fact that I am older than you!â Lord Tong He replied, with a mocking smirk on his face.
âShut the fuck up! If you donât want to suffer graver injuries after this conversation, you better submit to His Highness. Otherwise, I wouldnât spare in any way.â
âFuck! You want this daddy to submit to that so-called âHis Highnessâ of yours?! Seriously?!â Lord Tong He finally erupted with Cai Hongâs bragging attitude.
He then used another of his strongest attacks, planning to cut Cai Hong off guard. However, before he could even reach Cai Hongâs post, cuts suddenly appeared on the bare parts of his body.
Cai Hong then coldly walked toward the slightly injured Lord Tong He. âI told you. If you donât submit to His Highness, this person in front of you will eliminate you! Do you know what you lacked? Even though your strength is already sufficient enough to end up with a tie with me? Itâs your techniques. Theyâre simply lacking.â
âCai Hong, stop. When you invite people to join under my tutelage, you mustnât force them.â Yang Lujia, who disappeared earlier unnoticed, suddenly appeared before the two of them.
Lord Tong Heâs face became grave as he was holding onto his bleeding wounds. He then looked at the young man who seemed to be the one Cai Hong was calling âHis Highnessâ. With a strange tone, he asked, âWho are you?â