79 - Investing in the Reborn Empress, She Actually Calls Me ‘Husband’

Chapter 79: The Breathtaking Ying Bing, Li Mo's Ultimate Move, and the Outcome Decided?! For the first time, Li Mo experienced an epiphany in swordsmanship. His blade suddenly slowed down. There was no need for words; Ying Bing, opposite him, intuitively eased her assault. This process lasted only a few seconds. In the next moment, when Li Mo struck again, at first glance, his sword's edge seemed much weaker than before. Amid the interwoven sword shadows, the Chixiao Sword appeared like a flickering candle in the rain, swaying but never extinguishing. Instead, it grew increasingly intense. However, there was a flicker of relief in Ying Bing's eyes. He had understood. The wildfire spreads and thrives in the continuous cycle of growth and decline. Clang! Clang! Clang!— In a blink of an eye, the red and blue sword lights clashed dozens of times. To an outsider, it seemed as if the direct disciple Li was initially suppressed, consistently in danger yet somehow managing to stand firm, gradually turning from weak to strong, and eventually standing on equal footing with Ying Bing. "These two, did they start practicing swordsmanship from the womb?" "I'm starting to not understand what's going on." "The technique Li used looks like the Wildfire Sword Method, but not quite ..." Their duel had already surpassed the comprehension of many regarding the Nine Veins Martial Competition. This was not the level of expertise expected from emerging talents. Gradually, everyone held their breath, their eyes fixed on the scene. In the next second, the momentum of the Chixiao Sword suddenly surged. Like a raging wildfire, it tore through the heavy rain curtain. Surprised exclamations erupted in the arena. Li Mo’s direct disciple was about to win? Was the outcome to be decided so soon? But Li Mo knew the truth. This was because Bing intentionally allowed him to adapt to the sword momentum, deliberately not changing her moves. This particular strike would leave 9,999 out of 10,000 people helpless—Ying Bing being the sole exception. And indeed... Ding— The blade sliced through the wind, about to pierce Ying Bing, when the Sky Frost Sword had already appeared before him. The tips of the two swords met with perfect precision. The Chixiao, carrying the intent of wildfire, came crashing down, bending the Sky Frost to its limit. Yet Ying Bing's sword style, like a candle flickering in the wind, continued undiminished. Li Mo's heart filled with awe. This scene seemed familiar, an echo of past encounters. Too familiar. In a flash, he noticed Ying Bing's slightly curved lips, realizing swiftly. The Wildfire Sword Momentum! Surging with a sense of crisis, Li Mo intensified his efforts, the sword edge shifting, leaving no room for respite. Without any deliberation, he struck down again. Such was the advantage of having thirty-six major meridians in the qi and blood stage. His subsequent power flowed endlessly, with no worry of exhausting his strength. Clang— The Sky Frost spun in her delicate wrist, renewing the momentum of the Seeking Flowers Sword Technique, interwoven with the undying spirit of the wildfire. A stroke, imbued with dual forces! The Wildfire momentum built, stored, and surged, while the heavy rain's obscuration pressed relentlessly. Ying Bing seamlessly combined the two, complementing each other's shortcomings perfectly! Li Mo marvelled internally. The Ice Block was indeed still the Ice Block. To think he could break even with her using pure swordplay was unrealistic. Of course, Li Mo hadn't planned to win using the sword from the start. He promptly used Wind Shadow Step to disengage, suddenly retreating tens of meters. "Impressive." Li Mo sincerely praised. "It's nothing." Ying Bing did not pursue, standing silently with her sword, showing no sign of pride. In her previous life, she hadn't mastered the dual force technique in the Internal Breath stage, achieving it only at the Observing Spirit stage. For him to prompt her to showcase it now was already commendable. What fascinated her more was Li Mo's prolonged breath and immense strength, unmatched by any she had seen at the qi and blood stage. Was this too part of the legacy he had acquired? The arena had fallen into a deep silence. Even on stage, there was a moment of quiet contemplation. Just their brief exchange had shattered their understanding of "genius" entirely. "Is there any hope left for us?" Elder Su from the Falling Sunset Peak finally exhaled a long-held breath. Once hailed as a swordsmanship prodigy herself, she only grasped the concept of sword momentum at the Observing Spirit stage, mastering one during the Inner Landscape period. These two young individuals were utterly exceptional... "Is it possible that Ying Bing hasn't gone all out yet?" Qian Bufan muttered hesitantly. The crowd was further thrown into confusion. Indeed, what Ying Bing possessed extended far beyond mere swordplay. From the legacy at the Clear Abyss to her innate physique, she hadn't even invoked her internal breath. "Best to keep watching," Elder Han He advised, observing Li Mo with deep, discerning eyes. If Ying Bing hadn't used her full strength, had that boy either? As the elders whispered among themselves, "I'm going to get serious now," Li Mo declared. "I am one stage above you," Ying Bing reminded, gazing at the now earnest youth, her lips parting with a rare display of assertiveness. "Touch my garment and victory is yours." The Ice Block rarely revealed such a domineering side. It signaled her own seriousness as well. "Alright." Her words ignited a small flame within Li Mo's heart. In colloquial terms, he was feeling a bit fired up. The next moment, both moved. Buzz— A potent, lethal aura of sharpness vibrated, scratching observable marks into the bluestone ground with just its presence. Li Mo appeared utterly transformed into a divine weapon, blinding to behold. Using his ultimate technique, Extreme Weapon Killing Body, at full capacity for the first time against an opponent. Through the Eye of Destiny, he had always known that the Ice Block's greatest strength was not her swordsmanship. It was herself! Thus, Li Mo decided to approach it with brute strength. Boom— The Chixiao Sword was engulfed in a whirlwind of lethal intent, humming intensely, becoming the storm's epicenter. With overwhelming sharpness and immense power, it seemed poised to swallow Ying Bing whole. One force surmounts ten thousand techniques. This was not something Li Mo had deduced from swordsmanship. Simultaneously, as the Sky Frost Sword swung, clouds and mist surged, both existent and elusive, harboring hidden sharpness amid life and destruction. Without visible sword lights, it felt as though faced with an onslaught of countless blades. Engaging with Ying Bing alone, Li Mo inexplicably felt as though he was surrounded from all sides. No matter how he attacked or how sharp his killing intent, he could not stir the light of the mist. The observers had utterly lost their senses. If their initial swordplay exceeded their realm of understanding, they now couldn't discern who held the upper hand. They could only watch the mist wane, sharp auras imbuing the fog. Their qi, causing the air to shimmer with a faint glow between them. Clang— Finally, within the unreal mist, Li Mo captured Ying Bing's silhouette, intuitively unleashing his full power in one strike. Yet what awaited wasn't the clearing of clouds; instead, it was the vision of a girl gradually fading away. He had missed. "No wonder she said touching her garment would count as a win..." Li Mo was truly drenched in sweat. Simultaneously, he realized deeply that he couldn't afford to drag it out any longer. Those countless feints hidden within the mist, infused with Ying Bing's inner breath, were intensely chilling. At this point, even his thoughts felt somewhat sluggish. Those countless feints hidden within the luminescent mist carried Ying Bing’s inner breath, chilling to the bone. Li Mo soon found it challenging to even move. This was the power of the Red Destiny, the manifestation of someone born to the martial world. The strength of Ying Bing was utterly overwhelming, to the point of despair. The elders on the high platform sighed subtly. Even if they were to step in, maintaining the cultivation of the Inner Breath Golden Core stage, facing Ying Bing would present no chance of victory. They likely wouldn't last as long as Li Mo did. They saw deeper into the display. Ying Bing was using the mist and her inner breath to simulate sword qi. Compared to Xiao Qin’s externalized inner breath, it was utterly childish. Moreover. It wasn’t just simple simulation. Sometimes the technique was nimble and ethereal, at others vigorous and powerful, and sometimes even ancient and unpolished... endlessly varying, yet each aspect resonated perfectly with the others. One word: Genius. Two words: Fearsome. “Huff…” "The mist can conceal the sword, so can this aura of lethal sharpness also..." Suddenly, Li Mo seemed to grasp an insight. His left hand, hidden under his robe, gently grasped the Star Point Pestle. Everything around him suddenly slowed down. “Hm?” Ying Bing immediately sensed that even her movements became sluggish. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to her, Li Mo had drawn closer. He didn’t use his sword, letting the Chixiao hang in his right hand. Instead, he raised the hem of his left robe, more specifically, the hammer within it, which descended slowly. It wasn’t fast. Yet, somehow, it felt inescapable, as though no matter how far you fled or how agilely you moved, you couldn't evade it. Stabilize the world! Ying Bing seemed to ponder. Her scattering sword qi condensed, bound by a thread of Taiyin force, twisting it into a single mass. Boom— Time seemed to halt. The next instant, innumerable energies burst forth, uncontrollably spurting in every direction. The scene turned chaotic. Shangguan Wenchang slammed the table and instantaneously appeared on the platform, pressing down with one hand. It seemed as though he held a devouring sphere in his palm, absorbing everything, bringing all to a halt, and dissipating the storm without a trace. His gaze burned intently toward the center of the platform. Everyone else looked there too. Who had won? Yet. In that public gaze, a sudden silence descended. What had just happened? Li Mo shattered the gathered sword qi with a single strike. He employed an extraordinary technique impossible to execute at the qi and blood stage, and even with his thirty-six meridians, he was almost spent. However, that thread of Taiyin force remained, leaving him as if plunged into an icy abyss. It was so bloody cold. Unable to react, he instinctively wrapped an arm around Ying Bing's waist, pulling her into his embrace as they both fell to the ground. Hmm... Li Mo’s eyes were obscured. His mind, already sluggish, was left with a single realization: “Even if it’s Ice Block, her embrace feels like soft jade.” Ying Bing seemed stunned, failing to push him away immediately. Everyone: “?!” The elders: “!!?” Spectators from the sects big and small: “!!!?” A passing dog: “???” Their once hanging hearts had finally settled. The already chaotic scene became even more chaotic. 8Book.com © All content is copyrighted by their respective owners or authors.