Heavenly Star

He had lost through and through to Chu Jingtian. In the beginning he had been forced off by his sword, and now he was caught up in the web of the Cangming Sword so deeply that to even approach Chu Jingtian seemed like a luxury. He had fought countless masters of the sword in his life, some who knew the art of sword manipulation. But only today did he truly understand the meaning of sword manipulation and how dangerous it could be. No matter in terms of strength or control, all of it left him defenseless. Gradually he was beginning to feel the urge of back down and overwhelming fear.

Slit…A rivulet of blood appeared on Yan Zheng’s right arm.

Slit…The back of his neck was slit open, oozing blood slowly.

Slit…Another wound on his right leg.

Slit…

Slit…

Slit…

….

….

The other four elders of the Northern Emperor sect had dark expressions, but suppressed their urges to move or to speak out. Watching their strongest elder fall prey to a young man was already enough loss of reputation, if they called out or tried to stop him…then the Northern Emperor sect would be nothing but a laughingstock!

They had joined the competition to guide and serve as witnesses for it, as well as to open up the fight, with no expectation of continuing to win. Even so, they shouldn’t lose to a completely nameless young man. This was completely outside of their expectations, and a blow to their pride they could not accept.

Yan Zheng was already heavily wounded, but could not admit defeat or ask for his life…he had already made the decision to destroy this man’s companion and state that life and death were commonplace in this tournament. Chu Jingtian clearly no longer cared that he belonged to the Northern Emperor sect. Anyone could see that he fully intended to kill him. Yan Zheng might die, but he couldn’t risk the damage to reputation that admitting defeat would bring him.

The champions present watched passively as Yan Zheng was tormented by the flying Cangming Sword. His left hand was wounded heavily, gushing blood, although he had no attention to spare. The rest of his body was covered in new cuts, while his motion became slower and slower. The Cangming Sword showed no signs of slowing down, shooting through the air near him in a web of motion, occasionally leaving more bloody wounds on his body.

Slash!!

The sound of leather being cut open. Amid the crisscross of the sword’s trail, a blue light shot out with full intensity. Different from before where the sword shot toward his neck, this time it came directly at his heart with increased aggression. Yan Zheng dodged, but his reaction time and speed were nothing compared to before. Although he was able to avoid life-threatening damage, his shoulder was still pierced through. The sword entered from one side and exited from the other, shattering his shoulder bone.

Suffering through incredible pain, Yan Zheng extended his right hand in an instant, grabbing the Cangming Sword by its hilt. With a cry, he yanked the sword from his own shoulder. Blood seeped through his clothes immediately, dying them red.

Chu Jingtian didn’t seem phased that the Cangming Sword had been taken from him. His brows furrowing, he waved both hands.

A strength as grounded as a mountain resisted Yan Zheng’s hands, pulling the sword away from him. Trying to suppress the pain surging through him, Yan Zheng focused all his strength into his right hand, not letting the sword escape his hand, all while stepping closer and closer to Chu Jingtian.

Small beads of sweat were already seeping from Chu Jingtian’s forehead. Sword manipulation was incredibly energy-draining, this was common knowledge. Extending both arms, he poured all his energy into the sword, leaving nothing behind. “Sword Spirit Chant–Silent Roar!”

Clank!

Blue light shone from the sword. With a light ring, a shocking amount of energy exploded from the sword, throwing Yan Zheng’s whole body away. His right hand turned into a pulpy mess, the Cangming Sword flying from his grasp. Sword manipulation from a distance and grasping the sword alike were incredible drains on energy, although the former was many times worse than the latter. Yan Zheng had lost completely to Chu Jingtian.

Chu Jinigtian didn’t show any signs of stopping. Under his control, the Cangming Sword shot up into the air, suspended in the air for a moment. From the silence emerged an incredible energy, the sword surging down like a wild whirlwind, swallowing up the whole Fallen Star Cliff, shocking every single one of the champions present.

“Sword Spirit Arrayed–Silent Destruction, Complete Death!”

He said no excessive words, made no excessive expressions of anger or emotion. But every single movement was enough for everyone to understand how seriously he wanted him dead.

The Cangming Sword immediately transformed from one entity into tens, then hundreds of blue swords. They weren’t just phantoms, however, but carried their own chilling energy with a sharpness and strength that made the other fighters pale with fright. One sword was already frightening enough. But a hundred, all aimed at one person…

Every single sword was locked onto one individual…Yan Zheng felt like he had a thousand different blades at his throat. When the swords appeared above, he sensed the scent of death.

Back in the day, the Sword God Chu Cangming had used this same move to summon thousands of swords, covering the land in an aura of death that scared off the hundred thousand strong beneath Dafeng Country. Once again, this terrifying move was before their eyes. Everyone felt the same borderless fear and shock that the troops back then felt. Although this could not compare to the countless swords of the Sword God, this man was only in his twenties!

No one doubted that Yan Zheng, already gravely wounded, wouldn’t be ended by this move. But…if he really killed Yan Zheng, that meant enraging the Northern Emperor sect. To a genius of swords, that was a terrible position to be in.

“So this big idiot is that strong, huh?” Yan Gongruo’s big black eyes stared into the sky covered with swords, her pink lips wide open.

“I thought that I could see through his potential. Now I know that I still underestimated him. He’s not only no weaker than me, his understanding of the sword is astonishing. I don’t know what level Chu Cangming is at right now, but at this rate he’ll be the next Sword God. Although I have the bloodline of the Northern Emperor sect, I can only admit my place compared to him. He may not look like much or seem talented in any way, but he is a true sword genius.” Yan Gongluo muttered, staring into the sky and sensing the aura.

The three other elders who had come with Yan Zheng could sit still no longer, each of them wanting to charge forth and help. Only Yan Ximing wore a calm expression, saying in a low voice, “Don’t forget the rules of the Tianchen Magic Force Meeting.”

Hearing this, the three elders suppressed their emotions, hands curled into fists.

There was a reason for everything. If Yan Zheng didn’t destroy Leng Ya, he would only lose to Chu Jingtian without the latter bearing a grudge toward him. Even if Yan Zheng admitted defeat without regard to the reputation of the Northern Emperor sect, Chu Jingtian would still kill him. After all, he had destroyed his companion!

.

Right now Yan Zheng looked like he was streaming blood from his whole body. More and more wounds appeared under the invisible, oppressive aura. He fell to the ground, unable to rise under the aura’s power, only able to stare up at the swords that filled the sky like scythes of the reaper.

Chu Jingtian’s arm settled. The swords shuffled, tilting in the direction Yan Zheng was in. The moment these swords sunk, Yan Zheng would die with barely a body left to his name. In the silence, no one spoke, no one tried to stop him. With complicated emotions in their eyes, they watched the scene…

“…Leave…him…to…me…”

A low, cold voice filled with hatred, pain, killing intent rang out, like the voice of a demon emerging from hell. Cold wind blew by, bringing shivers to everyone present. In the wind, they smelled the scent of blood.

Accompanying the voice, an incredible wave of aura washed over everyone. All who had been shocked by Chu Jingtian’s Silent Destruction, Complete Death felt themselves turn pale again. Killing intent should not have a shape, but this killing intent felt like thousands of blades running against their skin, heavy rocks resting on their chests, making it difficult to breathe.

Gaze after uncertain gaze turned toward the cliff…the source of the voice.