Chapter 403: The Duel Between Fated Rivals

The semifinals were over, and two days were once again allotted for the finalists to rest and adjust themselves.

Emotions had to be carefully brewed before a faceoff between experts in this pinnacle match.

Jiang Chen didn’t waste the two days. Although he hadn’t used the Lotus in his match against Lei Gangyang, he’d comprehended theories he’d never had before in that stroke.

The blow had represented the highest level of power that he was so far able to bring forth.

It had cleaved through the obstacles of Jiang Chen’s martial knowledge and heralded him into a new arena.

Jiang Chen had forced new changes and the mentality of unexpected changes in a strike that held sure death.

He’d had a faint comprehension in that moment of life and death, and that understanding had given him a strong premonition that he was about to obtain a completely new breakthrough on his path of martial dao.

Indeed, the mindset of that blow had enabled him to subtly touch the door to the sky spirit realm.

The earth spirit realm, the sky spirit realm.

Although they were but one step away from each other, there was the distance of heaven and earth between them.

The meaning behind that stroke meant that Jiang Chen had comprehended life and death, the heavens and earth.

Boundless martial dao inspiration poured forth once again like carp bounding upstream, giving him the emotion of spontaneous joy.

It was as if endless doors were opening to him, presenting all sorts of new scenes in front of Jiang Chen.

“Indeed, there is a bridge between the heavens and earth. This bridge encompasses all living beings, and controls life and death. The sky spirit realm, the sky spirit realm...”

Many thoughts surfaced in Jiang Chen’s mind at this moment. They gathered together until they formed three radiant, golden words—sky spirit realm.

Indeed, that catalyst that would set everything in motion had finally arrived.

Since refining the Fire Raven King’s core, the accumulation of Jiang Chen’s spirit ocean had reached quite an abundant level and was waiting for the moment to emerge from its cocoon.

Wham!

It was as if Jiang Chen’s spirit ocean suddenly broke free of its entrappings and danced through the air like a colorful butterfly. His spirit ocean suddenly expanded by five times, akin to the earth giving birth to the heavens, the vast oceans transforming to mulberry fields, and the stars forming the universe...

Jiang Chen once again had the feeling of touching the heavenly law in this moment.

“The sky spirit realm, I’ve been waiting for you.” Jiang Chen smiled faintly, a smile full of wisdom. He seemed like a heavenly emperor who held all in his grasp in this moment, full of confidence.

As his clear eyes opened and closed, they sparkled with stunning glamor, the light of water and fire, the light of metal, and the light of thunder and lightning.

In that instant, all of the attributes beneath the heavens continuously arose in Jiang Chen’s body as if in a cycle of reincarnation. He seemed to be creating a small world.

This was indeed the case, as each cultivator’s spirit ocean was a small world, and the cultivator the master of this world.

Jiang Chen thoroughly immersed himself in the atmosphere of breaking through to the sky spirit realm. He was slowly absorbing the changes, digesting them, and was as comfortable as a dragon frolicking in the waves and surges of the ocean.

He spent the two days completely submerged within this change, completely different from Long Juxue and her enormous racket that had alarmed the sky quadrant and shown off her glory.

In stark contrast, Jiang Chen was the epitome of keeping a low profile.

“Long Juxue... you escaped with your life thanks to a fluke in the battle of the Second Crossing. Let’s see how you escape this time!” A cold light swept through Jiang Chen’s God’s Eye after his breakthrough.

He had absolute confidence that he would trounce Long Juxue in this match!

Breaking through to the sky spirit realm had made his strength and battle strength suddenly surge forward.

When he was at the sixth level realm, his chances of killing Long Juxue was around seventy percent.

Now that he was also at the seventh level spirit realm, he had absolute confidence. What he was considering now was how to suddenly execute a lethal blow so that even Sunchaser would be unable to interfere.

These two days were truly an agony for those waiting for the final match with bated breath.

Although the outside world almost all favored Long Juxue, the match had yet to begin and so there was always a hint of suspense. Who could say that Jiang Chen didn’t have another trump card up his sleeve?

Up until now, the feeling that he gave others was an unfathomable one.

On the Precious Tree Sect side, almost all were on Jiang Chen’s side apart from the Iron family. They had a sort of anticipation in their hearts, hoping that Jiang Chen would trample Long Juxue and take the championship.

The Precious Tree Sect needed a genius like this.

This was because the situation of the Purple Sun Sect’s dominance had lasted for far, far too long in the sixteen kingdom alliance.

Forefather Sunchaser himself was giving a speech on the Purple Sun Sect side.

“You cannot underestimate this fellow. Xue’er, I cannot see through his potential. He’s destined to be your rival. If you can overcome this obstacle, then your future will be without limit. If you are unable to do so, then all your potential is as fleeting as the cloud and winds.”

Sunchaser’s tone was as stern as it’d ever been.

Long Juxue nodded her head solemnly. “Be at peace forefather, I won’t underestimate my enemy.”

Sunchaser nodded and didn’t say much more. He knew that whatever he said now, even if he repeated it a thousand times, was hollow.

Only the strongest would prevail!

This match would determine who was at the peak of the sixteen kingdoms. The path of a genius could not be blocked.

.......

In the enormous ring.

The last stage of the selection and the last match was finally about to commence.

No one would’ve thought that those standing at the apex of the younger generation of the sixteen kingdoms would be two from the secular world, and both from that little place called the Eastern Kingdom.

It was quite ironic that all the direct descendants of the four great sects had been stomped underfoot by two ordinary cultivators.

Long Juxue stood in a flowing white dress, her face cold and her presence as radiant as the sun.

“Jiang Chen, I admit that you’re an undefeatable cockroach with an incredible will to live. You must be so proud of your little self to have climbed up, step by step from the secular world. You think you finally have the chance to challenge me, don’t you?”

Long Juxue’s tone was remote as her elegant brow arched delicately. An immense sense of superiority suffused her words and tone, and she didn’t bother concealing her dismissal of Jiang Chen.

“I will use the truth today to tell you that your hard earned gains have only gained you the opportunity to be tortured to death by me. You, are just a secular ant at the end of the day, and I am a phoenix soaring the nine heavens. The difference between us is that of heaven and dearth. I will utterly trample you into the dust in this match, giving you no opportunity to come back for all eternity!”

Long Juxue’s hatred of Jiang Chen had long surpassed the feud of a father and brother’s death. She didn’t hate that he had killed her family, but that he had displayed complete disregard of her since the Eastern Kingdom.

Long Juxue had enjoyed being the center of attention no matter where she went starting when she was young. She’d always been coveted after and praised to the skies, enjoying the treatment of one on high.

Only from Jiang Chen had she never felt this satisfaction of being well above all.

And then after she’d entered the sect, Jiang Chen had once again challenged her mental state again and again, continuously capering in front of her like a cockroach. This was completely unforgivable to Long Juxue.

Jiang Chen smiled. This smile was like the sun radiating over the land and instantly melting Long Juxue’s frozen thrall over things.

“Long Juxue, I’ve said this before. You lost to me in the secular world and you will be unable to escape this fate today. So what if you’ve an innate constitution? So what if you’ve received the fortunes of the Purple Sun Sect on yourself? You spoke correctly. The difference between you and I are indeed like the heavens and earth, only you are that toad on the earth and will never know how tall the skies are. Don’t talk of the heavens and this world in front of me, no one understands the heavens more than I do!”

Jiang Chen had quite a heroic demeanor about himself as his awe inspiring manner soared to the skies.

What was this talk of the heavens in front of him?

Who understood them more than the son of the Celestial Emperor? Long Juxue? The four great sects? They were just a few ants in some small corner on an inconsequential plane!

“There is no point in further talk. Long Juxue, I’ll send you to meet with Long Zhaofeng and Long Yinye in this match!”

𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Jiang Chen brought forth the nameless saber and pointed with it, an unparalleled momentum behind him as he waved it in a slash.

This slash was like the stroke that had broken through Lei Gangyang, untraceable as if an immortal from the heavens.

Long Juxue snorted coldly, “Repeating that same old trick?”

Her fingers formed a seal like a lotus as the motions formed a conduit. She shouted lowly, “Azure Phoenix Freezing Qi, Crystal Wall!”

Hum.

A wall of ice that shimmered in and out of existence formed in front of Long Juxue, blocking all of the momentum from Jiang Chen’s blade.

The freezing qi had formed a ice wall.

This method could rather put a stop to all attacks.

The freezing qi crept amongst the wall like frost. Layers of frigid frost formed around the entire ring, turning it into a misty white world like an avalanche sealing off the mountain.

“Jiang Chen, meet your death!”

Long Juxue sang out softly as her slender arms waved, a short sword magically appearing in her hand. When this short sword appeared, it was as radiant as lunar splendor.

The enormous spirit power ripples indicated that it was also a nine times refined spirit weapon.

Long Juxue’s figure was charming, as if an azure phoenix dancing gracefully in the heavy snow. Her aura soared to the nine heavens and morphed into the shadow of an azure phoenix. The short sword in her hand transformed into a frosty beam of light and shot forward with violent speed.

The entire ring had become enchanted into Long Juxue’s environment of a thousand li of ice.

“Jiang Chen, go turn into an ice sculpture!”

Frigid light cascaded downwards like a waterfall as Jiang Chen’s body suddenly halted, becoming enclosed by the icy light. Frost instantly crept over him.

In barely the span of breath, the white frost had completely enclosed this figure and an ice sculpture had formed before too long.

Long Juxue laughed softly and used the short sword in hand to draw back and forth on the sculpture, seeming to want to carve him into the image of a clown.

The sudden development of this scene caused exclamations of shock to emit from the audience.

This had been simply too quick?

Jiang Chen had been turned into an ice sculpture by one of Long Juxue’s moves?

Long Juxue’s strength was simply too frightening!

Everyone had had some expectations for Jiang Chen thanks to his perverse abilities, but their anticipation had been utterly smashed in a single moment.

If even Jiang Chen was unable to challenge Long Juxue, then who could?

Long Juxue stood high and proud, the short sword flying in her hands and shaving away countless flecks of ice like it were an axe.

Suddenly, Long Juxue’s gaze froze as her lithe figure halted.

Because, she’d discovered that as the outside layers of ice were stripped back, the sculpture was empty inside.

Jiang Chen wasn’t inside the block of ice!

He seemed to have vanished into thin air!

Suddenly, the hairs on Long Juxue’s body stood on end as a prickly feeling of horror ran down all over her.