Chapter 144 - Sword That Rules Heaven and Earth (Part Six)

Qi Zongbi was too far away to hear what Baili Gucheng and the woman behind him were saying, but when he saw the woman with an umbrella stalk toward him, he knew it couldn’t be anything good.

"Stay put!" Yi Anzhi had heard Baili Gucheng and the woman’s conversation clearly and knew Yang Lu’s intentions. Seeing Yang Lu attempting to bypass him and head straight for Qi Zongbi, he grew anxious and raised his sword to intercept her.

Whoosh!

A surge of sword qi grazed past Yi Anzhi’s ear, blowing a few strands of his hair loose and forcefully stopping him in his tracks.

"Where are you going?" Baili Gucheng asked.

Yi Anzhi didn’t even look back, thrusting his sword behind him. Baili Gucheng dodged to the side, but Yi Anzhi had no intention of lingering in the fight. Seeing that his strike failed, he prepared to chase after Yang Lu.

Baili Gucheng quickly extended his hand, grabbing Yi Anzhi by the collar. Yi Anzhi grew increasingly agitated, and furiously kicked at Baili Gucheng’s stomach.

Baili Gucheng brushed aside the oncoming leg with the pommel of his sword, using the force to leap up and deliver a fierce knee strike toward Yi Anzhi’s nose.

Yi Anzhi tilted his head to dodge and seized the opportunity, stabbing his soft sword straight at Baili Gucheng’s chest with deadly precision!

Clang—

Yi Anzhi’s soft sword struck Baili Gucheng’s sheathed sword, sparking a small shower of embers. Baili Gucheng’s left hand remained firmly on Yi Anzhi’s collar.

At that moment, his right hand suddenly knocked aside the soft sword and slashed down directly toward Yi Anzhi’s forehead!

Yi Anzhi took a sharp breath, Baili Gucheng’s grip held him fast, and gave him no chance to escape. In desperation, Yi Anzhi punched Baili Gucheng’s abdomen and twisted his shoulders, tearing his robes with a sharp

rip

.

Finally free, Yi Anzhi didn’t spare Baili Gucheng another glance. He pushed off with his foot, launching in pursuit of Yang Lu. But no sooner had he leaped into the air than his ankle was suddenly gripped tightly again. Below him he heard Baili Gucheng’s hateful voice demand, "Get down here!"

The two renowned swordsmen were locked in an unusual battle. One aiming to escape and the other would not let that happen, so they had clashed multiple times in just a few breaths.

In their urgency, neither bothered maintaining their lofty demeanor as martial arts experts. Their scuffle was filled with grabs, kicks, tugs, and stomps, looking no different than a street brawl.

At this point, Yang Lu was already close to Qi Zongbi. Qi Zongbi saw the umbrella-carrying woman had fixed her gaze on him and striding over, nearly breaking into a run.

Since Tranquil Stream Yi Anzhi, who had promised to protect him, was entangled by Baili Gucheng, Qi Zongbi realized it was dangerous to be watching the fight.

After witnessing the overwhelming power of Impending Sword’s attack, he didn’t think he stood a chance against this seemingly delicate, beautiful woman who accompanied him.

"Run! Do you want to die?!"

A loud shout came from afar, snapping Qi Zongbi out of his daze. He realized that it was Yi Anzhi impatiently reminding him as watched them fight.

Qi Zongbi turned and ran, intending to escape into the Heavenly Divination Shrine.

Yang Lu was already close to Qi Zongbi. Seeing him fleeing, she shifted her body and leapt into the air, and shouted, "Don’t run, old scoundrel!"

Her lotus-like feet were poised to stomp down on his head.

At this critical moment, a dark figure shot out from the entrance of the Heavenly Divination Shrine, colliding heavily with Yang Lu!

Bang!

Caught off guard, Yang Lu took the blow head-on. She was thrown far back and rolled halfway across the plaza before she could steady herself.

Cough, cough—

Yang Lu furrowed her delicate brow, barely lifting her head before seeing a pair of feet clad in black cloth shoes appear before her. Before she had time to recover, a look of confusion had just flashed across her eyes when one of the feet swiftly kicked her and sent her flying again.

Yang Lu winced in pain, coughing up a mouthful of blood while airborne, when a familiar voice reached her ears.

"My dear junior sister... Why didn’t you heed your senior brother’s advice? Why insist on coming here to throw your life away?"

Yang Lu’s eyes flew wide open, her gaze filled with shock and fury. She looked up to see Ah San’s face wearing a cold, indifferent smile.

She furiously screamed, "You filthy animal! It’s you?!"

Ah San ignored her confusion, and raised his lustrous black umbrella over his head. "Those who don’t listen... deserve to be punished," he declared. With that, he slammed the umbrella down toward her!

Boom!!!

Yang Lu was blasted back down to the ground with a thunderous impact that seemed to make the entire plaza shake.

The loud noise caught the attention of Baili Gucheng and Yi Anzhi. When Baili Gucheng turned around, he saw Yang Lu lying motionless in the center of the square, it looked like her survival was uncertain.

"

Huh

?!" Baili Gucheng’s mouth opened wide, as though his words were stuck in his throat, unable to escape.

"Yang... Yang Lu—"

"Impending Sword! What are you looking at?!"

Behind him, Yi Anzhi leaped down from the air, his soft sword glinting with a cold light as it pierced the air, shooting toward Baili Gucheng’s heart!

"Get lost!" Baili Gucheng roared in fury. Without even turning his head, he spread his arms wide and with a powerful surge, a massive wave of sword qi burst out from his body like a tsunami!

Yi Anzhi’s eyes widened in terror; the sword qi

was even more ferocious than before. He knew he couldn’t take it head-on, yet he was unable to evade the huge area the sword qi encompassed either.

In his panic, he only managed to shield his face and head before the violent sword qi swallowed him whole! He felt as if he were in a sea of sword qi, caught in the surging tide, his body helpless as the currents tore him this way and that.

Agonizing pain spread across his entire body, and it was only after what felt like an eternity that his back finally hit solid ground.

Yi Anzhi groaned, feeling pain in every inch of his body. He opened his eyes with great effort, only to realize he was now dozens of zhang away from Baili Gucheng... the massive surge of sword qi had blasted him out of the fight.

"What... is he?"

Fear gripped Yi Anzhi’s heart... he had never seen such terrifying sword qi.

Baili Gucheng’s hand creaked as he gripped the sword hilt tightly, his gaze fixed unrelentingly on Ah San in the square.

His eyes were bloodshot with rage, showing that he was at the height of his fury. The sword qi swirling around him intensified, spinning faster, emitting a high-pitched whine.

"Ah! San!"

In the face of Baili Gucheng’s wrath, Ah San maintained his casual, carefree demeanor, a cold smile still playing across his lips.

He spread his hands, saying, "Impending Sword... How did I not see before that you were such a fool?

Hahaha

—if I’d known you were so intent on dying, I might as well have sent you on your way that day—"

"The one who’s going to die is you!"

Baili Gucheng’s shout echoed like a thunderclap as the sword qi around him suddenly transformed into thousands of razor-sharp blades. The dense torrent of swords surged forward like a furious dragon, charging straight at Ah San!

"

Heh

, still a fool!" Ah San sneered, opening his black umbrella swiftly, he hurtled directly toward Baili Gucheng to meet the oncoming storm of swords!