Chapter 90 - Lin Jiulao's Pride

The strike was a common blade technique that Ye Beizhi was also familiar with, known as the overhead power slash.

The horse-slaughtering blade in Lin Jiulao's hand weighed over a thousand pounds, coupled with the overhead power slash, the momentum behind the slash was incredible!

Ye Beizhi had just regained his senses and looked up to see blade slamming down on him.

He placed his right hand on his waist, tightened his grip on the Tang blade, bent his knees slightly, and twisted his waist with force, spinning in place as the Tang blade drew an arc of light, fiercely chopping upwards at the horse-slaughtering blade coming straight at him!

Bang!

A shockwave erupted when the two blades met. Some distance away, External Prime Minister Qi Zongbi stumbled from where he was observing the fight and fell to the ground.

"Your Excellency!" Guards of the External Prime Minister's residence rushed over and quickly helped him up.

With a

thud

, the leader of the guards knelt on one knee before Qi Zongbi and said, "Your Excellency, due to my negligence, a villain has intruded into the External Prime Minister's residence. Please punish me!"

"Get up." Qi Zongbi didn't look at the guard leader, his eyes still fixed on the dueling blademasters. He casually waved his hand. "This matter is not your fault... Even if that person wanted to go to the imperial palace, there might not be anyone who could stop him..."

On the other side, the battle between Ye Beizhi and Lin Jiulao had reached a boiling point. The sounds of their blades clashing, the rustle of their clothing cutting through the wind, and the ringing of metal striking metal filled the air.

Lin Jiulao truly lived up to the title Frozen Daybreak Lin Jiulao. The horse-slaughtering blade, a weapon known for its wide and forceful strikes, danced in his hands with a finesse akin to that of an embroidery needle.

His large blade moved in an incongruous way that left no openings. It often thrust at sharp angles, every strike resembling a venomous serpent striking out for the kill.

Sweat had begun to bead on Ye Beizhi's forehead. While Lin Jiulao's relentless techniques were exhausting to handle, what truly made him uneasy were the increasing number of armored guards surrounding them.

While they were locked down in a heated duel, all the guards of the External Prime Minister's residence had gathered around. If this entanglement continued, even if he could defeat Frozen Daybreak Lin Jiulao... it would be difficult to escape with his life.

"Your Excellency," whispered the guard leader as he leaned close to Qi Zongbi, "Shall I send guards to capture him now?"

Qi Zongbi slowly shook his head, saying, "Not yet... with your skills, going up now would be sending you to your deaths. One hit, and you'd meet the King of Hell... Just wait a bit longer; once Frozen Daybreak Lin Jiulao injures him, you can swarm him, and capturing him will be a sure thing...

Heh

, so what if he is Ye Beizhi, the Stormqueller?"

Qi Zongbi said this without concern for others present, and it was unclear how much of this was meant to disturb Ye Beizhi's state of mind.

Ye Beizhi and Lin Jiulao naturally heard this loud and clear. Ye Beizhi felt a growing heaviness in his heart but said nothing. However, Lin Jiulao was having none of it and shouted at the guards, "Let’s see who dares! I'll kill whoever interferes first!"

Qi Zongbi's face darkened immediately. Lin Jiulao's words openly slapped the him in the face, directly negating his previous plans.

Ye Beizhi had been on guard against Lin Jiulao for a long time. Seeing Lin Jiulao turn towards Qi Zongbi, he seized the opportunity and ruthlessly slashed towards Lin Jiulao's neck.

Lin Jiulao blocked it with his blade, firmly parrying the Tang blade's edge. Frozen Daybreak forced his horse-slaughtering blade down on the Tang blade.

Staring at Ye Beizhi, the corner of his mouth curving slightly, "Stormqueller... Do you only know how to sneak attack?"

Ye Beizhi narrowed his eyes, staring intensely into Lin Jiulao's eyes: "No... I only know how to kill." As soon as he finished speaking, Ye Beizhi suddenly let go!

Lin Jiulao raised his eyebrows, and with the loss of the blocking blade, he slashed straight down at Ye Beizhi!

The two blades had originally been locked tightly together, neither yielding to the other. At this moment, Ye Beizhi suddenly loosened his grip, and the Tang blade was immediately flicked upwards into the air. Ye Beizhi immediately pivoted to the side as soon as he let go, the oversized blade missing his nose by a hair.

"Let’s see you dodge this!" Lin Jiulao shouted fiercely.

The blade that had slashed nothing turned as he twisted it to change its trajectory, aiming a horizontal strike at Ye Beizhi’s waist!

"I won’t dodge."

Ye Beizhi’s calm voice rang in Lin Jiulao's ear. He reached up into the air, catching the spinning Tang blade as it fell. The timing was perfect.

"Now, let’s see you take this."

Lin Jiulao raised his eyes and saw the Tang blade in Ye Beizhi’s hand already coming down overhead! If that strike landed, his head would surely be cleaved in half!

But at this moment, the slashing blade was already descending upon Ye Beizhi, the wind from the blade even slicing through the fabric at his waist!

Stormqueller was going for a pyrrhic blow!

"Come on then!"

Lin Jiulao lived for the blade and was not afraid of losing his life. He didn’t dodge or evade the incoming deadly strike, instead, he fought with all his might to execute his own waist-level cut!

Lin Jiulao’s eyes were bloodshot, but he couldn’t hide the madness within them. Only Ye Beizhi could hear him as he muttered under his breath, "As long as I kill you... I will be known as the greatest blademaster in the world!"

Yet Ye Beizhi remained impassive, his expression as calm as ever, as if he were not the one about to be cleaved in two.

Whoosh!

A sharp sound of slicing air came from behind Ye Beizhi, an arrow from a crossbow shot towards him.

Ye Beizhi’s eyelids twitched, he knew something was wrong, but it was already too late to change course. Suddenly, his right arm tightened as if struck by a heavy object, and a pain spread through him, causing his downward slash to involuntarily slow down.

In the next moment, the blade sliced through his clothing.

His right side burned with pain as blood began to soak his clothes. But the pain also meant that he was still alive. Ye Beizhi knelt on the ground, propped up only by his blade, and raised his head to look at Lin Jiulao who towered over him.

Lin Jiulao was turning to look in the direction of the crossbow arrow, where a guard stood holding a crossbow, enveloped by Lin Jiulao’s killing intent. The guard was trembling all over, his legs shaking, occasionally glancing left and right as if seeking help.

"I remember what I promised." Lin Jiulao raised his blade and walked toward the guard. " I will kill anyone who interferes!"

His words boomed like a thunderclap, stunning the surrounding guards. The guard with the crossbow couldn’t take it anymore and fell to the ground, wetting himself: "No, it wasn’t me... His Excellency ordered—"

Whoosh!

The large knife swung straight out, not even making a sound in the wind, and a head flew into the air, the decapitated body collapsing to the ground.

Qie Zongbi frowned. "Frozen Daybreak Lin Jiulao, what are you doing! Quickly apprehend the assassin!"

Lin Jiulao scoffed, and glanced at the External Prime Minister without responding.

Ye Beizhi covered his wound, standing up with his blade. His right side had a deep gash, bleeding profusely. Had it not been for Lin Jiulao forcibly redirecting his blade, he would likely have been cleaved in two already.

Seeing Ye Beizhi stand up, Lin Jiulao turned and declared, "Stormqueller Ye Beizhi, this round doesn’t count. I’ll let you go today. Once you’re healed, I will come find you again."

"Lin Jiulao!" On the side, Qi Zongbi's face changed dramatically upon hearing this. "Since when did that become your decision?!"

"

Haha!

You must be joking!" Lin Jiulao looked at Qi Zongbi with a playful smile. "If it's not up to me, who else will stop him?"

"You!" Qi Zongbi pressed his lips together, his face livid with anger. Deep down, he knew Lin Jiulao was speaking the truth.

Ye Beizhi covered his wound, looked deeply at Lin Jiulao’s back, and then glanced at Qi Zongbi, who was looking this way. In the end, he said nothing, directly leaped onto the roof, and disappeared into the night.