Chapter 103.2: The Contest for the Heavenly Maiden Position; The Clash Between Wave Intent and Sword Intent (II)

Even Lu Changsheng was surprised. He knew how powerful the Nine-Character Mantra was, but freezing the mind and blood qi of a Hundred Cauldrons martial artist ought to remain difficult.

If he were at mere Initial Mastery, he wouldn't have pulled that off. Since he had reached Perfection, there was no such problem anymore. Regardless, Liu Tieta was dead.

Dao Shi'er had moved only twice, but he slew two Hundred Cauldrons martial artists. The scene left many spectators with chills creeping up their spines. Among those Dao Guardians, only Senior Sister Zhang's swordsman remained.

𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Senior Sister Zhang was visibly tense. She looked at the swordsman and softly asked, "Are you confident? If not, we can give up the Heavenly Maiden position."

The swordsman was Senior Sister Zhang's cousin, and it was clear how highly she valued him. She would rather abandon the Heavenly Maiden position than see him come to harm.

However, the swordsman rose to his feet and walked straight onto the arena.

His gaze settled on Dao Shi'er, and he calmly said, "I'm Lu Jianming from Xuanjian Manor! There are only the two of us left. Come. Let's decide the victor."

Lu Changsheng was somewhat surprised. "Xuanjian Manor?"

Speaking of it, Lu Changsheng had a connection with Xuanjian Manor. At the Cui Clan in Jubei City, he had heard of Elder Lu Tong of Xuanjian Manor. He had not met Lu Tong at the time, but now, he found himself facing Lu Jianming of Xuanjian Manor.

"You're not a true saberman. Your heart is not bound to your saber. You treat it simply as a means, not a Dao," Lu Jianming calmly said. He had devoted his heart entirely to the sword, dedicating his whole life to the sword in his hand.

No matter what techniques his opponent possessed, he would break through them with his sword. This was what it meant to walk with the sword with an undivided heart.

Lu Changsheng nodded and said, "That's true, I'm not a pure saberman. I'm a man from jianghu, and what I practice is the art of killing. As long as it kills, whether I use a saber, a sword, or my fists, will there be any difference?"

Lu Jianming gave Lu Changsheng a feeling he had never experienced before. It was

pressure

. Lu Jianming stood with his fangs fully revealed, like a peerless sword drawn from its sheath. If it remained sheathed, so be it. But once drawn, it was destined to shake heaven and earth. He was indeed a pure swordsman.

The two stood in the arena. Lu Changsheng wrapped his hand around the hilt of his saber, yet neither of them drew their weapon. They both understood that the moment their weapons met in the air, victory and defeat would be decided.

Lu Changsheng moved first and unleashed the Nine-Character Mantra.

"Lin!"

Buzz

.

A tremor ran through Lu Jianming's mind. Even though he was prepared and kept his focus gathered at all times to resist Dao Shi'er's strange technique, his mind was still shaken. His blood qi was also frozen.

Lu Changsheng seized the opportunity. He did not hesitate in the slightest and directly struck out with his saber.

Slash!

The blood-colored saber light crossed several

zhang

in distance, and the sound of crashing waves echoed from it. This was an attack capable of cleaving through powerful waves in one stroke. It held terrifying might.

Upon getting hit, whether the martial artist stood at the Hundred Cauldrons Stage or even the Thousand Cauldrons Stage, their death was inevitable.

At the critical moment, Lu Jianming broke free from the mental suppression. His blood qi remained frozen, but he was a swordsman. As long as a sword was in his hand, what difference would the presence or absence of blood qi make?

Lu Jianming drew his sword, and a streak of sword light flashed through the air.

Swoosh!

The moment that sword light flashed, everyone felt a chill in their hearts, as if a sharp sword were hanging above their heads. Within the sword light, Lu Changsheng sensed countless swords as dense as falling rain.

Lu Changsheng finally understood why Lu Jianming said he was bound to the sword.

Sword Intent! Lu Jianming had actually comprehended Sword Intent! Just as Lu Changsheng had grasped Wave Intent, Lu Jianming had comprehended Sword Intent.

The sharp Sword Intent tore through everything. Even Lu Changsheng's Nine-Character Mantra could only freeze Lu Jianming's mind for a single instant, and it was all because of

that

intent.

"Bound in heart to the sword. What a formidable devotion to the sword!"

A strange light flashed through Lu Changsheng's eyes. Lu Jianming was the only truly evenly matched opponent he had encountered so far.

Moreover, Lu Jianming was only at the Hundred Cauldrons Stage, and his raw strength was not particularly outstanding. Yet with the support of Sword Intent, Lu Jianming's sword strikes became terrifyingly powerful.

"You have Sword Intent, but how can I be inferior to anyone?"

Lu Changsheng took a deep breath and unleashed the Wave Intent in full. He had been keeping his Wave Intent restrained, but facing Lu Jianming's Sword Intent, he could no longer afford to hold back.

BOOOOM!

Behind Lu Changsheng, a terrifying aura surged skyward. Vaguely, it resembled vast ocean waves rising to the heavens. The surging waves roared and churned, as though they were about to swallow everything in their path and sweep them all away.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

One blood-colored saber light after another shot out from Lu Changsheng, each carrying terrifying Wave Intent as if it were to collapse mountains and overturn seas. They collided with Lu Jianming's sword light again and again. In the span of a single breath, dozens of exchanges were made.

Lu Jianming's comprehension of Sword Intent wasn't as deep as Lu Changsheng's comprehension of Wave Intent. However, in terms of pure offense, his Sword Intent possessed an innate advantage. No matter what methods Lu Changsheng employed, he shattered them with a single sword strike.

By contrast, Lu Changsheng's Wave Intent flowed without end, seemingly inexhaustible.

Even so, Lu Changsheng still had the Nine-Character Mantra. He invoked it from time to time, and even if it restrained his opponent for only an instant, that instant mattered a lot. In battles between true experts, victory and defeat were often decided in the briefest of moments.

A faint sound rang out as Lu Changsheng and Lu Jianming separated, each landing at opposite ends of the arena. Lu Jianming glanced down at his chest. A saber mark ran across it, and blood seeped freely from the wound. It looked perilous at first glance, yet it had not truly injured his bones or tendons.

"I lost," Lu Jianming said. Although he was not defeated in technique, a loss was still a loss, and there were no excuses. He could not demand that his opponent share the same devotion to the sword or saber. After all, Dao Shi'er cultivated the art of killing. As long as he could kill or defeat the opponent, that was enough.

Lu Changsheng looked at Lu Jianming and nodded. "You're very strong with your sword techniques. It is quite a rare sight. Xuanjian Manor truly lives up to its name."

Lu Changsheng was not flattering him. Without the Nine-Character Mantra, he wouldn't have been able to defeat Lu Jianming.

"Dao Shi'er, your Wave Intent is formidable as well. However, your saber technique is still too weak. Even if you're not devoted to the saber, you should at least completely integrate Wave Intent into your techniques.

"It is unfortunate that you didn't fuse the intent and the saber. Still, if you wish to pursue it, you may come find me at Xuanjian Manor."

With those words, Lu Jianming turned and left without the slightest hesitation. In just a few bounds, he disappeared from everyone's sight. The contest between the Dao Guardians came to an end.

In the end, Dao Shi'er stood unrivaled and swept through all opposition.

For a moment, all eyes turned toward Yun Haitang. Who could have imagined that the greatest winner in the struggle for the Heavenly Maiden position would ultimately be her?

The Heavenly Maiden's gaze settled on Yun Haitang as she calmly said, "Yun Haitang, from this day onward, you are the Heavenly Maiden of the Heavenly Maiden Sect."

Yun Haitang was overwhelmed with excitement.

"Go and attend to your affairs. I will wait for you at the sect and take the opportunity to look around as well," Lu Changsheng said, waving his hand, letting Yun Haitang attend to her duties first. After all, she would certainly be busy, as she had just become the Heavenly Maiden.

Yun Haitang bowed slightly and followed the former Heavenly Maiden to receive the Heavenly Maiden's inheritance.