Chapter 260: Formidable Strength
+Sun Wukong was startled when he heard those words, failing to comprehend how this old man who had suddenly appeared also knew him. Moreover, the man claimed Wukong had not grasped the true meaning of Fangcun. The true meaning of Fangcun? What was that? Why had he never heard of it before?
Speaking of Fangcun, the only connection he could think of was that his Patriarch Bodhi's cave was named Spirit Mountain of Fangcun, in the Cave of the Slanting Moon and Three Stars. That was the only slight connection, but this person didn't look anything like his master!
"To be so easily distracted by your opponent's movements in battle and even daze off, is this really how your master taught you?" said the old man with white whiskers, as he swiftly moved several steps and appeared behind Sun Wukong. The old man hadn't seemed to do much, yet Sun Wukong suddenly felt a chill in his heart and hastily retreated backward.
At the same time, he reached out to stop Flame God and Rogue Heart Sword Hero, who were about to move forward.
Flame God and the other person heard the old man's words and suspected that this old man might have some connection with Sun Wukong, so they stopped as well. However, the three of them slowly spread out, surrounding the old man with white whiskers.
The old man remained calm and indifferent, allowing the three of them to encircle him. "This is more like it. When facing an enemy, you must first probe their background clearly.
If you rush in without knowing whether the other party is a friend or foe, strong or weak, that's just the act of a fool!" After speaking, the old man slowly raised his right hand, glanced at the three men, and with a swift motion, pointed his raised hand towards Flame God behind him.
Seeing that the old man had finally made a move, Flame God didn't dare to be careless. He quickly swung the Exploding Phoenix in his hand towards what was in front of him.
"Not bad, your eyesight and reflexes are very good, but your strength, it's lacking!" As the Exploding Phoenix wielded by Flame God descended, suddenly two fingers appeared in the void, directly clamping down on the Exploding Phoenix that was enshrouded with intense flames.
Hearing the old man's words, Flame God immediately felt infuriated, as if he was being toyed with, and shouted, "Explode!" With Flame God's command, the fire from where the two fingers were clamping down suddenly compressed and then burst forth with an explosion.
But when the explosive airflow and flames cleared, Flame God was shocked to see that the two fingers were still pinching his Exploding Phoenix and appeared only slightly charred.
Who was this old man, and how could he be so terrifyingly powerful? He must have exceeded the strength of an ordinary Domain Lord Level, right? With a mind like lightning, Flame God released the Exploding Phoenix and bent his waist slightly forward, adopting a claw-like posture with both hands, which started to ignite with a deep blue flame.
"Ghostly Fire Phoenix Claw," Flame God vocalized the name of the technique as he charged forward, his dual claws aimed—one ahead and one behind—at the old man.
Watching Flame God's furious strike, the old man slowly nodded and said, "Noticing that Yang Fire's explosion couldn't harm the enemy, you instantly switched to Yin Fire, which has stronger adhesion and burning properties, and didn't hesitate to abandon the blade for the claw. Yes, well done!"
While nodding in seeming approval and providing commentary on their strengths and weaknesses, the old man's actions never stopped. Just as Flame God's Ghostly Fire Phoenix Claw came close, the old man with white eyebrows reached out with both hands, blocking in front of Flame God's right claw.
For some reason, the originally fierce and vicious claw attack deviated and whizzed past the old man, missing him by an inch with its blue flames.
Although Flame God didn't understand what had happened, he could tell it was the old man's doing and didn't panic. His other claw reached again for the old man's waist. "To strike so viciously at an old man like me, you deserve to be punished, yes punished!"
The old man sighed as if talking to himself, and once again slapped at Flame God's claw in the air, causing the attack to miss. At the same time, he reached into the void with his other hand, grasping as if he had caught the fabric of space itself, and then threw it towards where Na Yi was positioned. Flame God's body, against his control, was suddenly flung away.
From Flame God's attack to his inexplicable flight, only a few moments had passed, and by that time, Sun Wukong and Rogue Heart Sword Hero hadn't even prepared to strike.
The two exchanged glances, seeing a hint of hesitation in each other's eyes. Both knew that the old man had no malice towards them; otherwise, Flame God's fate would have been more than just being thrown away. Especially Wukong, who didn't detect the slightest intent to kill from the old man.
Instead, while the old man was acting, Wukong sensed a familiar feeling. But it was a feeling so distant that he could not recall it at the moment. It was these two factors that calmed both Sun Wukong and Rogue Heart Sword Hero down after the previous combined attack of the trio.
Seeing Flame God fly uncontrollably away, Rogue Heart Sword Hero slowly drew his black Tang Blade from his waist, then turned to Sun Wukong and said, "Monkey, I'll go first to test the waters, you watch closely!" As soon as he finished speaking, Rogue Heart Sword Hero saw a look of sheer surprise in Sun Wukong's eyes. At the same time, he caught a whiff of the smell of meat and wine.
Rogue Heart Sword Hero, with his extensive combat experience, instantly knew the situation without needing to think. The Tang Blade, already halfway drawn, didn't have time to be fully unsheathed. Deciding swiftly, he plunged the Tang Blade back into its scabbard and released his left hand while his right hand spun backwards, blocking his back with the black Tang Blade still in its sheath.
"Not bad at all, quick to react with abundant combat experience. Let's see how many moves you can last!" came the slightly appreciative and evaluative words of the elder with the white beard. Rogue Heart Sword Hero, using a backhand style, blocked the elder's palm strike, and his body followed the force of that palm, advancing seven steps forward.
Then, he slowly turned around to face the elder, who was full of smiles, and said, "Then I ask for more guidance from my senior. Now, it's time for this junior to draw his blade!"
Rogue Heart Sword Hero's eyes were fixed intently on the elder as he slowly attempted to draw his Tang Blade once more. But as only a third of the blade was drawn, he felt a sudden tension, for the elder had vanished from his sight. Then, a voice sounded next to his ear. "At my old age, it wouldn't be nice to resort to blade and swordplay.
If you were to get hurt, that would be unfortunate, very unfortunate!"
Listening to this voice, Rogue Heart Sword Hero felt a strong force bump against the scabbard of his Tang Blade, which caused the partially drawn blade to fully re-sheath. His attempt to draw the blade having failed, he quickly raised his right arm while slightly leaning forward.
Bringing his right arm close to his body, he protruded his right elbow and twisted his waist sharply, aiming an elbow strike at the elder behind him.
This elbow strike was powerful and fast, but it still hit thin air. Although the strike missed, the motion of his right arm pulling back enabled him to draw four-fifths of the Tang Blade; with one more backward movement of his left hand, he would be able to completely draw the blade.
However, just as his left hand, gripping the scabbard, was about to fling it away, he felt a weight on his right shoulder as if someone had bumped directly into his side.
The force of this bump was not great, but it caused Rogue Heart Sword Hero's body to sway to the left. As he swayed, another force struck the bottom of his scabbard, lifting it sharply and, combined with his body's motion to the left, the Tang Blade was once again sheathed.
"I told you not to draw your sword," the elder said, "and if you really want to do it, then be quicker. With all this dawdling, when will you ever manage to draw it out?" As the elder spoke, he suddenly pushed on Rogue Heart Sword Hero's back before using that force to drift back himself.
Stumbling a few steps forward before regaining his balance, shock filled Rogue Heart Sword Hero's eyes. After several exchanges, he hadn't even managed to draw his blade, a situation he found utterly incomprehensible.
This was something that Rogue Heart Sword Hero, since gaining his reputation, had never encountered—not even the Domain Lords from Netherworld World, he feared, could match such strength.
But how could this elder possibly be a Domain Lord? He knew all the Domain Lords from the Six Great Divine Nations, and somehow, this elder's techniques didn't seem to belong to someone from those nations.
"Your name is Rogue Heart Sword Hero, right? If you are called a Sword Hero, then you must understand the significance that the word entails. Your strength pales in comparison to Supreme Sword Sovereign, the number one Swordsman from the Nine Great Nations! As a Swordsman who can't even draw his sword, what right do you have to continue fighting?
Out of respect for swordsmanship, I will now give you a chance to wield your sword, oh, no, I meant your blade!"
Hearing the words of the white-bearded elder, Rogue Heart Sword Hero's shock was like a tsunami. Yet, with pressing questions at this critical moment, he could only suppress them within.
"Senior, this junior has offended you! Demon-breaking Slash—Four Bright Sword Dao!" No sooner had the words left his mouth than Rogue Heart Sword Hero turned into an imperceptible streak of white light, slashing his blade in four directions at the elder."
"This move has some substance to it, but it's still just Four Bright, not nearly seasoned enough!" The elder made no physical movement, yet when the four blade shadows were halfway to their target, the elder suddenly lifted his right hand, palm facing upward. With slightly bent fingers, he rotated his hand.
Following that, Rogue Heart Sword Hero suddenly felt the space around him fluctuate, and found himself instantaneously where the elder had just been standing; the elder, however, had disappeared! Continue your saga on My Virtual Library Empire
"Sword Hero, behind you, he's behind you!"
Amid his confusion, he suddenly heard Sun Wukong's shout. Rogue Heart Sword Hero turned around, only to see the elder standing where he had been just moments before, hands clasped at his back, and wearing a smile as he looked at him!