Chapter 243: The Battle of Husband and Wife (Five)
"After taking a hit from an Ice Phoenix, he can still stand up. His defensive ability is truly astonishing." Chu Yueli said softly, but then a look of surprise appeared on her face.
"Ah... ahhh!!"
On Yun Che's body, the extinguished Phoenix Flame reignited, and regardless of the intensity of the flame or Yun Che's aura, there was no sign of weakening from before. He raised the Dragon Gate, let out a loud roar, and swung a massive gray sword arc, then followed the sword arc to attack Xia Qingyue.
"...Not only can he stand up, his aura hasn't weakened at all. How is that possible?" Shui Wushuang and Wu Xuexin both exclaimed in surprise.
The blazing Dragon Gate was like a dancing fire dragon, winding and coiling amidst the surging dragon roar. The Ice Phoenix Qionghua Silk, infused with the power of the Ice Cloud Art, was like a white snake, facing the dancing fire dragon and unleashing an incredibly terrifying Ice Cloud might...
The birth of a Heavenly Xuan Artifact was extremely difficult. Within the Dragon Gate was sealed the soul of a young dragon, and within the Ice Phoenix Qionghua Silk also resided the remnant soul of an Ice Phoenix. The two were evenly matched in terms of grade and intensity.
Yun Che unleashed all his Profound Skills without reservation: Phoenix Wing Firmament, Overlord's Wrath, Falling Moon and Sinking Star, Phoenix Break... each strike was earth-shattering. But in front of Xia Qingyue, who had activated the Ice Cloud Art to the seventh realm, these divine might attacks that could shake mountains and split the earth were easily blocked time and again. And Xia Qingyue's counterattacks were even more terrifying. If not for Yun Che having the Star God Remnant Shadow, he wouldn't even have the qualifications to briefly stalemate Xia Qingyue...
Boom!!
An ice lotus exploded on Yun Che's shoulder, and he tumbled to the ground. His left shoulder was a bloody mess, but with barely a pause, he suddenly leaped up from the ground again. The Phoenix Flame reignited, and he attacked once more. The heavy sword moved with great force, its power undiminished.
Bang!
The heavy sword was violently knocked aside. The Ice Phoenix Qionghua Silk swept over like lightning, firmly entangling Yun Che's body, then rolled him up into the air. In an instant, the Phoenix Flame on Yun Che's entire body was extinguished, replaced by a thick layer of ice that sealed his whole body. Then the Ice Phoenix Qionghua Silk slammed him heavily downward...
Boom!!!!
The ice layer shattered, and the ground was smashed into a deep pit. Yun Che had disappeared from the surface, buried who knew how deep underground. The weight of this blow caused exclamations from the surrounding young Xuan Adepts. A trace of reluctance also flickered in Xia Qingyue's light blue eyes... Such a strike was enough to leave even a peak Spirit Xuan Realm Xuan Adept dizzy, with internal organs displaced and Profound Force scattered. But Xia Qingyue suddenly felt a strong recoil force from the Ice Phoenix Qionghua Silk, roughly breaking free from its entanglement.
Yun Che leaped up from the deep pit, striking at Xia Qingyue with an Overlord's Wrath from above... His clothes were already torn and ragged, but his eyes were fierce yet calm, and the power aura on his body still showed no sign of diminishing.
A strange unease simultaneously arose in everyone's hearts.
In terms of Profound Force intensity, Xia Qingyue completely overpowered Yun Che. His exchanges with her were entirely at a disadvantage, and soon he was covered in wounds. But Yun Che had the Great Dao Pagoda Art protecting his body, and his physique had been tempered by the Dragon God's Blood. Leaving aside his defensive Profound Force, the strength of his body was no less than that of a true dragon. Despite Xia Qingyue's overwhelming power, even after injuring him more than a dozen times, she hadn't inflicted a single truly severe wound.
And every time he was struck heavily by the Ice Cloud Art, Yun Che would stand up immediately. Even though his whole body was injured, his momentum and aura showed no sign of weakening. The onlookers watched, repeatedly stunned.
Although Xia Qingyue's Profound Force was at the third level of the Earth Xuan Realm, using such power to control the seventh realm of the Ice Cloud Art was undoubtedly very strenuous. The burden on Xia Qingyue as she operated the seventh realm of the Ice Cloud Art was no less than Yun Che's when he activated "Heart Incineration." Yun Che was knocked down time and again, but the power aura on his body never weakened. In contrast, Xia Qingyue's power aura had been steadily declining at a uniform rate.
"At no time should you think you have defeated him. When he falls into a desperate situation, that is often when he is most terrifying... He can squeeze power from his very soul..."
Looking at Yun Che, who had stood up again with his Phoenix Flame reignited, Xia Qingyue remembered the words Chu Yuechan had spoken. By now, the light of the ice spirits around her had slightly dimmed, and there was a hint of panting from her nose.
The Yun Che in front of her should have posed no threat, but at this moment, she felt a faint pressure from him. A voice deep inside told her she must end this duel quickly, otherwise, the longer it dragged on, who knew what unpredictable things might happen.
"Let's end this..."
Xia Qingyue's lips moved slightly, and her snow-white hands slowly closed together in front of her. Instantly, within a radius of several miles, all the ice-cold forces converged, forming a massive Ice Cloud vortex in front of her.
Yun Che was about to advance but suddenly stopped... The momentum on Xia Qingyue's body surged sharply. The Ice Cloud vortex grew larger, then suddenly transformed into a huge ice crystal phoenix. At the same time, a cold pressure enveloped the entire scene, causing everyone's hearts to tighten.
The ice crystal phoenix cried out to the sky, its wings spread wide. With enough cold air to freeze a hundred miles, it charged at Yun Che. Wherever it passed, the air solidified inch by inch.
"Wahhh... I'm dead! I'm dead! Brother-in-law, be careful!!"
Xia Yuanba clenched his fists and screamed in terror. Although Xia Qingyue had unleashed her full power, in the exchange with Yun Che, she had mostly been on the defensive, counterattacking while defending. She hadn't yet taken the initiative to attack, because she understood this man's pride. Defeating him too quickly would seriously damage his face. Now, she finally made the first move, and it was a giant Ice Phoenix that shook the entire scene, containing terrifying Ice Cloud might. The terror of this Ice Phoenix was palpable even to Xia Yuanba. Ling Yun, seated in the Tian Jian Villa section, was also shocked... because within the cold air of this Ice Phoenix, the domineering power was such that even if he used his Sword Spirit Clone to create two Lings, it would be extremely difficult to withstand.
A terrifying pressure surged from ahead. Yun Che's steps retreated like lightning, and the Phoenix Flame on his body burned furiously. The Ice Phoenix drew closer, and a wild light flashed in Yun Che's eyes. He poured all his Profound Force and Phoenix Flame into the Dragon Gate, transforming it into a huge shadow of a Fire Phoenix. With a roar, he swung his arm, and the Dragon Gate flew from his hand, carrying the massive Phoenix Shadow towards the Ice Phoenix.
The ice crystal phoenix and the flame phoenix collided heavily in the air. The Ice Cloud force and Phoenix Flame erupted simultaneously, and the sky echoed with two overlapping phoenix cries.
The Profound Force Barrier shattered again. The sky was completely enveloped by azure and crimson light. Half the space was frozen, the other half distorted by burning heat. Without the Profound Force Barrier blocking, the audience on the east side all felt as if they had fallen into an ice cave, their bodies stiff. Meanwhile, those on the west side felt as if they were about to be scorched and set ablaze by the flame. They quickly channeled their Profound Force, barely resisting. Their inner shock multiplied several times... The mere residual power was so astonishing; one could imagine how terrifying Xia Qingyue's Ice Cloud and Yun Che's flame truly were.
Xia Qingyue, operating the seventh realm of the Ice Cloud Art, possessing such divine might was astonishing but not entirely unexpected. But Yun Che... With his Profound Force at the tenth level of the True Xuan Realm, the flame he ignited could actually contend against such an Ice Cloud!
But this contention did not last very long.
Ice and fire mutually restrain each other. Fire can melt ice, ice can suppress fire. In terms of attributes, neither side had an advantage. In terms of power level, Yun Che completely surpassed Xia Qingyue, but in terms of power intensity, Xia Qingyue undoubtedly crushed Yun Che.
The Fire Phoenix and Ice Phoenix clashed and rampaged fiercely in the air. Ice blue and red intertwined light enveloped the entire Sword Discussion Platform. After the chaotic light lasted for a few breaths, the Ice Phoenix's light steadily overpowered the Fire Phoenix. Once the advantage was established, it was like splitting bamboo. In an instant, the Fire Phoenix grew smaller and smaller, until it was completely swallowed by the Ice Phoenix, leaving only the Dragon Gate frozen in mid-air. The Ice Phoenix, reduced by less than a third, surged forward, swooping towards Yun Che with a cold, long cry...
The azure shadow of the Ice Phoenix rapidly enlarged in Yun Che's pupils. He gasped heavily, staring straight at the approaching Ice Phoenix shadow, not retreating, but only a low murmur in the air...
"Evil God Second Style... Cloud-Sealing Sun-Locking!"
Boom!!!
The Ice Phoenix exploded, and the blooming blue light completely engulfed Yun Che. The scattered ice shards were like sharp blades, deeply piercing the hard ground.
"It's finally over. I didn't expect it to drag on this long," Shui Wushuang said.
"Junior Sister Xia used the seventh realm of the Ice Cloud Art, but she never attacked at full force, plus Yun Che's unexpected tenacity... Huh... ahhhhh!" Wu Xuexin hadn't finished speaking when she suddenly cried out in surprise.
Amidst the blooming Ice Phoenix radiance, Yun Che charged out like lightning. Around his body was a semi-transparent spherical barrier that was nearly invisible to the naked eye. As he completely broke free from the Ice Phoenix's light, the barrier on his body also completely disappeared. He grabbed the Dragon Gate, and his Profound Force erupted like ignited gunpowder. Behind him, the shadow of a howling azure wolf materialized...
"Heavenly... Wolf... Strike!!!"
The heavy sword swung down, and a giant wolf shadow charged across the air accompanied by the cracking of the earth...
Having maintained the Ice Body Jade Bone state for a long time, Xia Qingyue had already consumed a considerable amount of energy. The Ice Phoenix she had released to quickly defeat Yun Che had greatly depleted her Profound Force, and she was currently in a brief state of energy depletion and recovery. Moreover, in her mind, this was a strike that would directly decide the battle, so she was completely off guard. She never expected Yun Che to escape unscathed from the Ice Phoenix's assault...
What she never expected even more was that this was the opportunity Yun Che had been patiently waiting for!
The Evil God First Style, "Falling Moon and Sinking Star," was a tenfold berserk Profound Force attack. And the Evil God Second Style, "Cloud-Sealing Sun-Locking," was a tenfold berserk Profound Force defense!
However, executing "Cloud-Sealing Sun-Locking" consumed a great amount of Profound Force, and each additional second of its duration was accompanied by huge consumption. So even though Xia Qingyue had knocked him down repeatedly, he had never used it before. But when Xia Qingyue, unable to truly break him down, finally unleashed her full power strike, "Cloud-Sealing Sun-Locking" was instantly activated. It formed an extremely tough defense around his body, barely withstanding the Ice Phoenix's impact. And at that moment, he struck against the caught-off-guard Xia Qingyue with his strongest attack.
The Heavenly Wolf's roar was deafening, even more terrifying than the cries of the Fire Phoenix and Ice Phoenix from before. The giant wolf shadow charged to Xia Qingyue's front with unparalleled momentum, easily shattering the defense of the Ice Phoenix Qionghua Silk...
At this moment, Xia Qingyue, always calm as quiet snow, showed panic for the first time. She had not expected Yun Che to escape the Ice Phoenix's impact, let alone that his previous attacks had not been his limit. The power of this strike was so great that her heart and soul involuntarily trembled...
At the critical moment, a thick layer of ice quickly formed on the surface of her body, wrapping her entirely...
Bang!!!
The Heavenly Wolf shadow engulfed Xia Qingyue. Her ice-clad body flew straight out like an ice-blue meteor, all the way to the edge of the Sword Discussion Platform. The terrifying impact force caused the ground to burst open over a large area. The position she was sent to happened to be the Bing Yun Fairy Palace seating area. That seating area also suffered. Although the seats where Chu Yueli and others were sitting were completely protected, the front part collapsed.
The Sword Discussion Platform fell into dead silence. Everyone stared at the huge trench extending from the middle of the platform to the edge, long speechless.
The dust settled. Xia Qingyue had already stood up. But her Ice Body Jade Bone state had disappeared. Her long hair and eyebrows were no longer blue but had reverted to their original black. Her body's power aura had weakened significantly, and her face was tinged with a faint pallor. She held her left shoulder with her right hand, and a trace of red slowly spread on the snow-white fabric of her shoulder.
Chu Yuechan's ice-cold eyes were calm. She was not surprised at all by this outcome... She had warned Xia Qingyue the night before: no matter the circumstances, never think you have already defeated Yun Che. Although Xia Qingyue had kept this in mind, she had still relaxed just now, believing Yun Che was surely defeated after the Ice Phoenix... and thus suffered a heavy loss.
...