Chapter 26: Time and Place
Hudson’s figure was also sent flying back nearly a hundred meters by that terrifying impact before he finally stabilized his body. A trace of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.
Hudson wiped the corner of his mouth and looked down at the surface of the Crimson River below.
“What a remarkable genius sword saint. That final strike was truly formidable,” Hudson muttered to himself. At the brink of life and death, Olivia’s last attack had possessed unprecedented power. It had actually torn through Hudson’s defenses, struck his body, and wounded him.
……
“Splash, splash!” The rain poured down relentlessly. The waters of the Crimson River surged violently, and the glaring patch of “bright red” quickly diluted and faded away, becoming invisible.
Dead silence!
Everyone was quiet. The crowds on both banks of the river almost all stared at the Crimson River. Everyone wanted to know—had that peerlessly talented genius sword saint truly died just like that?
“Big brother!” Bloomer didn’t hesitate. Weeping, he dove straight into the turbulent waters of the Crimson River.
“Lord Linley, is Olivia dead?” Emperor Joan asked worriedly.
Linley shook his head. “I’m not sure either.” As he spoke, Linley glanced down at Bebe beside him. Bebe also looked up at Linley helplessly and transmitted mentally, “Boss, that Olivia’s aura is so weak. He’s not breathing anymore, just a faint trace of life, like he could die at any moment.”
The vast crowd buzzed with discussion. Everyone whispered about whether Olivia was truly dead. But all of them still remembered… that dazzling final strike of Olivia’s.
“Splash!” Water sprayed everywhere.
Bloomer emerged, carrying a body. Linley’s eyes were sharp as lightning. He could clearly see Olivia in the distance—his face was ashen gray, devoid of any color, his lips also pale gray. The man had already stopped breathing.
If one didn’t use spiritual energy to probe, they wouldn’t even sense that faint trace of life still within Olivia.
“Move aside, move aside!” Bloomer held the Light Shadow Sword and the Blackstone Sword in one hand while cradling his brother Olivia with the other. He lightly tapped the ground with his foot and shot swiftly toward Emperor Joan’s direction.
Bloomer’s eyes were full of tears.
“Your Majesty, Your Majesty, where are the healers? Hurry, hurry!” Bloomer shouted anxiously.
For this saint-level battle, Emperor Joan had long since invited the highly esteemed ninth-rank Radiant Grand Magus from the imperial palace.
“Master Ant, quickly, save Olivia,” Emperor Joan immediately ordered.
The silver-haired old man stepped out from behind Emperor Joan and hurried to Olivia’s side. His hands emitted a milky white light, which directly merged into Olivia’s body. Olivia’s complexion visibly regained color at a noticeable speed.
“How is it? How is my big brother?” Bloomer asked nervously.
Though Bloomer was strong-willed and cold toward others, his big brother was like a father to him. He had been raised by his brother since childhood. In Bloomer’s heart, no one was more important than his big brother.
“Don’t worry. I’ve only just repaired the superficial injuries on Lord Olivia’s body. For his internal injuries, I still need to cast a healing spell,” the silver-haired old man said with a nod. He then began silently reciting a magic incantation. Bloomer stood by, anxious and tense, but dared not disturb the Radiant Grand Magus.
In just a moment—
Starlike specks of light merged into Olivia’s body. The wounds on his surface healed completely in the blink of an eye. This healing ability was truly astonishing.
“Hmm?” The silver-haired old man shook his head in confusion.
“What’s wrong?” Bloomer asked nervously.
The silver-haired old man frowned and shook his head. “Lord Olivia’s body now—whether externally or internally, including his broken bones—has all been restored to optimal condition. Yet he does not wake. This…”
Linley also examined Olivia closely.
“Olivia’s soul has been severely damaged,” Bebe transmitted to Linley. “I can feel that his soul aura is unusually weak.”
At that moment, Hudson, clad in a gray robe, slowly descended from the air and gracefully flew directly to Emperor Joan’s side.
“Hudson!” Bloomer glared at Hudson as if he wanted to devour him.
He had only one big brother, his only family. Bloomer harbored boundless hatred for Hudson. If their strength weren’t so mismatched, Bloomer would have charged at him directly.
“Don’t glare at me. Your brother’s soul is heavily damaged now, and his life hangs in the balance—that’s not my fault. Your brother’s final move seemed to be some kind of forbidden technique, attacking me in a mutual-destruction attempt,” Hudson said, his face somewhat pale.
“Forbidden technique?” Bloomer frowned.
He suddenly remembered—
A while ago, he had wanted to learn the Blackstone Sword technique from his brother, but Olivia had advised him to focus solely on the Light Shadow Sword and not to practice the completely opposite Blackstone Sword.
“Could it be that these two opposing elemental laws have some kind of taboo?” Bloomer looked down at his brother.
Olivia’s complexion was ruddy, and his bodily functions were clearly in perfect condition. Yet he remained unconscious, and his soul aura was so faint that it seemed it could be extinguished at any moment.
……
“Did Lord Olivia lose?”
“His brother is even carrying his corpse. Alas, the genius sword saint is dead.”
“Who says he’s dead? Maybe he’s just heavily injured and unconscious.”
“Regardless, the Rock Sword Saint, Lord Hudson, is still fine. He even flew down from the sky. He’s clearly much stronger than Lord Olivia.”
……
The millions of people buzzed with discussion. Though the rain poured down from the sky, it couldn’t extinguish everyone’s passion. Everyone debated the battle. Whether Olivia was dead or heavily injured and unconscious, it all pointed to one result—
This battle, the Rock Sword Saint “Hudson,” had won!
Most people had expected this outcome. After all, Hudson had been famous for so long, hailed as the number one saint-level expert. He had never been defeated. Winning today was only natural.
If Hudson had lost, that would have truly shocked everyone.
The vast tide of millions began to recede. Many headed back to the imperial capital, while others made for small towns in the outskirts…
People gradually left, but the city guards remained at their posts.
“My big brother won’t die!” Bloomer said coldly. Then, carrying his brother, he ordered his servants to take the Light Shadow Sword and the Blackstone Sword. Bloomer simply walked away, holding his brother.
“I hope Olivia can survive this ordeal,” Emperor Joan sighed. At that moment, Emperor Joan was also surrounded by a large group of nearly a thousand people.
These were all nobles, gathered to see whether Olivia was alive or dead.
“Lord Hudson is truly formidable. He won so easily again this time,” some nobles in the distance flattered. Hudson smiled faintly.
Then Hudson looked at Linley and said loudly with a smile, “Actually, compared to Olivia, I’d rather have a match with Master Linley.”
Stunned silence.
Everyone was a bit bewildered. Hudson had just fought a fierce battle with Olivia, and now he was already intending to challenge Linley.
Linley was silent for a moment before speaking, “Hudson, what do you mean by that?”
Hudson smiled slightly. “Last time at the arena, you and Olivia didn’t finish your fight. But at that time, Olivia drew the Blackstone Sword, and you drew your Black Mithril Heavy Sword. I remember you said your Black Mithril Heavy Sword technique was created from insights into the laws of the earth?”
“Yes,” Linley nodded.
“I also study and comprehend the laws of the earth. I think a spar between us would benefit both our training and breakthroughs,” Hudson said, looking at Linley. “Linley, I challenge you. Do you accept?”
The surrounding nobles, including Emperor Joan, dared not speak.
One was hailed as the number one saint-level expert. The other was a peerless genius saint-level expert.
“Brother—” Wharton couldn’t help but speak up.
Linley turned to look at his younger brother and simply smiled.
Wharton was filled with dissatisfaction and anxiety inside: “This Hudson is so despicable. He just nearly killed Olivia, and now he wants to kill my brother? Seeing that my brother and Olivia are both geniuses, is he afraid they’ll threaten his future status?”
Wharton wasn’t the only one thinking this. Many on the scene had similar thoughts.
After all, Linley and Olivia were the two most dazzling geniuses. Now one had been defeated, his life unknown. And now Hudson was inviting Linley. His intentions were naturally suspect.
“What, won’t you accept?” Hudson asked with a smile.
Linley turned back to look at Hudson and smiled faintly. “Time and place?”
Hudson was taken aback.
Then he realized Linley had accepted his challenge. “I’m not in peak condition after today’s battle with Olivia. How about this—three months from now, on the 84th day, above Mount Tujiao in the western part of the city. We’ll have our match there.”
“Agreed,” Linley nodded with a smile.
Linley was also eager to fight Hudson. He had just comprehended “Pulsating Defense,” and combined with his “Earthly Essence” attack, Linley didn’t think he would lose so easily. After all, with Pulsating Defense on the outside and dragon scales protecting him inside, his defensive power might even rival Hudson’s—who knew who was stronger?
“Very well, then. Your Majesty, Linley, I’ll take my leave now.” Hudson nodded to the two of them, then transformed into a gray blur, speeding away through the air.
“Brother—” Wharton rushed over anxiously.
“It’s fine. Who wins and who loses is still uncertain,” Linley said with a confident smile, then led his people away.
As for the large group of nobles and the imperial family, they all buzzed with discussion. But soon, under the heavy rain, the nobles quickly returned to the imperial capital.
The area around the Crimson River fell silent once more, with only the mess along its banks reflecting the ferocity of the battle just fought.
*******
At the junction of the Crimson River and the Yulan River, a massive six-story ship entered the Crimson River from the Yulan River. Soldiers stood in neat rows on the deck of this giant vessel.
On the ship, many powerful warriors also brought their magical beasts. Being able to own a magical beast was no easy feat. The presence of so many beasts on this ship indicated the extraordinary status of those aboard.
“We’ve entered the Crimson River. Only three days left until we reach the imperial capital of the O’Brien Empire. Too bad we missed the battle between the genius sword saint ‘Olivia’ and Lord Hudson.”
The soldiers patrolling the deck chatted among themselves.
At that moment, a middle-aged man with graying hair, looking to be in his forties or fifties, walked down from the ship’s cabin. Behind him followed an adorable bear with yellow fur, about the height of a man, looking very cute.
“Grrr, master, I really don’t like being on the water. Why don’t we just fly over?” the cute bear said to the middle-aged man.
“I know you don’t like water,” the middle-aged man said with a faint smile. He then walked to the edge of the deck and gazed at the surging river.
“Master,” the soldiers on guard at the deck said respectfully upon seeing him. At that moment, a tall, golden-haired beauty also descended from the cabin. She smiled and walked toward the middle-aged man. “Teacher, we’re on the Crimson River now. We’ll be at the imperial capital of the O’Brien Empire soon.”
The middle-aged man turned and smiled at the golden-haired woman. “Haha, yes, soon. Delia, I think you’re even more impatient than this old man.”