Chapter 105: Half-Saint
On the life-and-death platform, Feng Zhilin was only briefly stunned before immediately reacting.
Since he had lost his sword, he would choose a spear instead.
He lifted a nine-foot-long iron spear from the fourth layer of the weapon rack and, without hesitation, swung it horizontally with a whooshing sound, slashing diagonally toward Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen took a step back, dodging the iron spear, his body as light as a leaf as he drifted more than ten zhang away.
"Wind-Chasing Step!"
Feng Zhilin channeled his true qi into his legs, executing a human-grade upper-rank footwork technique. His legs seemed wrapped in a whirlwind as he pursued closely.
Chasing to within five meters of Zhang Ruochen, he thrust the spear forward again.
True qi surged from his palm, traveling through the spear shaft to the tip.
The spear tip burst into a ball of flame, igniting the iron spear and turning it into an agile fire snake flying through the air.
"His true qi actually carries a flame attribute!" Zhang Ruochen remarked, nodding slightly as he watched the incoming spear.
Based on Feng Zhilin's current display of strength, he could at least contend with four ordinary Mysterious Extreme Realm Great Position martial artists simultaneously.
Zhang Ruochen sidestepped, his body moving like an afterimage, once again dodging Feng Zhilin's fully-powered thrust.
Feng Zhilin grew irritated and said, "If you have the guts, stop dodging and fight me head-on!"
"If you can't even touch the hem of my clothes, what right do you have to fight me head-on?"
Zhang Ruochen held the iron sword in his hand and said calmly, "Show me all your skills. Let me see if you're worthy of me drawing my sword."
"Damn it!"
Feng Zhilin let out a long roar, and strands of red blood qi surged from his body. The blood qi flowed toward the ground, forming a circular blood formation five meters in diameter.
The blood qi, like threads, converged into various patterns within the formation, emitting a faint blood light that enveloped Feng Zhilin at its center.
Blood qi forming a formation.
Only those who had reached the Mysterious Extreme Realm Great Position could achieve this.
Moreover, the blood formation Feng Zhilin had condensed seemed to be not a low-grade blood formation but a medium-grade one.
The higher the grade of the blood formation, the greater the boost to the martial artist's power.
"Blazing Flame Divine Chess Spear!"
Feng Zhilin held the spear horizontally and swung his arm, causing the flames covering the spear's surface to grow even hotter.
This was a spirit-grade lower-rank spear technique with eight moves, all of which Feng Zhilin had fully mastered.
"Whoosh!"
The spear thrust forward, creating a cloud of fire, and in an instant, it reached Zhang Ruochen.
With the boost from the blood formation, Feng Zhilin's speed matched Zhang Ruochen's.
Zhang Ruochen's expression turned serious. He gripped the iron sword tightly with five fingers and slashed horizontally, striking the spear tip, knocking it aside and sealing off all of Feng Zhilin's subsequent moves.
Then, he stepped forward quickly and thrust his sword diagonally upward toward Feng Zhilin's right armpit.
Feng Zhilin's expression changed. He immediately spun the spear and used its tail to strike at Zhang Ruochen's back.
As Zhang Ruochen rushed in front of Feng Zhilin, he felt as if he had jumped into a quagmire, his speed slowing significantly. Looking down, he realized he had stepped into the blood formation, and his speed was being suppressed by its power.
Just then, Zhang Ruochen heard the wind whistling in his ears. The tail of the spear hovered above his head, ready to fall at any moment. If it hit him, even if he didn't die, he would be severely injured.
"Heavenly Heart Sword Bell!"
Zhang Ruochen's true qi erupted fully, forming the phantom of a large bell that protected his body at its center.
The spear tail struck the sword bell phantom, creating a powerful opposing force.
"Boom!"
Both of them retreated backward, once again creating a ten-meter gap between them.
Feng Zhilin stood with his spear horizontally and sneered, "This young master can condense a medium-grade blood formation. Its power enhances my strength while suppressing yours. Zhang Ruochen, you're dead!"
The blood formation was somewhat similar to a space domain but far inferior to it.
The reason Mysterious Extreme Realm Great Position martial artists were far stronger than those at the Middle Position was that Great Position martial artists could condense a blood formation.
Under the suppression of the blood formation's power, few Middle Position martial artists could defeat a Great Position one.
"Feng Zhilin actually condensed a medium-grade blood formation. Impressive! If he gets plenty of cultivation resources, he might even bring another Xuan List martial artist to the Western Academy." Elder Si Tu stroked his beard and smiled knowingly.
Elder Xie snorted but said nothing more.
"It's over! Feng Zhilin condensed a medium-grade blood formation. With its power, he can contend with six or seven martial artists of the same realm! The Ninth Prince is in trouble!" Liu Chengfeng sighed.
"Is a medium-grade blood formation that strong?" a new student asked.
Liu Chengfeng replied, "Only one out of ten Mysterious Extreme Realm Great Position martial artists can condense a medium-grade blood formation. What do you think? If Feng Zhilin has enough meridians opened in his body and cultivates high enough techniques and martial skills, after reaching the Mysterious Extreme Realm Great Perfection, he might even have a one-in-ten chance of becoming a Xuan List martial artist."
No one dared to claim they would definitely become a Xuan List martial artist; it was only a matter of probability.
A one-in-ten chance was low, but it was still an opportunity. At least he had a shot, while other martial artists didn't even have that.
Everyone grew worried for Zhang Ruochen, hoping he wouldn't lose. If he did, Liu Chengfeng would surely not let him live.
"A medium-grade blood formation. Not bad!" Zhang Ruochen nodded slightly.
If Zhang Ruochen used his space domain, he could easily suppress Feng Zhilin and defeat him effortlessly.
But Zhang Ruochen didn't want to use the power of the space domain.
Seeing that Zhang Ruochen showed no fear, Feng Zhilin snorted coldly and attacked again. This time, he would pierce Zhang Ruochen's heart.
"Sizzle, sizzle!"
As Feng Zhilin's spear thrust forward, the air itself ignited, crackling and popping.
Zhang Ruochen didn't dodge. When the spear was within three meters of him, the flames on its tip reflected red on his face.
"Heavenly Heart Full Moon!"
The fourth move of the Heavenly Heart Sword Technique!
Zhang Ruochen swung his arm, and the spear traced a circle in the air, leaving behind thirty-six white sword shadows. These thirty-six white sword shadows formed a circle, like a bright white moon held in his hand.
"Whoosh!"
The thirty-six sword shadows flew out simultaneously.
Feng Zhilin quickly switched from offense to defense, swinging his spear continuously to shatter the sword qi.
But seven sword qi still reached him. Four struck his body, while the other three grazed his skin, leaving only shallow blood marks.
"Thump, thump!"
Feng Zhilin's clothes were pierced by the sword qi, revealing metal scales beneath the holes. He was wearing armor underneath, which had blocked the four sword qi strikes.
However, the force of those four sword qi was immense. Though blocked by the armor, they still shook Feng Zhilin's blood qi, causing minor injuries.
"What a powerful sword strike! If Feng Zhilin hadn't been wearing armor, he would have been severely injured, if not dead."
"How can Zhang Ruochen be so skilled in swordsmanship at such a young age?"
...
Elder Xie squinted his eyes, then suddenly showed great joy, exclaiming, "The high-level realm of the sword following the heart!"
The other elders, hearing Elder Xie's words, suddenly understood. Yes, the sword technique Zhang Ruochen had just displayed had indeed reached the high-level realm of the sword following the heart.
How shocking!
After all, all the elders present were only at the high-level realm of the sword following the heart, none having reached the peak.
Duanmu Xingling was also quite surprised, finding it hard to believe. "His mastery of the sword is terrifying. Once he breaks through to the Mysterious Extreme Realm Great Perfection, he will definitely become a Xuan List martial artist, and his ranking on the Xuan List will be quite high."
She had only known that Zhang Ruochen had high attainments in palm techniques but hadn't expected his swordsmanship to be even higher.
"With such high swordsmanship, it seems Zhang Ruochen is sure to win!" Duanmu Xingling had a faint smile on her face. She glanced at Huang Yanchen and said, "Chen Jie, a genius like Zhang Ruochen—you probably can't bear to kill him, right?"
Huang Yanchen was also slightly moved. For someone Zhang Ruochen's age to reach the high-level realm of the sword following the heart was indeed astonishing talent.
"No matter how high his talent, his character is too poor." Huang Yanchen stared at Duanmu Xingling and said, "You're not thinking of accepting him, are you?"
Duanmu Xingling smiled and said, "After all, what happened between you two has already happened. If you don't accept him, what else can you do?"
"Hmph! Even if I spare his life, I won't accept him." Huang Yanchen said.
"Chen Jie, you said that. If one day I accidentally fall for him and take him away, don't blame me!" Duanmu Xingling's big eyes curved slightly, like two crescent moons.
Huang Yanchen stared intently at Duanmu Xingling, trying to gauge the meaning behind her words. "You're not really interested in him, are you?"
Duanmu Xingling straightened her proud chest, looking at Zhang Ruochen standing on the life-and-death platform, and laughed, "He's young, handsome, talented, and a prince. I can't find any flaws in him. If I accidentally fall for him, it's entirely possible!"
Huang Yanchen was a bit displeased. "You're two years older than him, aren't you?"
"We can't be sisters anymore!" Duanmu Xingling glared at Huang Yanchen with some annoyance. "It seems you still can't bear to give him up."
Huang Yanchen also stared at Zhang Ruochen, her beautiful face expressionless, and said meaningfully, "Xingling, do you think he has a chance to become a saint?"
"A saint?"
Duanmu Xingling's expression turned serious. She nodded and said, "A saint transcends the realm of martial artists, entering another state of life. The entire Demon Ridge Thirty-Six Commanderies doesn't have a single saint. Although his talent is high, becoming a saint is almost impossible."
After a pause, Duanmu Xingling added, "But I think, if he can maintain his current cultivation state all the way to the Heavenly Extreme Realm, he still has a chance to become a half-saint."
"A half-saint! Is that possible?" Huang Yanchen's beautiful eyes held a complex expression. She always felt she couldn't see through Zhang Ruochen.
This young man, though his current cultivation was inferior to hers, displayed a potential that was startling.