Chapter 727: Snake Two's Battle
The saint guarding Divine Platform City was Luo Lingding, the Lingding Saint of the Enforcement Palace.
Lingding Saint stood at the top of the formation tower at the center of Divine Platform City, wearing a Daoist robe, his entire body radiating white holy light. With his hands clasped behind his back, he stared at Zhang Ruochen and Snake Two on the battle platform not far away.
Behind him stood three half-saints of the Enforcement Palace: Kongyu Half-Saint, Kongling Half-Saint, and Kongche Half-Saint.
"The Demon Cult people are far too arrogant, daring to act so recklessly on the territory of the Liangyi Sect." The slightly plump Kongyu Half-Saint let out an angry cold snort.
Kongling Half-Saint, however, looked somewhat worried, saying, "Snake Two is an ancient relic, a Sacred Heart White Snake, with the bloodline of an ancient divine beast flowing within her. Moreover, she has extremely high attainments in both the Sword Dao and spiritual power."
"Not long ago, news came that on the way to the Liangyi Sect, Snake Two fought against a first-rank half-saint of the imperial court, exchanging over a hundred moves without being defeated."
Kongling Half-Saint added, "Lin Yue will represent the Liangyi Sect in the Sword Discussion Assembly. If something happens to him, how will we explain it to the Sword Saint and the Sect Leader?"
Lingding Saint nodded, saying, "Lin Yue's cultivation is only at the seventh change of the Fish-Dragon Realm, while Snake Two is about to step into the Half-Saint Realm. There should still be some gap between him and Snake Two. Kongling, go stop them, and also warn the Demon Cult people—if anyone dares to continue acting recklessly, kill them without mercy."
"Understood."
Kongling stood up and was about to rush toward the battle platform.
"Hold on."
From afar, a pleasant female voice rang out, sounding especially vast and distant as it reached the ears of Lingding Saint and the three half-saints.
Immediately after, a white light flew over from a distance, appeared at the top of the formation tower, and condensed into the figure of Shengshu Cainü.
"Greetings, Lady Cainü."
The three half-saints stood in a row, bowing simultaneously to Shengshu Cainü with great respect.
Lingding Saint, however, furrowed his brow, saying, "What does Lady Cainü mean by this?"
Shengshu Cainü wore a white Confucian robe, dressed as a man, appearing elegant and refined. She smiled warmly, "Senior Lingding, this junior means nothing else—I simply have great confidence in Lin Yue and believe he can fight Snake Two."
Hearing Shengshu Cainü refer to herself as a junior, Lingding Saint's brows relaxed slightly, and his mood improved considerably. After all, in terms of cultivation, status, and position, Shengshu Cainü was above Lingding Saint. For her to call him "senior" was already the greatest respect.
Lingding Saint said, "Lin Yue's strength is indeed formidable, but his cultivation is ultimately only at the seventh change of the Fish-Dragon Realm. I am still quite worried that something might happen to him. Lady Cainü should understand Lin Yue's importance to the Liangyi Sect."
Shengshu Cainü smiled faintly, glancing at Lin Yue on the battle platform, and said, "If Lin Yue can defeat Snake Two with his seventh-change Fish-Dragon Realm cultivation, wouldn't his future achievements be even more immeasurable?"
For Shengshu Cainü to have such high regard for Lin Yue was, of course, a great blessing for the Liangyi Sect.
Lingding Saint's heart stirred, and he suddenly realized that Shengshu Cainü had come personally to watch the battle. This showed how much importance she placed on Lin Yue.
"Could it be... that Shengshu Cainü is planning to select Lin Yue as one of the Realm Sons, and this battle with Snake Two is the final test for him?" Lingding Saint thought to himself.
A Realm Son held extraordinary significance for the Liangyi Sect, enough to allow the sect to stand tall in the Kunlun Realm for the next thousand years without anyone daring to offend it.
"Lin Yue, you must live up to expectations. Even if you cannot defeat Snake Two, you must not lose to her." Lingding Saint took a deep breath, his expression becoming very serious.
No matter what, he had to make Shengshu Cainü value Lin Yue even more.
...
...
On the battle platform, Snake Two and Zhang Ruochen stood facing each other. Although they had not yet exchanged blows, their two Sword Qi domains had already collided.
Streams of Sword Qi shattered upon impact, causing the air to warp slightly.
"An ancient relic can also cultivate Sword One to the tenth-level Great Perfection in the Fish-Dragon Realm. Impressive, Sacred Heart White Snake." Zhang Ruochen said.
Although they had not truly fought, Zhang Ruochen could sense that Snake Two's Sword Dao cultivation was not low—at least the tenth-level Great Perfection of Sword One, and she might even have cultivated Sword Two to a certain level.
It was worth noting that in the past thousand years, only a few dozen people had cultivated Sword One to the tenth-level Great Perfection in the Fish-Dragon Realm, becoming Sword Masters.
One could say that any Sword Master in the Fish-Dragon Realm was an extraordinary Sword Dao prodigy.
Snake Two revealed a row of snow-white teeth, smiling, "In that case, let's see whose Sword Dao is superior."
When she spoke the first word, she was still standing far away.
But by the time she spoke the last word, she had already appeared behind Zhang Ruochen, silently raising her serpent-shaped sacred sword and slashing toward his neck.
The speed Snake Two displayed was already comparable to a first-rank half-saint.
If Snake Two's opponent were a ninth-change Fish-Dragon Sacred Body, they might not have reacted before she cut off their head with one sword strike.
Zhang Ruochen did not dodge or evade. Standing still, he thrust his sword backward, aiming at Snake Two's chest.
This was a mutual destruction move!
If Snake Two's sword cut off Zhang Ruochen's neck, Zhang Ruochen's sword would pierce her body.
"Whoosh!"
Naturally, Snake Two was unwilling to perish together with Zhang Ruochen. Frowning slightly, she immediately sidestepped to the right, then swiftly struck another sword at Zhang Ruochen's waist and abdomen, dragging out a long sword light.
Zhang Ruochen's speed was also extremely fast, nearly matching Snake Two.
He swung his sword upward, the tip aiming at Snake Two's neck, once again forcing her back.
"Whoosh, whoosh!"
On the battle platform, Zhang Ruochen and Snake Two clashed at an incredible speed. In just three breaths of time, they had exchanged over a hundred moves. Yet, from start to finish, their swords never collided, as if they were practicing moves in the air.
In reality, every killing move Snake Two executed was countered by Zhang Ruochen in advance, forcing her to change her technique.
Among the cultivators below the battle platform, only a very few could clearly see their figures. The others, including some top-tier ninth-change Fish-Dragon experts, could only see two blurry shadows, unable to discern their techniques.
Even at the same ninth change of the Fish-Dragon Realm, strength could be worlds apart.
Shoushu rubbed his chin, staring intently at the two on the platform, saying, "Lin Yue's Sword Dao attainment is far superior to Snake Two's. If Snake Two competes with him in swordsmanship, she will most likely lose."
Ouyang Huan said, "Snake Two should have realized this too. I suspect she will no longer compete with Lin Yue in swordsmanship but will instead use her profound cultivation to suppress him."
Snake Two had already half a foot in the Half-Saint Realm, so naturally, she could not be compared to Lin Yue, who was only at the seventh change of the Fish-Dragon Realm.
Ouyang Huan's expression was quite serious. If Snake Two had to rely on her powerful cultivation to suppress a seventh-change Fish-Dragon Lin Yue, then how terrifying would Lin Yue be if he cultivated to the ninth change of the Fish-Dragon Realm?
Indeed, Snake Two stopped purely competing with Zhang Ruochen in swordsmanship. She fully mobilized her Saint Qi, and an ancient sacred power unique to ancient relics surged from within her.
"Whoosh!"
That ancient sacred power condensed into a Dharma Form, manifesting as a thick white snake coiled at the center of the battle platform, emitting an immense pressure.
The Dharma Form of an ancient relic was actually even stronger than that of a Sacred Body.
Zhang Ruochen felt as if ten mountains were pressing down on his shoulders, suppressing his strength and speed. Even the Saint Qi within his body circulated with great difficulty.
Snake Two let out a charming laugh, saying, "I admit your Sword Dao cultivation is indeed impressive, but unfortunately, your cultivation is still lacking."
"Is that so?" Zhang Ruochen replied, unwilling to back down.
"Whoosh!"
She chuckled, and the serpent-shaped sacred sword in her hand emitted extremely bright light. All eight hundred and eighty-four inscriptions surfaced, turning the thirty-zhang-long battle platform into a massive white orb. The powerful might of the sacred artifact erupted, sweeping toward Zhang Ruochen as if it could destroy everything in the world.
Even Ao Xinyan's Dragon-Patterned Jasper Water Sword only had six hundred and fifty inscriptions. This showed how high the grade of Snake Two's serpent-shaped sacred sword was, and its power was naturally terrifying.
"Trouble! Snake Two actually possesses such a powerful sacred sword, and her cultivation is so strong. I'm afraid Lin Yue is going to lose."
Ao Xinyan bit her lip tightly. Even standing below the battle platform, she could feel the immense power emanating from the sacred sword. If Lin Yue were truly the clan leader, he would never lose no matter how powerful the enemy.
"An ancient relic can even unleash a Dharma Form, surpassing even a Sacred Body. I wonder if Lin Yue can withstand it?"
"Neither his weapon nor his cultivation gives him an advantage. How can he fight?"
...
If he used the Space Domain, Zhang Ruochen could easily resist the Dharma Form's influence.
But now, saints from various major powers were all staying in Divine Platform City, and many were likely watching this battle from the shadows. Using the Space Domain would surely expose him.
"If I could cultivate the Four Spirits Treasure Body, I could mobilize the power of the Five Elements and unleash an incomplete Five Elements Dharma Form. Even an incomplete Five Elements Dharma Form would be stronger than Snake Two's Dharma Form, enough to suppress her."
Zhang Ruochen's cultivation had already reached the seventh change of the Fish-Dragon Realm. Before the Sword Discussion Assembly, he had a good chance of successfully cultivating the Four Spirits Treasure Body.
Once he succeeded, his strength would take another great leap forward.
Of course, even without the Four Spirits Treasure Body, Zhang Ruochen was not entirely without the means to fight back.
Zhang Ruochen mobilized his Saint Qi, injecting it into the Meteor Invisibility Cloak, activating the power of this sacred garment. Instantly, the pressure on his body lightened.
Then, Zhang Ruochen activated the inscriptions in the Dragon-Patterned Jasper Water Sword and took the initiative to attack Snake Two. The speed he displayed was not only undiminished but even faster than before.
"How is this possible?"
Snake Two's eyes showed an expression of disbelief. She found it hard to believe that under the suppression of her Dharma Form, Lin Yue could still move freely.
"Sword One."
Zhang Ruochen's body nearly merged with his sword, turning into a streak of light. With an unstoppable momentum, he continuously broke through Snake Two's Dharma Form, thrusting straight toward her brow.