Chapter 752: Life and Death Without Separation
Hearing Huang Yanchen's words, Zhang Ruochen was slightly startled.
Could it be that the earlier battle had revealed a flaw, causing her to start suspecting him?
Zhang Ruochen didn't dare continue looking into Huang Yanchen's eyes. He immediately turned around, putting on an indifferent demeanor, and gazed toward the Scroll World not far away.
Inside the Scroll World, Bu Qianfan's battle with the rat was extremely intense, locked in a fierce stalemate.
"How did Bu Qianfan's cultivation progress so quickly? He's already reached the Fish-Dragon Ninth Transformation?"
Zhang Ruochen was quite surprised, never expecting Bu Qianfan's cultivation speed to surpass his own.
Although Zhang Ruochen had spent most of his time at the Liangyi Sect comprehending the Sword Dao, he possessed the Cosmic Divine Wood Map, and his cultivation speed was not something other cultivators could compare to.
Mu Lingxi's cultivation had surpassed his because her foundation was already above his, and she had a Sacred Source and had refined a drop of Divine Blood.
Even so, she had only reached the Fish-Dragon Eighth Transformation, one realm lower than Bu Qianfan.
Besides Bu Qianfan, Huang Yanchen's ability to cultivate to the Fish-Dragon Seventh Transformation also surprised Zhang Ruochen greatly. He wondered how much hardship she had endured to achieve her current accomplishments.
"Roar!"
Bu Qianfan's aura was extremely sharp, growing fiercer with each battle. Every punch he threw sent out streaks of soul shadows, as if unleashing a thousand troops, shattering the words within the Scroll World into pieces.
The rat, as a Primordial Beast, was no slouch either. It released its True Body Dharma Appearance, as massive as a mountain, with strands of demonic Qi swirling around the form, constantly colliding with Bu Qianfan's fists.
The two seemed evenly matched, and it would likely take some time to determine a victor.
Finally, Zhang Ruochen's gaze fell on A Le, who stood not far away, and a faint smile appeared on his face.
If Bu Qianfan reaching the Fish-Dragon Ninth Transformation had only surprised Zhang Ruochen, then A Le achieving the same realm and standing opposite him was truly astonishing.
Who would have thought that the youth who had once been nearly crippled could now achieve such heights?
He felt a desire to share a drink with him, to hear about his experiences over the years, and to discuss tales of swords and blood.
Earlier, A Le had stepped in to help Huang Yanchen, showing that this cold-blooded assassin still had emotions. He hadn't forgotten Zhang Ruochen's kindness from back then, despite his own growing power.
Back then, A Le had joined the Underworld Gate and become its most outstanding assassin.
Later, when the Underworld Gate offended Di Yi, the young master of the Black Market First Class Hall, it had to seek refuge with the then-leader of the Demon Sect in Demon Ridge, "Duanmu Ya," who was Mu Lingxi's aunt.
If Zhang Ruochen's guess was correct, it was likely Duanmu Ya or Mu Lingxi who had recommended A Le to enter the Demon Sect's headquarters.
A Le's sword was known as "Life-Seizing." Even Ouyang Huan wasn't entirely confident he could block his most lethal strike.
If he couldn't block it, he would die.
Ouyang Huan had never crossed swords with A Le. Even if he had a ninety-nine percent chance of defeating him, he would never take that gamble.
Because it was a gamble with his life.
"To ascend the Book Mountain, you must first pass my test," A Le said expressionlessly.
Zhang Ruochen replied, "Alright."
"But your sword is already broken," A Le said.
Zhang Ruochen seemed unconcerned. "My sword has never been broken. The key is whether you have the strength to force me to use it."
A Le's expression remained unchanged, still as calm as ever, but a sharp aura began to emanate from him.
Zhang Ruochen kept a smile on his face, but he also gathered an aura that steadily rose, clashing with A Le's.
Mu Lingxi knew Zhang Ruochen was severely injured and understood how terrifying A Le's sword was, so she was deeply worried.
She wanted to stop the fight and quickly looked at A Le. "A Le—"
Zhang Ruochen and A Le were very close. If one drew a sword, it would only take an instant to sever the other's head.
Thus, they were in a highly sensitive state.
But Mu Lingxi's voice shattered the balance between A Le and Zhang Ruochen in an instant.
"Shua!"
In a flash, A Le moved his wrist and thrust his sword forward at an incredible speed, leaving no trace of the blade.
The next moment, when the sword's shadow appeared, the iron sword had already pierced through Zhang Ruochen's heart.
However, Zhang Ruochen's body gradually faded, turning into a wisp of white smoke.
It turned out that when A Le struck, Zhang Ruochen had already displayed his extreme speed, sidestepping. A Le's sword had only pierced his afterimage.
A Le twisted his wrist and struck again with a backhand, aiming at Zhang Ruochen's heart once more.
This seemingly ordinary sword strike contained infinite subtlety.
Only a Half-Saint-level figure could see that A Le's sword produced ten sword shadows in a row, linked together, and then overlapped into one.
But the speed of the strike was too fast for ordinary people to discern.
Yet this time, A Le struck empty air again, failing to touch Zhang Ruochen's body.
"To dodge two of A Le's strikes in a row—Lin Yue's speed is that fast?" Snake Two widened her eyes, looking quite surprised.
She knew that dodging one of A Le's strikes was already an impressive feat.
Ouyang Huan's gaze remained fixed on Zhang Ruochen. "It's not just speed. More importantly, Lin Yue's judgment is astonishing. Every time, he anticipates where A Le's sword will land, allowing him to move aside first."
"Predicting the future? When I fought Lin Yue before, he didn't have this ability," Snake Two said.
Ouyang Huan shook his head. "It's not predicting the future. It's just that Lin Yue's combat experience is extremely rich, and his perception and judgment far exceed ordinary people, enabling him to do this."
"Without a hundred years of combat experience, a hundred years of life experience, and a hundred years of sword knowledge, this would be impossible. What secret is Lin Yue hiding?"
Ouyang Huan naturally couldn't imagine that Zhang Ruochen had absorbed the knowledge and memories of a Half-Saint, giving him such precise judgment in battle.
"So A Le can't do anything to Lin Yue? Should I step in to help?" Snake Two asked.
Ouyang Huan smiled faintly. "Although Lin Yue is very steady and shows no flaws, A Le still has methods to force Lin Yue to reveal them. Don't rush. Wait a bit longer. I want to see what other trump cards Lin Yue has."
Zhang Ruochen said, "Your sword can't even touch the hem of my clothes."
Suddenly, A Le stopped. His eyes glanced at Zhang Ruochen from the corner, then he leveled his sword, closed his eyes, and began to circulate the Nine Revolutions Life-Death Art.
Immediately, a surge of life-and-death Qi erupted from within him—white life Qi and black death Qi.
The two forces intertwined, twisting together, and surged into the iron sword, causing it to tremble violently.
"Life and Death Without Separation."
A domain of deathly sword Qi manifested.
Thousands upon thousands of sword Qi flew out from the domain, continuously stabbing toward Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen retreated, a look of surprise in his eyes. "He's already cultivated life-and-death Qi? Does that mean he's reached the Fifth Revolution of the Nine Revolutions Life-Death Art?"
The technique A Le practiced, the Nine Revolutions Life-Death Art, had been passed down by Zhang Ruochen.
Of course, Zhang Ruochen was very familiar with its characteristics.
For A Le to successfully cultivate the Fourth Revolution, he must have experienced far more than five life-and-death ordeals—perhaps fifty or more.
"Shua, shua."
The sword Qi, like a massive torrent, carried a strong deathly aura, surging from all directions and completely enveloping Zhang Ruochen's body.
No matter how fast Zhang Ruochen was, he couldn't avoid the sword Qi.
At the same time, A Le transformed into a streak of light, thrusting his sword forward for the third time, aiming at Zhang Ruochen's heart.
Seeing this, Mu Lingxi and Huang Yanchen clenched their fists, their hearts skipping a beat, ready to rush forward and stop A Le.
But Zhang Ruochen remained remarkably calm. "Your strength is indeed impressive, worthy of me using my sword."
Then, he took out the Void Sword, gripped it in his hand, and swung it in a slash. A massive sword Qi flew out, shattering all the incoming sword Qi.
"Bang!"
The domain of deathly sword Qi also shattered.
A Le's eyes showed a hint of shock. He immediately raised his sword to block, colliding with the sword Qi. His body flew backward, only stabilizing when he reached the mountainside.
Zhang Ruochen extended the Meteor Invisibility Cloak, holding the Void Sword as he hovered on the steep steps, looking down at A Le. "The facts prove that you can't stop me."