Chapter 82: The Whip’s Sharp Crack
As one of the Seven Laws of the Divine Kingdom and the fourth-ranked young expert on the Azure Cloud List, he had ample qualification and confidence to be proud. Tonight’s sword trial, in his view, was unfair—and the fact that he ultimately lost to Luoluo only intensified that feeling. So he believed he could still remain proud and self-assured.
But a loss was a loss. Proud as he was, he had initially planned to keep silent, until he saw the smile on Chen Changsheng’s face and heard Luoluo’s laughter. He found Chen Changsheng’s smile detestable and Princess Luoluo’s laughter grating, so he couldn’t help but voice the words he had intended to keep buried in his heart.
Yes, he refused to accept defeat. His final sword stroke, named Flying White, was like a dry brush trailing silk threads, resembling iron wire. If he could have used his true essence, the moment his sword momentum began, an iron curtain would have formed before him. No matter how fast, simple, or fierce Luoluo’s final straight thrust was, it could not have pierced through his sword momentum to wound him.
Luoluo turned to look at him. Reading his expression, she knew what he was thinking. Raising an eyebrow, she said, “If… I could have used true essence, I would have broken your sword defense back at the seventy-sixth exchange.”
She spoke these words calmly, yet they carried an undeniable certainty.
Guan Feibai’s expression shifted slightly. He recalled the earlier battle, and the crowd watching before the hall also began to remember. After a moment of silence, people arrived at the same conclusion—yes, if true essence could have been used, the Zhongshan Wind and Rain Sword that Chen Changsheng had instructed Luoluo to employ at that moment could have struck directly at the central mansion, securing victory earlier.
“The problem is, even if you could use true essence, you couldn’t have executed that sword stroke.”
Guan Feibai felt he had grasped the whole matter. Looking at her coldly, he said, “Don’t even mention that stroke. Earlier on, there were several moves from the Zhongshan Wind and Rain Sword that, given your current cultivation level, Your Highness, you couldn’t have used either. They were merely empty forms!”
Murmurs of discussion arose among the crowd. Even senior experts like Dean Mao Qiuyu acknowledged that Guan Feibai’s words held merit.
The biggest issue with demons practicing human cultivation methods was the vast difference in their meridian structures, making it extremely difficult to break through the Tongyou realm. Thus, all demon experts on the continent today, including Jin Yulü who had acted earlier, might have been exposed to human cultivation techniques before adulthood, but after reaching maturity, they still learned the demon race’s own secret arts.
Tonight’s sword trial, Princess Luoluo had employed human sword techniques, so she must also be practicing human cultivation methods.
Logically, she couldn’t break through the Tongyou realm, and several of the most powerful moves in the Zhongshan Wind and Rain Sword would naturally be beyond her ability to execute.
No one had brought this up earlier because it had been established beforehand that neither side would use true essence, focusing more on the abilities of Chen Changsheng and Han Hanshi, as well as Luoluo and Guan Feibai. Even if the sword moves she used were merely empty forms, they still complied with the rules of the contest, and no one could fault her.
It was only when Guan Feibai pointed this out that people felt the match was even more unfair to the Lishan Sword Sect than they had initially thought.
The night breeze gently brushed the nocturnal palace. A white crane buried its head in its feathers on the rooftop, seeming asleep.
No one spoke; they only watched Luoluo.
Though there were no accusations, no criticisms, and no one dared to try to overturn the outcome, the meaning hidden in those gazes was very clear.
Han Hanshi shook his head, signaling Guan Feibai to return.
Luoluo looked at the humans’ eyes, raised an eyebrow slightly, feeling a bit uncomfortable inside, but she said nothing. She turned again and walked toward the edge of the field.
Guan Feibai watched her retreating figure, sneered silently, and turned as well.
They walked away from each other, growing farther apart, until they were about to return to their respective teams, separated by several dozen zhang.
Just then, Luoluo suddenly stopped.
Then, she did something.
Grasping the Rainfall Whip, she casually lashed it toward the ground.
The whip rose like the wind and fell like rain—it was precisely the most powerful move from the Zhongshan Wind and Rain Sword!
A sharp crack rang out!
The Rainfall Whip, brimming with true essence, struck the immensely thick earth like a sword!
The ground before the hall seemed to tremble for an instant!
A large fissure split open in the earth!
Countless dust and gravel burst forth from the crack, shimmering under the starlight like ten thousand moths!
Who said it was hard for demons to break through Tongyou by practicing human methods?
What realm did the Rainfall Whip just now reveal?
Who said she couldn’t wield the most powerful moves of the Zhongshan Wind and Rain Sword?
What was that whip strike?
…
…
Hearing that crisp sound, Guan Feibai spun around abruptly.
He didn’t see Luoluo’s whip-raising motion, but he saw the residual traces of true essence in the night sky, and then he heard the cracking sound from the ground.
He looked down at the ground, where a fissure extended toward him, stopping about a foot away from where he stood.
Dust and gravel sprayed from the crack, pattering down.
His pupils contracted, and his face instantly turned pale.
He could guess which move from the Zhongshan Wind and Rain Sword Luoluo had used—it was the very one he had said she couldn’t execute.
During the sword trial, she and he had been separated by over ten zhang; now, they were dozens of zhang apart.
Yet her sword intent could still reach him now, so how much more so earlier?
He finally understood that, for some unknown reason, she had already crossed the threshold of the Tongyou realm and fully mastered the Zhongshan Wind and Rain Sword!
If that were the case, if the earlier sword trial had been a real fight without restrictions on true essence, would he still have lost?
In that brief moment, he thought of many things, deduced countless possibilities, and found that he could not see any chance of victory!
Could it be that he truly was inferior to her?
The crack of Luoluo’s whip still echoed in the night, drifting far into the quiet Great Zhou imperial palace.
That sound was very crisp.
It was like a slap.
Thinking back to his proud, cold words earlier, Guan Feibai felt his cheeks burn.
A faint flush appeared on his pale face.
The crowd watching before the hall was equally stunned. They looked at the fissure on the ground, at Princess Luoluo standing silently beside Chen Changsheng with whip in hand, and for a long time, no one spoke.
They, too, felt as if Princess Luoluo’s whip strike had lashed across their own bodies!
It was rarely heard of for an underage demon to break through the Tongyou realm by practicing human cultivation methods!
How had she done it?
Mo Yu watched Luoluo, her brows slightly furrowed. She was thinking more deeply—could the bloodline talent of the White Emperor’s clan really be this formidable?
…
…
“I never expected that Your Highness could overcome that obstacle.”
Han Hanshi looked at Luoluo and said, “Congratulations, Your Highness. But may I ask…”
“Yes.”
Luoluo understood his meaning. She turned to Chen Changsheng and bowed respectfully, saying, “Thank you for your teachings, Master.”
Han Hanshi looked at Chen Changsheng, fell silent for a long time, and then said, “I am in awe.”
This “awe” was genuine admiration.
…