Chapter 82

"Excellent move—" Fang Yuanshan loudly cheered, slapping the windowsill in excitement, which sent a flurry of dust flying. Fang Yuanshan paid no heed to it, his eyes fixed intently on the scene where Ye Qingxuan was standing.

Fang Yuanshan had originally intended to play the peacemaker, but the arrogant attitude of the Changkong Zhaojian Sect's disciples made him hesitate, fearing that his mediation might fail and damage his own reputation.

Unexpectedly, the situation took a dramatic turn. This young Taoist, Ye Qingxuan, was truly remarkable, defeating the Changkong Zhaojian Sect's disciples one after another, completely quelling their arrogance. Even as a bystander, Fang Yuanshan felt his blood boil with excitement.

The Qingyun Temple, which had not yet officially established itself, could already command such a reputation, truly making it a force to be reckoned with.

Fang Yuanshan's previous impression of the Qingyun Temple was largely based on its abbot, Lingxu Zhenren, who was one of the few figures he could not fully fathom. Although he appeared to be merely at the "Earth Essence" realm, Fang Yuanshan did not dare to harbor any hostile thoughts towards him, which made him realize the depth of the Qingyun Temple.

But today's encounter raised the Qingyun Temple's status in his mind to a new level. Fang Yuanshan was extremely excited and thought to himself: The Qingyun Temple has not been established as long as my Yuanshan Escort Agency, yet it has managed to cultivate such a group of outstanding disciples. This undoubtedly gave him great encouragement. As the leader of a sect, if he were to put in the effort to fully cultivate his disciples, why should he worry about the prosperity of his Yuanshan Escort Agency?

******

Ye Qingxuan said to Chang Jingfan with a faint smile, "Brother, next—shouldn't it be your turn to step forward?"

Chang Jingfan's face was as dark as water, filled with anger. He could not believe that even a skilled disciple like Lu Dinghai had ultimately been defeated by this young Taoist.

This young Taoist was as slippery as a ghost. Lu Dinghai's initial strategy was to use his superior internal energy to overpower the opponent, but he was foiled by the other's mysterious footwork. Then, he tried to win with his superior sword skills, but the young Taoist's swordsmanship was even more astonishing, breaking through Lu Dinghai's nearly perfected "Twelve Illusory Swords of Cloud, Mist, and Fog." Now, the only hope for victory lay with himself, but what method could he use to win?

Chang Jingfan pondered deeply and slowly formulated a plan.

This young Taoist's swordsmanship was unparalleled. His own sword skills were not much better than Lu Dinghai's, so he could not rely on them to win. The only absolute advantage he had was his cultivation and profound internal energy. If he could restrict the other's mysterious footwork and prevent him from using lightness skills to create distance, confining Ye Qingxuan to a certain range and forcing him to engage in a contest of internal energy, he would surely win.

With this thought, Chang Jingfan's confidence was restored. He smiled mockingly and said, "Young Taoist Ye Qingxuan, your swordsmanship is truly impressive... Now, let me, Chang Jingfan, learn from your skills..."

Ye Qingxuan stood alone, his sword tip pointing downward, and casually said, "Please—"

Chang Jingfan did not waste any more words, taking a step forward, his eyes locked on the opponent, his demeanor calm and solemn, befitting an elite disciple of the Changkong Zhaojian Sect.

As Chang Jingfan took his step, a powerful aura immediately enveloped Ye Qingxuan, a pressure he had never felt before.

Ye Qingxuan's expression turned serious, showing a rare look of concentration as he focused intently on Chang Jingfan's movements. From the start, whether it was Chang Jingwang or later Lu Dinghai, despite their higher martial arts realms, they had all been drawn into his calm and composed aura, leading them to take the first move. However, Chang Jingfan's realm was undoubtedly the highest. Facing an opponent with a clearly inferior martial arts realm, he could still remain so composed and cautious, which spoke volumes about his strength.

Ye Qingxuan gathered his spirit, standing tall like a mountain, and laughed, "This is my third encounter with your Changkong Zhaojian Sect. I hope you, Chang Jingfan, will not disappoint me!" His tone was grand, but given his recent victories over two Changkong Zhaojian Sect disciples, no one in the audience thought he was being boastful.

Chang Jingfan did not respond, taking another step forward, his aura growing even stronger.

Ye Qingxuan focused his mind, his eyes fixed on Chang Jingfan. He deliberately provoked the other with words, aiming to force him to take the initiative. His internal energy cultivation was inferior to the other's, and if he were to take the lead, a single mistake could break his momentum. Conversely, if the other took the lead, Ye Qingxuan could rely on his footwork and swordsmanship to block the first attack with an 80% chance of success. After that, Chang Jingfan's momentum would weaken, and Ye Qingxuan could seize the opportunity to strike quickly and decisively.

However, Chang Jingfan was no fool. He clearly saw Ye Qingxuan's weakness and did not give him any chance. Despite the jeers from the crowd, Chang Jingfan, whose martial arts realm was several levels higher than his opponent, continued to approach slowly, compressing Ye Qingxuan's space.

Seeing that his provocation was ineffective, Ye Qingxuan immediately changed his tactics, preparing to disrupt the opponent's rhythm.

Just as Chang Jingfan was about to take his third step, Ye Qingxuan suddenly lunged forward, leaping over a distance of three feet, closing the gap to within four feet.

Although their steps were slightly out of sync, they landed at the same time, as if they had rehearsed it multiple times.

This move took Chang Jingfan by surprise. He had calculated that with one more step, the opponent would be within his attack range, allowing him to launch a bold attack. However, Ye Qingxuan's sudden step brought them into immediate range, disrupting Chang Jingfan's attack rhythm. In a panic, Chang Jingfan thrust his sword forward, not caring about the form, directly aiming at Ye Qingxuan's face.

The spectators, including Qingyan and his fellow disciples, cheered loudly. The young disciple had forced Chang Jingfan from a position of strength to a position of weakness, compelling him to take the initiative, a brilliant move that quickly evened the momentum. "Golden Eagle" Huo Dong sighed in admiration, and the eunuch Liu He couldn't help but exclaim, "Well done!"

Hua Zixing's eyes sparkled with excitement as he rubbed the jade fan in his hand, trembling with excitement. As Chang Jingfan's sword struck, it brought a fierce sword aura, followed by a series of continuous sword moves, including the "Twelve Illusory Swords of Cloud, Mist, and Fog" that Lu Dinghai had used. However, amidst the misty sword aura, there was a sharp and lethal force, making the sword technique even more dangerous, forcing the opponent to be cautious and not dare to confront it head-on.

Ye Qingxuan did not dare to be overconfident and used his most proficient "Thirty-Six Swords of Qingyun," interspersed with a few moves from the "Eight Swords of Kunwu," to carefully engage the enemy. At the same time, he activated the martial arts "recording" system to record the opponent's "Twelve Illusory Swords of Cloud, Mist, and Fog."

Chang Jingfan's use of the same sword technique was indeed superior to Lu Dinghai's, and the recording speed of the "Lianghuan Lingmiao Pavilion" clearly increased, reaching about 30% progress in a short time.

Ye Qingxuan used the "Lianghuan Lingmiao Pavilion" to secretly record the martial arts technique;

Chang Jingfan, on the other hand, used the "Twelve Illusory Swords of Cloud, Mist, and Fog" to continuously compress Ye Qingxuan's movement space, forming a sword aura to prepare for a decisive strike.

Both had different intentions, but their actions were the same, their swords clashing in a fierce battle.

Finally, after dozens of exchanges, Chang Jingfan's sword aura was fully formed. Seeing that Ye Qingxuan's position was awkward, he immediately launched a fierce attack, closing in on Ye Qingxuan.

Ye Qingxuan suddenly stepped back, his single foot pushing off the ground, preparing to use the "Golden Goose Skill" to leap backward and create distance. However, a sudden cry from behind made him realize that he was not far from a large crowd of onlookers.

During their continuous exchanges, Ye Qingxuan had been so focused on recording the martial arts technique and defending against Chang Jingfan's attacks that he had not noticed his position change, allowing Chang Jingfan to lure him to the edge of the square. Although there were no restrictions on the range of the duel, if he leaped backward, he would undoubtedly land among the crowd, which made him hesitate.

Opportunity—

Chang Jingfan had been laying the groundwork for this moment. Seizing the opportunity, he did not wait for Ye Qingxuan to adjust. Instead, he jumped up, landing from the air, his long sword transforming into dozens of rays of light descending from the sky, the "Ten Thousand Beams of Light" from the "Twelve Illusory Swords of Cloud, Mist, and Fog." The force was incredibly fierce, covering a radius of ten feet around Ye Qingxuan.

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