Chapter 26

Seven figures approached from different directions, forming an encircling attack straight for Ji Ning.

Although they had not prepared for a 'seven against one' battle, each of them was the most talented young man in the vast territory under the command of the Western Manor of the Ji Clan. Even if they had a slight resentment towards this young master of the Ji Clan, none of them dared to slack off, and they all chose to launch an all-out encirclement attack without prior agreement.

Ji Ning stood still, and when the seven figures were right in front of him, he moved!

Whoosh~~

Like a gust of wind, he flashed past the sword and spear lights. His control over strength, body, and speed was refined to the extreme, and his force application was exquisite... He easily found a path to dart out from the encirclement of the seven talented young men.

"What!"

"He dodged?"

"How is that possible?"

The seven young men stopped, their eyes full of shock and disbelief. Just now, Ji Ning had not used any weapon, but had relied solely on his footwork to easily dodge their encirclement. This terrifying footwork... indicated that if Ji Ning had the intention, the seven of them together could not even touch the hem of his clothes.

"So fast."

"Like a gust of wind."

"Truly worthy of being the only son of the Dripwater Sword. He's too amazing, so fast I couldn't even see clearly, just a blurry shadow." The tens of thousands of spectators were excited. The people of this land had been practicing from a young age, so they had some discernment. Even the majority of them could only see a blurry shadow, indicating how fast it was.

...

Ji Ning stopped, standing on one side of the arena.

"None of the seven opponents could force me to use my sword; their footwork is all inferior to mine." Ji Ning scanned the seven opponents in the distance. From the brief evasion just now, he could already determine the footwork realm of these seven opponents, "Two have reached the micro realm, one is the young man with the curved sword, and the other is the golden-haired beast. It seems the intelligence I obtained earlier was incorrect."

Although his father was proud, Ji Ning still sent people to gather intelligence on the seven opponents this time. He only knew that the young man with the curved sword had reached the micro realm, but did not expect the golden-haired beast to be so high.

"But their footwork is still inferior to mine." Ji Ning smiled.

After all, his footwork had reached the realm of unity with heaven and earth. Even on the arena, he only displayed footwork at the micro level, but his execution was clearly more complete and natural. Plus, he practiced the supreme footwork technique, the Wind Shadow Step, naturally giving him an advantage.

"Hold him down."

"Don't give him a chance to dodge."

"Attack together."

The seven young men launched another assault.

Ji Ning, however, strolled over.

In an instant, the seven young men and Ji Ning clashed again. Sword and spear lights flickered, and Ji Ning strolled as if taking a leisurely walk. The long sword in his hand was like a whip, with all the force transmitted to the tip, then fiercely lashed out. Since the Golden Sword Ceremony aimed to minimize deaths, the weapons were not sharpened, making them more suitable for chopping, sweeping, and lashing.

Fast!

Ji Ning's sword was so fast it made one's heart tremble.

Ji Ning gracefully walked out from the encirclement of the seven, and at the same time, he swiftly drew his sword seven times.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Five figures were directly lashed and thrown out, flying over ten yards and landing on the ground, each with a dirty and disheveled appearance, struggling to stand up. Some couldn't help but cover their chests, coughing and spitting out blood, some had their faces scratched, and they all had a look of disbelief. Just now, the five of them clearly saw Ji Ning draw his sword and tried to block, but none of them managed to touch Ji Ning's sword.

They didn't even touch it! And were lashed away by Ji Ning!

"Man and sword as one!" The five talented young men instantly determined the sword realm of the young master of the Ji Clan, understanding the significant gap.

Only three young men remained on the arena.

Ji Ning held a black sword, looking at the young man with the curved sword and the golden-haired beast not far away, nodding inwardly: "I struck each of them once, but these two managed to touch my sword. The young man with the curved sword's blade was very fast, but did not reach the micro realm. The golden-haired beast... actually reached the realm of man and blade as one in the micro realm."

"Master Ji Ning, remember... my name is Xiong! Ji Xiong!" The golden-haired beast man stared at Ji Ning, "The one who defeats you is me, Xiong!"

The young man with the curved sword's face changed slightly: "I thought I was the strongest among the young men of the various tribes. But there are actually two stronger than me, even this Xiong has reached the realm of man and blade as one."

After years of training in the Martial Hall, he had always practiced diligently.

He knew his humble origins meant he could not obtain the supreme sword techniques, so he abandoned the complexity of sword techniques and pursued 'speed' with all his heart! His sword... had to be fast enough, the faster the better. He pursued the ultimate in speed, combined with micro-level footwork... when he did not draw his sword, it was already a victory over other young men.

But now he was shocked to find that not only was the only son of Dripwater Sword Ji Yichuan stronger than him, but even this previously unknown golden-haired beast was stronger.

"Ji Ning." The young man with the curved sword suddenly growled, "I know you are stronger than me, but I hope you can take my three strikes! Take my three strikes alone... as for you, Xiong, don't interfere."

Xiong stood aside, sneering, finding the young man with the curved sword's strength far inferior to his. Moreover, Ji Ning's footwork was too powerful, making it impossible to form an encirclement. Let this young man with the curved sword humiliate himself.

Ji Ning, on the other side, looked thoughtfully at the young man with the curved sword, sensing the determination in his words.

"Alright." Ji Ning nodded.

"Whoosh!"

The young man with the curved sword rushed over, turning into a blur. His eyes were as fierce as a wolf's, and the moment he approached Ji Ning, his curved sword was out! The curved sword's light was dazzling, and the first strike was a slash aimed at Ji Ning's neck. Normally, an unsharpened curved sword would not be suitable for such a move.

But clearly, the young man with the curved sword wanted to showcase his most skilled technique.

"Retreat." Ji Ning's figure moved like the wind, stepping back, and the curved sword whistled past him.

"Swish!"

The young man with the curved sword suddenly reversed his hand and struck again, the speed of the blade even faster, slicing towards Ji Ning's neck from the opposite direction. Ji Ning dodged with a step, but felt some strain. If he continued to use only the micro-level footwork, if the opponent's blade was a bit faster, Ji Ning would have to draw his sword.

"Whoosh!" The blade suddenly flew out of his hand, becoming even faster, instantly approaching Ji Ning.

The third strike — the flying blade!

The flying curved sword spun, and with the acceleration from the previous two strikes, it reached an astonishing speed. Ji Ning did not hesitate and struck with his sword.

"Clang." The sword and blade collided, and the curved sword was thrown back, landing in the young man with the curved sword's hand.

The young man with the curved sword nodded: "I lost."

He then leaped down, jumping off the arena. The young man with the curved sword was very clear... Ji Ning was on a completely different level from him. Not to mention that Ji Ning must be practicing the supreme sword techniques of the Ji Clan, just the realm of man and sword as one was enough to make him helpless. Being able to display his strongest abilities on the arena, he was satisfied.

"Recruit that young man with the curved sword into the Ji Clan!" The Manor Lord Ji Youyang instructed a servant standing behind him, "He has the potential to become a Xiantian."

"Yes, Master."

...

Only Ji Ning and Xiong remained on the arena.

Xiong's pupils glowed golden, looking at Ji Ning from a distance, and a faint golden light began to appear on his body, emitting a powerful aura, making Ji Ning's pupils constrict: "This Xiong is also practicing a divine and demonic body cultivation technique? It seems he has reached a very high level."

"Ji Ning." Xiong said in a deep voice, "I admit, your footwork is faster than mine! But today we must determine the strongest. Just running away won't get you the golden sword! You must fight me head-on, but unfortunately, in a head-on battle, you are no match for me, you will lose!"

Ji Ning held the black sword, calmly looking at his opponent.

From the fierce aura Xiong emitted, Ji Ning could infer that Xiong had experienced many life-and-death battles, and his blade technique had reached the realm of man and blade as one. The golden light on his body also indicated that he was practicing a powerful divine and demonic body cultivation technique. If his inference was correct, he was likely practicing the "Xuanhuang Immortal Technique," as he knew all nineteen divine and demonic body cultivation techniques of the five manors of the Ji Clan.

"This Xiong has experienced many life-and-death battles, practices a divine and demonic body cultivation technique, and his blade technique is at the realm of man and blade as one. Yet he has no fame at all." Ji Ning thought, "He is definitely not from a tribe, but likely from within the Ji Clan... most likely cultivated and deliberately kept hidden by the venomous snake Ji Lie."

"Scared?" Xiong held a single blade, staring at Ji Ning with a fierce gaze, not taking the initiative to approach but waiting for Ji Ning to attack.

Ji Ning, holding the black sword, walked over step by step, very calm and composed, as if taking a leisurely walk at home. If he had encountered Xiong before the winged snake attack, Ji Ning might have had some trouble. But several months had passed since the winged snake attack, and the realm of unity with heaven and earth in footwork had greatly improved Ji Ning's sword technique.

So...

Achieving the realm of unity with heaven and earth in footwork, it only takes time, and achieving the realm of unity with heaven and earth in sword technique is a certainty. Although he had not yet reached the realm of unity with heaven and earth in sword technique, Ji Ning's sword technique was no longer what it was a few months ago. He did not need to use the "Chi Ming Nine Heavens Chart" to easily defeat Xiong.

Ji Ning's sword suddenly moved!

"Whoosh!" The sword shadow was like a drizzle, instantly descending.

Beautiful, colorful.

When a killing sword technique becomes a beautiful enjoyment, it clearly indicates a very high level.

"Break it." Xiong roared, swinging his single blade, the blade light as intense as blood, slicing through huge blade lights towards Ji Ning. In that moment, it was as if hell had descended... those huge blade lights were the punishment of hell, making one feel despair, willing to die under the blade light.

"Blood Prison Blade?" Ji Ning, however, casually sprinkled the rain of his sword.

The sword light was like a stream of water, flowing and wrapping around Xiong. No matter how fiercely Xiong's Blood Prison Blade burst, it was entangled by the flowing water, losing its ferocity.

Xiong felt as if he was trapped in a water prison, surrounded by water on all sides, madly entangling him. Despite his immense strength, he could not exert it against the water.

"Break." Xiong's blade was wildly fierce, even though it was constantly entangled, he did not hesitate but became even more ferocious.

"Indeed, a fierce blade technique." Ji Ning said softly.

This level of opponent posed no threat at all, only Xiong's blade technique, honed in life-and-death battles, attracted Ji Ning, making him willing to spar ten strikes to gain experience. Ji Ning was very clear... compared to some of the older generation's strong, what he lacked was sufficient experience.

"Whoosh."

Ji Ning's black long sword suddenly thrust forward, and for a moment, the world seemed to quiet down. In a hazy mist, the sword light seemed to turn into a raindrop, piercing through the single blade, which shattered, and the raindrop then struck Xiong's chest, like a water droplet landing on a stone. With a "snap," the sound of bones breaking could be heard, and Xiong was thrown dozens of yards away, landing hard on the ground below the arena, creating a small crater.

The Dripwater Sword's Dripwater Pierces Stone!

"Spit." Xiong clutched his chest, spitting out a mouthful of blood.

He looked down at his chest, where the skin of the Xiantian great demon beast he wore had split open, and his chest was completely sunken, with broken bones. This was despite Ji Ning using a very ordinary, unsharpened, and blunt black long sword.

...

The tens of thousands of spectators gathered on the martial training ground were first stunned into silence, then burst into a roar, completely awed. Truly worthy of being the son of Dripwater Sword Ji Yichuan, no wonder he was so arrogant to let his son face seven opponents... this seemingly refined young master Ji Ning was terrifying, easily sweeping through seven opponents.

"Ha ha ha..." Manor Lord Ji Youyang laughed heartily, extremely pleased.

He won.

His lineage won, and Ji Ning obtaining the golden sword would make him the next Manor Lord.

"Dripwater Pierces Stone! Sword realm of unity with the world!" The right hand of Ji Lie, sitting beside him, suddenly clenched, the stone armrest cracking.

"Second brother." Manor Lord Ji Youyang turned to look at his second brother.

Ji Lie also looked at his Manor Lord elder brother, his face changing, and said in a low voice: "Sword realm of unity with the world... at just ten years old, his sword technique has already reached the realm of unity, and he has achieved a small success in one of the five great sword techniques of the Ji Clan, the 'Dripwater Scripture'! He is more monstrous than his father. Elder brother, your lineage first had Ji Yichuan, and now has Ji Ning. It is heaven's will, and I have no words to say about my loss!"

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{Piaotian Literature}