Blind Spot
Chapter 556 - 511 disaster qi five

Chapter 556: 511 disaster qi five

One was the former number one chief, the other is the current number one chief.

There were only a few years between them, yet for other disciples, such a small span of time wouldn’t amount to significant change. However, for top-tier geniuses like Huo and Bai, a few years were enough to create a gulf of despair.

And now... the two greatest contemporary talents of the Faceless Sword Sect were about to clash. The news spread with astonishing speed among all the disciples and administrators, even the other elders couldn’t help but project their senses from their dwellings to feel what was happening here.

Inside the Kui Ling Pavilion.

Kui Ling was sitting opposite Yun Chen, sipping tea. Upon hearing the news from their subordinate disciples, both stopped their movements abruptly.

"Bai Lu has excellent aptitude and seems to be born with the Origin Seal, but compared to Huo Qingkong, he falls short in terms of talent and comprehension. He definitely can’t win, but it’s a matter of how much he’ll lose by," Kui Ling said seriously.

"Junior Brother has been progressing very quickly," Yun Chen said, "Based on his previous performances, he should be able to withstand ten moves under the condition that the senior brother goes easy on him, if he suppresses his realm to the same level."

"Then do you know what realm Bai Lu is in?" Kui Ling asked.

"Err..." Yun Chen was at a loss for words.

She really didn’t know Bai Lu’s level. After all, the secrets of one’s cultivation realm aren’t randomly spread around every day. They are typically revealed only during significant qualitative breakthroughs, like overcoming a sect’s benchmark, and become known when officially recorded and verified.

After all, once you ascend to a higher level, treatments, status, authority, and resources, all change. It also influences family and friends significantly.

But minor improvements are generally not publicized.

This is why many great masters of sects have no news on regular days but suddenly one day, with a long roar, shake their sect and rise to the upper echelons as if leaping through the dragon’s gate.

Of course, such masters are few and far between. The majority, in fact, vanish silently in obscurity.

"Bai Lu is very cautious. I’m not clear on his exact realm, but I guess, even if he had a breakthrough, he wouldn’t want to expose himself," said Kui Ling, who had known Li Chengyi long enough to grasp some aspects of his character.

"After all, even if he reported it, the change in resources he’d receive wouldn’t be much since I’m already providing him with what I have."

"Master’s words make sense," Yun Chen nodded, "Fortunately, Junior Brother has already established his reputation in the previous exchange with someone from the Suyue Sect. Even if he loses this match, it can be understood."

Kui Ling smiled without saying more.

She often observed Bai Lu secretly, and she had seen in the child’s eyes an attitude that disregarded all concerns, treating everyone with equal regard.

Even Huo Qingkong, whose strength far surpassed his own, was met with the same attitude by Bai Lu.

This made her feel even more that this little fellow was a rather special child.

*

*

*

Inside the Faceless Great Hall.

Holy Spirit Taoist, the sect leader, slightly opened his eyes as if he could see the contest happening below outside.

His face carried more and thicker wrinkles than three years ago, and his body emitted a faint sense of twilight.

"Ming Cong," he suddenly called out.

"Present," a half-faced, golden-scaled ugly Taoist boy quickly entered from outside.

"What do you think of Bai Lu?" Holy Spirit Taoist asked in a soft voice.

Ming Cong had followed him for a thousand years; though he seemed like a Taoist boy, he was actually a disciple with formidable strength. His experiences and insights were also extraordinary.

"Junior Brother Bai Lu... has great potential and the makings of an elder," Ming Cong considered thoughtfully before answering.

Holy Spirit Taoist nodded slightly.

"In the future, the Four Junior Swords may serve as Qingkong’s deputies, with Bai Lu as the leader, which does seem suitable."

"It’s just that Bai Lu is quite stubborn and may stir up waves," Ming Cong said gravely.

"No hurry, Qingkong will handle everything well," Holy Spirit Taoist said calmly.

Neither spoke again, their senses converging on the contest site, awaiting the outcome.

One represented the strongest of the past generation, the other the strongest of the current. The collision between them was sure to produce changes and reactions that were truly worth looking forward to...

*

*

*

At the contest stage at this moment.

Huo Qingkong’s figure flashed, appearing instantaneously fifteen meters in front of Li Chengyi, standing still with his right hand on his sword, looking this way.

"Junior Brother, please make your move first. There’s no need to hold back," he said with a calm smile. Clearly, with his current realm, facing Bai Lu was far too easy.

Li Chengyi was facing this future Faceless Scholar for the first time.

From what he could see now, this Senior Brother did not at all resemble someone who could become such a twisted monster.

Something drastic must have happened in the future that led to the emergence of the Faceless Scholar.

Before, he had only interacted with Huo as a teammate and junior, but now, sizing him up as an opponent, Li Chengyi realized just how abnormal this fellow was.

On the contest stage, Huo Qingkong at this moment seemed like a vast black hole, continuously swallowing and stirring up all the approaching auras.

Some of the air that got too close appeared to condense into sword shapes on its own, showing eerie changes.

’This definitely isn’t something that can be accomplished with Faceless Sword Technique or Holy Spirit Technique, and even the other elders who practice the Thousand Face Sword Canon haven’t exhibited such phenomena,’ Li Chengyi thought with alarm. Compared to Kui Ling, he actually felt that Huo Qingkong before him was more oppressive than his bargain mother.

"Then my apologies," Li Chengyi said as he finished observing, gripping the Dingyuan Sword firmly.

He was contemplating how much of his strength to reveal.

This was his sixth year after joining, and even if one were extremely talented, there’s a process of building a foundation in the first five years of practicing the sect’s techniques.

So in six years, he couldn’t exceed the Six Seals, and that was assuming he had an innate Origin Seal.

The two fell silent.

Beside Li Chengyi, blades of the Sword of Wisdom manifested, gathering and layering on the Dingyuan Sword.

Ding.

In an instant, he vanished from his spot, a streak of azure light cutting across fifteen meters, thrusting his sword toward Huo Qingkong’s torso.

But, as expected, the strike was effortlessly blocked.

A slender sword blade with a slight purple glow precisely parried the tip of the Dingyuan Sword.

The Sword of Wisdom, stacked atop both swords, suddenly exploded, clashing with a sizzling crisp sound all around.

"Impressive! Again!" Li Chengyi suppressed his power at the Six Seals Level and swung his long sword, abruptly unleashing a killing move from the Faceless Sword Technique.

Shadow Step!

His figure flashed, circling behind his opponent.

But just as a point of afterimage faded away, Huo Qingkong also executed the Shadow Step.

The two rapidly chased each other, flickering across the small dueling stage.

In one second, more than ten figures continuously appeared.

Using the same Shadow Step, Li Chengyi’s skill was actually not even slightly inferior to Huo Qingkong’s.

Onlookers below the level of Five Seals couldn’t even discern the true positions of the two, let alone follow their movements, and they let out exclamations of surprise.

The elders could see clearly, but their expressions were no longer relaxed.

Huo Qingkong was still passable since he had become famous from a previous battle, but Bai Lu... this up-and-coming talent was also executing Shadow Step without any sign of inferiority.

That was somewhat exaggerated.

After a high-speed chase at a terrifying velocity ten times the speed of sound, Huo Qingkong suddenly halted and swung a reverse strike of his sword, blocking behind him.

Clang!!

The two long swords collided head-on, exploding into a circle of tangible waves of qi.

’Instant Prison!’ Li Chengyi abruptly formed a sword gesture, and a golden sword light shot out from the Sword Nurturing Pouch at his waist.

The sword light’s speed was extremely terrifying; as soon as it emerged, it reached a speed of sixteen times the speed of sound, like a golden arc of lightning, shooting at close range towards Huo Qingkong.

But even this close-range burst missed its target.

Huo Qingkong tilted his head slightly, just in time to dodge the trajectory of the golden sword light whisking past his face.

The horrifying speed of the Golden Sword also caused him a shock.

At sixteen times the speed of sound, it was enough to cause him a bit of trepidation.

Although it was a sudden burst from the Sword Nurturing Pouch, after all, Bai Lu’s cultivation was shallow; being able to store such a powerful blade was a bit exaggerated...

Immediately, he grasped the hilt of his sword, vibrating it slightly, and a subtle gleam of Ming Guang flickered into existence.

Ming Guang could forcefully control an opponent’s movements and even the flow of their power. With his current exertion, using Ming Guang meant overwhelming the other with momentum, planning to end the match completely.

Unexpectedly, as he began to unleash Ming Guang,

Li Chengyi abruptly retracted his sword light and quickly retreated, cupping his fists from a distance.

"As expected of the senior brother, Bai Lu concedes."

The stage suddenly fell silent.

Li Chengyi’s move was a bit abrupt, but everyone could see clearly; once it came down to a contest of Holy Spirit Technique cultivation, he would inevitably lose.

After all, no matter how strong he was, he couldn’t possibly be a match for the senior brother who had already formed the Seal Ring.

Earlier, they could still spar with moves, but once it got into a contest of cultivation levels, it naturally didn’t need to continue.

Huo Qingkong also realized this.

Unexpectedly, in the previous exchange with the Faceless Sword Technique, he had not been able to gain an advantage over Bai Lu, which kindled a flicker of pleasant surprise in his heart.

Even though the last encounter with the golden sword light was too fast, it could be understood as a contingency prepared by Elder Kui Ling, which was also normal.

"For someone of this age, junior brother’s performance can truly be described as stunning," Huo Qingkong said appreciatively, looking at Li Chengyi. He could sense that the latter definitely held back some of his trump cards.

But this was merely an exciting sparring match, not a life-and-death feud with an enemy, so of course, it wasn’t the time to use a highly consuming trump card.

Testing normal strength was enough.

"Thank you, senior brother, for the guidance. That said, there is still a significant gap between us, and I need to work harder," Li Chengyi earnestly replied.

The surrounding crowd burst into applause; unbeknownst to them, the audience had grown to over a hundred people.

If the fight hadn’t ended so quickly, perhaps even more people would have gathered.

Li Chengyi didn’t care; throughout, he had demonstrated strength that did not surpass the Six Seals Level, except for the final burst of the sword light from the Sword Nurturing Pouch.

The sword light at sixteen times the speed of sound, even for his own true capabilities, he could only reach this level at best.

Yes.

He did it on purpose.

By using the reputation of Elder Kui Ling and the Sword Nurturing Pouch, just releasing that one burst was excusable and acceptable to everyone.

He just wanted to test and see if Huo Qingkong could handle that sword strike.

And the result sent a chill through his heart.

Huo Qingkong had easily dodged the golden sword light; the terrifying speed at sixteen times the sound seemed as though it was normal speed to him, easily manageable.

This level of speed and strength exceeded Li Chengyi’s expectations.

’It seems... if I don’t use the Flower Language Technique, I’m definitely at a disadvantage in terms of killing speed,’ Li Chengyi judged in his heart.

But it was also understandable, as he had only two additional imprints enhancing his speed.

The subsequent imprints, or rather the Origin Seal, were all dedicated to enhancing his sword blade’s nourishment capabilities.

An Origin Seal enhances the sublimation of the Consciousness Power’s nourishment on the sword blade once.

Now, he could simultaneously nourish three blades.

And the nourishment speed was three times faster than before.

The Sword Nurturing Pouch was an extremely good artifact.

It could be nourished by the user’s Consciousness Power, continuously improving its own quality, and the sword blades it nourished could be released like arrows on a well-strung bow, effortlessly shooting out when needed with just a pull of the trigger.

This type of launch required no expenditure of Consciousness Power or physical strength; it could store the peak strength of one sword strike, and its intensity could be adjusted freely, lowering the power if desired.

This artifact ensured that the masters of the Faceless Sword Sect could, at any moment and in any place—even in a state of serious injury—still potentially have a trump card for a turnaround.

While an ordinary person’s Sword Nurturing Pouch could only nourish one blade, Li Chengyi could now nourish three, and moreover... his nourishment speed was three times that of others, meaning that he could rapidly amplify the power of his sword blades in a very short time.