Chapter 329
Chapter 329: Feinting East, Striking West
The black ink threads seemed simple in attack, yet their power was immense. Even Wang Jie’s Aura Sight was deceived by Gu Shang’s substitute technique.
The strangest of all were those pillars—no one knew their purpose, yet they were oddly unbreakable.
Boom!
Another pillar descended from the heavens.
Gu Shang remained silent, continuously launching ink threads while using her substitute art to dodge Wang Jie’s strikes. Wang Jie appeared beside a pillar using Armor Eight Steps and struck it with his palm. Though the force behind his strike was powerful, the pillar merely shook and remained intact.
Outside the stage, someone familiar with Illusion World Sect spoke solemnly: “That’s… a Totem.”
“A Totem?”
“Yes, the Gu Family of Illusion World Sect cultivates a secret technique known as ‘Spirit Painting.’ It fuses star force with the user’s blood to draw out their inner spirit and manifest unique offensive and defensive methods—these are Totems. Every member of the Gu family has their own special Totem that no one else can wield. Gu Shang has never revealed hers before, but it seems her Totem is these pillars.”
Wang Jie didn’t care about the mysteries of her Totem. He had only one goal: to break those pillars and stop Gu Shang from whatever she was trying to do.
Yet the pillar’s defense was bizarrely powerful.
When he punched it, the pillar cracked but repaired itself instantly. Meanwhile, Gu Shang’s attacks intensified—from a handful of ink threads, they multiplied to dozens, then nearly a hundred, relentlessly covering the arena.
However, Wang Jie quickly noticed something crucial: whenever he cracked a pillar, Gu Shang would take damage.
His target became clear.
No matter how fiercely Gu Shang resisted, Wang Jie always found a way to strike the pillar.
His fist struck fiercely once more, causing Gu Shang to stagger, blood trickling from her mouth. Her star force surged skyward, transforming into countless ink threads that fell heavily, accompanied by the descent of a third pillar.
Another target appeared for Wang Jie, and a faint unease rose in his heart.
[If this technique worries me, I can’t let her finish it.]
Resolving himself, Wang Jie unified his breath and strength, energy flooding his body. The ink threads approached him again, mixing with rain that fell gently around him. Suddenly, three swords appeared, floating protectively in mid-air. Wang Jie did not move, yet the swords sliced forward, blocking the ink threads as if acting on their own.
Countless spectators stared wide-eyed, astonished. [What kind of sword art is this?]
The Ancient Sword Pillar Keepers, in particular, were stunned.
Wang Jie could control swords using the Sword Form Technique but had never granted swords independent defensive capabilities. Now, he could do so because of the Sword Stopping Technique. These three swords, part of the Yi Sword Technique’s Star Method, were born from insights gained through Enlightenment Tea.
The Enlightenment Tea, along with the measuring ruler from his eccentric master, had elevated his control over Lock Force to an astonishing level of four thousand per glance. Previously, controlling three swords simultaneously was difficult, but now combined with the Sword Form Technique, it was possible.
These swords could intercept and merge their attacks seamlessly. Under the Sword Rain Technique, the swords could operate independently, sensing any approaching danger and defending instinctively.
This was the second layer of the Yi Sword Technique, Three Swords—Sword Stopping Technique.
Ink threads continued to be blocked by the swords.
Taking a step forward through the rain, Wang Jie landed another devastating punch on the pillar.
With a thunderous boom, the pillar shattered, and Gu Shang violently coughed up blood, stumbling back step by step.
In Illusion World Sect, everyone stared fiercely at the light screen, eyes filled with hatred as if ready to devour Wang Jie alive.
“That bastard actually dared injure Junior Sister Gu! I regret not going to the Yin-Yang Battlefield back then.”
“I missed it too.”
“Where were those idiots who surrounded Black White Heaven at the starport? They failed to kill this jerk, letting Junior Sister Gu suffer. They’re all guilty!”
“…”
On the stage, Gu Shang’s face was deathly pale, and yet the shattered pillar began to repair itself once more.
Wang Jie, employing Armor Eight Steps again, punched fiercely at the pillar, determined to completely crush it. Whatever it was, destroying it would solve everything.
Gu Shang glared at Wang Jie, dipping her fingers into the blood at the corner of her mouth. With star force, she painted red Heaven Thunder in the void, attacking from the side. Yet the three swords beside Wang Jie protected him firmly, resisting the red Heaven Thunder as the rain intensified.
Sword Qi filled the sky.
Another explosion erupted.
Gu Shang coughed up blood once again, her eyes fixed on Wang Jie. She could wait no longer—it was time to risk everything. She hadn’t anticipated Wang Jie’s overwhelming strength. Initially, she thought the ink threads and substitutes would restrain him, yet his body technique, defense, and strength were incredibly formidable, enough to penetrate her Totem pillars. If she waited any longer, even her Totem wouldn’t fully manifest.
Spitting blood into her palm, she waved her hand, scattering the blood skyward, causing her complexion to pale further.
Suddenly, Wang Jie appeared before her.
He had never intended to completely destroy the pillar—that approach was too passive. His true goal had always been to strike Gu Shang herself.
Under repeated heavy attacks, Gu Shang inevitably grew anxious and desperate. When forced into a reckless final move, her substitute technique inevitably faltered. This was exactly the opportunity Wang Jie awaited.
Gu Shang stared blankly at Wang Jie, realizing his true plan too late.
Wang Jie smiled at her, his palm descending decisively. Gu Shang was defeated.
Countless onlookers watched in shock—Gu Shang had lost, just like that.
In the end, what was the purpose of those pillars?
Zhi Xing Xue and the others watched speechlessly. Gu Shang had obviously been tricked.
Rumors said this woman spent years within Gu Xun Yi’s literary domain, rarely appearing outside even during the Dual Wind Line War, making her mysterious and unpredictable. Although nobody knew exactly what she practiced, such secluded cultivation meant she lacked true battle experience, making her vulnerable to tricks.
Sure enough, Wang Jie had defeated her effortlessly.
He hadn’t even needed to know the full extent of her strength.
Within Illusion World Sect, everyone sank into silence upon seeing this result.
Gu Xun Yi spoke only one sentence: “Send her to the club for some practical training.”
No one objected.
Experienced cultivators would have easily seen through Wang Jie’s feinting tactic. The surprising part was not that Wang Jie succeeded, but that Gu Shang failed to recognize it.
In truth, Gu Shang had fought remarkably well. Her moves had been smooth, but neither the flow of battle nor its outcome had bent to her will.
The match continued.
One fight ended, and another immediately began, until finally it was Shao Gu Chen’s turn against Zhou Ye.
Standing across from each other, Shao Gu Chen appeared perfectly calm. As the heir of the Shao Clan of Sincere One Dao, he possessed thirteen stars of the Breaking Star stage. His talent was unmatched except by Shu Mu Night himself. Truly, he was a prodigy chosen by heaven.
In stark contrast, when Zhou Ye lifted his head, countless disciples of Sincere One Dao burst into laughter, loud and uncontrollable.
Although Zhou Ye had suppressed Di Kun and defeated the Blood Vine, no one saw him as remotely close to Shao Gu Chen’s level. Especially when his cross-eyed gaze shifted around, the laughter rose to its peak.
“Ha!” From the platform beside them, Gui Xiao Die couldn’t hold back her laughter.
Zhou Ye turned sharply to glare at her.
But she only laughed harder.
Zhou Ye angrily snapped, “You’re mocking me!”
Gui Xiao Die laughed so hard she struggled to breathe, “No… no, hahaha! Cross-eyed! Hahaha!”
Fury surged through Zhou Ye as he raised his bow, shooting an arrow toward her platform. Though the arenas appeared close, in truth, they were separated as far apart as distant worlds. The arrow clearly flew straight toward Gui Xiao Die, yet it could never enter her platform, merely hovering in midair as if frozen in flight.
Gui Xiao Die looked curiously at the arrow aimed toward her, unconcerned about its sharp point but intrigued by this strange rule of the arenas.
Others also glanced around at adjacent platforms.
No one had thought about attacking another platform before, but now it was clear: even if they wished it, it was impossible.
“Apologize!” Zhou Ye shouted angrily, glaring fiercely at Gui Xiao Die.
Gui Xiao Die sneered dismissively, “It’s your greatest honor that this young lady laughed at you. Those fools would beg for it, yet they’d never see it happen. Hmph.”
“You must apologize!” Zhou Ye shouted again.
Across from him, Shao Gu Chen said coldly, “Are you done fooling around?”
Zhou Ye ignored him, still staring fiercely at Gui Xiao Die, “Apologize.”
Gui Xiao Die didn’t care in the slightest.
Shao Gu Chen frowned, “I asked if you’ve had enough of this nonsense.”
Zhou Ye continued ignoring him.
Shao Gu Chen’s gaze turned icy as he casually waved his hand. Starforce surged forth like a hurricane, growing more violent as it neared Zhou Ye, forming a tornado aiming to sweep him away.
Yet Zhou Ye remained unmoved, still glaring at Gui Xiao Die.
The surge of starforce passed right through him as if he were nothing but empty air.
Shao Gu Chen’s eyes narrowed dangerously. He raised his palm, and a forceful strike instantly transformed into five gigantic fingers grasping downward from the sky. Sincere One Dao had countless combat techniques—though not as famous as Armor One Sect’s eighteen ultimate techniques, even the simplest techniques could be extraordinary in certain hands.
Shao Gu Chen was confident that this strike alone could crush Zhou Ye.
“This one seems to have touched upon void power,” someone muttered, “but this strike can deal with even Void Mountain disciples or cultivators who follow No Path.”
“Mastery over void power doesn’t mean invincibility—it merely changes the defense,” another agreed. “Breaking it isn’t hard; just maintain the attack long enough, and the void power will crumble on its own.”
“With Shao Gu Chen’s palm strike, I’d guess it can last three breaths.”
“That’s about right.”
Under everyone’s watchful gaze, the palm landed upon Zhou Ye, passing straight through him again. Yet this time, the palm strike didn’t dissipate—it continued pressing forward.
Qin Xiao Shu from No Path watched intently and sighed, “It really is effective. We use void power to hide, also consuming starforce, but our consumption in that instant is far greater than the opponent’s. We can hold out a few times, but the longer it lasts, the worse it becomes.”
“The outside world has studied us too thoroughly. Master, isn’t there a counter-method?”
No one answered him.
Qin Xiao Shu rolled his eyes, [Losing isn’t such a big deal. None of us can take the championship anyway. If we fail, we’ll just try again at the next Wandering Star Realm Martial Meeting.]
The palm strike continued pressing down—one breath, two breaths, three breaths. Everyone expected it to dissipate, yet it lingered until after five full breaths had passed before finally fading away.
But at this point, the crowd’s attention was no longer on how long the palm strike had lasted. Rather, they were shocked that Zhou Ye was still completely unaffected. He continued staring at Gui Xiao Die, as if Shao Gu Chen didn’t exist at all.
Shao Gu Chen’s expression turned dark. It had already been humiliating enough to strike someone distracted; now he had failed entirely.
Gui Xiao Die raised her brow, “Cross-eyed, not bad. You’ve got quite the endurance. Let’s see if you can outlast him.”
Zhou Ye gritted his teeth, almost crushing them, “You have to apologize. And I am not cross-eyed.”
Gui Xiao Die sneered, “This young lady won’t. If you can, come over here and make me.”
“I will. I absolutely will!” Zhou Ye roared. Anyone who dared mock him must apologize—this was what his mother had taught him: outside, dignity must be defended with his own strength.
Finally, Zhou Ye tore his gaze away from Gui Xiao Die and turned to Shao Gu Chen, bowing slightly, “I’m sorry for my earlier rudeness. It won’t happen again. Let’s begin.”
Shao Gu Chen’s eyes darkened further, “What did you just say?”
Wang Jie was speechless. He couldn’t tell if Zhou Ye was being serious or not. [Begin now? Then what were those two attacks Shao Gu Chen used earlier—almost a sneak attack?]
Yet Zhou Ye repeated sincerely, “We can begin now, a fair and honorable duel.”
Many in the audience couldn’t help twitching their mouths at this remark.
Who would be next?