Chapter Forty-Three: Defeating the Twin Fiends with Bare Fists

In the depths of night, Gongsun She and Yang Hui stared at Qi Fei, whose composure remained unshaken, their hearts seething with astonishment and confusion.

This mysterious youth, who had brazenly trespassed upon their sect, displayed boundless arrogance, and yet his cultivation was unfathomably profound. For a moment, neither man knew how to contend with such a strange and perilous situation.

Gongsun She drew a deep breath, steadying his nerves before raising his voice. “You are indeed formidable. To fall at your hands is no disgrace. Yet you have intruded upon Moonwatch Peak this night and wounded disciples of my sect. Unless you give the Seven Absolutes Sect a satisfactory explanation, don’t imagine you’ll leave Cangyun Mountain alive.”

Qi Fei’s expression did not change; he answered with feigned audacity, “While cultivating in Cangyun Mountain, I’ve often heard my old Daoist master speak of the Seven Absolutes Sect’s legendary martial arts. Tonight, I merely wished to borrow a glance at the ‘Scripture of Creation in Martial Arts.’ My wish remains unfulfilled—how can I leave before I see it through?”

Old Daoist master? Gongsun She and Yang Hui’s faces shifted. The only Daoists in Cangyun Mountain were those of the Profound Truth Monastery. Though that sect cultivated Daoist mysticism, over the years they had also amassed many martial arts secrets. If this youth spoke true, he was likely a martial prodigy of the Profound Truth Monastery.

Judging by the youth’s defiant arrogance, he was either an inexperienced fool, ignorant of the world’s dangers, or a cunning schemer merely pretending at recklessness.

Recalling the talisman from the Profound Truth Monastery their disciple had delivered earlier, Gongsun She’s heart skipped a beat. After a moment’s thought, he sneered, “You claim to have cultivated in Cangyun Mountain and invoke your old Daoist master, but I suspect your words are false.”

Qi Fei feigned curiosity. “What makes you say so?”

Gongsun She’s gaze was cold. “Clearly, you harbor ulterior motives, wishing to implicate the Profound Truth Monastery. Otherwise, why reveal your identity so openly?”

Qi Fei sighed lightly. “It was you who tested me first. Seeing your sincerity, I revealed my origins honestly. Yet now that I have spoken the truth, your suspicious Seven Absolutes elders refuse to believe me. What am I to do?”

“Cease your sophistry. The Profound Truth Monastery and my sect have long been allies. They would never allow their disciples such unruly conduct. Moreover, your martial prowess is formidable—hardly the skill of one dedicated to Daoist arts.”

Unruffled, Qi Fei laughed aloud. “Elder Gongsun, you and I both know the true state of affairs in Cangyun Mountain. There’s no need to delude yourself. The Profound Truth Monastery now holds great power, having seized Qingyang Peak from the Danxia Sect. I dared to ascend Moonwatch Peak and injure your disciples precisely because I knew your sect would not dare oppose us. Even if your sect master, Sima Yan, learns of this, he will not dare voice his anger before our abbot.”

Gongsun She’s face changed dramatically. He realized things had taken a dire turn. Indeed, Elder Yang Hui and the assembled disciples, roused by these words, burned with fury, longing to tear the arrogant youth to pieces.

Gongsun She was about to persuade Yang Hui and the disciples not to let the youth disturb their composure, when suddenly the mysterious intruder spoke even more shocking words.

“When the Profound Truth Monastery has devoured the Danxia Sect, you Seven Absolutes are next. Those who know their time will act wisely. If you bring me the ‘Scripture of Creation in Martial Arts,’ then when we unify Cangyun Mountain, your lives will be spared.”

No longer able to restrain his rage, Elder Yang Hui’s sword erupted with a blinding crimson glow. “Wretch, prepare to die!”

Though Gongsun She simmered with frustration, he knew he could not calm the furious disciples. Gritting his teeth, he drew his blade and charged at Qi Fei.

Within the Seven Absolutes Sect, Gongsun She and Yang Hui had long enjoyed close friendship. Each had mastered a martial soul—one of ice, the other of fire. They had further perfected their sect’s ultimate skills: the Yinfiend Saber and the Blazing Sword, earning fame as the Twin Fiends of Blade and Sword.

The Yinfiend Saber and the Blazing Sword—one dark, one light—merged to add even greater power.

Surrounded by a flurry of blade and sword shadows, Qi Fei realized that once the two elders combined their skills, Gongsun She’s Yinfiend Saber, imbued with poisonous, icy true energy, concealed a deadly move. He thought to himself that had he grown overconfident, he would have fallen prey to it.

Gathering the abundant energy within him, Qi Fei let out a mighty shout. Two utterly distinct currents of fist force burst forth.

Contained within those fist winds was the fused energy of fire and ice, drawn from his dual martial souls. In an instant, these mighty currents transformed into a storm of fist shadows, surging in all directions.

Fist winds, sword aura, and saber light collided and exploded in midair, and the Clearwind Terrace was rocked by thunderous detonations. From all around Moonwatch Peak, disciples of the Seven Absolutes hurried to investigate.

Qi Fei, though of flesh and blood, had honed his body to perfection. Yet he dared not meet both elders’ weapons head-on. Relying on his vast reserves of energy and the supreme fists wrought from the Proud Sword Technique, he fought Gongsun She and Yang Hui to a standstill.

The two elders were inwardly astonished. Under the combined assault of saber and sword, the youth’s seemingly effortless fists did not falter.

Unable to break through after prolonged fighting, Gongsun She feared the youth might call for reinforcements and so emitted a long, shrill whistle. Hearing it, Yang Hui’s face flushed deeply red as he summoned his full power. His sword flared with dazzling crimson light.

Qi Fei, recognizing the whistle as a signal for a combined killing strike, grew wary. As expected, the sword in Yang Hui’s hand blazed with scarlet, multiplying into a dozen streaks of lethal energy, weaving a net of swords around Qi Fei.

He dared not be careless. Gathering his inner force, he struck fiercely at the killing net. The collision of tyrannical fist winds and searing sword light produced a barrage of explosive bursts, like a hail of thunder between them.

A fierce glint flashed in Gongsun She’s eyes. He leapt high into the air, his blade exuding a bone-chilling cold as it slashed through the night, unleashing a strike of terrifying power.

Boom!

Gongsun She’s ultimate move, sparing no expense of his energy, tore through sword and fist, carving a deep trench several meters wide across the Clearwind Terrace.

Despite having been warned, Yang Hui too was caught in the aftermath, the icy energy invading his body and forcing him to hastily suppress it with his own internal strength.

“Where is he?” Gongsun She, pale-faced, stared at the frozen trench in shock. “No! This is bad!”

His desperate, all-out attack had missed its mark. Before he could react and summon his martial aura for defense, a surge of overwhelming force and the disciples’ cries warned him from behind.

“Master, beware!”

The disciples’ warning still echoed, but the elder’s body had already been hurled aside by a devastating punch from Qi Fei, who had appeared behind him as if from nowhere.

Gongsun She spat a mouthful of black blood. In that instant, a ferocious wave of icy true energy invaded his body, freezing his meridians and blood in a heartbeat.

Fortunately, Gongsun She, having mastered the ice martial soul, understood the threat and hastily used his sect’s inner arts to suppress the injury.

Seeing his comrade struck down, Yang Hui rushed to aid him, but the mysterious youth flickered before his eyes and vanished. The next moment, Yang Hui, his mind thrown into chaos, barely had time to summon a shield of martial aura before a domineering force crashed into him from behind, knocking him aside.

Though protected by his external martial aura, Yang Hui still fared poorly. Qi Fei’s form blurred again, and a storm of fist shadows battered Yang Hui’s struggling defenses.

Qi Fei, like a demon god, hammered Yang Hui, leaving him in agony. The disciples, desperate to help, were cowed by the sheer ferocity of Qi Fei’s attacks.

In mere moments, Yang Hui’s protective aura shattered under the relentless onslaught. Unable to evade, he was struck square in the chest. Bones cracked, and he coughed black blood before losing consciousness.

With a single gesture, Qi Fei invoked the Blood Shadow Escape Technique, defeating the Twin Fiends of Saber and Sword in a single stroke. The disciples of the Seven Absolutes erupted in cries of disbelief across the Clearwind Terrace.

Before anyone could recover, Qi Fei, with no wish to slaughter them all, threw back his head and laughed. “So much for your vaunted Blazing Sword and Yinfiend Saber. Is the Seven Absolutes Sect’s supreme martial arts really so overrated?”

He summoned a talisman, channeling his energy to transform it into a stream of light, then invoked his escape technique again, vanishing in a blur toward the summit of Moonwatch Peak.

Daoist arts—those were truly Daoist supernatural powers!

Grievously wounded, Elder Gongsun She’s face turned ashen. Was this enigmatic youth, whose martial prowess defied all measure, truly a master from the Profound Truth Monastery?