Li Jiancheng was no gentleman at heart. His expert's sense told him that he had definitely underestimated his opponent. The girl before him looked charming and delicate, but her appearance belied her incredible strength. He felt a very real sense of danger from her, refuting his prior arrogance.
He couldn't maintain his swagger in the face of such a looming threat. The 'three-attack' promise was tossed aside completely. Clutching at the air, he materialized a long spear between his fingers.
The weapon was a bit more than yard-long. Endless killing aura surged out as soon as it showed up in Li Jiancheng's hands, as if the weapon had been brought out from the deepest layers of hell.
Emperor Shura's disciples studied the Shura slaughter dao. For them, the most important temperament to exhibit was a will to kill. Emperor Shura's other disciple, Gao Zhan, had fought it out rather intensely against Jiang Chen back in the Ranking of Young Lords. He was another genius at the Shura slaughter dao. At the time, there had even rumors that in terms of dao understanding alone, Gao Zhan was superior to Li Jiancheng.
The moment Li Jiancheng's spear made its way into the world, his entire person became akin to a demon god who slaughtered his way about hell. He emanated frighteningly dense killing aura.
"Such a strong aura!" The observers were shocked at Li Jiancheng's display of brutality. Almost no one had seen him like that before. Even Veluriyam's other young lords were astonished at his change in character-including his past opponents. They were stunned by the realization that the Li Jiancheng that they had challenged hadn't ever used his full strength. Perhaps this is how strong he truly is?
Jiang Chen was just as appalled as everyone else at Li Jiancheng's transformation. However, Huang'er's unchanged expression was enough to settle his emotions. The girl was determined on her course of action. No shred of hesitation could be found within her.
To her eyes, Li Jiancheng's actions were virtually transparent. The lack of a reaction from his opponent worried Li Jiancheng. She seemed too impenetrable to deal with. Even Emperor Shura was somewhat worried at Huang'er's impassivity. What is up with this girl?
Did Jiancheng's demonic killing aura do nothing whatsoever to her despite their proximity? If that was the case, then she was one to be feared!
In the midst of all the uncertainties about her, Huang'er pulled at the air with her right hand. A jade-green ray of light was drawn out from her sleeve. A whip fashioned that looked very much like bamboo appeared between her fingers. It was fine and thin, but glittered with light. Taken as a whole, the whip was almost indistinguishable from an entire stem of bamboo, albeit a leafless one.
"What is that?" Everyone was perplexed at the whip in Huang'er's hands. Was it a fishing pole of some sort? It certainly looked like a handmade one. Jiang Chen was as curious as the rest of the audience. He'd never seen Huang'er draw a weapon before.
Li Jiancheng harrumphed, tapping the end of his spear against the ground. He pointed his weapon at his opponent. "Hmph. Do you expect to beat my Shura Divine Spear with a mere bamboo stick, Miss Huang'er?"
"A bamboo stick is more than enough for the likes of you," Huang'er shot back coolly.
"You're too presumptuous for your own good. Eat this!" Li Jiancheng's fury couldn't be suppressed. With a slight forward motion, he slid his feet across the ground and into the air.
Unparalleled ferocity lay behind the spear's metal tip, fiery and draconic. There was nothing fancy whatsoever about the attack, but its momentum made it remarkable. Li Jiancheng's martial dao was well known for its fierceness. He attacked his opponents with brutality and ruthlessness, grinding them relentlessly into submission.
Red vapor began to swirl around the tip of the spear, its consuming power evident to all onlookers. Space itself around the weapon began to be distorted, restricting his opponent's range of movement. The entire arena was affected in the blink of an eye, and the spear almost reached Huang'er's face.
But the girl stood completely unmoving in her original place. She seemed to be an old monk who'd settled into a trance. She brandished the whip in her right hand, creating a vortex-like green ripple. The ripple behaved as an incorporeal shield, blocking the Shura Divine Spear squarely in its path. The weapon missed entirely, stabbing itself into empty space. Li Jiancheng felt his strength being sapped by spacial chaos.
"Hmm?" Li Jiancheng was startled. How could his opponent negate his entire attack with just a furl of her whip? He began to have second thoughts about the fight. He knew that the woman before him was nothing but trouble. Still, the exact extent of this trouble was a little beyond his expectations.
The furl and swing was actually a sophisticated spatial technique. It stirred up the space within Li Jiancheng's attack range, rendering his offense without a target. Since the young lord hadn't witnessed that way of fighting of before, he found it difficult to react. An expert with some knowledge of spatial techniques would likely have guessed the reason for missing his first attack, at least partially. Unfortunately, the arena didn't give very much time for Li Jiancheng to think.
Scarcely did his bewilderment disappear when Huang'er's whip shook once more. Countless whip-images appeared, seemingly out of nowhere. It had taken only the blink of an eye for the space to be filled with them.
"What? How can this be?" Li Jiancheng was astounded. He instinctively raised his Shura Divine Spear to parry, intending to deflect the images. His spear was suddenly rendered immobile. A green shadow had wrapped itself around the shaft, marking the inevitable appearance of the whip itself seconds later.
A moment of uncertainty was enough for the whip to wrap itself snugly around Li Jiancheng's spear. More terrifyingly, it continued to snake its tendrils toward his body as well!
"What is this?" The Shura Retreat's young lord could only watch with jaw agape. He tried to let go of his Shura Divine Spear, tossing a talisman produced out of thin air in an attempt to break free. But another whip-tendril sealed his talisman before it could activate, grasping both of his arms in a tight lock.
"No!" Li Jiancheng screamed hoarsely, pushing with every ounce of energy he had left in him against his binds. As soon as his skin touched one of the tendrils however, he felt a static discharge pulse through him. The momentary paralysis prevented him from moving for an instant. It was enough time for victory to be decided.
When the numbness was gone from his nervous system, the tendrils had already bound him into a jadeite cocoon. Guided by Huang'er's hand seals, compelled by spirit energy, the whip's tendrils dragged Li Jiancheng into the air.
No opponent had made Li Jiancheng feel this helpless before. He'd fought many people, but never had he been so humiliated and impotent. He really couldn't understand. The whip didn't look like anything special. Could a stick of bamboo really defeat his Shura Divine Spear? Could it really trap him like this? What kind of bamboo was the whip made of?
Li Jiancheng's face was ashen. He found that the more he struggled, the more the whip tightened around him. The weapon seemed to have a sentience to it.
"Get out of here." Huang'er's declaration carried the same indifference that had characterized her attitude throughout the entire fight.
The young lord of Shura Retreat was flipped out of the whip's coils and unceremoniously slammed onto the ground. He got a mouthful of dirt for his trouble; he was in a sorry state indeed.
There was absolute silence from everyone. It was as if time itself had frozen in place. Huang'er's disposal of Li Jiancheng was briefly immortalized.
How was this possible?
Was this for real?
Had the arrogant Li Jiancheng been so easily crushed? The girl had said she would defeat him in three attacks, but she'd only taken two, right? The information that Emperor Shura's heir couldn't last even two attacks before an ivory maiden was incomprehensible.
Almost no one had made Miss Huang'er's acquaintance before now. Even those among Sacred Peafowl Mountain's inner circle had had their doubts before the match's outcome was revealed. The sight before them had been unfathomable for the most optimistic, much less everyone else.
Several seconds of perfect stillness passed before the waves of applause began rolling in. This fight deserved such widespread ovation!
Its events had overturned literally everyone's expectations and estimates. Its plot was something that good authors wouldn't even think of writing. Truly a full hundred-eighty turn.
All four monarchs from Sacred Peafowl Mountain felt a painful tug on their heartstrings when they saw Li Jiancheng being smashed into the ground. They experienced a brief moment of petrifaction like everyone else. Only when the vassals began cheering did they realize that the day was theirs.
Yes, they had won the round!
"This is amazing, young lord Zhen! I'm a bit envious. Your dao partner is an extraordinary girl." Mo Wushuang gave his heartfelt praise. Huang'er's display of strength had won him over.
Jiang Chen chuckled, unsure of how best to reply. He hadn't expected Huang'er to be this strong either. She had crushed Li Jiancheng with incredible ease. It was a serendipitously pleasant sensation, not altogether unwelcome.
Myriad Abyss Island's geniuses are something else, alright. Those not in the know would think that Huanger's whip is the reason for her strength, but she is at least several levels above Li Jiancheng in terms of cultivation as well.
Huang'er had won a demolishing victory!