Nangong Jie didn"t sense the sword at the back of his head at all.
To a Starburst Realm cultivator like him, it was either that the newcomer was an expert manipulator of True Energy who didn"t leak any of his energy or that the sword behind him was a high-level weapon. Level 1 was a Taoist object while Level 2 would make it a spiritual object. This sword was at the level of Spirit Sword at the minimum.
The gurgling sound of running water rang next to Nangong Jie"s ears. He lifted his hands. Sweat was forming on his forehead and he dared not to make any movement.
He could feel the skin on the back of his neck tremble from the ice-cold sensation coming from the tip of the sword. Without turning his head, he asked cautiously, "Who are you?"
"I"m n.o.body," Ye Que replied indifferently.
"You wield a Spirit Sword and even ambush someone from behind?" Nangong Jie continued, innuendo lacing his words.
"That"s the way I like it. Mind your business." Ye Que chuckled.
"Not playing by the rules?" Seeing that Ye Que didn"t fall for his trick, Nangong Jie began to panic. No matter how high his cultivation was, he was powerless in such a tight s.p.a.ce. Once the sword pierced his head, his death was all but certain.
"My sword is stronger than yours, so that makes me the rule. Don"t you understand this logic? What did your master teach you? Is this your first time leaving your sect?" Ye Que said mockingly. These words were somewhat familiar.
"Are you from the Qingqiu Sword Sect?" After carefully racking his brain, Nangong Jie realized that those words were what he said earlier.
"What do you think?" Ye Que neither denied nor confirmed his a.s.sumption.
Nangong Jie was so irritated with their conversation that he nearly blew a fuse. This man was clearly wasting his time.
"Let"s not take this seriously and give each other some leeway. There"s no need to humiliate anyone." Nangong Jie"s expression was so dark that his face was almost stiff. "I"m Nangong Jie, the Young Chamber Lord of the Chamber of the Rainy Duel. You need to consider the consequences of killing me. You can"t even imagine the price you"ll have to pay for that."
Ye Que leaned forward and whispered into his ear, "Do you think that I"m humiliating you?"
"Aren"t you?" Nangong Jie asked in a nasal voice.
Ye Que was momentarily silent before asking, "You"re unsatisfied, aren"t you? You think I"m bullying you?"
"You have the clear advantage with your Spirit Sword!" Nangong Jie retorted loudly without a second thought. He even lifted his hand by several inches. "If you"re that capable, I dare you to fight me face-to-face."
"What if the outcome is still the same?" Ye Que"s tone was tranquil as if he was stating a fact.
"I"ll obey your orders without objection," Nangong Jie replied decisively.
Silence shrouded the place as no one spoke. Nangong Jie"s sword was suspended in front of Nalan Rongruo"s midbrows while Ye Que"s sword halted behind Nangong Jie"s head. The disciples wanted to warn Ye Que to be careful of Nangong Jie"s trickery. They might be strangers who met by chance but this was after all a junction between life and death. However, they felt like whatever they say would be superfluous instead.
Moments later, Ye Que named his condition. "Retrieve your sword first."
"Retrieve your sword first." Nangong Jie had the exact same words to say. His sword was his sole bargaining chip now. After all, he had already killed two Qingqiu Sword Sect disciples and even used a dirty trick to ambush one of them. If Ye Que was truly connected with that sect, retrieving his sword might just spell his death.
"You"re the Young Chamber Lord of the Chamber of the Rainy Duel. Your life is more precious but unfortunately, you don"t have a choice."
Ye Que threw the option back to Nangong Jie.
"You can only gamble."
"Gamble on the fact that I"m not immoral."
No less than ten seconds elapsed. With a tight frown and trembling fingers, Nangong Jie finally clenched his teeth and swung his finger-sword to the side. The sword pointed at Nalan Rongruo"s midbrows instantly returned to his side, with its sword hilt pointed outward and tip pointed inward.
Simultaneously, the True Energy inside Nangong Jie rose to its peak. If Ye Que was immoral, he didn"t mind dragging Ye Que to h.e.l.l with him at the final moment. He had long estimated their distance and locked onto Ye Que"s position.
If worse came to worst, he would just drag Ye Que to the Underworld with him!
The first thing Nalan Rongruo did after being rescued was yelling. "Kill him as revenge for Senior Brothers!" However, the Junior Brothers next to her immediately stopped her and even clasped a hand over her mouth.
In their opinion, Ye Que wasn"t a Qingqiu Sword Sect disciple. He had gone above and beyond in rescuing them. How could they ask him to kill Nangong Jie?
Nangong Jie was right. He was the Young Chamber Lord of the Chamber of the Rainy Duel, after all. Whoever who killed him would be inviting countless trouble upon himself.
"Please retrieve your sword lest people look down on you," Nangong Jie said coolly. Even though his voice was cold, everyone could detect his anxiety and attempt at reverse psychology.
Ye Que acted as if he didn"t hear him. He slowly walked away from Nangong Jie and walked toward Nalan Rongruo. However, he didn"t move the sword pointed at the back of Nangong Jie"s head.
Nangong Jie"s forehead was drenched with sweat. The sweat was even trailing down his cheek toward his lower jaw before falling drop by drop to the ground. The only thing he could was adjusting the angle of the sword to point at Ye Que. It was the little initiative that he could strive for.
"Can I borrow your sword?"
After walking up to Nalan Rongruo, Ye Que made his request in a quiet voice while pointing.
"Are you really going to fight him? This is a Qi pract.i.tioner in the Starburst Realm; he uses Qi to wield his sword. His power is boundless," Nalan Rongruo said softly, looking anxious. However, she didn"t know how to persuade this man. She couldn"t ask him to be a lowly character and break his promise, could she?
The greatest cultivating taboos were being disloyal, breaking one"s promise, and turning back on agreements.
Finally, the young lady clenched her teeth and handed Ye Que her sword. Her face was filled with worry.
Ye Que gently gripped her sword and patted her on the shoulder with a smile. "Rest a.s.sured."
"Since he said that Qingqiu Sword Sect swordsmanship is overrated and using swords to manipulate Qi is a laughable idea, I won"t allow him an easy death. I need him to witness what true swordsmanship means."
"He has no right to humiliate the Qingqiu Sword Sect swordsmanship."
Ye Que turned around to look at Nangong Jie. With a swipe of his hand, the sword that had remained stagnant behind Nangong Jie"s head flew back into the door of his heart in an instant.
Nangong Jie narrowed his eyes. "Sure enough, it"s a Level 2 Spirit Sword!"
He carefully observed Ye Que. "How dare you be so arrogant when you"re a Psychic Realm cultivator! Now that you lost the chance to ambush me, stay put and wait for your death!"
Vapor from the waterfall beneath the Gra.s.s-pecking Cliff rose upward and hit everyone on their faces. The wind swept them, gently lifting the lapel of their clothing. Nangong Jie stared fixedly at the nearby Ye Que. He took a deep breath before pouring all of his True Energy into the blade of his sword. He didn"t hold back any of his Starburst Realm strength. He was ready to go all out to recover his dignity.
His sword, suspended in midair, began to tremble violently. The foggy rain condensed out of True Energy slowly but surely spread to all corners of the place. White flowers blossomed in the rain one after another. It was a sword skill of the Chamber of the Rainy Duel, Pear Blossom Suppressing Crabapple!
The wind at the cliff, the water in the waterfall, as well as the Spiritual Qi in the air, were stirring. It was as if they were going to explode.
By contrast, Ye Que appeared completely calm. He lifted the sword ever so slightly while placing his left foot forward and his right foot behind. His knees were bent. Unexpectedly, he was using the starting stance of the nine entry-level sword skills of the Qingqiu Sword Sect!
Nalan Rongruo and the other five widened their eyes. They nearly cried out in surprise.
Out of nowhere, a golden dot appeared in the sky above the Gra.s.s-pecking Cliff. The dot gradually came close. Very soon, it was a hundred meters away from everyone. Surprisingly, it was a four-finned flying fish. The fish was an incomparably ma.s.sive and healthy goldfish with four fins that resembled the wings of a dragonfly. Seated above the fish was a young lady.