The Sword Debate Begins

The next morning, the Mount Hua Sword Debate officially began.

Although the agreed-upon time was today, it should have started yesterday. However, everyone had been led by Wang Ming into the cave on Siguo Cliff and rested for a night, delaying their fight.

Huang Yaoshi and Hong Qigong had also endured a night of waiting, and now that the time had come, they no longer wished to hold back.

Immediately, the two prepared to engage.

The last time the two had truly fought was twenty years ago on Peach Blossom Island. Both had been very restrained then and hadn't used their full capabilities. This battle was one they had long anticipated.

Guo Jing watched from the sidelines, torn between wanting his father-in-law, Island Master Huang, to win or his master, Hong Qigong, to win. His heart felt split in two.

Huang Rong, on the other hand, was filled with worry, her expression grave. She knew very well that her father, Huang Yaoshi, couldn't defeat Hong Qigong.

Hong Qigong's martial arts were not inferior to Huang Yaoshi's, but he had already obtained the Nine Yin Manual. Not only had his martial arts fully recovered, but they had also reached a new level.

Huang Yaoshi was different. Although he had obtained the lower volume of the Nine Yin Manual very early on, it had also led to the death of his beloved wife, Feng Heng. This was a lifelong pain for him, and from then on, he vowed never to cultivate the Nine Yin Manual, intending to create a martial art of his own that was no less than the Nine Yin Manual.

However, human effort has its limits; one cannot simply create a martial art by wishing for it.

Huang Rong was extremely worried. Her father was naturally proud; if he lost, she feared he wouldn't be able to accept it.

However, after a few rounds of combat, Huang Rong was completely relieved.

Huang Rong thought to herself, "Master Hong is indeed a man of his word. He said he wouldn't use the Nine Yin Manual, and he's sticking to it. I suppose Father won't lose too badly."

Huang Yaoshi used his self-created Falling Blossom Divine Sword Palm to spar with Hong Qigong, and the fight was back and forth.

This palm technique: the moves included "Jiangcheng Feihua," "Yuji Fengkuang," and "Sanhua Shi." The palm technique contained the words "Divine Sword," indicating it was derived from sword techniques. When the palm strikes came, they were like falling blossoms, with palm shadows appearing from all directions, five false and one true, or eight false and one true. It was like a sudden gust of wind in a peach forest, with ten thousand flowers falling at once. The beauty lay in its graceful posture, as if dancing, while the palm strikes were as sharp as a sword. He also frequently employed the Orchid Finger Strike and Whirlwind Sweeping Leaf Kick to create some trouble for Hong Qigong.

Unfortunately, although Hong Qigong seemed to be struggling to defend, after a hundred rounds, these moves had little effect on him.

No matter how exquisite and brilliant his moves were, Hong Qigong stood firm like a reef in the sea. Regardless of the technique used, he countered with a Dragon Subduing Palm strike.

Huang Yaoshi also sensed the unfavorable turn of the battle and analyzed in his heart, "This old beggar's martial arts have progressed so rapidly, truly remarkable. He's becoming increasingly familiar with my martial arts moves; my initial moves are being deciphered by him, and I can no longer engage in close-quarters combat with him."

He immediately used his Lightness Skill to create distance from Hong Qigong and employed his ultimate skill, the Finger Flicking Divine Skill, engaging in a long-range battle.

Finger Flicking Divine Skill: The right middle finger is bent and flicked from under the thumb. Dark weapons can also be flicked from under the thumb. The technique is subtle and profound. When used to flick dark weapons, the range is very far, the speed is extremely rapid, and the power is strong, no different from a powerful bow and crossbow. It can be used to flick away enemy weapons and strike enemy acupoints.

"Brother Hong! Be careful."

Huang Yaoshi leaped into the air and unleashed a Finger Flicking Divine Skill towards Hong Qigong's brow. The powerful force rapidly shot towards Hong Qigong.

Hong Qigong reacted with extreme speed, unleashing the move "Dragon Appearing in the Field."

With a circular force from his left palm and a straight posture with his right palm, this move was purely defensive, like an impenetrable wall. If the enemy attacked, he would block; if the enemy did not approach, the force would dissipate into nothingness.

He instantly blocked Huang Yaoshi's killing blow. However, Hong Qigong felt a moment of lingering fear, thinking to himself, "Fortunately, although this Huang Yaoshi is known as the Eastern Heretic, he disdains using schemes and sneak attacks to harm others. Otherwise, if I hadn't been wary just now, this old beggar would have lost a layer of skin, if not died today."

From then on, he no longer had the casual demeanor he had when his martial arts surpassed Huang Yaoshi's. He became more cautious in his movements. Although he still wasn't using the martial arts from the Nine Yin Manual, he was actually exerting his full strength.

The Nine Yin Manual is indeed a profound and extensive martial art, but in terms of actual combat lethality, its offensive techniques are no more powerful than his own Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms. The reason the Five Greats were so fixated on the Nine Yin Manual was actually only for its internal energy cultivation.

The Nine Yin Divine Claw and the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms are martial arts of the same level, but when Hong Qigong used them, the effect was ten, while the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms had an effect of fifteen.

The Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms had accompanied Hong Qigong for decades. His moves had reached the realm of "forgetting the moves" in martial arts, executing them without any trace.

Years of practice had also caused subtle changes in his muscles and bones, making him more suited for the power generation of the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms, allowing him to achieve twice the result with half the effort in his palm strikes.

Moreover, the style of the martial arts in the Nine Yin Manual did not align with Hong Qigong's personality, and using them was indeed less effective than the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms.

Huang Yaoshi's movements varied in speed, advancing and retreating swiftly, occasionally flicking highly condensed energy projectiles from his hand towards Hong Qigong's vital acupoints.

They continued to fight for another twenty to thirty rounds.

Hong Qigong slightly bent his left leg, curved his right arm inward, drew a circle with his right palm, and pushed outward with a whoosh. His palm swept towards Huang Yaoshi, who dodged the attack with extreme agility.

Just as he was about to turn and counterattack, Hong Qigong thrust his right palm forward, stopping it in front of him.

This was Hong Qigong's proudest creation, "Dragon Ascending to Heaven," from the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms.

Huang Yaoshi was also a straightforward person. Knowing he was outmatched, he immediately conceded defeat.

Seeing her father defeated, Huang Rong quickly went forward to comfort him.

Although Huang Yaoshi had a peculiar temper, he was not one to take defeat poorly and didn't dwell on it much.

Seeing that the duel between the two had concluded, Wang Ming eagerly stepped forward to challenge them.

After cultivating diligently for so long, he needed to verify his own learning.