Face-Disfiguring Powder, Clear Sea Lingering Echoes
"My first opponent is Ning Que, the second is Jiang Yu, and the third might be Ice Block..."
Li Mo stood on the arena, silently calculating.
To enter the Heavenly Human City, it's best to win all three matches, or at most lose one. Losing two matches will basically eliminate your chances.
He can't use Hammer Treasure now.
Therefore, he must win the first two games.
On the opposite side, Ning Que had finished his meditation and walked onto the stage. He had a jade flute hanging at his waist, but he didn't know where the divine weapon, the Qinghai Yiyin Qin, was.
Before it even started, he suddenly raised his hand and said:
"Wait a minute!"
"What's wrong?"
Li Mo, who was poised to act, was taken aback.
Ning Que said warily, "Li Mo, I believe you are a gentleman, so how about we make a gentleman's agreement?"
"Go ahead and say it."
Little Li the Gentleman's expression turned serious; he felt that Ning Que made a lot of sense.
"Since we are all gentlemen, we should naturally have a fair and square duel, and first of all, we must not use foul language."
After observing, Ning Que discovered one of the Divine Hammer Little Overlord's killer moves.
The King of Brawling' Secret Technique!
Firstly, he was a musician who played the flute and zither, so he couldn't possibly argue back. Secondly, he felt he couldn't possibly win an argument with Li Mo.
"Brother, you have quite a misunderstanding about me. I am not..."
"The Master Burial Love' said he learned it from you."
"... Okay, anything else?"
"Also, you can't use underhanded tricks, like poisoning, having a monkey steal peaches, sprinkling lime powder, or ambushing someone..."
"I really don't know how to do this..."
"Really? I thought Huang Donglai learned it from you."
Ning Que looked suspicious.
"He... is just exceptionally gifted."
Li Mo sighed and turned around.
"Hehe~"
Murong Xiao touched his bald head and smiled, his eyes full of wisdom.
"Hehe..." Huang Donglai's smile turned slightly sinister and lewd, and he even made a gesture of "it's done" towards the stage.
Li Mo: "..."
They weren't praising you!
What's so funny?!
However, Li Mo soon realized what Huang Donglai laughing about.
As Ning Que spoke, his mouth and hands suddenly began to turn red and swollen.
"Although I admit you're very handsome, no less so than me, but... um... why is your tongue so thick?"
Below the stage, Murong Xiao was taken aback, then pointed at Ning Que and said, "Brother Donglai, have you noticed that his lips seem to have suddenly swelled up, like sausages, and his hands look like pig's trotters..."
"This is exactly the result of my latest research!"
Huang Donglai stood with his hands behind his back, his expression calm.
To make it easier for Brother Li to win, he recently specially developed heavenly materials and earthly treasures he had wanted to use but couldn't afford before.
"Isn't the use of highly poisonous substances prohibited in the competition?"
"Highly toxic poisons are naturally forbidden, but what I have is not highly toxic, and it's not even poison."
Huang Donglai took out a small bottle from his pocket:
"This 'Disfigurement Powder' will cause swelling where it's applied due to blood stasis and impurities in the body. However, it will automatically recover after an hour and can also clear away hidden injuries within the body."
"So, this is just a wound medicine with side effects!"
Murong Xiao leaned back slightly.
He noticed that as Huang Donglai spoke, his body began to swell, and his face looked like a bear that had been stung while stealing honey.
So, Old Huang just covered himself in "Face-Distorting Powder" on purpose, letting Ning Que beat him up?
No, that's on the lips... Oh, right, the jade flute!
Wow... Old Huang is a real monster...
"Buhou!"
"So I've already been infected!"
Ning Que gritted his teeth, his face contorted with rage, and pulled out the jade flute from his waist.
"Since you've embarrassed me so much, don't blame me for being ruthless!"
"I really didn't poison him."
Li Mo hoped he could calm down.
The whole city was watching. He had finally found an opportunity to, as a graceful swordsman, engage in a friendly martial arts contest between gentlemen.
Now that such a huge mess has been dumped on my head, where can I go to seek justice?
Ning Que was already furious, and he put the jade flute to his lips, ready to play:
"Pfft~~"
Li Mo: "..."
Everyone in the audience. "..."
Xiao Qin had just returned, looking bewildered. "Who farted so loudly?"
After a moment of silence, low laughter broke out from below the stage. Ning Que's lips were swollen like sausages, almost as thick as a jade flute, and his hands, which looked like pig's trotters, could not hold down the flute's hole.
It looked terrible, but that farting sound just now still made everyone lose their composure.
"I know you're in a hurry, but I might be able to find a way to help you detoxify first..."
"It has nothing to do with you, I don't want you to be lonely!"
Ning Que lost his mind, threw the jade flute to the ground with a thud, then clasped his hands together and stretched them out abruptly.
Splash--
An invisible zither emerged, its entire body composed of water waves, each string resembling a ripple, its ethereal beauty perfectly natural.
A tinkling sound of a piano rang out.
The strings vibrated, creating a sound like flowing water from a mountain stream. The surrounding air seemed to instantly transform into a stream, with undercurrents surging and whirlpools forming under the influence of the music.
If the arena had not been constructed using the Mustard Seed and Sumeru Dao of the Divine Monk Huai Kong, the entire area in front of the Meridian Gate would probably have been filled with the sound of zithers.
Even if the hands playing the piano were pig's trotters...
"Well..."
Li Mo sighed. Why is it so difficult to be a handsome swordsman?
But since things have come to this point, there's no time to dwell on the might of the divine weapon.
He had no choice but to calm himself down, Heavenly Human Divine Sword came into his hand, its shimmering light resembling the rippling waves of autumn water.
This sword strike incorporated his mastered Nine Swords of Dugu, simplifying complexity and unleashing its full power. Combined with the divine power of the Heavenly Human Divine Sword, the power of this single strike increased exponentially.
Obscure yet direct, sharp yet unpredictable.
The sound of the zither seemed to transform from an intangible sound into a tangible thing, becoming, in Li Mo's eyes, obscure sketch lines on a blank sheet of paper.
This sword is like an eraser, wiping away the lines.
The Nine Swords of Dugu can destroy all weapons, including musical instruments.
The Heavenly Human Divine Sword can cut through the intangible with the tangible.
It flickers in the waves of piano music, separating the interlocking rhythmic vortexes and severing the rhythm of high mountains and flowing water.
It pointed right up to Ning Que!
If it weren't for his Profound Pill's self-circulating energy, even if he had access to some of the divine power of the Heavenly Human Divine Sword, he wouldn't be able to use it.
Ning Que had calmed down by now; it was the gleaming sword tip that forced him to focus without distraction.
The music shifted, turning from offense to defense, becoming ethereal and lofty, seemingly layered upon layered, coming from a thousand miles away.
With each sound barrier the Heavenly Human Divine Sword pierces, the shimmering autumn water on it dims slightly.
This piece, played by divine weapons, is no longer merely a matter of feeling a distant connection through the senses.
Instead, it actually constructed layers of sound barriers that seemed both near and far.
The sword's speed is getting slower and slower.
But in the end, he stood on Ning Que's Qinghai Yiyin Qin.
Snap--
A string snapped in response and vanished without a trace.
"Impressive Swordsmanship. I underestimated you; I thought your swordsmanship was nothing special."
Ning Que's eyes flickered, but he quickly changed the subject:
"But if that's all there is to it, let alone Jiang Yu, even I can't win."
He also possessed the Great Perfection Divine Skill.
Furthermore, although the Qinghai Yiyin Qin is not as good as the Heavenly Human Divine Sword on the Divine Weapon Ranking, it also depends on who wields the Divine Sword.