Ten Thousand Miles of Wild Sand VS Howling Gale

By conventional logic, the weakness of the One Yang Finger should be concentrated in Lin Yueru's hands, much like the wrists for the Qi Sword Finger. Yet, Gao Xu used his precious, singular opportunity for a hidden weapon strike on her lower leg. Could it be that he intended to restrict her mobility?

Of course not. Gao Xu naturally knew that the One Yang Finger was condensed and unleashed via the Hand Shaoyang Triple Burner Meridian. If he were to strike the Guanchong acupoint, the effect would be optimal; in fact, his Insight skill had highlighted that very spot.

But skills are static, while people are dynamic. Gao Xu was a man of great intelligence; how could he blindly follow the prompts of a skill?

He did not target the Guanchong acupoint. Firstly, given Lin Yueru's martial cultivation, even if she were distracted by the sight of blood, it was unlikely she would fail to guard her wrists, especially since the previous Qi Sword Finger had already put her on alert. Secondly, even if he succeeded, the backlash would be severe; at best, her fingers would be scorched by sword qi, and at worst, the meridians throughout her entire arm would suffer grievous damage.

Lin Yueru had shown mercy, yet Gao Xu would be taking advantage of the situation to strike ruthlessly. Such despicable tactics were considered dishonorable, the type most despised by martial artists. The greatest benefit of this duel was to increase her favorability, and Gao Xu would not commit such a blunder of prioritizing the trivial over the essential.

Thus, he chose the Yangjiao acupoint, located on the Foot Shaoyang Gallbladder Meridian, which is closely linked to the Hand Shaoyang Triple Burner Meridian. Catching her off guard, he succeeded in his strike.

Lin Yueru was initially puzzled, but when she attempted to use the One Yang Finger again, she felt a dull ache in her meridians. She found herself unable to manifest the technique in the short term!

Lin Yueru's reaction was lightning-fast. She instantly grasped Gao Xu's intention, and a look of admiration and gratitude flickered inadvertently in her eyes.

Fighting to this point, Lin Yueru already held Gao Xu in a new light, but for her to admit defeat like this was absolutely impossible. After a moment of contemplation, she had an idea. She tilted her pretty face and said, "Counting the One Yang Finger, you have already broken two of my finger techniques; you truly have real substance! Let's make it three—if you can take one more move, I will concede this battle. How about it?"

Gao Xu nodded, but there was not a hint of joy on his face; instead, he grew increasingly solemn.

Sure enough, Lin Yueru knitted her delicate brows, appearing somewhat hesitant, and said sternly, "I'm telling you in advance: you must go all out for this move, because I cannot fully control it. If you try to hold back, you will be severely injured. Watch out!"

"Yueru, stop this nonsense!" Lin Tiannan finally could not hold back, reprimanding her from the sidelines. "This is a friendly spar, stop at the point of contact! Abandon this idea at once!"

"Father, I will try my best to control it. You don't want me to lose, do you?" Lin Yueru pouted and huffed, her resolve only hardening. At her age, she was in the midst of a rebellious phase and could not take her parent's earnest teachings to heart.

What kind of move could make Lin Tiannan so grave? The Seven Secrets Sword Qi, the Dragon Slaying Art, or perhaps... Thoughts raced through Gao Xu's mind, and he instantly formed a hypothesis. Without waiting for Lin Yueru to strike, he took the initiative and scattered a handful of powder.

Victory or defeat hinged on this moment. Gao Xu had no choice but to strike first. At this moment, Lin Yueru had already sheathed her sword. She crossed her palms, and a black shadow appeared in her hands. Following the wind of her fingers, she pressed them simultaneously toward the ground.

In an instant, a gale whipped up inside the room. The wind rose fiercely and strangely, seemingly accompanied by grains of yellow sand. Debris and dust from the surroundings swirled faster and faster with the gale, and the transparent wind gradually transformed into a thick fog, making it impossible to see a face even a yard away.

Where Lin Yueru had originally stood, it was as if a yellow dragon were dancing in the wind, churning endlessly. Drifting sands billowed, kicking up dust that reached the ceiling; in the blink of an eye, the entire stone chamber was blurred with sand and dust.

On the side, Su Mei opened her eyes wide, struggling to find Gao Xu's figure. She ignored the sand that turned her eyes blood-red, still watching stubbornly.

"Ten Thousand Miles of Wild Sand! This girl is so competitive; it's not a good sign. One day, she will suffer for it! Sigh..." Lin Tiannan stroked his long beard. While he felt proud of his precious daughter's martial talent, he was also anxious about her temperament. His conflicting emotions were truly something he could not express to outsiders.

This move, "Ten Thousand Miles of Wild Sand," originated from the final secret of the Lin Family Seven Secrets, "Howling Gale." With flying sand and rolling stones, the sand filled the sky. In terms of posture, it already leaned toward the techniques of the cultivation system, forming a unique domain of yellow sand. It not only enveloped the enemy in sand, interfering with their vision, but when practiced to a deep level, every grain of sand possessed immense power, capable of riddling an enemy's body with holes in an instant, a truly gruesome sight.

Lin Yueru's cultivation was not yet that profound, and she was not yet proficient in this move, but Gao Xu was caught within it, and his health began to plummet rapidly. Furthermore, his ears were filled with the howling wind and sand, making it impossible to pinpoint Lin Yueru's position. He seemed to have fallen into a hopeless situation.

Hidden within the sandstorm, Lin Yueru breathed a slight sigh of relief. She had truly been afraid that Gao Xu might break this move as well; would she really have had to admit defeat?

Over the years, Lin Yueru had remained undefeated throughout Suzhou City. In previous martial arts marriage tournaments, she had even defeated several renowned martial arts masters. The pride and confidence she had cultivated made her look down on everyone, which was why Lin Tiannan's plan to recruit a son-in-law had been so difficult.

But before Lin Yueru could habitually reveal a victorious smile, Gao Xu's nose twitched. With his eyes tightly shut, he turned his head and smiled toward where Lin Yueru was located.

"Oh no, that bag of powder!" Lin Yueru was shocked, suddenly realizing the meaning behind Gao Xu's earlier action. But she had no time to ponder how he had predicted she would use the Ten Thousand Miles of Wild Sand. She swung the black shadow in her hands, which moved like a dancing black dragon or a flicking viper—whipping, coiling, binding, and lashing toward Gao Xu.

The black shadow was actually the soft whip wrapped around Lin Yueru's waist—the Nine-Section Whip. It was the weapon she had used against Tang Mei'er. Compared to the Yuenü Sword, the flexible and versatile long whip was undoubtedly better suited for use within the range of the Ten Thousand Miles of Wild Sand.

Gao Xu, whose health had already dropped to half, dared not be whipped again. He decisively took out a scroll glowing with a pale blue light and selected to use it!

The scroll suddenly transformed into a brilliant pearl, emitting a dazzling light. A whistling sound erupted, stirring up a furious gale amidst the heavy sandstorm.

The gale swirled like a wolf, the wind roared like a beast!

Once the Howling Gale scroll was unleashed, the situation changed drastically. Although this move could not immediately eliminate the effects of the Ten Thousand Miles of Wild Sand, it acted like adding fuel to the fire, instantly increasing the speed at which the yellow sand swirled. The momentum was so fierce that even Lin Yueru could not control it; she stumbled, nearly colliding with a sharp corner hanging from the ceiling of the stone chamber.

To stabilize herself, Lin Yueru had no choice but to lash out with the Nine-Section Whip, coiling it around a protruding rock behind her. Taking advantage of this buffer, Gao Xu endured the discomfort of his mental energy dropping to one point. Using the propulsion of the Howling Gale, he instantly closed in on her and swung his sword, slicing toward Lin Yueru's neck.

"No!" Gao Xu's original intention was merely to make Lin Yueru concede, but Lin Tiannan, doting on his daughter, saw his expression change drastically. Guided by the gale, the sharp blade could very likely slice across Lin Yueru's delicate neck—an irreversible consequence. Disregarding his status, he pointed his finger and unleashed a Qi Sword Finger toward the Flying Rainbow Sword.

With Lin Tiannan's martial attainments, he could control his power with ease; he would not hurt Gao Xu, merely disarm him and terminate the duel.

But accidents often happen in the blink of an eye, because the observers were not just Lin Tiannan, but also the Snake Demon family, who held deep hostility toward him!

"Despicable!" The Snake Demon and the Fox Demon shouted in anger simultaneously. They clearly believed that Lin Tiannan was resorting to underhanded tactics to help his daughter win. However, the coverage of the Ten Thousand Miles of Wild Sand was quite large, and both demons were still recovering from serious injuries, leaving them unable to intervene in time.

At that very moment, a petite figure lunged out, throwing herself in front of Gao Xu without a second thought!

"NO!!!!"

With Gao Xu's roar of agony, the little fox Su Mei collapsed limply to the ground...