Flesh and Blood, Overpowering Sword Radiance

One had to know that body-tempering martial arts were not only extremely difficult to cultivate, but were also rare across the lands of the Western Desert.

Even the body-tempering martial arts claimed by Iron Garment Martial Hall merely circulated qi and blood, using garments to deflect force. They could not be considered true body-tempering martial arts!

Wang Xuance was merely an outsider from beyond the city, yet he had cultivated a genuine body-tempering martial art. It was nothing short of astonishing!

"How... how did you learn it?!!"

Chen Kexin gripped Frostbite and chopped down fiercely, only for Wang Xuance to cross his arms and brace the blade, leaving it unable to move!

Of course, Chen Kexin's timing in that strike had been flawless. Had it been someone like Chen Linger, they would already have been beheaded on the spot.

Wang Xuance merely planted both feet into the ground, sinking more than half a foot into the earthen platform. Beneath his lowered gaze lay the stillness of an ancient well.

Yet he was both shocked and enraged inside. Had Dragon Elephant Grand Stance not elevated his bodily toughness to an unimaginable level after his martial realm rose to the Three-Knock Blood Pass—

Chen Kexin's sword had been swift and vicious, stabbing straight for his brow. Caught off guard, he could only tilt his head aside and block it with both arms.

"Haa—"

He expelled a stream of dense white turbid air, shooting forth like a three-foot sharp sword.

Wang Xuance drew in a fierce breath. His qi and blood, which had been gradually settling into dormancy, seemed to have been thrown into a cauldron of tung oil and exploded with a roar. The muscles in his arms bulged in massive knots!

Clearing the Clouds to See the Sun!

His arms became two iron whips, blasting the sword aside before rising high and chopping down viciously.

Their target was Chen Kexin's Tianxi and Qimen acupoints beneath her ribs.

"Bold!"

Chen Kexin exhaled, then drew in another breath. Ignoring the turbulent qi and blood churning within her chest, she flicked and swept her sword left and right.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

An inconceivable clash of metal rang through the air.

Wang Xuance fully circulated Dragon Elephant Grand Stance, pairing it with the Great Arm Scripture to increase the force of his punches. His golden fists swung like great hammers, striking with savage force!

Fist Shatters the Tides!

Endless violent Fist Aura swept forward. Though Chen Kexin's swordsmanship was exquisite, the breath within her body was depleted, and she no longer possessed her full strength. She inhaled more and exhaled less, while a flush had long since risen to her face!

"Break!"

One of Chen Kexin's sword-wielding arms was smashed down by Wang Xuance's golden fist. Frostbite shot into the ground like an arrow loosed from the bow, and he followed through with a punch, like a great flood dragon bursting from the water and striking the girl in the abdomen.

Fist Aura penetrated through her body, sinking three inches into her flesh!

Pfft!

Chen Kexin's face turned pale. Finally unable to endure any longer, she spat out a mouthful of blood and fell from the platform like a kite with its string cut.

In contrast, Wang Xuance's breathing remained steady. He neither panted nor gasped as his sleeves slowly settled.

After this hard battle, I still had to use the Great Arm Scripture. The weakness of lacking a weapon is increasingly holding me back in one-on-one fights.

His lowered eyes slowly lifted. Deep within his dark pupils was the helplessness he had forcibly suppressed.

At the start of this arena battle, he had concealed his strength through clever means so that, when facing Chen Feng, he could catch him unprepared.

But plans could not keep pace with change. Chen Linger was such trash that she could not even defeat her own opponent.

He had originally intended to face his enemy with Vajra Fist at the perfected level, but Chen Kexin had cultivated sword radiance, and her killing power was formidable. Left with no choice, he had revealed some of his trump cards!

"Heh—what a formidable little fellow. It seems the person that girl Ling invited does have some skill!"

Chen Xuanfeng stood with his hands behind his back and muttered to himself.

"Feng'er, let that young brother take the stage. Let me see the measure of your eye!"

Hearing this, Chen Feng nodded and signaled to the yellow-robed young man who had already risen.

Whoosh!

His figure flashed away like a startled swan, heading straight onto the earthen platform.

"Brother Wang, let me take this round!"

The instant he saw the man, Wang Xuance's heart thumped uneasily. Yet his expression did not change, and he was about to make his move when Chen Feng below gave a light laugh, causing him to stop.

The moment he stepped down from the platform, Chen Linger hurried over and handed him a small blue porcelain bottle.

"Brother Wang, these are Warm-Nourishing Pills from Medicine King Shop, pills that strengthen the foundation and nourish vital essence. Quickly take one to ease the depletion of your qi and blood."

She had seen that every one of Wang Xuance's punches must consume an enormous amount of qi and blood, so she had brought him this medicine.

Wang Xuance was slightly taken aback, but he did not refuse and reached out to accept it.

The two profound-grade martial arts seemed tailor-made for him. So long as he did not forcefully drive his qi and blood while suffering injuries to his sinews and meridians, this brief period of fighting would merely leave him needing to catch his breath.

"Was that man a helper invited by the second branch?"

Wang Xuance glanced at the yellow-robed youth on the platform.

"That's right. He looks like someone from the Esoteric Sect, though I do not know what price they paid to invite him."

"Someone from the Esoteric Sect?"

Chen Linger's delicate brows drew together. She brushed the dark hair at her temple behind her ear and nodded.

"That's right. The Western Desert was once ruled by the great Buddhist sects, but after Great Zhou's founding emperor swept through with his iron cavalry and sharpened blades, they were broadly divided into two sects. For a hundred years, they have been like fire and water, meeting blade with blade!"

"One was from the Esoteric Sect, dressed in ancient yellow robes with six precept scars atop his head. The other was from Compassion, dressed in black robes with nine precept scars atop his head!"

"This man had six precept scars atop his head. He was most likely a disciple of the Esoteric Sect!"

Wang Xuance's eyes were calm, but stormy waves had already risen in his heart. This man looked exactly like Kongxing, the one who had saved him in the past.

Had it not been for the sinister, yin-leaning blood qi radiating from him, utterly unlike Master Kongxing's pure and vast aura, Wang Xuance would have fled at once!

"Young friend, would you be willing to join the Chen Clan as a guest elder?"

A rough yet gentle voice suddenly reached his ears.

Following the sound, he saw a yellow-robed old man with prominent cheekbones and gleaming eyes walking toward him.

"You are...?"

"Oh, I forgot to introduce him to Brother Wang. He is the Grand Elder of my eldest branch, Chen Xuanjing."

"He is also an elder of my brother's and mine by blood, an existence whose martial cultivation has already reached the middle stage of the Breath Embryo Realm!"

"This junior, Wang Xuance, greets Elder Chen!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Xuance cupped his fists and spoke solemnly.

"No need for such courtesy, Young Friend Wang. What do you think of my proposal?"

"As long as you join the Chen Clan, I dare not speak of anything else, but with your talent, helping you advance to the Martial Artist Realm would take only a few years. Even the Force Aura Realm would not be impossible!"

"Your qi and blood are thick as mercury and boiling like soup. You likely have not yet learned a martial art capable of opening Martial Apertures, have you?"

Chen Xuanjing looked as though he understood everything about him. It was as if Wang Xuance no longer held any secrets in his eyes.

"Please forgive me, Elder Chen, but this junior does not enjoy being bound. As for joining the Chen Clan, I ask Elder to seek another worthy talent!"

Hiss!

Their voices were not loud, but neither had they concealed them. The disciples of the various Chen Clan branches nearby had long been intensely interested in him.

A Three-Knock Blood Pass martial man who had cultivated body-tempering martial arts and forcibly broken through the sharpness of sword radiance was no less capable than the clan's elite disciples.

Now the clan's acting Grand Elder had personally invited him to become a guest elder, yet he refused without even thinking.

"Does this man have something wrong with his head? How dare he refuse?"

"Hmph, a country bumpkin will always be a country bumpkin. He thinks learning one body-tempering martial art lets his nose reach the heavens, looking down on everyone!"

"Martial arts capable of cultivating Martial Apertures are rare even in White Light City. Is he not thinking about his future path?"

Wang Xuance paid no attention to what those around him thought. Remaining in the Chen Clan would bring him no benefit.

What he wanted—

Was the sight from the pinnacle of martial arts!

It was absolute control over himself, never again to drift like duckweed, frail and helpless.

Not to mention that he already possessed two martial arts capable of cultivating Martial Apertures, his talent alone—

Was low-grade bone aptitude!

Without True Martial Qi to advance his martial arts, he would be beaten back to his original form in an instant.

And when it came to obtaining True Martial Qi, where could be faster or more plentiful than fighting the foreign races in the army?

Endless and unceasing, never stopping!

Seeing Wang Xuance politely refuse, Chen Xuanjing raised his brow slightly and glanced at Chen Linger.

"Young Friend Wang, if I promise to marry Linger to you in the future as your principal wife, would you agree?"

"Clan Uncle!"

Chen Linger's face immediately flushed red. Her fingers intertwined as she lowered her head to look at the ground.