Divine Shield Block

Long Haochen remained calm in the face of danger. With what seemed like a casual flourish of his sword, he conjured countless dreamlike sword shadows. His sword shadows intertwined with Li Xin's, producing a dense series of metallic clangs. Li Xin's Lightning Thrust was completely blocked by Long Haochen without missing a single strike.

Out of concern for him, Li Xin had not used her full strength in that Lightning Thrust. Moreover, the gap between their spiritual energy had not exceeded a hundred, which was why Long Haochen had been able to block her attack.

"Haochen, there will always be an opening between two moves. The key to fighting an opponent is to seize that brief opening and strike first."

Feng Xiu's words still echoed in his ears. Long Haochen decided to take the initiative.

At that moment, Long Haochen and Li Xin were caught in the gap between two moves. Both had just exhausted their old strength before new strength could arise. Whoever recovered first and launched an attack would gain the upper hand.

Long Haochen's chest rose and fell rapidly three times. Following the breathing method Feng Xiu had taught him, he instantly gathered fresh strength. His twin swords swept out, one horizontal and one vertical, unleashing the Knight's signature skill, Cross Slash. A cross-shaped sword gleam hurtled toward Li Xin.

The distance was too short for Long Haochen's Cross Slash to be avoided. Furthermore, Li Xin recovered her strength more slowly than he did, leaving her no choice but to defend.

A pale golden glow lit up around Li Xin. She let out a low shout and viciously drove the sword in her right hand into the ground. A surge of golden light instantly rose from the earth, reaching over two meters high before turning into a golden curtain of light in front of her.

Ascension Formation, a Third-Rank Retribution Knight skill!

Clang, clang—

Long Haochen's Cross Slash was successfully blocked by Li Xin's Ascension Formation and rebounded. When his strike failed, Long Haochen quickly retreated, widening the distance between them.

Fine beads of sweat began to form on Long Haochen's forehead. That string of attacks had drained him considerably, and he had to stop briefly to recover.

Looking at the completely unharmed Long Haochen across from her, Li Xin felt somewhat annoyed. She was a dignified Third-Rank Knight, yet she had embarrassed herself before a Sixth-Level Squire like Long Haochen!

To save face, Li Xin decided to show Long Haochen what she was capable of.

"Little sister, be careful. Big sister is attacking now!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Li Xin moved. In an instant, she closed to within three meters of Long Haochen. Her right-hand sword swung fiercely toward him, sending a golden blade of light shooting his way.

Light Slash Sword, an offensive and defensive Third-Rank Knight skill. Both Retribution Knights and Guardian Knights could learn it. It consumed fifty points of spiritual energy, allowing the user to invoke the sacred Power of Light to protect their body while condensing it into a blade of light to attack the enemy. Its attack range was proportional to the Knight's own spiritual energy cultivation.

To conserve spiritual energy, Li Xin did not invoke the sacred Power of Light to protect herself and merely unleashed the light blade.

Light Slash Sword consumed even more spiritual energy than Lightning Thrust, demonstrating just how powerful it was. If Long Haochen chose to meet it with an attack of his own, he would be courting death.

Nalan Shu at the side was preparing to intervene again. He did not believe that Long Haochen, merely a Sixth-Level Squire, could withstand Li Xin's Light Slash Sword.

Just as the light blade came within ten centimeters of Long Haochen, he finally moved, raising the sword in his right hand. At that instant, Long Haochen seemed like an unbreakable statue.

With a crisp clang, the light blade seemed to strike an indestructible invisible barrier. Long Haochen received Li Xin's powerful blow without suffering the slightest injury.

"This is..."

Nalan Shu and Li Xin stared in stunned disbelief. Li Xin could not understand what skill Long Haochen had used to block that attack. In her eyes, her Light Slash Sword should at least have left him thoroughly battered. The current outcome was clearly beyond her expectations.

As the master of the Hao Yue Sub-Temple, Nalan Shu was more knowledgeable. He immediately recognized Long Haochen's skill, but found it hard to believe that Long Haochen had learned it at such a young age.

Taking advantage of Li Xin's daze, Long Haochen launched an attack without hesitation.

Rush, Pure White Blade!

Long Haochen's right-hand sword chopped down at Li Xin's head. Li Xin immediately came to her senses and raised her right-hand sword to block. At the same time, she swung her left-hand sword toward Long Haochen's side.

Clang—

The two swords collided. Li Xin's left-hand sword was already close to Long Haochen's side, yet instead of using his left-hand sword to block, Long Haochen threw it away. His left hand clenched into a fist and slammed into the blade of Li Xin's left-hand sword.

Boom—

Amid the roar and a dragon's cry, tremendous force surged through the sword. Li Xin felt a sharp pain in the web between her left thumb and forefinger, and her left-hand sword fell to the ground with a clang.

Astonishing Dragon Fist!

Long Haochen had used the Astonishing Dragon Fist, which could unleash twice his own spiritual energy, catching Li Xin completely off guard.

Pressing his advantage, Long Haochen unleashed Astonishing Dragon Fist again. His left fist shot toward Li Xin's lower abdomen. Gritting her teeth, Li Xin gathered all her remaining spiritual energy and activated Light Slash Sword, invoking the sacred Power of Light to shield her abdomen.

Boom—

Li Xin was sent flying backward, while Long Haochen was also forced back again and again by the recoil.

Nalan Shu hurriedly caught Li Xin. Her rosy, pretty face had turned somewhat pale, and a thin trail of blood seeped from the corner of her mouth.

Long Haochen dropped to the ground with a thud, his face equally pale. Astonishing Dragon Fist was immensely powerful, but its consumption was equally enormous. With Long Haochen's current spiritual energy cultivation, he could use it at most twice a day.

Nalan Shu took out a medicinal pill and gave it to Li Xin. Her injuries had not been serious to begin with; she had merely overexerted herself. Her pretty face soon regained its color.

Li Xin rose from the ground and looked at the panting Long Haochen with a complicated expression. She, a dignified Second-Rank Knight, had actually lost to a Fifth-Level Squire like Long Haochen!

Although she had held back somewhat, Long Haochen had indeed defeated her fairly and squarely in battle!

"Little sister, you won!"

Li Xin was someone who accepted both wagers and losses. A loss was a loss.

Long Haochen swayed as he rose from the ground and gave Li Xin an apologetic salute.

Long Haochen did not grow complacent because he had defeated Li Xin. If she had not shown him mercy, his chances of winning would probably have been low.

Nalan Shu rushed over to Long Haochen in a few strides. Excitedly grabbing Long Haochen by the shoulders, he shook him and said, "Little Haochen, tell me quickly. Was that skill you used to block Light Slash Sword called Divine Shield Block?"

Nalan Shu shook Long Haochen until he felt dizzy, leaving him unable to answer for the moment. Li Xin, standing nearby, was instantly filled with shock. "Uncle Nalan, are you sure? The defensive skill Haochen just used was actually the Radiant Knight's Divine Shield Block? Isn't Divine Shield Block something only Radiant Knights can learn?"