A Trace of Sword Intent

"Hahaha! Qin Hao, that good-for-nothing, scraped into the top three by sheer luck, and now he wants to challenge Chen Yuntian!"

"Master Chen, show that trash Qin Hao what you can really do!"

"If you don't beat trash like him hard the first time, he'll forget the pain as soon as the wound heals."

"Chen Yuntian will deal with him in three strikes... Huh?!"

Below the arena, the crowd was still jeering when their voices cut off, as though someone had suddenly seized them by the throat.

Dozens of sword shadows appeared on the platform, surrounding Chen Yuntian from every direction.

More than a dozen peeled away and struck at the sword in his hand.

Bang, bang, bang!

Chen Yuntian's hand jolted under the heavy blows. His sword nearly fell from his grip, while the remaining shadows closed in from all sides.

"How can this be... Why is this strike different from before?"

Chen Yuntian's expression shifted. Without hesitation, he whipped his sword into a new pattern.

Sudden Shift!

His swordsmanship was undeniably fierce. In an instant, he struck down several shadows directly ahead, then stepped lightly across the platform, dodging and shattering the rest.

"Three strikes? Chen Yuntian, you think far too highly of yourself." Qin Hao glanced sideways at him.

"Hmph!"

Chen Yuntian grunted, dodged a sword shadow from the left, and shattered it with a sweep of his blade.

"I underestimated you! Who knew a good-for-nothing like you was hiding his strength?" Chen Yuntian looked somewhat bedraggled, and his eyes burned with murderous intent.

He had been certain three strikes would be enough to defeat Qin Hao.

Instead, he had already made more than a dozen strikes and still ended up in this sorry state.

He had made a complete fool of himself!

The crowd stared, dumbfounded. That reversal had come far too quickly.

"Qin Hao... Is that move really so powerful?"

Liu Xiao had watched the platform the entire time. Qin Hao's strike had overturned everything he thought he knew about him.

"If I faced that strike with the same attitude as Chen Yuntian, I'd be beaten before I could unleash Ninefold Wave!"

Liu Xiao's mouth twitched. Then, as he looked at Qin Hao, fighting spirit gradually rose in his eyes.

Only by battling a genius stronger than himself could he improve!

That one strike alone had made Liu Xiao regard Qin Hao as an equal.

The Myriad Phenomena Genius Tournament is almost over. Once I enter the Myriad Phenomena Hall, I must fight Qin Hao! Liu Xiao made up his mind. With Chen Yuntian and Qin Hao fighting for first place, he no longer had a chance, but he still looked forward to facing Qin Hao.

"What's going on? Did he hold back when he fought Liu Kuang?" Among the Liu family, Liu Ruoxue's beautiful face was cold as frost, and now it darkened further. Disbelief flashed through her eyes.

"How could a good-for-nothing with a First-Grade Martial Soul master swordsmanship this profound?"

"This makes no sense!"

Liu Ruoxue could not accept it.

"The fight isn't over. That good-for-nothing Qin Hao can't possibly beat Chen Yuntian."

"It's just a trick!"

Yang Benhong shook his head. "Junior Sister Liu, that strike is nothing but a trick—an enhanced Sword-Drawing Art. Even with a different approach to attacking, there's nothing to fear. I could defeat it in one move."

Meanwhile, the Qin family watched the platform with tense faces. When they saw that Qin Hao had gained a slight edge, excitement spread across their faces.

"Incredible! Just how did Young Master Qin Hao train?" Qin Xiongfeng murmured excitedly. "He reached this level in only three months. Give him a little more time, and he'll be even stronger."

On the platform.

"Sudden Shift!"

Sword blossoms burst from Chen Yuntian's blade as he attacked Qin Hao in a frenzy. Every strike was vicious; he was fighting in earnest now.

"Come at me!" Qin Hao advanced instead of retreating. "Perfect timing to try the second form of the Firmament Phantom Sword!"

"Phantom Sword!"

Swish! Swish! Swish!

As Chen Yuntian's blade swept toward him, Qin Hao swung his own. In an instant...

Sword shadows descended from above, blotting out the sky and engulfing the entire platform.

The platform measured a hundred meters on each side, yet densely packed sword shadows covered every inch of it, as though they were endless.

Boom!

The thunderous sound shook the training ground.

"What?"

"Th-that many sword shadows!"

"What sword art is Qin Hao using?"

The sight of those densely packed shadows made every scalp prickle.

It seemed impossible.

Those sixty sword shadows earlier had not been Qin Hao's full strength!

"One hundred and eighty sword shadows!" Beside the main stand, Sword Addict Huang Sanjian's eyes blazed. "No, this move is different from the sixty shadows before."

"Each of those sixty shadows had power comparable to the Sword-Drawing Art."

"Of these one hundred and eighty shadows... many are illusions, with real attacks hidden among them. But the power is immense! Likely several times greater than his previous move!"

As he spoke, fervor grew in Sword Addict Huang Sanjian's eyes. "Even I can't tell how many of these one hundred and eighty shadows are real attacks. Tsk, tsk. It seems the rumors don't match the truth. This boy's comprehension may be monstrous!"

"Old Huang, even you can't tell?"

"But... you've trained in swordsmanship for over twenty years. Doesn't that mean this boy's understanding of the sword far surpasses yours?"

"How long has he even been training?"

The others spoke in astonishment.

Chen Yuntian's eyelid twitched. His expression remained unchanged, but disbelief stirred within him.

"Illusions?"

Chen Yuntian saw at once that all one hundred and eighty sword shadows were illusions.

Yet among them, he sensed three extraordinarily powerful attacks.

How did that good-for-nothing learn a sword art like this?

Danger!

Chen Yuntian sensed a trace of danger.

"Break!"

"Boundless!"

He swung his sword.

Unlike Qin Hao's strike, Chen Yuntian's was slow. Yet as his blade descended, it gathered a seemingly inexhaustible force. Every sword shadow it touched vanished like smoke.

Bang!

The next moment, Chen Yuntian felt his sword strike a shadow carrying terrifying force. His blade shuddered.

Then that sword shadow burst apart.

The Two-Yi Sword Art has four forms: Yin-Yang, Sudden Shift, Boundless, and Two-Yi!

Qin Hao felt the force of Chen Yuntian's strike. This must be the third form, Boundless!

"Qin Hao, I take back what I said earlier."

Chen Yuntian advanced on Qin Hao with that boundless force, his voice icy cold. "I never imagined a good-for-nothing like you could comprehend a sword art like this. Unfortunately, you'll still lose."

"Being my stepping stone is the greatest honor you'll ever know!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Yuntian seemed to sense where the attacks would land. His sword struck the two remaining true attacks with perfect accuracy. Dull impacts rang out, and he grunted as his once-boundless force suddenly weakened.

Even so, the power remaining was still comparable to the second form, Sudden Shift!

"Ignorance is the root of every foolish belief."

"But I can't blame you. How could a sparrow understand the ambitions of a swan?"

Qin Hao's expression did not change as he slowly raised his sword. "Swordsmanship doesn't rely on sword techniques alone!"

The third form: Firmament!

Qin Hao had no intention of using Sword Force. It was his trump card, and he would not reveal it unless he had no other choice.

Even so, the third form of the Firmament Phantom Sword contained a trace of Sword Force.

"Hm?"

At almost the same moment, Chi Zhenheng, who had been resting with his eyes closed on the main stand, abruptly opened them. A sharp light flashed in his eyes as he stared straight at Qin Hao.

"Sword Force?" For the first time, astonishment flashed in Chi Zhenheng's eyes.