Lu Yang's saber was fast, its edge driving straight for Yi Yang's throat.
There was nothing flashy about this strike. Even against a late true astral realm martial artist, he held nothing back, intent on killing with a single blow.
He could present Yi Yang's head to Li Chengyan to claim credit. Perhaps he would even receive a share of those treasures.
But fast as he was, someone was faster.
Yi Yang's illusion-breaking realm divine sense captured Lu Yang's every movement. The path of his opening strike and the way he exerted his strength were all laid bare in Yi Yang's mind.
Even the vibrations of a dry twig snapping beneath his foot registered clearly in Yi Yang's sea of consciousness.
The strike looked dangerous, but in truth, it was riddled with openings.
Just as Lu Yang's saber tip was about to touch the skin of Yi Yang's throat-
Yi Yang moved. He did not even look at Lu Yang, merely taking a casual half-step backward.
That half-step was enough to make Lu Yang's supposedly certain strike miss.
The keen edge swept past Yi Yang's collar, stirring a faint breeze.
Lu Yang's pupils contracted sharply when his strike missed. He had never expected his opponent to react so quickly. He tried to withdraw his saber and change moves, but it was already too late.
Yi Yang reached out with his right hand and grasped the saber hilt behind his back.
Clang.
With a soft ring, the Mysterious Abyss Saber left its sheath.
An ink-black streak of saber light flashed through the air, so fast its path was almost impossible to see.
The saber light passed with the sound of breaking bone, and Lu Yang froze in place.
He remained poised with his saber thrust forward, the vicious expression still lingering