"Boom!"
A dull crash rang out, and both combatants shuddered violently. The instant they neutralized the incoming force, each raised his arms and channeled his strength into another move. Their arms entwined like a tortoise and snake, locking and trapping one another.
At the same time, both abruptly shifted their centers of gravity, rolling their shoulders and leaning sideways as they slammed together like charging bulls.
That single collision seemed to topple mountains and bring down the sky. Two astounding forces crashed together like monstrous waves. In the ensuing surge, their hair and beards bristled, and the gravel and sand beneath their feet were ground to fine powder under their soles, scattering like dust.
"Hmph!"
"Hah!"
Both now kept their lips and teeth tightly shut, sealing in their vital essence as their qi-blood surged like roaring fires. Neither spoke; only savage killing intent showed on their faces. After a brief exchange, they rammed shoulders, their upper bodies tilted as they advanced in a straight line, pitting their strength against each other.
Those few steps were like an immense boulder weighing tens of thousands of pounds rolling across the Golden Summit. With each heavy footfall, the thick, tightly fitted paving stones shook as though about to come apart. Tiles shook loose from the halls on either side, falling like rain.
After this brief clash, veins had already begun standing out across Lian Youming's and Song Huaizhen's cheeks. One had his lone eye wide open, while the other narrowed his fierce eyes. The muscles of both faces writhed uncontrollably, as though violent winds and waves were rising beneath their feet, whipping their clothes and making their features especially ferocious. Neither yielded, and they drove straight ahead, reaching the Golden Hall in only three or five steps.
Even then, their feet did not