The rain gradually eased.
Wang Ershui's voice, however, grew more impassioned. "I don't know what happened, but the saber-wielding youth has definitely gotten stronger. He's even gained a slight upper hand against the criminal Zhao Weiping!"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
On the street behind Wang Ershui,
Ning Chuan fought ferociously with his saber, its silver light striking Force more than a dozen times in less than a second.
The sounds of their collisions seemed to run together into a continuous line.
Every so often, blood sprayed from Zhao Weiping's body.
"Just as I firmly believed, the saber-wielding youth is turning defeat into victory!"
Wang Ershui shouted.
Hearing that, Zhao Weiping began to think of retreating.
It wasn't that he was worried about losing.
If he ignored his injuries and channeled his Force with everything he had, Zhao Weiping was confident he could kill the youth opposite him with a single blow.
But if he did that, his own injuries would become so severe that he would be unable to move.
Bang!
Zhao Weiping struck the Silver Blood Saber with his fist, unleashing his Force and knocking it flying backward.
"Kid, I'll be staying in Qingshan City for a while. Once I've recovered, I'll come back and take my time playing with you!"
Zhao Weiping gave Ning Chuan a long look, his gaze cold and sinister.
Ning Chuan sneered. "Trying to run?!"
"Can you stop me?!"
Zhao Weiping's voice was full of contempt and mockery.
The youth's movement technique had the advantage only in agility. In terms of speed, he was a step behind Zhao Weiping and naturally couldn't catch up.
"You can try!"
Ning Chuan stepped forward and swung the Silver Blood Saber, its silver light extending three meters!
Its speed abruptly increased several notches.
Zhao Weiping couldn't block it in time. With a wet slash, another deep wound opened on his body, exposing pale bone that was immediately submerged in blood.
What he lacked in movement speed, he made up for with saber speed!
"How did you do that?!"
Clutching his wound, Zhao Weiping's face darkened.
Ning Chuan didn't answer. He advanced and swung his saber.
Notification sounds rang out one after another in his mind.
"Progress increased by 10%!"
"Progress increased by 10%!"
After Flash Thunder Slash advanced to the Expert Realm, its epiphany hadn't ended. It was still continuing.
Ning Chuan had merely hidden it, keeping it from showing.
He had quietly improved his saber technique.
All so that when Zhao Weiping tried to flee, his saber would be fast enough to stop him.
After all, this was a million on legs.
"Whoosh!"
Zhao Weiping moved swiftly, whipping up a fierce wind as he darted and dodged in every direction across the street, trying to break through.
But streak after streak of silver light followed him like a shadow, giving him no chance whatsoever.
If he didn't stop to block, death was all that awaited him!
The scene closely resembled Ning Chuan stopping Zhang Wensi from fleeing in the classroom during the selection trials.
The difference was,
Ning Chuan's saber was faster now.
And he could strike to kill!
Slash!
Ning Chuan swung his saber, spraying blood and forcing Zhao Weiping back once again.
Now that he was no longer hiding his strength, the Silver Blood Saber was astonishingly fast.
Zhao Weiping was covered in blood, with countless wounds all over his body!
"I never thought I'd fall at the hands of someone at Awakening Stage Six!"
Zhao Weiping stopped trying to break out.
"But if I can drag a genius like you to the grave with me, that'll make it worthwhile!"
A vicious look appeared on Zhao Weiping's face.
Since he couldn't escape, they would die together!
The Force throughout Zhao Weiping's body began to boil, surging madly toward his hands as a terrifying aura spread.
He was clearly preparing some powerful martial art.
Ning Chuan's gaze shifted slightly. He used Gale Step and immediately swung his saber.
Boom!
A three-meter streak of silver light shot through the air, as fast as lightning.
Zhao Weiping didn't block. He moved swiftly, doing nothing but dodge, devoting the rest of his attention to preparing the martial art that would take them both down.
When he truly couldn't dodge, he took the blows with nonvital areas such as his thighs and back.
He was going to die anyway, so a few more or fewer injuries made no difference.
Force surged around his hands, rising like flames, its aura growing ever more terrifying.
The instant raindrops touched it, they were annihilated!
Seeing this, Ning Chuan's eyes turned cold, without a trace of fear. He swung the Silver Blood Saber again and again, each slash faster than the last, sweeping over Zhao Weiping like the heavens and earth closing in, like the Milky Way pouring down, seeking only to kill him as quickly as possible.
"Flash Thunder Slash's epiphany has ended!"
"Flash Thunder Slash has accumulated enough and undergone sublimation, advancing to the Perfect Realm!"
The cold synthesized voice echoed in his mind.
At once, Ning Chuan's perception of Flash Thunder Slash became entirely different.
It was as though he had been able to perform this martial art from birth, as though it were an innate instinct.
Without pausing, Ning Chuan swung the Silver Blood Saber.
Boom!
A thunderstorm-like explosion rang out, deafeningly loud.
And the source of the sound
was none other than the Silver Blood Saber.
With Flash Thunder Slash at the Perfect Realm, all its power was channeled into the blade, with not a trace leaking out.
"Three Slashes in an Instant!"
Ning Chuan flicked his wrist.
Three long, narrow streaks of silver light appeared in the air almost simultaneously.
Each was more than three meters long, and they crossed to form an inverted equilateral triangle, completely enveloping Zhao Weiping!
"Illusions?!"
Zhao Weiping's heart jolted. He believed two of the slashes were illusions, meant to conceal the one true slash that carried the killing intent.
Just as he tried to tell them apart,
the sharpness emanating from all three streaks of silver light made him realize, with a chill in his heart, that no illusions were hiding anything.
All three slashes coming at him were killing blows!
Zhao Weiping desperately retreated, the threat of death drawing out his potential and making him extremely fast.
But before the long, narrow streaks of silver light, he still looked like he was moving in slow motion under a high-speed camera.
Boom!
Boom!
The two diagonal streaks of silver light slammed into the Force gathered around Zhao Weiping's hands. Amid a tremendous crash, the dark red Force scattered and vanished as the rain washed over it.
The horizontal streak of silver light passed through Zhao Weiping's neck without the slightest resistance.
A line of blood appeared in a flash.
The next moment,
a head with a cleanly severed neck flew high into the air, and a column of blood shot skyward.
It doesn't seem to hurt...
Catching sight of a headless corpse, Zhao Weiping's consciousness sank into endless darkness.
Seeing this, Wang Ershui was so excited that she couldn't stop herself from roaring, "The formal martial artist, Heavenly Martial spy, and Federation felon Zhao Weiping has been beheaded by a youth from Qingshan with a single slash, as a warning to others!"
The various livestreaming platforms instantly erupted, sending waves of commotion everywhere.
Shocked scrolling comments and messages were too numerous to count!
The viewers with profound attainments in martial arts were especially shaken, rendered speechless.
They could see just how difficult the slash the youth had used to behead Zhao Weiping had been!
"This young man is terrifying!"
A ray of sunlight pierced the dark clouds and fell toward the earth.
Qingshan City's first spring rain came to an end.
Ning Chuan raised his head and half-closed his eyes, letting the gentle early-spring sunlight fall over his body.
At his feet, blood flowed from Zhao Weiping's corpse and spread with the rainwater, a vivid, striking red.
Under the sunlight, Ning Chuan, having killed for the first time, barely managed to maintain his composure as he slowly recovered his strength.
For one thing, his many sparring sessions with Lu Mengyue had made him increasingly familiar with combat.
For another, an increase in strength could itself affect one's state of mind.
The Federation was different from his previous life. Though its technology was advanced, martial arts were at its core, and fighting and killing were inevitable.
To become a powerhouse, one's hands had to be stained with blood.
This accident could be considered an opportunity to encounter the dangerous side of martial arts ahead of time.
He was certain he didn't dislike it.
"Martial arts are a road stained with blood..."
Ning Chuan murmured, seeming to realize something as he sank into thought.
"Yue'er!"
Suddenly, a great shout tinged with concern brought Ning Chuan back to his senses.
He had only just heard the voice, and his brain hadn't yet had time to make out its meaning, when a tall figure appeared in his field of vision and carefully helped the fallen Lu Mengyue up.
What kind of speed is that!
Ning Chuan stared at the man, his gaze filled with shock.
"Dad, I'm fine!" Lu Mengyue said weakly, pointing toward Ning Chuan. "This is my classmate. He saved me and killed Zhao Weiping too."
Hearing that, Ning Chuan immediately knew who had arrived.
The master of the Extreme Path Martial Arts Hall.
And the strongest person in Qingshan City!
Lu Zhan glanced at Ning Chuan. "First time killing someone?"
"Yes."
Ning Chuan nodded lightly.
Before this, facing an important figure like Lu Zhan, he might not have tried to curry favor, but he would inevitably have been nervous.
That was only human nature, hard to avoid.
But after the life-and-death battle, Ning Chuan's state of mind had grown considerably, and he was quite composed now.
"Not bad!"
After giving that assessment, Lu Zhan said no more.
Lu Mengyue couldn't help taking another look at Ning Chuan.
She knew her father well. He had always been demanding, and even she, who had a chance of getting into Galaxy University, had received only an "average" from him.
A few minutes later, a large number of police cars and ambulances arrived at the scene.