There was no time to care what had happened, and Chen Qing didn't have time to ask. He directly activated the spell and grabbed a group of Jiangnan students. In an instant, everyone, including Shen Qi, shrank to the size of dust particles and was grabbed by Chen Qing and stuffed into his sleeve!
This scene stunned many older sorcerers.
In storytelling, there are often scenes where high-ranking immortals display their supernatural powers by simply waving their sleeves, seemingly able to put anything into those wide sleeves. In the storytelling world, this is known as "sleeve magic"!
Many insiders in sorcerer families scoff at this kind of plot, as only spatial spells can achieve that effect. However, the worst thing about spatial spells is their instability; they are usually cast in fixed locations using barrier spells.
Just as the students from the Jiangnan Academy had demonstrated before, the ability to carry Rune Stone in front of them at any time to create spatial barriers was a technology they had never imagined before. It can be said that the students from Jiangnan had given them a thorough lesson, showing them how barrier masters could fight.
Even though they had already witnessed the use of spatial magic by the sorcerers of Jiangnan, they were still shocked by Chen Qing's move.
Anyone with a keen eye could see how Chen Qing had done it. He first enlarged the space in his hand, and then instantly shrank it. This kind of operation, like kneading dough, completely overturned their common sense. Space is difficult to control, and compressing space requires extremely complex runes to be designed at multiple fixed points. But Chen Qing's move was equivalent to directly manipulating the fixed runes to make the space larger, and then immediately shrinking it back.
And the operation takes less than a breath; it seems effortless, but the technical skill involved is incredibly high!
Only then did everyone realize that Jiangnan was built by Chen Qing, and the abilities of so many people under his command were cultivated by Chen Qing. So what level was Chen Qing as the one who cultivated them?
War was imminent, and the emperor instantly distanced himself. Even with this dramatic turn of events, his expression remained largely unchanged. However, Chen Qing's move caught his attention a few more times.
"This young man is no ordinary person." Following the emperor's shadow, Xiang King Xiang retreated to the edge and whispered, "Even the West Sea Dragon King, who was most skilled in spatial magic in my time, might not have reached his level. Be careful, this kid's fighting ability might now rival that of King Chujiang!"
"Your evaluation is quite high," the emperor smiled slightly, his gaze towards Chen Qing somewhat complicated, and it was unclear what he was thinking.
Kagura also glanced at Chen Qing. As an avatar of a top-tier expert, her eyesight was excellent, seeing deeper than many others. Chen Qing's move was entirely due to his on-the-spot manipulation of the spatial barrier runes in his sleeve, which he then instantly changed back. Such precise manipulation was something that even the master-level spatial sorcerers in her guild might not be able to do.
Putting aside Chen Qing's true identity, this guy is a master manipulator.
"Kid, you think you can protect your little brats here? Aren't you underestimating us?"
The old Celestial Master's sinister voice rang out, and before anyone knew it, he had already appeared before Chen Qing. His speed was so fast that it was impossible to tell that he was a stooped old man. Many of the Dragon Transformation sorcerers found that their eyes could not keep up with the old Celestial Master's speed at all.
Chen Qing's expression also darkened. Why had this old man targeted him? And his speed was too fast! There were no elemental fluctuations; he relied entirely on his physical body. Had he been modified? Even Ao Zhen might not be as fast as him.
Bang!
The two collided instantly, their blood and qi surging, and terrifying elemental power exploded, directly causing violent spatial turbulence that even tore apart the main hall of the Heaven and Earth Hall!
The surrounding South Sea sorcerers immediately activated their Dragon Transformation, but they were all forced back several feet by the shockwave. In an instant, ninety percent of them felt their blood churning and felt unwell. The Four Saints Guard in the hall also quickly moved back to make room for the two of them.
The Emperor and Kagura, the only two who could keep up with the speed of the two, had no intention of intervening. Instead, they took advantage of the tremors to create distance and observe the situation.
Chen Qing cursed under his breath, but he had no time to think and could only deal with the old monster who had suddenly launched an attack.
The group of sorcerers who had retreated, including Chen Baifeng, gasped when they saw the two fighting. Normally, after Dragon Transformation, even when facing Transcendent martial artists, their eyes wouldn't be unable to keep up. Even in the previous match, with someone as powerful as Zhang Xiaoyun, they could at least get a general idea of what was happening.
But the two people in front of them were not on the same level at all. It felt like if either of them had been targeting them, then every single one of the sorcerers in the hall would have been killed and left alive!
Suddenly, I felt a sense of relief; the other party's target was Chen Qing.
Lu Ming's loss was not unjust.
After the emperor stepped back, he watched the two fight, his gaze becoming even more complex. When they first met, the other was a scholar who was powerless to resist. At that time, he could sense that the other was different from others, but when facing him, the other was no different from an ant.
But now, disregarding Jiangnan's strength, just considering him personally, this kid is probably already one of the top in the world.
Looking back now, if this kid had helped those guild members attack me back in the Northern Wasteland a year ago, would I have been able to win?
"His Highness the King of Qin is very good at hiding his true abilities!"
The two exchanged blows for only a few breaths, but they were already more than a thousand moves apart. The old Celestial Master's scarlet twin swords revealed a hint of surprise.
There were many reasons why he chose to take action against Chen Qing immediately. First, the soldiers from Jiangnan had secretly arrived here, disrupting his plans. Now it seems that not only did the plan in the Northern Lands fail, but Jiangnan has also probably failed!
Kagura's background is too great. Even with the suppression of the rules, the Old Celestial Master is not confident in taking her down. In comparison, Chen Qing's foundation is not strong. According to various intelligence reports, he is a newcomer. Compared to the dangerous emperor of the Xiao Household and Kagura with a huge background, Chen Qing is the one he is most confident in taking down.
But to his surprise, this kid was also so difficult to deal with. In terms of close combat techniques, skills, and elemental manipulation, he had never encountered anyone in the human world for thousands of years who could use them so smoothly. Compared to him, Zhang Xiaoyun, who had been trained for thousands of years, was far inferior to Chen Qing!
This puzzled him. According to the intelligence, Chen Qing seemed to be a new Reincarnator, and many of his martial arts skills were newly learned. He remembered that someone in the intelligence had seen the Eldest Princess personally instructing Chen Qing in martial arts skills.
At the time, he gave the impression of being a complete newcomer.
Even if he wins the duel with Lu Ming later, he believes it was mostly due to trickery. In terms of true martial arts skills, there is still a considerable gap between him and Lu Ming.
But it's only been a few years?
How did it happen so completely, like a rebirth?
Especially the way he combines spiritual power with close-quarters martial arts—it's the work of a seasoned dual-wielding magic and martial arts fighter, his skill level no less than that of the West Sea Dragon King back then. Was this kid hiding his true abilities before?
The old Celestial Master was shocked. Heaven and Earth Hall, Zhang Xiaoyun and Zhang Zhiyun, who were secretly watching all this, were also surprised. They hadn't taken Chen Qing seriously at all, but they never expected him to be able to fight the High Priest to such an extent.
Others may not know, but they do: the High Priest inherited the legacy of the God of War!