Poetic and Picturesque, a Storm of Sabers

The longsword rang out with a clear, sharp sound.

Suddenly, nine horizontal and nine vertical cracks appeared on the round treasure furnace.

It was as if with just a single sound of a blade, the precious furnace was cleaved into countless fragments.

Swoosh!!

Hou Renyu's figure had already drifted backward the instant the treasure furnace cracked.

He guessed who it was.

He was familiar with the other nine people in the original top ten of the Heavenly Ranking, but the aura of the person opposite him was not the same.

Given such skill and the fact that he specifically came to Fire God Gully, he can only be – "The Great Immortal Zongheng" (纵横大仙).

"It seems that little beast actually dared to go looking for this so-called patriarch, whose authenticity is unknown?!"

When Hou Renyu ordered the furnace fires to be gradually reduced, he had also vaguely considered this possibility.

However, he still held onto a sliver of hope, thinking that since the Great Immortal Zongheng had now become a target of public criticism, he might not act rashly, nor might he receive the news so quickly.

That last glimmer of hope was extinguished by the sound of the blade.

Bang bang bang!!!

The fragments of the treasure furnace scattered and were stuck haphazardly on the wall of the underground fire passage, revealing the figure behind the furnace.

Chu Tianshu had Sanqi sword hanging from his waist and a long black knife in his hand.

This knife has a smooth spine, a long and slender blade, a delicate texture, and a jet-black blood groove.

The hilt is carved with a tiger's head, the handle is flat and round with bamboo joint patterns, and at the end of the handle is a delicate black skull.

This sword is straighter than the Demonic Sect Sect's treasured sword from back then, but its beauty is no less than that sword.

The material of the blade, after being forged and refined by a master craftsman, is far stronger than that of the demonic blade from back then.

There is also a distinct spirituality in the blade, which feels different from the pure and intelligent spirit of the Sanqi Weapon Soul.

It's more like a magical Dharma Spirit born from the Mist and Rosy Clouds Realm Layer back then, using the Death-Claiming Sword and the Demonic Saber Art.

More extreme, more brutal.

The blade had just been flicked by Chu Tianshu, and there was still a slight buzzing vibration at the edge.

The next moment, the blade suddenly became ethereal.

Because Chu Tianshu, along with his sword, had vanished from his original location, his movements so swift as a bolt of black lightning.

As Hou Renyu stepped back, his hands were already moving in and out of his sleeves.

When the ten fingers were exposed again, they were all covered with dark silver iron claws, with the first two joints of each finger protected by the claws.

He clenched his fist in this posture, with his thumb hidden in his palm, and four iron claws covering the back of his fingers, blocking the blade.

The lightning-like blade of light was blocked thirteen times in an instant by his unique fist imprint.

Throughout the entire battle, Hou Renyu's figure continued to retreat perfectly along the arc of the secret passage, drifting through the air and stirring up dust with unparalleled smoothness.

The large amount of ash in the secret passage startled them only after they had passed through it.

Some ashes, like tiny black dots, float in the air and begin to turn white and condense into frost before they even have a chance to fall.

The frost resembles a plum blossom, but it is many times smaller than a real plum blossom, as if it were a product of high condensation.

That's right.

Hou Renyu's martial arts also originated from the Plum Blossom Numerology Transformation, with a pure and cold aura, like a military formation.

The fist imprints' swift interceptions resembled the movement of military formations.

The heat from the Central Plains fire passage mingled with the moisture formed by the cold air, making his fist appear and disappear.

Each punch was like an ambush, suddenly emerging from the invisible forest.

The black longsword, with its chilling and terrifying swordsmanship, was actually intercepted precisely by such a fist imprint.

But Hou Renyu showed no intention of seeking an opportunity to counterattack.

Hou Renyu also noticed the dramatic changes on the Heavenly Ranking.

Although the Great Immortal Zongheng successfully climbed to third place afterward.

However, when the name of Great Immortal Zongheng first entered the Present Ranking, there was a fierce back-and-forth between him and Gao Ye's name.

The competition raged on for a full five breaths.

This is the length of their battle.

Gao Ye, though he practices the Plum Blossom Numerology Divination, is the head of the Six Gates, a powerful force used to suppress thieves. He is used to fighting head-on and is increasingly brave in battle.

Hou Renyu can guarantee that he definitely took the initiative and wanted to kill his opponent.

Even so, he managed to hold on for five breaths.

So, if Hou Renyu doesn't even try to fight head-on, surely he can't last five breaths?

"Besides, it doesn't actually need to be five breaths long!!"

The subterranean fire is naturally formed and has never been extinguished for hundreds of years. The hidden passages scattered under more than a dozen mountains are simply used to control the temperature of the fire.

Today, the firepower in the main workshop area of Fire God Gully is weak.

However, once you leave this area, the firepower in the outer secret passages remains fierce, and the connections are extremely deep, covering the mountain's cavities.

If Hou Renyu could escape to that place, it would be enough to make the enemy hesitate to advance, thus avoiding a catastrophe of mutual destruction.

He asked himself, "How long would it take to escape there?"

"With the thumb tucked in and the four fingers extended outwards, like a plum blossom hiding a petal, it's a deliberate attempt to feign incompleteness, a strategy of self-concealment and retreat."

Chu Tianshu's figure glided through the air, as if riding the wind and thunder, bursting forth with power. His swift blade relentlessly pursued, while his thoughts and voice echoed far and wide.

"You're good at planning for the long term but short-sighted in your actions, knowing when to advance and when to retreat. Your internal strength is slightly inferior to that of the man surnamed Gao, but your mastery of Plum Blossom Numerology Divination is actually higher."

"What a pity----"

Hou Renyu dared not be negligent in the slightest with his fists, a cold smile playing on his lips.

Are you suggesting that my greed for the leadership position, leaving behind hidden dangers, and my wishful thinking in extinguishing the furnace and taking the sword, was unwise?

The world is full of troubles, and the path of life is endless. Whether you do good or evil, you will always have countless enemies.

Since doing good will also create countless enemies, and being honest and simple, one should not be ostentatious.

Why not do evil, be unrestrained and domineering, and live life to the fullest?

Plum Blossom Numerology is ultimately a martial art; it's meant to encourage people to take action, not to make them afraid to do anything!

"Unfortunately, I can calculate that too."

The moment Chu Tianshu's voice rang out, he suddenly drew his sword with his left hand.

In that scene, he reversed the Sanqi grip with his left hand, instantly rotated it to a normal grip, and raised the black knife in his right hand above his head, stretching out his long arm.

Once he drew his twin blades, he was no longer facing forward. Instead, his feet moved like dragons and snakes, his body shifting and turning, the twin blades swirling around him, unleashing a flurry of deadly strikes.

In an instant, the originally spacious underground fire passage appeared extremely narrow, as if a torrential downpour from the heavens filled it up.

Throughout the entire process, Chu Tianshu never looked directly at Hou Renyu again.

Hou Renyu's eyes, however, seemed to shrink to the size of a pinhead in order to control the trembling sensation.

He only saw a figure in front of him, like a fairy or a ghost, like smoke or lightning, suddenly dancing and bringing with it a torrent of waterfall droplets crashing down.

The entire secret passage was covered by a white mist of water droplets, each droplet radiating a sharp, razor-like aura.

Hou Renyu's boxing skills had long been honed to the point where he could catch all the raindrops that came close to him with his bare hands even in a stormy weather.

But the water droplets hitting us at this moment are nothing like ordinary natural rainwater.

He used all his strength, but could only protect his vital organs. He could no longer care about his clothes, which were cut into tattered pieces.

Clang!!

Hou Renyu's hair ornament was suddenly shattered by a drop of water, causing his disheveled hair to stand on end.

In an instant, most of her long hair was shredded by the moisture.

Many water droplets that grazed past him hit the walls of the secret passage, but instead of breaking them, they bounced off.

The water vapor was as fine as silk, and each time a water droplet bounced off, it left a trail of bluish-green silk in the dark passage.

In the blink of an eye, countless green threads Zongheng and spread out in the long, dark passage behind.

Hou Renyu sensed something was wrong the moment he bumped into the silk thread.

A large number of silk threads were broken by his protective power.

But the pressure ahead was too great, and he couldn't stop his momentum, bumping into even more threads.

"Break!!"

Hou Renyu angrily rebuked, pushing forward with both palms and unleashing his power, only to have it shattered by the overwhelming sword energy.

Each frosty plum blossom cracks open in mid-air.

Chu Tianshu's figure stopped dancing three feet away.

The two swords hung low, their tips touching the ground with a soft hum.

Hanging in mid-air, Hou Renyu's limbs resonated, unleashing fine, intricate blades that crumbled into pieces, the fragments resembling ice and crystal, their color tinged with blue.

The final cross-section of the severed limb was completely devoid of color, as if it had been sealed by blue ice.

"Wow, that's a bit cruel."

Chu Tianshu frowned. "I originally intended to cut it in one piece, but I got a little carried away and ended up breaking it into so many pieces. It seems my calculations weren't precise enough."

The knife was too sharp, the ice too cold, so Hou Renyu didn't actually feel much pain.

But that feeling of weakness caused his lips to turn blue.

"You----Me----"

Doing good doesn't necessarily mean being honest and easy to bully.

This benevolent deity before me is truly terrifying.

On the ground.

The Dream-Eating Marquis, who had been squatting in the forest, stood up and muttered, "This great immortal made me squat here and fight against the black palm, without even having to lift a finger."

In another mountain hollow, Lan Ziya stood up, patted the grass clippings off his hands, closed his eyes, savored the memory, and praised it highly.

"Poetic and picturesque, the heavy rain cleanses the filth—what profoundly meaningful knife work!"