Chapter 14: Gathering Winds and Thunder (Part 1)

  It was just a casual point, but in Lu Qing's eyes, that finger seemed to have transformed into a majestic purple-red giant sword that pierced the sky and the earth. The overwhelming momentum was transmitted to the hearts of all swordsmen above the Sword Guest level in an inexplicable way, including the six great guardians present, who felt a strong pressure that pierced their spirits.

  Fortunately, this momentum did not have any hostility or malice towards anyone, so apart from feeling the pressure, there was no other harm.

  As Xuan Qing pointed, the tip of his finger touched the middle of Yu and Hua's bodies. The tip of his finger happened to touch the place where Di Huo Zhen Jue and Zi Xiao Xun Feng shield were in contact. Suddenly, at the place where Xuan Qing's fingertips touched, several purple-red electric lights burst out violently.

  With a loud crash, whether it was Yuwen Ruo's Earthfire True Absolute Slash or Yu Jihua's Zi Xiao Xuan Wind Shield, both were instantly shattered. The two of them were simultaneously sent flying by the shockwave, falling towards the empty space on either side of the Sword Platform.

  Uh-huh

  Uh-huh

  Hmph!

  The two landed and simultaneously retreated six steps, with a few drops of blood oozing from the corners of their mouths.

  Fortunately, it was Xuan Qing who made the move. With Xuan Qing's sword soul boundary and precise force, the two of them only suffered a slight injury. As long as they sat down to recover for three or two days, they would be fine. The two of them propped themselves up, bowed to Xuan Qing, and then smiled at each other before returning to the inner sect disciples.

  But the previously worried Hu Luo Feng finally let out a deep breath, to be honest, he had spent too much time on this disciple Yu Wen Nu, and he knew that his own cultivation had already reached a bottleneck, so he placed all his hopes on Yu Wen Nu. With Yu Wen Nu's excellent innate talent combined with his careful guidance, it was not possible to reach the unattainable realm of the Sword Soul Master, but at least advancing to the rank of Sword Master still had a great deal of hope.

  At this moment, facing the courtesy of Yu and Hua, Xuan Qing didn't say anything, but a keen observer still caught a glimpse of delight flashing in his eyes.

  Perhaps influenced by Yu Jihua and Yu Wen Nu, the seventh-ranked Tai Yun, including sixth, fifth, fourth, and now third-ranked Ling Xiao, all gave up their chance to challenge.

  After all, compared to the ranking of a big competition, entering the sword pool for training is really too important.

  The result was somewhat disappointing to the four disciples of Si Feng who had come to watch, but soon they couldn't help but feel excited again, because next, they would see a battle between three top ten masters on the Dragon and Phoenix List.

  Just as they had just arrived, they already knew that Lu Qing had never been challenged before, and the master of Xuanqing Peak had also automatically ignored the arrangement to challenge Lu Qing.

  For Lu Qing now, going to challenge the inner disciples of Jianzhe stage is completely meaningless. With his current ranking on the Longfeng list, no one will say anything idle, because he indeed has such strength and qualifications. Everyone understands that now, even if it's just a matter of cultivation, apart from Xian Tian, the sword master, it's Lu Qing's turn next.

  At the same time, Si Feng's disciples also became somewhat anxious, as they worried that Lu Qing and his two companions would give up on the challenge just like their previous disciples had, which would make their trip today meaningless.

  However, the disciples of Chaoyang Peak were not worried at all. Before the competition even began, Nie Qingtian and Zhao Qianye's suppressed fighting spirit had already said it all. The two even burst out with a fierce battle intent when Lu Qing arrived, which was already an obvious challenge.

  As expected, after glancing around, Xuan Qing spoke up: "The next challenge will be chosen by you yourselves, but if you don't want to be overtaken by others due to injury during the sword pool's training, it's better not to use your full strength." This remark was clearly directed at Lu Qing and his two companions, who simultaneously bowed their heads in respect towards Xuan Qing.

  It was almost the moment when the three of them stood up, and a shocking war intent burst out from their bodies at the same time. In the horrified gaze of the four peak disciples, three powerful storms were triggered by the aura of the three people, spreading outward in all directions.

  As expected, at the moment when the momentum of the three burst out, all the inner disciples retreated more than ten feet, clearing a space for the three. At the same time, the eyes looking at the three were filled with envy and expectation.

  For these young inner sect disciples, fame and strength were their only pursuits.

  At this moment, under the gaze of everyone, Lu Qing suddenly felt a little dazed. Just a year ago, he was just a sword servant, with no power or status among the inner sect disciples, and could be insulted by Gong Yangyu at will. Now, after only one year has passed, not only did he possess strong power that entered the top ten of the Dragon and Phoenix List, but also inherited the position of protector ahead of schedule. All this came too fast.

  Even now, he still clearly remembers when he first arrived at Chaoyang Palace and heard Yu Jihua's introduction to Nie Qingtian:

  "Master Brother Nie Qingtian, at the age of 13, entered the door and converted to practicing our Chao Yangfeng's Xu Ri Xin Jing. At the age of 14, he successfully built his foundation and reached the Sword Holder stage. Two years later, with his Xu Ri Thirteen Swords, he made a big splash in the semi-annual competition, successfully advancing to become the Fifth Master Brother. After two months, he broke through again, entering the second realm of the sword path, the Sword Guest stage. In the next semi-annual competition, he used his Qing Feng Zui Jian technique to suppress everyone, becoming the Master Brother of our Chao Yangfeng. In the following three years, under the guidance of his master, he broke through again and entered the Sword Master stage, earning him the reputation as one of the top ten young masters of our Purple Cloud Sect. Until last month's competition, no one could survive more than 50 moves against Master Brother."

  He still remembered the feeling he had when he heard those words, a complex mix of shock, admiration, confusion and jealousy that left him bewildered about the Five Peaks Sword Meet five years later. However, in just one year's time, he had undergone a transformation, and now possessed incredible strength that his opponent could no longer ignore.

  Feeling the surging Wind Thunder Sword Origin in his body, Lu Qing's heart suddenly rose with a strong sense of confidence. On him, the originally rising momentum once again violently surged, and actually completely countered Zhao Qianye's two people's momentum in mid-air.

  At this moment, almost everyone felt a strong sense of confidence from Lu Qing, as if no one could stop his footsteps, and the powerful momentum dominated the entire Chaoyang Palace.

  At this time, the six great protectors who were already highly valued were even more shocked in their hearts. They couldn't understand why Lu Qing could possess such a strong aura at this moment, with a calm and steady state of mind, not fearing Zhao Qianye and the other person in front of him.

  "To become a master of swordsmanship, one must have such confidence and momentum. This is the grandeur that belongs to a true swordsman, unadulterated and fearless, with no fear of life or death, no fear of success or failure." At some point, Xuan Qing had already stood beside the six people, saying this with a sigh of emotion.

  The six people were all stunned, carefully pondering Xu Ming's words, and for a moment they seemed to have gained insight. At the same time, their gazes turned towards Lu Qing became extremely solemn. It was at this moment that they finally accepted Lu Qing, a thirteen-year-old boy who was also a guardian like them, deep in their hearts.

  But as they sensed the aura on Lu Qing's body, Zhao Qianye and Nie Qingtian both revealed a solemn expression.

  "I'll go first."

  Nie Qingtian turned his head, and at this moment, Zhao Qianye's eyes were calm, but with an unshakeable determination, staring at him firmly.

  Nie Qingtian revealed a nonchalant smile, shrugged his shoulders, took down the wine jug from his waist, opened the wooden stopper and said: "Then you come first." After finishing speaking, Nie Qingtian turned around and retreated five or six zhangs, standing in front of a group of disciples.

  Looking at Lu Qing in front of her, Zhao Qianye spoke up: "Do you still remember what you promised me back then?"

  Lu Qing heard this and nodded, saying: "Remember, when we return to the peak, I'll have a match with you."

  "In that case, let's fight!"

  "Fight!" The two of them simultaneously understood the meaning in each other's eyes. Zhao Qianye took a step forward, and his entire body transformed into a purple-blue lightning bolt, instantly crossing a distance of ten zhang, steadily standing on the sword platform, with the black iron sword pattern beneath his feet not moving at all.

  Next, under the shocked gaze of everyone except Xuan Qing, Lu Qing stepped forward lightly as if strolling in a leisurely courtyard, and with a flash of blue-purple light on his body, he instantly appeared above the sword platform. The figure below the platform didn't dissipate until several breaths later.

  What speed! The four peak disciples, including the Chaoyang Peak disciple who had seen it once before, all widened their eyes, some of them hardly daring to believe it. The six guardians also looked serious, and with their experience, they naturally saw that Lu Qing's move was a profound footwork technique. Could it be that Lu Qing had already obtained the Wind and Thunder Formula left behind by Sword Emperor Lu Tianxiu? However, they soon let go of this thought, as with Lu Qing's current status, it wasn't a problem for him to learn the footwork technique ahead of time.

  And they also discovered the satisfied gaze that was revealed in Xu Qing's eyes, which made them even more determined about their thoughts. However, what they didn't know was that Xu Qing was actually satisfied with Lu Qing's current control over the Wind and Thunder Step. As the creator, combined with his previous understanding of the origin of the Wind and Thunder, Lu Qing had now completely mastered the Wind and Thunder Step. Except for needing to spend more time in the future to comprehend and improve it, he could already use it proficiently.

  At this moment, Lu Qing's speed had also approached the level of a Sword Master Great Heaven from his initial Sword Master Middle Heaven.