Chapter 411 - 261: Victory, One Gold and One Silver

Chapter 411: Chapter 261: Victory, One Gold and One Silver

This was the first time he had a chance to obtain a golden talent in battle.

"Damn it! These two beasts!"

The two men struggling against Lu Bufan felt their blood run cold.

They had thought Yu Fei would join them against Lu Bufan, but they never imagined the madman would target them as well.

Caught in a pincer attack, the two were eliminated in an instant.

"Hm?"

Lu Bufan’s expression grew grave as he faced the roaring tide of Sword Qi.

To be honest, a torrent of Sword Qi like this wasn’t easy to handle. One would either need an extremely strong defensive ability to ignore the attacks entirely.

He could tell that a single strand of Sword Qi wasn’t powerful, but the sheer, terrifying quantity would be difficult for anyone to handle—unless they were a defensive Martial Artist specializing in Iron Body techniques.

But... he had another way. Though the Sword Qi was a tide, its quality was far too low.

Lu Bufan took a deep breath, focused his will, and then his Inner Qi erupted like a volcano.

In an instant, using his longsword as a spearhead, he pierced through the tide of Sword Qi layer by layer. Unlike ordinary Martial Artists who would release their Inner Qi to form shapes, he condensed his, making his blade like a swordfish charging against the current.

Even before the blade arrived, Yu Fei sensed an immense threat.

He finally understood why Lu Bufan’s previous opponents had behaved so strangely.

As Lu Bufan drew closer, he instinctively felt a shadow cast over his mind. His very soul screamed that the man before him was invincible, and a thousand distracting thoughts bloomed.

The technique was truly bizarre. A clear radiance pulsed from his Void Clearing Mirror, constantly sweeping away the distracting thoughts. Even so, Yu Fei felt his combat power drop by at least ten percent.

The effects of this negative status were multifaceted. The circulation speed of his Inner Qi, the strength of his Sword Intent, and even the buffs from his many talents were all impacted. Yu Fei noticed that the fifteen-fold increase to his reaction speed from his Fleeting Life’s Instant talent, as well as the speed boost from talents like Startling Swan, had all been reduced to varying degrees.

With his Void Clearing Mirror to banish the distracting thoughts, he could still maintain control. However, the debilitating effect on his abilities was tangible.

An ordinary Martial Artist would likely have been affected even more severely.

’Is this the special effect of a golden talent? It’s kind of cheap!’

Lu Bufan slashed down. Just as Yu Fei blocked the attack, a sense of cowardice welled up in his soul. Even with the Void Clearing Mirror constantly purging these thoughts, it was still a fraction of a second too slow.

The corners of Lu Bufan’s mouth lifted. This junior wasn’t half bad, managing to block his strike.

’But this is where it ends!’

In the next instant, a second strike descended as fast as lightning. Yu Fei’s body froze, unable to react.

As the sword was about to land, Lu Bufan noticed the Grandmaster hadn’t made a move to save Yu Fei.

’Then...’

He slashed down without hesitation. Yu Fei’s body dissolved into motes of light and vanished. But somehow, he had reappeared in another spot!

’The Fake Form Shifting Skill?’

Lu Bufan attacked again without hesitation. His condensed sword light tore through the Boundless Sword Qi as if it were made of paper. This was the other weakness of the Boundless Sword Qi: while it could overwhelm with numbers, it was somewhat powerless against a truly mighty technique.

Lu Bufan’s perception, Inner Qi strength, Sword Intent, and speed were all superior to Yu Fei’s—a natural gap due to the difference in their realms.

Coupled with that bizarre ability to weaken and confuse an opponent, Yu Fei had no good counter for the time being.

The two gave chase. Every time Yu Fei blocked one of Lu Bufan’s attacks, he had to retreat immediately. It wasn’t that he was afraid; it was that soul-confounding ability was just too cheap. The sudden negative emotions—cowardice, helplessness—would affect his judgment in that split second.

Even with the Void Clearing Mirror constantly purging them, it was still a hair too slow.

’That slight delay is a fatal flaw in a close-quarters battle. In a straight-up melee, I could run circles around Lu Bufan.’

’My various talents and Divine Sense enhancement give me every advantage up close, but this guy’s ability is just disgusting.’

’This isn’t working...’

Time flew as the chase continued. Lu Bufan had no good counter for Yu Fei’s Fake Form Shift, and Yu Fei’s Boundless Sword Qi couldn’t touch him either.

During that time, Yu Fei had tried various forms of Sword Intent, but Lu Bufan suppressed them all. Hampered by that strange suppressive field, Yu Fei didn’t dare get locked in a melee with him.

’I have to find a way!’ Yu Fei thought.

’The strangest part about Lu Bufan’s power is the negative emotions it generates in close combat. The suppression of my abilities is a secondary concern.’

He reviewed his entire arsenal. ’As long as I can avoid being affected by these negative emotions, I can beat Lu Bufan in a melee, even if my Sword Intent is weaker.’

’The man is outstanding in many ways, but his physique is much weaker than mine. I long ago cultivated the Melt Gold Jade Body Skill to the grand completion stage, something no ordinary Inner Qi Realm Martial Artist should be able to achieve.’

Because of this, his physique was exceptionally tough. After weighing his options, Yu Fei decisively activated the explosive Secret Technique granted by his Iron Body Skill: Blood-Soaked Tyrant Body.

Suddenly, Yu Fei’s eyes turned a crimson-gold. All the negative emotions were incinerated, transformed into power that flooded his being. He blocked Lu Bufan’s attack once more, but this time, he did not retreat.

The slightest hint of cowardice was incinerated and converted into power before it could even form.

His muscles bulged and coiled. His mind was clear, no longer in a trance.

"Hm?"

Lu Bufan was surprised, but that surprise quickly turned to delight. The guy had been hopping around like a flea he couldn’t catch, and now he actually dared to stand his ground.

He was about to press his advantage. Just as it had always been, no one could stand against him. To be honest, it was already impressive that this junior had managed to contend with him for so long.

In a fleeting glance, he saw Yu Fei’s menacing grin and suddenly had a bad feeling.

BANG!

"What?"

Lu Bufan struggled to defend. For some reason, the heavy sword in Yu Fei’s hands was as fast as lightning, crashing down with immense force. He could barely react.

The battle that followed completely shattered his perception of reality.

Yu Fei’s heavy sword became a blur, a flurry of afterimages. The Inner Qi coating the blade was manageable, but each strike was heavier and faster than the one before.

In moments, Lu Bufan’s entire frame rattled with pain from the impacts. He wanted to retreat, but couldn’t create an opening.

’This isn’t right!’

Lu Bufan’s longsword was knocked from his grasp. The webbing of his right thumb split open, and his face was a mask of utter shock.

He had lost!

This was the first defeat of his life. An unprecedented failure.

In the past, any opponent he faced would be overwhelmed by his presence the moment he drew his sword, collapsing before a single strike.

Zhanming lay against Lu Bufan’s neck. Yu Fei had won the battle and successfully claimed a Golden Crow Fruit.

’More importantly, I’m about to get his talent.’

He glanced at the Fate-Defying Pearl. Silver... ’Shit!’

As fast as he could, while Zhanming was still a threat to Lu Bufan’s life, he marked his opponent again and used his final chance to copy.

Looking again, Yu Fei was completely satisfied.

He’d gotten a gold!

Just then, Zhao Yuanpeng waved a hand, and an invisible wave of air separated the two. Yu Fei’s heart leaped into his throat. ’That was close. A second later and I wouldn’t have had time to copy it again.’

"Alright, everyone. The path of martial arts is long. A single victory or defeat means little."

"The Golden Crow Fruit, while precious, has many equivalents. For an ordinary Martial Artist, it can be transformative, but for all of you, it is merely icing on the cake!"

Zhao Yuanpeng landed and offered some words of comfort to the crowd. Yu Fei glanced around, noticing that his and Lu Bufan’s battle had lasted the longest. Yu Wen Baji and the other heavily armored man had long since claimed victory.

His battle with Lu Bufan hadn’t caused much of a stir.

What Yu Fei didn’t know was that compared to his own drawn-out, heated battle, Yu Wen Baji had simply swung his long saber once to defeat all his opponents.

Meanwhile, the heavily armored man had simply let everyone attack him without fighting back. He tanked their hits for three minutes straight without a speck of dust landing on his armor, then let out a massive roar that knocked all the other contestants unconscious.

To many, his Boundless Sword Qi looked strange and intimidating, but the individual strands were too weak for others to take seriously.

The only thing that was particularly eye-catching was his relatively low Inner Qi Realm.

As for Lu Bufan, now that he had lost, he garnered much less attention.

Those who had never fought Lu Bufan had no idea just how bizarre his abilities were.