Chapter 191 - 184: Unstoppable

Chapter 191: Chapter 184: Unstoppable

Hua Guanzhi took a deep breath. His chest expanded violently in that instant, as if he were trying to swallow all the surrounding air into his lungs.

Inside his body, his Inner Strength began to boil, surging madly toward his limbs and bones.

Hua Guanzhi poured all the power he could muster from his Dantian into the edge of the gray iron sword in his hand. Infused with his Inner Strength, the blade trembled slightly, letting out a low hum.

At the same time, using the profound principles of the Willow Catkin Following the Wind Step, he drew the force he had just borrowed from the ground up through his feet. He reversed its flow up his meridians, gathering it in his arm and channeling it into his longsword.

This was the ultimate application of the Willow Catkin Following the Wind Step and one of Hua Guanzhi’s trump cards. The borrowed force could be used not only for movement but also for attack.

However, this conversion demanded extremely high control over his Heart Spirit. The slightest mistake would cause the power to spiral out of control within his meridians and create a backlash. He rarely used this technique, but now he had no choice.

This was Hua Guanzhi’s ultimate strike.

A faint cyan halo appeared on the sword’s edge—the overflowing aura of power condensed to its absolute limit.

CHK!

A wave of Saber Intent slashed into Hua Guanzhi’s Sea of Consciousness first.

Hua Guanzhi’s Sea of Consciousness roiled violently in that instant. His Heart Spirit had no choice but to focus all its strength to resist the invasion of this Saber Intent.

Inevitably, the Power in his sword’s edge weakened slightly.

CLANG!

A violent roar erupted in the Martial Arts Arena. A shockwave rolled out from the point where the saber and sword clashed, sending broken stones and dust flying in all directions.

The disciples outside the arena subconsciously took half a step back. A few with lower Cultivation even felt their chests tighten from the sonic boom.

Hua Guanzhi’s expression changed drastically. A ferocious Power surged from his sword’s edge like a flash flood, a force that far exceeded the limits of what he could endure.

His posture and footwork were completely warped in that moment. The light, graceful rhythm of the Willow Catkin Following the Wind Step vanished instantly, replaced by a clumsy, reactive attempt to dissipate the force.

He could only stumble backward, his feet gouging shallow pits into the stone slabs with every step as he tried to vent the immense power surging into his body into the ground.

Hua Guanzhi’s right arm was trembling violently, and a tearing pain shot through the web of his thumb.

Chen Yue’s steps didn’t falter in the slightest. He followed right behind Hua Guanzhi, as if the power condensed in Hua Guanzhi’s last strike had had no effect on him at all.

His Ten Thousand Forms Tiger Roar Golden Bell Physique had absorbed, dispersed, and neutralized the rebound force the moment it entered his body.

He raised the Jinghong Saber again. The blade, wreathed in immense Qi and Blood Power, came crashing down on Hua Guanzhi’s head like a toppling mountain.

The horror in Hua Guanzhi’s eyes deepened. Although he had learned in detail about Chen Yue’s strength from various sources, only now, feeling it firsthand, did he truly understand the meaning of unstoppable.

’How can someone in the Marrow Refining Realm be this powerful?’

’That level of power, that speed, that control over consecutive saber strikes... all of it combined is completely beyond the scope of what the Marrow Refining Realm should entail.’

CLANG!

Another earth-shattering bang, this one even deeper and heavier than the last.

The web of Hua Guanzhi’s sword hand was torn completely open. Blood gushed from the wound, streamed down the hilt, and dripped onto the stone slabs.

His Qi Blood boiled violently. His face was flushed crimson, and the veins on his temples bulged.

Hua Guanzhi’s chest heaved, each breath coming in ragged, irrepressible gasps. A metallic, sweet taste rose in the back of his throat, but he forced it back down at the last second.

"I surrender!"

Hua Guanzhi’s voice rang out abruptly, echoing across the Martial Arts Arena.

There was no hesitation or delay in his voice. As he shouted these two words, his entire body relaxed from its taut combat stance.

Chen Yue’s Jinghong Saber stopped two feet from Hua Guanzhi’s head. The transition from extreme motion to absolute stillness was completely effortless.

Hua Guanzhi looked at the blade frozen above his head and let out a long, turbid breath.

With a flicker of movement, he floated back several dozen feet to create distance, then steadied himself and cupped his fist to Chen Yue.

"Junior Brother Chen, I have lost this match. I am thoroughly convinced!" There was no dejection on Hua Guanzhi’s face despite his defeat.

Chen Yue looked at Hua Guanzhi with some surprise. He had thought the other man would at least fight for a few more exchanges.

But Hua Guanzhi hadn’t. He surrendered cleanly and decisively—so much so that even Chen Yue found it a bit abrupt.

Chen Yue lowered his saber and returned the gesture. "Senior Brother Hua, you let me win!"

Hua Guanzhi cupped his fist toward Song Zhen in the distance, then turned and left without another glance at the Martial Arts Arena.

His long robes fluttered in the morning breeze. His figure flashed and disappeared into the crowd.

Hua Guanzhi had only suffered minor injuries: the web of his hand was torn, his Qi Blood was slightly agitated, and his Inner Strength was in disarray after the repeated clashes. But his bones and internal organs were unharmed, and he still had the strength to fight on.

He could have even been like Ji Wanting and used a Life-or-Death Secret Technique when forced into a desperate situation, paying a greater price for a brief burst of power to fight a few more rounds.

But in the end, Hua Guanzhi chose not to.

Because he knew with perfect clarity that even if he used the Secret Technique, he still wouldn’t be able to defeat Chen Yue.

The crushing power, the oppressive Saber Intent, the complete control over speed and rhythm—none of it could be reversed with a single Life-or-Death Secret Technique.