It's too late to leave now.
The hundreds of martial arts practitioners present couldn't help but let out desperate howls.
No one expected that Ding Yulong would be so humiliated in his duel with a little girl that he had to resort to using his Qi Luck Sword Lotus. Had they known this would be the outcome, they would never have dared to step into the lakeside pavilion.
It was too late; it was too late to say anything. Six golden sword lotuses covered the entire Taiping Lake, emanating a majestic aura.
Above the six sword lotuses, Ding Yulong's face was ferocious, and the sword in his hand was already full of sword energy.
"You just said that anyone who doesn't unleash the Sword Lotus is a traitor!" Ye Xingchen roared in fury. He took a step forward, and a crimson mark on his forehead suddenly enlarged, with a golden crown piercing through his entire forehead. Now, Ye Xingchen looked as if he were wearing a golden crown, and his combat power had reached its peak.
It must be said that Ding Yulong is a genius. His sword lotus has gathered the fortune of the entire Taiping Lake area together, reaching a level that is beyond human power to defeat. Even though Ye Xingchen possesses the Supreme Jade Purity Dao Scripture and can kill people across realms, he still has to go all out in this situation.
"As expected, you're the real culprit." Ding Yulong sneered, "But what can you do? Today, I'll leave both of you here."
Ding Yulong unleashed a powerful sword strike, and a massive beam of light appeared in mid-air, enveloping Ye Xingchen and Su Ruochu.
Ye Xingchen flashed and blocked Su Ruochu's path. With a wave of his right hand, the Crimson Cloud sword in Su Ruochu's hand fell into Ye Xingchen's hand.
The moment their figures passed each other, their eyes met, and although they didn't say a word, they both understood each other's thoughts.
"Ye Xingchen, I should have borne all of this. Why did you force yourself to break through to a higher realm for my sake?"
"I must keep my promise to you. I said I would let you kill Ding Yulong with your own hands." Ye Xingchen smiled slightly, grabbed Chi Xiao with his backhand, and slowly turned around.
The instant he turned around, he let out a clear whistle, and his Crimson Sky Sword rose and fell.
With a whoosh, an immense sword intent instantly formed, flowing endlessly like a Styx River. The surging waters formed countless sharp blades, eventually condensing into a flash of sword light that disappeared in an instant.
Ding Yulong froze in mid-air, his body trembling violently.
The six enormous sword lotuses that had floated on the surface of the ten-mile lake trembled violently, and four of them withered in an instant.
"Who exactly are you? Why... why were you able to break my Qi Luck Sword Lotus so easily?" Ding Yulong looked at Ye Xingchen in disbelief, revealing a look of shock and anger.
He couldn't understand or imagine why Ye Xingchen possessed such formidable strength.
However, reality no longer gave him a chance to think.
Ye Xingchen retreated immediately after his attack, and Su Ruochu stepped forward from behind, pointing lightly with two fingers of her right hand.
*Pfft...* A finger force, like a sharp blade, slashed through the void. Ding Yulong, who was in mid-air, froze, then spat out a mouthful of blood, and his body fell from mid-air like a falling leaf.
The battle ended there, and only when Ding Yulong was seriously injured and fell to the ground did the anxious martial arts practitioners finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, Ding Yulong's sword strike failed to materialize.
Otherwise, none of those present would have escaped unscathed; even if they weren't seriously injured, they would at least have suffered a significant drop in their cultivation level.
Ding Yulong collapsed to the ground, his cultivation completely gone, his hair now gray. After all, he was nearing seventy, and the image he had maintained while still alive was now completely gone.
"Do you have anything else to say?" Su Ruochu looked at him coldly.
"Hahaha, now that things have come to this, I have nothing to say." Ding Yulong laughed loudly. Due to the backlash from the sword lotus, he was blind in both eyes, and two streams of blood flowed from his eyes, making him look extremely terrifying.
He hissed, "That's right, I killed your entire Su family twenty years ago, all for the sake of the Sixteen Chapters Sutra."
“I was born with incomplete spiritual roots, but with my unparalleled comprehension, I went straight to the Heavenly Realm. But my realm can only stop here. Why? I, Ding Yulong, can fight against people and I can fight against the heavens. Today I have come to this end. It is the heavens that want to destroy me.”
"Since you admit it, then I will kill you today to avenge my family's dead relatives. Do you have anything to say?" Su Ruochu said sternly.
"I...have nothing to say." Ding Yulong slowly leaned against a rock, and said with a bitter smile, "Let's do it. Anyway, I've lost all my cultivation and don't have many days left to live, I..."
*Thud*... Before he could finish speaking, a bamboo stick was stuck in his chest.
Ding Yulong stared blankly at Su Ruochu, then collapsed to the ground and slowly closed his eyes.
The onlookers around the scene had various expressions: some pitied, some regretted, and some even gloated.
Qingxianju is hailed as a sacred place of martial arts. Regardless of Ding Yulong's character, he has developed the original techniques of his predecessors over the past twenty years, created the Dragon Slaying Sword Formation, and was able to use the fortune of Taiping Lake for his own purposes. These alone are enough to make him a martial arts master.
Unfortunately, every action has its price. But the martial world is a place where people are forgotten once they leave. Now that he is dead, the leisurely circle will naturally dissipate. Before long, there will be no more rumors about Ding Yulong in the martial world.
Three days later, Su Ruochu stood by the artificial lake, staring blankly at the lotus flowers that had bloomed all over the lake.
Ye Xingchen stood in front of her, his hands behind his back. He was meditating in a very special way. With each breath, the spiritual energy emanating from all things in heaven and earth transformed into primordial energy, which gradually flowed into his chest.
After a long while, Ye Xingchen slowly exhaled a breath of stale air. He opened his eyes, turned around, and smiled, "How long have you been here?"
“It’s been a while now,” Su Ruochu said softly.
"Your strength has already reached the half-step Celestial Phenomenon realm, which is slightly stronger than mine." Ye Xingchen nodded with a smile: "It's quite good. Your dual cultivation of Confucianism and Buddhism, your enlightenment in Confucianism and Taoism, and the blessing of fortune bestowed upon you by the old man before his passing have benefited you immensely."
"Perhaps within ten years, a Saint-level expert will appear. Congratulations in advance."
"Your cultivation level has dropped?" Su Ruochu looked at the faint dusty aura on Ye Xingchen's body with a complicated expression.
"That day, in order to withstand Ding Yulong's Qi Luck Sword Lotus, I forcibly broke through the realm," Ye Xingchen said. "I suffered a backlash from the sword lotus and fell from the Celestial Phenomenon realm to the Heavenly Realm."
Ye Xingchen spoke in a calm tone, as if he were talking about something that had nothing to do with him, but this was a drop in his cultivation level.
Falling from the Celestial Phenomenon Realm to the Celestial Realm, though only one realm apart, results in a world of difference in strength.
"Is it worth it for me?" Su Ruochu couldn't help but ask.
"In my eyes, there is only willingness or unwillingness, not worthiness or not worthiness." Ye Xingchen smiled slightly: "Moreover, I have only experienced a drop in cultivation level, and my mental state and fortune have not been damaged. Give me some time, and I will be able to return to the Celestial Phenomenon Realm."
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