Unsheathed

Even when Ding Ying arrived to bring the chaotic battle to a close, Pink Vajra Ma Xuan was still lying on the street, unmoving. This was the case even though Tang Tieyi, Cheng Yuanshan, Zhou Fei, and several other grandmasters had already left one after another. Even so, Ma Xuan was still lying on the street in the same spot.

This was what the cultivation world was like. Regardless of how deep or shallow the water, it would be more than enough to drown someone to death. As the old saying goes, it’s the good swimmers who drown most often.[1]

In reality, Ma Xuan’s life was worth quite a lot of money. It should have been worth far more than a measly five hundred taels of gold. In the martial arts world of the Lotus Flower Blessed Land, this amount of gold could only secure the service of a second-rate elite. Of course, it could also buy the life of a prefectural overseer.

Even though Chen Ping’an had seemingly escaped from the encirclement of elites and was only facing a single old man wearing a silver-colored lotus flower hat right now, his palms were surprisingly slippery with sweat. This had nothing to do with his courage or mental state.

Instead, this was purely due to the fact that Ding Ying’s killing intent was far too concentrated and powerful when he appeared. Avoiding danger came instinctively to all people. However, the ability to push forward in the face of challenges was the true method to temper one’s Martial Dao

Just how difficult would it be to fight against Ding Ying? One could understand simply by looking at Fifteenth which was caught between the old man’s fingers.

Ding Ying smiled faintly and asked, “Is this the so-called bonded flying sword of otherworldly immortals? What a fresh and novel little thing. This should be the first time that something like this has appeared in the Lotus Flower Blessed Land. Moreover, it’s also very rare for someone to enter this world with their complete physical body and soul. It’s no wonder that you triggered so many unforeseen circumstances. However, this doesn’t matter because the Lotus Flower Blessed Land still has me, Ding Ying.”

Chen Ping’an didn’t say anything as he exhaled and assumed the stance of the Rain Evaporation Technique.

Ding Ying looked around, continuing to trap the beautiful green flying sword with two fingers on his right hand as he reached forward with his left hand and said, “Chit-chat is over, so it’s time to make a move now. Let me see if I can kill you with a single hand.”

Ding Ying took a glance at Chen Ping’an’s fist stance before shaking his head and saying, “I encourage you to switch to a more offensive fist stance. I want to see a form of martial arts that makes my eyes light up. Otherwise, if I gain the upper hand, then I’ll overwhelm you just like how you pushed Lu Fang and Zhong Qiu back with your attacks just then. You won’t have any chance to counterattack.”

Ding Ying beckoned for Chen Ping’an to attack as he continued, “You only threw ten consecutive punches just then, but I know that you can definitely throw more. I’m very curious, what’s the maximum number of punches you can throw in succession? You can attack me to your heart’s content. I’ll face all of your attacks head-on!”

Sure enough, Chen Ping’an switched to the Deity Drumming Technique, causing his aura to instantly transform from that of a towering mountain to that of surging heavy cavalry.

Ding Ying nodded with a smile. However, he continued to restrict Chen Ping’an’s miniature flying sword with one hand as he faced the young boy’s attack with his other hand. “Come!”

In the next moment, a huge crater measuring more than ten meters in radius instantly appeared on the street where Chen Ping’an had been standing just then. Meanwhile, the young boy in white had already vanished from sight.

Ding Ying nodded in acknowledgment. His opponent was indeed quick enough.

It was no wonder that Lu Fang had ended up in such a disheveled state even though he had already reached the elementary stages of sword kinesis.

Ding Ying used his palm to block Chen Ping’an’s punch, and he was just about to close his fingers and grab the young otherworldly immortal’s fist. However, Chen Ping’an immediately withdrew his first fist, with his second fist already punching at Ding Ying’s ribs.

Ding Ying nodded in understanding. Just as he had speculated, this fist technique required one to throw punch after punch in quick succession, combining speed, power, and intent. The most ingenious thing about this fist technique was its relentless manner which essentially made it impossible to dodge. Instead, one would only be able to face it head-on.

At first glance, the fist intent of these punches would only appear like a small mountain. If an immortal used their mystical abilities to observe it, however, they would discover that the seemingly unremarkable small mountain was actually something akin to the ancestral mountain of the world.

Ding Ying was able to block the first eight punches without taking a single step backward. He could precisely block Chen Ping’an’s fist with his palm each time.

Chen Ping’an’s figure was extremely elusive, and it was as if he were a snow-white flood dragon rapidly circling around the old man.

Ding Ying finally took a backward step when Chen Ping’an threw the ninth punch, yet he still blocked the fist smashing toward his glabella with his palm.

The old man was moving in a seemingly casual and simple manner, yet his movements actually contained nine forms of martial arts essence that he had gathered from the various sects and forces in the Lotus Flower Blessed Land.

To say nothing of the Mirror Heart Hall that was like Ding Ying’s own backyard, there was also Yu Zhenyi’s Lake Mountain Faction, the fist technique that Zhong Qiu taught his direct disciples, Bird’s Eye View Peak, Spring Tide Palace, Cheng Yuanshan’s spear techniques and Avalanche Technique, Eight-Armed Deity Xue Yuan’s untaught secret technique, and the untaught secret techniques of many other grandmasters.

Through various methods, Ding Ying had obtained all kinds of martial arts techniques and fused them together into something that was suited to him. Some techniques had already reached the pinnacle of martial arts, so he chose to leave them as they were. However, some still had room for improvement, so Ding Ying would help to refine them whenever he was bored.

The tenth punch arrived.

Ding Ying shuffled several steps sideways, yet he still had the leisure to smile and comment, “The only imperfection in your fist technique is its tendency to wound its wielder in the process of severely wounding the opponent. Show me how many punches you can throw, and let me see just how powerful your final punch will be.”

Chen Ping’an continued to throw punch after punch, with his mind as calm as still water.

This time, there was no one spectating the battle in the surroundings.

This was because they didn’t dare to.

Old Demon Ding was notorious for his fondness of brutally killing those who spectated his battles.

These people were fearless and enjoyed watching the battles of other people, right? They liked to judge people and cheer from the sidelines, right? They liked to act shocked as if they had seen a ghost during the day, right? Whenever Old Demon Ding found an opportunity for reprieve when battling with others, he would definitely launch a palm strike and smash several spectators into broken piles of minced meat. It was as if he were smacking mosquitos or flies to death.

Thus, Prince Wei Yan’s monkey-like teacher had only arrived for a short while, hiding himself in the distance, before realizing it was Old Demon Ding and immediately retreating from the scene.

However, there was only a single Ding Ying, after all, and the other top-notch elites like Zhong Qiu and Yu Zhenyi would largely ignore spectators even though they disliked people watching their battles from the sidelines as well.

On the other hand, it was a huge taboo in the cultivation world to spectate the life-and-death battles of second-rate elites since no one wanted their trump cards to be seen by others. Otherwise, this would eventually be spread to ten people, one hundred people, and then everyone in the world. At that time, would their trump card still be a trump card at all? The cultivation world wasn’t big, and this was especially the case for first-rate grandmasters, with the cultivation world feeling even smaller to them.

Chen Ping’an and Ding Ying remained within two arm’s length of each other the entire time. When Chen Ping’an threw the eleventh punch, however, Ding Ying increased the distance between them as if understanding the might of the Deity Drumming Technique. This might have been purposeful or coincidental, and he was struck by Chen Ping’an’s punch and forced to retreat around one meter.

Back then, Lu Fang had been severely wounded by Chen Ping’an’s tenth punch due to his hasty response and his inability to block the attack properly. This was unlike Ding Ying, who had been accumulating his power from the beginning. Secondly, Lu Fang’s entire focus was on cultivating sword techniques and not fist techniques, so his physique was naturally far inferior to that of Ding Ying’s.

Having Lu Fang face Chen Ping’an’s ten punches was like having a team of foot soldiers face a group of elite light cavalry. The former would naturally crumble once attacked by the latter. Meanwhile, Ding Ying was like an army of well-equipped soldiers standing atop a giant city wall as he faced the same ten punches from Chen Ping’an.

Thus, it wasn’t the case that there was a huge gulf between Lu Fang and Ding Ying’s strength.

At the end of the day, Ding Ying was only able to block Chen Ping’an’s attacks with ease thanks to the lessons he had learned from Lu Fang and Zhong Qiu beforehand.

After blocking eleven punches, Ding Ying stood three meters away and forcefully shook his sleeves before Chen Ping’an’s next punch could arrive, shattering and dispersing the fist aura that had been lingering in his palm. There was sarcasm in his voice as he said, “Oh my, I might suffer some minor injuries if I have to face three or four more punches from you.”

The twelfth punch blasted toward his head, and Ding Ying finally threw a punch for the first time, launching a fist to counter Chen Ping’an’s Deity Drumming Technique.

Chen Ping’an retreated several steps, yet the mystical nature of the Deity Drumming Technique was also put on full display at this moment, with the young boy throwing the next punch at an unimaginable speed and from an unimaginable angle. Indeed, this punch was even quicker than the previous eleven punches.

Unable to throw a punch on time, Ding Ying could only raise his elbow in a seemingly sluggish manner to block Chen Ping’an’s attack.

The point of Ding Ying’s elbow was smashed into his own chest.

Ding Ying was sent flying back, yet the True Qi flowing inside his long robe helped him dissipate much of the fist aura’s immense power.

During this split second, Ding Ying suddenly sensed that his opponent had seemingly slowed down by a barely perceptible amount. He narrowed his eyes, shuffling back in retreat as he blocked the fourteenth punch and said with a faint smile, “Not long ago, a cheeky little thing was impudent enough to try to secretly travel through the ground and deliver this flying sword to you. However, I discovered its presence, and it might have been shocked to death or suffocated to death underground.”

Sure enough, Chen Ping’an didn’t stop even though he had already noticed something amiss. His fifteenth punch violently surged toward Ding Ying.

After Chen Ping’an’s punch was blocked…

Ding Ying retreated again, and his two fingers pinching Fifteenth also trembled ever so slightly.

Ding Ying wasn’t astonished, and he instead felt a sense of delight. However, he didn’t let these emotions show on his face.

Old Demon Ding had enjoyed the title of the strongest person in this world for sixty years, and he appeared to be conceited and careless as he blocked Chen Ping’an’s punches. Deep down in his heart, however, Ding Ying was craving to learn the essence of this fist technique.

It was extremely likely that comprehending this fist technique would give him the confidence and power to do what he desired.

He desired to shake the Heavenly Dao of this world!

Ding Ying couldn’t care less that speaking would cause his breath of True Qi to rapidly disperse, and he smiled faintly and said, “I was the one who asked Ya’er and Zhou Shi to grab those four heads and show them to you before. If I remember correctly, that little child’s name is Cao Qinglang. It was truly a misfortune for him to encounter you, an otherworldly immortal.”

Even though Ding Ying couldn’t see Chen Ping’an’s appearance clearly at this moment, the old man could very clearly sense the young boy’s “small amount” of killing intent.

This wasn’t an aura of rage, nor was it a wild sense of killing intent that chaotically surged into the surroundings. Instead, this was an aura of killing intent that was purposely suppressed into a thin thread before being twisted together into a small speck.

This was quite interesting.

Of all the otherworldly immortals that Ding Ying had seen or killed before, this person’s mental state was entirely unique.

Ding Ying had learned all kinds of skills and knowledge during his life, reading and studying everything that he could get his hands on. He had once read such a paragraph in a Daoist text—It is the bravery of a boatman to not avoid flood dragons when traveling through water; it is the bravery of a woodsman to not fear jackals when traveling through forests; it is the bravery of an extraordinary individual to see life amidst death when facing deadly sword strikes; it is the bravery of a sage to understand the limit of human power when remaining calm in the face of great calamity.

To achieve calm, one first needed to ease one’s mind.

What did the limit of human power mean?

This was applicable to Chen Ping’an’s current situation, where he was convinced that everyone in that small courtyard had already been killed. Moreover, it was very likely that the small creature had also been killed.

Facing such a circumstance, he needed to understand that emotions of guilt and regret would be completely meaningless at this moment, and that such emotions would only push him toward death. He needed to understand that focusing all of his attention on the fight in front of him would be the only way to stay alive. Not only did he need to understand this, but he also needed to act on this understanding.

Understanding one’s own emotions was difficult, and acting in one’s own best interest was even harder.

However, Chen Ping’an didn’t disappoint Ding Ying.

His punch surged forward without any emotional baggage, not sluggish or weak in the least. Quite the contrary, in fact, and he threw this punch with even more resoluteness even though he knew that each subsequent punch would allow Ding Ying to understand the Deity Drumming Technique better.

This was an attack that would wound Chen Ping’an almost as much as it would wound his opponent. Either Ding Ying was killed by his punch, or his meridians would be snapped, his soul would be scattered, and his flesh would be torn apart, causing him to die a gallant death while throwing the final punch of the Deity Drumming Technique.

This was the sixteenth punch!

Ding Ying nodded lightly and gave a hearty laugh. Meanwhile, colorful light flowed down like a waterfall from his silver-colored lotus flower hat, quickly shrouding his entire body.

This time, Ding Ying only retreated three steps, completely unscathed by Chen Ping’an’s attack.

Chen Ping’an retracted his fist and borrowed the backward momentum of his punch to retreat a dozen or so meters.

After standing still, he reached up to wipe the blood from his face using the back of his hand.

Ding Ying showed no intention of switching from defense to attack, and he instead chuckled and asked, “Why aren’t you throwing any more punches? By the looks of it, you still have the ability to throw at least two more punches. At least.”

Looking at the unspeaking young boy, Ding Ying waved his right hand and continued, “Did you not consider the fact that throwing one or two more punches might force me to release my grip on this sword?”

Ding Ying sighed in slight disappointment. If he hadn’t unleashed the power of his silver-colored lotus flower hat, then his intuition told him that he would have faced grave danger. It was extremely likely that both of them would have been severely wounded.

However, there was no need to pursue perfection in all matters. The sixteen punches from the young boy were already enough for him to study and analyze.

It was obvious that this fist technique was already that young otherworldly immortal’s most powerful and deadly ability.

Ding Ying felt like this was already enough. And now, it was time for him to deal with the proper matters.

Chen Ping’an scanned the surroundings. Everything appeared so mysterious and puzzling.

However, it was also because of this that Chen Ping’an felt like the ball of anger in his chest—anger at all of the injustices—was about to explode.

This was just like that time back in the small town when he had seen Liu Xianyang severely wounded and lying in bed. After leaving, he had silently made his way to the covered bridge by himself.

Even after so many years, and even after traveling such great distances and throwing so many punches, that sense of utter despair was still fresh in Chen Ping’an’s mind.

The heaven was boundless and the earth was vast, but what could a person do when they encountered a huge obstacle by themself? If they failed to overcome the obstacle, then they would either die in vexation or they would seek death and receive death. What else could they do?

Right now, the Sword Nurturing Gourd by Chen Ping’an’s waist was still restricted and unusable. First couldn’t fly out of the gourd no matter what.

At the same time, his Dao robe, Golden Sweet Wine, was still spiritless and unresponsive.

Meanwhile, his flying sword and pocket treasure, Fifteenth, was still trapped between Ding Ying’s fingers.

Fortunately, Chen Ping’an was no longer that kiln apprentice from before.

Chen Ping’an spat out a mouthful of blood before asking, “Have you forgotten something?”

Ding Ying roared with laughter and replied, “Are you referring to the sword that you left on the table? You want to use that to fight against me? But do you really think you can walk over to retrieve it while I’m watching you?”

Ding Ying answered his own question, shaking his head and saying, “If I don’t want you to leave, then you, Chen Ping’an, won’t be able to make it more than thirty meters from this place. I can already say this with absolute certainty—you’re only a so-called pure martial artist in the words of you otherworldly immortals. You’re not a sword cultivator at all, or else I wouldn’t have been able to trap this miniature flying sword.”

Chen Ping’an cracked a grin and glanced at the Daoist hat on Ding Ying’s head. “You’re enjoying all of the opportune time, geographical advantage, and support from others. Don’t you just feel amazing?”

Ding Ying narrowed his eyes, with killing intent exuding from his body as he replied, “Oh? You’re unhappy about this, little boy? But what can you do about it?”

“What word did you shout just now? ‘Come,’ right?” Chen Ping’an raised an arm and repeated, “Am I right?”

Ding Ying didn’t say anything and simply replied with a cold chuckle. He thought to himself that this very peculiar otherworldly immortal was definitely trying to put up one final struggle.

That being the case, he would observe the situation and take action accordingly.

Sword, come! Chen Ping’an commanded in his mind.

From the wing room of that courtyard, Lasting Qi, the sword imbued with sword qi weighing dozens of kilograms, instantly slid out of its scabbard.

As if following the path that Chen Ping’an had last taken when leaving the courtyard, and seemingly in a display of might toward this heaven and earth, Lasting Qi was like a streak of brilliant white light as it tore through the window and left the courtyard, soaring through the alley before entering the street and scraping past Ding Ying’s shoulder.

And when Chen Ping’an grabbed the streak of brilliant white light…

The flowing river of snow-white sword qi lingered in the air, twisting and turning in some places, yet also completely straight in other places. It didn’t show any signs of dissipating.

As Chen Ping’an held Lasting Qi, the blade of the sword was like frost, the sword qi was brilliant white, and the robe of the young boy was more dazzling than snow.

In this world, the young boy with the surname Chen was invincible within an arm’s length.

And beyond that distance… he had a sword.

1. This refers to the fact that people become overconfident in their skills, which may eventually lead to their demise. ☜