Ling Tian Sword God

"Hmm?"

Ling Chen glanced down at the scar on his body, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes. He had clearly avoided the main strike of the sword, yet he was still injured. Although it was only a flesh wound, it was inflicted despite his comprehensive preparations.

Gu Lei’s sword technique was indeed exquisite.

"Ling Chen, how about it? Are you convinced with your defeat in this battle?"

Although it felt somewhat inexplicable to win, Gu Lei had indeed won. The victor is the king, and at this moment, Ling Chen was merely his defeated opponent.

Ling Chen’s mouth curled into a mocking smile, "Who said you won?"

"What, you still want to resist? Shamelessly refuse to admit defeat?"

Gu Lei’s eyes suddenly flashed coldly. Just as he was about to channel his True Qi and strike again, his robe abruptly burst open, and his organs were injured by sword qi. With a sudden "wah," he spat out a mouthful of blood.

"How is this possible? When did you hit me?"

Gu Lei’s face was full of disbelief. He was clearly seriously injured by sword qi, yet he had just avoided Ling Chen’s sword techniques with no idea when he had been hit. If he had been struck by the sword, he absolutely would have noticed it, as he was no ordinary person and his nerve reactions far exceeded those of his peers. What was most unacceptable was that this sword had passed through his Protective True Qi and injured his organs?

If Ling Chen wanted to kill, couldn’t he have ignored his defenses and killed him directly?

This is too terrifying!

Gu Lei only felt a chill running down his spine. The scariest thing for a person is not knowing how they died.

"You couldn’t see my sword light because you were too anxious. Your eagerness to defeat me lowered your observation skills."

Ling Chen sheathed his sword, and at this point, the winner and loser were clearly determined.

Hearing this, Gu Lei’s gaze flickered, he took a deep breath, then shook his head, "No, it’s not that my observation is weak, but this sword is indeed difficult to fend off."

During a battle, how could anyone possibly be thoroughly prepared? To achieve that would be unnatural, a rarity among millions.

He lost to Ling Chen not because his observation was insufficient, but because ordinary people simply couldn’t achieve this level. Ultimately, it came down to his strength being inferior to Ling Chen’s.

"Ling Chen, this time you won, but I will not let it go easily. I hope that before the next challenge, you won’t lose to someone else."

Gu Lei had a tenacious disposition. Losing to Ling Chen made him feel humiliated, but he firmly believed that with effort, he could surely defeat Ling Chen and return the humiliation. This defeat was merely a setback in his life.

Furthermore, he had to thank Ling Chen, for it was Ling Chen who made him aware of the hidden weakness in the Wild Spirit Slash, and if he could eliminate that weakness, the next time defeat would definitely not be his.

"Confidence is good, but I’m not always available. Challenging me depends on whether you qualify."

The mountain wind rustled their clothing, and Ling Chen spoke casually.

"You needn’t worry about me, Gu Lei. I always become stronger with stronger opponents. I’m only concerned that when I challenge you in the future, you might no longer interest me."

"Let’s go."

After saying this, Gu Lei carried his Heavy Sword and flew back the way he came, while the other experts from North Wilderness hesitated for a moment before following.

"So arrogant, losing and still so arrogant."

"If not for Senior Brother Ling Chen showing mercy, that sword could have slain him."

A disciple from Lingyue Island expressed indignantly.

Ling Chen chuckled, not very concerned; too many geniuses had been defeated by him, and he couldn’t remember some of them.

As for the weaknesses in Gu Lei’s sword techniques, actually, there were two: one was that the preparation took too long, the second was that the attack method was too single and followed a straight line, which allowed Ling Chen to react and choose to evade.

"Weakness?"

Xia Yunxin pondered thoughtfully. She could also see the weaknesses in Gu Lei’s killing move, but this was in Ling Chen’s perspective. For others, they might not react in time. Therefore, this move was a weakness for Ling Chen, but not necessarily for others.

"If Gu Lei challenges other Youth Kings, perhaps he could succeed, but unfortunate for him, he chose Ling Chen."

Among the disciples, Leng Qianshang remarked.

Gu Lei’s strength likely had already reached the level of a Youth King; otherwise, he wouldn’t have lost so badly.

They should be grateful that Ling Chen was on Lingyue Island, his status unshakable.

Outside Lingyue Island.

Gu Lei and his group had already left the sect’s boundaries, appearing on the outer sea.

"Damn it! Didn’t expect to lose the first battle upon arriving at the Nine Provinces."

On a small flying boat, Gu Lei sat cross-legged in the cabin to heal his wounds, then opened his eyes. He had come from North Wilderness to the Nine Provinces Land to challenge the top youth experts and make a name for himself. But he didn’t expect his first battle to end in defeat at Ling Chen’s hands, a major setback.

"Victory and defeat are commonplace in warfare. Brother Gu only needs to address the weaknesses in your killing move, and defeating Ling Chen will merely be a matter of raising your hand," a North Wilderness strongman said.

"That’s easy to say, but fixing the weaknesses in that move is easier said than done."

Gu Lei’s eyes glimmered, knowing some things could be seen, but doing it was another matter. He then continued, "But this is not entirely bad. At least I’ve uncovered Ling Chen’s depth."

Fortunately, the impact of today’s battle wasn’t significant; he was merely an unknown person coming to Lingyue Island for a merely hill-climbing challenge, so not many people would know.

"In three months, it’s the deadline for the Mount Kunlun event. By then, I will defeat Ling Chen at the summit of Kunlun before the world’s strongmen, avenging today’s shame."

Gu Lei vowed confidently.

The battle of Mount Kunlun has now spread throughout the Nine Provinces Land, and even he in the bitter cold of the North Wilderness received the news. Moreover, he knew it wasn’t just him; from Western Wilderness, Eastern Land, Penglai... all these remote areas of the Tianyuan Continent had top youth experts coming to the Nine Provinces Land. Like him, they all aim to showcase their skills in the Mount Kunlun battle and let their names echo throughout the Nine Provinces.

"Let’s go!"

Gu Lei waved to the person steering the boat, needing to leave quickly to continue studying his killing move, Wild Spirit Slash. Otherwise, even if he encounters Ling Chen again at Mount Kunlun’s summit, he still wouldn’t be his match.

However, just at that moment, a wave of people started heading towards Lingyue Island, led by a man in snow attire, with a Long Knife at his waist, none other than the King of Snowy Night.