Scripture of Days Past

The instant the battle began, Jiang Longyu launched himself forward with all his might, racing directly toward Chu Qiguang.

His legs had turned into a pair of rapid blurs that were impossible to track with the naked eye, and Yang Ling could tell that he had already incorporated the Ghost Steps he had learned from the Seven Kill Faction into the battle footwork he had learned on Jade Face Mountain.

In response, Chu Qiguang hoisted the giant gate into the air before swinging it at Jiang Longyu.

The five-meter-tall gate was so massive that it covered nearly half the platform's diameter, making it almost impossible for anyone to get close to Chu Qiguang.

With the gate as his weapon, Chu Qiguang's attack range was far superior to Jiang Longyu's.

If Jiang Longyu wanted to get to Chu Qiguang, then he had to get past the gate first.

The gate produced a gust of howling wind as it was swung through the air. If Jiang Longyu didn't adjust his plan of attack, then he was going to crash headfirst into it.

Yang Ling's mind raced as he observed the ongoing battle.

Having accumulated saber intent for so long, the next attack Jiang Longyu unleashes with his saber will undoubtedly be tremendously powerful. That means judging the distance correctly is crucial. If he draws his saber now, then he has to ensure that he can get within striking distance of Chu Qiguang before the stone slab strikes him. Otherwise, he'll have to retreat and wait for a better opportunity.

However, retreat was clearly not an option in Jiang Longyu's mind, and he finally drew his saber, unleashing all the saber intent he had built up at once.

A thunderous explosion rang out as his saber slashed through the air like a bolt of radiant silver lightning. It felt as if Jiang Longyu had transformed into a deity of lightning, wielding the power of the elements to strike Chu Qiguang down where he stood.

This is the thunderstorm variation of the Heaven Weep Saber Techniques! Zhong Shan'e thought. I recall a story about Marital God Ma Yi of the Seven Kill Faction unleashing this same saber technique. The ignorant villagers who witnessed him in action at the time worshiped him as a lightning god. They even erected a statue of him and began praying to him for rainfall.

This is it!

Yang Ling's eyes glowed with excitement as Jiang Longyu closed in on Chu Qiguang.

All the trainees could already picture Chu Qiguang being torn to shreds by Jiang Longyu's unmatched saber intent.

Zhong Shan'e was already on the edge of his seat, preparing to intervene and save Chu Qiguang from what seemed like certain death.

However, right as everyone thought that Jiang Longyu had sealed the victory, Chu Qiguang's hands abruptly accelerated as he swung the gate through the air, causing it to pick up even more speed as it crashed toward Jiang Longyu like a moving wall.

He still had more to give? His brute strength really is something else, Zhong Shan'e thought with a hint of surprise in his eyes.

Yang Ling was also stunned by what he was seeing.

He can still go faster? At this rate, the stone slab is definitely going to strike Jiang Longyu before his attack can land. Chu Qiguang must've been holding back this entire time to lure Jiang Longyu in, and now that Jiang Longyu has fully committed to an attack, he's played right into Chu Qiguang's hands!

Sure enough, in the face of this abrupt turn of events, Jiang Longyu was forced to change his plan of attack.

However, instead of retreating, he rolled to the side, and all of a sudden, he was right beside Chu Qiguang.

Yang Ling's eyes instantly lit up once again. Brilliant! He reacted so quickly to the change in the stone slab's speed, almost as if he had moved preemptively!

Indeed, Jiang Longyu had reacted as soon as the gate began picking up speed, almost as if this were all part of a choreographed sequence.

While rolling to the side, Jiang Longyu was able to continue building momentum with his saber. Not only had it not slowed down in the slightest, it was continuing to pick up even more speed.

He's incorporating elements of fist techniques and movement techniques into his saber techniques! As expected, he really is a freakish prodigy, Zhong Shan'e evaluated, clearly impressed by what he was seeing.

All of a sudden, Jiang Longyu's saber came racing toward Chu Qiguang from the side, and once again, it seemed like his defeat was sealed.

However, Chu Qiguang subverted everyone's expectations yet again. He planted his feet firmly into the ground and exerted force through his legs and core, dragging the massive gate back a step.

By taking a step back, Chu Qiguang opened up some distance between himself and Jiang Longyu. At the same time, Jiang Longyu was once again forced to deal with the giant stone slab in his path.

I should've never told him to cultivate the Primordial High Zenith Qigong, Yang Ling thought with a resigned sigh. How can he already be this ridiculously strong as a third-state martial artist?

This time, Jiang Longyu was finally unable to evade the gate, so he swung his saber into the oncoming gate with all his might.

The saber struck the gate like a hammer blow, and it felt more like he was using a fist technique than a normal saber slash.

A mighty boom rang out as the saber collided with the gate, instantly raising an intense flurry of sparks.

Jiang Longyu could feel his qi and blood churning violently throughout his body. Despite his best efforts, he was still being forced back by the immense weight of the giant gate.

He let loose a furious roar as he dragged his saber along the surface of the gate, directing the blade toward Chu Qiguang, who was standing at the end of it.

However, instead of taking the attack head-on, Chu Qiguang simply let go of the gate, then stepped around it and hid on the other side.

Jiang Longyu was clearly taken aback by this turn of events. He hadn't expected Chu Qiguang to simply abandon his weapon.

At that moment, he and Chu Qiguang were standing on opposite sides of the gate, one on the left and the other on the right.

As soon as Chu Qiguang stepped around to the other side of the gate, he immediately drew up on his qi and blood before slamming an almighty palm strike into the side of the gate.

Yang Ling's jaw instantly dropped to the ground in astonishment. On top of reaching the second level of the Primordial High Zenith Qigong, he's reached the first level of the Heavenly Demon Vanquishing Palms as well? All of that in just a month?!

Zhong Shan'e was also very surprised by this turn of events.

From the perspective of everyone watching, it looked as if Jiang Longyu had successfully forced Chu Qiguang to abandon his weapon, and there was no way an unarmed Chu Qiguang stood any chance against him.

Even though Chu Qiguang had put up a valiant effort, it seemed that he was ultimately going to fall short of replicating his upset victory over Jiang Longyu during the imperial martial examination.

However, Chu Qiguang had one final surprise for everyone as he unveiled his Heavenly Demon Vanquishing Palms.

All of the trainees, instructors, and lecturers present watched with dumbstruck expressions as Chu Qiguang's palm struck the gate with astonishing force. The gate crashed directly into Jiang Longyu, sending him flying out of the circle amid a roar of fury and indignation.