Wuxia: Starting Off With 60 Years of Inner Strength

Dugu Yu’s expression changed slightly.

"Lady Moon, what’s wrong? Don’t scare me... You, you..."

Just as he spoke, fresh blood trickled from the corner of Yin Yue’s mouth.

Dugu Yu’s face filled with horror. Ignoring the pain, he hurriedly used the hand whose bones Jiang Ran had crushed to wipe her mouth.

But the more he wiped, the more blood there was.

He couldn’t wipe it all away.

All traces of arrogance vanished from Dugu Yu’s face, replaced by sheer panic and a terror as if the heavens themselves were collapsing.

"No... this can’t be..."

He muttered to himself, finally pulling Yin Yue into a death grip as tears streamed down his face.

His eyes, now fixed on Jiang Ran, were bloodshot and filled with absolute hatred.

Jiang Ran was taken aback. ’How did I end up looking like the bad guy here?’

’The thing is... I don’t remember you two being this sentimental when you were the ones doing the killing.’

’But now that it’s happening to you, you decide to get emotional?’

He casually twirled the saber in his hand.

"What are you two planning? Don’t tell me you need me to kill someone just to liven things up for you?"

"Bastard!"

Dugu Yu flew into a rage. In a flash, he moved to charge forward and fight Jiang Ran to the death.

Yin Yue grabbed his arm.

"Brother..."

"You mustn’t be reckless."

"This man is too powerful. His saber technique might not match the legendary Duan Dongliu, but his skills are still extraordinary."

"I still have enough strength for one more strike..."

"Let us use the Sun and Moon As One."

"No."

Dugu Yu shook his head emphatically.

"I’ll take you away! I’ll get you out of here. We won’t fight anymore. We’ll forget about revenge. We’ll go back to Little Residual Valley. We’ll go home."

Yin Yue gave a faint smile.

"We can’t go back..."

"Since we’ve come this far, we can’t tarnish the name of the Sun and Moon Lords, can we?"

"Brother... I want to kill him."

Dugu Yu looked at Yin Yue for a long moment, then took a deep breath.

"Fine. We’ll kill him."

With that, the two of them simultaneously channeled the Fiery Sun Divine Skill and the Cold Moon Skill.

But this time was different from before.

They were burning through all of their Inner Strength, holding almost nothing back.

In an instant...

One blazed like the scorching sun, the other gleamed like the cold moon.

The two of them soared into the air together, a scorching sun and a cold moon rising high into the sky.

The surrounding miasma and mist were completely pushed aside. The sky darkened, and the faint rumble of thunder echoed in the wind.

At that same moment, Ye Jingshuang, Li Tianxin, Shi Miao, and Ghost Thirteen finally managed to kill the sallow-faced man.

When they looked up, they were greeted by the bizarre sight of the sun and moon coexisting in the sky.

"What’s happening?"

The color drained from Ghost Thirteen’s face.

Without a word, Ye Jingshuang raised her sword and prepared to charge.

But before she could even get close, she felt a swirling Gang Qi, both hot and cold, that enveloped an area of several dozen yards around them.

The moment she touched it, the two energies combined and attacked her.

Ye Jingshuang could only let out a muffled grunt as she was thrown back.

"Brother Jiang!"

She tried to charge again, but Li Tianxin stretched out an arm to stop her.

"The Sun and Moon As One... That old couple is putting their lives on the line."

"We can’t get through."

"Don’t worry. Anyone who can force the Sun and Moon Lords to this extent is more than capable of handling what comes next."

Shi Miao stared upward, the Sword Intent in her eyes seething.

Suddenly, her body trembled, and a trickle of blood ran from the corner of her mouth.

"How powerful... Even my Sword Intent can’t break through..."

She spoke softly, her voice as cold and sharp as ever.

Li Tianxin glanced at her, feeling as if he had wasted his breath.

But when he looked back at the center of the conflict, his eyes also held a grave expression.

Jiang Ran, however, simply stood with his saber in hand, quietly watching the Sun and Moon Lords’ ultimate technique unfold. Strangely, he felt no trace of nervousness.

This calm state of mind surprised even Jiang Ran himself.

’The Sun and Moon Lords are the most formidable people I’ve met since I started my journey,’ he thought.

’Their martial arts are profound, and each has their own unique, ultimate skill.’

’When they work together, they’re far beyond the likes of Li Feiyun.’

’Even with my Nine Shocking God Sabers and nearly a century of Inner Strength, I don’t have any real advantage against them.’

’After all, the true power of the Nine Shocking God Sabers, as I currently understand it, isn’t just the techniques themselves. The most crucial part is how they combine with my Inner Strength to create new moves.’

’Like the two moves I use most often: one that startles gods and ghosts, and the other, a single strike that returns to utter simplicity.’

’In terms of Inner Strength, I possess nearly a century’s worth.’

’Enough to stand proud anywhere in the martial world.’

’But the problem is, each of the Sun and Moon Lords has at least sixty years of cultivation under their belt.’

’And with their Sun and Moon As One technique, their Inner Strength is linked.’

’That means their combined power is at least over a hundred years’ worth—if not more.’

’Individually, I wouldn’t worry about them. But together, in a contest of pure Inner Strength, the outcome is far from certain.’

’This next exchange will decide everything in an instant—life or death.’

’And yet, I feel no apprehension at all. Instead, there’s this indescribable sense of certainty deep inside me.’

’A certainty whose origin is a mystery even to me.’

’It’s... surprising, to say the least.’

Though complex, these thoughts tumbled through his mind in a mere instant.

The next moment, the scorching sun and cold moon above began to move in unison.

As if anchored to each other, they began to rotate, spinning faster and faster.

It was as if they were trying to merge into one.

Simultaneously, a gale began to churn below, kicking up sand and stone, sending dead branches and withered leaves flying through the air.

Under the influence of the Fiery Sun Divine Skill and the Cold Moon Skill, some of the flying leaves and branches burst into flame, while others were instantly coated in a layer of frost.