165: Chapter 165 Battle of Grandmasters

"Since you have already recognized me, then you should understand the purpose of my visit here." Yuwen Kuang was in no hurry to make a move, looking calmly at Pei Qingyun.

Among the Martial Artists present, apart from Pei Qingyun, all others were merely worthless rabble in his eyes.

"Was that secret agent who tried to persuade me to leave a few days ago one of your men?" Pei Qingyun did not answer the question, but instead posed a query.

If the secret agent was not Yuwen Kuang's man, then it would undoubtedly confirm his suspicions.

"Whether it was my man or not is unimportant. Deep Water Harbor belongs to my Heyuan Prefecture; it is not something a mere Grandmaster from an outer prefecture can covet. As long as you are willing to leave, not only can I pretend this matter never happened, but I will also gift you two hundred thousand taels of silver for free. This way, you won't have made a wasted trip. What do you think?" Yuwen Kuang said indifferently.

In his view, this condition was already quite generous. After testing that Pei Qingyun was indeed a Grandmaster, being able to resolve the conflict without fighting by spending a little money was nothing.

Under normal circumstances, for a Grandmaster to be able to obtain two hundred thousand taels without having to make a move, just by making a trip, would naturally be a profitable deal.

But that was based on the premise that their strength was at least equal.

Pei Qingyun said playfully, "Opening with two hundred thousand taels, Brother Yuwen is truly generous. The outside world claims Brother Yuwen is cruel and heartless; it seems everyone has misunderstood you. How about this: if Brother Yuwen presents two hundred thousand taels immediately, I can also pretend this matter never happened. From then on, we shall go our separate ways."

As soon as these words were spoken, Yuwen Kuang's face darkened. "Pei Qingyun, do not bring ruin upon yourself."

"Brother Yuwen, you really know how to joke. Who exactly is bringing ruin upon themselves? You are merely a pirate force; who gave you the courage to stand before me and delusionally attempt to seize Deep Water Harbor? As a relative of the Cui Clan Great Family, I have been invited here precisely to clear out you rats hiding underground." Saying this, Pei Qingyun's face turned cold with killing intent.

"How bold." Yuwen Kuang snorted coldly, simultaneously erupting with surging killing intent.

Under his mobilization, the circulation constructed by the Yang Force and his Qi and blood formed a layer of protection on the surface of his body.

This layer of protection appeared very thin, but its defensive capability was far beyond what armor could compare to. It could be said that it was almost impossible for any Martial Artist below the Grandmaster level to break through this defense. It even had a certain degree of defensive capability against surprise attacks from Martial Artists of the same rank.

But relying solely on defense to deal with Martial Artists of the same rank was naturally impossible.

As this protective power appeared, a deep blue shadow appeared on Yuwen Kuang's body.

This shadow was not complete and was only a zhang high. But if one observed its outline carefully, one could discover that this incomplete shadow somewhat resembled a strange beast from the sea, the Long.

This was also one of the characteristics of a Grandmaster.

Almost at the same time, a shadow nearly two zhang high appeared above Pei Qingyun's head. The shadow was lush with greenery, its outline resembling an Ancient Tree of Life, and the shadow was very complete, showing signs of becoming solid.

This was also the first time Pei Qingyun had displayed his Grandmaster strength in front of everyone.

With the appearance of the Ancient Tree of Life shadow, Yuwen Kuang's expression changed drastically.

"Perfection..." Yuwen Kuang muttered to himself.

As a Grandmaster, how could Yuwen Kuang not understand the significance of a complete shadow?

That was a sign that would only appear when a Mystic Grade Cultivation Technique reached Perfection.

He had been promoted to Grandmaster for several years already.

The Cultivation Technique he practiced, the Water Long True Art, was only Mystic Grade Mid-tier.

Yet even so, he had only barely entered the stage of Minor Achievement.

Although he did not know the grade of the Cultivation Technique Pei Qingyun practiced, even for a Mystic Grade Low-tier Cultivation Technique, it would take an ordinary Grandmaster ten years to Cultivate it to Perfection.

But according to the intelligence he had gathered, Pei Qingyun had been promoted to Grandmaster for at most half a year.

In half a year, to Cultivate a Mystic Grade Cultivation Technique to Perfection. Even if it were Mystic Grade Low-tier, it was absolutely impossible.

However. That was the fact.

Before he could think it through, Pei Qingyun had already appeared at his side.

Boom! Accompanied by a thunderous roar, an astonishing light burst forth from the shadow.

The power unleashed by the combination of Yang Force and Qi and blood also exploded at this moment.

In an instant, everyone's vision was seized, and a sudden sense of palpitation swept through their bodies.

"This is a battle of Grandmasters." At this moment, this thought could not help but echo in everyone's hearts.

Among those present, the number of people who had witnessed a battle of Grandmasters with their own eyes could be counted on one hand.

Firstly, battles between Grandmasters were rare. Secondly, not everyone had the opportunity to be a bystander.

Having the opportunity to witness a battle of Grandmasters with their own eyes could be considered a topic of conversation for the future.

Compared to the others on the sidelines, as Pei Qingyun's opponent, Yuwen Kuang faced this palm strike directly; he felt the immense power contained in this blow even more, and a strong sense of crisis flooded his entire body.

In the flash of an instant, it did not allow him any opportunity to retreat.

He shouted loudly, and the shadow of the strange beast Long collided head-on with the shadow of the Ancient Tree of Life.

In an instant, his shadow of the strange beast Long began to disintegrate; the originally semi-complete shadow of the strange beast Long was left with only a small half.

The two were of the same Realm, but the suppression from the Cultivation Technique caused Yuwen Kuang to fall into a disadvantage in an instant.

Looking at the situation, at most he could take one more blow before the shadow of the strange beast Long above his head would disappear.

"This is definitely not something that can be achieved by a Mystic Grade Low or Mid-tier Cultivation Technique at Perfection; he absolutely cannot be a newly promoted Grandmaster." Yuwen Kuang was terrified, his heart pounding uncontrollably.

His Cultivation Technique was originally of the Weak Water lineage. In the natural environment of the sea, it was even more conducive to his performance.

Furthermore, he had been promoted to the Six Viscera Realm for several years already. No matter what, with his strength, dealing with Pei Qingyun, a new Grandmaster who had been promoted to the Six Viscera Realm for less than half a year, even if he couldn't crush him, he should be able to win.

It was just that relying on himself alone, wanting to keep Pei Qingyun, who was also a Grandmaster, was not something he could do.

But now, in this situation, let alone winning. With his own strength alone, even escaping was difficult.

Both were in the early stage of the Six Bowels Realm, yet the gap in strength between the two was at a crushing level.

At this moment, Yuwen Kuang regretted it immensely. This Pei Qingyun had hidden himself too deeply.

It was said he was only promoted to Grandmaster half a year ago. How could he have a Mystic Grade High-tier or even Top-tier Cultivation Technique at Perfection?

There was no time to think more; Pei Qingyun's next strike followed closely. The Ancient Tree of Life shadow once again erupted with astonishing power.

It was also at this time that the onlookers recovered their vision and saw the two people battling clearly.

Although they were not clear about the situation of the battle just now, through the changes in the shadows, they discovered the anomaly within.

Yuwen Kuang seemed to have fallen into a disadvantage.

Facing this situation, the members of the Cui Clan on the merchant ship naturally showed joy on their faces. In contrast, the people on the Gale Pirates' ship did not look very good.