44: The ultimate showdown between Li Ao and Yun Yun

Yun Yun stood holding her sword, her moon-white dress rustling as it billowed without wind. Pure and majestic azure Dou Qi coiled around her, as if she had merged with the world's wind-attribute energy. The pressure belonging to a Dou Huang expert was released without reservation, violently colliding with Li Ao's domineering, fierce, and all-shattering Saber Intent in the center of the square!

"Ooom—!"

The collision of the two powerful Aura fields did not result in an earth-shattering boom, but rather a low, heart-stopping hum. The air in the center of the square seemed to turn into viscous liquid, light distorted, and the dust on the ground was repelled by an invisible force, forming a clear vacuum zone.

All Cloud Mist Sect Disciples held their breath, their hearts nearly leaping from their chests. The Sect Master had personally made a Move! This was the Cloud Mist Sect's last dignity, and the final hope in their hearts!

The Elders on the high platform were also tense. Yun Ling clenched his fists even tighter, his fingernails digging deep into his palm. He both hoped Yun Yun could defeat this arrogant maniac, yet he was secretly worried... this young man's strength was truly unfathomable.

Li Ao looked at Yun Yun, who had fully unleashed her Aura, and a faint expression named "seriousness" finally flashed across his dark black iron pupils. He slowly lowered his joined fingertips, and his right hand grasped the hilt of the saber wrapped in cloth behind his back.

"Clang—!"

A clear saber cry, like a Dragon roar in the Nine Heavens! The fine steel long saber unsheathed in response! The blade did not shine with the brilliant light of a divine Sharp Weapon; instead, it displayed an ancient, dark dullness. Only the edge flowed with a chilling cold light. The blade trembled, emitting a hum that yearned for blood. The fierce Saber Intent, which had been suppressed, finally found an outlet, soaring into the sky, making half the sky appear several shades darker!

With the saber in hand, Li Ao's entire Aura transformed again! If before he was a divine weapon hidden in a box, now he was a peerless, ominous blade fully unsheathed, eager to drink blood! That will to sever everything condensed into substance, seemingly capable of tearing space itself!

"Please."

Li Ao held the saber with one hand, the tip pointing diagonally to the ground. That single, simple word carried more oppression than any grand declaration.

Yun Yun's beautiful eyes were serious. She could feel the threat brought by the Saber Intent escalating geometrically after her opponent grasped his saber! She no longer hesitated. Her jade foot lightly tapped the ground, and her figure was like weightless willow catkins, yet as fast as lightning. The ancient longsword in her hand cut through the air, bringing up a cold, stunning azure arc of light, stabbing straight toward Li Ao's throat!

Extreme Wind: Falling Kill!

Her first Move was the Cloud Mist Sect's ultimate foundational technique! This sword strike was not just several times faster than when Yun Ling used it previously, but also several times more condensed! Where the sword light passed, subtle ripples appeared in space, as if it truly was about to be pierced through by this one strike!

Facing this lightning-fast, extremely condensed sword strike, Li Ao moved. He did not choose to clash head-on, nor did he retreat. Instead, his footwork shifted, and his figure left a string of afterimages like a ghost. Although the Thunder Sound Steps was not fully unleashed, it still displayed astonishing agility within the small space. Simultaneously, the dark long saber in his hand turned into a black bolt of lightning. It did not block, but instead followed an extremely tricky angle, the tip trembling slightly as it aimed for the wrist Yun Yun used to hold her sword!

Attack where they must defend! Arriving later but striking first!

Yun Yun felt a slight chill in her heart. She did not withdraw her sword strike, but her wrist trembled slightly. The sword tip vibrated, transforming into several sword shadows difficult to distinguish between real and fake, like a peacock spreading its tail. Not only did she avoid Li Ao's saber tip, but she also countered, aiming at several vital points around his body!

Li Ao's saber momentum remained unchanged, but his arm twisted and flipped at an angle that defied common sense, as if it had no bones. The dark long saber seemed to possess life, tracing profound trajectories: parrying, sweeping, chopping, or slicing! Every single strike precisely hit the weakest point of the sword shadows, producing a rapid succession of "ding, ding, ding" sounds, crisp and dense like rain hitting banana leaves!

Sparks flew everywhere! Dou Qi surged!

The two figures rapidly intersected, separated, and collided again in the center of the square! Sword light was like lightning, saber shadows like a curtain! The speed was extreme; Disciples with lower cultivation could only see two blurry streaks of light, one azure and one black, constantly colliding, unable to discern the specific Moves!

Yun Yun's sword technique was light and graceful, like wind and cloud, maximizing the speed and variability of wind-attribute Dou Qi. Her Sword Intent was dense, like an invisible net, attempting to trap and kill Li Ao within it.

Li Ao's saber technique, however, was pure dominance and ferocity! There were no unnecessary flourishes; every strike was simple, direct, and effective, containing the will to sever everything! No matter how exquisite Yun Yun's sword technique was, he broke it with a single saber strike! The dark long saber in his hand seemed to possess the power to split mountains, sever peaks, divide the sea, and tear the sky!

The essence of the Furious Wind Quick Blade was brought to a new height by him. His saber speed grew faster and faster, and his saber momentum grew fiercer and fiercer, like an ocean gathering a storm!

"Wind Returns, Snow Dances!"

Unable to achieve a breakthrough after prolonged attacks, Yun Yun's sword momentum changed again! Her figure spun, and her longsword scattered azure sword Qi across the sky, sweeping out like a blizzard. Every streak of sword Qi contained extremely strong cutting power, sealing off all of Li Ao's dodging space!

A sharp light flashed in Li Ao's eyes. He neither dodged nor retreated. The Black Iron Hegemon Body violently circulated within him, and dark black iron Qi and blood surged beneath his skin. He gripped the saber with both hands and fiercely delivered an unadorned heavy chop forward!

"Rending Wind!"

The saber edge chopped down, and an incomparably condensed silver-gray saber Qi burst forth! This saber Qi was not massive, but it contained extreme sharpness and an intent of "annihilation" that extinguished everything! Wherever it passed, the azure sword Qi filling the sky like a blizzard disintegrated and melted away, as if encountering a nemesis! The saber Qi continued its momentum, chopping straight toward Yun Yun at the center of the storm!

Yun Yun's pretty face changed slightly. Sensing the terrifying power contained within the saber Qi, she dared not meet it head-on. Her figure rapidly retreated, while her longsword drew several circles in front of her, condensing azure Dou Qi into several thick wind shields!

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The silver-gray saber Qi successively shattered three wind shields before its power was finally exhausted and dissipated into the air. Yun Yun was also forced back several steps by the resulting shockwave, her breathing slightly disordered, and the jade hand gripping the sword hilt felt numb.

She looked up at Li Ao, her gaze filled with shock. Her "Wind Returns, Snow Dances" was a top-tier Advanced Profound Rank Dou Technique, yet it was so brutally broken by his single saber strike! Moreover, the strange power contained within that saber Qi was actually able to directly annihilate her Dou Qi?!

Li Ao pressed his advantage relentlessly. The Thunder Sound Steps suddenly roared beneath his feet, and his figure appeared on Yun Yun's left like instant transmission. His long saber swept horizontally, aiming straight for her waist and abdomen! Before the saber arrived, the fierce saber wind was already cutting at Yun Yun's dress, making it snap and causing her skin to feel cold!

Yun Yun remained calm in the face of danger. Her waist bent backward as if boneless, forming a breathtaking arc, narrowly avoiding the sweeping saber edge. Simultaneously, her longsword struck like a viper from an unbelievable angle toward Li Ao's ribs!

Li Ao seemed to have anticipated this. The sweeping long saber strangely flicked upward, "Clang!" precisely parrying the longsword, while his other hand shot out like lightning, his five fingers forming a claw, shining with a dark black iron luster, grasping straight for Yun Yun's snow-white neck!

Close-quarters combat! Extremely perilous!

Yun Yun was shocked. She hadn't expected her opponent's fighting style to be so vicious and decisive! She hurriedly tilted her head to dodge, and simultaneously flicked her finger, shooting a condensed wind blade toward Li Ao's face, attempting to force him back.

Li Ao neither avoided nor yielded. The gesture of his hand grasping for her neck remained unchanged; he merely tilted his head slightly. The wind blade grazed past his cheek, taking a few strands of broken hair and leaving a faint scratch on his face, but his dark black iron palm had already clamped toward Yun Yun's slender jade neck like iron pincers!

Just as the palm containing terrifying power was about to touch her skin, Yun Yun could even feel the coldness and deathly Qi emanating from his fingertips. A hint of despair finally flashed in her eyes.

Just at this critical moment!

"Enough!"

An aged roar, yet one containing supreme majesty, seemingly resonating with the entire Yun Lan Mountain, suddenly exploded from the back mountain of the Cloud Mist Sect like thunder from the Nine Heavens!

The moment the sound arrived, a terrifying pressure, vast as an abyss and far surpassing the Dou Huang level, descended heavily upon the entire Cloud Mist Sect square, like the collapse of the heavens!

Space solidified!

Time seemed to halt!

Li Ao's palm, which was about to touch Yun Yun's neck, seemed to sink into an invisible swamp, its speed suddenly slowing tenfold! Yun Yun also felt her entire body restricted by an irresistible force, unable to Move!

Everyone felt a tremor originating from the depths of their Soul, instinctively wanting to kneel!

Li Ao suddenly looked up, his dark black iron pupils sharp as blades, piercing toward the back mountain. Yet, a cold arc curved on his lips.

"Finally... couldn't hold back?"

The Old Sect Master Yun Shan, or rather, Yun Shan, who was controlled and corrupted by the Hall of Souls' power.