https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-150-An-Unconquerable-Heart-Demon/12550845/
Chapter 149: A Clash of Blades and Swords
Chapter 149: A Clash of Blades and Swords
Having sparred against each other five hundred times on the martial arts platform, the two were very familiar with each other's moves, able to predict their opponent's next step with just a hint of movement.
But this time, Zhao Manying guessed wrong.
She dashed forward with a speed at least three times faster than in the virtual world, covering a greater distance, the dazzling blade of her Startling Flying Sword glowing with a chilling light as it threatened the front of Ji Xinghuo.
This was her consistent style, fierce and aggressive, using speed to counter speed.
The twenty-meter distance was crossed in an instant.
However, Ji Xinghuo abandoned his usual straightforward style from the virtual world and instead retreated. The rotating magnetic field was running at full power, with currents appearing under his skin as his stellar power and physical energy doubled down. With three consecutive flashes, his figure leaped through the darkness, instantly creating a distance of more than sixty meters.
During the flashing steps, his fingers and palms glowed with electric light, which accumulated electrical potential along the Thunder Chase War Blade in his right hand. As soon as the distance was created, he released it.
A thick bolt of lightning burst from the blade tip.
Boom!
A peal of thunderous roar, the silver-white electric light illuminated the entire mountaintop, bending through the air and pouncing on the approaching Zhao Manying.
She had long sensed the lightning that Ji Xinghuo was brewing, and when the lightning was just three meters and four meters away, her body suddenly disappeared, flickering back and forth within a range of several meters, so fast that even her gaze could not be locked.
Mysterious Trace Steps!
This was the signature ability of the "Flying Steps."
Moving at high speed within a certain range, one could dodge attacks, and the duration was much longer than that of the Flashing Steps, making it useful for both offense and defense.
But as she displayed the Mysterious Trace Steps, the thick lightning bolt turned with her.
The lightning suddenly struck downward, slamming into the ground.
Boom!
The range of the Mysterious Trace Steps was completely covered by the electric shock, and gravel and soil flew everywhere as a half-meter-deep pit was blasted into the ground.
Zhao Manying had not expected Ji Xinghuo's Thunderclap Hand to be able to change direction, and her Mysterious Trace Steps were abruptly interrupted as several strands of exploding current hit her.
On her left wrist, a semi-transparent shield unfolded, fending off the lightning.
It was a silver armguard.
Originally hidden under the sleeve of her leather jacket, it was now fully exposed. The armguard, about ten centimeters wide, was sturdily and intricately designed, perfectly fitting her arm. The shield it projected guarded her entire body, first blocking the current, and then the mechanical structure of the armguard instantly unfolded, forming an eighty-centimeter-diameter, silver-gray round shield that deflected the flying gravel and shockwave.
"Chromium Gold Armguard."
Ji Xinghuo was not surprised when he saw this.
This superpower two-star protective equipment was famous, a flagship product of an equipment company in the Asia-Pacific community, priced at over one billion but with scarce production.
The Chromium Gold Armguard came with the "repulsive force field" of the Star Torch Hand, capable of unidirectionally repelling physical and energy attacks, as well as unfolding a folding shield that was extremely tough, with its sharp edges also usable as a weapon. Additionally, it had two other empowered effects: "Toughness" and "Quick Recovery."
Wearing the Chromium Gold Armguard gave an aberrant comprehensive and robust protective capability.
As Ji Xinghuo pondered the origins of the armguard, he quickened his assault.
The Invisible Sting was already in his left hand.
Holding the knife in his right hand did not hinder his archery in the least. Taking advantage of Zhao Manying's defense against the Thunderclap Hand's strike, he unleashed three silent arrows in rapid succession.
In the blink of an eye, he had drawn and released three times.
The invisible, silent, and formless arrows shot out, even harder to detect in the darkness, aimed straight at Zhao Manying's chest.
He still held back, not aiming for her head.
Zhao Manying had just unfolded her folding shield to block the electrical assault when she sensed the incoming arrows, but instead of raising her shield to block them, she retracted the folding shield into her armguard, exposing herself.
Her gaze intensified.
The surrounding air seemed to freeze, and the three invisible arrows were grasped by an unseen hand, materializing in the darkness and freezing in mid-air, unable to advance any further.
Ji Xinghuo's subsequent arrows also seemed to be mired in a quagmire, unable to make any progress.
Kinetic Stringer!
He frowned slightly, for the Kinetic Stringer could convert spiritual energy into substantial force, acting on objects from a distance, making them the bane of all archers.
In an instant, spiritual energy swept across half the mountaintop.
Gravel, soil, arrows, and surrounding debris were all seized by Zhao Manying from a distance, forming a flood of matter and energy, like a floating giant snake, rushing towards Ji Xinghuo.
Ji Xinghuo hurriedly dodged, but he did not rashly approach Zhao Manying.
The closer he got to her, the stronger her spiritual energy became.
Without confirming a sure-kill situation, approaching a Kinetic Stringer was extremely unwise.
Boom!
The kinetic flood exploded about ten meters away from him, the shockwave slamming into the ground, causing the entire mountaintop to tremble and sending countless stones and soil flying.
Ji Xinghuo was unhurt, but Zhao Manying had achieved her goal.
She had escaped the bow and arrow's long-range attack.
With a shake of the hilt of her Startling Flying Sword, four sword shadows, as substantial-looking as the real thing, condensed around her. Each sword shadow was identical to the Startling Flying Sword, with straight and sharp blades glowing with a chilling light. They floated in mid-air, and as soon as they appeared, they shot out, flying along different trajectories and disappearing from sight in an instant.
Shadow Clone was not in the "Shadow Blade" job template, but it was the dream super-limit ability of all Shadow Blades.
It could create multiple clones with offensive capabilities that were identical to the original.
And now, a sword had gained the Shadow Clone ability.
The sword shadow clones could fly and "refract light" to turn invisible, and with Zhao Manying's kinetic empowerment, their lethality and speed had been pushed to a whole new level!
Zhao Manying's heart was as calm as still water, her mind focused on multiple tasks.
Ji Xinghuo's heart pounded with a sense of impending doom as he felt immense pressure bearing down on him.
Zhao Manying had closed in to within thirty meters.
Suddenly, Ji Xinghuo's body felt heavy, his limbs pulled and restrained in different directions by unseen forces. The air around him compressed and exploded, squeezing his body relentlessly, making even the slightest movement difficult.
In the next second, the four invisible sword shadows arrived.
Through magnetic field sensing, he saw that they were attacking from different directions, forming a net of intricate angles that blocked his path.
"Hiss!"
Ji Xinghuo took a deep breath, and the Invisible Sting in his left hand had transformed into the Devil Sound. Stellar power surged within him, infusing the longsword in his hand.
In an instant, a white wave of sound exploded.
Sonic Boom!
A loud rumble echoed.
Ji Xinghuo stood at the center of the sonic boom, the timing of the explosion impeccable, engulfing all four sword shadows within and blasting them away.
The sonic boom he unleashed naturally paled in comparison to the legendary Great Kun people, and as soon as the boom exploded, Zhao Manying sensed it. The invisible kinetic energy compressed inward, its direction opposite to that of the boom, counteracting and negating most of its force, failing to inflict lethal damage on Zhao Manying head-on.
But she was already upon him!
Still seven or eight meters away, Zhao Manying waved her hand, and a hair-thin sword qi burst from the Startling Flying Sword, too fast for the naked eye to catch, flashing by in an instant.
Ji Xinghuo took advantage of the sonic boom to break free from the kinetic energy's restraints, stepping forward.
Flash Step!
His figure disappeared, passing through the sword qi.
This seemingly insignificant sword qi swept past behind him, instantly slicing through a rock the size of an adult, leaving a smooth cut as if it had been mechanically sheared.
Ji Xinghuo reappeared, wielding the Devil Sound and striking out.
Ultrasonic Sword Qi!
His sword qi was vastly different from Zhao Manying's. It was composed of countless fine blades, covering a wide area. Anyone caught in its path would be sliced into a thousand pieces.
Zhao Manying remained unfazed, not even attempting to dodge. She simply passed through the ultrasonic sword qi.
Her body was enveloped by an invisible kinetic energy shield.
Most of the sword qi was deflected, and the few that penetrated her shield caused a layer of ice armor to condense on her black leather jacket, easily withstanding the sword qi.
This was the power of the "Ice Bead Bracelet" she wore on her right wrist, a Super-Ability three-star equipment with the "Ice Blade" superpower. Possessing the Ice Bead Bracelet was like having half of the Ice Blade ability, though she mainly used this equipment for crowd control and protection.
Having passed through the ultrasonic sword qi, the two were now face to face.
Once again, they engaged in a head-on confrontation, just like the five hundred times they had sparred against each other on the martial arts platform over the past month!
Ji Xinghuo brandished both his knife and sword.
Zhao Manying held the Startling Flying Sword, surrounded by the four sword shadow clones.
Clang!
The Devil Sound and the Startling Flying Sword clashed without restraint, emitting a crisp, harmonious sound as the two types of stellar power burst forth and pushed against each other.
At the moment of collision, a lightning bolt erupted from the tip of Ji Xinghuo's Thunder Chase War Blade in his right hand.
Zhao Manying had anticipated this, and she stepped closer to his side, using her kinetic energy to interfere and influence Ji Xinghuo's every move.
The four sword shadow clones attacked again.
Ji Xinghuo's body erupted with electricity, and under the drive of the rotating magnetic field, he executed a flash step, passing through the gaps between the sword shadows. He utilized his high-speed movement to prevent Zhao Manying from binding him with her kinetic energy, and then he suddenly flash-stepped back, shooting out a sonic spear while still in the midst of his step.
The semi-transparent sonic spear truly traveled at the speed of sound.
Zhao Manying tried to block it with her kinetic energy shield but found its protective effect against sound waves greatly reduced. The sonic spear penetrated the shield and struck her body.
She didn't have time to deploy her ice armor or folding shield.
Puff!
Her leather jacket ripped, exposing a patch of skin on her left shoulder.
At the same time, her body reflected a silvery metallic luster, and the sonic spear hitting her shoulder was like striking a steel plate. Although the sound waves penetrated, the damage inflicted was minimized.
Ji Xinghuo noticed a necklace pendant hanging from her neck.
"Iron Pendant..."
"Another piece of protective equipment!" He couldn't help but feel exasperated.
The Iron Pendant was Super-Ability three-star equipment, and its most powerful function was the super-limit ability "Iron Body," which, when activated, hardened the wearer's body like iron, but it also slowed them down, even causing them to stop in place.
The Iron Pendant also possessed "Iron Lungs" and "Metal Organs," one enhancing physical endurance and the other protecting the internal organs.
It also had "Wound Transfer," which could redirect moderate injuries to other parts of the body.
A single Iron Pendant was almost like having an extra life!
Coupled with the Chromium Gold Armguard and Ice Bead Bracelet, all three pieces of equipment provided different forms of protective capabilities.
"Damn it!"
"Is the Super League that profitable? She's decked out in top-tier equipment; she's like an iron turtle!"
Ji Xinghuo cursed inwardly, but he knew he had to press on with the fight.
The four sword shadow clones revolved in the air like four venomous snakes, lightning-fast, and in the blink of an eye, they struck again.
(End of Chapter)
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