Xuanqing Guard

Chapter 313: Chapter 313: Frost Descent

Nie Yun’s experience did indeed surpass that of Fairy Qing Wan; his advances and retreats were measured, with clear strategic intent, and his situational awareness during battle was precise—pressing forward like raging fire, pulling back like the tide, his control utterly precise.

Yet despite Nie Yun’s slight edge in experience and cultivation, when it came to fighting style, he was at an obvious disadvantage.

He unleashed the Heaven-Deceiving Finger, Fist Techniques, Palm Techniques, and more, making his means appear varied and unpredictable, yet he never once truly managed to suppress his opponent.

In contrast, from the very start, Fairy Qing Wan relied solely on her sword and a single form of Swordsmanship, at most imbuing her attacks with various Sword Intents—both offensive and defensive, each of Nie Yun’s attacks neutralized in turn, as she steadily and unhurriedly seized the initiative in the fight.

Given this, even Shen Hao, who wasn’t able to discern many of the finer details, noticed that after Nie Yun’s initial fruitless assault, he’d been rapidly forced into passivity.

"The might of Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin is truly fearsome—even Nie Yun’s cultivation and experience are entirely offset by his opponent’s fighting style. And as the match goes on and the girl from Mountain of Ten Thousand Books becomes more familiar with his methods, the advantage will shift ever further out of his reach. At this point, I’m leaning toward the girl for victory."

"Indeed, the techniques of Mountain of Ten Thousand Books are superior, and that girl’s adaptability is excellent as well. Once she resolved the peril at the opening, her calm and composure are testament to her proficiency."

"The main issue lies with those Sword Intents—when bolstered by Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin, they’re simply too powerful. Their synergy leaves virtually no weaknesses. Nie Yun, for all his strength over the ordinary Primordial Core Realm Perfection, still faces serious risk of defeat."

"Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin is just too strong!"

It wasn’t only the experts of Chang Baifeng who marveled—on the viewing platform, the cultivators of each sect almost unanimously disfavored Nie Yun’s chances.

But exceptions existed; besides a blindly loyal Shen Hao siding with Nie Yun, Yu Ao Feng from Celestial Toad Sect also held a different opinion.

Unlike the others, from the very start, Yu Ao Feng had not focused on offense and defense, but rather had kept his gaze fixed upon Nie Yun’s hands.

"Those gloves ought to be Li Shuyang’s magical artifact ’White Frost’ from before he became renowned. If I’m not mistaken, this artifact was crafted to complement a unique magic Li Shuyang devised. Heh, that girl from Mountain of Ten Thousand Books is about to suffer."

He left it at that. By his side, Zhang Lin was bewildered yet dared not interrupt, and could only subconsciously begin observing Nie Yun’s hands as well. Strangely enough, after more than a dozen breaths, Zhang Lin too started to notice something off.

Ordinarily, glove-type magical artifacts existed to reinforce the user’s hands—allowing direct contact with opponents wielding weapons, sometimes enhancing the wearer’s attacks as well. Balanced between attack and defense. And yet, Nie Yun’s gloves were not only durable—they were also leaking True Qi? What did this mean?

The battlefield was steadily tilting toward Fairy Qing Wan, as though Nie Yun was on the verge of defeat—when the old crone Zhong Hongye from Mountain of Ten Thousand Books, sitting atop the viewing platform, also sensed the oddity.

"Something is wrong! That mist... it’s not normal—it’s... no, this is bad, Qing Wan is in danger!"

But Zhong Hongye could only stew helplessly. She wished to warn her, but couldn’t bring herself to lose face so thoroughly. She had to hope that Qing Wan would sense the danger in time.

Just a few breaths later, Fairy Qing Wan did sense something amiss. Decisively abandoning her overwhelming pressure on Nie Yun, she leaped back several zhang, raising her sword in front of her chest, vigilant—feeling the omnipresent threat closing in from all around.

"This art is called Frost Descent. My master taught it to me. Five years ago, I barely grazed its surface, but in the Ten Thousand Miles Bamboo Sea, it enabled me to slay fifteen Primordial Pill Fierce Beasts. Today marks the first time I’ve used it against a person. Fairy, I humbly invite your critique."

As the words faded, the killing intent emanating from Nie Yun surged once more. Both fists clenched tight, and at almost the exact moment, the seemingly inconspicuous white mist around him suddenly condensed, transforming into floating crystals of ice, each one suspended in midair like motes of wintry white frost clinging to branches.

They were far too fine, far too small, and far too numerous. Abruptly, they sprang into being, densely filling the entire arena.

Fairy Qing Wan’s expression grew cold and austere. Never before had she encountered such means. Though she could not sense any real threat from these motes of White Frost, her instincts screamed of peril—she needed to break clear of their coverage immediately.

Yet this was a duel; to withdraw was to admit defeat.

She could not lose.

"Ten Thousand Swords..." A spurt of blood!

Fairy Qing Wan had planned to once more unleash Sword Intent in a concentrated burst, to tear apart the surrounding myriad, minuscule White Frost Particles. However, before her Sword Momentum could even rise, a fist materialized out of thin air less than a foot from her side, thundering, without warning, into her right flank.

The Fist Force exploded, shattering the True Qi Shield she’d arrayed over her body. Though the force was partially buffered by the soft armor beneath her garments, the residual impact was still overwhelming, rattling her meridians, bones, muscles—even her internal organs were struck. Blood welled in her throat and burst from her mouth.

And it was not over. Reeling from the punch, her body was hurled several steps to the side by the tremendous force—causing her, unavoidably, to crash into several of the tiny White Frost motes. The moment she touched them, they shattered, each sending out ripples that blurred like mirrors, from which fists emerged, swift as lightning, thundering into her again and again.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Three resounding blows, all raining hard upon Fairy Qing Wan’s back.

"Wah!"

She spewed another mouthful of blood, but this time, forcibly reversed her True Qi to counteract the residual momentum of the blow behind her, preventing herself from colliding with other White Frost Particles.

On the viewing platform, Yu Ao Feng laughed. "Indeed, it’s Frost Descent—and Nie Yun already displays sixty percent of Li Shuyang’s former mastery. Tsk, tsk. Now that Frost Descent has descended, let us see how the girl from Mountain of Ten Thousand Books contends. If she can’t negate the space mirrors conjured by White Frost, Nie Yun will simply beat her to death, one fist at a time."

Yu Ao Feng’s words laid it bare for all to hear. The spectating crowd now realized the match had once again turned; the Fairy Qing Wan, who had so recently dominated Nie Yun by her Swordsmanship and intent, was now caught in his trap—now, like a turtle in a jar, she must find a way to break free, or else defeat was certain.

Some of the standby Chang Baifeng Profound Sea Realm Elders outside the ring had already begun making preparations to intervene. They would not allow either combatant to come to harm.

But Nie Yun cared not what those outside thought. Unlike before, he did not close in to press Fairy Qing Wan, but kept his distance, circling his trapped opponent, unleashing Fist Force from afar to keep her on the defensive.

Confronted with such a crisis—how would Fairy Qing Wan respond?