Clang! Clang! Clang!
Two swords clashed fiercely over and over again. One was a massive longsword, and the other was a more slim saber variant.
Even though the duo was only using physical strength and sword techniques in their clash, the pressure of their battle still caused large cracks and gashes to form in the earth below them.
A formless yet sharp sword aura enveloped their battleground as if protecting the sanctity of their duel.
Long Chen swung his sword heavily, impacting Xue Feng's saber with all his strength. However, Xue Feng wasn't just sitting still. His saber slid along the longsword's blade, smoothly parrying it before moving to strike once more.
Long Chen twisted his body to narrowly avoid the blade. However, he had lost his momentum when Xue Feng parried his earlier strike. Instead of trying to make another sweeping attack, he turned his sword around and swiftly stabbed Xue Feng's solar plexus with the hilt of the sword.
"Keuk…! I didn't expect you to use such a dirty trick!"
"Hahaha! Even if it is the hilt, it is still part of my sword. Who said I couldn't attack with it?"
"That's why I wasn't insulting you, I was just admiring your craftiness!"
Xue Feng stomped on the ground and propelled himself forward. He let out a flurry of attacks, forcing Long Chen to go on the defensive.
His saber moved like a snake, wriggling its way into even the smallest opening Long Chen left. As the fight continued on, Long Chen was forced to find a way to correct the weaknesses that even he didn't know about before Xue Feng showed him.
But it wasn't like he was alone in this. Xue Feng was also benefitting immensely from this duel. Long Chen's attacks were honest, yet filled with unbridled power. Even though the sword paths were predictable, it didn't make them any easier to block.
And once in a while, Long Chen would completely abandon his honest sword and sneak in an attack that one would never expect from seeing his previous swordplay. It was this kind of craftiness in the midst of predictability that made him a tough opponent to face.
This kind of exchange had happened hundreds of times already in the past few minutes. Although the main attacker and defender changed rapidly, the fact of the matter was that neither of them could land a hit on the other.
Instead of fighting for the Empyrean Dragon Sword, it was better to say that these two were using each other to perfect their own swordsmanship. But neither of them would have it any other way.
Bang!
Another flurry of exchanges took place. Without them even realizing it, their swords had been coated in colored Sword Aura.
"Isn't it…about time we start…showing off…our sword arts?" Long Chen said between breaths. His mana rose to cover his body, ridding the sweat that was covering him.
"Haha…I don't think…you'll be able to keep standing…if we do that…" Xue Feng replied, equally short of breath.
Mana brought sustainability. Even if one's stamina ran dry, one could use mana to compensate or boost it to the next level. However, fighting with pure body and technique like the two of them had been doing was extremely tiring for them, especially when facing an opponent with an equal level of skill.
But they were sincerely enjoying their fight, so neither of them noticed at all. Instead, after their short break, they immediately took their stances again.
"Watch out for this one. Nine Dragons Soar Into The Heavens!" Long Chen's voice crescendoed into a shout. His sword, wrapped in golden aura, made a swift upward slash that wasn't necessarily aimed at anything.
Rumble! Boom!
The ground began to rumble and cave in. From within, nine golden dragons made of Sword Aura fiercely shot out and surrounded Xue Feng.
"As expected of the Long Clan. Even your sword technique mirrors dragons." Xue Feng smirked. He raised his saber into the air, creating a clean and slow cut that even a mortal could follow.
"Limitless Sword Strike."
The nine dragons around his body charged in without hesitation. Their jaws were opened wide, rows of horrendous teeth shining in the cave light as they tried to rip Xue Feng to shreds.
But Xue Feng's sword completed its movement before they could. As if they had been trapped in a gelatinous substance, the movement of those dragons slowed until it was almost halted.
The clean blue line of Sword Aura passed through the dragon bodies one by one, unhurried and unrestrained, as if it was taking a casual stroll in the park.
Long Chen's eyes widened as he witnessed it. "Amazing. To think that you imbued your Sword Aura with such a spectacular concept."
It wasn't empty praise. Long Chen could clearly sense the profound intent behind the slash, even though he couldn't completely understand it.
"Very well, I shall not restrain myself to the Golden Dragon Sword Arts of our Long Clan. Instead, I will show you what I've achieved through my personal insight into the sword."
Long Chen's figure turned into a flash of gold, rushing towards Xue Feng before his sword could finish slashing the nine dragons in the air.
Right as he appeared before his opponent, Long Chen disappeared, reappearing ten meters in the air above.
"This is a sword inspired by a man who almost pushed me to the brink of death, despite having trashy sword techniques himself. Therefore, I decided to call it the Void Sword."
Long Chen's arms turned into countless mirages as he swung them faster than the common eye could track. His sword formed an extremely intricate pattern in the air as he did so, but as the pattern became more profound, it also became smaller and smaller.
"Return the world to origin, Void Sword!"
The massive pattern coagulated and became a single paper-thin line of Sword Aura that covered Long Chen's Sword.
"Haa…" Long Chen took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Although this sword wasn't completed, it was the pinnacle of his ability at the moment.
"Release!"
His eyes shot open, his sword moved at a snail's pace, but reached the end of its swing in an instant.
Xue Feng's eyes widened in shock. A sudden sense of encroaching death overwhelmed him. The odd part was, he couldn't even see the sword that Long Chen had released.
His mind turned rapidly. In the face of guaranteed death, his thoughts moved at a pace counted in microseconds. And in that time, he steeled his resolve.
"Just as you have created something so magnificent on your own, as have I. Allow me to show you the sword I created when I was trapped in the deepest pits of desperation."
Xue Feng closed his eyes and ignored the incoming blade. He shut out all sensations except for the feeling of his sword in his hand.
Time seemed to come to a halt, color faded from the world. It was a grey world that only Xue Feng could see.
And in this state, he could finally see the sword Long Chen had released.
It was formless, soundless, a representation of nothingness that someone existed in the physical plane. Seeing it, Xue Feng sighed in admiration.
"We are both pursuing impossibilities with our swords. Therefore, you are the person I admire the most in this world. If even this final sword cannot slash you, I shall follow you as my big brother for the rest of my life."
Xue Feng's sword slashed diagonally from top to bottom. In that instant, the grey and motionless world was split in two.
Long Chen and Xue Feng, these two were the only ones remaining in the world. Only they could see the clash between swords that was taking place between them. Everything else had been frozen in time.
Except for a single pair of cold and emotionless striking blue pupils, who stared at the two of them without a hint of expression at all.
