A journey through the world of martial arts

Chapter 162 Both sides suffer losses
Wei Feng unleashed eight sword beams to attack the incense-burning golden dragon from afar. Although the latter appeared to be struggling, Wei Feng did not relax at all. The long sword in his hand shone with spiritual light, ready to meet any counterattacks the opponent might have.

As the sword circle formed by the eight sword lights continued to shrink, and the space where the incense dragon could maneuver became smaller and smaller, the spectators below secretly held their breath.

Even Chen Cong, who had high hopes for the incense and golden dragon, was anxious, but he still maintained a calm demeanor, which made those around him wonder whether he was just pretending to be calm or had some other trick up his sleeve.

"In my opinion, the golden dragon of incense offerings is far from exhausted; such actions are merely a way to accumulate strength."

The king watched the battle in the sky. Although he was not familiar with the true magic and profound techniques, his strategic thinking was second to none. The golden dragon with incense was retreating step by step, which was nothing more than tightening the bowstring and delivering a fierce blow to the opponent.

Upon hearing this, Chu Fan and Chen Ge both nodded in agreement, praising the king for his keen insight in seeing through the scheme at a glance.

Even knowing that these were just flattery from the two men, it did not diminish the king's delight.

Just as the battle was turning in Wei Feng's favor, Wei Feng's expression suddenly changed. He made a hand gesture and chanted an incantation. Eight sword lights suddenly intensified, their blades flashing as they prepared to scale and slay the dragon. At the same time, the golden dragon, which had been coiled up, suddenly trembled, its scales unfurling. All the sword lights were blocked. Taking advantage of this moment, the light around the golden dragon suddenly dimmed.

As if all light had been swallowed up, the eight sword lights seemed to be stuck in a quagmire, their speed suddenly reduced, and no matter how Wei Feng tried to control them, they could not recover to their original state.

Wei Feng knew this must be due to the supernatural power of his opponent. His eyes flashed, and he saw that the golden dragon of incense was covered with tiny black sand grains, which swirled and swirled around it, constantly devouring the spiritual light on the sword light. Upon seeing this, Wei Feng felt relieved.

"I'm not afraid you won't make a move."

The eight sword lights were shattered in an instant, and the previously listless golden dragon suddenly recovered. Two red beams of light shot out from its eyes, and anything covered by the beams of light instantly turned into dust, which shocked the onlookers.

"The power of this golden dragon's supernatural abilities is so great, I wonder if the Imperial Preceptor can break it?"

Although the king knew that the incense-burning golden dragon had some abilities, the intensity of this battle had exceeded his expectations.

"This battle must be kept in balance, otherwise it will not be a good thing if one side is strong and the other is weak."

A dark glint flashed in the king's eyes as he looked at the slightly excited members of the Chen clan.

Others might not notice, but Chen Ge could not hide it from his eyes. Seeing the king's expression, he was startled and glanced at the cheering Chen family members without leaving a trace. Chen Ge was secretly annoyed.

"It seems we need to remind the head of the family to keep a close eye on the young men in order to prevent them from getting into trouble."

Meng Yu and Wang Xiao remained calm despite seeing the incense dragon display its power. They knew their senior brother's abilities; although such a divine power was extremely powerful, its speed was slow. Even if it was not slow, they could retreat safely and seek another opportunity to fight.

Wei Feng looked at the incoming red beam of light, but did not dodge or evade. A blue talisman rose from his body, with a longitude and latitude pattern drawn in gold lines. He pointed at it, and the talisman flashed with a clear light. A holographic image of a longitude and latitude disc floated in front of Wei Feng.

The moment the red beam of light touched this object, it twisted and contorted. In just a few breaths, it went from bright to dark and from thick to thin. Although the golden dragon continued to increase its power, it was still a drop in the ocean. Seeing that it was powerless to reverse the situation, the golden dragon immediately withdrew its divine power.

At that moment, a glint flashed in Wei Feng's eyes, and his long sword shot through the air with a whoosh. At the same time, a streak of dark light shot out from behind him like lightning. The two treasures attacked the dragon's head and tail simultaneously.

"Senior brother is truly remarkable; his use of the celestial talisman was truly exquisite."

Seeing the dramatic change in the battle situation, Meng Yu was overjoyed. The "Warring States Celestial Instrument Talisman" was used by the sect to neutralize external forces. The greater the external force, the faster it was consumed. If the incense-burning golden dragon had held on for a little longer, his senior brother would have had to find another way.

Seeing the longsword and flying shuttle coming, the Golden Dragon of Incense was not flustered. It swayed its body, head and tail connected, and the black sand around it firmly protected itself. Wei Feng knew the power of the black sand. The longsword shone with spiritual light, and sword lights shot out. Before they could travel far, they were worn away by the black sand. However, the black sand was not without its losses.

As time passed, the sword light attacked frequently. If it encountered an opening, the lightning shuttle would attack from the side. Seeing that the black sand was getting less and less, the golden dragon of incense stretched out its body and forcibly forced away the sword light. It opened its mouth and spat out a bright red cloud that suddenly appeared, rolling around and making the surrounding space dark and unbearable, so dark that even the blazing sun in the sky could not penetrate it.

"The power of incense offerings?"

Wei Feng's mind sharpened. He recalled the flying shuttle and continued to attack the golden dragon with his longsword. He remained on high alert, and talismans flew out from his side, weaving into a talisman net. Just then, Wei Feng's body trembled. Outside the talisman net, a deity of incense offerings was raising his sword and slashing. The talisman net flashed with light, and the place that was slashed immediately turned charred black.

"There are quite a few varieties."

With a thought, the flying shuttle silently pierced through the incense-burning deity beside him. The deity was astonished and scattered into incense smoke that lingered for a long time. Seeing this, Wei Feng retrieved the flying shuttle and remotely controlled his longsword, not giving the golden dragon of incense smoke a chance to clean it up.

When the Golden Dragon of Incense saw the deity being killed, it was about to take back the incense when it was entangled by sword lights. Although it quickly broke free, the incense was burned by Wei Feng's Yin Fire.

As soon as the incense went out, the Golden Dragon of Incense's strength weakened considerably. Seeing its decline, Wei Feng naturally wouldn't let this opportunity pass. He leaped into the air, longsword in hand, and channeled his inner energy, unleashing a brilliant sword light that fell like a star, striking the Golden Dragon of Incense squarely.

Despite its scales protecting it, the latter could not withstand the force and let out a few mournful cries. Half of its body was cleaved off and floated in mid-air. Before it could retract, a dark light instantly pulverized the half of its body, followed by the arrival of Yin Fire, leaving no trace.

"Senior brother's grasp of the opportunity is truly brilliant. Now that the Golden Dragon has lost half of its body and its strength has been greatly reduced, if it simply admits defeat, it can still save half of its life. Otherwise, it will only be turned to ashes by the Yin Fire together."

Meng Yu gripped the folding fan tightly in her hand, her eyes fixed on the sky.

Seeing this, Wang Xiao was not very optimistic. Although the incense dragon was only a fragment of a soul, it should not have been defeated so quickly. Judging from how much it valued the Chen family, it must have had more tricks up its sleeve.

The king and the members of the Chen clan, who were watching from the sidelines, all changed their expressions drastically.

"Wasn't this golden dragon of incense just a moment ago so majestic? How did it become like this in such a short time?"

Although the king had previously been very confident in Wei Feng's strength, Jinlong's strength was also extraordinary. He originally thought they could fight for several hours, but unexpectedly, in less than half an hour, one side had already shown signs of defeat. This time, he could not see any chance for Jinlong to turn the tide.

Chen Jue looked at the golden dragon of incense, which only had half of its body remaining, and his expression was very solemn. He then turned to Chen Cong and whispered, "Second brother, this golden dragon's strength should be far more than this, right? Could it be that some unexpected event has occurred?"

Chen Cong smiled wryly upon hearing this. He had thought that the Golden Dragon could fight to a standstill when he saw it displaying its power, but he did not expect Wei Feng to be so powerful. The moment he exerted his strength, he caused such a scene.

"Brother, this matter is probably not over yet. The Dragon King likely has more tricks up his sleeve."

Now that things have come to this, Chen Cong can only grit his teeth and try to think of the best-case scenario.

Chen Jue nodded upon hearing this, looking up at the sky.

Wei Feng should have been pleased to have severed the dragon's body with a single sword strike, but he had a strange feeling that he couldn't shake off, as if things had gone too smoothly, to the point that he himself could hardly believe it.

"No, we've fallen for their trap!"

Wei Feng's expression changed. Before he could react, he saw red smoke rising into the sky, dyeing the entire sky crimson. Only one golden and one black dot of light was visible, which was the figure of Wei Feng, the Golden Dragon Fish.

"What is this?" Wang Xiao hesitated for a moment, then jumped up in surprise, looking at the red smoke spreading in the sky, and immediately became anxious.

"Junior brother, this thing looks familiar. What is it?" Meng Yu frowned, noticing Wang Xiao's strange behavior, and immediately asked.

“This is Blood Smoke Cloud!” Upon hearing this, Wang Xiao turned to Meng Yu and affirmed.

"What, Blood Smoke Cloud!" Meng Yu's expression changed drastically. This Blood Smoke Cloud was the most vicious move of the incense gods. Anyone shrouded in this thing would lose their soul and mind within a short time, and would become the most devout believer of the incense gods, reduced to a puppet.

"How could this golden dragon of incense use blood smoke clouds? No, this must have been made by the Dragon King of Anle City. It seems that the incense supernatural powers that my senior brother obtained before were all a scheme. It was probably waiting for us to step into its trap."

Thinking of this, Meng Yu and Wang Xiao looked extremely ugly, while Chen Jue and the other members of the Chen clan were filled with fervor. The Dragon King was indeed incredibly powerful, able to revive even in a seemingly hopeless situation, and now he had even surrounded the Imperial Advisor, turning the tables on the host and guest. It seemed that the Chen clan still had a slight advantage.

Just as Chen Cong was secretly pleased with himself and had a big smile on his face, he suddenly felt his sleeve being tugged.

"Brother?" Chen Cong was puzzled as to why Chen Jue was tugging at his sleeve.

Chen Jue gave him a wink, and the latter followed Chen Jue's gaze. He saw that the king's face was gloomy and uncertain, and an indescribable aura was constantly rising from his body.

Upon seeing this, Chen Cong immediately composed himself, his expression turning serious as he looked at the sky with a hint of worry.

After being surrounded by the blood-red smoke, Wei Feng quickly figured out where it came from.

"It seems that the previous destruction of the incense-burning deity and half of his body was all part of your plan. It would have been difficult for you to do it with just a fragment of your soul. The Dragon King of Anle City must have been involved in this."

Wei Feng pointed his fingers and slashed the sword, sending dozens of sword lights swirling like fans, weaving a sword net to block the blood-red smoke. However, he miscalculated and was already at a disadvantage. The sword lights dimmed quickly under the erosion of the blood-red smoke, and in less than half a moment, they were enough to completely dissipate.

The golden dragon, now only a mutilated body, watched Wei Feng's movements, a cold glint in its eyes. It had taken a risk and expended so much effort to trap Wei Feng in one fell swoop, then connect with Anle City's main body to severely injure him.

This is a legitimate showdown between the two sides, and even if something goes wrong, the other side cannot find any reason to cause trouble.

Seeing the sword light around Wei Feng weaken, the golden light on the incense dragon intensified, and its originally incomplete body suddenly healed. It then stretched out its body, bared its fangs and claws, and attacked Wei Feng.

Although Wei Feng was trapped by the Blood Smoke Cloud, he was not without the power to fight back. If he had a little time, he could temporarily seal it off. However, judging from the golden dragon's posture, it would not give him any chance to catch his breath.

"Since we're going to clash head-on, let's see what you're capable of." Wei Feng held his longsword upside down, his sleeves fluttering as he stepped through the air, a black light surrounding him shielding him from the blood-red mist.

A thunderous roar echoed in mid-air, and a bolt of white lightning suddenly descended, its target being Wei Feng. Upon seeing this, Wei Feng raised his longsword, chanted an incantation, and the black light around his body grew brighter and brighter. In an instant, amidst the blood-red smoke and clouds, gold, white, red, and black colors appeared simultaneously.

Thunder roared and lightning flashed. Wei Feng's longsword drew in the lightning, and a black light spread out like a dark sea, actually pushing away the blood-red smoke and clouds. The lightning bolts were drawn into the black light, silent and seemingly causing no harm to Wei Feng.

As the Golden Dragon of Incense was secretly surprised, Wei Feng shouted, and his lightning bolt flew like lightning, striking the dragon's horn in the Golden Dragon's incredulous gaze. With a crack, half of the dragon's horn broke off, and the lightning bolt that flew back also dimmed.

Wei Feng had no time to worry about the magic weapon in his hand. He soared into the sky, and the golden dragon cried out in pain, its anger also aroused. It coiled up and its body made it impossible for the others to see the battle between the two sides.

High in the sky, the wind howled past his ears and the air currents disturbed his body. Wei Feng's eyes sharpened, and his long sword flashed with a clear light. Taking advantage of the fact that the golden dragon had not yet adapted, he wanted to gain the upper hand. Although the golden dragon was a few steps behind, the dragon-attribute cloud aura looked at the dazzling sword light, and with a sway of its body, boundless cloud aura gathered and blocked the sword light.

However, just when it thought Wei Feng wouldn't be able to get out within three breaths, a sharp, earth-shattering sword aura suddenly appeared in the cloud, tearing the cloud to shreds. The sword light continued its momentum, and with a clang of metal striking metal, a scale was cut off. Wei Feng's face turned pale.

The golden dragon cried out in pain. In a short moment, its dragon horns and scales had been damaged one after another, and the advantages it had accumulated were all lost. The sudden loss of connection to its main body must have meant that something had happened. It reached out with its claws and saw that Wei Feng was exhausted and had not yet generated new strength. He barely managed to swing his sword to block, but was knocked away by the dragon's claws.

The golden dragon of incense, having gained the upper hand, pressed on relentlessly. As it opened and inhaled, the clouds shifted and changed, while wisps of red smoke mingled within. The cloud-like arrows that flew across the sky were now arrayed, their whooshing sounds filling the air, completely sealing off the space around Wei Feng.

"This is a deadly attack."

As Wei Feng watched countless incense-shaped arrows fly towards him, he let out a deep shout, and his longsword soared up and down, its light stretching endlessly. At the same time, he summoned a black crystal again, which merged with the sword light to form a black and white light curtain.

The black and white light flowed, blocking the incoming cloud arrows. The golden dragon with incense flames had its eyes wide open and its four claws outstretched. A thick cloud of mist condensed into a mountain below, propelled by the golden dragon, and flew in along with the cloud arrows.

Wei Feng's expression hardened, and he exerted all his strength in his hands, causing the black and white light barrier to increase several times. With a loud bang, the light barrier shattered, the clouds and air flowed out, and both sides were forced back.

The sky was filled with a deafening roar as streaks of sparks rained down from above. The onlookers below were horrified. Meng Yu and Wang Xiao, seeing this, took out a talisman and, with a burst of true energy, erected a light screen. The sparks that landed on it immediately dissipated.

The king, who had initially looked shocked, immediately regained his composure upon seeing Meng Yu and the other man's actions, appearing calm and collected.

"The battle in the heavens is so fierce, I wonder how the Dragon King is doing?" Chen Jue worriedly. Even if he couldn't defeat the Grand Preceptor, he would be satisfied with a draw.

In the air, Wei Feng looked at the incense dragon whose aura had weakened considerably. His figure flashed, and his longsword advanced, piercing through the dragon's scales. As the incense scattered, the sharp dragon claws also struck Wei Feng squarely, denting his chest. Both of them were injured and forced to charge forward as they retreated.

After exchanging dozens of moves, both the dragon and the man were seriously injured. The golden dragon's golden light had dimmed, most of its scales had fallen off, and wisps of incense smoke kept flowing out of it. Wei Feng's hair was disheveled, one of his sleeves had been torn off, and the long sword in his hand was pitted and dented, looking like a piece of scrap iron.

"I have one last move. If you can withstand it, I have nothing more to say. If you cannot, you will vanish into thin air. Be careful!"

Wei Feng's true energy surged, his robes fluttered, and the long sword in his hand seemed to be reborn, circling around him. Every time it absorbed a trace of spiritual light, the sword would shorten by a fraction, and its aura would increase by a fraction. A sharp and annihilating force continued to accumulate, locking onto the incense and golden dragon from afar.

Seeing this, the Incense Dragon knew that this was its last move. With such a decisive move, life and death were decided immediately. Its golden light receded, and a bright red glow shone forth, like a raging fire. Its broken body shrank continuously under the red light, eventually transforming into a red auspicious cloud. This was the Incense Dragon's desperate move of self-destruction, which the Crimson Python named "Silent Void".

Looking at the auspicious clouds rising opposite him, Wei Feng felt a great threat. Ignoring the worsening of his injuries, he poured all his remaining true energy into his longsword. This move, "Heavenly Annihilation of Ignorance," was his last resort to save his life. He would not have used it lightly if it hadn't cost him ten years of cultivation.

As both sides continued to gather their strength, after an unknown amount of time, a dragon's roar and a sword's cry rang out simultaneously in the ears of the onlookers, leaving their heads suddenly blank and their minds stunned. At the same time, the auspicious clouds and the sword light collided. At first, it was silent, but then there were booming sounds, thunder and lightning, howling winds and scattering clouds, and rolling waves of energy surging to both sides.

Wei Feng and Jin Long were immediately injured by the force of the energy and fell downwards simultaneously. Seeing the two objects falling from the sky, Meng Yu and Wang Xiao's expressions changed, and they rushed towards Wei Feng's location. As for Jin Long, well, let him have his own luck.

The golden dragon transformed back into a golden elephant, and with a loud bang, it crashed to the ground, causing the ground to sink three feet. Upon seeing this, Chen Jue and the others' expressions changed drastically, and Chen Cong immediately stepped forward and sent people to retrieve the golden elephant.

On the other side, Meng Yu and Wang Xiao took the unconscious Wei Feng down, fed him a spiritual pill, and checked his pulse before they were able to relax a little.

“My senior brother is seriously injured. It will take decades of training for him to fully recover.” Meng Yu looked at the golden dragon statue with a frosty expression.

On the other side, Chen Cong looked at the pitted and uneven golden statue of the Dragon King with a face full of anger. This golden statue had taken so much effort from the Chen family to achieve such divine power, but after this battle, it was 90% destroyed. If anyone could say who was the victor, it was only the king.

(End of this chapter)