A journey through the world of martial arts

Chapter 374 Bloodstained Jiuyi City
While Qingxu was a guest of the Supreme Alliance, a bloody battle was taking place in Jiuyi City in the southeast. Sima Tian led the Supreme Alliance in a powerful attack on Jiuyi City. Although the people of Haisha Palace were prepared, just as they were about to engage in battle, a commotion suddenly broke out in their rear. A group of people appeared out of nowhere and launched a sneak attack from behind. Caught off guard, the people of Haisha Palace suffered heavy casualties. If Black Shark had not split his forces into two groups in time, they would have been unable to defend both ends, and the outcome would have been self-evident.

"Have you found out who the visitors are?"

Black Shark stood atop the dilapidated city gate, watching the Supreme Alliance army surge toward him. He put down his binoculars, turned, and asked.

"Reporting to the Commander, we have found out that it was Ren Qianxing, the leader of the White Tiger Hall of the Supreme Alliance, along with thirty others. However, they have been driven back, and four corpses have been left behind."

Upon hearing this, Black Shark's eyes flashed with a sharp light. He already knew of Ren Qianxing's name. Palace Master Helian Ba ​​had once mentioned that if we were to talk about the most talented young people in the martial arts world today, Ren Qianxing would be ranked first. Black Shark could easily smell a hint of sourness in the Palace Master's tone. However, back then, he was young and impetuous and had once declared that if he ever met Ren Qianxing, he would teach him a lesson.

"Guan Yutian is targeting me from two directions, one overt and one covert. He really thinks highly of us. Although Sima Tian has more people and more power, he is much less of a threat than Ren Qianxing."

Thinking of this, Black Shark quickly made a decision. After giving a few instructions to his trusted confidant, the confidant's eyes lit up, and he clasped his hands in agreement before turning and leaving the city gate.

A mile outside the city gate, Sima Tian looked at the distant Jiuyi City and felt a surge of excitement. With a flick of his whip, the members of the Supreme Alliance rushed forward. In no time, the vanguard of the Alliance had reached the city walls. Just as the Supreme Alliance was about to charge in, the dilapidated city gate opened, and the people of the Sea Shark Palace marched out in neat formation, led by Black Shark.

"Alright, since Black Shark has made his move, I, the hall master, cannot cower in the back. I will deal with Black Shark, and leave no one else alive!"

Upon seeing Black Shark appear, Sima Tian excitedly spurred his horse forward. His attendant responded with a "Yes!" and hurriedly followed with the rest of his men.

Without exchanging a word, the two sides immediately clashed. The group from Sea Shark Palace was already outnumbered, and with Black Shark splitting off a portion of them, they were quickly put on the defensive. Limbs and torn pieces flew everywhere, and flesh and blood turned into mud, creating a bloody and tragic scene. The sounds of fighting, shouting, and various other noises intertwined into a mournful symphony of blood and flesh.

Just as Black Shark was leading the Sea Shark Palace members to fight against the Supreme Alliance, behind Jiuyi City, another Black Shark led fifty people to confront Ren Qianxing and his group, who were launching another sneak attack.

"The renowned White Tiger Hall Master of the Supreme Alliance is also engaging in such petty theft. Isn't he afraid of losing face?"

Black Shark dismounted, flicked his robes, placed his hand on the Blood Sword, and looked at Ren Qianxing with a mocking expression.

"So it was a clever escape, and that idiot Sima Tian didn't even notice."

Ren Qianxing waved his hand, dismissing the twenty-six people behind him, and stepped forward alone, coldly looking at Black Shark.

"I have long heard of the formidable reputation of Helian Ba's Four Sharks, and today I can finally have my wish fulfilled."

As he spoke, Ren Qianxing slowly drew his longsword. The sword pointed diagonally, and a cold light flowed down its gleaming blade, condensing into a point at the tip. The sudden flash of cold light made Black Shark slightly close his eyes. At that moment, Ren Qianxing moved. His movements were swift, and the longsword rang out. He unleashed a "Thousand-Mile Meteor" straight at Black Shark. Although this move was straightforward and lacked any outstanding features, it was also a move with almost no flaws. To break this move, one could only use force against force.

"Well done!"

Black Shark exclaimed in admiration, drew his blood sword, reached out and grabbed it, holding the longsword upside down. He slashed forward, unleashing a blood-red light that met Ren Qianxing's sword strike head-on. In mid-air, the white light shot straight forward, while the blood-red light cut through the air like an arc. With a clang, the two sword strikes collided, and a powerful force spread in all directions. Both the members of the Supreme Alliance and the members of the Sea Shark Palace were forced back three feet by the shockwave.

"To be able to go toe-to-toe with the hall master, this Black Shark is indeed quite capable."

Ren Qianxing's confidant also looked slightly serious. Since he started working under Ren Qianxing, he had never seen an opponent who could match the Hall Master's strength. Those enemies were usually defeated in one move, lost the initiative, and were eventually dragged into the Hall Master's rhythm and killed.

"A great reputation is well-deserved. Ren Qianxing is so young yet he can firmly hold the White Tiger Hall in charge of the Supreme Alliance's conquests. His strength is truly terrifying."

They were all very familiar with Black Shark's abilities. Apart from the Palace Master, even the other three envoys were slightly inferior to him. If the envoy hadn't acted so domineeringly and recklessly, he wouldn't have aroused the fear of others, which is why they joined forces to suppress him.

When Ren Qianxing saw that Black Shark had managed to block his attack, his expression turned slightly serious. However, that was all he could think of. His longsword flashed with a cold light, and the white sword light suddenly shone brightly, instantly overwhelming the blood-red curved blade and forcing the blood-red light to retreat continuously. At the same time, Black Shark sensed that the opponent's attack had intensified, and a heavy pressure rushed towards him.

His heart sank, his face turned slightly cold, and he shouted, unleashing two more blood-red arcs of light from his blood sword. The three arcs converged, finally holding the white sword light firmly in place once more.

Ren Qianxing snorted coldly upon seeing this. Even if Black Shark had some skill, he was still no match for him. With a tremor of his longsword, the white sword light that was locked in a stalemate with the Bloodlight Arc Blade suddenly exploded, along with the opponent's sword move. His figure moved instantly, taking advantage of Black Shark's unstable footing, a cold light shaped like a dragon stretched out its body and shot towards him as a bolt of lightning.

Black Shark was indeed caught off guard by Ren Qianxing's actions, but he reacted quickly. Seeing the incoming sword move, he retreated and instantly transformed into several phantoms, scattering in all directions. Ren Qianxing stabbed Black Shark with his sword, but felt the sword miss its mark. He didn't know that it was a phantom. He twisted the phantom with his longsword and shattered it. Sensing the cold light behind him, he gathered power in his left hand and, as he turned around, unleashed a powerful Dragon Palm.

Upon seeing this palm technique, Black Shark's expression remained unchanged. Illusions alternated, and his true form departed. Wherever the palm energy passed, all illusions shattered. Ren Qianxing withdrew his palm and stood upside down, holding his longsword behind him. His gaze turned cold as he looked at Black Shark on the treetop.

"Your Shadow Clone Technique is quite impressive, but illusion is ultimately just illusion. Under my Mighty Dragon Palm, you'll find no place to hide!"

Upon hearing this, Black Shark chuckled and said, "The Shadow Clone Technique has its drawbacks. It's not a problem with the technique itself, but rather that my skills are lacking. However, even so, Hall Master Ren can only use the Mighty Dragon Palm to deal with it. I wonder how many times Hall Master Ren can use the Mighty Dragon Palm with his cultivation level?"

Black Shark naturally knew that his clone demonic shadow technique had some flaws. If it was only used for escaping, then it was fine. However, if he wanted to use it to injure someone, the clone demonic shadow would turn from illusory to real, which was a weakness. He was both surprised and delighted that Ren Qianxing could see it in such a short time.

Ren Qianxing replied, "You will see how capable I am."

Immediately, Ren Qianxing moved with his sword, his sword energy crisscrossing as he rushed towards Black Shark. Upon seeing this, Black Shark snorted coldly, his blood sword gleaming red as he swung it upwards. While the two were locked in combat, the battle outside the city turned one-sided. The Supreme Alliance had already divided the four hundred members of the Sea Shark Palace, gradually whittling them down. Seeing that two more groups had been wiped out, Sima Tian smiled. However, upon seeing Black Shark, who remained unmoved, a sense of unease arose in his heart.

"What exactly is Black Shark planning? Why hasn't he made a move yet?" Based on the intelligence gathered, Black Shark is a bloodthirsty monster. Seeing this scene, he would surely unleash his ferocity. His calm demeanor is quite different from what one would expect.

“No, that’s not right,” Sima Tian frowned, thought for a moment, and suddenly thought of a possibility. His expression changed drastically. He gave a few instructions to his confidant, who nodded and immediately waved the flag in his hand. On the battlefield, a group of people attacked Black Shark’s location.

"Whether it's a human or a ghost, we'll find out soon enough!"

When the confidant disguised as Black Shark saw the Supreme Alliance members attacking, his heart sank. Sima Tian had realized something was wrong so quickly; he wasn't as stupid as rumored. All the manpower he could muster had been committed to the attack, and he only had a few guards by his side. Facing that group would undoubtedly be suicide.

"We haven't received any news from the commander yet, so we must be locked in a stalemate. Although we can still hold out here, once we discover that the commander is not here, morale will inevitably collapse. We cannot retreat!"

The confidant quickly devised a plan, then his eyes lit up. He whispered a few words to the guard beside him, who nodded and led the remaining men away from stopping the attacking troops, rushing towards the most fiercely contested area of ​​the battle.

"It's weird."

Sima Tian watched as all the guards around Black Shark left, and his heart sank again. However, he thought that his side had already gained a firm advantage and could annihilate all the people of the Sea Shark Palace in less than an hour. Unless there was outside help, Jiuyi City would be their burial place.

"Pass down the order: do not be greedy for gains, and do your best to minimize losses."

Sima Tian did give a final instruction, and his confidant immediately relayed the order. In just a short while, the Supreme Alliance's offensive slowed down slightly, but the people of the Sea Shark Palace were not happy at all; instead, they were terrified.

They were already outnumbered and divided into several groups. Now that the Supreme Alliance's offensive has slowed down, it is undoubtedly to conserve their strength for the final blow. They are exhausted, and the more they struggle, the weaker they become in the end.

Just as Sima Tian gave the order, the elite team was less than half a mile away from Black Shark's stand-in. Looking at the Supreme Alliance members rushing towards them, Black Shark's stand-in remained calm.

With a loud "boom," the sight of everyone present was immediately drawn to the scene.

"what happened?"

Upon hearing the sound, Sima Tian looked directly towards its source and saw that colorful plumes of smoke suddenly rose from the battlefield. After only a few breaths, the smoke grew thicker and thicker, enveloping the entire battlefield in the blink of an eye. People could not be seen at all three feet away.

"Master, this is a cloud barrier, specially designed to confuse the enemy. It is non-toxic, but it will take half an hour to dissipate without external pressure."

Upon hearing his confidant say that the smoke was not poisonous, Sima Tianxin immediately felt relieved, otherwise his crime would have been much greater.

In fact, Sima Tian was overthinking things. The unspoken rule in the martial arts world is that in large-scale battles, only real combat is allowed. Anyone who uses underhanded methods will be attacked by the crowd. The Poison Sect was wiped out by a group of sects because it angered the masses.

"The signal flags are no longer usable. You all stay here and do not move. I, the hall master, will personally go and meet that Black Shark."

Sima Tian was now absolutely certain that the black shark was someone else in disguise; otherwise, why would he have made such a commotion?

After giving a few instructions, Sima Tian dismounted, used his lightness skill to run towards the Black Shark substitute, passed through the thick fog, and listened to the sounds coming from all directions. Suddenly, a cold light came from Pang's side. Sima Tian immediately turned around and struck the attacker with a palm. The force of the palm struck the attacker's internal organs and shattered them.

"Master Sima has excellent skills."

The figure of the Black Shark double appeared from the mist. Sima Tian withdrew his palm and looked at the person. After a moment's observation, he realized that this person was also a skilled martial artist with internal energy, but far inferior to himself. Sima Tian said nothing and immediately moved forward, raising his hand to unleash a Wind and Thunder Palm. The palm force was combined with wind and thunder, and the energy permeated the universe. The surrounding mist was instantly stirred up, revealing an open space. Upon seeing this, the Black Shark double's expression changed immediately. He hurriedly drew the soft sword from his waist and slashed out several sword lights, trying to block the palm force.

"Unbelievable!"

Sima Tian snorted coldly, watching his opponent face the attack head-on. He then pressed forward and unleashed another Wind and Thunder Palm strike. Combining the force of his attack with the force of his forward strike, the two palm strikes instantly tore through the fragile sword light defense. Their momentum remained undiminished as they directly attacked the substitute.

Seeing this, the stand-in wielded his slender sword with effortless skill, quickly weaving a dense net of swords in front of him. At the same time, he flicked his hand forward, sending a cluster of dark light towards Sima Tian. Its light was dark and reflected the green, and it was the "Heart-Eating Thorn," a hidden weapon of the Sea Shark Palace's Poison Sect. Once this thing entered the body, it would block the opponent's meridians, and within half an hour, the poison would attack the heart, causing death by suffocation.

However, this thing was nothing to Sima Tian, ​​who was prepared. With his outer aura shield open, the hidden weapons that hit it were either deflected or shattered by the force of the aura. On the contrary, the sword net on the substitute's side was already in a precarious state under the pressure of the Wind and Thunder Palm.

"Humph!"

Seeing that he couldn't take down the substitute, Sima Tian's anger flared. He placed his hand on his longsword, and the blade shot out in a sharp line. A scream was heard, and the sword net shattered. The palm force and the sword force struck the substitute at the same time. Under the impact of the two forces, the man only had time to let out a scream before his body was torn apart. Only his head was intact and rolled at Sima Tian's feet.

Picking up a tattered cloth, Sima Tian wrapped the head in it, quickly determined his direction, and headed towards Jiuyi City. The further he went into the city, the thinner the fog became. Just then, he heard the sound of fighting coming from not far ahead. A glint flashed in Sima Tian's eyes, and he quickened his pace, finally arriving at the outside of a collapsed courtyard. Concealing his aura, Sima Tian looked inside.

"Ren Qianxing!" Sima Tian was shocked to see Ren Qianxing appear here. What was he doing here, and even fighting with Black Shark? Could it be...?

After a moment's thought, Sima Tian quickly realized that this must have been Guan Yutian's idea. He was on the open side, while Ren Qianxing was on the covert side. Moreover, judging from Guan Yutian's arrangements, it was clear that most of the credit would be given to Ren Qianxing.

(End of this chapter)