A journey through the world of martial arts

Chapter 448 The City Crashes
Guan Yutian opened his eyes, his face dark as he looked at Gu Xu, and said in a deep voice, "Daoist Gu Xu, you are far too domineering. This game was broken by me, the leader of the alliance, and the central mechanism should naturally be under my control. Moreover, with Qianxing still here, the outcome of the life-and-death game is still uncertain. How can you say such a thing?"

Gu Xu glanced at Guan Yutian and said calmly, "Alliance Leader Guan, have you forgotten that if I hadn't intervened just now, you wouldn't be alive now? Even if you hadn't broken this chessboard, would it have been difficult for me? Alliance Leader Guan is not grateful for my life-saving grace, but instead acts so high and mighty. Isn't that a loss of manners? Let me offer a word of advice: there are many secrets hidden in this chess city. With Alliance Leader Guan's abilities, I'm afraid you won't be able to control it."

"Nonsense!" Guan Yutian shouted coldly, his gaze fixed on Gu Xu. The latter remained unmoved, his calm eyes only making Guan Yutian feel uneasy.

"If the Alliance Leader Guan does not retreat, do not blame this humble Taoist for being ruthless."

Gu Xu glanced at the various parties involved in the battle. The situation was now clear: Helian Ba, together with the members of the Supreme Alliance, was fighting two against one against Sword Casting City, and the two were gradually locked in a stalemate. Although it seemed that the two sides were evenly matched at the moment, Gu Xu predicted that the longer it went on, the greater the chance of Sword Casting City winning.

"Do it!"

Guan Yutian roared, his figure flashing, and he made a palm strike towards Gu Xu. At the same time, a crimson arrow of energy shot from the distance, which was the Vermilion Bird Fire from the Four Symbols Shooting the Sun Arrow. Upon seeing this, Gu Xu reached out and clenched his fist. The Mighty Dragon Palm instantly shattered, while the Vermilion Bird Fire paused slightly. Then, the arrow of energy gradually melted into a ball of azure flame. With a thought from Gu Xu, the azure flame returned along its original path and rushed straight towards the Arrow Hidden.

Seeing this, Jian Yin remained calm and composed, and once again shot out a Xuanwu Ice Arrow. The dark arrow tore through the void, leaving behind countless ice crystals. The moment it landed, it formed a thick layer of ice. The Xuanwu Ice collided with the Vermilion Bird Fire, and with a loud boom, the Xuanwu Ice annihilated the Vermilion Bird Fire. Its momentum did not diminish, and it headed straight for Gu Xu.

Just as Gu Xu was about to use the same trick again, the Xuanwu Ice trembled slightly and instantly shot out dozens of tiny air arrows. Some of them continued to shoot towards Gu Xu, while others headed towards the sky. Just as Gu Xu dissipated the incoming air arrows, he suddenly looked up at the sky with a solemn expression.

Dark clouds surged and churned in the sky, followed by a barrage of countless arrows that rained down indiscriminately, engulfing all those engaged in combat.

At this moment, the Benevolent Child was working with the Skeleton Monk and four black-clad swordsmen to deal with the Sword Master. Although the Sword Master was highly skilled, he was trapped by the sword formation of the black-clad swordsmen and could only exert eight-tenths of his strength. The Skeleton Monk and the Benevolent Child used even more unpredictable methods. One of them used evil chants and ghostly sounds to interfere, while the other constantly launched vicious hidden weapons, making it impossible to defend against. After exchanging dozens of blows, the Sword Master still had the upper hand, but he was still unable to break free.

With a single sword strike, the crimson sword light shattered the skeleton monk's hidden weapon. It swept through the air, but before it had gone far, it was slowly absorbed by the sword formation. The four-person sword formation then expanded outwards. Although the space they could move increased, the Sword Master frowned, protected himself with his long sword, and struck the black-clad man directly in front of him with a blazing palm.

With a hiss, the blazing palm energy was dissipated by a cloud of deep green mist. A pungent, fishy stench made the Sword Master's expression change. He hurriedly sealed his seven orifices, trembled his longsword, and slashed down with a mighty sword light. The four black-clad swordsmen exchanged glances and retreated three steps at the same time. The Sword Master seized the opportunity and, taking advantage of the moment the four retreated, unleashed a surge of true energy. A dragon-riding sword energy swept across the sky, tearing through the clouds, and fiercely slashed at one of them. A miserable scream was heard, and a cloud of blood mist exploded. The four-man sword formation was instantly broken.

Just then, the Sword Master looked up and saw a barrage of arrows shooting towards him. He quickly drew his sword to protect himself, sweeping it horizontally to deflect all the incoming arrows. Meanwhile, the Skeleton Monk and the others were in dire straits. They had already been caught off guard by the broken sword formation, and just as they were about to make amends, another unexpected event occurred. The remaining three men in black were unable to dodge in time and only managed to block a few arrows before being pierced through the heart by a hail of arrows and dying instantly.

"not good!"

The Skeleton Monk and the Benevolent Child's expressions changed drastically. They hurriedly clasped their hands together, and a protective barrier appeared. The energy arrows that struck it were either deflected or shattered. However, there were simply too many energy arrows. In just a few breaths, the barrier was riddled with holes and was about to break. Just then, the Skeleton Monk's eyes flashed with a sharp light. As he was about to retreat, he felt his true energy stagnate. He looked at the Benevolent Child opposite him with a horrified expression. At this moment, the barrier shattered, and thousands of energy arrows shot down towards the two of them.

"you!"

Upon hearing this, the Benevolent Child smiled strangely, grabbed the skeleton monk with both hands, and exerted a sudden force. The skeleton monk cried out in pain and lunged forward. The Benevolent Child flipped over and held him firmly in his hands. All the energy arrows pierced the skeleton monk's body, and the latter's screams were endless. In just a moment, the Benevolent Child felt his hands loosen and found that the skeleton monk's corpse had been mostly worn away.

"What a cruel heart! People of the lowest class can't be brought to the table."

Sword Master protected himself with the Dragon Riding Sword Qi. Watching the two dogs fighting, he snorted coldly and thrust his sword swiftly at the Benevolent Child. A flash of cold light startled the Benevolent Child, who hurriedly dodged. However, Sword Master was determined to kill him, so how could he let him escape? The two chased each other. The Benevolent Child dealt with the Qi arrows shot from the sky while dodging Sword Master's sword moves. His flying steps slowed down unconsciously due to the influence of his true Qi.

"Death!"

Sword Master had already figured out the pattern of this flying escape step and had secretly prepared a killing move. When the Benevolent Child passed by, a blazing sword aura pierced through his chest. The Benevolent Child fell to the ground with an unwilling expression. In a short while, he was filled with sword aura arrows and his body was frozen into an ice sculpture.

In the other battlefields, the fight between Ren Qianxing and Yan Zangfeng was the most intense. Both were geniuses of their time. One wielded the Ling Shuang Sword and used the invincible One Sword Separation Sword Technique, while the other possessed the martial arts masterpiece, the Heavenly Will Four Symbols Technique. His body was surrounded by wind and fire, as if he were a god descending to earth. Every time the two made a move, it would cause a fierce collision. The area within three zhang was like a furnace, which could not accommodate any outside objects.

The others quickly moved aside to avoid getting involved.

Helian Ba, Changmo Shangren, and Zheng Jingzheng were fighting against the Seven Absolute Qin Melodies of Master Sixin. Seeing the flying sparks and rubble in the distance, they all changed color. Helian Ba, in particular, was shocked. The cultivation of these two had improved rapidly. Even if he went up to deal with one of them, he would find it difficult. If he were to fight two of them, he would definitely lose.

"The best outcome would be a mutually destructive battle. Liao Rushen could deal with Huangfu Changhen, and even if he couldn't win, he could still keep him occupied. Once we've dealt with Si Xin here, we can then deal with Jian Zun. In this way, both Zhujian City and the Supreme Alliance would be severely weakened."

As Helian Ba ​​was thinking this, just as he was about to give a few words of advice to Changmo Shangren and the other person, thousands of arrows suddenly shot down from the sky and arrived nearby in the blink of an eye. Helian Ba ​​looked at the location where the arrows were hidden with a grim expression and saw that the other party was working together with Guan Yutian to deal with Gu Xu.

"Everyone, be careful!"

As he spoke, Helian Ba ​​struck the incoming energy arrows one after another with his palms. At first, his power was unparalleled, and he seemed poised to sweep the energy arrows away. However, in less than half a moment, Helian Ba ​​suddenly sensed something was wrong. The energy arrows seemed endless. He was careless and was hit by one of the energy arrows. Immediately, a layer of frost formed on his sleeve and continued to spread.

Helian Ba's true energy surged, creating a protective barrier to block the incoming energy arrows. With a slight tremor of his arm, the ice layer instantly shattered.

Helian Ba ​​glanced at the nun who was resisting the energy arrows, and his eyes flickered slightly. But at that moment, a muffled groan came. He turned around and saw that Bai Yu'er and Lian Chixue were in imminent danger and could die at any moment. Helian Ba ​​immediately flashed to their side and set up an energy shield.

"Master!"

Bai Yu'er and Lian Chixue were overjoyed, but at that moment, a burst of energy suddenly swept in from the shadows, heading straight for Helian Ba. Lian Chixue cried out in alarm, swinging her longsword. With a crack, the sword broke, and the energy struck Lian Chixue. Like a kite with a broken string, she was sent flying, blood splattering everywhere. Before she even hit the ground, she was pierced through the heart by the energy arrow and turned into an ice sculpture in mid-air. When she landed, the force caused her to shatter into pieces.

"Senior Sister!" "Chi Xue!"

Helian Ba ​​let out a mournful cry and turned to look in the direction from the shadows. It was Lu Wen who had made the move. He saw Lu Wen meet Helian Ba's murderous gaze with a look of regret.

"Brother Helian, if it weren't for your disciple taking a blow for you, you would be my plaything now. What a pity."

"I am going to kill you!"

Helian Ba ​​was already furious and was about to charge at Lu Wen when suddenly a loud bang came from afar. At the same time, the dark clouds dispersed, and the countless arrows in the air slowly disappeared. If it weren't for the thick layer of ice on the ground, it would have been as if they had never been there at all. At this moment, the ground began to shake violently, and the mountain seemed to collapse. Everyone lost their footing and slid to one side.

"The central control system has been activated!"

Helian Ba ​​disregarded everything else and grabbed Bai Yu'er, rushing straight to the chessboard. The others followed suit, arriving at the chessboard only to witness an astonishing scene.

The central mechanism on the chessboard had been forcibly broken off, and the broken piece was in Guan Yutian's hand. The latter's face was extremely ugly, and madness was spreading through him.

"I, the Alliance Leader, will make you pay with your lives!"

Guan Yutian threw away the machine gun in his hand, glanced at Gu Xu, and then saw the crowd surrounding him. He spoke sharply, and his aura surged. He unleashed a series of mighty dragon palms without regard for the order of his own energy. A dragon's roar resounded through the sky, and rolling waves of energy enveloped the entire mountaintop. Everyone felt a pressure coming from all directions, as if to crush them into a meat patty.

Mu Rongyi and the three black-clad swordsmen, whose skills were slightly weaker, were suppressed into a cloud of blood mist without uttering a sound. The mist lingered for a long time. Zheng Jing and Changmo Shangren showed regret on their faces when they saw this. If they had known, they would not have followed Helian Ba ​​in this time. Not only would they have gained nothing, but they would have lost their lives. Several more breaths passed, and the two of them cried out in agony and followed in his footsteps. The blood mist became even thicker.

"Taoist Priest!"

Gu Xu flicked his finger, and a beam of clear light fell on everyone. The oppressive force immediately dissipated. As Jian Yin pierced Guan Yutian's chest with an arrow, the surging aura suddenly weakened, and the oppressive force instantly vanished.

"you!"

Guan Yutian reached out and grabbed the arrow in his chest, his face contorted in shock as he coughed up a mouthful of blood. Before he could make another move, Gu Xu's figure appeared beside him in an instant and pointed at his brow. Guan Yutian's astonishment was not yet subsided when his body suddenly went limp and he collapsed to the ground. Although he still had a breath left, it was like a candle in the wind, ready to be extinguished at any moment. Ren Qianxing secretly gripped the Ling Shuang sword in his hand, and Helian Ba ​​and the others were also horrified.

"Ren Qianxing, I need your Ling Shuang Sword." After dealing with Guan Yutian, Gu Xu turned to look at Ren Qianxing.

Everyone looked at Ren Qianxing, who threw the Ling Shuang sword in his hand without hesitation. Gu Xu reached out and grabbed it, pulling it outwards. The white light on the sword flashed erratically, instantly enveloping Gu Xu in a white light that lasted for a while before slowly receding.

"The treasure of the Chess of Life and Death has been decided; it belongs to Sword Forging City. Does anyone have any objections?"

Gu Xu glanced at everyone. Helian Ba ​​shook his head and sighed. Lu Wen's eyes flickered, but after meeting Gu Xu's gaze, he immediately shuddered and lowered his head, not daring to speak. As for the Supreme Alliance, Ren Qianxing's sword was lost, and Jian Yin's stance was unclear. Only Ru Shen kept calculating in his heart, but no matter how he deduced it, it was a dead end.

"Since you all have no objections, then I shall proceed."

As he spoke, Gu Xu plunged the Ling Shuang Sword into the broken mechanism. It was as easy as cutting tofu; the sword sank into it instantly. Then he turned it to the left, and the sound of gears turning rang out. The ground shook again, slowly returning to its original state. Just as everyone breathed a sigh of relief, Guan Yutian, who had fallen to the ground, suddenly sprang up, pulled out the Ling Shuang Sword with one hand, grabbed Ren Qianxing with the other, and moved far away from the crowd.

"Heh, thanks to the Taoist priest for opening the mechanism, the treasure of this Chess City will ultimately belong to my Demon Sword Clan. Qianxing, take your sword. I have one last thing to give you. Keep it safe."

Just as Ren Qianxing was still wondering, he suddenly felt a heat in his body. He saw that his master had placed his hands on his back, and a continuous stream of true energy was flowing into his body, forming a protective barrier that firmly enveloped the two of them.

"Not good, act quickly!"

Guan Yutian moved swiftly, striking before anyone could react, transferring all his accumulated energy from the past few decades to Ren Qianxing. As the two were transferring their power, the Sword Master made the first move, drawing his longsword and unleashing a barrage of chilling sword energy. However, the sword energy seemed to get stuck in the mud halfway through its journey, its speed suddenly decreasing. By the time it reached Ren Qianxing and Guan Yutian, it had lost much of its power and was easily blocked by the protective aura.

When the Sword Master made his move, Master Sixin and Huangfu Changhen also used their respective skills, with their zither music and whips arriving simultaneously. However, the protective aura was like a tortoise shell, extremely tough. Not only did it not break, but the force of the counterattack also caused their blood and qi to surge.

Helian Ba ​​and Liao Rushen's eyes flickered slightly. It seemed that this change was actually to their advantage. The two looked at each other and stood calmly to the side, watching the show.

"Ha, Guan Yutian is courting death. This Daoist Gu Xu is no fool."

Arrow glanced at Gu Xu without leaving a trace, only to see that the other party pointed at that point. A cracking sound was heard, and the entire mountain peak shook violently. The balance that had been barely maintained was broken again, and cracks appeared on the ground, spreading faster and faster.

"Chess City is about to collapse."

Guan Yutian glared at Gu Xu with hatred, then poured his last bit of true energy into Ren Qianxing's body. Upon receiving this original true energy, the latter let out a long roar, exuding a chilling and murderous aura that sent a shiver down the spines of everyone present.

(End of this chapter)