The First Sword of the Universe

Chapter 472 Flashy but not quite there

Su Xinghe's talent was in no way inferior to that of his junior brother Ding Chunqiu.

However, he was distracted by many things and studied a wide variety of subjects, which greatly diverted his energy, causing him to fall far behind his junior brother Ding Chunqiu in martial arts.

As a result, after Ding Chunqiu killed his master and ancestors, in order to save his master's life, he had to pretend to be deaf and dumb and dismiss his eight disciples to avoid being implicated and losing his life.

Having endured humiliation and lived in hiding for so many years, Su Xinghe harbored a burning rage within him. Apart from studying how to solve the Zhenlong Chess Game, he spent the rest of his time thinking about how to improve his martial arts skills.

From the perspective of orthodox cultivation methods, he found that he could no longer catch up with Ding Chunqiu, so he could only find another way. He used his miscellaneous knowledge as the anchor of power and created the strange technique of creating clones.

The internal energy manifested, splitting into eight, gathering the skills of playing the zither, chess, calligraphy, painting, medicine, craftsmanship, flower arrangement, and puppetry to fight against Ding Chunqiu.

This is the first time Su Xinghe has used this unique and extraordinary technique in front of outsiders since he created it, and he is filled with confidence.

At his command, the eight clones immediately launched an attack on Xu Xingchen.

Someone played the zither and made music to disturb Xu Xingchen's mind.

Someone threw the black and white pieces in quick succession, shooting them like shooting stars at various acupoints all over Xu Xingchen's body.

Some people shouted and yelled, while others rushed forward to punch and kick him, showing no respect for the teacher.

When someone wields their brush with great strokes, the ink transforms into lively fish and soaring birds, launching attacks as unpredictable as a gazelle's horns hanging from a tree.

With a flick of his arm, someone sent silver needles transforming into strands of silver thread, which then landed on Xu Xingchen's acupoints.

Someone tore off his shirt, puffed out his muscular chest, brandished a large axe, and pounced on Xu Xingchen, hacking wildly at him.

Some people moved with an ethereal grace, their steps light and graceful, their arms waving like layers of flower petals blooming, a truly stunning sight.

Someone raised their hand, their ten fingers connected by faint threads, controlling puppets of varying sizes and shapes, which pounced forward.

These eight clones each possessed unique attacks and distinct auras, yet they were all controlled by the same person, resulting in extremely seamless coordination between them.

It was overwhelming, impenetrable, vast and mighty, and endless.

Standing on the grass, Xu Xingchen seemed to have nowhere to hide or avoid; she had no other choice but to tough it out.

Xu Xingchen crouched slightly, his eyes gleaming, and with a surge of energy, he transformed into a fleeting, ethereal shadow.

All the attacks landed on that shadow, like stones falling into water or leaves passing through a gentle breeze, all missing their mark.

The chaotic energy landed on the surrounding ground, causing soil to fly into the air and grass to swirl amidst a series of violent booms, leaving behind numerous large and small craters in the ground.

The eight clones of Su Xinghe will not stop attacking just because one attack fails.

They continued their fierce siege!
Whether it's the hidden silver needles launched from his hand, the melodies evoked by playing the guqin, or the powerful gusts of wind generated by tearing through the air with the axe, all of them are manifestations of Su Xinghe's internal energy.

From this glimpse, one can see that Su Xinghe's mastery of these eight miscellaneous arts has reached an extremely profound level; otherwise, it would be impossible for him to combine mental power with internal energy to create this extremely unique martial arts technique.

However, no matter how frantically the eight Su Xinghes attacked, no matter how tightly they combined their attacks into a net, they could never hit that elusive shadow.

Xu Xingchen's ethereal figure, like a flower in a mirror or the moon in water, moved leisurely amidst the attacks, visible yet untouchable.

When it occasionally strikes, it explodes like gunpowder, annihilating large-scale attacks into an invisible whirlwind.

While dodging and occasionally attacking, Xu Xingchen mentally assessed the difference between the power of Su Xinghe's eight clones and the eight figures displayed by Dongfang Bubai.

If Dongfang Bubai's eight shadows were so fast that they made it seem as if eight figures were attacking simultaneously, it was because of their extreme speed.
Therefore, Su Xinghe's eight clones were actually manifested from his internal energy, without needing to use extreme speed to dazzle his opponents and create illusions.

If these two were in the same world and competed against each other, Su Xinghe would suffer a crushing defeat! A crushing defeat!
The battle lasted for half a day.

Xu Xingchen had already grasped the secrets of Su Xinghe's eight clones.

The martial arts techniques that Su Xinghe comprehended based on his own knowledge and characteristics are very different from Xu Xingchen's martial arts style. There are not many references for them, and they can only be used to enrich his own martial arts knowledge base.

"It's time to end this!"

Xu Xingchen thought to himself, flicked his fingertips, and black and white light shot out of his body, quickly condensing into a spinning magnetic ring.

The Yuan Magnetic Ring circled around Xu Xingchen's body, swirling and growing rapidly in the wind, eventually reaching a diameter of about ten feet.

Suddenly, the Yuan Magnetic Ring generated an incomparably powerful suction force, drawing in all the energy attacking from all directions without missing a single one.

Subsequently, the range of the magnetic ring's flight became wider and farther.

Several of Su Xinghe's clones, who were engaged in close combat with Xu Xingchen, were struck by the Yuan Magnetic Ring. Their bodies were stretched into long, thin noodle-like strands, and in disbelief and panic, they darted into the Yuan Magnetic Ring.

"How is this possible?" Su Xinghe, who was standing on the outside directing the attack of his eight clones, changed his expression drastically upon seeing this bizarre and terrifying scene.

Before he could react.
The Yuan Magnetic Ring, like an elusive stream of light, bounced and collided between several of Su Xinghe's clones in the distance, shooting forward at lightning speed.

Wherever he went, Su Xinghe's clones were stretched into long noodles, wailing and spinning, and were sucked into the Yuan Magnetic Ring.

Even the clone playing the zither on the branch of the pine tree several feet away could not escape this misfortune.

Having absorbed the Yuan Magnetic Rings of eight Su Xinghe clones, it expanded to almost three zhang in size.

The eight clones of Su Xinghe were shattered into vast streams of energy by the power of the Yuan Magnetic Ring. These streams surged and swirled within the ring, exuding a terrifying and horrifying aura.

At the same time, it also refracted the sunlight shining down from the sky into a colorful and auspicious glow.

This powerful magnetic ring, carrying endlessly flowing seven-colored light, returned to the top of Xu Xingchen's head, stopping three feet above the index finger pointing upwards.

It rotates slowly, with a grand and imposing presence.

The seven bright colors derived from sunlight, plus the unique black and white colors of the Yuan Magnetic Ring, make up a total of nine colors that complement each other, creating a dazzling and splendid effect.

Xu Xingchen looked at the dumbfounded Su Xinghe and said with a faint smile, "Mr. Congbian, your strange technique just now was flashy but still lacked something; if you don't have any other abilities or methods, this battle should end!"

Su Xinghe's face changed color several times, from green to red to white to purple, before he finally looked away from the three-zhang-long nine-colored halo above Xu Xingchen's head and said dejectedly, "I lost this battle!"

He never imagined that the miraculous skills he had created over two or three decades would be so easily defeated in the hands of others.

In an instant, his morale plummeted, and he lost all confidence to fight against his junior brother, Ding Chunqiu.

Xu Xingchen smiled faintly, raised her finger above her head, and flicked it.

The surging power within the Yuan Magnetic Ring instantly transformed into a seven-colored pillar of light, roaring into the sky before dissipating several feet above.

The thick branches of several pine trees nearby intertwined and covered Xu Xingchen's head. The moment they were hit by that seven-colored pillar of energy, they were all turned into dust and scattered by the wind.

Feeling the astonishing aura emanating from the seven-colored stream of air dissipating in the sky, the deaf and mute disciples watching the battle, though unable to speak or hear, all had expressions of awe and fear in their eyes.

Su Xinghe also felt a chill run down his spine, and his hair stood on end.

Don't be fooled by that seven-colored pillar of energy; it was formed by absorbing the power of his eight clones, and it was all the essence of his inner strength.

However, the clones are generated one after another, and the power is evenly distributed.

The seven-colored pillar of energy was the result of unifying the power of the eight clones into one, which then burst forth instantly.

The two different methods of application produce vastly different levels of power.

If that seven-colored pillar of energy was aimed at Su Xinghe, Su Xinghe thought to himself: not only would he not be able to withstand the impact of that force, but he would probably even have some difficulty dodging it.

At this point, even though he was unwilling and filled with disbelief, he had to admit that his martial arts skills were far inferior to those of the master of Xiaoyao Manor in front of him.

Xu Xingchen's Yuan Magnetic Ring has already reintegrated some of the essence and profound meaning of the Northern Darkness Divine Art, making its ability to absorb the internal energy of others even stronger than before.

That's why he was able to easily absorb and devour all eight of Su Xinghe's clones in the battle just now.

Unlike Duan Yu, he did not lack internal energy, nor was he willing to absorb the internal energy of others into his own body.

Therefore, he released the power in the Yuan Magnetic Ring towards the sky before retracting the Yuan Magnetic Ring back into his body.

Then, he said something inexplicable to Duan Yu, who was watching the battle not far away: "Brother Duan, can you see any trace of the Northern Darkness Divine Art in my Yuan Magnetic Ring?"

"What?! The Northern Darkness Divine Art?!" Su Xinghe, whose mood had plummeted to rock bottom, suddenly heard the words "Northern Darkness Divine Art" and immediately raised his head, his eyes shining as he looked at Xu Xingchen and Duan Yu near the pavilion.

Duan Yu knew that Xu Xingchen's question contained a hidden meaning, but he couldn't fathom Xu Xingchen's true thoughts; however, this did not prevent him from answering the question.

"Ah, Brother Xu, you actually integrated the Northern Darkness Divine Art into your Yuan Magnetic Ring?!"

"My skills are not yet proficient; I've only learned two internal energy circulation diagrams of the Northern Darkness Divine Art, but I haven't been able to discern its true nature."

Listening to the exchange between the two in front of him, Su Xinghe was both incredulous and somewhat enlightened, muttering to himself, "Uncle Li, Uncle Li... she actually passed on the Northern Darkness Divine Art to the two of you!"

"The Northern Darkness Divine Art is a divine skill that only the leader of the Free and Unfettered Sect can cultivate. How could it have been passed down to the two of you?"

Xu Xingchen turned to look at Su Xinghe and said slowly, "This is the debt of gratitude I have received, and it is also the real reason why the two of us came to Mr. Congbian."

"After all, both Mr. Congbian and Ding Chunqiu are disciples of the Xiaoyao Sect."

(End of this chapter)