Zongwu: Aspiring to be the mastermind behind the scenes

Chapter 393 Sword in Hand, Poetry Recitation, the Power of Purple Clouds

Purple mist filled the central hall.

Suddenly, streaks of sword energy pierced through the clouds and mist, landing on Zhang Han in an instant.

But that layer of purple armor, adorned with a starry sky, completely blocked all the sword energy, leaving it unharmed.

"Although Gai Nie has reached a certain level, he is not in good condition at the moment. Even with the help of that divine sword, the sword energy it unleashes cannot break through my defense!"

Zhang Han said, "If you ask him to assist, I'm afraid it won't be of any use."

From within the clouds and mist came Aizen's voice: "Whether it works or not, the general's opinion doesn't count."

"over there!"

Zhang Han's gaze sharpened, and purple light rose from his hand, as if a galaxy were flowing. With a wave of his hand, two swirling streams of true energy blasted towards the place where the sound came from.

Wherever these two swirling streams of true energy passed, they swallowed up all the purple clouds and mist, condensing them into a single mass.

A quarter of the central hall, which had been shrouded in mist, was cleared away in an instant.

But the area where the bombardment took place was completely empty; not only was Aizen nowhere to be seen, but not even a single person could be seen.

"Heh, does the general think I would make such a mistake?"

Aizen's voice sounded somewhat jarring amidst the clouds and mist.

"so what?!"

Zhang Han spread his palms apart, actually controlling the two spiraling true energies to attack on both sides, stirring up purple clouds, clearly intending to clear all the clouds in the central hall.

Two sword energies suddenly appeared, instantly shattering the two spirals.

It was Gai Nie who made the move.

"Hmph! You can break through those two barriers, but can you break through mine?"

Surrounded by purple light, which swirled and transformed into a spiraling galaxy that enveloped his entire body in an instant.

As the starry river swirled, it generated an immense suction force, drawing all the clouds and mist towards it and condensing them above Zhang Han's head.

As the clouds and mist dissipated, the figures of Aizen and Gai Nie were revealed.

Aizen showed no sign of panic, simply raising his sword and smiling, "I have a poem for you, General, to appreciate."

The Purple Cloud Sword's blade, as purple as crystal, reflected light under the sun.

"Ten years have passed since I honed this sword, its frosty edge yet to be tested. Today I present it to you, for who has a grievance to redress..."

As soon as he finished speaking, purple light surged on the sword's edge, and with a single slash, a colossal sword aura several tens of feet long was unleashed.

One zhang and three meters, ten zhang and more would be thirty or forty meters.

This sword energy covered most of the central hall!

Such a massive sword aura caused even sword masters like Wei Zhuang and Gao Jianli to change color upon seeing it.

Zhang Han remained calm and composed. Purple light surged from his hands, and starlight flowed around them. With a step, he charged forward to meet the powerful sword energy.

In an instant, the sword energy descended, colliding with Zhang Han's purple armor and producing a creaking sound.

Zhang Han gripped the tip of the sword energy with both hands, and the starlight flowing in his hands spread out the instant the two collided, directly enveloping the entire sword energy.

This is why he was able to block the sword energy.

However, the purple light and the sword energy emitted by the Purple Cloud Sword were both the same color, and at first glance, they were indistinguishable.

The sword energy was powerful, but it only lasted for a moment.

However, the starlight flowing in Zhang Han's hand was inexhaustible.

As the starlight swirled, the entire sword energy deflected and was then swallowed by the flowing starlight.

This made the starlight in Zhang Han's hand incredibly vast and dazzling.

With a clap of his hands, the massive starlight roared forth, like a long river, crashing towards Aizen's location.

Seeing this, Aizen brandished his longsword and recited a poem: "The Yellow River flows far up to the white clouds, a lone city stands amidst ten thousand mountains!"

The Purple Cloud Sword emitted wisps of mist, which condensed and did not disperse, transforming into sword shapes that gathered in front of Aizen, eventually forming the shape of a mountain.

The purple starlight hurtled towards them and crashed into the mountain.

However, it was just like a long river hitting a mountain rock, crashing into itself and bleeding profusely, splashing out countless starlight!

Zhang Han knew at a glance that this move would not be effective against his opponent.

Surrounded by starlight, he used his powerful abilities to communicate with the Purple Star River Crystal, channeling his boundless power into the starlight.

In an instant, the starlight shone brightly, and with a thought from Zhang Han, all the starlight surged toward Aizen.

Like a violent storm, like a barrage of arrows.

But from another perspective, the countless stars twinkling create a different kind of scenery.

"Sword energy soars to the stars, literary brilliance shines like a rainbow piercing the sun!"

As Aizen recited the poem, he thrust his longsword straight forward, unleashing a sharp and unstoppable sword aura that pierced through the starlight and traversed the Milky Way.

Zhang Han resorted to his old trick once again, gathering the image of a flowing river of stars on his hands, attempting to once again withstand the sword energy and absorb and reverse it.

However, just as he was fully prepared, the sword energy suddenly pierced upwards, breaking through another swirling ball of starlight above his head.

The purple mist that had been absorbed and condensed into a ball instantly broke free and scattered.

Zhang Han sensed something was wrong.

Aizen, however, was relentless in his pursuit of power.

"The mountains along the sea resemble swords, their sharp edges cutting through my heart with autumn's arrival!"

With a flick of his Purple Cloud Sword, countless purple clouds transformed into streaks of sword energy, rushing down and completely enveloping Zhang Han.

Countless sword energies collided and cut into his armor, producing a series of impact sounds.

Anyone else, even a master of external cultivation, would probably be torn to pieces by this endless sword energy and die a slow, agonizing death.

Zhang Han, however, remained steadfast and unwavering, maintaining the presence of his armor throughout.

The energy of the Heavenly Crystal is inexhaustible. As long as Zhang Han's mental defenses don't crumble, his armor can be maintained indefinitely!
Therefore, this move could potentially harm anyone, but it was of little effect against Zhang Han.

Of course, he didn't do nothing; he reached out and grabbed the beast's head, then pulled out a long sword from it.

Purple light gathers, adorned with starlight.

He wielded his sword wildly, the sword wind fierce, and with each turn of the blade, he deflected most of the purple cloud sword energy.

"You scholar, all you talk about is literature, but you know nothing about swordsmanship?" With the strength of his armor and the sharpness of his sword, he broke through the countless sword energies and thrust his sword at Aizen.

"No problem,"

Aizen drew his sword to meet the challenge, reciting as he did so: "Ten years of swordsmanship have made me obsessed with it; my swordsmanship is unmatched among men!"

The two purple longswords then clashed together.

Clothes fluttered, and sword light surged.

Zhang Han's swordsmanship was a secret technique passed down within the Qin army, focused on killing enemies, and naturally concise and efficient. He wielded it with the power of the Purple Star River; wherever his sword flashed, purple light accompanied it, adorned with starlight.

The swordsmanship Aizen used was, of course, the Purple Cloud Sword Technique.

This sword technique emphasizes the interplay of reality and illusion, combining the two to create a style as elusive and ever-changing as clouds and mist.

Each time a move was made, a purple light flashed and clouds rose.

The two longswords clashed, and a purple light shone through, illuminating the entire central hall in a purple hue.

"It's so bright..."

Tianming covered his eyes.

The others, however, were unaffected. Their true energy protected their eyes, allowing them to focus on the battle between the two and ignore the purple light.

Gao Jianli commented, "That Zhang Han, known as the General, indeed uses military swordsmanship, designed specifically for killing enemies, concise and to the point. In contrast, that scholar's swordsmanship combines feints and real attacks, appearing rather flashy; they are two completely different sword styles!"

Dao Zhi rubbed his eyes and said, "I understand the logic, but why is that scholar reciting poetry while wielding his sword?"

Master Xu stroked his beard and said, "I have heard that the Daoists possess profound swordsmanship. When performing it, one must hold the sword in one hand and write Zhuangzi's famous essay 'Free and Easy Wandering' in the air with the other. Could the swordsmanship this person is performing be similar in principle to that Daoist art?"

Gao Jianli explained: "All martial artists in the world who wish to become grandmasters must first condense the Three Flowers. The Three Flowers are essence, energy, and spirit. The first two are relatively simple, while the latter is the most difficult. Therefore, most grandmasters in the world can only reach the second flower level, and thus the martial arts they create can often only reach this level."

On the contrary, Lao Tzu, the patriarch of Taoism, possessed an exceptionally high level of spiritual attainment and inherited the wisdom of antiquity. His martial arts, created from this profound understanding, encompassed the mysteries of essence, energy, and spirit. The so-called writing of "Free and Easy Wandering" was likely a way to accumulate spiritual power through words, thereby amplifying the power of his swordsmanship!

The Snow Woman's specialty, the sonic illusion technique, is actually based on mental power. Upon hearing this, she nodded in agreement: "Mental power is ethereal and can only be condensed and stimulated through external actions. This gentleman is constantly reciting poetry, presumably to stimulate his mental power and enhance the power of his swordsmanship."

Dao Zhi then understood the reason and couldn't help but sigh, "No wonder there are so few people in the world who have mastered profound martial arts. It's probably because intelligent people are ultimately a minority, while those who are less intelligent simply cannot learn such extraordinary skills."

In the arena, Zhang Han and Aizen exchanged dozens of blows.

"You just said that those seven swords are treasures of the same level as the Heavenly Crystal? In my opinion, they are far inferior!"

"Oh? Why?"

"It's only because the power of the Heavenly Crystal is inexhaustible that I can wield it at will. While your swordsmanship is profound and your sword possesses considerable power, everything you do ultimately depends on yourself and requires the expenditure of your physical strength, true energy, and spirit!"

Zhang Han stated a stark truth, word by word: "Therefore, the final victor will be me, not you!"

Aizen smiled: "You sensed that the sword technique I use requires the stimulation of spiritual power to enhance, so you said so much to undermine my spirit, is that right?"

Zhang Han, his true feelings exposed, fell silent.

Aizen continued, "But in reality, the Celestial Crystal is merely a tool that carries the inheritance of the Hun Tian Bao Jian. The truly precious thing is the Hun Tian Bao Jian itself, not the Celestial Crystal. However, the Hun Tian Bao Jian requires cultivation and the right person to unleash its full power!"

The armor you wear today is actually another way of utilizing Celestial Crystal. It seems incredibly powerful, but it's like sitting on a mountain of treasures and only taking a fraction of it, completely wasting this precious resource!

"Even with a strong will, if you don't cultivate the Hun Tian Bao Jian (a powerful protective mirror), what good will it do you? How much of its power can you, a mere Grandmaster, unleash with your spiritual strength?"

Zhang Han's expression changed slightly, a single sentence from his back struck a nerve, and the brilliance on his armor dimmed a little.

He immediately retorted, "Oh? How much power has that sword of yours unleashed? It can't even break through my armor! Now, I'm afraid you can only fight a war of attrition with me, right? But in terms of attrition, can you outlast me?"

Aizen smiled and said, "Just because I can't break your armor doesn't mean the other seven swords can't either. In fact, the Purple Cloud Sword isn't good at offense and doesn't have the same power as the other seven."

However, the Purple Cloud Sword also has its strengths. General Zhang Han, why don't you look at the clouds around you? Have they dispersed even a little bit?

Zhang Han was taken aback. He looked around and saw that the clouds and fog were thick. The entire floor of the central hall was covered by a thick layer of fog. At first glance, it looked like he had arrived at the Heavenly Palace.

It turns out that since the start of their battle, all the purple clouds had changed from being diffused to settling.

Therefore, Zhang Han did not feel how heavy the clouds and mist around him were for so long.

Looking down, I realized that the clouds and mist were frighteningly thick, as if they were about to solidify.

"these are……"

"The most distinctive feature of the Purple Cloud Sword is that these clouds and mists dissipate extremely slowly!"

Aizen laughed and said, "And all of these clouds and mists belong to my power!"

Zhang Han was greatly alarmed.

He instantly understood how terrifying this was.

When martial artists fight, the true energy emitted from their bodies only has a certain power when they make a move.

Once this move is broken, the martial artist will lose control over this portion of true energy, and this true energy will naturally dissipate into the world.

Therefore, martial artists experience energy expenditure.

But if this true energy never dissipates and is always controlled by its original owner, wouldn't that mean that no matter what move the opponent makes, there is no consumption?!

It should be noted that even when he uses the power of the Heavenly Crystal, which is said to be inexhaustible, he is actually just constantly drawing power from within the Heavenly Crystal. And once this power is used, it will also be consumed.

However, the power inside the Heavenly Crystal is extremely vast, and it can also absorb the power of heaven and earth on its own, which is why it is called inexhaustible.

This is also the source of his confidence that he can win the war of attrition.

But unexpectedly, he encountered someone who was even less afraid of a war of attrition.

"You think it's impossible? Then let me show you..."

Aizen drew his sword and withdrew from the battle, his figure drifting backward like a cloud.

At the same time, purple clouds rose up from the ground.

In an instant, the entire central hall was filled with these clouds of mist!
"These clouds that never dissipate are like the power I am constantly accumulating. General Zhang Han, guess what kind of power I can unleash with this immense strength I have accumulated?"

Zhang Han frowned, his body shimmering with purple light, and starlight swirling around him as he maximized his defenses, guarding against any potential attack.

He also threw a punch, unleashing the power of the Purple Star River, trying to disperse the clouds and mist in front of him.

But the clouds and mist were now incredibly thick, and he only managed to disperse them by a foot in front of him.

Even a meter away, there was still thick fog.

"I have another poem here, General, please comment on it!"

"The north wind sweeps across the land, snapping the white grass; in the eighth month of the lunar calendar, snow flies in the northern regions..."

A cold wind blew in!

(End of this chapter)