Reborn Ouyang Ke: From The Condor Heroes to the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 56 Yuwen Huaji, Ice Profound Force!

The atmosphere in the courtyard was as still as stagnant water.

Ouyang Ke said calmly, "Since you're here, why not come in?"

His tone was gentle, yet surprisingly clear, reaching the ears of everyone outside the courtyard. This skill in transmitting sound was effortless, condensing the voice without dissipating, sending it far away without any trace of harshness. It was clearly a cut above Yuwen Huaji's deliberately forceful and powerful tone just now.

"good!"

The deep voice rang out again. The next moment, a figure grew larger and larger, like a large bird swooping down from the sky into the courtyard. The speed of the movement was so fast that the sound of clothes tearing through the air was like tearing cloth, and the momentum was extremely astonishing.

Upon hearing the sound, the two dragons looked up in horror and soon saw a tall, thin man with long arms and legs, an ancient face, and a cold expression descending with his hands behind his back. His feet landed silently, like a falling leaf, yet he exuded a suffocating sense of oppression.

The visitor was none other than Yuwen Huaji.

Upon landing, his gaze was immediately drawn to Ouyang Ke. Ouyang Ke was dressed in black, the dark garments perfectly accentuating his vibrant physique. His hair was unkempt, and a gentle breeze caused the jet-black strands to flutter lightly against his broad, seemingly jade-carved forehead. His eyes seemed to gleam with an electric light, captivating all who beheld them.

Yuwen Huaji's gaze swept over Ouyang Ke's crutches under his armpits, a strange light flashing in his eyes. He sighed and said, "You displayed great skill at the dilapidated temple outside the city yesterday, killing and wounding nearly a hundred elite Imperial Guards. I truly admire you." His tone was calm, as if he were stating something insignificant, but the word "admire" carried a hint of coldness.

Upon hearing this, Kou Lu and Xu Ziling belatedly realized that in just a few moments, their husbands had actually done such a thing.

The two exchanged a glance, feeling both surprised and impressed.

Ouyang Ke said calmly, "So, Chief Steward Yuwen has come specifically to interrogate me?"

As he spoke, he also sized up Yuwen Huaji. The man appeared to be around thirty years old, yet his cultivation was far more profound than that of Shi Long, whom he had encountered earlier. In particular, his eyes were deep and unfathomable, giving off a ruthless and cold impression, clearly indicating that he was a person who held the power of life and death over others.

Yuwen Huaji shook his head, a hint of helplessness in his smile: "If I hadn't been forced to, I really wouldn't want to make an enemy of you. But the news of your unauthorized killing of the Imperial Guards last night has reached His Majesty's ears, so I'm forced to shamelessly come to your door today, hoping to invite you to stay in the city as a guest."

Ouyang Ke said calmly, "I appreciate Steward Yuwen's kindness. As for the gathering in the city, let's skip that."

Yuwen Huaji seemed unsurprised by this, and his gaze then fell upon Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling not far away. He sighed and said, "With your martial arts skills, if one of you wanted to leave, I certainly wouldn't be able to stop you. But since you are protecting these two lads, I will naturally have to give it a try."

Ouyang Ke remained silent, simply gazing at Yuwen Huaji before him. His eyes, shimmering with a purple light, resembled deep, unfathomable pools.

Upon hearing this, Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling felt a pang of anxiety. They realized they had become a burden. Resentful, they bit their lips, remembering Ouyang Ke's earlier warning, and prepared to wait patiently for the perfect opportunity.

As their eyes met, the surrounding air suddenly turned as cold as if it had frozen. The chill seeped in relentlessly, causing Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling to chatter.

Just as they were about to give up, the true energy of the Longevity Mantra within their bodies circulated automatically, and a warm current of energy surged out from their dantian, slightly alleviating the chill.

"What a fine Ice Profound Force!" Ouyang Ke suddenly laughed.

The next moment, his clothes fluttered, his eyes blazed with purple lightning, and a gentle aura of true energy spread outwards from him.

The true energy was warm and mellow, like the warm sun in spring. Wherever it passed, the chill dissipated like the receding tide. Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling, who were struggling under Yuwen Huaji's Ice Profound Force, felt as if they had been granted a pardon. They subconsciously gasped for breath, their backs already soaked with cold sweat.

Only now did they realize just how vast the gap was between themselves and the top masters of the martial arts world.

Yuwen Huaji noticed the change in the surrounding aura, and a hint of surprise appeared in his eyes. Although he had expected Ouyang Ke to be skilled in martial arts, he only realized after personally experiencing it that the rumors were not only true, but that he had even underestimated his opponent.

The two stared at each other for a long time, the courtyard so quiet you could hear a pin drop. After about half a cup of tea's time, Yuwen Huaji's gaze grew increasingly solemn, he let out a long sigh, and suddenly threw a punch from afar.

He was unwilling to act rashly.

After a long standoff, he was unable to detect any weakness in Ouyang Ke's aura. Ouyang Ke's breathing was deep and his blood and qi flowed smoothly, leaving no opening for attack.

In the end, he was forced to take action.

The sun had just set, and the courtyard still held the warmth of the day, but the moment Yuwen Huaji made his move, the air instantly turned frigid. Had the two dragons not already mastered the "Longevity Technique," they would likely have trembled uncontrollably. Even so, their faces still showed signs of discomfort.

If a master were to throw a punch, the resulting wind would be clear and traceable. But the chilling force emanating from Yuwen Huaji's punch was faint and indistinct, as if the air around the courtyard had been stirred up by him, pressing in on the twin dragons from all directions.

And this was just the aftermath of something not specifically targeted at them. The most devastating feeling was the helplessness of not knowing which target to retaliate against.

Fortunately, Ouyang Ke made a move.

He appeared in a flowing black robe and unleashed a punch from a distance. The punch was upright, powerful, and forceful, and the overwhelming power of the punch seemed familiar to Kou Zhong.

A wave of intense heat spread through the air, instantly dispelling the bone-chilling cold. Accompanied by a deafening roar that made their eardrums tremble, the two energies collided, forming a vortex that instantly stirred up a hurricane in the courtyard, surging outwards. Dust flew everywhere, and withered leaves were swept into the air before fluttering down again.

Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling were the first to be unable to withstand the outward-spreading energy. They swayed and staggered back seven or eight steps, but were forced to lie on the ground, supporting themselves with their hands and panting heavily.

Yuwen Huaji's face showed surprise, and his tall, thin figure was forced to take two steps back for the first time, the blue bricks beneath his feet cracking inch by inch. He steadied himself and said in surprise, "Since I mastered the Ice Profound Force, this is the first person to force me to retreat."

Ouyang Ke withdrew his fist and stood still, his clothes no longer fluttering. He said calmly, "So, it seems that Steward Yuwen has become too pampered these past few years and has long forgotten the swords and shadows of the martial world."

Upon hearing this, Yuwen Huaji sighed softly and shook his head, saying, "I, Yuwen Huaji, deeply admire your martial arts skills. However, you have missed the best opportunity to break through today."

Ouyang Ke said calmly, "Some things can only be known after trying them. Chief Steward Yuwen's statement is too arbitrary."

Sensing the confidence in Ouyang Ke's tone, Yuwen Huaji couldn't help but feel a little doubtful: "Oh? Do you perhaps believe you can escape alive from here today?"

It should be noted that today, in order to give Yang Guang an explanation, he has brought fifty elite cavalry and over a hundred infantrymen, who have firmly surrounded the courtyard. Anyone who dares to leave rashly will first be met with a hail of arrows. If it were just Ouyang Ke alone, he might not be entirely confident in stopping him, but with two more burdensome children along, it would be a different story.

"Steward Yuwen's Ice Profound Force just now truly broadened my horizons," Ouyang Ke said slowly. "But it would be impolite not to reciprocate."

As soon as he finished speaking, a silver light shot out like a bolt of lightning, striking Yuwen Huaji's vital point on the chest with a "whoosh"!

Yuwen Huaji's expression changed slightly, and he leaned back, narrowly avoiding the silver light. At the same time, his feet didn't touch the ground, and he spun around in a small circle before suddenly accelerating, striking forward with a palm strike just before the silver light could catch up with him.

But the silver light, like a bolt of lightning, miraculously caught his outstretched right palm in an instant.

Yuwen Huaji's expression was solemn, his right sleeve bulging high. He had managed to circulate his inner energy to protect himself the instant the silver light wrapped around his right arm. Ice Xuan Energy gathered in his arm, and a thin layer of frost spread across his sleeve, attempting to freeze the silver whip.

Only now did Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling, who were not far away, realize that what was wrapped around Yuwen Huaji's arm was a long, shimmering silver whip, roughly three zhang long. Such a long and cumbersome whip had just been wielded by Ouyang Ke with the agility of a snake, which was truly an eye-opener for the two.

Yuwen Huaji's eyes narrowed, and he channeled his inner strength into his right hand, attempting to shake the whip off. However, the silver whip wrapped around his arm remained unmoved, instead tightening its grip. A surging, powerful force emanated from the whip, wave after wave, like a raging tide crashing against the shore. Yuwen Huaji's right arm trembled slightly, and his face was already filled with a look of intense concentration.

"If we don't leave now, when will we?"

Just as the two dragons were completely absorbed in watching, Ouyang Ke's voice suddenly rang in their ears. The voice wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear, as if it were right next to them.

Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling belatedly realized what was happening and trembled. They exchanged a glance, seemingly hesitant. But seeing the two figures still locked in a stalemate, they gritted their teeth, turned around, and rushed out of the courtyard.

They could hear that there were no fewer than a hundred people outside the courtyard, but out of trust in Ouyang Ke, they ultimately chose to take action.

At the same time, a familiar bird song came from the sky.

Kou Zhong and his companion instinctively looked up and saw that the firebird had appeared in the sky at some point. It circled twice and let out a sharp cry. The cry was piercing and went straight to the heart. The two dragons felt an itch all over their bodies, a slight nausea in their chests, and an indescribable discomfort.

The elite cavalry and infantry guarding outside the courtyard suddenly felt dizzy, and their hands, which were drawing their bows, seemed to have lost their strength. Some people's bows fell to the ground with a "clatter," while others swayed precariously while holding onto their spears.

With a fold of its wings, the firebird swooped down like a streak of red lightning!

"Aaaaaah!"

With several sharp screams, several elite riders on horseback had their eyes gouged out simultaneously. They dropped their weapons, covered their faces with their hands, and tumbled from their horses to the ground, howling in agony. Blood gushed from between their fingers, a horrifying sight in the setting sun.

Before anyone could react, the firebird took flight, circled in the air, and then swooped down again.

"Ah!" "My eyes!"

Five or six more people collapsed in misery.

The remaining imperial guards finally came to their senses and brandished their swords, trying to shoot down the strange bird. But the firebird flew like lightning, darting left and right, high and low, and the swords couldn't even touch its feathers. Some, enduring the discomfort, drew their bows and fired a sparse volley of arrows. But the firebird was as swift as lightning; ordinary arrows couldn't harm it at all. With a sudden turn in mid-air, it precisely pecked one of the arrows in half, and the broken arrow fell to the ground with a "crack."

The two dragons were dumbfounded by this scene. Only now did Kou Zhong realize that the firebird had clearly held back when it pecked at him earlier, otherwise he would have lost his eyes long ago.

With the arrival of the firebird, the imperial guards outside were thrown into chaos. Everyone was on edge, covering their eyes, fearing they would be targeted by the strange bird. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling knocked down several soldiers and rushed into the woods, heading straight for the riverbank.

Before parting, Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling simultaneously channeled their energy and shouted, "Thank you, Brother Bird!"

The firebird circling overhead heard this and responded with a soft cry, as if bidding farewell.

The stalemate continues in the courtyard.

Yuwen Huaji trembled, his eyes flashing with undisguised shock. He never expected that the true energy contained in this silver whip would be the nemesis of his "Ice Profound Force".

Since he mastered the Ice Profound Force, he has been invincible. Whether it was Shi Long, who claimed to be the "Number One Master in Yangzhou," or his old opponents, anyone whose body was invaded by his Ice Profound Force was doomed to die.

Unexpectedly, during their clash of true energy, he found himself being invaded by strands of the opponent's true energy. That true energy was extremely yang and powerful—

His Ice Profound Energy, honed over many years, was completely ineffective against it, like the first snow meeting the warm sun; instead, it was gradually dissipated. Had he not been cautious and reserved in his attacks, he would have suffered a great loss.

Yuwen Huaji gritted his teeth, his heart filled with both shock and anger. Ouyang Ke's profound cultivation and youthful age both astonished and filled him with envy. He thought to himself, "My life or death depends on this one gamble!"

In a battle between masters, victory or defeat hangs by a thread. He had previously been confident of a decisive victory, but now he had not only lost the initiative but also seemed to be in danger of defeat and death. Turning the tide, while not impossible, was extremely difficult, and he risked certain death.

He no longer held back, and the Ice Profound Energy he had cultivated for many years erupted like a storm. Streams of icy cold energy surged out of his body, and a thin layer of white frost formed on the ground around him, as if even the air itself was about to freeze.

Ouyang Ke's expression remained unchanged, but his eyes blazed with intense purple light. He also no longer held back his innate purple energy, which clashed head-on with Yuwen Huaji's Ice Profound Force on his white python whip.

The silver whip, infused with purple energy, faintly glowed with a purple-gold halo, which interacted with the white frost energy, producing a hissing sound.

A few breaths later, Yuwen Huaji's expression changed drastically. He suddenly felt his Ice Profound Strength, cultivated for over twenty years, being gradually dissolved by the opponent's pure and profound internal energy, as if solid ice had been thrown into a furnace, an irreversible process. Meanwhile, the purple light in Ouyang Ke's eyes shone like lightning, growing ever brighter.

Yuwen Huaji knew that if this dragged on, all his skills would surely be lost.

A ruthless glint flashed in his eyes. He bit his tongue, opened his mouth, and spat out a jet of blood that shot straight toward Ouyang Ke's face!

Driven by the Ice Profound Force, the blood arrow solidified and did not disperse, resembling a red ice spike with a sharp, piercing sound.

Upon seeing this, Ouyang Ke stopped abruptly, leaned back, and narrowly avoided the blood arrow. The blood arrow grazed his face and flew into an old locust tree behind him, leaving a hole several inches deep in the trunk.

Seeing the Blood Arrow miss its mark, Yuwen Huaji pursued with lightning speed, striking Ouyang Ke's chest with a palm strike mid-air. This strike exhausted his remaining strength, and the air itself seemed to freeze in the wind it sent swirling.

Ouyang Ke sensed something was wrong. He swung his white python whip with force, the silver whip tightening like a serpent, tightly binding Yuwen Huaji's right arm. At the same time, he focused his energy on his back, preparing to withstand the impending attack.

"Click!"

With a sharp crack, accompanied by a spray of blood, Yuwen Huaji's right arm was severed by the silver whip!

The moment the severed arm hit the ground, blood gushed out like a fountain, splattering all over the ground.

Ouyang Ke let out a muffled groan as he took Yuwen Huaji's palm strike to the back. A bone-chilling coldness seeped into his back, causing him to sway and stumble forward two steps, a trickle of blood seeping from the corner of his mouth.

Yuwen Huaji's face turned deathly pale. The pain of losing his arm almost made him faint, but he endured the excruciating pain and quickly retreated.

Knowing he had completely missed the chance to kill Ouyang Ke, he realized that if he didn't escape now, he would be in danger of dying. So he didn't delay and dashed out of the courtyard wall like a ghost.

"You little brat, I, Yuwen Huaji, will remember you!" His voice came from afar, as sinister as a snake.

"Goodbye, and don't bother seeing me off." Ouyang Ke stood quietly in place, watching Yuwen Huaji's figure disappear into the distance, while secretly feeling regretful.

It wasn't that he was unwilling to continue the pursuit, but rather that more than ten extremely cold icy energies had seeped into his body. That chilling energy surged and crashed through his meridians, violently clashing with his innate purple energy, forcing him to be unable to spare any effort. He had no choice but to first circulate his internal energy to expel the icy energies from his body.

He sat cross-legged, his eyes slightly closed, and his innate purple energy slowly circulated, expelling the chill from his body one by one. Wisps of white vapor rose from the top of his head, appearing particularly eerie in the afterglow of the setting sun.

The firebird had flown back sometime earlier and landed on his shoulder, quietly scanning its surroundings with its small eyes.

Outside the courtyard, the surviving imperial guards had long since fled, leaving behind only a scene of devastation.

The courtyard returned to silence, with only the evening breeze blowing, stirring the severed arm on the ground and the pool of blood that had not yet dried.

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