Martial King's Retired Life-Novel

Book 13: Chapter 172

Superiority

“I created Autumn Lock to restrain strong opponents. Since defeating you isn’t possible, I have to restrain you for a moment.” Jiang Chen continued forward. “Executioner can only stall you, occupying your full attention.” He stopped three metres away from Tianhu and continued, “The one who’ll kill you is Silver Crow, Six Blades’ Silver Crow.”

Silver Crow thrust through Tianhu’s heart one more time, creating a vacant hole in the latter’s chest. “Thank you. It is my honour to serve Jiang Chen.”

The lanky, tall, silver-masked assassin who had yet to even live for thirty years was still standing over thirty metres away from Tianhu and still had his weapon in his hand. “I have fulfilled my contract and received my remuneration. Please excuse me now.”

“Wait.”

“Mr. Jiang Chen, I can only kill one person for you. If you wish for me to kill another person, you need to open a new offer.”

Jiang Chen shook his head, but it wasn’t the sort of condescending victor shake. “You haven’t killed him.”

Silver Crow pulled his brows together.

Jiang Chen inspected Tianhu’s wound and his own stiff wrist. Drought Demons gradually eroded his own strength. He deleted some of his strength against Huang Yuzao and then earlier again against Tianhu. In exchange for sacrificing strength, he gained a longer lifespan and was more resistant to damage. Therefore, injuries, particularly internal injuries, were a different concept to his body. Had it not been for Tianhu’s unique way of applying force, he might not have even suffered the most minor injury.

Jiang Chen sighed and, with his eyes on Tianhu’s unmoving body, said, “How much longer do you plan to sleep for? I don’t believe that’s enough to kill you. I’ve fought Tianhu before. If you are at his level, that’s not nearly enough to kill you. Enlightenment allows you to mobilise your organs.”

Naturally, the Tianhu Jiang Chen referred to wasn’t the one on the ground but the one who formed Emperor’s Entourage.

“He wasn’t called Tianhu when I got to know him, and the imperial court had yet to organise a The Ultimate Three group. Who crowned you three the title of The Ultimate Three? Did you ask for the opinion of the rest of the world?”

Upon regaining functioning of his wrist, Jiang Chen flipped his palm up to face the sky. “Didn’t you want to behold Gongsun Clan’s swordplay?” With a sword suddenly floating above his outstretched hand, he stated, “This is one discipline.”

Shen Yiren: Flying Sword Technique!

Shen Yiren never saw how the sword spawned or how it moved.

Decapitating victims from a hundred metres away was done through using qi to control a flying sword. Without being constrained to human biomechanics, the wielder could perform feats otherwise impossible. In order to perform the feat, though, they’d expend an enormous amount of internal energy, so only those who cultivated internal as well as external attributes could master the skill. To actually send a sword flying for combat would require Divine Realm to bypass the limit of internal energy. The ability to perform the skill was the reason Luo Ming was hailed as Heavenly Swordsman. To pilot a sword, however, was a myth believed to have started a millennium ago.

The claim was that one had to mentally connect with their sword’s spirit to fly on it, not master some martial art. It sounded ridiculous, but it was an undeniable fact that swordplay was the foundation of Gongsun Clan.

There were only three people alive who could perform the feat – Wordless Sword Deity, Sword Sage and the great sage from a century ago, Gongsun Chu.

The purple sword circled Jiang Chen three revolutions at varying heights without him showing any signs of mobilising energy.

“I know that wasn’t enough to kill you. That said, you’re hurt badly. Let’s skip the pointless chatter and fight properly. Didn’t you complain about being bored?” Jiang Chen donned crimson energy that had bloodlust wreathing around him. “Executioner.”

Shitou conjured another army of clones in the forest, all of which were clad in his blue flames. The clones than began to fuse with each other, increasing the intensity and radius of the blue flames. By the time it was just him again, his eyes emitted intermittent flashes of lightning as the field of flames around him flickered.

“Silver Crow.”

Silver Crow trusted his long, thin and sharp broadsword. Nevertheless, he had no choice but to join hands with Jiang Chen and Shitou under the current circumstances.

“Silver Crow… Hmm, I don’t know you, so it shouldn’t matter if I kill you, right?”

A black hand went straight through Silver Crow’s body. In the time it took for Silver Crow to grab his chest and flee through the forest, Shen Yiren, Mountain Monster, even Jiang Chen and Shitou, didn’t even have enough time to react.

“Ah, man, I let him get away.” Tianhu slowly pulled his undulating black hand back to his side, then sat up in the posture he assumed while relaxing on the stone step. It was as if he just reset time to the moment he took his seat. The only difference was that he was shrouded in blackness, the type that felt as though it had no issue devouring everything in existence. Even the brightness of day seemed to be a fantasy.

Jiang Chen struggled to hold his gaze against his foe’s; even trying to stay conscious wasn’t easy. “What is that martial art?”

“Did I ever say this is a martial art?”

Boom!

The battle between Sacrificial Sage and the ruler of darkness resumed, but it didn’t last for long. In the end, neither the blue sky could be restored, nor could the aerial purple sword remain afloat.

“How can a man… be this strong?” Jiang Chen could barely see or think, but he was certain that the Tianhu before him was superior to the Flying Fish he fought back then.

“This is boring.”