Compared to the defensive formation set up by the white-haired man, Yuan Shu’s defensive formation was far more elaborate.
This defensive formation was also translucent but incredibly grand, taking the form of a palace.
Surrounding the palace were four seated Black Tortoise beasts, majestic and imposing, exuding an aura of impregnability.
“Tch, all flash and no substance.”
However, facing Yuan Shu’s defensive formation, the white-haired man gave a scornful smile before beginning to set up his own formation.
Soon, a golden longsword condensed in front of him.
The sword was just over a metre long.
Though it appeared exquisitely crafted, compared to the offensive formation Yuan Shu had previously deployed, its presence was vastly inferior.
Moreover, the white-haired man set up his formation much faster than Yuan Shu.
In a contest of spirit techniques, there was a stipulated time limit for setting up formations.
As long as one stayed within this limit, it was acceptable.
Thus, spirit masters often took their time to perfect their formations within the allowed period.
But this white-haired man chose to complete his formation early.
Such behaviour was nothing short of dismissing Yuan Shu entirely.
Swish, swish, swish—
Suddenly, the white-haired man made his move.
Only then did it become clear that his golden longsword was far from simple.
The golden longsword began to transform, splitting into tens of thousands of golden swords in the blink of an eye.
These tens of thousands of swords flew into the sky, blotting out the sun like a rain of blades, attacking Yuan Shu from all directions.
The onslaught of the sword rain was so fierce that Yuan Shu quickly showed signs of being overwhelmed.
“How can it be so strong?”
Yuan Shu’s eyes were filled with shock. He had already comprehended the First Rank of Dragon Transformation.
Even if he wasn’t as proficient as his opponent, the gap shouldn’t be this vast, should it?
Crack—
Crack—
Before Yuan Shu could think further, cracks began to appear in his defensive formation.
“Brother Li, I concede.”
Realising there was no point in continuing, Yuan Shu directly admitted defeat.
But upon hearing Yuan Shu’s words, the white-haired man gave a cold smile. Not only did he show no intention of stopping, but his attack grew even fiercer.
Soon, Yuan Shu’s defensive formation was completely pierced.
The golden sword rain then surged toward Yuan Shu in a surrounding assault.
Clatter—
However, before the sword rain could reach Yuan Shu, it shattered.
The white-haired man’s offensive formation had been broken!!!
Seeing this, the white-haired man’s face showed displeasure.
“Yuan Shu, we agreed on a spirit technique duel, no martial power.”
“What’s the meaning of this?”
The white-haired man demanded in a stern voice.
“It was I who used martial power.”
Suddenly, a voice rang out, and a figure landed beside Yuan Shu.
It was none other than Yuan Shu’s master, Master Tang Chen.
“Master, you’re back.”
Seeing Master Tang Chen, Yuan Shu was both surprised and ashamed.
He knew the identity of the other party.
The black-haired elder was called the Beast-Taming Venerable.
Not only was he a peak Supreme expert, but he was also a renowned spirit master in the entire Holy Light Galaxy.
As for the white-haired man, named Li Fengxue, he was the Beast-Taming Venerable’s closed-door disciple.
The Beast-Taming Venerable and Master Tang Chen were old acquaintances.
And Li Fengxue was of a similar age to Yuan Shu.
This spirit technique duel’s loss didn’t just disgrace Yuan Shu himself but also his master, Tang Chen.
And his master was particularly concerned with face.
This made Yuan Shu extremely afraid.
He felt he had let his master down and feared his punishment.
“Yuan Shu, are you alright?”
To Yuan Shu’s surprise, Master Tang Chen, who always valued face and was extremely strict, showed no blame but instead expressed concern for him.
“Master, your disciple is fine.”
Yuan Shu replied.
“Good to know.”
Master Tang Chen nodded, then turned to the Beast-Taming Venerable.
“Beast-Tamer, does your disciple have a problem with his ears?”
“Didn’t he hear Yuan Shu concede?”
Master Tang Chen’s tone was far from friendly.
“Tang Chen, why so protective of your disciple?”
“My disciple knows his limits and would never harm your precious student.”
At this, the Beast-Taming Venerable looked at Li Fengxue, “Isn’t that right, Fengxue?”
“Master is absolutely correct. I would never truly harm Brother Yuan Shu. After breaking the formation, I intended to stop.”
“Senior Tang Chen has misunderstood my intentions.”
When speaking to his master, Li Fengxue first bowed, appearing extremely courteous.
Yet earlier, he had addressed Yuan Shu by name alone, only adding the respectful “Brother” after Master Tang Chen appeared.
This showed Li Fengxue was a true hypocrite.
“Like master, like disciple.”
Master Tang Chen sneered, not only dismissing Li Fengxue’s words but also mocking the master-disciple pair.
“Of course. My disciple surpasses yours, which seems to prove the gap between you and me.”
The Beast-Taming Venerable smiled smugly.
Hearing this, Master Tang Chen’s expression darkened.
He and the Beast-Taming Venerable had always been at odds.
His disciple’s defeat today indeed made him feel humiliated.
“Lord, Young Hero Shura requests an audience.”
At that moment, a voice came from outside the boundary, belonging to an elder of the Seven Suns Mountain Range.
“Shura?”
Hearing the name Shura, Yuan Shu looked at Master Tang Chen.
He knew Shura was Chu Feng.
Previously, Chu Feng had come here, but Master Tang Chen had refused to meet him.
So Yuan Shu looked to his master.
Whether to meet Chu Feng depended on his master’s decision.
“What kind of nonsense Young Hero?”
“Tell him to scram. Such a weakling isn’t worthy of meeting us in person.”
Before Master Tang Chen could speak, the Beast-Taming Venerable spoke up.
“Beast-Tamer, this is my disciple’s territory. Who can enter and who cannot is up to my disciple.”
Master Tang Chen said, then told Yuan Shu, “Let him in.”
“Master, really?”
Yuan Shu hesitated.
He knew his master originally didn’t want Chu Feng to come in.
Allowing Chu Feng now was purely to spite the Beast-Taming Venerable.
“Let him in.”
Master Tang Chen said with certainty.
“Understood, disciple.”
Yuan Shu spoke and stepped out of the boundary.
After a while, he returned.
This time, not only Yuan Shu but also Chu Feng followed.
“Junior Chu Feng pays respects to Master Tang Chen.”
Chu Feng had learned from Yuan Shu that Master Tang Chen was here.
Out of respect, he didn’t disguise his appearance, showing his true face.
“Not Shura? Now it’s some Chu Feng?”
“Brother Yuan Shu, are all your friends so fond of playing tricks?”
Li Fengxue mocked Yuan Shu, having guessed that Shura was likely Chu Feng’s alias.
But he didn’t even glance at Chu Feng.
It was as if Chu Feng wasn’t worthy of his attention.
Chu Feng glanced at Li Fengxue and the Beast-Taming Venerable, saying nothing and offering no courtesy.
From Yuan Shu, he had learned the general situation.
Though he knew the Beast-Taming Venerable and Li Fengxue were significant figures, Chu Feng judged they came with ill intentions.
For such people, he saw no need to be polite.
As for the Beast-Taming Venerable, like his disciple, he didn’t take Chu Feng seriously, treating him as if he didn’t exist, and instead looked at Master Tang Chen.
“Tang Chen, do you remember our agreement?”
“The duel between our disciples has been decided.”
“Per our original agreement, since you lost, you must hand over the fragment of the Ancient Spirit Domain map.”
The Beast-Taming Venerable said.
“The fragment of the Ancient Spirit Domain map?”
Hearing this, Yuan Shu’s face changed drastically.
He knew well what the Ancient Spirit Domain map fragment meant.
It was an extremely important item to his master.
Wasn’t his duel with Li Fengxue just a simple spar?
How could such a valuable item be used as a wager?
This couldn’t be true, could it?
