“He blocked it, he’s actually holding his own against Chen Yan!”
“Heavenly Martial Fourth Tier standing up to Fifth Tier, this Lin Xiao’s strength is incredible!”
The onlookers let out waves of astonished cries, clearly caught off guard by Lin Xiao matching Chen Yan’s strike.
The Feng and Chen family members’ faces darkened, Chen Yan’s attack hadn’t reclaimed any honour for them.
“No less from Heavenly Martial Fifth Tier!” Lin Xiao’s heart tightened slightly, his hands buzzing with numbness, Chen Yan’s power was indeed formidable.
Chen Yan’s brows furrowed too, evidently surprised, Lin Xiao’s raw strength exceeded his expectations.
After a brief pause, he swung his sword again.
“Let’s see how many strikes you can take!” With a shout, Chen Yan spun and slashed at Lin Xiao once more.
“Clang!” “Clang!” “Clang!”
Sword met staff, deafening clashes rang out, powerful shockwaves rippled between them, the fierce impacts seeming to shake the very air.
Their brutal, head-on clash captivated the crowd, it was chaotic, a pure contest of strength.
This left the onlookers increasingly stunned, especially the Chen family youths, they knew Chen Yan’s raw power well—among their generation, few could endure it this long, yet Lin Xiao held firm, a testament to his might.
After dozens of exchanges, Chen Yan felt his hands tingling, Lin Xiao’s ferocity catching him off guard.
“Hmph, what use is brute strength? Against martial techniques, it’s futile!” Chen Yan roared, raising his sword, terrifying sword qi surged, a dazzling, brilliant arc flared, waves of fearsome energy rolling out.
“Blazing Flame Sword Art, Shatter!”
Golden light blazed, a massive sword arc cleaved down, brimming with unstoppable force, as if slicing through space itself.
“That’s a Mysterious Tier High-Level technique, Chen Yan’s unleashing his killer move!” The crowd’s hearts jolted.
Facing the descending arc, Lin Xiao’s brows creased, he shifted sideways, dodging the strike.
“Boom!”
A thunderous crash, the fiery red arc struck the ground, dirt and stone exploded, dust billowed, a long gash scarred the earth, shockwaves radiating outward.
“Let’s see how many you can dodge!” Chen Yan sneered, swinging again, another four-to-five-zhang arc shot forth, its dazzling edge faster and fiercer, slashing towards Lin Xiao’s retreat.
“Swish!” Lin Xiao’s dantian churned, vast elemental force poured into the black xuan iron staff, a qi arc formed, he swung upward, the staff’s bright glow colliding with the sword arc.
“Rumble!”
A massive clash erupted, a blinding burst flared, staff and sword arcs shattered together, unleashing a surging blast that roared in all directions, the terrifying shockwave driving onlookers further back, toppling scores of banquet tables and chairs.
This strike—a deadlock!
“Heh, looks like Chen Yan’s not getting the upper hand on Lin Xiao!” Empress Meng Xi chuckled dryly, eyeing the two figures in the plaza.
“This wedding’s getting more entertaining by the minute!” Zhou Moyi grinned, delighting in the chaos, the wrecked tables already denting the Feng and Chen families’ pride.
“Swish!” “Swish!” “Swish!” …
Before Chen Yan could strike again, Lin Xiao’s aura flared, he swung the staff, arcs of qi lashing out, hammering towards Chen Yan.
Chen Yan’s face twisted, he snorted, his sword danced swiftly, arcs of sword qi met the assault head-on, unyielding, explosions thundering as mighty blasts swept the plaza.
After more fierce exchanges, Chen Yan’s expression grew uglier, he, at Heavenly Martial Fifth Tier, couldn’t gain an edge over Lin Xiao.
“Some skill, but it ends here!” His face darkened like still water, gripping his sword with both hands, immense elemental force poured in, faint, terrifying ripples pulsing around it, the nearby air seeming to tremble.
Then, a dazzling, brilliant sword arc soared skyward, its radiant glow illuminating all directions, an oppressive pressure blanketing the area, the outer crowd feeling palpitations.
“So strong!”
“Chen Yan’s using an Earth Tier Low-Level technique!”
“Earth Tier and Mysterious Tier aren’t even in the same league, can Lin Xiao withstand this?”
Gasps of shock rose, at the plaza’s centre, Lin Xiao stood firm, the Mountain-Collapsing Staff Technique’s mightiest strike brewing, a towering black arc flared from the staff, a soul-shaking force swelling, as if ready to split mountains.
“Mysterious Flame Nine Heavens, Fierce Slaughter!” Chen Yan’s booming shout rang out, the giant sword arc crashed down towards Lin Xiao.
“One Staff Collapses Mountains!” Lin Xiao roared, a ferocious swing unleashed, the staff’s towering arc screamed upward.
“Boom!” “Boom!” “Boom!” …
A cascade of shattering blasts erupted, the two arcs collided head-on from above, though slender, they struck like toppling mountains, unleashing waves of terrifying force, the nearby space trembling, rolling blasts surging outward.
Dozens, then hundreds of tables and chairs shattered, the Feng and Chen families’ experts forced to conjure barriers against the spreading shockwaves, lest every banquet furnishing be overturned.
Their faces grew grimmer, Lin Xiao had smashed their dignity hard.
They hadn’t expected him to counter Chen Yan’s Earth Tier Low-Level technique with such force.
In the crowd’s view, both stood seven or eight zhang apart, elemental qi boiling, hair whipping in the shockwaves.
“An Earth Tier Low-Level technique, looks like you came well-prepared!” Chen Yan’s eyes grew colder, like eternal ice, staring at Lin Xiao.
He’d aimed for a quick win with a Chen family Earth Tier move, yet couldn’t fell Lin Xiao.
“Unleash your dantian anomaly, these tricks won’t beat me!” Lin Xiao said evenly, a chill of killing intent flashing in his eyes.
“To kill you, I don’t need my dantian anomaly!”
Chen Yan barked, sword pointing skyward, a dazzling golden arc formed again, an even mightier aura pulsing from it.
Beyond the radiant arc, a barrier coalesced, icy tendrils spreading from it.
