Ling Feng faced off against two prodigies from Zhenlong Academy. Both of them unleashed their sword wills simultaneously, and when combined, their sword wills formed a massive aura that attempted to suppress Ling Feng.
Their sword wills had clearly reached an advanced level, allowing them to use them so skillfully and even combine them to create a formidable sword pressure.
"Trying to suppress me with your sword will?"
Ling Feng smirked. Back at the Sword Tower of Wind and Thunder, he had experienced sword force at the perfection level. The combined pressure of these two's advanced-level sword will was insignificant in comparison.
Ling Feng's figure flickered, and an even more terrifying aura swept out. The two Zhenlong Academy geniuses' advanced-level sword wills were instantly overwhelmed and suppressed under the pressure of his sword force.
The two Zhenlong Academy prodigies were shocked. As masters of the sword dao, they had sensed similar power from their elders.
"This is... sword force!"
The expert with fifty-five meridian gates stared at Ling Feng in disbelief, his eyes twitching uncontrollably.
This kid doesn't even have novice-level sword will, yet he can unleash sword force?
This defies all logic!
Everyone, from Ye Fan's followers to Mo Yao, and even Gu Tengfeng, looked utterly astonished.
Common knowledge dictated that one must perfect their sword will before it could transform into sword force. This was an unchanging rule. Yet Ling Feng had somehow broken this rule!
Gu Tengfeng took a deep breath, momentarily forgetting his battle with Ye Fan. His eyes were filled with immense shock. Just how profound is this kid's true strength?
Ye Fan's eyes twitched uncontrollably as he sensed the seemingly impossible power emanating from Ling Feng.
But this didn't shake his determination to seize the Blue Moon Vermilion Fruit. Sword force was just one aspect of strength. Even if Ling Feng had mastered sword force, so what? His opponents included an expert with fifty-five meridian gates!
After opening fifty meridian gates, each additional gate significantly boosted one's power. Could a mere Ling Feng withstand the combined assault of a fifty-five-meridian gate expert and a fifty-four-meridian gate expert?
On the other side, Mo Yao drew her sword, preparing to join the fray, but was firmly held back by Hei Feng.
"Captain, in my opinion, this has nothing to do with us. We should take this chance to escape!"
Hei Feng swallowed nervously. "It may be a bit unkind, but survival is what matters. While Ling Feng is distracting those Zhenlong Academy guys, we can sneak away. We can't really help him anyway!"
Upon hearing Hei Feng's suggestion, the two other male members immediately nodded in agreement. Bai Yushuang hesitated for a moment but eventually nodded as well.
Bai Yushuang, though disdainful of Hei Feng's betrayal, had to consider her own safety. Self-preservation was paramount in such a dire situation.
Bai Yushuang tugged at Mo Yao's sleeve while gritting her teeth. "Sister Mo Yao, Uncle Hei Feng is right. We won't be of any help if we stay. It's better to leave now!"
"You can run if you want," Mo Yao said firmly. "Mr. Ling just saved my life. I won't abandon him now! Three years ago, I left my family to train and joined the Shadow Strike Hunting Team. Unexpectedly, I ended up as the captain. Hei Feng, from now on, you're the captain. You all should leave now!"
"Uhh..." Hei Feng hesitated for a moment, but his survival instinct prevailed. He bowed to Mo Yao with a fist-and-palm salute and said solemnly, "Captain Mo, take care of yourself!"
With that, he led the remaining members of the Shadow Strike Hunting Team in a quick retreat.
"Trying to run?" A Zhenlong Academy student noticed Hei Feng and the others leaving and charged at them, only to be intercepted by Mo Yao.
Another chaotic battle erupted.
"Even if you've mastered sword force, so what!?"
The Zhenlong Academy student who had opened fifty-five meridian gates, named Qi Hao, wielded a top-grade treasured sword.
This sword, a replica of the legendary Scarlet Flame Divine Sword, had been forged in otherworldly flames for ten years. Thus, whenever Qi Hao wielded it, a terrifying firestorm would ensue.
With his fifty-five meridian gates fully opened, each swing of his sword unleashed immensely powerful sword beams that were enough to make anyone's scalp tingle.
Qi Hao roared, slashing his sword violently toward Ling Feng's head.
Ling Feng swiftly sidestepped using the Boundless Sword Steps and charged straight toward the other Zhenlong Academy genius with a full beard.
Before the full-bearded genius could react, he felt a stinging sensation on his face, followed by the sharp sound of a slap. Staggering back, his face was filled with disbelief.
Such speed—it was utterly monstrous!
It felt like Ling Feng was cheating!
What he didn't know was that both the Boundless Sword Steps and Shadow's Face were of an unimaginably high grade. Ling Feng had integrated these two movement arts into one, making it seem like outright cheating.
"Damn it!" The full-bearded genius cursed, wildly swinging his long sword. He and Qi Hao, attacking from both sides, pressed Ling Feng into a corner with an impenetrable barrage of sword moves to force him into a direct confrontation.
Ling Feng sneered, meeting their assault with Hundred Ghosts Night Walk. Despite his confidence, he couldn't afford to be careless against Qi Hao and the full-bearded genius.
This was especially true since Qi Hao's sword carried a domineering, scorching aura. Every time Ling Feng was struck by this sword qi, he suffered greatly.
The three swords clashed at high speed, filling the air with the continuous ringing of metal against metal.
1. Author's note: Some readers are confused about Ling Feng's fluctuating strength—sometimes fighting against the Transformation Realm and other times unable to insta-kill someone in the Pulse Formation Realm with over fifty meridian gates. I've explained this before: some people advance to the Transformation Realm with only ten or twenty meridian gates, making them the weakest in that realm. Those who open more than fifty meridian gates are geniuses. The more gates opened, the greater the talent and potential. Upon breaking through, they reach the later stages of the Transformation Realm and can soon advance to the Spiritual Element Realm. This is why Yan Jinghong reached the Spiritual Element Realm at fourteen. After fifty meridian gates, each additional gate can be considered a small realm in itself. Additionally, factors like spirit infusion, sword will, secret arts, and bloodlines also play a role. Thus, don't overly focus on realms. Besides the protagonist, other geniuses can also fight across realms. ☜