398 The Metal Blade Shocks the Storm II

The first blade Wang Po had struck out at Zhu Luo with was the most powerfulstrike he had made in his entire life, but Su Li had given no response. Nowwhen Wang Po retrieved his blade, Su Li's acclamation pierced through thedownpour and landed in everyone's ear. Because besides Zhu Luo, only Su Li wasan expert that walked through the divine domain, and only Su Li couldunderstand just how arduous of a task it was for Wang Po to retrieve his blade. In addition, what did the destruction of the wet leaf at the hands of thisblade indicate? It indicated that Wang Po had seen through the sky-spanningstorm that Zhu Luo had used to hold him! For an upper level Star Condensation expert to surpass the threshold and seethe laws and operations of that world, just how inconceivable of an idea wasit? Seeing through it was already an extremely onerous task, let alone breakingthrough it. Wang Po's comprehension of his sole path of the blade was truly tooprofound, not like someone who had cultivated for several decades but likesomeone who had immersed himself in a long life of several centuries! In his life, Su Li had met countless cultivating geniuses and had personallyinstructed Qiushan Jun, Qi Jian, and Chen Changsheng. But he had still beenshocked by the talent concealed in this blade. The blade edge washed cold by the rain and the soaked fallen leaf met in theair. Anything, once soaked, would get heavier, and this fallen leaf was asweighty as a great mountain, yet even so, it could not resist the cleaving ofthe blade. With a muffled bang, that wet leaf turned into countless bits anddrifted in every direction. It was like a suddenly expanding ball had appearedin the gloomy and rainy street. Berserk true essence accompanied the countless fallen leaves that driftedaround like cotton threads. Countless densely packed holes had been scored intothe hard gray stone of the ground. The walls of the street had long since beencovered by countless blade slashes, but were now chopped into piles of sand. Wang Po once again held his blade horizontally and his Blade Domain coveredhim once more. His body, as well as the bodies of Chen Changsheng holding the reins and Su Lion the horse further back, were all protected by his blade. There was an intense clattering sound like countless needles simultaneouslylanding on a glossy metal surface, unbroken and unending. The wind accompanying the torrential rain also blew more swiftly, gusting upeverything. Several li away in the ruins of the inn, an elaborate abacus sat inthe filthy water. As the wind blew against the beads of the abacus, theycrisply clacked together, sounding just like a song. The storm gradually died down, the long street gradually grew still, and thebeads of the abacus gradually ceased to move. Wang Po still stood at his original position, not giving a single step. Hismetal blade was still in his hands without any intention of being put down. Buthis face was extremely pale and his plain clothes were scored with tears andstreaks of blood. The street was quiet, water dripping from the remaining eaves. Drip drop dripdrop. But no one would be bothered by these things, because no one would careabout them. Chen Changsheng's hands no longer grasped the reins. His two hands weregrasping his dagger while he seriously and attentively looked forward, lookingover Wang Po's shoulder at the godlike and unchallengeable expert. Wang Po hadalready suffered severe injuries, yet at this point, Zhu Luo had not trulyattacked. No matter from which angle it was looked at, Wang Po had alreadylost, but for him to obstruct Zhu Luo for a few moments was still very amazing. Next, it was naturally his turn to obstruct Zhu Luo. Zhu Luo did not pay any attention to Chen Changsheng's movements. Hisexpression a little peculiar, he looked at Wang Po and said, "I didn't expectthat even though you hadn't even cultivated to the peak of Star Condensationand were even further from being half a step from the Saint realm, you wouldstill manage to pry into a few laws of the Divine Domain?" Wang Po replied, "The ten thousand things share the same principle, so thereare naturally places where the mortal world and the divine intersect." Zhu Luo said, "Such talent, such perception, no wonder you would dare strikeat me…but just what meaning is there to it?" Yes, in the general scheme of things, Wang Po's talent and unswervingdetermination were absolutely meaningless. Because it was impossible for him to defeat Zhu Luo. Zhu Luo's sword was still in its sheath, but Zhu Luo could still drench thenumber one ranked expert of the Proclamation of Liberation in blood, couldstill inflict heavy injuries upon his body. A name moves the eight directions, a storm darkens the skies. As expected,they were strong beyond belief. The gap between the two with regards to age, cultivation, and the abyss thatseparated the divine from the ordinary, was simply impossible to bridge withthings like talent and willpower. How could Wang Po have a justification forwhy he hadn't been defeated? But there were some people that thought differently. "You lost," Su Li said. When the distant crowd of spectators heard this statement, they were filledwith confusion.How could this be? Wang Po is covered in blood and is clearlyseverely wounded; just where can you find a single chance of winning on him? Sitting on the horse, Su Li looked at Zhu Luo and said, "To lose against thissort of junior, don't you feel a little ashamed?" Zhu Luo's hair that spilled onto his shoulders was gently lifted up by thebreeze, and his two brows similarly rose up. Yet just as he was about to saysomething, he suddenly stopped himself. He lowered his head and looked overhimself. There were no wounds, no blood, only a corner of his sleeve slowlydrifting to the ground. A tiny piece of his left sleeve had been cut off. Whether it was Zhu Luo or any other cultivator at any sort of realm, none ofthem would have their strength affected by this in the slightest. But when hesaw that piece of cloth gently drift down into the puddle in front of him, ZhuLuo said nothing for a very long time. As the crowd looked on, they made nosound. They all thought to themselves,could it be that he actually lost? But  where did he lose? No one understood Su Li's words or Zhu Luo's silence. Chen Changsheng also didnot understand while Liang Wangsun vaguely understood a little. Wang Pounderstood, but he did not accept it. Victory or defeat. Win or lose. From a literal aspect, they both hadcompletely identical meanings. It was only at certain moments, in certainspecial circumstances, that defeat did not mean you had lost. For instance, ifsome hooligan dressed in black and white dashed his head against cement butstill managed to gently tap the head of some exceptional villain with a pieceof wood, although it was meaningless, he had still won. Su Li would naturallyuse this sort of worth to judge Wang Po and Zhu Luo's first exchange. Of courseWang Po had been defeated. It was uncontroversial, right and inevitable, inaccord with the laws of heaven and the principles of the earth that he had beendefeated, but Su Li still thought that it was Zhu Luo who had lost. Zhu Luo's reactions indicated that to some degree, he acknowledged Su Li'swords. ‘When Zhou Dufu was three years old, could he possibly have had the ability todefeat the world and be without adversary? When the Tianhai Empress firstentered the palace, just who could she beat? If you were as old as Wang Poright now, could you beat him?’ These were the words Su Li said to Zhu Luo.This reasoning seemed somewhat fallacious, but it was actually very reasonable.It was just that this argument had to involve the supreme experts of thecontinent before it could be understood. Chen Changsheng understood. With a rather vacant look on his face, he began tothink,if we compare in terms of people who are the same age as me, then I...ah,there's still Xu Yourong and lady Chen Chujian; how could I be the strongest?Su Li did not know what Chen Changsheng was thinking about, or else he woulddefinitely tease him a little. He continued to say to Zhu Luo, "There's stillanother problem: you retreated too fiercely." Zhu Luo said nothing. The fine rain fell down, but it did not dare to touchthe cape over his body and floated away to avoid it. "Back then, with your one sword reflecting the moon, you could kill the secondDemon General in one blow. But now, how could you possibly be Hai Di'sopponent? Once you were a confident youth who could write poems and kill hisenemies, but now you've already gotten old, lacking any of the drive. If thatwere all, fine. But contrary to expectations, your manner is not at allimposing, not even comparable to that woman Tianhai. In the past severalhundred years, you didn't even dare to take a single step into the capital.Today, you want to take an opportunity to kill a junior that might threatenyour position. Tsk, tsk, you really have grown up." Su Li continued, "Why? You're old—almost a thousand years old—and should havedied a long time ago. To be old and not die, what is that? It's a thief, an oldthief. Ah, people. They're just like trees. When they're at their healthiestand sturdiest, they should do their best to brag in the spring wind. When theygrow too old and still cling desperately to their lives, their bodies will growold and their wood will rot, until finally a lightning bolt cleaves down andturns them into burnt ash. Just what meaning is there in that?" Zhu Luo finally opened his mouth and said to Su Li, "Are you done speaking?" Su Li replied, "I'm done scolding." Zhu Luo replied, "What you say is reasonable." Su Li's sword-like brows perked upwards and he said with some interest, "Howabout it?" Zhu Luo responded, "This is your second sword." Every word condemning, every phrase like a sword—although Su Li was so woundedthat he couldn't fight, he still had his sword heart. His spoken words also hadthe ability to wound others. Su Li calmly looked at him and confirmed that this old fellow truly had thequalification to be absolutely arrogant. He actually hadn't been the least bitaffected. "I've received two of your swords. Then, it should be my turn to take out mysword." With these words, Zhu Luo's right hand descended like a dragon breakingthrough the clouds. It came to his waist and gripped the hilt of his sword. The dark clouds grew heavier, the dense rain fell, the skies grew darker, andthe leaves fell layer upon layer, dancing in between the droplets of rain asthey filled the sky. Zhu Luo extracted his sword from its sheath. This sword was not very brightand didn't seem very unusual. Yet the edges of the dark clouds that shroudedXunyang City abruptly grew brighter, as if they had been plated with silver.Was it a halo of light? What was behind the layer of clouds? Was it the sun?No, it was that which should never have appeared in the world of humans: theMoon of the demons. In Zhu Luo's past, this had been his greatest glory. Many years ago, on the snowy plains, he saw the bright moon, recited a verybeautiful poem, and slew a very powerful opponent. Just like that, he becameone of the supreme experts of the continent and obtained the title of SolitaryDrunk Under the Moon. At last, this expert displayed to Xunyang City the true sight of the SaintRealm. Separated by layers and layers of heavy rain and innumerable fallen leaves,Chen Changsheng still sensed the boundless and dignified strength of thatlight. He felt his body become more rigid, so much that he subconsciouslywanted to flee. Was this the Saint Realm? Originally, ‘domain’ here had notreferred to the Star Domain of the Star Condensation Realm. A light envelopedall with no boundary of any sort. Then how could one attack it? He had studiedthe Daoist Canon since he was a child, and in terms of experience and learning,he wouldn't lose to anyone. Yet he could not understand the light at the edgeof the dark clouds and the light brought by that sword, because the laws andoperations of the Divine Domain had already surpassed his ability to understand. The pitch-black rain, the shining sword, the leaden clouds which seemed readyto ignite. Before such a spectacular backdrop, Wang Po's figure seemed all the moreinsignificant, as if it could be swallowed up at any moment. "Forget it!" Chen Changsheng yelled at him. Wang Po did not turn around. "I still want to try. It's not easy to get thissort of experience." The downpour washed his face that was without fear and without joy. Just likehis voice, it was so calm that it would make the heart tremble and feel respect. It was a true calm, a calm like hearing the Dao in the morning and beingwilling to die in the evening. (TN: This is a reference to the line in theAnalects of Confucius, "If I hear the Way in the morning, I am content even todie that evening".) Chen Changsheng said no more. He knew that he had once again learned a fewmore things. Zhu Luo's sword had come. The world was maybe bright, or maybe dark. As the sword came, the dark stormcame holding the light. No matter how vast the world was, there would still beno place to hide. Wang Po also had no way to hide. He once again struck out with his blade. He brandished his blade in the sameold, straightforward style, but the place where the blade energy landed wascompletely different. He did not cleave at the sword glow, not at the sky of dancing leaves, not atZhu Luo ten-odd zhang away, but at the storm. At the path which the storm traveled through the air. Wang Po's metal blade fell straightforwardly, chopping apart the pillars ofrain, ripping apart the threads of wind, and tearing apart the air. With a screech, a gloomy hole appeared in the rainy street. As long as one was in this world, there was no way to avoid Zhu Luo's sword?