Starting with a blind date with a female constable, you acquire the Nine Swords of Dugu.

Chapter Nineteen: Battle with Wen Qiuchi

Wen Qiuchi's words immediately sparked outrage.

"Arrogant!"

"How dare these demonic cult members speak so arrogantly!"

"You bitch, don't be so arrogant!"

Curses rose and fell like a tidal wave from the crowd, the eyes of the martial arts practitioners filled with rage. Several hot-tempered individuals stepped forward, ready to charge at Wen Qiuchi and fight him to the death.

"snort!"

Wen Qiuchi snorted coldly and raised his sword.

"Zheng—"

A clear, melodious sword cry resounded across the square. Dozens of sword energies shot out from her sword, like silver ribbons, drawing dozens of sharp arcs in the wind and snow.

The sword energy was incredibly fast; before anyone could even react, it had already swept past the crowd.

"Pfft, pfft, pfft—"

Blood splattered.

The dozen or so men at the front didn't even have time to scream before their bodies stiffened and they slowly collapsed. Their clothes were torn apart by the sword energy, revealing deep, bone-revealing wounds from which blood gushed, spreading dark red patches on the snow.

The square fell silent instantly.

Those who were just shouting and cursing were now deathly pale, their mouths agape but no sound coming out.

Wen Qiuchi sheathed her sword, stood with her hands behind her back, her moon-white monk's robe fluttering gently in the wind and snow. Her gaze slowly swept across the crowd, and wherever it passed, people lowered their heads, not daring to meet her eyes.

Then, she slowly raised her hand and pointed at Gu Guanqi.

"Gu Guanqi," her voice was as cold as ice, "let's settle our score today!"

All eyes turned to Gu Guanqi.

Gu Guanqi stepped out, his pace neither hurried nor slow, his robes fluttering gently in the wind.

The Autumn Water Sword hung at his side, its tip pointing diagonally to the ground, its snow-white blade gleaming with a cold luster under the gloomy sky.

"That's why I've come today," Gu Guanqi said. "Even if you didn't invite me, I would still challenge you to a fight."

Just then, a pale white hand reached out from behind and gently tugged at Gu Guanqi's sleeve.

"elder brother."

Jiang Baili's voice was very soft, and no emotion could be discerned from it.

Gu Guanqi turned his head and smiled slightly.

Jiang Baili stood quietly, her plain white dress fluttering in the wind and snow. Her aloof and ethereal face remained expressionless, but her eyes held a rare hint of unease.

She tilted her head slightly, looking at him, her fingers gently clutching Gu Guanqi's sleeve, as if afraid he would disappear.

Gu Guanqi smiled slightly, reached out and gently patted the back of her hand, saying softly, "It's alright, I still need to take you to Qingyang City!"

Jiang Baili looked into his eyes, nodded slightly, and then slowly released her hand.

She didn't say anything more, but took two steps back and stood there, her gaze fixed on him, never looking away.

Behind the crowd, Lin Yourong's gaze pierced through the layers of figures.

She watched Gu Guanqi walk out of the crowd, watched Jiang Baili tug at his sleeve, and watched him turn around to comfort Jiang Baili.

She sighed softly, the sound so faint it dissipated into the swirling snow.

Lin Yinping glanced at Lin Yourong and whispered, "Young Miss?"

"That girl is so pretty!" Lin Yourong exclaimed.

Lin Yinping nodded slightly and said, "I have never seen such a beautiful person before."

"She's good enough for him!"

Lin Yourong shifted her gaze from Gu Guanqi to the distant mountains. Snow raged, obscuring the mountains and making everything indistinct.

at this time,

Gu Guanqi had already walked to the center of the square and stopped a few feet in front of Wen Qiuchi.

The two faced each other across the distance, with wind and snow passing between them, whipping up the snow on the ground and swirling it wildly in the air.

An invisible sense of oppression caused those around them to involuntarily take a few steps back. The snow on the square was blown about by the strong wind, forming a snow curtain between the two.

this moment,

The entire square fell silent, and everyone involuntarily stepped back, worried about being accidentally injured if they got too close.

Because both combatants were too strong.

Gu Guanqi, the youngest grandmaster in Qingzhou, and possibly the youngest grandmaster in the entire world, is known as the Sword Immortal. Although he has been in the industry for less than a year, he has already achieved many impressive feats and has never been defeated. He always seems to become stronger when facing stronger opponents.

In the martial arts world today, there is still much debate about how strong he really is. Some say that he was lucky to become a grandmaster because Zhou Jinyuan had already fought with someone else when he killed him.

However, many people believe that he killed Zhou Jinyuan without taking any damage, and that he also killed Yue Xiaotian before killing Zhou Jinyuan, which is enough to show that his strength far exceeds that of Zhou Jinyuan. At the very least, Zhou Jinyuan could not measure his limit.

The other one is Wen Qiuchi.

Wen Qiuchi's reputation is much greater than Gu Guanqi's. He is a grandmaster who has been famous for many years. Although he has never been well-known among the top grandmasters in the world, news of Wen Qiuchi killing Chu Shukuang came out some time ago.

Overnight, she established her reputation as a top-tier master.

Even though many people believe that the battle was somewhat exaggerated,

But no one thought that Wen Qiuchi's strength was such that in Qingzhou, a place where martial arts were not particularly flourishing, anyone could be her opponent in a one-on-one fight.

And at this moment,

These two masters are about to face off.

……

In the field,

Gu Guanqi and Wen Qiuchi both glanced at each other briefly.

Then, the two looked at each other.

The wind howled between the two, and snowflakes fell on their hair and shoulders, but no one paid any attention.

next moment,

The two rushed forward at the same time.

They were only a few feet apart, but met each other in the blink of an eye.

The two instantly engaged in fierce combat.

In an instant, sword lights clashed and sword energy surged.

Wen Qiuchi swung his sword, the sword energy surging, cutting a deep trench in the bluestone slab on the ground, sending fragments of stone flying. The sword energy grazed Gu Guanqi's shoulder, striking an ancient pine tree behind him. The trunk snapped in two, the upper half of the crown crashed down, and branches and leaves flew everywhere.

Gu Guanqi dodged to the side, then swung his sword back, unleashing a sword aura as swift as a bolt of lightning. Wen Qiuchi spun around, her moon-white monk's robe billowing in the wind. The sword aura grazed her waist and ribs, cleaving a distant stone pillar in two. The upper half slid down and crashed to the ground with a dull thud.

The two exchanged blows, their sword energies crisscrossing across the plaza.

Both of them had extremely high levels of swordsmanship.

Gu Guanqi's Dugu Nine Swords has reached a level where no moves are better than moves, and it can even be said that it can be broken as long as the opponent has a move. However, Wen Qiuchi's swordsmanship has already reached a level where the sword moves with the heart, without moves, forms, or traces, which is also a realm that transcends moves.

After exchanging blows for a few rounds, both of them had figured out each other's swordsmanship level, so they stopped trying to counter each other's moves and started fighting without holding back.

The two engaged in a sword duel.

In an instant, the bluestone slabs on the ground were shattered into pieces, with pebbles scattered everywhere. The surrounding trees and stone pillars, wherever the sword energy swept across, all broke and collapsed. The accumulated snow was swept up by the sword energy, turning into a sky full of white powder.

The martial arts practitioners who were watching retreated again and again. Some of them who were slow to retreat were hit by the aftershocks of the sword energy, and a bloody mark appeared on their bodies. They fell to the ground with a scream.

In the blink of an eye, the two had exchanged dozens of blows, and it was difficult to determine a winner.

Wen Qiuchi's swordplay remained fluid and unhurried. Gu Guanqi's swordsmanship was still sharp and fierce, but neither could find an opportunity to break through the other's swordplay.

In the center of the square, two figures crossed paths in the wind and snow, their swords flashing and their true energy surging.

Gu Guanqi took a deep breath, and his sword stance suddenly changed.

The Autumn Water Sword drew an arc in the air, then suddenly accelerated, its tip aimed straight at Wen Qiuchi's chest. The sword energy was condensed but not released, contained but not revealed.

Wen Qiuchi's pupils contracted slightly. He held his longsword horizontally in front of him, the blade level, facing Gu Guanqi's sword tip with the flat side of the sword.

"bite--"

A crisp, clear sound rang out.

The sword tip touched the blade, and a visible ripple spread outwards from the point of impact. Wherever the ripple passed, pebbles on the ground bounced up, snow was stirred up, and the surrounding air seemed to distort for a moment.

Wen Qiuchi took three steps back, each step leaving a deep footprint on the bluestone slab. She steadied herself and said coldly, "Gu Guanqi, don't you have a move called 'Flying Immortal from Beyond the Heavens'? Why don't you use it? I'm getting impatient!"

"Then I'll grant you your wish and let you have the sword you asked for!"

While flying backwards, Gu Guanqi pushed off with his feet and his body rose into the air.

Jin Yan Gong.

His figure soared into the sky like a wild goose spreading its wings. In the wind and snow, his figure rose higher and higher, faster and faster, and in the blink of an eye, he had risen to a height of six or seven zhang.

The wind howled, and snowflakes fluttered down.

Gu Guanqi's figure paused slightly in mid-air, and then he began to fall rapidly.

His robes fluttered in the wind, and his long hair flew in the air.

With the Autumn Water Sword in front, a layer of shimmering white light emanated from its blade. The light grew brighter and brighter, like a bright moon peeking out from behind the clouds, enveloping the entire square in a cool, silvery-white hue. The swirling snow seemed to stop at that moment.

A celestial being descends from the heavens.

The sword is drawn.

That sword strike was executed without any complicated opening or build-up; the sword light suddenly appeared from nothingness, and the clear, cold sword energy pierced through the heavy sky.

At that moment, it was as if a cloud from outer space had fallen to earth.

As the sword flashed, the snow's light faded, and all things in heaven and earth lost their color, leaving only this astonishing sword light traversing the sky.

The swordplay is simple yet beautiful, ethereal and otherworldly, like a celestial being waving their sleeve, descending to the mortal realm. Its sharpness is concealed within its elegance, its edge hidden in its ethereal quality. In an instant, the sword energy solidifies, the mountains and rivers fall silent, and the wind and clouds cease to murmur.

In the square, everyone looked up, staring blankly at the figure that had descended from the sky.

Wen Qiuchi raised his head and looked at the sword light that was getting closer and closer.

She didn't dodge.

This sword strike is unavoidable!

She loosened her grip on the longsword.

The longsword slipped from his hand and stuck in the ground.

Then, she raised both hands and slapped out.

At that moment, the air stopped, and the snowflakes froze.

A visible wall of air suddenly appeared.

The wall of air was about five feet wide, solid and pale gold in color, with a faint shimmering light on its surface. At the edge of the wall, the air was compressed and distorted, emitting a low buzzing sound, like hundreds of bees flapping their wings at the same time.

Within the air barrier, countless tiny lines could be faintly seen, resembling cracks on a tortoise shell or veins on a leaf, crisscrossing and densely packed. Between those lines, golden specks of light flowed slowly, like stars in a galaxy, dazzling and mysterious.

This is Wen Qiuchi's ultimate skill—

The Heavenly Net True Skill.

Gu Guanqi's sword fell.

The tip of the sword touched the wall of air.

"boom--"

A deafening roar, like a thunderbolt striking the ground.

The sound was so loud that it shook the entire square, made everyone's eardrums buzz, and even echoed in the distant mountains.

The moment the sword tip touched the wall of energy, a blinding light exploded at the point of impact, like a small sun rising in the wind and snow, illuminating the entire square as bright as day.

Amidst the light, the air barrier began to crack.

The crisscrossing patterns expanded rapidly under the impact of the sword energy, the cracks spreading in all directions like a spider web. Golden specks of light escaped from the cracks, turning into points of golden light in the air before dissipating in an instant.

The air wall was trembling, shaking, and struggling on the verge of collapse.

Gu Guanqi's swordplay did not stop.

The sword energy on the Autumn Water Sword grew stronger and brighter, and the sword light became more luminous and ethereal, adding to its otherworldly aura.

"break!"

Gu Guanqi gave a low shout.

The sword energy suddenly erupted.

In that instant, a strange phenomenon appeared above the air wall—

Dozens, even hundreds, of sword lights converged at this moment, as if a silver river had fallen from the heavens and pierced into the tip of the sword.

Those extraordinary phenomena were fleeting, yet they left an indelible impression on everyone present.

The air wall shattered with a deafening roar.

The golden fragments, like shattered glass, scattered and danced in the air, turning into a shower of golden light that drifted and vanished in an instant.

Several bloodstains appeared on Wen Qiuchi's monk's robe, and fresh blood flowed down the robe, dripping onto the snow and spreading into a small patch of crimson.

this moment,

The sword's momentum has ended.

But Gu Guanqi's strength was not exhausted. He took a step forward and pointed his sword at Wen Qiuchi's throat.

Sword forward!

Wen Qiuchi clasped his hands together, and between his palms, he firmly clamped the blade of the Autumn Water Sword.

Stop the sword!

The true energy between Wen Qiuchi's palms surged out like a river bursting its banks, winding along the sword and instantly turning it red-hot, the heat rushing towards Gu Guanqi's arm.

Immediately,

Gu Guanqi activated his innate skill at full power.

The true energy in his dantian rose and fell like the tide, wave after wave, flowing along the sword to meet Wen Qiuchi's true energy.

The two streams of true energy collided fiercely on the sword.

"boom--"

The sword trembled violently, emitting a deep hum. An invisible shockwave emanated from the two of them, spreading outwards in all directions. Gravel on the ground was jolted into the air, snow was whipped up, and the surrounding air seemed to distort for a moment.

Gu Guanqi remained calm, his true energy flowing out continuously.

Wen Qiuchi's complexion remained unchanged, and his true energy continued to flow continuously.

The true energy surged back and forth on the sword, producing a series of low rumbles, like muffled thunder rolling in the clouds.

At this very moment—

A dark figure darted out from the crowd.

The figure was incredibly fast, like a black lightning bolt, drawing a sharp arc through the wind and snow.

It was Lei Ming, the left protector of Guanyin.

The long, black sword in his hand was already drawn, its blade gleaming with a cold light, pointing directly at Gu Guanqi's back.

This strike, long prepared, was determined to succeed.

The blade flashed like a bolt of lightning, tracing a bleak arc through the wind and snow.

That slash was so fast that no one present had time to react.

this moment,

Everyone was shocked and tried to stop them, but it was too late.

But at that very moment,

A figure in pure white appeared before the blade.

It was Jiang Baili.

She had been on high alert from beginning to end, worried that Gu Guanqi might be in danger, so the moment Lei Ming shot out, she had already moved.

Her movements were astonishingly fast, like a snowflake falling from the clouds, silent yet swift as lightning.

She raised both hands and slapped out.

The palm prints bloomed in the wind and snow, instantly striking the thunder.

Lei Ming flicked his wrist, and the blade drew an arc in the air, shredding all the palm shadows. At the same time, his inner energy suddenly erupted, a layer of dark light emanating from the blade, making the blade even more ferocious, transforming into a massive blade of energy that slashed out.

Their knives and palms clashed.

"boom--"

A dull, loud bang.

Jiang Baili swayed slightly.

at this time,

A figure in cyan rushed past Jiang Baili, giving Lei Ming no chance to attack Gu Guanqi again.

The figure moved as fast as a shooting star, pointing out with a finger. The finger wind was fierce, and the sound of it cutting through the air was sharp and piercing, heading straight for Leiming.

It was Lin Yourong.

She had been watching from the back of the crowd. The moment Lei Ming launched his sneak attack, she had already moved. However, her lightness skill was a notch weaker than Jiang Baili's, so she was a step slower.

The Great Calamity.

The finger strike pierced the air, carrying a powerful burst of true energy, aiming directly at Lei Ming's vital points on his back.

Lei Ming had no choice but to turn around and deal with the situation.

He swung his longsword, the blade meeting the force of the finger strike.

"when--"

The swords clashed, producing a deafening clang like metal striking metal.

Lei Ming swayed slightly, took a half step back, and said in a deep voice, "Lin Yourong..."

At this moment, Jiang Baili once again flew over and stood beside Lin Yourong.

Lei Ming sighed, knowing his sneak attack was no longer an option, and said, "I imagine killing both of you would also be a severe blow to Gu Guanqi's mental state!"

Having said that, he unleashed his full power with his sword, the sound of it cutting through the air sharp and piercing, like a silver lightning bolt.

Jiang Baili and Lin Yourong exchanged a glance, then attacked simultaneously from the left and right, facing off against the Grandmaster!

……

"kill!"

At this moment, Qi Changkong suddenly roared, "These demonic traitors launched a sneak attack, showing no mercy! What are you all standing there for? Kill them!"

Qi Changkong was the first to rush out.

Immediately afterward, Xiao Cong and Lu Cheng also rushed out, followed by people from various factions. Seeing this, the followers of the Guanyin Sect also charged out.

in an instant,

The shouts of battle shook the heavens and the earth, and another fierce battle began.

Meanwhile, on the other side,

Gu Guanqi and Wen Qiuchi clashed with their inner strength, causing the air between them to distort and hum, and the gravel on the ground to vibrate and tremble.

Gu Guanqi snorted coldly.

Within his dantian, the three internal energy cultivation methods—Innate Skill, Purple Cloud Divine Skill, and Embracing Yuan Strength—operated simultaneously.

Three streams of true energy, sharing the same origin yet possessing distinct characteristics, converged and merged within the meridians, like three rivers flowing into the sea, transforming into an unstoppable torrent that suddenly erupted along the sword's body.

"boom--"

A deafening roar, like a muffled thunderclap.

Wen Qiuchi's expression changed drastically.

"What kind of internal energy is this?"

To her horror, she discovered that several different types of true energy had erupted from Gu Guanqi's body. These energy types were unpredictable and difficult to defend against, and they appeared simultaneously. Moreover, each type was powerful enough to surge forth wildly.

"puff--"

A mouthful of blood spurted from Wen Qiuchi's mouth, turning into a cloud of blood mist in the air.

She gritted her teeth and channeled her inner energy into the raging wind.

In that instant, true energy surged.

It emitted a loud roar.

Wen Qiuchi forcibly interrupted the battle of true energy.

He was instantly struck by the backlash, flying backward like a kite with a broken string. His monk's robes billowed in the wind and snow, drawing a bleak arc before crashing heavily to the ground.

But she showed no panic, not even any emotion. Without making a sound, she quickly put a pill in her mouth and then pressed two acupoints on her chest.

at the same time,

Gu Guanqi sensed Wen Qiuchi's final burst of internal energy attempting to entangle him, so he threw away the Autumn Water Sword in his hand, thus avoiding Wen Qiuchi's final counterattack of true energy.

The Autumn Water Sword spun a few times in the air before plunging diagonally into the snow with a clang. The sword vibrated and hummed, and a faint golden aura lingered on the snow-white blade.

Gu Guanqi did not look at Qiushui Sword.

Instead of giving Wen Qiuchi time to recover, he seized the opportunity to pursue him and then struck out with a palm.

Thousand-Hand Buddha Palm.

The palm wind surged like a tide, transforming into dozens of illusory and real palm shadows in the air, like the Thousand-Armed Guanyin appearing in the world, covering Wen Qiuchi from top to bottom. Wherever the palm shadows passed, snowflakes were shattered into dust, and the air was torn apart with sharp whistling sounds.

Wen Qiuchi raised his head, his pupils filled with the shadows of palms.