Xu Sheng didn't even wait for Wu Tao's reply. Without releasing any defensive or supportive spells, she directly retrieved her daily-use top-tier artifact, the "Dian Xing Rou Si Sword," from her storage bag.
Then, Xu Sheng raised her left hand and swiftly unleashed a sharp sword energy filled with spiritual power, directly slashing towards Wu Tao.
"She Long Zhen Hu, Bai Zhan Bu Bai!" Body moves, spirit condenses, intent emerges, attack launches, four in one. Wu Tao's internal spiritual power and magnetic primal qi perfectly fused together.
With an extremely terrifying momentum, he unleashed his strongest, peak attack.
The sound of a dragon's roar and a tiger's growl reached their ears.
The surrounding tree branches and leaves began to sway and tremble incessantly, emitting sounds of being unable to bear the pressure.
It was as if under this strike, even the trees willingly surrendered.
The dense, powerful repulsive magnetic field surrounding them forcibly decomposed and dissipated this sharp sword energy filled with spiritual power.
"Xing He Liu Shi, Jian Mang Dian Kong, Xian Nü Wu Jian!" A long cry urged the sword forward, spiritual power surged out, Xu Sheng's sword stance changed dramatically. The sword tip pointed forward, ethereal and transcendent, forming a long white rainbow in mid-air, which flashed and disappeared.
Xu Sheng, holding her sword, seemed like a celestial maiden descending from the nine heavens, suddenly vanishing from her spot.
The sword was a top-tier artifact treasure sword, and the person was a peerless beauty and prodigy.
With a swift strike, what appeared in Wu Tao's eyes was a glimpse of the vast, eternally clear river of stars. What a beautiful sword, like a single speck of starlight. As the sword fell, it was like a falling meteor.
Driven by overbearing spiritual power, Wu Tao's body surged, his upright posture becoming even more imposing. The muscles beneath his clothes churned wildly, his blood and qi surged, as if his dragon and tiger strength erupted. Illusory figures of dragons and tigers inexplicably appeared behind him, golden dragons coiling around his body, divine tigers roaming freely.
Zhen Long She Hu – Golden Dragon Dances Wildly, Divine Tiger Pounces.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
They collided, and spiritual energy fluctuations erupted.
In an instant, the golden dragon and divine tiger shattered under the sword energy. The dissipating aftershock, mixed with the gradually fading sword energy, exuded terrifying power.
"A skilled hand, to actually shatter my dragon-tiger illusions so easily," Wu Tao's face remained unchanged, not showing the slightest sign of being moved.
Despite Wu Tao's age of just over twenty, he had experienced hundreds of battles, both large and small, and his experience was second to none.
A temporary disadvantage did not make him flinch in the slightest. Instead, this pure combat ignited his boundless interest and fighting spirit.
"Indeed, a good move!" The maiden's figure, hovering in mid-air, now resembled a celestial being from beyond the heavens. Her voice was as indifferent as water, her appearance stunningly beautiful, captivating all.
"Good, again!" With a thunderous roar, he stomped his foot, almost piercing the ground three inches deep. Wu Tao, propelled by the force, shot forward like a crossbow bolt.
His figure flickered, covering a distance of two or three zhang. His arms, like hammers weighing tens of thousands of pounds, coordinated with "Po Jia Long Zhui" to smash towards Xu Sheng's chest from both sides.
Seeing this, Xu Sheng smiled slightly. Wu Tao's strike had almost perfectly combined his body refinement with his spiritual cultivation, unleashing a formidable power with impressive momentum.
However, Xu Sheng was no ordinary opponent. With a slight sway of her robes, she avoided the sharp edge, easily dodging with a sidestep. Her body moved like a phantom, beautiful as a phoenix. With a light lift of her delicate hand, the "Dian Xing Rou Si Sword" swung, its tip pointing directly at Wu Tao's brow.
It seemed like a light, powerless strike, yet the sword energy emanating from its tip let out a sharp 'chi' sound.
The sword energy extended half a zhang, with scattered starlight, a cold glint flickering, an incredibly sharp intent, its aura like a white rainbow piercing the sun.
After this exchange, the two were still evenly matched. Their close-quarters combat became even more intense than before.
...
Wu Tao changed his smashing motion to a grasping one, his fingers slightly spread, magnetic primal qi condensing as he reached for Xu Sheng's fair waist. Xu Sheng instinctively dodged, and the residual force of his five fingers struck a giant tree behind her. Instantly, shattered wood flew everywhere, and the giant tree, two or three people thick, was snapped clean off by the powerful force!
Activating the "Yu Feng Qing Niao Boots," Wu Tao pursued relentlessly. His body swayed slightly, and in an instant, he had circled behind Xu Sheng, once again punching towards her soft, slender lower back.
As if possessing precognition, Xu Sheng, almost simultaneously, shifted the direction of the "Dian Xing Rou Si Sword" she held. The sword body rotated, its tip flashing with cold light, meeting the incoming heavy punch.
Clang!
A sharp sound, crisp and clear.
A celestial sword, thrust straight forward, was now locked against the fist imbued with "Po Jia Long Zhui," not yielding an inch...
The sound came from the fierce collision between the celestial sword and the fist.
Metal clashed, sparks flew, and strong winds dispersed. An even more powerful spiritual energy fluctuation erupted between the two.
After a head-on clash, Wu Tao and Xu Sheng both retreated dozens of steps, widening the distance.
"Heavenly Maiden's Dance, All Fall Under Its Spell."
Xu Sheng danced, wielding her celestial sword, without a trace of worldly dust. Her speed was seemingly slow but actually fast, her force seemingly yin and yang, mysterious and unfathomable, immensely powerful.
A single cold star lit up, and Xu Sheng unleashed her sword.
So fast!
So fast that before Wu Tao could react, his body was already injured.
Puff!
A wisp of blood drifted. Wu Tao touched the sword wound on his shoulder and murmured to himself, "Interesting. It seems I truly shouldn't underestimate her!"
...
Following this, Xu Sheng's "Dian Xing Rou Si Sword" made a horizontal thrust, its sharp edge aimed directly at Wu Tao.
Seeing Xu Sheng attack, a smile appeared on Wu Tao's face, his fighting spirit surging. His fist techniques were incredibly fierce; each punch unleashed a burst of air, each punch and kick exuding peerless power.
Xu Sheng's swordplay, however, excelled in speed, fluidity, and agility. It was nimble, endlessly changing, combining offense and defense into one, capable of unleashing dozens of sword lights in an instant.
Seeing Wu Tao charge forward, Xu Sheng suddenly swung the "Dian Xing Rou Si Sword." A torrent of sword energy erupted, like a vast galaxy suddenly appearing, blooming unexpectedly, concealing infinite killing intent.
"Stars twinkle, hanging in the sky!"
Sword energy after sword energy, like a meteor shower of flashing lights, descended, covering the sky.
Wu Tao fought with increasing vigor. As time passed, his aura grew even more intense. He actively plunged into the midst of the sky-filling starlight and cold killing intent.
Wu Tao's stored-up punch, honed for a long time, powerfully blasted towards the very center of the torrent of sword energy!
The roars of dragons and tigers stirred up swirling winds. With a 'boom,' a large area of the giant tree forest around them was pulverized.
The first sword energy was blown away by Wu Tao's punch, followed by the second, third, fourth, fifth...
Towards the end, Wu Tao's punching speed could no longer keep up with the sheer number of sword energies. His upper body took several direct hits, breaking open several bloody holes...
Wu Tao's chest was stained with blood, his body heavily wounded...
However, Xu Sheng was not faring much better. Her beautiful and tall figure was also struck and repelled by the terrifying force of his punches. She staggered dozens of steps back, almost losing her footing, and a trickle of crimson blood flowed from the corner of her mouth...
After sending Xu Sheng flying with a punch, Wu Tao's steps became even more resolute, his aura more overbearing, as if he hadn't noticed his body being dyed red with blood.
Wu Tao appeared beside Xu Sheng again. With another heavy punch, he fiercely struck towards her neck, devoid of any mercy.
Xu Sheng's figure changed drastically. Employing a skillful movement technique, she dodged this heavy punch and then swung the "Dian Xing Rou Si Sword" she held, thrusting it forward and splitting into numerous sword lights, attacking Wu Tao.
...
Wu Tao did not dodge or evade, enduring these myriad sword lights. Even though he was covered in scars and bleeding profusely, he did not retreat a single step.
Grabbing Xu Sheng's body, Wu Tao employed three techniques from his fist style – entanglement, pulling, and throwing – and slammed Xu Sheng heavily to the ground.
...
Xu Sheng wiped the blood from her lips, and instead of being distressed, she was overjoyed, letting out a silver bell-like laugh: "Not bad, this is the feeling! I haven't encountered this for a long time. Such a battle is truly wonderful. That moment of 'thrill' when death is imminent! Senior Brother Wu, you are indeed a formidable opponent."
A sword energy, over three zhang long, flashed like a startled swan.
Xu Sheng's toes touched the ground, and her body twirled. The sword body suddenly changed, and from the most unbelievable angle, it slanted towards the ground.
Wu Tao let out a cold snort and, in an extremely perilous move, dodged to the side, causing the sword energy to miss again. However, this sword energy swept away and cut down a large swathe of the forest!
The battle between the two had lasted less than fifteen minutes, but under the shock and destruction of spiritual energy, in just a short while, a large area of the forest was already in ruins...