White hair cascading, the man exuded an otherworldly aura. Cloaked in the night, Ren Yuanhao couldn't get a clear look at his face. He wondered if he had courted disaster, encountering the madman his mother-in-law had spoken of.
"Such potent true qi! My friend, I shall indulge you now. I'm about to get serious!"
With a sweep of his sleeve, Ren Yuanhao felt a strong gust of wind pass by him. The man, like a streak of black lightning, had covered several body lengths in an instant.
"Keep up, what's wrong? Didn't you have plenty of fight in you, boy?"
*Damn it! This old geezer is a total freak!*
Provoked, Ren Yuanhao unleashed his Moon Gazing Step with abandon, his spirit soaring, shaking the sparse weeds around them into swiftly bowing to the sides. The man, who had been ahead, was once again left behind by three or four body lengths!
"This is exhilarating! It’s been ages since I’ve sparred like this! Boy, be careful!"
Before the man's words even faded, Ren Yuanhao felt an explosion in his mind. A searingly hot true qi brushed past him like a red-hot iron. In the blink of an eye, the black silhouette with white hair was five or six meters ahead. His surging true qi stirred the grass like waves, even disrupting Ren Yuanhao's own qi flow!
*Bloody hell, this old monster's true qi is as strong as a wall, making me feel so uncomfortable.*
Ren Yuanhao furrowed his brow, refusing to admit defeat. Under the guidance of the Azure Sea Tide Art, his inner true qi roared like a 12-cylinder engine, matching the pace of the white-haired, black-clad man once more.
On the cliff edge, two dark figures ascended the rugged rocks at a speed invisible to the naked eye. They exchanged blows but couldn't gain an advantage. The air currents sent stones tumbling into the deep valley, grass flew, and robes billowed. Unbeknownst to him, Ren Yuanhao saw a large, dark mass suddenly appear at the summit.
*What the heck?*
Ren Yuanhao stomped his foot heavily, his body shooting out horizontally like a swallow. Using a protruding rock, he executed a second jump. However, the scenery abruptly changed. The sky was filled with tall trees thrusting diagonally upwards. Ren Yuanhao's leap sent him crashing into a rather large wisteria, causing its branches to tremble and its purple leaves to dance and flutter down.
He hadn't expected that their fierce competition would bring them to the mountain peak in a mere ten minutes!
"Hahaha, well done, boy, I concede!" The black-clad, white-haired man laughed heartily. Ren Yuanhao, pressing his aching back, turned to look. The old man was leaning against the giant rock he had almost collided with at the summit, clutching a wine gourd and pouring clear wine into his mouth.
The scent of wine drifted with the wind into the night, delicate and crisp, much like the mountain breeze—sharp yet not cold.
"No, no, junior was just lucky. I thought I would hit that giant rock on the mountain, so in my shock, my true qi surged significantly just before what felt like death. That's why I managed to edge out senior by a tiny bit. If that rock hadn't been in the way, I would never have been able to beat you, senior."
Ren Yuanhao wasn't being boastful or humble; it was the honest truth.
Humans naturally tap into their potential when facing imminent danger. There was once a report about an aircraft maintenance worker whose plane suddenly started up during maintenance. Facing the sweeping wing about to hit him, he leaped. Not only did he clear the wing, but his vertical leap reached a height of two meters from the ground!
This kind of extreme jump was more than 80 centimeters higher than Michael Jordan, the basketball legend.
Hearing Ren Yuanhao's words, the old man's mood brightened further. With a leap, he arrived beside Ren Yuanhao.
"Hahaha, you have a way with me, boy. Come, have a drink, and then we'll talk with our blades."
The old man tossed the gourd, still half-full of clear wine, into Ren Yuanhao's arms. Seeing his casual and uninhibited demeanor, Ren Yuanhao wasn't afraid of him poisoning the wine. He raised the gourd and guzzled it down, his actions wild and unrestrained, which earned approving nods from the old man.
"Good wine!"
"What's good about it?"
The old man's question left Ren Yuanhao at a loss for words. So, like a rogue, he grumbled, "It's good because it's good. If you insist I explain, then I can only say that after drinking this wine, my mind is clear, my limbs are agile, and it quenched my thirst. How can it not be good?"
"Hahahaha, good boy! One's character in drinking reveals their demeanor. You, boy, are like me – carefree and unrestrained, unburdened by trivialities. Today/Tonight, I should be drinking with you heartily. However, what brings you to trespass into the Scarlet Firmament Sect at night?"
The old man put away his wine gourd, drew his waist saber, which sang like a dragon.
Ren Yuanhao felt a sense of camaraderie with the old man and had no intention of hiding his purpose. He stood up and said, "Of course, I'm here to rescue someone."
"You intend to storm the Blackwater Prison?" The old man's brow furrowed. The alcohol had given his cheeks a slight flush, making it impossible to discern his expression.
Ren Yuanhao nodded. "That's right. If senior intends to stop me, then this junior can only fight to the death."
The moment he drew the Limitless Blade, the old man's gaze shifted dramatically. A sharp blade energy, like solidified wind blades, shot towards Ren Yuanhao's neck. He pushed his blade forward, using the momentum to retreat. Under the influence of the wine, he unleashed the Blazing Heaven Moon Gazing Saber Art. With each move, he fought the old man to a standstill, neither gaining the upper hand!
The wisteria and maple trees trembled amidst the blade energy and true qi. Grass, wood, earth, and stones flew. The two dark figures were like fierce leopards in the dark night. With every clash of their blades, brilliant white light erupted.
In a flash, they had exchanged two to three hundred blows. Ren Yuanhao was inwardly shocked. After all, his opponent was an ancient elder with such formidable true qi. If sixty years were reversed, he would have long since fallen beneath the old man's blade.
The old man, too, was immensely excited. In his many years at the Scarlet Firmament Sect, finding someone who could fight him for so long was rare, perhaps only the Sect Master and his senior disciple, Leng Wuhuan. What astonished him even more was that his saber techniques, at first glance, bore a striking resemblance to the Scarlet Firmament Sect's Blazing Heaven Saber Art. Yet, the more closely he observed their duel, the more perplexed he became.
His saber techniques were messy, lacking any discernible pattern, and some moves even seemed to be executed haphazardly. At such moments, the old man would break out in a cold sweat!
Clang!
They parried their blades, like two fierce tigers clashing, then leaped back abruptly. Ren Yuanhao initially thought the old man wanted a brief respite before continuing, but unexpectedly, the old man sheathed his saber.
"I won't fight anymore. If we continue, I'll truly lose face."