The swirling yellow sand was like water poured from an hourglass, falling gracefully, as if time could be grasped by hand.
As the stances froze, the slowly settling sand resembled billowing smoke. Everyone wanted to peer through this haze, though they already knew the man who dared to challenge the City Lord was likely in dire straits. Yet, perhaps out of pity for the weak, they still harbored a sliver of hope.
When the dust and smoke cleared, the Snake Woman instinctively wanted to rush forward, but upon seeing the scene before her, her face turned deathly pale, only to then break into a radiant smile.
There stood Ren Yuanhao, proud and alone. Not only had he not been killed by the City Lord's Rakshasa Karma Dance, but he had actually caught the City Lord's scabbard with his bare hands, his expression serene, a smile still playing on his lips!
"Holy crap! This is the most terrifying thing I've ever seen! Someone actually dared to block the City Lord's blade with their bare hands!" The black-clad man on the left felt his calves go weak.
"Excuse me, can you give me a hand? My legs are weak." The black-clad man on the right leaned against the cold city wall, as if unable to stand normally without it.
"As if my legs aren't weak."
At this moment, even through the vast expanse of sand, one could sense the overwhelming fighting spirit radiating from the two men so close to each other. The more static the scene became, the more violent the killing intent grew, tension mounting, the world hushed.
Ren Yuanhao flicked his fingers back, shook off the sand, and with a rather playful expression, raised three fingers, saying lightly, "This is the third move. If you still don't plan to draw your sword, my blade won't go easy on you."
"No one can force me to draw my sword within three moves," the City Lord twisted his neck, his true qi surging back. Although no one had witnessed his powers, this pressure alone was enough to make people forget that he was, in fact, a power user.
The City Lord placed his hand on his scabbard, his gaze fierce, his body slightly crouched like a tiger that had sharpened its claws. When the tiger bared its fangs, it was time to tear into its prey.
But who was the prey, and who was the hunter?
"Kid, you're worthy of me remembering your name. I will also kill you with the highest respect of a warrior."
Under everyone's watchful eyes, the City Lord drew the blade that hadn't been unsheathed in over a decade.
The moment the blade left the scabbard, cold light flashed in all directions. Everyone felt a chill graze their necks and instinctively clutched them, retreating in unison.
"Bai Pi Dao, finally unsheathed." The Snake Woman stared coldly at the blade, involuntarily tightening her clothes, a hint of fear and shame mixed in her eyes.
On the city wall, the two black-clad men on the left had their gazes dim considerably. "Bai Pi Dao, the pinnacle of Western Desert horse-slaying sabers. Legend has it that the jackal god slew his mortal enemy with it and buried the long saber in an ancient city. Sandstorms raged, and the ancient city became a burial ground for the sand. Originally, everyone thought this saber was just a legend, but who knew that another sandstorm would reveal that ancient city to the world again."
"That's right, it's said the City Lord retrieved Bai Pi Dao from extremely deep sand and gravel, but it's been over twenty years, and we've only seen Bai Pi Dao unsheathed for the second time."
The executioner grunted, "The instructor once said that swords and sabers are merely extensions of the body; whoever wields a more powerful weapon doesn't necessarily win."
"No, that's because he hasn't seen Bai Pi Dao." The voice of the black-clad man on the right grew even deeper. "Because, as long as you hold that saber, it's as if the jackal god is wielding the blade and striking..."
At these words, everyone frowned, their apprehension towards the power of Bai Pi Dao growing.
The circular dueling arena where Ren Yuanhao and the City Lord stood had invisibly expanded. This was because the warriors, commoners, and nobles, under the imposing aura of Bai Pi Dao, retreated far away, not wanting to be caught in the crossfire.
"Be careful, that saber is called Bai Pi, possessing the power to repel a hundred ghosts! Dodge if you can, don't confront it head-on!"
Even without ultrasonic equipment, the unsheathed Bai Pi Dao was actually more dangerous than such an instrument, or so the Snake Woman believed. Her beautiful eyes fixed on Ren Yuanhao, a feeling she had never experienced before quietly blossomed.
Ren Yuanhao vibrated his long saber. "A good saber. Now we can finally have a fair duel."
"A fair duel? The moment I drew Bai Pi, there was no longer fairness between us. State your name, you are a worthy opponent for me to remember." The City Lord did not rush to attack, perhaps because, to him, his opponent was already a corpse.
"No need. The dead don't need to remember so much. Forgetting worldly matters, joy and sorrow are all illusions. Only then can one ascend to bliss sooner."
As Ren Yuanhao's words fell, without any pause, he unleashed the exquisite Drunken Heart Gazing Moon Steps. The Heavenly Blaze Saber Technique, with its grand and sweeping moves, began with the move "Wildfire Burning the Plains," immediately stirring up a gust of strong wind, kicking up sand and stones. His momentum was no less than the City Lord's previous Rakshasa Karma Dance!
"You truly haven't disappointed me." The City Lord pushed Bai Pi Dao aside and countered with a method of wielding the saber that no one had ever seen before. The moment the two blades collided, it was as if two drastically different sandstorms, one clockwise and one counter-clockwise, had clashed. The force of their impact, using the yellow sand as a medium, spun wildly, the man-made sandstorm continuously expanding outwards!
The onlookers retreated continuously, almost to a hundred meters away. Even from the periphery, they could still feel the wind's sharp bite like a blade, stinging their skin. Yet, the more it was like this, the more they longed to open their eyes wide and see the outcome of their duel.
The sky above was filled with lead-grey clouds, sparse and faint. The sun was fierce, but its rays presented a dull, dark hue, yet it could unleash astonishing heat.
"It's like two monsters are fighting tooth and nail. I really want to see if that bastard is still alive after this move," said the black-clad man on the left. The black-clad man on the right chimed in, "I, on the other hand, want to see if our City Lord has even broken a sweat."
As the two men finished speaking, the sandstorm, which had begun to disperse, surged again. The two blades clashed wildly within the dust. Every impact made one mistake it for the thunderclap from the sky.
"Holy crap, didn't he finish that bastard with one blow?" The black-clad man began to grumble again. At this moment, the executioner finally understood the instructor's words. "In front of these monsters, power users are simply a joke, aren't they?"
As his voice faded, the city wall suddenly emitted a loud crashing sound. Smoke and dust billowed, dissipating in all directions. Because the men on the city wall were close, they discovered that the one crashing into the wall was none other than their presumed-victorious City Lord!
However, Ren Yuanhao wasn't faring much better. As the dust rapidly dispersed, Ren Yuanhao could only stand with the aid of his long saber, his lower abdomen bearing a saber wound approximately 20 centimeters long.