Slaying a Sage

Night mist surged violently. Qin Ming had never anticipated that he would suffer a bird crash. His smile vanished, his expression freezing completely. Down below, the gold-armored guard grinned, showing a mouthful of gleaming white teeth. It seemed all the joy had transferred to him, his smile growing brighter by the moment. "Haha..." Dragging his greatsword, he crushed the yellow sand beneath his feet. Heavenly light flared from his entire body. Like a hurtling meteor, he carried the momentum to smash a mountain to pieces! Clearly, he wanted nothing more than to cleave the youth in two with a single strike. Before they had even made contact, he had already lost an arm. He leapt into the air, his golden armor clanking as golden radiance illuminated all directions. Like a blazing sun intent on burning away the pitch-black night mist, he slashed the greatsword forward like a bolt of lightning. With a squelch, the black raptor exploded under his blow. Heavenly light tore its flesh and blood apart, sending bloodstained feathers drifting through the air. Qin Ming had already launched himself from the bird's back in advance. He spread out his bat-wing garment—an imitation of Ge Qianxun's design. Though he was already close to the ground, it still served its purpose. At the very least, gliding like this granted him astonishing speed, catching the Outer Sage on the ground off guard and forcing him to sprint furiously once again in pursuit. With a thud, Qin Ming smashed a large crater into the soft yellow sand, sending dust billowing. Protected by heavenly light, he remained completely unharmed. "Flee again, why don't you!" The gold-armored guard arrived, his face cold and cruel. Not much was left of his right arm; smashed to pulp by the dark-gold warhammer, the shattered bone and mangled flesh could never be reattached. Because of this, he despised the youth before him to the marrow of his bones. Qin Ming's expression turned exceptionally grave. Facing an Outer Sage alone, his heart was pounding. Were any other Newborn standing here, they would have plunged into utter despair. How could one possibly fight this? Holding the greatsword in his left hand, the gold-armored guard closed in slowly, exuding an oppressive aura. He was not old, merely a youth in his twenties with sharp, sculpted features and a piercing gaze. Boom! He stomped forcefully, unleashing immense power that instantly kicked up a storm of sand. In a flash, he was right in front of Qin Ming, swinging his sword down. Qin Ming did not meet it head-on, dodging swiftly instead. His strike slicing through empty air, the gold-armored guard spun halfway around and swept a leg across the sandy ground toward the boy. Such force could topple an elephant and rupture its innards. Qin Ming fumbled in apparent panic, not even managing to draw his blade from its scabbard before using it to block the young man's left leg, which radiated heavenly light. A chilling smirk curled the guard's lips. A fledgling like this—wait, no! A sudden shudder ran through him as realization struck. It was this very "fledgling" who had slain the black-robed woman and permanently cost him his right arm moments ago! True to his status as an Outer Sage, though his leg had already lashed out, he forcefully pulled it back at the last moment and swept his golden greatsword across instead. A blinding light erupted from Qin Ming's hands. The scabbard shattered, and the mutton-fat jade iron saber clashed against the greatsword. Sparks sprayed in all directions, accompanied by an ear-splitting clang. The gold-armored guard broke into a cold sweat. He backed away several steps to steady his racing heart. That had been far too close! Had he not retracted his foot just now, today would have ended in absolute disaster for him! Qin Ming felt immense regret. By just a hair's breadth, his treasured saber could have severed the man's leg. Victory and defeat truly hung on a split second. He realized that his sudden hammer strike from above had traumatized the guard, making him excessively cautious. Chest tight, Qin Ming was jolted backward step after step. His hands felt numb on the hilt, and the blood churned violently within him. At last, he tasted what it was like to be confronted by raw brute force overpowering all technique. The gold-armored man glanced at the notch in his greatsword, his face darkening thoroughly as he raised his vigilance toward this Newborn youth to the absolute maximum. He had no choice but to be careful. After smashing one of his arms, this opponent had aimed for his left leg—and nearly succeeded! Then, his eyes grew fervent. The weapon the boy held was actually a mutton-fat jade iron saber. He had to claim this prize for himself. Neither spoke. Words were meaningless; both wanted only to kill the other. A gale howled. The night mist surged like a burst dam, sweeping vast quantities of sand into the air as the two clashed. With a resounding clang, Qin Ming was thrown back six or seven meters, nearly tumbling to the ground. A sharp ache shot through his hands, and the webs between his thumbs and index fingers tore slightly, oozing blood. The gold-armored youth strode forward with a frigid expression. Another horrifying notch appeared on his greatsword. What infuriated him most was that he could not cleave the boy apart with a single blow, nor could he even shake that jade iron saber from his grasp. Flexing his wrists in the sand, Qin Ming wore a peculiar expression. Had this young man only stepped into the Outer Sage realm recently? The gap between them did not seem insurmountable. At the very least, he had endured two sword strikes head-on! "Did you only go through seven renewals before stepping into the Outer Sage realm?" Qin Ming asked, leveling his jade iron saber forward with both hands. Hearing this, the gold-armored youth's eyes shot cold daggers. Did this boy think he wasn't strong enough? This had to be mockery. He charged forward in an instant, swinging his greatsword in a relentless flurry. Qin Ming was not ridiculing him; he merely wanted to confirm how wide the chasm between himself and an Outer Sage truly was. Now, having tested it with his own body, he verified that the man did not possess an overwhelmingly crushing advantage in raw strength. The two traded blows at blinding speed. Qin Ming was repeatedly knocked back. Though his footing faltered, he managed to stabilize himself every time. The soft flesh between his fingers was slightly torn and bleeding, but he could still hold on. Most importantly, he had gained confidence. The opponent's strength was still far from exceeding ten thousand jin, meaning he could not rely on sheer brute force to crush Qin Ming to death. In an instant, Qin Ming took the initiative, preemptively attacking multiple times. His saber intent was astonishing, and his entire being radiated self-assurance, like a young grandmaster. The gold-armored man's heart shook. He was obsessed with swordsmanship and possessed profound attainments, yet compared to the saber art of the youth before him, his skills paled in comparison. In the end, he had to rely on brute force to force blade clashes. His swordsmanship was far inferior to the boy's, leaving him fuming with indignation and embarrassment. What kind of monster had he encountered? The gold-armored man had discerning eyes; he recognized the bearing of a saber master in Qin Ming. Calling him a young grandmaster was no exaggeration. Across the desert, endless yellow sand rose, dancing alongside Qin Ming's mutton-fat jade iron saber. Driven by his saber intent, it surged like rolling waves. This stretch of desert seemed to transform into a vast ocean. In the end, it culminated in waves crashing against the shore, sending sand surges into the sky with terrifying might. This was the near-domain power stirred by a young grandmaster going all out. The gold-armored man had no choice but to erupt, pushing his heavenly light force to the limit to disrupt this rhythm, jolting Qin Ming so hard he nearly spat a mouthful of blood. Yet the gold-armored man fared no better. The moment he unleashed his heavenly light force completely, blood spurted uncontrollably from his severed arm. Stumbling far back with blood at the corner of his mouth, Qin Ming nevertheless broke into a radiant smile. "You don't seem as strong as I imagined." The gold-armored man felt utterly humiliated. To be looked down upon by a mere Newborn youth! His heavenly light force erupted once more. Besides swinging his greatsword, he sought physical contact with Qin Ming, aiming for a direct clash of flesh. Boom! In the desert, the night mist boiled as sand and stones flew. In this battle of life and death, both poured everything they had into the fray, staking their lives on every exchange. Qin Ming was flung six or seven meters away, vomiting a large mouthful of blood. His hands convulsed, the tender flesh between his fingers tearing apart. His left hand was swollen and bruised. At the same time, waves of pain pulsed through his right foot. Just now, beyond trading blade strikes, their bodies had collided. In that split second, Qin Ming had thought he would die, fearing he would be shredded by the opponent's heavenly light. Yet with a resolve to perish together if necessary, he had circulated his fused, unified heavenly light force through his body, and against all odds, he had endured the impact. The gold-armored man was dazed. His heavenly light could project half a foot outward, yet it had failed to shred the youth's flesh and blood, stopped cold by the layer of heavenly light force coating the boy's body. His own foot throbbed with intense pain; during the clash, his heavenly light had gained no advantage at all. "Did you learn an incomplete Sky-Upholding force, or do you possess a trace of Tathagata force?" His soul trembled, his eyes turning burning and covetous. For a mere Newborn youth to withstand the impact of his heavenly light as an Outer Sage was simply unfathomable. Yet even amid his longing, he grunted and hurriedly reined in his heavenly light, tapping several acupoints around his severed arm, which had begun spurting blood again. Coughing blood, Qin Ming swayed as he stood up, laughing. "An Outer Sage's heavenly light force isn't as formidable as I thought, either. It can be endured!" His battle intent soared, fueling an overwhelming confidence. "Are you insulting me?" the gold-armored youth hissed, his sword hand trembling. For a young Newborn cultivator to face him with such an attitude was infuriating. Qin Ming replied, "Am I wrong? It seems that if you only completed seven renewals before using a great medicine to break into the Outer Sage realm, the boost to your physical constitution and heavenly light isn't nearly as terrifying as I imagined. After all, I've already killed seven or eight Golden Bandits who renewed seven times." In Qin Ming's eyes, this gold-armored man had merely consumed one extra dose of great medicine compared to those aged Golden Bandits, barely allowing him to project his heavenly light outward. "Outer Sage, come! Let's fight to the death!" he bellowed. The gold-armored youth felt the boy was taking advantage of him by addressing him as an Outer Sage—a homophone for "nephew." By now, he no longer viewed this youth as an ordinary Newborn opponent, nor even as human. Wielding a mysterious, terrifying heavenly light force that could rival an Outer Sage, along with the profound bearing of a saber grandmaster, the boy was an outright monster. "Die!" The two clashed in a desperate duel, staking their lives. Qin Ming paid no heed to his profusely bleeding hands, doing nothing but swinging his blade relentlessly. He pressed the attack with superb, unpredictable saber techniques, carrying a terrifying saber intent. From time to time, he would also make physical contact, clashing head-on with heavenly light force. "Is that earth essence?" The gold-armored man was shaken. The boy's palms carried earth essence—wasn't that a technique only Outer Sages could master? He had not even attempted it himself since stepping into the realm! Qin Ming struck repeatedly with the Yellow Clay Palm, making the gold-armored man suffer terribly until blood trickled from the corners of his mouth. Undoubtedly, Qin Ming was at his strongest when unleashing his fully fused heavenly light force, but the expenditure was simply too great. Using the Yellow Clay Palm consumed far less energy, and after absorbing the strange stone condensed from earth vein essence, the might of this palm art had become formidable. Whenever the gold-armored man tried to go all out, Qin Ming would switch back to his unified heavenly light force, erupting with full strength to meet him head-on to the very end. He could anticipate when his foe was putting everything on the line, because whenever the man went all out, blood would spurt from his severed arm. The gold-armored man had never felt so stifled. Being pushed to this brink by a Newborn youth was an excruciating ordeal. In theory, as an Outer Sage, he should have been able to cleave the boy apart with a single strike and shred his flesh with heavenly light in an instant. Yet now, his greatsword could not cut him down, and his palm strikes could not pierce the boy's bizarre heavenly light force. He felt helpless, while his own body was covered in wounds. By this point, the gold-armored man had turned deathly pale. After going all out in multiple clashes, he had lost an immense amount of vital blood from his severed arm. He realized things had gone terribly wrong. The youth had gritted his teeth and held out until now, seemingly gaining the upper hand step by step. *He really might possess an incomplete Tathagata force or Sky-Upholding force. He dragged this fight out, and with my massive blood loss, I can barely hold on.* With a loud clang, the greatsword in the man's hand snapped completely in two. Had it not been imbued with his heavenly light, the mutton-fat jade iron saber would have shattered it long ago. "This..." The gold-armored man felt the urge to retreat. As an Outer Sage, his heart quailed, and he grew faint of heart. "Die!" Though coughing blood, Qin Ming charged forward with his blade, heavenly light force surging around him as he maintained an unmatched, fiery fighting spirit. *Slash!* Moments later, the gold-armored man's left arm was severed! "Ah..." He let out a shrill scream of agony, unable to believe that he would be the one to perish. Qin Ming was also near his limit. Even if the man had merely taken one more dose of great medicine than the Golden Bandits, he was still an expert of a higher realm. Drawing upon his last ounce of strength, he swung his saber. With a squelch, he decapitated the gold-armored man, then collapsed onto his back in the yellow sand. Enduring the agonizing pain wracking his entire body, Qin Ming lay there laughing. He had actually succeeded in slaying a sage!