Chapter 22: The Killing Move Reaches Perfection, Defeating Xiao Qingfeng!

Before long, Ling Feng returned to the bamboo cottage of Little Bamboo Peak.

With the Moon Spirit Flower suppressing the sword qi within Duanmu Qingshan's dantian, combined with Ling Feng's Taixuan Acupuncture technique, he finally managed to stabilize Duanmu Qingshan's condition after working through half the night.

Ling Feng had not expected a single strand of sword qi from the former Sect Leader of the Immortal Ascension Sect to be so terrifying, which was why he had miscalculated time and again.

This was not to say that Ling Feng's medical skills were lacking, but rather that he had never encountered that level of power and simply did not understand the complexities within it.

Thus, for a Daoist physician to treat and save lives, medical skill alone was far from enough.

After helping Duanmu Qingshan back to his room to rest, Ling Feng finally found some leisure time. He returned to his own room, activated his Human Dao Eye, and continued his cultivation.

After advancing to the fourth level of Qi Condensation, the time required to condense the First Divine Rune of the Human Dao had increased by about three breaths, moving from the original thirty breaths to thirty-three.

Though it was only a mere three breaths, it was already equivalent to the effect of three days of bitter cultivation without activating the Human Dao Eye.

...

The night passed quickly.

As usual, after collecting the stone marrow dew from the Moon Spirit Flowers, Ling Feng went to the back mountain to practice his martial arts.

Star-Shattering Sword Technique, fifty repetitions!

Swift Light Steps, fifty repetitions!

The first eight forms of the Nine-Layer Sea-Suppressing Fist, fifty repetitions!

After completing these, Ling Feng began to contemplate the ninth form of the Nine-Layer Sea-Suppressing Fist remnant manual.

The ninth form of the Nine-Layer Sea-Suppressing Fist was named: "The Flood Dragon Suppresses the Vast Sea."

On the first day, Ling Feng grasped three parts of its essence but did not rush to practice.

On the third day, he comprehended ten parts of its essence and began practicing with his sword.

On the seventh day—today!

Ling Feng sat cross-legged atop a precipice, and suddenly snapped his eyes open.

"Flood Dragon Suppresses the Vast Sea!"

With a low roar, Ling Feng leaped up like a fierce tiger, his fists swinging as his qi surged in all directions.

In a flash, using himself as the center, he spun his legs in a cross-pattern, his entire body rising like a soaring flood dragon as terrifying waves of qi erupted from him.

*Swish, swish, swish!*

As the astral qi rolled, streaks of green fist-qi, each over seven inches long, shot out like crescent moons tearing through the void. They moved with such speed that they had already traveled over a hundred paces in the blink of an eye!

*Bang! Bang! Bang!*

The fist force slammed into the hard mountain rock. Seven or eight streaks of fist-qi converged on a single point, striking repeatedly until stone fragments flew everywhere.

As the fist-qi dissipated, it left behind eight cracks, each over seven inches deep, looking like the strikes of a beast's claws. The power was staggering.

One must realize that Ling Feng was only at the fourth level of Qi Condensation. To possess such power from a punch thrown over a hundred paces away was almost heaven-defying.

"I have finally mastered it!"

Ling Feng exhaled a breath, feeling a sense of exhaustion throughout his body.

It seemed that a killing move like "Flood Dragon Suppresses the Vast Sea" could only be executed two or three times at most with his current true qi cultivation before he was completely drained.

There were only two days left until his ten-day agreement with that "inner sect genius"!

Ling Feng straightened his posture, staring at the sea of clouds ahead, a surge of heroic spirit rising in his heart.

The Eye of the Son of Heaven had turned him into a martial arts prodigy. He could not waste such talent; he must not only become a pillar of strength but also reclaim his grandfather's medical classics and restore the prestige of the Medical Saint Ling Hanyang's lineage!

...

Two days later, at the Life-and-Death Stage.

This was the place where Ling Feng and Xiao Qingfeng were to engage in their life-and-death duel.

Before Ling Feng and Xiao Qingfeng had even arrived, many inner sect disciples had already gathered. Even some deacons and managers had made time to come and observe.

Xiao Qingfeng went without saying; since joining the inner sect, he had always been a highly watched prodigy, a genius among geniuses!

As for Ling Feng, he also seemed to be no ordinary figure. To be able to remain in the inner sect after joining the Little Bamboo Peak lineage was already a record-breaking feat.

Finally, from the direction of Little Bamboo Peak, a solitary figure slowly approached, a long sword hanging at his waist. It was Ling Feng.

In these ten days, aside from the night he picked the Moon Spirit Flowers, he had not set foot outside of Little Bamboo Peak once.

"Ling Feng is here!"

"Hmph, this kid hasn't shown his face for ten days. He must be hiding away to study his fist manual. That naive fool actually thinks he can defeat Senior Brother Xiao!"

"I don't see any chance for him. What kind of person is Senior Brother Xiao? What is he? Just a piece of trash thrown into Little Bamboo Peak."

The disciples whispered amongst themselves.

Finally, under the expectant gazes of the crowd, Xiao Qingfeng made his grand, aloof, and arrogant entrance.

His aura was like a peerless divine weapon unsheathed, sharp and revealing.

As if carried by a gust of wind, Xiao Qingfeng's solitary and proud figure descended!

This level of spectacle and momentum completely overwhelmed Ling Feng by a wide margin!

"It's Senior Brother Xiao!"

"Wow, Senior Brother Xiao is so handsome!"

"This is a bet with no suspense; Senior Brother Xiao has victory in the bag!"

Ignoring the idle chatter of the crowd, Ling Feng took a step forward, his eyes fixed solely on Xiao Qingfeng. "You've come."

"You actually dared to show up." A cold sneer curled on Xiao Qingfeng's lips. "It seems you are impatient to die under my sword."

"Cut the nonsense and make your move!" Ling Feng's expression was calm, his demeanor light and unruffled.

"How audacious! You make the first move, otherwise, you won't have a single chance!" A flash of anger crossed Xiao Qingfeng's eyes. Did a mere Ling Feng think he was worthy of speaking to him with such an attitude?

"Fine, you asked for it." Ling Feng smiled faintly. With a step of his footwork, he closed in on Xiao Qingfeng using the Swift Light Steps.

"Take this punch!"

The true qi within Ling Feng surged. His feet crossed and he stomped the ground, rising into the air like a soaring flood dragon!

"This is... the opening move of 'Flood Dragon Suppresses the Vast Sea'!"

Xiao Qingfeng's expression changed slightly. He had once borrowed the manual for the "Nine-Layer Sea-Suppressing Fist" and had failed to master it even after a month. He had recently gained new insights and had intended to borrow it again.

And Ling Feng had actually comprehended this manual in just ten short days?

However, even if he had succeeded, so what?

This Ling Feng was only at the fourth level of Qi Condensation; how much of this technique's power could he actually exert?

However, in the next instant, Xiao Qingfeng realized his mistake—and it was a massive one.

Fist qi surged around Ling Feng, and streaks of green astral fist-qi erupted. The violent power gave even Xiao Qingfeng a shock.

"Impossible! Mastery... he has practiced his killing move to the level of Great Completion!"

Xiao Qingfeng's heart trembled. He hurriedly retreated, but unfortunately, he had already missed the optimal moment to dodge.

The fist force had already descended like a suppressing dragon, enough to sever the very sea. Even though Xiao Qingfeng's true qi cultivation was superior to Ling Feng's, he could not hope to dodge it easily.

*Clang!*

The long sword left its scabbard. Xiao Qingfeng drew his three-foot Green Edge Sword from behind his back and swung it outward, violently parrying Ling Feng's fist-qi. He himself was forced to stumble back several steps.

For a moment, Xiao Qingfeng's face turned as dark as the bottom of a pot.