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Out of our own ulterior motives, neither side reported this match to the higher-ups of the Temple. I was planning to strike a few key figures under the guise of being obsessed with martial arts, hoping to provoke one or two Sword Saints to come to Saint Spirit Mountain and cause trouble. On the other hand, they were afraid the Temple would stop their plot to seize the puppet technology. Thus, under these covert intentions, the battle began.

The first opponent was none other than Gao Bo, the eldest disciple of "Sword Saint," from the Kingdom of Qingyue. Among everyone, his cultivation in Aura was the highest, reaching the realm of a Ninth Level Sword Grandmaster. However, it seemed that he had used some secret techniques to enhance his cultivation because it was hard to believe that someone under thirty could reach the Ninth Level of Moon Flame Aura. This was a common choice for many experts who lacked the "twin body" qualifications required to become a Sword Saint. As long as they didn't overuse these methods, even if it slightly affected their chances of becoming a Sword Emperor, it was still faster than pure hard training. The Sword Saint realm, which would be significantly impacted, was something they wouldn't have a chance to reach anyway.

"'Sword Saint's' disciple, Gao Bo of the Kingdom of Qingyue, challenges Knight Fengxuan." The originally expressionless young man suddenly transformed when he stepped onto the arena. His figure seemed to grow larger, emitting a mountainous aura that pressed down on all sides. "The weapon in my hand is the epic divine saber 'Zhuoyue.' Please find a weapon of the same level, Knight Fengxuan, otherwise this match won't be fair."

"There's no such thing as absolute fairness in a match. Everyone has different talents, strengths, and skills. If we must be fair, should you suppress your Aura to the Seventh Level of Moon Flame, and I shouldn't activate the 'Holy Ice Thorns Halo'? I don't use 'Divine Punishment' and puppets simply because they are the stakes of this match; there's no point in using stakes as weapons. If we were fighting for another reason, I would certainly bring out 'Divine Punishment' to cut your weapon." I drew my long saber and continued, "This saber is called 'Heavenly Serpent Fang.' Although it's a legendary weapon, its quality and sharpness are not inferior to any epic divine weapon. I will use it to learn the unparalleled saber techniques of 'Sky-Cleaving Sword Saint.'"

"Very well." Gao Bo wasted no more words, lunging forward abruptly, covering ten yards. He drew his heavy two-foot short saber 'Zhuoyue' from behind, tracing an arcane arc before slashing down.

I was slightly surprised because at our level, each move carried immense destructive power. Conversely, taking a hit from an opponent would almost certainly result in severe injury or death. Therefore, we usually tested each other's strength and style before gradually increasing our power and displaying our full capabilities. Unless one side was far superior, like when Flame Saint Levis defeated me, those who unleashed their full strength right away often exposed their weaknesses and risked defeat. Yet, Gao Bo's first move was a full-strength attack. I couldn't believe he lacked combat experience, so what was his plan?

Thus, I abandoned the idea of meeting him head-on and shifted three feet sideways, dodging his strike. However, just as I raised my long saber to counterattack, a cold and powerful saber qi sliced towards my neck. Gao Bo's seemingly full-strength strike had changed position like a dream, pursuing me even faster. Fortunately, I possessed innate true qi, allowing me to borrow force from the void and narrowly dodge the strike. Then, as it changed position again to slash at my waist, I blocked the third strike with 'Heavenly Serpent Fang.'

"I see. No wonder when I felt the Sword Saint's power before, it seemed endless like waves. It turns out that their school can freely manipulate Aura to revolve and stack, enhancing its power. If I had met his first move head-on, I could have interrupted the stacking. But the longer I delayed, the greater his attacking power became. Still, let me see how many times you can stack your power."

With these thoughts flashing through my mind, my movements flowed like water, evading nineteen consecutive slashes from Gao Bo until he lost control of his power and struck the ground of the arena, leaving a crack several yards long in the magically reinforced white stone.

"You are the first to dodge all my 'Heavenly Saber' consecutive slashes." Gao Bo looked up at me approvingly and said calmly.

"Haha, it's nothing. Please watch my consecutive slashes." I smiled slightly, waving my saber to unleash "Ten Thousand Sabers Divide the Sea." Instantly, countless illusory and real saber shadows enveloped a three-yard radius around Gao Bo. Without the massive water elemental magic power of Hu Po, I couldn't perform "Cang Hai Ming Yue Slash Dragon Saber." Moreover, my physical strength and Aura were reduced by seventy percent due to humanization. However, even without the profound Nine Yin True Qi I once had, my martial arts skills had improved significantly over the past year, making this saber technique surpass the one I used against Catherine during our final battle in Fontainebleau.

"What a superb saber technique!" Gao Bo exclaimed, standing still with his eyes closed. His divine saber moved slowly yet swiftly, parrying each of my millions of saber lights. His skill impressed me. In terms of power, his Ninth Level Moon Flame was still inferior to Catherine's Third Level "Emperor Martial Overlord Technique" back then. However, his mysterious saber techniques and the realm he cultivated in made his combat power equal to Catherine's martial arts. Humans truly are the most miraculous creatures.

When "Ten Thousand Sabers Divide the Sea" failed, I immediately retreated, dodging Gao Bo's counterattack, and switched to "Thousand Sabers Slash Clouds" to launch continuous saber qi attacks. This time, the strikes were not illusions but lethal blows capable of cutting iron and splitting gold. Gao Bo could no longer remain stationary, stepping in a peculiar sequence, either dodging or blocking, gradually defusing my attacks.

"My lunar attribute, 'Mountain Giant Spirit,' strongest saber technique, 'Heavenly Saber Technique—Sky-Cleaving Zhuoyue Wheel.'" Gao Bo declared his move while activating his lunar attribute. A phantom of a blue giant spirit appeared behind him, shrinking rapidly and fusing into his body. His already formidable saber momentum intensified several times, and the two-foot heavy saber burst with a dense glow, merging with his saber momentum to form a continuous wheel shadow.