The Decaying World-Chapter 97 - 92: Sword Trial 6

"Kill!" The next second, Bai Feihan stepped forward, shattering the rooftop. He swooped down like a great bird, a slender Curved Saber suddenly in his hand. Infused with the light of Inner Strength, the blade carved a massive, silver full moon in mid-air as it cleaved toward Lin Hui.

At the same time, the bald man behind them cast a net, instantly covering a radius of over ten meters and cutting off most of Lin Hui’s paths of evasion. The net itself glowed with a faint white light, illuminating the snow-covered ground.

This bald man was actually a master at Inner Power Perfection!

Moreover, the other gray-robed man unleashed his Body Technique. He too was like a giant bird, soaring into the air and circling around to dive at Lin Hui from another angle, sealing off his third escape route.

The three worked in concert, instantly pinning Lin Hui in place, having anticipated nearly every possible direction he could dodge.

And finally, Yao Huan, directly in front, let out a furious roar. She channeled all of her Inner Strength to slash out a snow-white wall of blades, over three meters high and four wide, bearing down on Lin Hui.

With that, every possible escape route was sealed.

Lin Hui and his four companions were trapped like rats in a cage, sealed in the center.

The wind howled and snow fell. The swirling gusts from all four attacks whipped the falling snowflakes into a chaotic frenzy.

It seemed as if the blizzard had come to a sudden halt.

Lin Hui raised his sword, feeling the powerful assaults rushing in from all directions.

He couldn’t predict the intensity of every attack, nor did he have time to analyze the weakness of each one. After all, he had never trained for something like this.

But it didn’t matter.

’To kill someone, an instant is all it takes.’

CLANG!

In an instant, the mark of a circular sword strike appeared in the air around him.

Strangely, the sword strike manifested before the surrounding attacks could even reach him. It was as if it wasn’t meant to counter the four assaults at all, but was a swing for its own sake.

’Did he give up? Or was his timing off?’

’Was he so panicked that he made a mistake?’

"So this is Observatory Master Qingfeng! Nothing special! He’s just as helpless in the face of death!"

’This is bad! Ah Huan, look out!’ Suddenly, Bai Feihan’s face fell. He reacted instantly, wrenching his attack sideways and lunging toward his disciple.

Just a moment ago, their attention had been unwittingly drawn to that bizarre sword slash, causing their own attacks to slow for a fraction of a second.

For an ordinary person, an instant would mean nothing.

But at their level, a moment’s hesitation was enough to decide life and death in a confrontation!

PSHH!

In a daze, Bai Feihan saw Lin Hui’s figure seem to teleport, appearing behind his disciple. He saw his opponent’s lips move slightly, as if he were saying something.

Then, Yao Huan’s tall figure—along with her saber and the very wall of blade energy she had unleashed—was split diagonally in two.

WHOOSH!

A horrifying gash ripped across Yao Huan’s body, neatly severing her from left shoulder to right hip.

"AHHHH!! YOU’RE DEAD!!!" Bai Feihan’s blood boiled with rage.

He had spent years cultivating her, finally raising a top disciple to the Inner Power Realm. He had been counting on her to be the face of his sect when he grew old and frail.

With Yao Huan’s aptitude, she would have certainly reached Inner Power Perfection in another twenty years. Then... he could have retired peacefully.

But all of it, every last hope, was destroyed right here, right now, on the snow less than ten meters away.

The net fell on empty ground. Their three-pronged encirclement had completely failed.

And the result was that in a single exchange, Yao Huan, a master of the Inner Power Realm, was cut in two by a single sword strike.

Blood spattered across the snow, like crimson cherry blossoms on a white canvas.

The blossoms quickly merged into a patch of red that slowly melted into the ground.

"My sword is perfect. My Body Technique is perfect. And so am I."

Lin Hui effortlessly left an afterimage to evade the pursuit of the other three. In the next instant, he vanished, reappearing on a nearby rooftop.

"A sword without flaw, without blemish, a perfect sword—the result of its strike must also be perfect."

He pointed the tip of his sword toward the ground and looked at the three men who were now crouching beside the body, examining it.

"Wouldn’t you agree?"

"FUCK YOUR MOTHER!!! FUCK! I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!!" Bai Feihan shot to his feet, the white light of his Inner Strength flaring around him like a raging fire.

"Old Bai!"

"Wait, Old Bai!!" The other two tried to pull him back, but it was too late.

Bai Feihan seemed to have unleashed some kind of Secret Technique. Veins popped out all over his skin, his muscles bulged and twitched abnormally, and the hand gripping his saber was a grotesque purple, as if engorged with too much blood.

As furious as he was, he knew just how terrifying that last sword strike had been. According to the information they’d gathered, Lin Hui’s sword was fast, but it shouldn’t have been able to break through Yao Huan’s defenses—which were her specialty—so quickly.

That’s why they had Yao Huan block him head-on.

Yes, their plan was for her to play it safe—not to win, but simply to hold him off. She only needed to stall him for a single instant, and it would all be over.

But no one could have predicted it. The four of them—all masters of the Inner Power Realm, two at Inner Power Perfection—had all been distracted by that bizarre sword strike!

In such a life-or-death battle, they actually got distracted!?

This was simply unimaginable!

If he hadn’t seen and experienced it firsthand, Bai Feihan would never have believed that such a Swordsmanship could possibly exist!

When masters clash, a moment’s distraction is enough to decide the outcome—and seal one’s fate.

And so, Yao Huan was gone.

What was supposed to be a foolproof battle had led to the most tragic result.

"Die!" Bai Feihan’s speed and strength surged. He was at least fifty percent faster than before as he charged at Lin Hui, slashing his saber in a rising arc from below.

The arc of light tore through the roof’s eaves, aimed at Lin Hui’s right foot.

But it only cut through an afterimage.

Lin Hui’s speed, at this moment, had actually increased once again.

He took a single, small step to the left, precisely avoiding the enraged Bai Feihan’s cleave.

The brilliant, moon-shaped arc of the saber flew past less than a meter away from him, slicing through the blizzard before slowly fading.

Lin Hui took another step, precisely dodging another slash of white light.

One on the rooftop, the other on the ground, it was as if they were performing a choreographed routine. Lin Hui precisely dodged every single slash, every single attack.

"Are his predictive abilities that terrifying!?" The gray-robed man, who had been about to join the fight, had a grim look on his face.

"It’s not prediction!" The bald man’s expression was grave. "He’s not predicting Old Bai’s moves. He’s seeing the saber, *then* dodging! He’s dodging reactively! His speed and reflexes are just so fast that it *looks* like he’s predicting the attacks!"

"And that Swordsmanship... It’s like something demonic, it forcibly seizes your Heart and Spirit. This guy... what the hell is he...?" The gray-robed man had already abandoned any thought of competing in speed.

The moment Lin Hui had unleashed that burst of incredible speed, he knew he was no match for him.

But his speed aside, he never expected him to possess such a bizarre Swordsmanship as well.

Many schools of Martial Arts had similar techniques. For example, Bai Feihan’s Flying Sand Sect used to have a Sword Technique that could affect an opponent’s Heart and Spirit, but that was a disruptive tactic for occasional use in duels.

In reality, a technique that could affect all four of them at once would make someone virtually invincible in a group battle.

Because in a fast-paced battle, a person can only truly focus on a few opponents at a time.

The ability to distract four people at once already made him fearless in a group fight, to say nothing of his terrifying speed.

"Do we keep fighting?" The gray-robed man already had thoughts of retreating.

They came to Tuyue to live out their golden years, not to get themselves killed. To keep fighting a losing battle... you’d have to be either insane or a complete idiot.

"Old Bai can’t win. Let’s grab the hostages and retreat. We can settle the score later. The feud is already started, so we have to see it through!" the bald man said viciously, his eyes flicking to the Qingfeng Temple disciples who had retreated to a safe distance.

"Now’s our chance! Quick!" The gray-robed man understood instantly. He blurred into a gray shadow and shot toward Wang Hongshi and the other three.

Only by capturing hostages first could they ensure their own safety.

Otherwise, with Lin Hui’s speed combined with that bizarre Swordsmanship...

The mere thought of it terrified them both.

But in the next instant, a figure silently appeared before them, blocking their path to Wang Hongshi and the others.

The figure slowly raised his head, Longsword held level. It was Lin Hui, who had just been fighting Bai Feihan a moment ago.

"Apologies. This road is closed."

He wore a flawless smile, just like his flawless sword.

’Good chance! His Inner Strength isn’t that strong! We can kill him in a direct confrontation!’ The gray-robed man and the bald man had the exact same thought at the exact same time.

They coordinated in a flash. One on the left, one on the right, they attacked. The net was cast, and a palm glowing with white light struck out, instantly covering a wide area.

But unfortunately, the net and the palm both passed through Lin Hui’s figure at the same time.

It was still an afterimage.

Behind the gray-robed man, the real Lin Hui had already appeared, though no one knew when.

His Qinghe Sword had already silently pierced the man’s Inner Strength barrier, its tip resting against the skin of his back.

The Sealed Poison took effect, and the man’s Inner Strength dissipated.

A flash of bloody light.

Lin Hui retracted his sword and looked at Bai Feihan and the bald man who were rushing toward him again.

"Should I wait for you?"

He raised his sword, revealing a smile as warm as the sun.

Behind him, a headless corpse crashed to the ground.

"Retreat!" The bald man broke out in a cold sweat. He changed direction in a blur, abandoning Bai Feihan and bolting.

But he had only made it a dozen meters when he heard a sharp CRACK. His Inner Strength barrier shattered, showering sparks in all directions.

His Inner Strength began to drain away at an alarming rate.

’Not good!’ His expression changed drastically as he reached into his waist pouch and grabbed something.

PSHH!

Unfortunately, his hand was only halfway there when everything ended.

The bald man’s eyes were wide with shock. Frozen in motion, he pitched forward into the snow, never to rise again.

A thin sword wound just over his heart slowly oozed crimson blood.

"One last one." Lin Hui turned around and looked at Bai Feihan.

At this point, Bai Feihan’s heart had grown completely cold.

After the initial rush of blood faded, after watching his companions die one by one, after seeing a third of the Flying Stone Sect’s masters perish before his very eyes...

Even the hottest blood would have cooled by now.

"AHH!!" He roared, suddenly lunging toward the nearest person, Qiu Yiren. He reached for the girl, trying to take her hostage.

Just as Lin Hui had killed his disciple, he would kill Lin Hui’s disciple to vent his hatred!

But...

CLANG!

Bai Feihan’s pouncing body was forcefully knocked back by an immense force.

He retreated several steps and pounced again toward Chen Sui at the side.

CLANG!

Once again, he was blocked.

Then he pounced again toward Huang Shan.

CLANG!

As expected, Bai Feihan’s vision blurred, and he was knocked back once more.

"Are you trying to imitate me?" Lin Hui stood a few meters in front of him, looking relaxed.

"Too bad you can’t."

Bai Feihan’s lips trembled. The panic and rage in his heart churned together, building into an overwhelming urge to lash out.

But the weakness from using the Secret Technique told him that another outburst would kill him.

He stood frozen in place, saber in hand, the white light of his Inner Strength flickering erratically.

"Are you... planning... to kill me?"

After several breaths, he forced out the words, his voice trembling.