The Min Mountain Sword Sect cultivator who spoke was extremely casual. Chen Liqiu’s body trembled uncontrollably but had nothing to say.

“No problem.”

Xu Lianhua took a deep breath and recovered his calm. Then he slowly walked towards an empty spot.

“I do not want it to be like this,” Chen Liqiu said with bitterness and pain as he walked to the other side facing Xu Lianhua.

“It is only painful because you are not willing to let it go.” Xu Lianhua did not look at Chen Liqiu, and stared at the sky above Chen Liqiu as he spoke.

Chen Liqiu’s breathing paused, and then he continued with pain. “We were once good friends after all.”

“I know. As we were once good friends, I do not want to say hurtful things,” Xu Lianhua said slowly and seriously. “In the following battle, I will use my full power without keeping anything back. So you do not need to be merciful.”

Chen Liqiu looked at Xu Lianhua. “You are too seriously injured.”

Xu Lianhua smiled self-deprecatingly. “Even if I can only fight once, helping them defeat an opponent ranked fifty on the Book of Talents is good.”

“You think you can win!” Upon Xu Lianhua’s words, Chen Liqiu grew furious. “Why are you still persisting in the wrong path!”

Xu Lianhua looked down. He gazed at the furious Chen Liqiu and calmly raised his hand, saying, “Please.”

Chen Liqiu’s fire of anger seemed to have been thrown into a cold lake. Looking at Xu Lianhua’s calm features, Chen Liqiu knew whatever he said would have no meaning.

He gripped the sword hilt at his waist with his left hand and then bowed slightly towards Xu Lianhua, saying, “Please.”

The eyes of all the students gathered on these two people.

It was not because this was the battle of two good friends from two different camps, but because these two represented the strongest in Changling’s young generation. In the view of most people, those people ranked near the front of the Book of Talents were likely not very different in their strengths during true combat and anything could happen.

For many people, even if they could not pass the trials, a battle between experts like this had learning value.

Bowing slightly represented a modest decline, yet in battle, Chen Liqiu did not make an extra movement.

As he bowed, his back slowly released a wave of vital energy. It pushed along the air and flowed out along his curved back. Many white flows appeared above his head like a lucky cloud rising.

Many students showed shock.

This was someone much stronger than them. Chen Liqiu’s starting move was extremely profound.

“Realm four!” Zhang Yi uncontrollably whispered.

He could sense that Chen Liqiu was releasing a different kind of primal energy of the universe in addition to vital energy- Realm four Energy Fusing.

Only cultivators who reached realm four could use vital energy to fuse primal energies of the universe into their body, turning their body into a vessel for primal energies of the universe and releasing primal energies during combat.

Zhang Yi’s cultivation had reached the peak of realm three, and was likely just an epiphany away from realm four. Yet, this breakthrough was the most difficult step. Many people were stuck at this time for their entire life.

The difference was not just the difference in vital energy, it was also a difference in many battle tactics that realm three cultivators could not understand.

Chen Liqiu started by revealing his realm four presence, indicating he would use his full power. Yet, Xu Lianhua’s gaze was calm and cold.

He stood at his original spot and then swung his sword straight.

His sword was made from an unknown crystal and slightly narrowed than ordinary longswords. It also had a light pink color so it appeared delicate.

Yet, as he swung his sword, the air ahead of him gave off a violent presence.

There were no sword marks.

A dark red crescent of light suddenly appeared a hundred feet ahead of him.

This dark red crescent appeared behind Chen Liqiu and then immediately disappeared.

A spray of mud flew up from the ground. Chen Liqiu’s figure disappeared from his spot, and a curved sword mark appeared on the ground where he had been standing.

Chen Liqiu’s figure appeared ten feet away.

“Thousand Moon?”

Chen Liqiu said uncertainly as he looked sideways at the crescent sword mark.

The moment he spoke, Xu Lianhua, standing still, swung his sword multiple times.

Each of his blows would cause a crescent light to appear around Chen Liqiu. These crescents were dark red when they appeared, but as more crescents appeared, they grew brighter under their mutual lights like crescent moons.

“It is Thousand Moon. I never thought you finally mastered it.”

Seeing this scene, Chen Liqiu shook his head emotionally.

As he said these words, he also started his sword move.

Many people knew that Chen Liqiu was left handed. He used his sword with his left hand so as he pulled out his sword from the scabbard, the white cloud energy floating above his hand turned to droplets of water.

Chen Liqiu’s sword was completely white. These glowing water droplets turned white under the shine of the sword. As his white longsword separated from the scabbard, these glowing white beads did not fall, and started to roll like early morning dew in the breeze.

The bright moons rose, and sharp sword essence sliced towards Chen Liqiu at odd angles. The white rolling dew drops floated in the air and the scattered water vapour formed sword marks.

None of Xu Lianhua’s attacks could get within ten meters of Chen Liqiu. Chen Liqiu’s eyes unconsciously narrowed as he felt the increasingly stronger sword essences. His sword-drawing position was at its limits, and the tip of the sword separated completely from the scabbard. He started his counterattack.

His right hand stroked the sword blade, the tips of his fingers just a hair away from the sharp edge.

Waves of primal energies of the universe spurted out of his fingertips, colliding with the sharp sword edge, and turning into numerous threads that dissipated towards the surrounding air.

This was an extremely elegant move like one was caressing a zither.

But many students in the audience completely changed their expressions. Even Xia Wan paled.

Everyone could feel the threads of primal energies of the universe were not chaotic, but extremely organized, forming a sword seal in the air!

This looked simple. Using just the release of vital energy and primal energies along with the minute movements of the five fingers to form a sword seal. The details and mastery involved in this was not something ordinary cultivators could master!

The air suddenly turned cold!

It was the early summer, but as this sword seal started to form, cold flows of energy flooded through the air.

The white dew drops immediately froze over into frost.

As the dew turned to frost, flakes of frost cut towards Xu Lianhua who was swinging his sword.

The white frost was light and soft but contained terrifying power, drawing out white lines. It appeared as though Chen Liqiu was controlling multiple white swords to stab towards Xu Lianhua.

Xu Lianhua’s gaze turned cold. He closed his eyes and then pulled his sword back.

Sword light started to spin around him. Sword energy rose from the ground around him, crystal-like and pink like the petals of lotus flowers.

“Thousand Petal Lotus!” Chen Liqiu was slightly shocked and exclaimed in surprise.

Then countless explosions occurred in the air, and the white lines flew backwards.

Chen Liqiu’s right hand pressed the air in front of him.

An invisible ball seemed to form in his hand.

And yet, in this moment, the faint white lines still brushed past his body. Bloody lines of various depths appeared on his skin, and even dozens of red lines formed on his face.

“I have never truly fought you.”

“So you are this strong.”

Chen Liqiu’s movements did not pause at all. The sword in his left hand stabbed forward. The white sword light collided with the invisible ball his right hand was pressing against.

A tearing sound was heard, the invisible ball made from vital energy and primal energies of the universe split into countless pieces. A white river appeared ahead of Chen Liqiu.

Xu Lianhua found it hard to breath. He struggled to cough, and threw up blood. His body was at its limit, yet he still did not want to give up.

His left hand landed on his sword hilt. He was so pressed by Chen Liqiu’s sword energy he could not breathe, yet he still continued to advance.

His sword started to spin violently between his hands. A ruler-straight and rapidly spinning sword energy shot out of the tip of his sword like a needle.

“Mountain Drilling Needle!”

Someone shouted in shock.

The needle-like sword energy stabbed into the white river.

The small thin sword energy moved like an enormous rock and the white river collapsed in sections.

Seeing this scene, Chen Liqiu breathed slowly.

Xu Lianhua had been his former best friend, but everything in this battle was unfamiliar.

He looked silently at this spinning sword energy but did not make any changes. He calmly poured vital energy into his sword.

You will not succeed. You are using the method of having both sides lose … you think that I will give up out of fear of death, and give you an opportunity. But you do not understand me well enough, he thought coldly.