Chương 239: Fighting Gu He

Outside the southern gates of Qinghe, countless martial artists crowded together to watch this pinnacle showdown outside the city walls. Faced with Song Que's terrifying slash, the First-Tier expert and Wind Demon Staff, Gu He, acted as casually as if he were taking a stroll in the park. Without a second thought, he slightly tilted his body and easily neutralized the attack. That poise was truly enough to win anyone over. However, an unexpected turn of events occurred.

The heavy, fiercely-powered slash from a moment ago was actually just a feint! While suspended mid-air, the Pavilion Master Song suddenly changed direction right amidst the crowd's astonished gazes, altering his saber momentum midway to chop horizontally, streaking like lightning toward Gu He's waist. The distance was too close, and the speed was even faster. Gu He felt a chilling aura rise up and hastily threw his upper body backward, pressing flat against the ground to dodge the strike.

Then, pressing his hands against the earth, he did a backflip to retreat. Though he managed to cheat death by relying on his hard-earned survival instincts from years of dancing on the edge of a blade, Old Gu was still drenched in cold sweat, his heart lingering in fear. Before he could even catch his breath, with his feet not yet touching the ground, Grandee Song's Black Iron Saber was already following him like a shadow.

Scared out of his wits, Gu He hurriedly channeled all his internal strength, pumping Qi into both hands. A thin layer of red light surfaced on his palms, wrapping around them like a pair of gauntlets as he hastily threw a punch to counter the blade strike. Clang...... A thunderous explosion rang out.

Lacking any leverage in mid-air, Gang Leader Gu was hacked flying back several dozen zhang by this tyrannical slash, his feet having to retreat another two or three steps before he finally managed to dissipate the momentum. The tingling sensation pulsing from his hands filled Gu He with an inexplicable terror. Such terrifying strength, such a terrifying young man. Although this force couldn't quite match his own, it still felt like nearly two elephants' worth of raw power—truly far too horrifying.

"Gang Leader, watch out!" Hearing his subordinates' terrified shouts, Old Gu shuddered as he looked at the massive figure descending upon his head. Giving him no time to think, Grandee Song—who never let up once he gained the upper hand—was determined not to let this guy catch his breath. Utilizing his superior movement technique, he closed in once again.

"Roar!" With the situation critical and no time to ponder further, Gu He let out a loud roar. Throwing both hands out like twin dragons emerging from the sea, he aggressively spewed out his True Qi like a cannon of concentrated energy, blasting straight upward toward Song Que. Midway through his high-spirited saber assault, Grandee Song was also startled by this sudden counterattack. Fortunately, his reflexes were freakish; he hurriedly executed his movement technique mid-air to evade the blast just in time.

Damn it, you really can't trust this kind of bastard's word.

"Heh, Gang Leader Gu, have you ever learned how to count?" A belly full of rage prompted Grandee Song to mercilessly mock him without saving any face. Gu He's face naturally turned dark as pitch. Without uttering another word, he acted out of embarrassment and anger, actively charging forward to attack. As expected, a First-Tier expert going all out was truly terrifying.

Although Gu He's physical strength didn't vastly surpass his own, combined with wondrous True Qi, Old Gu began to relentlessly grind down Grandee Song. After trading a few blows and suffering a couple of setbacks, Baby Song quickly learned his lesson. Knowing he still couldn't take this fellow head-on, he switched to guerrilla tactics.

Leveraging his movement technique and agile body, the little thief circled around Gu He, specifically picking tricky blind spots to thrust out a few saber strikes, driving Old Gu to absolute distraction. The problem was that his opponent refused to clash with him directly, slipping around like an eel and making himself impossible to pin down, while persistently hacking away at his blind spots.

Gu He wasn't invulnerable to blades; his protective True Qi had limited effectiveness, and taking a few slashes would still be fatal. Left with no choice, Old Gu was spun around in circles by Song Que like a top. The two sides were locked in a draw on the battlefield, and Song Que was even able to casually tease his opponent. This outcome left the onlookers staring with dropped jaws and wide-open mouths. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

If Old Gu weren't still radiating a layer of red light, everyone would have thought this guy was a fake First-Tier expert—he was just too pathetic. The rear-guard of the Moon-Lacking Pavilion erupted into a deafening roar of cheers.

"Brat, do you only know how to run and hide? Do you dare to fight me head-on?" Feeling the pointing and whispering eyes of the crowd in the distance, Gang Leader Gu was overcome with utter humiliation and roared furiously. Who would have thought that the thief Song was completely thick-skinned, nodding very honestly:"Gang Leader Gu, you're right. This junior has only practiced martial arts for a few years; how could I compare to an old senior like you?

You should give me more pointers instead of just spinning around in one spot like that." Grandee Song said this cheerfully while casually flicking out a few more probing saber strikes, driving Gu He to scramble frantically in defense. Pfft!

"Hahaha..." Many people were afraid of the Golden Coin Gang's influence and didn't dare to act presumptuously, only managing to cover their mouths and hold back their laughter. The Moon-Lacking Pavilion had no such self-awareness; the whole crowd openly clutched their stomachs and burst into roaring laughter, teasing the faces of those guys over there until they turned beet red.

"Gang Leader! Catch the staff!" The members of the Golden Coin Gang could no longer hold back. With a loud shout, as soon as Gu He paid attention, they hurled his weapon over. Old Gu didn't dare to be arrogant this time. Unleashing another major ultimate move to force Song Que back, he sprinted over to catch the staff. Only then did Gu He finally let out a genuine sigh of relief. Gripping his weapon tightly, his confidence began to surge back, and his gaze toward Grandee Song turned extremely malicious.

"Brat, let's see how you dodge now."

"Heh heh, Gang Leader Gu, you said it yourself earlier—just a friendly spar, let's not damage our harmony. Otherwise, how about we ditch the weapons and go toe-to-toe in a fist fight?" Hearing the kid's booming voice broadcast clearly to the entire city, Gu He couldn't help his angry old face from flushing red. But asking him to put down his staff again was something he absolutely didn't dare to do.

Gritting his teeth, Old Gu could only retort:"It was I who underestimated Pavilion Master Song; I cannot hope to match your movement technique." Seeing that this old man didn't dare to lower his guard again, Song Que turned solemn:"Alright, then now let the three of us brothers seek guidance on the Wind Demon Staff from Gang Leader Gu."

Nie Feng and Xiong Ba, whose blood had been boiling with eagerness for a while now, immediately stepped forward, flanking their Young Master from three directions to encircle the enemy. Their positioning was quite strategic, strictly assigned according to the Three-Talents Formation.

"Gang Leader Gu, please!" Once the formation was set, Song Que shouted in a low, sharp voice. This time, Gu He didn't dare to harbor the slightest bit of contempt, nodding with a grave expression:"Please!" The moment the words fell, the three of them rushed forward like a gale from three separate directions. Xiong Ba took the vanguard, attacking the front, while Old Nie hit the rear. Each person's might was extraordinary, causing even Gu He to shudder.

"Crazy Demon Seals the Sea!" Red light flared brilliantly. With or without a staff, Old Gu was practically two different people. Spinning the Wind Demon Staff around his entire body at breakneck speed, the staff in his hands seemed to vanish entirely, wrapping him inside a cage of red Qi. Clang, clang, clang..... A rapid series of harsh metallic clashes rang out. All of Song Que's incoming attacks were blocked on the outside; Old Gu's defense could now be described as airtight.

With his personal safety guaranteed, Gu He began launching counterattacks. From time to time, a staff strike would shoot out from the Qi cage toward them. This "bunker warfare" style of throwing out attacks was extremely unappealing to Song Que, but it had to be said that it was a stellar method to counter a group gang-up. A casual blow from a First-Tier expert wasn't so easy to shrug off; Old Gu forced them into a miserable defense. Especially Old Nie, who was bare-handed and naturally at a disadvantage.

If the three of them hadn't been coordinating with some semblance of tacit understanding, with him and Xiong Ba constantly stepping in to block, the formation would have long since been smashed apart by Gu He. We can't keep going like this! Song Que's eyes narrowed, his Domain condensing to its absolute limit as he began to meticulously perceive every single movement of Old Gu in front of him. Very quickly, he caught onto a pattern.

Though Gu He's staff technique was exquisite, it was impossible to achieve absolute perfection without a single flaw. As long as one observed closely enough, moments of momentary stagnation during technique transitions could still be caught. This window was extremely brief, flashing past in the blink of an eye, but for Grandee Song, that was already enough. His saber flashed, used like a sword, lunging straight toward Old Gu's blind spot like a striking viper. Clang!

The rapidly spinning Wind Demon Staff abruptly came to a dead halt, and the surrounding red Qi cage instantly dissipated. Nie Feng and Xiong Ba rejoiced, seizing this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to charge forward again. Bam! Not daring to take the brunt of Xiong Ba's earth-shattering Heavenly King Hammer, Gu He hastily retreated backward toward Nie Feng. Relying on his vastly superior internal energy, he swung his staff to force him back, taking the chance to clear a few paces of distance.

Before the three of them could resume their siege, the old man fell back on his old trick, spinning his staff into a blur once more.

"Charge!" Song Que gave a low shout, thrusting out with his saber once again. Clang! — The staff momentum ground to a halt for the second time. Gu He's heart sank to the abyss. It seemed this kid wasn't just lucky; he had actually found the fatal flaw in his staff technique. Such terrifying adaptability, such terrifying intuition. Before he even had time to lament in fear, Old Gu had to face two massive hammers the size of dinner plates coming at him.

This time, Xiong Ba learned his lesson: he acted as a shield while hiding Old Nie behind him to search for an opportunity to strike. Clang... clang... Having fended off Nie Feng and Xiong Ba, Grandee Song's cascading, waterfall-like saber strike arrived once more. Gu He was forced to harden his scalp and raise his staff with both hands to block.

With his lower body exposed, the other two seized the chance to breach his defense, forcing the Golden Coin Gang Leader to curl up like a boiled shrimp and somersault to evade. It was truly a miserable sight. It left the Golden Coin faction trembling in fear, the Moon-Lacking Pavilion's blood boiling with excitement, and as for the onlookers—need it even be said? They cheered aloud, finding it thoroughly exhilarating.