Young Noble Be Monster Slaying

"A fight should happen now," the Sword Saint, Old Li Ba, said as he watched with his arms folded. Though his disciples had all been eliminated, it didn't bother him. After hundreds of years in the martial world, he had seen countless battles; the outcome of any single tournament no longer concerned him.

As long as his sect didn't repeatedly fail in the second round like the Mount Shu Sect, someone of his status wouldn't be too bothered. Now that all his disciples were eliminated, he was content to settle into the role of a spectator and enjoy the show.

He continued saying, "Xu Ziyang has fought through three fierce battles. Though his Sea of Qi is depleted and he's severely injured, his vitality, qi, and spirit are all at their peak. If he were to draw his sword against an opponent now, it would strengthen his resolve for the Dao. If he stops here due to a bit of scheming, he will miss a valuable chance to improve himself.

"There's a saying among sword cultivators: sword qi comes easily, but a true heart for the sword is hard to find. A chance to refine one's heart for the sword may come only once in a lifetime."

"But in doing so, he may lose the chance to advance straight to the finals," Immortal Jiuyi replied, his expression equally calm. "Originally, if Chu Liang and Jiang Yuebai took turns fighting Yang Shenlong, they might have had a good chance of defeating him."

"What's this? You don't have faith in your own disciple?" Old Li Ba chuckled. "Can't Li Guanlong win?"

"There's hope," Immortal Jiuyi replied with a nod, "but it's slim."

"Oh?" Old Li Ba was slightly confused.

He had been joking; no one seriously believed Li Guanlong could defeat Yang Shenlong. But seeing Immortal Jiuyi's demeanor, could it be that Li Guanlong truly had some hidden trump card that could lead to victory?

The attention shifted to the screen where this meeting of two dragons had just begun.

Normally, at this stage, disciples from the immortal sects would rush to secure victory and advance straight to the finals. However, upon hearing that both contestants in the other match were disciples of the Mount Shu Sect, Yang Shenlong assumed Xu Ziyang would concede and decided to take his time.

"Brother Li," he greeted first.

"Brother Yang," Li Guanlong politely returned the greeting.

The two were not well-acquainted, but they remained respectful with each other due to the longstanding friendly relations between the Fog-Hidden Mountain of Immortals and the Penglai Supreme Sect.

Li Guanlong smiled and added, "Since I've encountered you, it seems my journey ends here."

"You're too modest, Brother Li," Yang Shenlong replied calmly, golden flames flickering in his eyes.

Suddenly, a faint popping sound echoed through the air.

It was as if something had shattered.

Li Guanlong forced a wry smile. "So, you saw through this little trick after all."

It turned out that Li Guanlong had tried to quietly draw Yang Shenlong into a dream, but Yang Shenlong had detected the attempt. The difference in cultivation levels created an overwhelming gap in vitality, qi, and spirit.

Li Guanlong stopped smiling and said in a serious expression, "It seems defeating you with ordinary methods is impossible. I'll have to gamble everything."

The Assembly of Immortal Sects was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and everyone who entered sought victory. No one came simply to play. Now, facing what was likely the strongest opponent he had ever encountered, Li Guanlong knew he had to stay fully alert and no longer act casually as he had before.

He had prepared a trump card specifically for this competition.

However, this trump card could only be used once within a certain period, which was why he had held back from fighting with full force until now. But now that he had reached this stage and was face to face with Yang Shenlong, there was no avoiding it.

At this point, it was a matter of win or go home.

Li Guanlong clasped his hands, forming a seal.

He closed his eyes and stood still, focusing quietly.

Is he really going to take a nap in front of Yang Shenlong? The audience wondered. But honestly speaking, they didn't actually think that such an absurd thing could happen during a match of the Battle at the Imperial City, so they watched in silence, waiting for the next change.

Meanwhile, Li Guanlong's fellow disciples from Fog-Hidden Mountain of Immortals were worried, as they knew their Eldest Senior Brother was, in fact, capable of taking a nap even in such a critical moment.

Li Guanlong truly had the great divine ability to drift into dreams at any time and place.

Fortunately, it did not happen this time.

As Li Guanlong closed his eyes, golden light began to radiate from beneath his feet.

In the blink of an eye, threads of golden silk spun around his feet and legs. Then, the shimmering threads began to envelop the upper part of his body.

In an instant, he was enveloped in a massive golden cocoon!

Immediately Yang Shenlong sensed something amiss.

The moment Li Guanlong started performing his divine ability, he flew over and attacked with his three-chi long dragon bone, piercing into the cocoon before it had even completely enclosed Li Guanlong.

But then, golden threads started wrapping around his dragon bone, releasing an eerie and disorienting energy.

Yang Shenlong, sensing the danger, reacted swiftly, retreating just in time to escape the energy's grasp.

In that brief moment, the golden cocoon sealed shut.

Yang Shenlong formed a hand seal with his left hand and unleashed another strike. In an instant, a massive dragon claw descended from the sky, slamming into the golden cocoon.

Boom!

The cocoon was sent flying, embedding halfway into a wall.

But that was all. The golden threads remained intact, shimmering as though unaffected by the impact.

Yang Shenlong's eyes narrowed. He formed another hand seal, and his three-chi long dragon bone erupted with dazzling green light, as brilliant as a thousand stars converging in one place.

Whoosh—

In this very moment, he unleashed an explosive surge of cultivation power that sent chills down everyone's spine.

Since the Competition of a Hundred Sects, he had once again showed improvement!

Rip—

As the tearing sound echoed, the dragon bone in Yang Shenlong's hand pierced straight into the massive golden cocoon.

Burning, golden-colored blood began to flow from the cracks in the cocoon.

Then came the sound of crackling from within, as the cracks spread and the cocoon started to break apart.

A figure emerged once more.

Li Guanlong, shrouded in golden light, kept his eyes closed.

Even with his eyes shut, he had begun to move.

A jade-colored dragon bone spike protruded from his shoulder, which Li Guanlong gripped with one hand. With a forceful pull, he yanked it out, ignoring the blood pouring from the wound.

Yang Shenlong could not press forward at all.

With no other option, he was forced to fly back.

Li Guanlong appeared to be in a sleepwalking state, yet he was showing such terrifying strength that intimidated even Yang Shenlong.

Yang Shenlong had to be careful.

"The Curse Insect of Dreams possesses many mystical abilities. One could even become an immortal within a dream," Immortal Jiuyi explained with a smile. "Under normal circumstances, when Li Guanlong uses his dream-watching ability, he struggles to differentiate between the real world and the dream world. Because the boundary between dream and reality becomes blurred, he has to remain conscious and alert. He never truly dares to fall asleep. If he were to enter a real slumber, the Curse Insect of Dreams would take control of his body. While this would grant him immense power, he would also then no longer have control of himself…"

As if to prove Immortal Jiuyi's explanation, the screen now showed Li Guanlong leaping recklessly from high up without a care of the risk of injury, and striking down hard with his palm.

The palm strike appeared simple and straightforward, but from Yang Shenlong's expression, it was clear he felt intimidated, as if he had encountered an extremely powerful enemy.

He even transformed his hand into a dragon claw to block the strike.

Boom—

As Li Guanlong crashed to the ground, Yang Shenlong was forced back more than ten steps.

It was such immense power.

The last opponent to suddenly unleash such monstrous strength was Chu Liang. Facing yet another opponent in a berserk state inevitably brought back some unpleasant memories for Yang Shenlong.

"Haah…" Li Guanlong exhaled sharply and lunged forward once more.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

A series of powerful blows sent Yang Shenlong stumbling backward. He kept being pushed back repeatedly.

At this moment, Li Guanlong was as strong as a celestial beast.

In addition, the faint golden aura surrounding his entire body absorbed much of the damage from Yang Shenlong's attacks, giving him a clear advantage for the moment.

Each of Li Guanlong's strikes that hit the nearby solid walls left deep dents, showcasing their devastating power. The fact that Yang Shenlong was able to withstand each blow was already very astonishing.

Could Yang Shenlong be defeated once again?

The same thought echoed in the minds of all the spectators.

Yang Shenlong remained unusually calm and composed as he faced Li Guanlong, who was in a berserk state. He even took some time to observe Li Guanlong closely.

Just as another powerful palm strike sent Yang Shenlong flying, his figure suddenly flickered, and in the blink of an eye, three versions of him appeared at the same time.

He had used the Immortal Art: External Manifestation.

The three Yang Shenlong surrounded Li Guanlong, trapping him in the center.

Each of them formed a hand seal simultaneously and pointed toward Li Guanlong.

Boom—

Three streams of azure qi converged and struck at Li Guanlong, who was trapped in the center.

Flickers of light and flames erupted, but Li Guanlong charged through the flames, nearly unscathed, and landed a punch squarely on the face of one of the clones.

Bang!

The punch was so powerful that the clone was instantly crushed and vanished.

As of now, Li Guanlong was like a wild beast that had gone crazy. The instant he sensed any hostility, he responded with a swift attack that would instantly kill his opponent.

Yang Shenlong's eyes gleamed sharply as the other clone didn't dodge. Instead, it stepped forward, raising one arm.

Suddenly, Li Guanlong was enveloped in an azure light with a radius of several zhang.

Yang Shenlong had just used the Immortal Art Ring of Confinement.

While the Immortal Art: The Spoken Divine Law could sometimes produce a similar effect, it was nowhere near as powerful.

At that moment, Li Guanlong found himself suddenly trapped within a circle with a radius of three zhang.

GLTD Alternate Universe's Thoughts

Translator: GT