It was at that moment when Pei Xuanjing received the hint and was momentarily distracted.
Tie Mad and Yuwen Leopard seized this opportunity, both using their signature skills and heading towards Pei Xuanjing.
Golden Vajra Finger!
This is a medium-level martial arts technique derived from the Diamond Gate, and has been refined to the level of complete comprehension by Yuwen Leopard, adding to it the divine strength borne from his extensive training.
With the use of this single technique, he could shatter gold, break jade, penetrate iron, and crush rocks.
Sun – Positive Iron palm!
This is one of the Tie Sect's signature martial studies. Although Tie Mad has not fully trained in Iron Palm, the power of just half of this upper-level martial study is already extraordinary, especially this move that he has been immersed in for many years.
In combination with the secret stepping technique of the Tie Sect, he cloaked himself in an array of palm shadows, carrying with it an endless fierce power.
Everything happened in the blink of an eye. Pei Xuanjing had just been momentarily distracted due to the response of his life simulator when he obtained a peculiar object, and these two took advantage of it. This showed that their reputations were not unearned, and their abilities were extraordinary.
Seeing this crisis, Pei Xuanjing, however, faced it without fear.
He put the treasure pearl into his chest pocket, twisted his body around, and blocked Yuwen Leopard's Golden Vajra Finger with his right-hand Flowing Flame Sword. At the same time, his left hand sent out a raging fire palm, choosing to go head-to-head with Tie Mad.
Bang!
The water column that had risen from the lake exploded suddenly due to the aftermath of their confrontation, and countless water droplets scattered in all directions, resembling a waterfall plunging from midair.
After one collision, all three of them retreated several meters.
Yuwen Leopard's Golden Vajra Finger was enormously powerful, and the overwhelming force left Pei Xuanjing's hand tingling. The regrettable thing was that although the Golden Vajra Finger was extraordinary, when it met the Thousand Refinement Divine Weapon forged from Mysterious Iron and the essence of hundreds of golds, it didn't even leave a mark.
Even though Tie Mad's Sun – Positive Iron Palm was extremely powerful, Pei Xuanjing was one rank higher than him in martial arts. Pei held his own against Mad with his True Qi and clashed with the palm of the raging fire. After their exchange, it was a stalemate, with neither side gaining an upper hand.
"You're actually a Fourth -grade Martial Artist!" Tie Mad's face was astonished.
Unlike Yuwen Leopard, since the two were directly clashing with palm strength, Tie Mad could clearly feel that Pei Xuanjing's palm technique was inferior to his own, but still managed to match him evenly with sufficient True Qi.
"The Thousand-Refined Divine Weapon is indeed extraordinary," said Yuwen Leopard, a look of disgust flashing in his eyes.
As a martial artist who focused on training strength in fists and palms, he most despised opponents who relied on the advantages of divine weapons.
At first, he merely suspected this, thinking that the other relied on the divine weapon in his hand for his strength. But having seen the momentum of Pei Xuanjing's earlier attack, and now hearing Tie Mad's words, his suspicions evaporated, replaced by a surprised look on his face.
Fourth-grade Martial Artist!
Hearing Tie Mad's words, the surrounding martial artists were also deeply shocked.
Everyone knew that age restricted entrance to the Blessed Land. Not one of the people present was over 25 years old, and even the oldest amongst them was only a few years older than Pei Xuanjing.
Among hundreds of those present, only a handful were Fifth Rank martial artists, apart from Pei Xuanjing. There were dozens of Sixth Grade martial artists which were slightly more in number.
Seventh-grade martial artists were the majority, with hundreds present. The rest mainly consisted of Eighth- and Ninth-grade martial artists, hoping to advantageously fish in troubled waters.
However, four years is a big gap. Some people are still struggling at the Eighth and Ninth Rank, while the more gifted ones are in the Sixth or Seventh Rank.
Fifth Rank martial artists like Yuwen Leopard and Tie Mad were already objects of envy.
The sudden emergence of a twenty-year-old Fourth- grade martial artist no doubt surprised many people.
Such exceptional talent and strength also swept away the remaining Fifth- and Sixth-rank martial artists' hopes of benefiting while others fight.
Some people were considering whether it was worth offending Pei Xuanjing for this.
Quite a few who knew the secret of the peculiar object were also considering that there wouldn't be much use for the extraordinary talented Pei Xuanjing, and whether they could somehow exchange it for a price. This seems more probable than snatching it away.
"What should we do?" Yuwen Leopard and Tie Mad communicated through eye contact.
Although they may not understand what everyone was thinking, both Yuwen Leopard and Tie Mad were no fools. They understood that these people had lost their former eagerness, intimidated by Pei Xuanjing's momentum.
No matter what the others did, the pair already in confrontation almost had no way to back down now.
"If it were any other place, facing a Fourth-grade martial artist alone or together wouldn't be an issue, even in defeat we would still survive. But this place is different today," Tie Mad whispered to Yuwen Leopard.
Sound Transmission into Secrecy was a simple technique that all martial artists who had broken through to the Sixth -grade and were proficient in True Qi could use, though it was easily discovered by those with a much higher realm.
But at this moment, they didn't care about that.
Yuwen Leopard replied, "Although Pei Xuanjing is powerful, we are not afraid of him when we join hands. But we can't say the same about other people."
As he spoke, he cast a casual glance around.
Considering how arrogant the two had been, they had offended many people, including a few sworn enemies who were just waiting for an opportunity to settle scores. It was only because everyone was trying to snatch the peculiar object and Pei Xuanjing took the initiative to become the target that they hadn't caused them trouble.
Now, if someone wanted to curry favor with Pei Xuanjing or take advantage of him to get revenge, they might be in real trouble.
"In that case, let's retreat for the time being and claim our prestige back in a few days," suggested Tie Mad.
"Right, there's still two months until the Blessed Land closes. We will have another chance," agreed Yuwen Leopard.
Agreement reached, Yuwen Leopard announced, "Since you, Pei Xuanjing, have already obtained the peculiar object and survived one round against the two of us together, today you have proven that you have the qualification to take this object, and we won't trouble you anymore…"
Before he could finish, Pei Xuanjing laughed coldly and said, "You think you can just fight when you want to fight, and stop when you want to stop? You think everything is up to you?"
Having said this, he lifted his sword.
"Run!" Tie Mad said to Yuwen Leopard and then, without hesitation, took off in one direction.
For the first time, Tie Mad realized that Yuwen Leopard is a fool! If he was going to admit defeat, he should have done it humbly. He acted like a whore and still wanted a monument to his chastity, speaking words of surrender so confidently. What an idiot!
Now that Pei Xuanjing wasn't agreeing, was he planning to fight again?
He had noticed a few guys looking at him with bad intentions, some itching for a fight.
It was already generous of Tie Mad to notify Yuwen Leopard once before fleeing!
He's running!
Tie Mad is running!
The usually show-off and arrogant Tie Mad is actually running!
Everyone's dumbfounded!
Yuwen Leopard is dumbfounded!
Not just Yuwen Leopard, all the martial artists around were also dumbfounded!
As for Tie Mad's escape, while it was somewhat unexpected, it was reasonable.
After all, the tide of the situation had turned, with Pei Xuanjing gaining the upper hand.
Thus, in order to preserve his life, leaving was the most appropriate choice.
Though such a flight may seem shameful, as long as one is alive, they can regain any lost face. Yet if they died, everything would be in vain.
Pei Xuanjing did not look down upon Tie Mad's actions, but rather, he believed that a man capable of admitting defeat and bouncing back could achieve great things in the future.
Yuwen Leopard responded quickly. Although he was shocked and furious about Tie Mad's shameless flight, at the moment, the best course of action was also to retreat promptly.
Moreover, he had already been thrown back by Pei Xuanjing once. Now, with Tie Mad fleeing first, his own escape held no psychological burden.
After all, it wasn't his first time and saving his own life was most important!
Nearly right after Tie Mad's escape, he immediately chose another direction to run.
He also had his own considerations: if they were together, and Pei Xuanjing gave chase, his own agility was inferior to Tie Mad's and he could find himself blocking for the other.
However, if they split up, then Pei Xuanjing would have a fifty percent chance of pursuing Tie Mad.
To his surprise, these calculations of his were met with indifference.
Pei Xuanjing surprisingly pursued him without hesitation.
"Pei Xuanjing, you're going too far!" Yuwen Leopard shouted angrily as he ran.
Even if he was weaker than Tie Mad, there was no need for such obvious cherry-picking. It's clear contempt and if this gets out, how can he maintain his reputation?
"Hmph! You've sought trouble with me time and again, you won't get away today! " Pei Xuanjing said coldly.
It's not that Pei Xuanjing did not want to keep both of them, it's just that they fled in two different directions.
Tie Mad's agility and speed were marvelous, even though Pei Xuanjing was a fourth-grade Martial Artist, lightness skill wasn't his specialty. He might not be able to catch up, and even if he did there was a high chance Tie Mad could escape.
"But you are different—why did you have to run so slow?" Pei Xuanjing thought.
Yuwen Leopard, a martial artist from the Diamond Gate, practiced a technique that focused mainly on the explosive power of the body. This determined their disadvantage in terms of speed and lightness skills amongst martial artists of the same realm.
If Pei Xuanjing wanted to keep him, it would be a piece of cake, with no surprises whatsoever.
Furthermore, the other party had been seeking him out for trouble time and time again, how could Pei Xuanjing let him leave?
The two were in hot pursuit. In a few breaths, they had already run a hundred feet away, quickly disappearing in the eyes of the other martial artists.
Watching Pei Xuanjing aggressively chase after Yuwen Leopard, other than a few individuals who followed from a distance due to their self-confident skills, the rest of the martial artists could only helplessly disperse.
However, Pei Xuanjing did not immediately choose to act, instead, he maintained a distance neither too far nor too close, seemingly intending to wear out his opponent.
"Pei Xuanjing, you forced me!" Yuwen Leopard suddenly stopped in his tracks and fiercely turned back.
Again using the Golden Finger skill, he pointed directly at Pei Xuanjing.
He knew that if he kept running like this, he would eventually be worn down by the other party. Rather than that, he might as well go down fighting.
Seeing Yuwen Leopard angrily strike out, Pei Xuanjing remained expressionless, his long sword sweeping out horizontally, sending out several sword auras slashing towards Yuwen Leopard.
However, the other's technique was indeed powerful. Even if it was due to Pei Xuanjing not using all of his strength, after Yuwen Leopard received this strike, even though his clothes were ripped and torn, the sword qi couldn't even cut through his skin, leaving just a few light white marks.
Martial Art's cultivation was all about refining the muscles, bones, and skin externally, and refining the internal organs and marrow internally. Ordinary martial artists' bodies were already powerful. However, those who practiced this kind of technique chose to use their True Qi to temper their physique, making their bodies several times stronger than those of ordinary martial artists.
In addition to the Golden Finger skill practiced by Yuwen Leopard, the Diamond Gate also held a body refining martial skill called the "Dragon Elephant Skill" , which was considered a half-step peerless martial art.
Whilst the entry level for this skill was quite simple, it was exceptionally difficult to achieve significant progress. It was rumored that reaching a small accomplishment would make one impervious to swords and spears, while reaching a high accomplishment would make one immune to even divine weapons.
However, this kind of rumor is considered an exaggeration by many people, because this body refining martial art cannot be cultivated to the stage of high accomplishment. Even the creator of the martial art had not reached high accomplishment, hence it was referred to as a 'half-step' peerless martial art.
"The 'Dragon Elephant Skill' is indeed formidable."
However, while he was praising, Pei Xuanjing's actions did not cease.
With a twist of his wrist, several more sword auras were swung out.
Just as Yuwen Leopard was blocking the sword qi, Pei Xuanjing leaped up rapidly, getting closer. He then turned around in the air, landed in front of Yuwen Leopard, and the Flowing Flame Sword stabbed straight forward.
Clang, clang, clang!
Several consecutive stabs did not pierce Yuwen Leopard's body. Instead, they sounded as though they were striking metal, creating a crisp sound.
Unexpectedly, Yuwen Leopard had already reached a minor accomplishment in this skill.
A hint of anger flashed in Pei Xuanjings eyes, the Flowing Flame Sword in his hand shone brilliantly, and sword aura was chilling. From top to bottom, he hacked down at him. There was nothing fancy about this move, it was a simple slash.
Perhaps the previous fight had given Yuwen Leopard a lot of confidence. Facing this sword, he didn't dodge, just bellowed and circulated his True Qi all over his body. The clothes on his upper body were shattered, revealing his bronze skin that looked as if it had been cut with a knife and ax. His intention was to resist the sword directly.
"What an idiot!"
Pei Xuanjing gave a cold laugh, the force in his sword hand didn't lessen, it landed on the other's right shoulder.
Splatter!
The power of the Thousand Refinement Divine Weapon was indeed extraordinary.
Yuwen Leopard was directly sliced into two by his sword, from his shoulder to his waist.
The numerous sword strikes by Pei Xuanjing earlier weren't truly unable to break through the opponent's technique. It was an intentional ploy to let his opponent drop his guard, setting the stage for this final strike.
The ultimate result was exactly as he had calculated, Yuwen Leopard had become so confident that he thought he could directly confront Pei Xuanjing.
However, the power of the Thousand Refinement Divine Weapon was completely unexpected. Coupled with the fact that Pei Xuanjing's own realm was higher than his, he was caught off guard and killed with a single sword strike.
A good swimmer can drown in water!
Yuwen Leopard spent half his life practicing, and his strongest was this physical technique. Little did he expect that it would be the cause of his death.
Pei Xuanjing looked at his dead body and shook his head.
Just as he was about to turn around and leave, he noticed in the distance a thin book fluttering in the
light breeze..