Desolate Era Book 12, Chapter 26 - Ji Ning Battles Youngflame Zhan

Cangwu Jiu against Adept Whitedragon!
Every person who had battled through the Conclave of Immortal Destiny to this point was a peerless genius. As if by unspoken agreement, they had all but given up using divine will attacks or spell-based attacks against each other! This was because using magic treasures and elemental ki was not enough to threaten their foes; they all had to rely on divine abilities to battle. Ji Ning had given up the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] as well!
BOOM! WHOOSH!
Cangwu Jiu and Adept Whitedragon were battling savagely against each other. Both of them used [Heavenly Transformation] and [Three Heads, Six Arms], then each unleashed their respective divine abilities.
Adept Whitedragon had completely transformed into a snowy white divine dragon, while Cangwu Jiu had exploded forth with a level of speed that was utterly amazing. The only thing that could be seen was a howling wind which flashed with streaks of lightning. Within the berserk lightning, the vague form of Cangwu Jiu could be barely made out. He flashed forward repeatedly at an utterly astonishing speed...it was as though a group of Cangwu Jius were fighting against this single snowy white divine dragon!
“What terrifying speed.”
“What shocking agility.”
Everyone was secretly amazed.
Ning, Xiamang Zishan, the Sloppy Daoist, and the others all felt their hearts sink. In terms of speed, Cangwu Jiu had always been ranked number one in this Conclave! Now, with this additional new breakthrough, his speed and agility had reached an unfathomable new level.
In close combat, speed and agility were even more important than strength!
“What a terrifying Cangwu Jiu.”
“A single overwhelming advantage can be used to great effect everywhere. Just by relying on his absolute advantage in speed and agility, he is an extremely terrifying foe.”
……
There was no question about it. In t his battle between two powerful Fiendgod Body Refiners, Cangwu Jiu could attack when he wished and could retreat when he wished; he completely controlled the tempo of battle! Although Adept Whitedragon was powerful, in the face of Cangwu Jiu’s agility and speed, he had no tactical options available at all. In the end…he was defeated.
The second of the sixth finalists in this Conclave had been chosen…Cangwu Jiu!
“Goodd, good, good!” The long-browed Celestial Immortal Patriarch of the Cangwu clan grew even more excited, and his eyes gleamed with light. He was a Celestial Immortal; naturally, he could tell that although by this point there shouldn’t be any tremendous differences in power amongst the finalists, Cangwu Jiu was able to make his enemies helpless against him, thanks to his tremendous advantage in speed. If this continued…he would definitely be in the top three as well.
The Grand Xia Emperor spoke out once more. “The third duel in the fourth battle…Ji Ning of the Black-White College shall battle Youngflame Zhan of the Youngflame clan!”
His voice echoed forth everywhere.
Ning was seated by King Yan. His pupils contracted. Youngflame Zhan? The Youngflame clan? It was well-publicized that he had a major feud against the Youngflame clan…and his opponent would actually be Youngflame Zhan?
“Ji Ning.” Yu Wei held Ning’s hand in her own as she looked at him. “Be careful.”
“Right.” Ning nodded.
By now, none of the remaining opponents could be underestimated.
On the other side.
Patriarch Arcanum’s face had changed slightly as well. Ji Ning? He had long ago desired to find a chance to get rid of Ji Ning, but compared to the chance of having a clansman becoming the disciple of Daofather Crimsonbright, getting rid of Ji Ning was much less important. He had put that in the back of his mind, and his entire focus was on Youngflame Zhan making the top three.
“Zhan, child.” Patriarch Arcanum looked at Youngflame Zhan, who was by his side. He instructed mentally, “This Ji Ning is a Sword Immortal; he’s most skilled in attacking and battling. There is no need for you to fight him head on…and your talents don’t lie in fighting head on either. Use your strengths to strike as his weaknesses. You absolutely can win.”
Youngflame Zhan nodded gently as well. This battle…it was more important than life or death!
Whoosh. Youngflame Zhan immediately walked over towards the outside of the main hall.
……
“Xiamang, when you instructed Ji Ning and Youngflame Zhan fight…why is it that I felt as though the atmosphere within the Skylight Palace became a bit strange? Those Celestial Immortals seem to be looking at Ji Ning and Youngflame Zhan in a rather queer manner,” Lu Dongbin said, puzzled.
The other Pure Yang True Immortals had noticed this as well.
The Xia Emperor laughed loudly, “Everyone, you don’t know this, but there is a feud between Ji Ning and the Youngflame clan. To be honest, it’s actually become a bit of a legend.”
“Legend?” Lu Dongbin and the others all began to listen carefully.
All of these True Immortals had arrived after this Conclave had already begun; they didn’t have much of an understanding regarding these Wanxiang-level geniuses of the Grand Xia Dynasty. Naturally, they didn’t know of the matters between Ning and the Youngflame clan. The only reason the Grand Xia Emperor himself knew about it was because he had collected intelligence reports on all of the geniuses, which was why he learned of it.
“The Youngflame clan had a member known as Youngflame Nong, who was going to be their next clan leader…”
“……”
“…and in the end, that Deathsworn which the Youngflame clan sent out ended up being killed by this Ji Ning’s Primaltwin,” the Xia Emperor said with a loud laugh. “So…you now understand the feud between Ji Ning and the Youngflame clan, yes?”
The other Pure Yang True Immortals now all understood.
“Xiamang, that’s a nasty little trick. You know that there is a feud between them, and yet you intentionally set them up against each other. Still…given that such a feud exists, they are definitely going to fight even more insanely against each other.”
“Mm. This battle is definitely going to be quite exciting.”
……
Two of the six finalists had already been determined. Ji Ning and Youngflame Zhan; only one of them could enter the final six! So long as they could enter the final six…they would be very close to becoming the three victors. Just one step away!
“The disciple of Daofather Crimsonbright should be me.” Youngflame Zhan’s gaze was cold. He was a very low-key person; in the younger generation of the Youngflame clan, the most famous person had been Youngflame Nong. He, Youngflame Zhan, had kept his head down and focused on quietly training; his goal had always been to overcome the Celestial Tribulation and become an immortal, free, unconstrained Celestial Immortal!
He had never held that playboy, Youngflame Nong, in any regard at all. Youngflame Nong merely relied on the affection of the Patriarch; he would only be able to dominate for a period of time.
“To become a disciple of a Daofather…this is indeed a chance that rarely comes even after a thousand reincarnations. I have to seize it.” Youngflame Zhan walked into the grand sealing formation, then stared at the distant Ji Ning.
……
“The Three Realms are unfathomably mysterious. After I become Daofather Crimsonbright’s disciple and have the guidance of a Daofather, I shall be able to advance along my path in a faster, more stable manner!” Ji Ning knew very well that personal hard work and comprehension abilities were only part of it; luck and fate were another part. For example, if he hadn’t had the [Nuwa Painting] visualization technique as he had worked hard under the tutelage of his father, Ji Yichuan…although he still might have been able to surpass his father and become a major figure of Stillwater Commandery after a few centuries, it was thanks to the [Nuwa Painting] that his rise to prominence had become more than ten times faster!
In fact, were it not for the [Nuwa Painting]…he probably would’ve died when he had entered the underwater estate. Strictly speaking, without the [Nuwa Painting], Ning’s talent might not have been high enough for the underwater estate to even teleport him inside.
An initial advantage snowballs into continuous advantages!
To walk farther, to make it to a higher position, to become a major power of the Three Realms…one had to seize every single opportunity possible!
“I am definitely going to enter the top three, and perhaps even become number one!” Ning looked towards Youngflame Zhan. “This Youngflame Zhan…he’s a stumbling block, a tiger blocking a critical juncture in my path of Immortal cultivation. I must annihilate him.”
Their gazes collided from far away.
Even their gazes seemed to be striking at each other. Everyone could sense the resolute aura emanating from the two. Either I can live, or he can…we cannot coexist!
Boom! Boom! Their bodies moved at the same instant as both transformed into three-headed, six-armed giants!
Ning’s six arms were holding six Immortal swords, while Youngflame Zhan’s six arms were holding onto six long black whips.
“Ji Ning, although your swordplay is indeed formidable, I perfectly counter you. You will definitely lose.” Youngflame Zhan’s voice echoed forth from his chest as his six arms struck out. The six long black whips began to dance, each one contorting and twisting in the air like an enormous, coiling black serpent. The whips were tipped with a series of sharp spikes, and were also covered with runes. A powerful aura sprang out from each of them.
“Youngflame Zhan, once you get into close combat with me, you will definitely lose.” Ning’s voice was also incomparably valorous and echoing.
Although both their words held some degrees of truth, they were actually trying to cause their opponent’s Dao-hearts to become unstable.
At their level, if their Dao-hearts became the slightest bit unstable, then the amount of power they could unleash would be slightly lessened. If a strike at a critical moment was slightly weaker…one might be defeated.
Ning was pondering to himself. “Youngflame Zhan is an expert in using whips. Once one whip entangles me, the other whips will come to surround me as well. By then, I will be in serious trouble, and might even lose! Thus, I absolutely cannot give him that chance. That means I can’t be too straightforward and rely on brute force…in this battle, I need to focus on agility.”
Against different opponents, different battle tactics were needed.
Suddenly…
The two of them, who had been speaking and sensing each others auras, suddenly began to charge forward. The battle had instantly begun!
Swish! Swish!
A Waterflame Lotus bloomed around Ning. He stood at the pistil within the center of the lotus, within the leaves. This Waterflame Lotus was capable of affecting the opponent’s whips…although the amount of influence was miniscule, it was enough to be of tremendous help in this fight.
Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!
Three long black whips simultaneously lashed out, unleashing crackling sounds of thunder as they did. They were like three black Flood Dragons, containing an incomparably dominating power! As for the other three long black whips, they silently struck out like deadly vipers towards Ning as well.
Ning brandished his Immortal swords while doing his best to close the gap with his foe. The closer they were to each other, the greater his advantage was! Whips…they needed sufficient space to unleash their power. The closer they were in distance, the less of a threat a whip would be.
Crackle…
Sword-light like silk. Silken rays of sword-light flew about in midair, constantly colliding against the whips.
The flying, dancing silken rays of sword-light carried an incomparable resilience. They came out in an interconnected, unending cycle.
“What tremendous strength.” From this first exchange, Youngflame Zhan immediately sensed how terrifying Ning was. Although Ning had not chosen to fight him head-on, and had instead chosen to rely on a sword technique that was like water, repeatedly carrying away the strikes of the long whip…each time the sword-light and a whip collided, a terrifying tremor of power would be unleashed!
Youngflame Zhan even felt as though his six arms were beginning to slightly grow numb! Each time he lashed out wih his whip, they were knocked to the side.
After using the [Starseizing Hand], Ning truly did have an absolute advantage in terms of power against him.
……
Immortal Fivecraze of the Black-White College, Uncle White, Little Qing, Yu Wei, Yuchi Xiyue, and the others were all watching nervously.
Patriarch Arcanum was incomparably nervous as well.
Both Ji Ning and Youngflame Zhan seemed to be quite cautious in their clashes. They were both familiarizing themselves with their opponent’s techniques, giving their foe no chances at all.
“Kill him, kill him!” Patriarch Arcanum’s narrow eyes flashed with cold light as he quietly chanted these words to himself.
Suddenly…
Within the grand sealing formation, Youngflame Zhan’s six arms suddenly, simultaneously changed. His arms actually became covered with many black scales, as though he himself had transformed into serpent as well. His arms instantly became soft and boneless. His whip strikes, which had previously been savage and vicious…immediately became softer and more insidious as they frantically moved forward to encircle and bind Ning.