Chapter 68: Divide and Conquer

Sword Dynasty

Volume 1: Great Rebel

Chapter 68: Divide and Conquer

“He has good fortune.” Gu Xichun spoke slowly from the observation platform.

It was noon.

Under the gazes of the many spectators on the observation platform, Ding Ning was the last to enter the area marked by the four pillars of smoke.

Once he confirmed that he had indeed entered the marked area, Ding Ning sat down without caring about his appearance. He put down the meat he was carrying. Panting heavily, he leaned against a small tree.

The sweat pouring from his skin quickly soaked his clothes.

Gu Xichun thought, this time, the group would agree with him. If Ding Ning encountered another armored lizard along his journey, he would not have made it in time and would have been eliminated.

However, as soon as he said those words, he felt inexplicably cold gazes around him.

He frowned, but quickly understood the reason that had triggered so many people's emotions. He sneered inwardly.

The efforts and determination of a weakling could inspire admiration and sympathy in many. However, the outcome was usually the same.

Each of the disciples from the White Goat Cave Sect and the Green Vine Sword School had only one-third of those participating reach the designated area. The other two-thirds were eliminated at the entrance and along the journey. In his view, the collective strength of the White Goat Cave Sect and the Green Vine Sword School was weaker than that of the Shadow Mountain Sword Cave.

Xue Wangxu was reclining on a soft chair at the edge of the observation platform, his eyes half-closed as if on the verge of sleep. If he knew Gu Xichun's thoughts at this moment, he would have objected.

The strength of a sect was not determined by the number of cultivators in realm three and realm four, or even realm five cultivators. The strength of the sect was determined by the strongest cultivator within the sect. Sometimes, just one true expert was enough.

The autumn wind was chilly. When one's clothes were soaked with sweat, they became heavier and consumed more energy, making one more susceptible to illness.

However, Ding Ning's performance still earned the respect of most of the people on the platform.

He tried to make a fire after breathing heavily for a while. He prepared a sufficient amount of dry leaves and branches. Then, he rolled up a ball of dry grass and struck the rock with his sword to create sparks before blowing on the grass. After a few puffs, the fire burned brightly.

The fire was strong, warm, and almost smokeless.

He took off his drenched clothes and hung them on the cut vines to dry. At the same time, he placed two heavy pieces of meat on the fire to roast.

 

The servants of the Green Vine Sword School had finished preparing the meal. They carried boxes of food in vine baskets and placed them on the path near the observation platform. At this moment, the scenery within the sword trial valley was tranquil. Many disciples began to seek shelter to rest and recover their energy. Initially, many of the spectating disciples were thinking of going for the meal, but just at this moment, several exclamations of surprise rang out. As a result, some who had been about to walk towards the vine bridge to the mountain path stopped in their tracks.

Two figures met near the pillar of smoke. These two men were the ones who seemed likely to win in the end.

One of them was Su Qin, a tall and handsome man, who came from the White Goat Cave.

The other one was He Zhaoxi, who had an ordinary build, without any extra flesh on his body. His movements were filled with an indescribable energy. He was the one who had killed the armored lizard in two blows.

 

Su Qin and He Zhaoxi were walking toward each other on the same path, separated only by a patch of trees. Neither of them showed any intention of stopping to rest.

If these two people were to meet, who would emerge victorious?

Everyone on the observation platform was breathing heavily.

When the trees between them thinned, He Zhaoxi and Su Qin saw each other at the same time. The two of them stopped about a hundred feet away from each other.

Su Qin frowned slightly. His right hand slowly touched the hilt of the sword at his waist. The joints of his fingers were slightly pale.

He Zhaoxi's eyes narrowed slightly. He slowly drew the yellow sword on his back. However, in the next moment, Su Qin and all the spectators on the observation platform were shocked. He did not prepare to attack, but instead slashed at a piece of armored lizard meat.

Like Ding Ning, he had taken meat from the armored lizard's back. Because he was much stronger than Ding Ning, he had slashed off twice the amount of meat Ding Ning had. After entering this area, he had not made a fire, so he was still carrying the raw meat on his back. The piece was still dripping with blood.

“I recognize you. You're Su Qin. Your cultivation should be above realm three second class,” he said, looking at Su Qin's cold demeanor. Then he put the bloody piece of meat, half the size of his fist, into his mouth and began chewing.

Many people on the observation platform took a deep breath as they watched his actions.

“What is he doing?” With a pale face, Xie Changsheng turned to Xu Heshan and Xie Rou. Thinking about the armored lizard's appearance, he felt like retching.

Xu Heshan and Xie Rou shook their heads.

With He Zhaoxi’s personality, he probably would not use this method to disgust or intimidate his opponent.

Su Qin's gaze sharpened. He stared at He Zhaoxi, who was taking a large bite of raw meat, and said mockingly. “I know there's a way for cultivators to eat large amounts of raw meat and still digest it well without getting sick. That's intense training. Continuous, intense training, where one expands the energy in one's body, strengthens one's organs, and raises one's body temperature… But even if you have such an idea and feel like you want to fight me, and think about eating meat after seeing me, do you think I'll be so patient as to wait until you finish eating?”

He Zhaoxi continued cutting and eating the meat as he said, “I feel like there’s a better option than fighting with you to determine the winner now.”

Su Qin sneered. “What better option?”

“I don’t want to waste time. The less time I spend in the first five realms, the more time I’ll have to use in the realms after realm five to achieve breakthroughs. This is just a small trial, I don’t want to waste too much time here.” He Zhaoxi spoke calmly. “If I can get things done in a day or two, why wait until the third day?”

Su Qin paused. He considered a certain possibility.

He Zhaoxi looked at him and said, “Two lions hunting sheep is faster than one lion hunting sheep.”

Su Qin’s brow rose. The coldness in his gaze did not diminish, but a smile spread across his face.

“So you’re suggesting we hunt together?” He Zhaoxi had piqued his interest…

“I don’t know how much will be left before the sky turns dark…” He Zhaoxi continued eating the raw meat. “…maybe we can determine the winner now.”

The corners of Su Qin's lips lifted slightly and he glanced up towards the sky. “I'll accept your offer, as I don't have much patience either. Besides, I don't like being a spectacle.”

He Zhaoxi looked at the forest before him and nodded. “With this as the boundary?”

Su Qin was unperturbed. “With this as the boundary.”

He Zhaoxi did not say anything else. He continued eating the meat as if he was going to finish it all in one sitting. At the same time, he turned and began to run.

Su Qin also turned and slowly advanced.

“What are they doing?” Xie Changsheng asked, his face cold.

Even from this distance, he could tell that He Zhaoxi was not running out of fear of Su Qin, but because the two had reached an agreement in their conversation just now.

“Divide and conquer.” Xu Heshan said slowly, taking a deep breath as he stared at Xie Changsheng.

Xie Changsheng was taken aback before reacting.

Yes, if they were able to hunt down and clear all the other opponents in this circle, then this sword trial would end right now, not in three days.

“But this is also dangerous,” he said with a wry expression. “Continuous fighting will wear down their strength. They will be vulnerable to injury, and those with lesser strength than them could put up a fierce fight.”

Xu Heshan nodded, glanced at him, and spoke softly. “You're right. But Su Qin is arrogant, and He Zhaoxi is confident.”

Xie Changsheng took a deep breath.

Theoretically, Su Qin and He Zhaoxi's union had nothing to do with him, and it would greatly reduce the boredom in the future. But at some unknown point in time, he began to hope that Ding Ning would go further. In his heart, he even hoped that Ding Ning would win in the end.

 

A disciple of the White Goat Cave who was harvesting wild yellow oranges from an orange tree seemed to suddenly sense something. He stepped quickly and reached the back of the orange tree.

When the person appeared, his expression relaxed, and he instinctively called out. “Second Elder Sect Brother Su Qin.”

In the next moment, he saw Su Qin’s hand holding a sword and he froze.

“Since this is a fair trial, there should be fair competition between members of the same sect. Please forgive me.” Su Qin said as swung his sword.

With a soft sound, the thin mist in front of him was pushed away, creating a clear path. A purple sword light leaped out of his left arm.

He was unlike ordinary cultivators, as he wielded the sword with his left hand. The sword was extremely long, a foot longer than a normal longsword, and its blade, gleaming with purple firelight, was extremely flexible.

As this sword light reached the disciple of the White Goat Cave, the disciple of the White Goat Cave was startled and blocked the sword light. However, the sword light suddenly curved, forming a semicircle, and struck the neck of the disciple of the White Goat Cave with a loud bang.

The disciple of the White Goat Cave took a few steps back and fell to the ground, instantly unconscious.

Su Qin nodded apologetically, took the two tokens hanging from te waist of this disciple of the White Goat Cave and continued to advance.

At the same time, elsewhere, a violent explosion occurred. A visible shockwave spread outward as if a tunnel had been created in space. A figure was thrown backward and slammed into the vine wall behind him, unable to climb back up.

In front of him, behind the spreading wall of air, He Zhaoxi put away his sword and continued sprinting. He had eaten all the raw meat he had brought with him. His stomach was now bloated. As he sprinted, his intestines even made gurgling sounds like a frog.

 

Notes:

This novel is not my work... I just translated it from a Chinese web novel written by Wu Zui

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