CHAPTER 239: CHAPTER 209 YOU ARE THE WHETSTONE_2

Yu Yong City was bustling with pedestrians, coming and going like a tide of fish, yet upon entering Medicine Temple, not a single shadow could be seen.

It seemed someone had cleared the area early, making way for a duel between two Fourth Rank Martial Artists.

Beyond the Brahman Gate, a tall woman caught sight of a Douli Swordsman emerging from the Great Heroic Hall, his figure shrouded in rising smoke, as though he had just lit incense.

Inside the hall, the Bodhisattva of Medicine Temple was enshrined.

"By my count, it has been three days since we last met."

Qin Qingluo spoke this with a smile.

Chen Yi had killed Ye Ming and Chou Gang; earlier, he had even rescued the Demon Empress, kidnapped the Saintess, and repeatedly thwarted her schemes. To Qin Qingluo, he was a thorn in her side, a nail in her flesh.

Despite this, upon meeting Chen Yi again, her mood remained calm.

Because she had the gun.

A gun is the king of all weapons.

Chen Yi lifted his gaze, his expression as composed as ever, as though he had just noticed her arrival.

He spoke, "You’ve entered the Fourth Rank?"

"I have, though a step slower than you," Qin Qingluo replied.

A step slower, yet her momentum prevailed.

Standing there with hands behind his back and arms tucked in his sleeves, Chen Yi gazed silently and steadily at Qin Qingluo.

Qin Qingluo, however, raised her long spear, casually unwrapping the cloth strips tied around it. When the final strip of brown fabric was removed, the silver brilliance of the weapon’s blade shot forth—chilling and murderous!

That tall woman seemed ready to erupt at any moment, her spear thrust aimed deadly and true.

Yet, she didn’t move, narrowing her eyes instead, staring at Chen Yi.

"You’re not drawing your blade?"

Qin Qingluo noticed Chen Yi stayed motionless.

Chen Yi released his sleeve, his hands empty by his sides, with his sword and blade still sheathed.

Seeing this, Qin Qingluo sneered:

"Are you intending to fight barehanded?"

"Barehanded, can I not kill you?"

Chen Yi asked calmly.

Qin Qingluo burst into laughter. Never mind her invincible protective Glazed Barrier, immunity from death or calamity; her sheer martial prowess as a Fourth Rank warrior already placed her leagues above. With the Purple Electric Gun in hand, defeating her barehanded was laughable beyond reason.

"If you wish to die like this, it makes this grand setup seem rather pointless." Her smile persisted as she raised the Purple Electric Gun. "This newfound technique of mine is wasted without a worthy test subject."

Despite her readiness for battle, Chen Yi remained relaxed, unmoved.

This inexplicably created a sensation within Qin Qingluo—a feeling of power without a target.

"Your newfound technique?"

For the first time, emotion flickered across Chen Yi’s expression.

Qin Qingluo noticed it and furrowed her brow.

He was smiling.

It was a sneer.

"That Glazed Barrier, the insight within the Wuxiang Zen Master’s Vestment robe—you call that your technique?"

Chen Yi’s voice came leisurely.

"Ah, you really do know how to flatter yourself, Lady Prince."

Unmoved, Qin Qingluo countered his sneer with her own: "I’ve comprehended it, so it’s mine..."

"It’s not yours."

Chen Yi interrupted her abruptly, idly rubbing the scabbard at his waist.

"A technique, only if comprehended by oneself, belongs to oneself. Any insight gained by relying on outside forces, none of it truly belongs to you."

Qin Qingluo’s sneer stiffened slightly. Her brows knitted as her body hunched just a bit lower.

For someone whose heart was usually unperturbed, that single statement sent ripples through her calm.

Qin Qingluo replied coldly, "Then, what about you?"

She expected Chen Yi to answer directly or attack suddenly.

However, he merely retorted with a cold laugh: "If you’re asking me in response, it means you’re already feeling insecure."

Qin Qingluo stomped, causing cracks to spider through the stone tiles beneath her.

Her eyes gleamed sharply.

Smoke from the incense wafted ethereally out from behind Chen Yi, accentuating his already ungraspable figure.

The spear’s point was now aimed directly at Chen Yi’s throat.

She smirked coldly, "How much true technique do you possess? Why not show me?"

Chen Yi didn’t answer directly:

"You cannot defeat me."

The tall woman’s fierce killing intent burst forth as her aura surged. Her stature, eight feet tall, cast an overwhelming shadow, seemingly poised to crush Chen Yi. Without any further questions.

Her reaction alone questioned the claim.

"You rely only on borrowed power."

Chen Yi gave her the answer.

"So you hold a gun in your hand, yet no gun in your heart."

At the sound of the word "heart," her figure and spear erupted forward. A gust of powerful qi surged from the spearpoint, slicing through the ground as cleanly as a blade through tofu, heading straight for Chen Yi!

The pre-battle debate about intent had clearly bored this Lady Prince.

If Chen Yi insisted on stalling and refusing to draw his blade, she’d force him to!

With a bolt of thunderous momentum, the Purple Electric Gun slashed through the air, piercing past Chen Yi’s shadow.

Chen Yi lightly tapped the knife scabbard.

With no hesitation or clutter, the blade flew free from its sheath; its brilliance sharp and dazzling, evenly matched against the renowned Purple Electric Gun that had once belonged to the legendary spear-master Zhu Diji.

Gripping the blade’s hilt, Chen Yi slashed upward from below, the knife-light shimmering like moonlight.

Thunder met moonlight—the fierce collision sent both figures quivering. Qin Qingluo firmed her grip on the spear as its shaft bent like an arc, then rebounded, dispersing much of the impact’s force.

Twisting her form in perfect synchrony, she swept the spear in an arcing strike.

Chen Yi retreated a step; the qi from the spear’s edge grazed his collar. Qin Qingluo spotted this moment, raising her arm high. Standing on a single leg like a golden crane, she locked her eight-foot frame against the spear’s shaft, thrusting it downward with full force.

This strike disrupted Chen Yi’s original movement to close the distance.

He was forced to backstep, and the spear drove into the ground, its massive power shattering the stone tiles into jagged fragments, with cracks branching wildly.

Seeing Chen Yi retreat, Qin Qingluo curled her lips into a cold smirk:

"Turns out you’re only good at talking."

From the brief clash, she could discern that Chen Yi had also reached the Fourth Rank. Yet, since her breakthrough was more recent, her momentum surpassed his.

Both were Fourth Rank warriors, but his aura was weaker. With him wielding a blade and her holding a spear, the outcome seemed all but determined.