Rise of the Sword Son-in-Law

Three days later, Xu Ping'an set down his shield and let out a slight breath. "Unloading Force, Borrowing Force, Bursting Force, Brutal Force — I've already mastered these four moves and combined them with Arhat Fist to create six shield combat techniques of my own," Xu Ping'an said with a smile. His gains over these three days could truly be described as enormous. While the Xuanwu Earth-Shaking Shield was not bad, it wasn't truly suited for him. The six moves he had now created were the ones genuinely tailored for him. These six moves were: Perfect Defense, Xuanwu Crashing Mountain, Furious Storm, Heaven Splitting Earth Shattering, Mount Tai Overhead, Xuanwu Treading Void. Xu Ping'an named this set of shield techniques: Xuanwu Arhat Shield. "I've created the shield technique. Next step is to temper it through some real combat," Xu Ping'an mused to himself. He planned to challenge the top five elites on the elite ranking. Of course, he didn't intend to challenge Li Qingyi just yet; however, he planned to challenge the other four one by one. First, to secure a spot in the Sect's grand competition, and second, to temper his shield technique. Of course, the shield technique was secondary; swordsmanship was his foundation. He had already completely mastered the first move of the Sky-breaking Sword Decision, Mountain-breaking. Next was Sea Slicing. The power of Sea Slicing was far greater than Mountain-breaking, and it also required the release of True Qi. So, before the grand competition of the Sect, he had to do his best to break through to the Meridian Opening Realm to truly unleash the power of Sea Slicing. "First, I'll challenge Tong Shan, fifth on the elite ranking, Third Rank First Layer Realm — barely suitable," Xu Ping'an said with a laugh. Following that, Xu Ping'an went to the Elders' Hall and submitted his challenge application. The moment the challenge was issued, the whole Beichen Sword Sect instantly buzzed with excitement. "Have you heard? That Xu Ping'an is challenging Tong Shan?" "Yeah, I heard that after Tong Shan broke through to the Third Rank, he used the power of elixirs to reach the intermediate stage of the Third Rank First Layer. He's extremely powerful. Who is this Xu Ping'an to dare challenge him?" "You don't know Xu Ping'an? He's the guy who just got promoted to elite disciple, ranking thirteenth on the elite board." "Ranking thirteenth and daring to challenge Tong Shan, has this guy gone mad?" ... The entire Beichen Sword Sect suddenly became lively. News of Xu Ping'an's challenge to Tong Shan quickly spread throughout the entire Sect. The whole Sect was instantly in an uproar. A Second Rank Ninth Layer challenging a Third Rank First Layer? This was an unprecedented event, and no one thought well of Xu Ping'an's chances, given Tong Shan's overwhelming strength. Even the elite disciples were suddenly agitated. "Brother Tong, this Xu Ping'an is too audacious, actually daring to challenge you. I think he's just doing it for show, to make a name for himself. Even if he loses to you, being at Second Rank Ninth Layer, he doesn't stand to lose much." Fang Yu, who ranked eighth on the elite list, said angrily. In this period, he had leveraged the Sect's resources to also break through to the late stage of the Second Rank Ninth Layer. But even so, he was no match for Tong Shan with a single move. Now, hearing that a newly promoted elite disciple at the initial stage of Second Rank Ninth Layer was challenging Tong Shan, he felt that the other party was just seeking attention and wanted to ride on Tong Shan's coattails to fame. "He's merely a clown. Brother Tong needn't take him seriously. When the time comes, make his loss miserable and turn him into a joke," suggested Guan Lin, ranked ninth, with a laugh. The proud young man sitting in the main seat frowned slightly, "Is this Xu Ping'an the same outer sect disciple who was quite close to Li Qingyi during the Sect's trial?" "Now that you mention it, that seems right. He was just an outer sect disciple back then? No wonder I don't remember him much. Brother Tong, however confident you are, you must not take this lightly," Guan Lin said, surprised. "So what if his cultivation is fast, his level is clear for all to see; how could he possibly be a match for Brother Tong Shan, the important point is his relationship with Li Qingyi," Fang Yu looked towards Tong Shan. Guan Lin also came to a realization at this moment. Indeed! Tong Shan had always admired Li Qingyi. But Li Qingyi had never given him so much as a proper glance. Now that Xu Ping'an was so close to Li Qingyi, it's likely Tong Shan didn't feel too good about it. "Hmph, I want to see just who this person is that can win Li Qingyi's attention. Daring to challenge me, I hope he doesn't disappoint me," Tong Shan sneered coldly, his gaze becoming icy. Originally, he had not taken such a jumping clown seriously; now that the other party had come seeking a beating, he wouldn't mind teaching him a lesson. At the same time, let Li Qingyi see that he, Tong Shan, was much stronger than any stray cat or dog. Guan Lin and Fang Yu exchanged a glance, both chuckling inwardly. It looked like that guy named Xu Ping'an was in for a hard time. ... Meanwhile, in the highest grand hall of the sect. The Great Elder Zhao Tianlong was playing chess with Dugu Tianyu. Zhao Tianlong, with his white hair, donned a Taoist robe and wore a wooden hairpin, exuding the air of an immortal. His cultivation had reached the Fourth Rank Ninth Layer peak and was just one step away from breaking through to the Fifth Rank. But that one step had stumped him for a full ten years. "Great Elder, I heard that Xu Ping'an challenged Tong Shan?" Dugu Tianyu remarked with a smile while making a move on the chessboard. "Yes, the sect is already abuzz with the news. Xu Ping'an, who has just broken through to the Second Rank Ninth Layer initial stage, actually dared to challenge Tong Shan, who is at the Third Rank First Layer intermediate stage. Even if he were a reincarnated powerhouse, it doesn't mean he can ignore this level discrepancy," said the Great Elder. "So the Great Elder thinks Xu Ping'an won't win? Let's not forget that he killed Guan Qing, who was at the Third Rank Second Layer Realm peak," Dugu Tianyu said. "Of course I haven't forgotten, but his killing of Guan Yu was done using a kind of swordsmanship that gathers momentum over time; the longer it builds, the more powerful it becomes. Having just executed this technique, how could he have had time to build up for a second strike? I fear he may not be able to deliver a second sword," the Great Elder shook his head. The many elders were also very concerned about Xu Ping'an's killing of Guan Qing. So they asked Li Qingyi for a detailed account and instantly understood everything once they found out Xu Ping'an had used a Sword Nurturing Technique. The Sword Nurturing Technique is considered a trump card. The Beichen Sword Sect also had similar sword techniques; such techniques can only be used once. They could be considered as trading time for power, adversely affecting one's own cultivation, which is why generally they didn't encourage disciples to practice them. However, Dugu Tianyu just laughed upon hearing this, "I actually think Xu Ping'an will win this time. His character doesn't seem impulsive, and according to my prediction, he will have a place among the top five of the sect." "The sect leader is overestimating him," Zhao Tianlong shook his head. "Not overestimating, but recognizing his strength. He has cultivated the Sky-breaking Sword Decision, which means he has stepped into the Third Layer Extreme Realm and achieved four meridians fully connected. This shows that he is neither arrogant nor impetuous, and I am afraid that in this battle, he might be able to display a second sword," Dugu Tianyu said. "A second sword, if he really can execute a second sword, then perhaps he truly could defeat Tong Shan, but it's very difficult," Zhao Tianlong exclaimed in surprise. The Sky-breaking Sword Decision is extremely powerful! Even they wouldn't dare underestimate this sword technique. "Let's wait and see, Great Elder, you've lost," Dugu Tianyu placed his piece on the chessboard. "I'll stop here!" Zhao Tianlong looked at the chessboard, his expression changing, eventually throwing in the towel and admitting defeat. This was already the tenth game and he hadn't won a single one; it was too shameful. Dugu Tianyu smiled and said, "The challenge is about to begin, let's go watch." With that, the two of them headed straight for the practice arena.