Wu Tong felt rage surge from the depths of his heart and said through clenched teeth,"Old Man of the Five Supremes, since you claim that in the martial world only skill matters, I won't waste words on righteousness anymore. Take up your weapon!"
The Five-Supremes Elder felt a sudden chill in his heart and his expression changed.The Jianghu had long rumored that the Hidden Dragon Blade Technique was unmatched under Heaven. At this moment, he could hardly turn and flee without disgrace. He shouted instead,"Boy! I, the Five-Supremes Elder, am proficient in claw, fist, palm, saber, and sword—five arts in all! That is why I am called the Five Supremes. Do you think I fear you?"
Wu Tong, furious that the old man had used treacherous tactics earlier, said coldly,"Enough nonsense. I'll count to three—then we fight!"
At that moment, the personal maid Li Hua stepped forward and asked,"Senior, will you use the sword or the saber?"
The Five-Supremes Elder replied,"Using the sword would be too much of an advantage against this boy. I'll use the saber."
Li Hua said gravely,"Bring the saber!"
Before long, members of the Western Sacred Cult respectfully brought forth a great saber. The Five-Supremes Elder took it, slashed twice through the air, then said in a low voice,"Boy, if not for 'Madman of the West' Situ Kong saving you earlier, you'd already be on your way to the Western Heaven!"
Wu Tong's eyes flickered as he understood at once. He gathered his qi, flipped into the air, and landed before him, saying coldly,"If not for your sneak attack, what real ability would you have? Very well—no more talk of righteousness. Once the Hidden Dragon Blade is drawn, your fate is your own!"
The Five-Supremes Elder pointed his saber at Wu Tong and said,"Don't be so smug. Whether you have real skill—I'll know once I test you!"
Indeed, one test would settle everything.
At that moment, the red sun stood high in the sky. The Five-Supremes Elder raised his hand; saber-light flashed as he spun dazzling arcs. The saber wind roared like a tiger, fierce as thunder. With a burst of force, the saber tip shot straight toward Wu Tong's Yutang acupoint on the chest.
Wu Tong drew the Hidden Dragon Blade. With a flick of his wrist, the two blades met. Both men poured in their inner strength and struck with full force—CLANG!
Their energies canceled out, and the blades flew apart. Each was forced back several steps.
Wu Tong stood firm, blade held crosswise. Suddenly, the Five-Supremes Elder leapt into the air and unleashed a move called "Splitting Mount Hua with One Saber." The saber carved a blazing arc from midair.
Wu Tong remained utterly calm, meeting motion with stillness. The enemy moves; I do not.Only when the saber edge neared his throat and chest did Wu Tong strike—his blade flashing like lightning. He reversed the saber in a fierce arc, his right wrist driving forward.
The Five-Supremes Elder hastily raised his saber to guard and shot backward. Wu Tong advanced like drifting clouds, pressing in relentlessly. His blade sank with crushing force—CLANG!
The Five-Supremes Elder's entire body shuddered. His tiger's mouth ached, his arm went numb, and the saber nearly flew from his grip. He staggered back several steps.
Though Wu Tong momentarily halted his attack, the saber wind surged like a collapsing mountain, forcing the elder to struggle just to stand.
Wu Tong smiled faintly and said,"Well? How is my skill?"
The Five-Supremes Elder's face darkened. He snapped,"Far inferior to my supreme saber art!"
Wu Tong laughed."Then take another blade!"
He inhaled sharply and shot upward, swift as lightning. Hanging midair, he slashed once—this strike appeared slow and direct, even clumsy. Yet inner power coursed fully through the blade, revealing Wu Tong's terrifying cultivation.
The Five-Supremes Elder was secretly alarmed. He twisted to the right, lifting his saber upward in a single smooth motion, dispersing the force. This was "Embrace the Saber and Draw Aside," executed perfectly—firm yet yielding, effortless and elegant.
Wu Tong's blade was deflected, yet he did not change position. His shoulder pulled back sharply as his right hand dragged the blade in reverse, rebounding the force. The elder shifted his stance, spun swiftly around Wu Tong's right side, and with a saber thrust that withdrew and extended like a serpent's tongue, stabbed toward Wu Tong's chest.
Wu Tong still did not move his footing. He lightly lifted his right foot, nudged aside with his wrist, and pivoted on his left toe, narrowly avoiding the thrust. With the rotation of his body, the Hidden Dragon Blade swept toward the elder's fingers.
The Five-Supremes Elder launched three more fierce attacks in rapid succession, but Wu Tong stood like an immovable mountain. His blade turned with contained force.
Knowing he faced the strongest enemy of his life, the elder gritted his teeth and poured out his true strength. His body fluttered like drifting silk—high, low, left, right—saber light flashing like a dragon's breath as he pressed forward with over ten consecutive strikes, a storm of wind and rain.
Wu Tong still did not move his feet. Using stillness to counter all change, he calmly absorbed the assault. To onlookers, the elder's attack looked ferocious, yet in truth there was no opening. Wu Tong yielded and adapted, blade after blade dissolving the force, steadily draining his opponent's inner power.
After more than thirty exchanges, the Five-Supremes Elder began to falter.
Wu Tong felt secret joy. With a sharp flick of his wrist, his blade tip turned as his body spun—saber wind roared. A move called "Single Blade Drives Straight In" shot forth, aiming directly for the elder.
The Five-Supremes Elder was horrified and hurriedly raised his saber to block.
At that instant, Wu Tong caught movement from the corner of his eye—two figures attacking simultaneously from left and right. He shouted,"Who comes?!"
His voice thundered through the mountains, ringing in everyone's ears. As he spoke, he surged upward several feet, shook both shoulders, inverted his body head-down, feet-up, and swept the Hidden Dragon Blade in a circular arc toward all three opponents.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Seizing the chaos, the Five-Supremes Elder turned and fled, leaping into the air with lightness skill, attempting to escape.
Wu Tong continued to hold off the other two with his saber and shouted,"Stay where you are!"
Before the words had faded, his left palm struck out through the air. Palm force burst forth like an invisible blade, smashing into the elder's back.
The Five-Supremes Elder let out a muffled groan and crashed heavily to the ground, blood spraying from his mouth like a fountain.
The crowd was stunned. A palm strike that missed—yet carried such terrifying power!
Wu Tong still held his blade on guard, wary of further treachery. The Five-Supremes Elder slowly struggled to his feet, staggering forward—every few steps coughing up blood.
Seeing how gravely injured he was, Wu Tong did not pursue further.
Only then did he look clearly: one attacker was none other than the Western Sacred Matron Chen Jinfeng. The other man, wearing a lotus-crowned headdress, could only be the White Lotus Cult Master.
Ling Xian'er could no longer contain herself and shouted angrily,"Western Sacred Matron! Why do you always rely on sneak attacks?!"
Wu Tong snorted coldly."They collude and conspire—wolves of the same den."
"Madman of the West" Situ Kong pointed at Chen Jinfeng and shouted,"You vicious woman! When you begged me to be your husband and failed, you tried to kill me! And now you've turned around and hooked up with another man! You shameless wretch—what do you have to say now?!"
Chen Jinfeng was furious beyond measure, smoke seeming to pour from her seven orifices.The White Lotus Cult Master, however, showed no embarrassment at all and said brazenly,"Situ Kong, you're not wrong. The Western Sacred Matron and I are kindred cultivators. We practice together—what's wrong with that?"
Situ Kong pointed again, cursing loudly,"You vicious woman! So you're not only cruel, but also wanton! I, Situ Kong, will no longer be your Western Sacred Father! From this day on, we go our separate ways forever!"