Chapter 62: Sea-Overturning Art

Blades and swords clashed as two figures in black robes darted and shifted across the arena.

Sword Qi scattered in all directions, while Blade Qi remained restrained, not a single strand spilling out.

After several minutes of intense entanglement, Jiang Changkong’s blade moved without a sound, leaving no trace in its wake.

The blade edge eerily bypassed the longsword and struck the opponent’s wrist.

Clang!

The longsword suddenly flew from the black-robed figure’s grasp. A sharp pain shot through their wrist, yet no visible wound appeared—only a sudden weakness.

Jiang Changkong’s movements accelerated, his blade now aimed directly at the throat.

In a desperate moment, the black-robed figure could only muster Star Power for defense.

Hum!

The Star Power dissipated instantly, cleaved apart by the blade. The edge halted just three inches from the black-robed figure’s throat. “You’ve lost.”

“Kill me, then,” the black-robed figure closed their eyes, body trembling slightly.

Jiang Changkong shook his head faintly. “Step down. I won’t kill you. Your hand—if treated now, it can still recover.”

The black-robed figure’s eyes snapped open, staring at him in shock. “You… won’t kill me?”

On the Life-and-death Arena, someone actually refrained from taking a life?

“Do you truly wish to die?” Jiang Changkong’s gaze turned cold.

“Thank you,” the black-robed figure dared not say more, turning to leave without even retrieving their longsword.

Jiang Changkong collected the sword, claiming it as his spoils of battle.

This could be sold for some Star Stones.

“What’s this? He didn’t kill?” The observing black-robed figures murmured in dissatisfaction.

Jiang Changkong ignored them. “Who’s next?”

“I’ll go.”

Another black-robed figure stepped forward, also at the Mid Star Sea Stage.

This time, Jiang Changkong took over ten minutes, finally landing a strike on the opponent’s leg. “Hand over your weapon.”

The black-robed figure complied without hesitation. Once again, Jiang Changkong spared their life.

Seeing Jiang Changkong refrain from killing, the onlookers grew increasingly displeased, but challengers no longer hesitated for long.

After all, there was no risk of death. If they won, they’d earn Star Stones; if they lost, they’d only need to spend a bit on healing.

One after another, black-robed figures took the stage. Jiang Changkong’s battles grew progressively longer. By the fifth opponent, it took him half an hour to barely secure a victory, severing the tendons in their right hand.

Panting heavily, Jiang Changkong confiscated the opponent’s blade—this one also wielded a saber.

“Step down,” Jiang Changkong gasped.

“Thank you…”

The black-robed figure bowed slightly but suddenly lunged forward, their intact left hand erupting with blinding Star Power.

“Seeking death.”

Jiang Changkong’s eyes turned icy. His figure blurred, his blade moving without a trace as it swept across the throat.

Thud!

The black-robed figure collapsed to the ground, lifeless.

“He’s dead? Killed without shedding blood?” The crowd, which had found the lack of killing dull, erupted in exclamations.

“Not just no blood—there isn’t even a wound,” a sharp-eyed black-robed figure observed.

Jiang Changkong’s breathing grew heavier. He sheathed his blade and upgraded his weapon—now a low-grade third-tier saber.

He preferred not to kill unnecessarily, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t.

“Five consecutive victories complete. Here are your Star Stones.”

A black-robed figure stepped onto the arena, retrieved a cloth pouch, and tossed it to Jiang Changkong.

Inside were fifteen Star Stones—ten as his reward, five as the challenge funds.

All were mid-grade third-tier.

Jiang Changkong didn’t leave the arena. After catching his breath, he declared, “Bet it all on me achieving ten consecutive victories.”

“Bet on himself for ten wins? Is he insane?”

“He’s already exhausted like this, and he still wants ten wins?”

The crowd erupted in disbelief, staring at Jiang Changkong as if he were mad.

Even the black-robed figure on the arena was taken aback. “Can you handle it?”

Attempting ten wins now was nothing short of suicidal!

“I can handle it. What are the odds?” Jiang Changkong asked calmly.

“Five to one—quite high. If you’re defeated, it’s one to one,” a black-robed figure stood up and replied.

“Good. Fifteen Star Stones, bet on my ten consecutive victories.”

Jiang Changkong tossed all the Star Stones over. If he won, that would be seventy-five, plus an additional reward of forty.

Ten consecutive victories would earn twenty more, making it one hundred and thirty-five stones in total!

“First time I’ve seen someone looking to die.”

A man in black directly rushed onto the stage. “I’ll fight you.”

Just now, Jiang Changkong had taken half an hour to defeat his opponent, so he must be nearly spent by now.

This time, Jiang Changkong continued to feign weakness, but not too severely. He defeated his opponent in twenty minutes and confiscated their weapon.

“I’ll go…”

“I’ll go…”

As one man in black after another stepped onto the stage, they were each taken down one by one.

Gradually, the crowd began to sense something was off. Damn it, was he really that exhausted?

After six consecutive victories, no one else stepped forward.

“You bastard, you were faking it?” the men in black below shouted angrily.

The gambling bookmaker was also stunned. With odds of one to five, this meant seventy-five stones were on the line.

“Yes, I was faking it.”

Jiang Changkong stopped panting, straightened his posture, and exuded a powerful surge of Star Power, showing little sign of exhaustion.

“Damn it, how dare you mess with us?”

Those who had bet on Jiang Changkong losing were filled with regret and roared in anger.

“If you have the guts, come up and fight.” Jiang Changkong’s sharp voice dripped with disdain.

The jeering crowd fell silent. The person before them was at the Mid Star Sea Stage—someone they couldn’t afford to provoke!

“If no one else steps forward, I will send someone up,” the man in black presiding over the stage said, his voice slightly cold.

“Fine.”

Jiang Changkong agreed and waited for his opponent.

With no one else volunteering, the man in black clapped his hands, and four men in black emerged from the crowd.

One of them stepped directly onto the stage—Mid Star Sea Stage.

“Come on.”

Jiang Changkong shouted softly, his blade sweeping out. Using eighty percent of his Star Power, he aimed to end this quickly.

The man in black’s sword gleamed as he parried the blade.

When blade met sword, the sword gleam quickly dissipated, and Blade Qi pierced through his defenses.

Clang

The longsword flew from his hand, and Jiang Changkong’s blade stopped at his throat. “You lose.”

Without a word, the man in black turned and left the stage.

The next man in black met the same fate in a single move.

Finally, the crowd recognized Jiang Changkong’s true strength—this was far beyond what someone at the Mid Star Sea Stage should possess!

For the final man in black, Jiang Changkong planned to end it with one strike as well. Three Blades Without Trace fell silently and without a trace.

Clang

A resounding clash echoed, and a damp aura spread.

Rainwater surged, forming a watery Vortex that blocked the blade before exploding into a shower of rain, scattering across the stage.

Jiang Changkong was slightly taken aback. He actually blocked it?

The man in black retreated, his longsword trembling as sword energy surged like a tide, but it didn’t pour forth all at once.

Instead, the tidal sword energy stacked upon itself, coalescing into a watery sword that slashed downward.

“This sword…”

Jiang Changkong was surprised but didn’t dare to lose focus. Three Blades Without Trace rose again to meet the watery sword.

Boom

The blade struck down, its force merging into the water flow, and the watery sword exploded directly.

The man in black unleashed a flurry of sword strikes, each wave of sword energy following the last, stacking like ocean waves.

“The school’s Sea-Subduing Art!”

Jiang Changkong was certain. He had read the detailed explanations of the school’s martial arts.

The school’s Sea-Subduing Art came with its own sword technique. Among those who had achieved such mastery, aside from the teachers, there was only one person—Lu Wuhai!

Of course, it could also be a student who had long since left the school. He wasn’t sure if it was Lu Wuhai.

“Now this is the real deal. This guy’s ten-win streak is about to end.”

The crowd below grew excited.

The man in black’s sword energy surged like waves, each strike stacking upon the last, only pausing at the seventh strike.

The seventh sword?

Jiang Changkong now had a clear understanding. The Sea-Overturning Sword Technique could stack up to nine swords. The person before him could stack seven, enough to shake even a late-stage Star Sea cultivator.

With his current Star Power, relying solely on Three Blades Without Trace and two Power Runes, he could block it, but it would drag on for a long time.

Thinking this, his Star Power surged, and his two Power Runes trembled. He added another two thousand units of Essence to Three Blades Without Trace and also upgraded the Bronze Skin Iron Bone Technique.

In their eyes, Jiang Changkong’s aura intensified, leaving them speechless once again.

“Damn it, he still had hidden strength.”

The crowd despaired.

The man in black was also stunned. After fighting for so long, you still had hidden strength?

Boom!

A single blade, unstoppable as crumbling decay, shattered the seven stacked sword energies. Its terrifying force caused the Void to burst apart.

As the blade descended, the man in black frantically channeled his Star Power to block the traceless blade.

Thud!

Splat!

Blood sprayed as the man in black was sent flying, landing outside the arena and crashing heavily to the ground, unable to get up for a long time.

Jiang Changkong had used most of his strength in that strike, leaving the man in black severely wounded.

“Ten consecutive wins—I’ve completed them,” Jiang Changkong said coldly.

“It’s over already? That was too fast.” The crowd was still dazed. Just as it was getting exciting, it suddenly ended.

“Congratulations on ten consecutive victories.”

The man in black reappeared with Star Stones and handed them to Jiang Changkong.

“You won.” The bookmaker also promptly paid up.

Jiang Changkong took the Star Stones but didn’t rush to leave. He jumped off the arena and walked into the crowd. “I’ll keep watching. Maybe I’ll play again later.”

The other men in black said nothing, each returning to their own activities.