Lin Feng released his dark martial soul to the extreme, his body drenched in sweat, and his breathing almost stopped.
Too strong, this sword qi penetrates heaven and earth, like ten thousand swords firing at once, the sound of the sword qi tearing through the air even drowning out the thunder.
Lin Feng was also incredibly shocked as he wielded the sword. The powerful sword qi coming from all directions had reached an unpredictable level. At this moment, he could not even stop; if he did, he would be torn to pieces by the sword qi. This was a situation Lin Feng himself had never expected.
"How could it be so strong?" Lin Feng's mind raced. This powerful sword qi was far beyond what he could release with his current strength. Even a Spirit Martial Realm expert might not be able to achieve this level.
"Since I started the Thunder Sword Technique, each sword stroke accumulated, the sword qi growing stronger, until it reached this point." Lin Feng's hands did not stop, and he muttered to himself.
"Having reached this point, the sword qi has transformed into a force, a force of the sword, an unstoppable force."
"Han Man, though only at the eighth level of the Qi Martial Realm, seems to merge with the earth with each step, borrowing the force of the earth. It is precisely because of this force that he can exchange three punches with a ninth-level Qi Martial Realm expert and even force him back."
Lin Feng suddenly thought of Han Man's battle with the ninth-level Qi Martial Realm expert, a glimmer of understanding rising in his heart. He had thought Han Man could borrow the force of the earth because of his Earth Martial Soul, but now Lin Feng realized he might have been wrong. The force is everywhere, just like now, the sword has become a force, unstoppable.
Also, when he struck the bells and drums with the Nine Waves, they rebounded the Nine Waves' attack. When he struck them with the Thunder Sword, they rebounded the Thunder Sword's attack.
After all, these eight bells and drums originally had no offensive power. The rebound of the Nine Waves was due to borrowing the force of the Nine Waves, and the rebound of the Thunder Sword was due to borrowing the force of the Thunder Sword.
"Force!" A smile appeared on Lin Feng's face, and his movements changed, the heavy sword technique becoming light and graceful, as calm as a breeze.
...
At the Wind and Cloud Gorge, on the Life and Death Platform, two figures descended from the sky.
Seeing these two, the disciples of the Cloud Sea Sect all straightened their gazes, a sense of tension rising in their hearts. They were shocked; the Great Phoenix Prince of the Bright Moon Sect, one of the eight great princes of Snow Moon Country, had actually moved the Sect Master and the Great Elder.
"Sect Master, Great Elder." Everyone bowed together, respectfully welcoming the two leaders of the Cloud Sea Sect.
"Prince Zhanpeng greets Sect Master Nangong and Elder Mo." Chu Zhanpeng stepped forward, slightly bowing, his handsome face still smiling.
"How is Sect Master Chu?" Nangong Ling nodded at Chu Zhanpeng, standing casually but with the demeanor of a master.
"Nangong Ling, the youngest Sect Master of the Cloud Sea Sect, though your current strength is not yet as great as my father's, your casual stance gives me such a powerful pressure, truly extraordinary." Chu Zhanpeng's face was calm, but he was secretly surprised. Nangong Ling was the most outstanding disciple of the Cloud Sea Sect in a hundred years, ascending to the position of Sect Master at the age of forty, with a great reputation.
"Reporting to Sect Master Nangong, my father is well. He asked me to greet Sect Master Nangong when I came." Chu Zhanpeng's father was the current Sect Master of the Bright Moon Sect.
Nangong Ling nodded slightly, then said with displeasure, "Mo Xie, Prince Dapeng is a guest from afar, why are you making him stand here?"
"Reporting to Sect Master, Prince Dapeng is here for our Cloud Sea Sect's outer sect disciple, Lin Feng." Mo Xie understood Nangong Ling's meaning and immediately explained Chu Zhanpeng's purpose.
"For an outer sect disciple?" Nangong Ling's brows furrowed, but then he heard Chu Zhanpeng say, "Sect Master Nangong, Lin Feng is the nephew of my junior sister's father. He disrespects his elders, not only injuring his cousin but also insulting his uncle, my junior sister's father. Therefore, my junior sister has come to resolve this matter."
Chu Zhanpeng did not dare to be too presumptuous in front of a sect master and did not directly ask Nangong Ling to hand over Lin Feng, but spoke tactfully. However, Nangong Ling, being who he was, could not fail to understand the situation.
"Mo Xie, how did you handle this matter?" Nangong Ling asked.
Mo Xie did not directly answer Nangong Ling's question but secretly glanced at the Great Elder standing beside him.
"Reporting to Sect Master, this disciple disrespects his elders and is a great rebel. I plan to expel him from the sect."
Mo Xie responded cautiously. If he directly said he would hand Lin Feng over to Chu Zhanpeng, it would certainly displease Nangong Ling. After all, Lin Feng was still a member of the Cloud Sea Sect, and he could not be handed over to the Bright Moon Sect at will. However, if he said he would expel him from the sect first, then the matter would no longer concern the Cloud Sea Sect. Mo Xie's words were indeed venomous.
Nangong Ling's brows slightly raised; he, of course, knew what Mo Xie meant.
"Sect Master, this person's actions are a disaster for our Cloud Sea Sect. Mo Xie is considering the best interests of the sect," Great Elder Mo Canglan interjected.
Everyone around was crystal clear. They thought Lin Feng was finished. Mo Canglan, the enforcement elder of the Cloud Sea Sect, held a high position and was also the father of Inner Sect Elder Mo Xie. With him speaking, Lin Feng's fate was predictable.
"An outer sect disciple." Nangong Ling muttered to himself, shaking his head inwardly. He did not agree with Mo Xie's approach, but as the Sect Master, he could not offend Mo Canglan, a senior of the Cloud Sea Sect, over an outer sect disciple. He could only sacrifice Lin Feng.
Just as Nangong Ling was about to agree, a distant and clear sound came from afar, like the evening drum and morning bell, resonating in everyone's hearts.
The crowd's gazes focused, puzzled, searching for the source of the sound. Nangong Ling's heart trembled, a sharp light flashing in his eyes. This was... the sound of the bells and drums.
Mo Canglan was equally shocked, a sharp light flashing in his eyes as he looked toward the palace on the peak. There, on a cliff face, the sound of the bells and drums had not been heard for a hundred years.
"Clang..." Another soul-stirring sound of the bells and drums echoed, like a heavenly melody.
"This is... the second sound!" Nangong Ling's eyes first flashed with shock, then a smile appeared. The most talented disciples of the sect were all here, and the sound of the bells and drums undoubtedly announced the rise of another brilliant talent in the Cloud Sea Sect.
Nangong Ling's mood, which had been less than ideal due to Chu Zhanpeng, was now somewhat excited. For over a hundred years, the bells and drums on the cliff face had never sounded, but today, he witnessed two sounds of the bells and drums.
"I wonder which disciple could pass the test of the bells and drums on the cliff face." Nangong Ling thought to himself, pondering who had sounded the bells and drums, seemingly forgetting the matter at hand.
"Clang..." The third sound of the bells and drums reverberated in the sky above the Cloud Sea Sect. At this moment, almost everyone in the Cloud Sea Sect looked toward the direction of the precipice. Most disciples only knew the sound came from there, but the higher-ups of the Cloud Sea Sect knew that only the sound of the bells and drums on the cliff face could be so distant and soul-stirring.
Nangong Ling also stared blankly at the direction of the precipice. Three sounds of the bells and drums, the third one appearing. Tracing back a thousand years of the Cloud Sea Sect's history, it seemed that the bells and drums had only sounded three times three hundred years ago!
"Phew..." Nangong Ling exhaled a long breath, a look of wild joy flashing in his eyes. The youngest Sect Master of the Cloud Sea Sect seemed to see the rise of the sect.