Therefore, no one in the martial arts world wants to miss this great opportunity to witness this ultimate showdown.
In short, Wushuang City was bustling with activity today. The battle between Li Yao and the Sword Saint could be described as a martial arts extravaganza that was rarely seen in a century.
Chapter 226 Destroying Heaven and Earth, Sword Twenty-Three
Outside Wushuang City, there was a huge, makeshift arena.
Li Yao knew that his battle with the Sword Saint would inevitably produce immeasurable destructive power.
Therefore, he specially ordered people to build a huge arena.
This arena is 100 zhang long and 100 zhang wide, with an area equivalent to 15 football fields.
In this way, the internal energy he releases when fighting the Sword Saint will not affect the onlookers.
At this moment, the leaders of various gangs and well-known heroes of the martial arts world gathered in front of the arena.
Before they even witnessed the ultimate showdown, these people were already stunned by the enormous arena before them.
They had never seen such a huge arena before.
"Hehe, this is the first time I've ever seen such a big arena."
"Does this Li Yao really think that his battle with the Sword Saint will produce earth-shattering power that will affect us spectators?"
"Even if the power they generate during their fight is astonishing, there's no need to build such a large arena."
"Exactly, he overestimated his abilities."
"..."
Most of the people present were laughing at Li Yao, thinking that he had done something unnecessary.
Not to mention that everyone present was a renowned figure in the martial arts world, possessing superb martial arts skills and profound internal strength.
Even if Li Yao and the Sword Saint are extremely powerful, the aftershocks of their battle wouldn't reach such a far distance.
Therefore, many people believe that Li Yao overestimated his abilities.
While they were mocking Li Yao, they were also discussing the outcome of this epic showdown.
Sword Saint Dugu Jian has been famous for a long time, and is even as famous as the martial arts legend Wuming. They are known as "Wuming in the South, Sword Saint in the North".
Moreover, Dugu Jian had an extremely high talent for swordsmanship. He was a born sword fanatic. He started learning swordsmanship at the age of five, became famous at the age of nine, and fully comprehended the way of the sword at the age of thirteen.
Such exceptional talent is rare in the world today.
As for Li Yao, no one had ever heard of him before; he had only recently emerged in the martial arts world.
Although he killed Dugu Yifang in one fell swoop and also defeated the attack of 50,000 troops of the World Society.
However, Dugu Jian could also achieve such a feat.
Therefore, most people are particularly optimistic about Dugu Jian, believing that he has the greatest chance of winning this battle.
However, the people of Wushuang City generally believed that their city lord would win this battle.
After the battle three days ago, Li Yao has become a legend in their hearts.
At this moment, Li Yao sat alone in the center of the arena.
All the martial arts practitioners watching the battle gathered in front of the arena.
They discussed today's duel while waiting for Dugu Jian's arrival.
Before we knew it, it was noon, and the time for the duel had arrived.
However, Dugu Jian, one of the main figures in this duel, has yet to appear.
The martial arts practitioners present couldn't help but shift their discussion to why Dugu Jian hadn't appeared yet.
"The Sword Saint hasn't shown up yet. Could it be that he's scared?"
"Absolutely not, it must be that the Sword Saint is on his way and something has delayed him."
“Indeed, the Sword Saint’s swordsmanship has reached a state of perfection, and he will not be afraid of a mere greenhorn who has just started out.”
"..."
Although the Sword Saint has not yet appeared, people in the martial arts world still have great confidence in him.
Another half hour passed, the duel was over, and the Sword Saint still hadn't appeared. Some people were starting to get impatient.
At this moment, Master Ma, who was maintaining order around the arena, jogged to the center of the arena, bowed, and asked Li Yao for instructions:
"Lord of the City, the appointed time has passed. Shall we announce the end of this duel, declaring that the Sword Saint feared your divine might and dared not fight, thus losing without a battle?"
Li Yao closed his eyes and sat quietly, saying calmly, "No need, I believe Dugu Jian will not break his promise."
Master Ma hesitated for a moment, then withdrew.
Meanwhile, five miles away on the road, four figures were slowly walking towards the arena.
These four people were none other than Dugu Jian, Dugu Ming, and two others.
At this moment, Dugu Jian was walking unsteadily, as if he might collapse at any moment.
Dugu Ming and Dugu Meng tried to help Dugu Jian up several times, but Dugu Jian shook them off each time.
Three days ago, Dugu Jian had personally witnessed the terrifying move 'Three Slashes of Avici Hell'.
He was deeply shocked!
That move, 'Three Slashes of Avici Hell,' was a simple move, but it had no flaws whatsoever.
He never expected that Li Yao's skill in swordsmanship would be so high.
Since he issued the challenge to Li Yao, he has been racking his brains for the past three days, trying to figure out how to counter this move.
Unfortunately, he never thought of that.
In fact, his efforts to find a solution exhausted him, causing him to age more than ten years overnight.
This greatly shocked Dugu Meng and Dugu Ming.
They had no idea that their uncle had aged so quickly.
Does Uncle have absolutely no confidence in this competition?
How could that be!
Their uncle is a renowned sword saint.
However, their uncle's worried expression made them doubt whether he could defeat Li Yao.
Although they desperately wanted to avenge their father.
However, they did not want their last relative to die in the process of revenge.
Given Dugu Jian's current condition, going into battle this time would be tantamount to suicide.
Therefore, they tried their best to persuade their uncle not to go to war anymore.
However, Dugu Jian was determined to go to war.
He is a dignified sword saint; how could he retreat without a fight?
Moreover, he was the one who initiated the challenge against Li Yao in this competition.
Moreover, he also wanted to defeat Li Yao and reclaim Wushuang City in front of the whole world.
Now, Dugu Jian is old and frail, his appearance haggard, like a candle flickering in the wind.
However, he knew all too well that a swordsman's ultimate fate should be to be shattered to pieces in battle.
That's a worthy death!
It would be absolutely impossible for him to hide away and eke out a living.
Therefore, even when he was exhausted, his belief in going into battle remained unwavering.
As he walked, he suddenly stopped.
Dugu Meng quickly asked, "Uncle, have you thought it through and decided to give up the battle?"
Dugu Jian remained silent.
Suddenly, his eyes, which had been dim, suddenly shot out two beams of light.
At the same time, a soaring sword intent was released from his body.
In an instant, something earth-shattering happened!
At the same time, Li Yao, who was resting with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them and murmured, "It's finally here!"
"I've arrived. I'm sorry to have kept you all waiting."
Immediately, a dazzling sword light burst through the sky and stood proudly in mid-air above the arena, its body radiating brilliant light.
It was Dugu Jian.
However, the terrifying and unparalleled sword intent that erupted from his body instantly enveloped the entire arena.
The martial arts practitioners present all changed their expressions drastically, and the energy within their bodies surged violently.
The Sword Saint unleashed such terrifying sword intent the moment he appeared.
Truly worthy of being called the Sword Saint!
"Sword Twenty-Three?"
"He has actually mastered Sword Twenty-Three!"
Li Yao was quite surprised.
In the original novel, Dugu Jian was on his way to the Three-Part Training Ground when, just before he was about to die, he suddenly comprehended the Twenty-Three Swords Technique and used his primordial spirit to separate from his body to fight Xiong Ba, while his physical body remained on the plank road outside.
Unexpectedly, Dugu Jian still managed to comprehend Sword Twenty-Three.
In other words, the Dugu Jian before us now is only in his primordial spirit state; his physical body is still elsewhere.
In fact, at the moment Dugu Jian's primordial spirit left his body, his physical body was already in a state of neither life nor death, essentially a vegetable.
He was sustained entirely by a powerful will.