Chapter 439: Speed and the Method to Break It

How is that possible?

This was the first thought that flashed through Jian Yi's mind.

He looked at Sheng Xia beside him. "Miss Sheng, did you move this?"

"No, no."

Sheng Xia hastily waved her hands. "It was like this from the beginning."

Jian Yi looked at her for a few seconds. Once he confirmed she wasn't lying, he turned back, gazing at the tea in the cup before him, and softly murmured, "This is getting interesting."

"That guy's eye for talent is as good as ever."

As soon as the words left his mouth, his figure vanished from the spot.

The three onlookers, including the Female Cook, looked excited. "He's going for the kill."

The trio knew very well that Jian Yi hadn't disappeared; he was simply moving so fast that a normal person's eyes couldn't track him.

Ignoring the three of them, Sheng Xia ran straight out the door.

Even she found it difficult to catch the burst of speed Jian Yi had just unleashed. He had blurred past her eyes like a shadow lasting only two or three frames.

That person had been right. The terrifying strength of the team once known as Zhoulin was far beyond their imagination.

If those people hadn't stubbornly gone their own way back then, perhaps it wouldn't have been their turn to become the six leaders of the First Ring Domain.

Outside, a few kilometers away.

Yan Jing looked at Jian Yi, who had suddenly appeared in front of him, and smiled. "Mr. Jian, is there something else?"

—

Jian Yi's face was calm as he spoke mildly. "Mr. Yan, I underestimated you just now."

"To express my apologies, I will give you two choices. The first is to participate in the trial normally, and let me see just how much of the 'Movement' mantra you managed to learn in those brief few minutes. The second is to skip the trial."

"We fight."

"Just as I said before—a fight to the death."

Yan Jing laughed. "It's a fight to your death, Mr. Jian."

Jian Yi lowered his eyes. "It seems you've made your choice."

"Then let's begin."

As soon as the words fell, a spray of blood erupted from Yan Jing's chest.

It was as if an invisible bullet had struck the skin there.

Yan Jing raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Such incredible speed, Mr. Jian."

Jian Yi also raised an eyebrow, his eyes filled with disbelief. "You really have exceeded my expectations."

In his mind, Yan Jing's ribs should have been shattered by now.

Yet only the skin had split. This meant his opponent's physical body was strong enough to almost entirely shrug off the attack without even putting up a deliberate defense.

"To be honest, I'm not even sure what level my physical body is at right now."

Yan Jing smiled. "You're pretty good, Mr. Jian."

The Potion of Heracles had aligned his physical strength with the absolute peak he was capable of displaying.

Yan Jing's current peak should be the Fear Bird, plus the Fear Stance Third Form, the Power of the White Stone, the Post-Death Resurrection Chongming State, the Immortal State of the Stone Immortal, and Moonlight's Blessing—

"Although pure strength isn't exactly the same as physical durability, the fact that you managed to gouge a half-centimeter wound into my chest is a testament to your power."

Jian Yi took a deep breath. "Now I understand how He Xinquan died by your hands."

"But it's still not enough."

With those words, a massive spray of blood exploded from Yan Jing's abdomen.

The blood carried a faint dark golden hue. The moment it splattered on the ground, thick swaths of weird energy rapidly spread out, constantly corroding the surrounding terrain.

The ground beneath them began to sink.

This time was different from the last.

It wasn't that Yan Jing hadn't defended himself.

In fact, there were red marks on both his chest and his throat.

Those were left by Jian Yi's strikes just a moment ago.

Yan Jing had mobilized his muscles to heavily defend his chest and throat.

But in that split second, after striking those two spots, Jian Yi had instantly changed direction and hit Yan Jing's abdomen.

That was what caused Yan Jing's injury.

Sheng Xia and the others arrived in a rush, witnessing this exact scene.

The Female Cook was somewhat surprised. "He actually didn't choose to strike the throat. Is he going easy on him?"

The Silk Scarf Man disagreed. "He probably just couldn't break through the defense. Look, that guy's throat is noticeably red and swollen."

The Old Man's eyes widened involuntarily. "Is his physical body really that strong?"

Only Sheng Xia watched the two men with a grave expression.

She didn't say a word.

She had a premonition that if one were to search all of Yueyin for the ten people most likely to defeat the six of them, the two men fighting before her would easily take two of those spots.

"Are you still not going to show me your true abilities?"

Jian Yi said mildly.

He enjoyed the feeling of crushing opponents with his absolute speed after they used everything they had to counter him. Yan Jing's complete lack of action left him with a trace of irritation.

Yan Jing laughed. "I have at least four ways to beat you, but I need a moment to decide which one to use."

Jian Yi narrowed his eyes. "Big words."

After that, neither of them spoke. They stood completely motionless, as though time itself had frozen.

"What's... wrong with them?"

The Female Cook asked in confusion.

With her eyesight, she could only make out a few black streaks constantly shifting back and forth between the two men. She had absolutely no idea what was happening.

Beside her, the Old Man and the Silk Scarf Man were similarly bewildered. They could see more, but still not the full picture.

Unable to make sense of it, the three of them turned to Sheng Xia for answers.

Sheng Xia took a deep breath, masking the shock in her eyes, and said slowly, "They're exchanging blows."

!!!

The trio was stunned.

Didn't that mean they couldn't even follow the attacks of the two men in the crater?

By now, Sheng Xia had gradually forgotten the three people beside her, her gaze turning heavier by the second.

In truth, she couldn't see clearly either. She could only vaguely sense a few phantom silhouettes clashing in the air.

For the most part, Jian Yi was on the offensive, while Yan Jing simply dodged.

Moreover, the streaks left by these phantom silhouettes were gradually decreasing in number, which meant both of their speeds were still increasing.

This continued for about a minute or two.

When Jian Yi came to a standstill and let out a breath of stale air, the onlookers realized this battle of offense and defense had finally ended.

They also quickly noticed that Jian Yi's expression was exceptionally ugly.

"How did you do that?"

Jian Yi looked at Yan Jing, his face dark as murky water. "Even if your physical speed limit can reach this level, your reaction speed shouldn't be anywhere near this fast."

Physical speed and neural speed.

This was Jian Yi's theory on speed.

Physical speed referred to the absolute limit your body could achieve, specifically manifesting in movement.

For example, if two people sprinted at their maximum speed, the one with greater physical speed would definitely hold the upper hand.

But neural speed was another matter entirely, and it was the key to why Jian Yi was so overwhelmingly strong.

In layman's terms, it was reaction speed.

Of course, aside from sheer reaction, there was also visual tracking speed and evasion speed—

Simply put:

Even if your physical speed was incredibly fast, if an entity only slightly slower than you swung a blade at you, you would still struggle to dodge if your reactions and eyesight weren't quick enough to process it.

Yet over the last minute or two, Yan Jing had somehow managed to dodge every single one of Jian Yi's attacks. It was unbelievable.

"Have you never been to the Fourth Ring Domain?"

Yan Jing smiled. "The Precognition Society has a manual on intuition over there. I highly recommend you check it out."

Intuition—

Jian Yi's expression soured even further. "Are you telling me you just relied on your sixth sense to shorten your reaction time?"

"Smart, Mr. Jian."

Yan Jing laughed. "Of course, if you still believe your speed is unrivaled in this world, feel free to prove it to me."

Above the crater, the Female Cook and the others were whispering among themselves.

"The Precognition Society's sixth sense—?"

"I thought that was just a supplementary skill?"

"Right? To be able to dodge this monster's attacks... Can that manual really push someone to this level...?"

Sheng Xia's eyes flickered with uncertainty.

She hadn't expected that fully mastering that manual could actually elevate someone to such heights.

Down in the crater.

Following Yan Jing's words, Jian Yi slowly clenched his right hand into a fist, and weird energy surged around his body.

Streaks of light bloomed into existence behind him.

Yellow-purple, purple-black, purple-black, black-orange, black-orange, red, red! Three limits, four perfections!

Seventh Rank!

(Note: The perfections are yellow-purple, purple, purple-black, black, black-orange, orange, red.)

At this moment, the former number three of Zhoulin finally revealed his full form.

Jian Yi's entire body blurred constantly, as if being wiped away by an eraser, until only a few simple lines and shifting shadows remained. Yet, one could clearly sense that he was still standing right there.

"You will regret this."

Jian Yi spoke slowly.

The lights of the first four Rites flared to life simultaneously.

In the next instant, Yan Jing's body was sent flying backward.

Jian Yi's physical speed had increased yet again.

This time, even though Yan Jing's intuition had anticipated it, he was still unable to keep up with Jian Yi's speed.

Immediately after, Yan Jing became like a target being endlessly pummeled in midair. No sooner had he been launched into the air than he was brutally slammed sideways, then battered diagonally downward, before finally being driven straight into the earth.

The relentless barrage of strikes seemed to rend space itself. The onlookers above the crater could even see ethereal white trails left lingering in the air.

Those were the scars of space being instantaneously sliced open and stitched back together.

"It's over."

The Female Cook muttered.

She hadn't expected Jian Yi—someone she had always considered to be on her level—to be this staggeringly powerful.

Although she had known he was stronger than her, seeing this now...

She had still been too conservative in her estimation.

The Silk Scarf Man and the Old Man beside her shared the same sentiment.

The Old Man remained silent for a few seconds before saying, "Even in the Outer Domain beyond Yueyin, an entity like him would absolutely be ranked among the best."

"If he steps into the Eighth Tier, I'm afraid even that person would find him a headache to deal with."

The other two remained noncommittal to the Old Man's words.

They knew the Old Man came from the Outer Domain, and that beyond Yueyin lay a vast, expansive world.

While Yueyin wasn't exactly the worst, there were certainly places far stronger than it.

Among the surrounding Twelve Domains, Yueyin was only considered lower-middle tier.

Not to mention there were other domains resting in the center.

However, Sheng Xia held a different opinion from the rest.

"It's not over yet—"

She murmured, sensing that Yan Jing's aura hadn't vanished. Instead—

It had grown even more intense.

"Truly impressive, Mr. Jian—"

Yan Jing's voice echoed from within the thick dust cloud. Heavy killing intent flashed in Jian Yi's eyes, and in the next instant, his figure suddenly materialized half a meter in front of the smoke—and then abruptly stopped dead in his tracks.

Under the bewildered gazes of the group above the crater, he crashed stiffly to the ground.

Yan Jing's dust-covered figure slowly emerged from the dense fog. Looking down at Jian Yi collapsed on the dirt, Yan Jing smiled. "But fortunately for me, Mr. Jian, you aren't familiar with my abilities."

Immediately, he reached out a hand to grab Jian Yi.

But right as Yan Jing was about to touch him, Jian Yi's figure suddenly vanished, reappearing hundreds of meters away.

He then stared gravely at Yan Jing.

Yan Jing chuckled. "It seems I'm not familiar with your abilities either, Mr. Jian."

"Indeed. For someone like you, having a life-saving skill is only natural."

"Then bring it on. Let's see how you handle my second method—"

As soon as he spoke.

A rapid series of camera shutter clicks rang out.

Peerless: Freeze Moment.

Without any suspense, Jian Yi's figure was once again frozen rigidly in place just a few meters in front of Yan Jing.

This time, Yan Jing didn't reach out; instead, he used the Fear Thorn.

Countless pitch-black spears rained down from the sky.

Jian Yi repeated his previous trick, vanishing and reappearing dozens of meters away, but he was still clipped by several of the falling spears.

With a muffled groan of agony, he fell from midair. It was as if every vein in his body had instantly bulged from the sheer pain, and tears of blood streamed from his eyes.

"An excellent ability, Mr. Jian."

Yan Jing laughed. "Paired with your speed, it's absolutely flawless."

"I just wonder how many times you can use it."

"And can your ability be used many times?" Jian Yi wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his crimson eyes glaring fiercely at Yan Jing. "Besides, I've already found the blind spot in your line of sight—"

Before his voice had even faded, his figure vanished once more, reappearing behind Yan Jing as though time itself had skipped a frame.

But just as the brass knuckles in his hand swung down, they unexpectedly hit nothing but air.

Dozens of meters away, Yan Jing smiled. "If my physical speed can't keep up, then I just have to use other methods."

"For example—"

Before he could finish, his own figure vanished as well.

Sensing something, Jian Yi's expression instantly changed, and he flashed dozens of meters away.

But countless threads rained down from above, stabbing directly into his body.

"Ah!" A wretched scream tore from his throat. He blinked dozens of meters away once more, yet this time, Yan Jing's methods clung to him like a shadow—

Up above the crater, the Female Cook and the others couldn't see what was happening at all.

They could only listen to the continuous screams ringing out as fresh blood ceaselessly dripped from the empty air.

This extremely bizarre and horrifying scene made their hair stand on end.

"Who's winning?"

The Female Cook swallowed hard and looked at Sheng Xia beside her.

Sheng Xia shook her head and didn't answer.

It wasn't that she didn't know.

It was just that there was no need to answer them anymore.

At this moment, she finally understood why that person was so determined to have Yan Jing escorted safely to the First Ring Domain.

This was a true heavenly prodigy. Even if he left Yueyin, he would shine brilliantly wherever he went—and all this was before he even had the backing of the First Ring Domain's resources.

For the first time, Sheng Xia, who had always been incomparably confident, felt a seed of doubt sprout in her heart.

If she hadn't been raised in the First Ring Domain, could she have ever reached Yan Jing's level?

Or perhaps, even with the support of the First Ring Domain's resources...

Could she, as she was now, truly defeat him?

That question had no immediate answer.

But the battle between Yan Jing and Jian Yi seemed to be reaching its conclusion.

A few minutes later.

Two figures came to a halt in midair.

Yan Jing looked mostly fine. His coat was covered in a layer of dust, and there were a few red, swollen marks across his skin.

His most severe injury was likely the initial wound left on his abdomen.

But even that was now almost completely healed.

On the other hand, Jian Yi was in a far more wretched state.

At this point, he resembled a man made of blood. His normally gentle face was battered beyond recognition. His entire body was covered in either jagged lacerations or bloody holes the size of bowls. The ends of several threads were still squirming inside his wounds, continuously devouring his flesh and blood.

Large swaths of his skin had vanished entirely, exposing the horrifying muscle fibers and blood vessels beneath.

"Haa... haa..."

As Jian Yi stared at Yan Jing, an imperceptible trace of fear lingered in his eyes.

He had just exhausted every trick in his arsenal, yet he still hadn't managed to escape Yan Jing's relentless pursuit.

His opponent possessed some sort of spatial traversal ability, which, when paired with that sixth sense, perfectly countered his own speed advantage.

Worse still, on top of those two factors, his opponent's physical strength was monstrous, and he would frequently unleash that line-of-sight stun ability.

This rendered the vast majority of Jian Yi's methods completely useless.

At this point, there was only one method left—

He slowly lifted his head and looked at Yan Jing.

Behind him, the crimson light representing the final Ritual suddenly flared to life.

In an instant, all the surrounding light coalesced around Jian Yi. Everything else seemed to dim as his entire body—from the tips of his hair to his toes—glowed with an ultimate, blinding radiance.

"Here it comes."

The Female Cook gulped. "The final strike he used to kill that Seventh Rank expert back then... this was it."

"Even the Lord Mayor said that he might not be able to keep up with his speed in this state."

Hearing this, Sheng Xia couldn't help but shiver.

For that person to say such a thing, the sheer power of this ability was self-evident.

Consequently, she couldn't help but fix her gaze intently on Jian Yi.

In the very next second.

Under the watchful eyes of the group.

Jian Yi's figure instantly vanished from his spot.

They didn't even have time to react.

It was only several seconds later, as they stared at the empty air...

...that they finally realized.

He was—

He had run away?!!