Night as Day

An hour later, finally!

Gu Qingfeng felt the timing was just right.

He let out a low shout and swung his sword again. This time, the swing was slow and steady, as if he was putting all his strength into this single strike.

As he swung the sword, Gu Qingfeng channeled the White Bone Demon Fire within his body.

Suddenly!

An extremely bright white light appeared on the blade!

Whoosh!

Gu Qingfeng suddenly accelerated, delivering a slash!

Boom!

The White Bone Demon Fire on the sword exploded.

Gu Qingfeng was instantly engulfed by pale flames.

In the next second, the White Bone Demon Fire returned to Gu Qingfeng's body, revealing his handsome face wearing a bitter smile.

"Failed."

Gu Qingfeng wasn't surprised; after all, it was a mid-grade mystic technique, how could it be that easy?

Even with his fire control talent, it wasn't something that could be achieved overnight - it also required sword talent.

However, thanks to his fire control talent, Gu Qingfeng's practice was at least dozens of times easier.

Moreover, failed attempts wouldn't result in fire backlash - his fire control talent made him fearless of all fires under heaven.

"Again!"

Gu Qingfeng swung his sword once more.

Boom!

He was again engulfed by flames.

"Again!"

...

And so, Gu Qingfeng swung his sword time after time, failing hundreds of times, until even his White Bone Demon Fire seemed to grow weary.

"One last time. If it fails again, it means the Single Strike Solar Sword technique isn't compatible with White Bone Demon Fire."

Gu Qingfeng swung his sword for the last time. Perhaps due to practice making perfect, this swing felt particularly right, as if a flash of inspiration had suddenly struck!

As he swung, the White Bone Demon Fire condensed on the blade again, making it blindingly bright!

An invisible, terrifying wave emanated from the blade, the air around it distorting from the heat.

Gu Qingfeng's eyes lit up: "This is the feeling!"

Single Strike... Solar Sword!

He delivered the strike!

An extremely thin, highly concentrated pale sword light suddenly appeared!

It was like a white line appearing in the dark world, a line containing terrifyingly explosive energy!

In that instant, dazzling white light burst forth from the white line, turning the night as bright as day. Terrifying heat spread in all directions, causing the lush grass on the ground to twist and curl.

This strike was like the breaking of dawn, like the rising sun, resembling the horizon line dividing sea and sky, as if splitting heaven and earth in half from top to bottom!

Whoosh!

The solar sword energy, like a white line, spread into the distance, resembling a divine being using the world as a canvas, drawing a single stroke across it!

Everything in its path - flowers, giant trees, oddly-shaped rocks, even the formless air itself - seemed to be cut in half as if by a laser.

A small mountain stood in the white line's path. As the line gently passed through, the entire mountain was cleanly cut at its waist. The upper half of the mountain slid down from the cut, creating an earth-shattering boom.

Fortunately, Gu Qingfeng's strike had been angled upward, so the white line flew higher and farther until it was out of sight. Otherwise, who knows how much environmental damage it would have caused.

Gu Qingfeng stared at the collapsing mountain, noting that the remaining half's cut surface was as smooth as a mirror.

This made him involuntarily draw in a sharp breath.

"This... this power is..."

Before Gu Qingfeng could finish speaking, suddenly from the distant sky... BOOM!!!

A thunderous explosion echoed throughout the entire Wutong Prefecture!

At that moment, countless people were startled awake, many even falling out of their beds. Before anyone could react, something even more shocking occurred.

An incredibly bright fireball appeared in the sky!

It was as if a sun had risen in the night sky, illuminating Wutong Prefecture as bright as day!

Gu Qingfeng stared at the distant sky in astonishment. He knew that was the final explosion of the White Bone Solar sword energy that had flown skyward, but he hadn't expected such an enormous disturbance!

This was the characteristic of the Single Strike Solar Sword - highly compressed energy followed by... detonation!

After a long while, the daylight-like brilliance gradually faded, and Gu Qingfeng finally came to his senses.

"Not good!"

Gu Qingfeng's expression suddenly changed as if realizing something, and he turned and fled without looking back, disappearing into the night.

Shortly after Gu Qingfeng left.

A mysterious figure suddenly appeared in the clearing where he had been, as if materializing from thin air.

The newcomer was a man in black clothing, with an imposing presence and sinister eyes fixed intently on the bisected mountain, his face filled with gravity.

If Gu Qingfeng could see this person's face, he would certainly have exclaimed in shock.

Wasn't this his direct superior?

Indeed, the arrival was none other than Li Qianren, the only Heaven-rank Demon Eliminator of the Demon Suppression Bureau in Wutong Prefecture, and an Innate Realm Master!

Li Qianren carefully examined the scene. He didn't bother searching for traces of the perpetrator, being a clever man, he knew that anyone capable of causing such a disturbance must be an Innate Realm Master, and by the time he arrived, the person would have already fled dozens of miles away.

Soon after his arrival, several more figures suddenly appeared with whooshing sounds.

They were shrouded in darkness, their faces unclear, but the terrifying energy waves emanating from them clearly indicated they were all Masters!

For a moment, all the Innate Realm Masters of Wutong Prefecture had gathered in one place.

These Masters looked at the scene before them, all wearing grave expressions.

"Such powerful demon energy, it must be a demon of the Innate level," one Master said solemnly.

"No," Li Qianren suddenly spoke: "Not a demon, but a demon cultivator, from the Blood Demon Cult. This is the aura of White Bone Demon Fire, there's no mistake. The method to cultivate White Bone Demon Fire is unique to the Blood Demon Cult."

"White Bone Demon Fire! Blood Demon Cult! I've heard White Bone Demon Fire is the signature technique of White Bone Elder, but with such power, could it be that White Bone Elder has advanced to Master level?"

"Damn it, so the Blood Demon Cult has another Master. The righteous path wanes while demon power grows - this situation doesn't favor us!"

"It's not White Bone Elder," Li Qianren said coldly.

"This was caused by White Bone Demon Fire combined with swordplay. White Bone Elder doesn't practice sword techniques."

"White Bone Demon Fire combined with swordplay!?" a Master suddenly exclaimed.

"White Bone Demon Fire is the epitome of yin and evil, fierce and mysterious. How could it possibly be integrated into swordplay? What kind of terrifying fire control ability would that require? Can anyone really achieve such a level?"

"My judgment won't be wrong," Li Qianren continued: "This person must be a Blood Demon Cult Master who excels in both swordplay and fire control."

Hearing Li Qianren's assessment, the others chose to believe him, after all, he was the Heaven-rank Demon Eliminator of the Demon Suppression Bureau, an expert in such matters.

"Moreover, if I'm not mistaken, this sword technique should be the Single Strike Solar Sword of the Demon Suppression Bureau!"

"What! Doesn't this mean the perpetrator has been to the Demon Suppression Bureau? Or that there are spies within?"

Li Qianren nodded, saying concisely: "Correct."

"Then, Brother Li, what do you think this Blood Demon Cult Master's purpose was in coming to Wutong Prefecture and doing this?"

Li Qianren's lips suddenly curled into a cold smile: "I can guess their intention."

"What intention?" a Master asked curiously.

"I can't say."

After these words, Li Qianren vanished into the night.

Leaving behind the speechless Masters.

After a long while, someone finally smiled helplessly and said: "Brother Li's personality... is still so..."

In the end, even that person didn't finish their sentence, perhaps fearing Li Qianren hadn't gone far.