Baruch Rising_Book 3 of the Coiling Dragon Saga Page 19

“Wharton, are you okay?” Gates asked.

  “I’m fine.” Wharton put his hand against his chest, the taste of blood in his mouth. He stared at Linley in disbelief. “Big Bro is releasing his battle-qi, but I only touched the outermost perimeter. How could the power be so intense?”

  Wharton didn’t believe it. The battle-qi density closer to Linley was far higher, and it would most likely be far more dangerous as well.

  “Wharton, his Lordship still hasn’t stopped his training despite what just happened. Clearly, he must be at a critical juncture in his training. It’s best if we don’t disturb him,” Barker said seriously.

  Wharton nodded as well. “I will order the guards to prevent anyone from disturbing him.”

  “No need. Haeru and I will look after him,” Bebe said disdainfully. “You can leave now. If the Boss doesn’t finish his training, don’t disturb him.”

  Wharton, Barker, and the others glanced at each other, then left.

  At the same time, Wharton and Barker instructed everyone else not to interrupt Linley’s training. That night, at dinner, Jenne, Nina, and the others were all astonished at how hard Linley was training.

  “He’s training so hard that he won’t even eat dinner. Big lunk, your Big Bro really is hard working.” Nina murmured.

  But unexpectedly, the second day, Linley continued to train like this. The third day, the same… and just like that, one day after another went by.

  In the blink of an eye, over ten days passed. May had arrived.

  “In a few more days, it will be time for the duel between Olivier and Haydson. My Big Bro wouldn’t be so caught up in his training that he will miss it, would he?” Wharton said to Barker and his brothers.

  Wharton, Barker, and his brothers were all standing at the doorway to the courtyard.

  Every day, after they finished their training, they would come visit Linley. Linley hadn’t changed at all, and he was still surrounded by that azurish-black battle-qi. Only, compared to ten days past, that azurish-black battle-qi had actually shrunk quite a bit in area.

  “I wonder how Big Brother’s training is progressing.” Wharton simply couldn’t understand what he was seeing.

  Barker and his brothers shook their heads as well. In terms of level of understanding, Barker and his brothers weren’t much better off than Wharton, and weren’t able to understand much of anything regarding the Elemental Laws.

  “Whew.” The sound of an exhaling breath.

  Wharton and the Barker brothers, who had just turned and prepared to leave, all turned and looked back. Indeed, the azurish-black battle-qi had returned to Linley’s body, and Linley was currently smiling while stretching.

  “Wharton, you are here as well.” Linley laughed.

  “Big Bro, you finally finished your training,” Wharton said with excitement.

  “Oh, right. Wharton, how much time have I spent in training?” Linley laughed.

  “Almost fifteen days! Today is May 1st. In three days, it will be May 4th. That night, Olivier and Haydson will be dueling,” Wharton said quickly.

  “Fifteen days?”

  Linley was slightly startled. Actually, he had been completely concentrating on sensing the ‘Throbbing Pulse of the World’ and constantly modifying and upgrading his Pulseguard Defense technique. He hadn’t noticed time pass at all.

  Unexpectedly, after closing his eyes, fifteen days had passed.

  “Although I already had a high understanding of the ‘Throbbing Pulse of the World’ and also understood the general principles behind the Pulseguard, the actual development of the technique took fifteen days.”

  But Linley was actually quite satisfied.

  In the past, his ‘battle-qi armor’ was created through the application of battle-qi in a very simple, crude manner. His current ‘Pulseguard Defense’ used the same amount of battle-qi, but was several dozen times stronger.

  “But it seems my defense is different from Haydson’s.”

  When he was developing his technique, Linley had thought their techniques were the same. But after developing it, Linley realized… that Haydson’s defense was actually just a simple way of utilizing the ‘Throbbing Pulse of the World’. Haydson’s understanding of the Throbbing Pulse of the World definitely was not as deep as Linley’s own level of understanding.

  However, Haydon’s defense was still frightfully powerful.

  This was because the ‘Throbbing Pulse of the World’ was just a supportive part of Haydson’s defense. His true power most likely lay in a different mystery of the Laws of the Earth.

  “I wonder how my pure ‘Pulseguard Defense’ technique matches up against Haydson’s defense,” Linley secretly wondered to himself.

  “Big Bro, what are you thinking about? Let’s go eat dinner,” Wharton called out.

  “Alright.”

  Linley turned to look at Bebe and Haeru. “Bebe, Haeru, let’s go.” Linley could guess that Bebe and Haeru hadn’t left his side during these past fifteen days.

  “And here I was thinking that the Boss had forgotten about us.” Bebe hopped onto Linley’s shoulders, then pursed his lips. “But Boss, I’ve gotta say, although we haven’t left the courtyard a single time during these past ten or so days, those servants still delivered food to us every day. Alas, but tonight, nobody will deliver food. I, Bebe, will have to personally go get something to eat.”

  Linley, Wharton, and Barker and his brothers all couldn’t help but laugh.

  24

  Olivier vs Haydson

  Yulan calendar, year 10009. May 4th. This night was guaranteed to be anything but an ordinary night. Many of the people of the imperial capital were unable to sleep, and instead came to the outskirts of the city. Tonight, there were no stars in the sky, nor was there a bright moon. Instead, a thick layer of clouds covered the skies.

  Many citizens of the imperial capital had come with lit lanterns. In groups of three and five, they awaited the arrival of this battle.

  “Hey, third brother. Where do you think Lord Olivier and Lord Haydson will hold their duel? Back then, when Lord Olivier challenged Lord Haydson, he didn’t clearly specify where they would fight. Only, that they would fight outside the city. But would it be outside the east gate or the west gate, or the south gate, or the north gate?”

  “Who knows? We have no choice but to quietly wait.”

  This question nagged at many people. Many people had even arrived from different cities. Aside from a small number of people who were indifferent, and a number of magi, many people came. Nearly half the population of the city had come to watch this duel. When the tourists from other cities were added to their number, there were definitely millions of people here today.

  People were clustered outside all four of the gates of the imperial city.

  Nobody knew where the duel would take place.

  A large group of people from Count Wharton’s residence had gone as well, naturally. But Linley’s group was able to easily tell where the duel was going to occur. This was because… the Monolithic Sword Saint, Haydson, was intentionally broadcasting his aura.

  The Monolithic Sword Saint and Olivier had not clearly discussed where the duel would occur.

  Thus, Haydson, the Monolithic Sword Saint, had chosen to head to the Channe River, located north of the imperial capital. He stood in the air above the river, which was a wide one, measuring several hundred meters across at its widest. However, in terms of length, it could not compare to the Yulan River, and the Channe River actually joined the Yulan River at its end.

  Saints were extremely sensitive to the auras of others.

  If a Saint-level battle were to occur at a specific location, Saints from hundreds of kilometers away would sense it. Linley didn’t transform, because Haeru and Bebe could both clearly sense Haydson’s aura.

  “Above Channe River, north of the city. Let’s go now. The duel will occur there. Lord Haydson is there.” This information swept the city like a storm, quickly spreading to the people in the s
outh, east, and west sides of the city.

  The millions of people congregating in those places swept towards the north like a flood.

  The vast majority of these people went cross country towards the north. After all, there were far too many people here. If they all went by the streets of the capital, it would simply be too congested.

  “There really are quite a number of people here.” Linley, Wharton, Barker and the others all stared at the local scene in shock.

  Over a million people were standing on each side of Channe River. The eighty thousand spectators in the Colosseum had already seemed like a sea of people. These million plus spectators truly were a terrifying sight.

  Both sides of Channe River were filled with people.

  The worst part of it was…

  People were continuing to arrive from the east, west, and southern sides of the city. It was as though three massive deluges of water were continually adding to an already flooded area. The population of people here only continued to grow.

  “So many people. Jeeze, that Olivier… why did he have to insist on the duel being three months later? If it had been half a month, the people from the other provinces wouldn’t have been able to make it over. Three months… even people from the Northwest Administrative Province have made their way over.” Hillman shook his head.

  Zassler only snickered. “The more the merrier. What an awesome spectacle.”

  Zassler seemed to be treating this sight as a way to reminisce about the sight of his million-body-strong army of undead. His million-body undead army was also an extremely incredible sight.

  “More importantly, how can we get to the front? Are we going to just watch from afar?” Seeing how tightly packed the people were in front of them, Housekeeper Hiri didn’t have the courage to try and squeeze through.

  Gates said delightedly, “That’s easy. Let us five brothers lead the way and charge forward.”

  Given their massive frames, they definitely were capable of pushing to the front.

  “No rush. Haven’t you noticed that Emperor Johann’s army has arrived?” Linley laughed. Indeed, just at this moment, the soldiers from the army had formed an orderly regiment and were marching in their direction.

  There were millions of ordinary commoners here, and less than a hundred thousand soldiers.

  But due to their tight formations and gleaming armor, the soldiers were able to awe and suppress the hearts of the commoners.

  “Roooaaaaar!” “Grooooowl.”

  The millions of spectators had magical beasts in their ranks as well, some of which had been tamed by powerful experts. The cries of magical beasts could be heard as well, alongside the unceasing chatter of the humans.

  It was a scene of utter chaos.

  “SILENCE!”

  A powerful voice rang out. “Everyone who is on a boat on Channe River, all of you, get to land, quickly! If you are on the river during Lord Haydson and Lord Olivier’s battle, it is highly likely that your boats will be swamped by waves. People on the shores of Channe River, all of you move backwards by ten meters! Nobody is permitted to go near the shores of the river. The army will maintain order here!”

  The imperial army began to organize the viewers.

  The upper echelons of the Empire didn’t dare to be careless. If something were to happen here, with millions of citizens present, it could be disastrous. A duel between two Saints was a joyous occasion. They couldn’t let it turn into a tragedy.

  “Lord Wharton, Lord Linley, please come with us.” Two soldiers walked over to them.

  Linley and Wharton grinned at each other.

  Emperor Johann had already made arrangements early on. After having those spectators retreat by ten meters, the nobles of the Empire headed to the front, although they also didn’t go to the edges of the shores. With the Channe River spanning several hundred meters, there was plenty of space for the two Saints to duel.

  In addition, both of the Saints were dueling in mid-air.

  The nobles, based on their prearranged spots, lined up along the banks of Channe River. Having the best viewing locations, they prepared to watch this incredible spectacle. The commoners of the Empire, seeing this, actually weren’t angry.

  There was a huge gap between the worlds of the nobles and the commoners.

  Those who were able to become nobles were all people of talent, or who had rendered great merit to the nation. As long as you had ability, you could become a noble. The commoners of the Empire actually held the nobles in great admiration, and they too wished to become nobles.

  The night wind was very cold, especially close to the river banks. The cold night wind caused many nobles to put on cloaks.

  On each side of the river, there were countless lit torches, illuminating the entire Channe River. However, in the air above Channe River, the Monolithic Sword Saint, Haydson, stood there in mid-air alone. Olivier had yet to appear.

  “Master Linley, why hasn’t Olivier appeared yet?” Emperor Johann asked Linley, who was now by his side.

  Emperor Johann had personally requested that Linley be seated next to him. The first reason was because he wanted to strengthen his relationship with Linley. The second was because with Linley by his side, he would be a bit safer while watching these two Saints duel.

  “Don’t be impatient, your Imperial Majesty.” Linley smiled. “Haydson himself is still patiently waiting. Your Imperial Majesty, you just need to quietly wait.”

  “True.” Emperor Johann smiled and nodded.

  In the air above Channe River, the Monolithic Sword Saint, Haydson stood, dressed in his simple gray robes, and carrying that earth-colored heavy sword on his back. His eyes were shut.

  Suddenly…

  Haydson opened his eyes and stared to the east. A human blur was flying through the air at high speed. In the blink of an eye, a second human figure had arrived in the air above Channe River.

  It was Olivier, with his Lightshadow sword and the obsidian sword on his back. Today, Olivier was dressed in a long black robe. He looked very mysterious, and his white-streaked hair was flowing freely in the breeze.

  “Lord Olivier has arrived!”

  The millions who had been impatiently waiting suddenly let out an explosive shout of joy, filling the heavens like a physical wave of sound, causing the waters of Channe River to vibrate. One can imagine how loud millions of joyfully shouting voices were.

  “Such a large number of people is really frightening.” Wharton sighed in amazement.

  Linley chuckled.

  In the air above them, Olivier and Haydson hadn’t been impacted in the slightest. They stared at each other in mid-air, with Olivier absolutely radiating an aura of battle.

  “Haydson, there is no way I will hold back in our duel today. If I accidentally kill you, you can’t blame me,” Olivier said coldly.

  The Monolithic Sword Saint, Haydson, laughed calmly as he glanced at Olivier. “If you can kill me, then kill me. I definitely won’t blame you.”

  These words from these two powerful Saints excited all the spectators to the point of trembling. Good heavens, was this going to be a life-and-death duel between two powerful Saints?

  This duel between two Saints was not a duel between ordinary Saints. One was reputed to be the most powerful Saint in the world, the Monolithic Sword Saint. The other was the Prodigy Sword Saint, who had come today to avenge his humiliating defeat of six years ago. This battle had filled everyone with excitement.

  After countless voices called out in excitement, everyone fell silent!

  Millions of people were present, but not a single person made any noise. The only thing that could be heard was the rustling of animals in the grass and the ceaseless blowing of the wind.

  “Today, I have to get a good look at these two.” Linley’s eyes were as sharp as lightning, and what’s more, the surrounding wind also served as his eyes. Despite the dark night, he could clearly ‘see’ everything going on in the air between these two people who stood i
n mid-air several hundred meters above.

  According to what the War God had said, if Linley was capable of defeating Haydson, that would mean he was qualified to know the secrets of the Yulan continent’s plane. Haydson was also a practitioner of the Laws of the Earth. Naturally, Linley would carefully observe this battle.

  As for Olivier… Linley had the sense that Olivier would also be a very powerful rival.

  Not just Linley.

  Blumer, Kenyon, Castro, Lanke, and other personal disciples of the War God had come over to watch this duel as well. After all, given Haydson’s power, even in the War God’s College, only those disciples who had trained for thousands of years were capable of defeating him.

  “Six years ago, I wasn’t a match for you at all. But today…” Olivier laughed coldly as he drew the pitch-black obsidian sword from his back.

  “You are starting off with the obsidian sword?” Haydson smiled slightly, but then his face slowly grew solemn. He didn’t move at all, nor did he draw his sword.

  Olivier’s face turned cold.

  “Oh? Six years ago, you didn’t draw your sword. Today, you still think you won’t need to draw your sword in order to defeat me?” Olivier said coldly.

  “If you have the ability, then force me to draw my sword,” Haydson said calmly. At the same time, a rippling wave of earth-colored battle-qi surrounded Haydson, causing him to seemingly be ensconced in a wave of earth.

  The two were separated by hundreds of meters of distance. Naturally, they spoke very loudly.

  All the millions of spectators could clearly hear their words. They were stunned. The Monolithic Sword Saint, Haydson, was so arrogant that he didn’t even draw his sword.

  “This Haydson probably doesn’t know that Olivier’s obsidian sword includes a spiritual attack component alongside the physical attack.” Linley didn’t say anything.

  For Haydson to dare act in such a way meant that he probably had reason to be confident. Linley actually didn’t desire Haydson to be killed by Olivier in one stroke. That would be too laughable.

  A dream-like burst of white light flashed across the sky. With each streak of white light, an additional Olivier appeared in the sky. In the blink of an eye, 108 Oliviers appeared in mid-air.