Chapter 694 - 530: Go Berserk: Gao Neng’s All-Out Fight Against the Beast Race Sword Saint

"Watch my Six-in-One Slash!" Gao Neng raised his saber and struck.

He slashed six times in quick succession, from six completely different angles and directions. The six strikes ultimately fused, transforming into a single, massive phantom blade.

BOOM!

The Galaxy shuddered.

The phantom blade and the sword light clashed violently.

Li Tiannan was blasted backward.

But Gao Neng surged forward like a Celestial God, forcing himself into the space between the Beast Race Sword Saint and Li Tiannan.

The Galaxy was severed.

Gao Neng’s body blazed with a brilliant golden light.

"So strong!"

"That damn brat... is so freaking strong!"

"But wait, within that light... are those scales? Like Scale Armor?"

The human Strongest watched this unfold, all of them somewhat surprised. But it was only surprise; no one thought too deeply about it.

After all, as far as they were concerned, the stronger Gao Neng was, the better.

"Just as I thought. However, your dragon power... is this all there is to it?!" a light flashed in the Beast Race Sword Saint’s eyes.

"ROAR!!!" Gao Neng let out a dragon’s roar.

Then, his figure vanished from where he stood.

The next moment, he reappeared...

...directly behind the Beast Race Sword Saint.

’Luna’s assassination technique!’

Backstab!

SHLICK!

Two short daggers hidden in Gao Neng’s sleeves thrust out.

They sank into the Beast Race Sword Saint’s shoulder blades.

In truth, Gao Neng had been aiming for the Beast Race Sword Saint’s heart, but just as the daggers were about to connect, the Sword Saint forcibly shifted his body.

Even so, the two daggers still landed a solid hit.

"Tornado Sword Dance!" a fierce roar echoed.

The instant Gao Neng struck the Beast Race Sword Saint, a raging whirlwind generated by his sword erupted with the Sword Saint at its center.

It was a violent tornado.

But it was also a sword technique.

Because the entire tornado was composed of countless, densely packed phantom blades.

It looked like wind.

But in reality, it was a thousand strikes unleashed in a single instant.

SWOOSH!

Gao Neng’s figure vanished once more.

This time, however, he didn’t reappear beside Xu Zilan and Gao Xiaomeng, but instead teleported directly to the command center beneath the Eastern District Fortress.

He had escaped using a ’wormhole’.

He had placed a mark on Fang Tangtang.

Shen Ning’Er had one as well.

However, Xu Zilan and Gao Xiaomeng did not, so of course he couldn’t have teleported to them.

RRRIP!

As Gao Neng arrived back in the command center, the shirt on his upper body, as if it had been put through a shredder, disintegrated into a pile of fragments.

The golden light underneath flashed for an instant before vanishing.

Qin Jianfei: "???"

One second he was watching Gao Neng locked in a heated battle with the Beast Race Sword Saint—and had even impressively managed to stab him.

The next second...

...Gao Neng was back.

"How did it go?" Shen Ning’Er turned to look at the shirtless Gao Neng behind her.

"I was this close to getting my face ruined," Gao Neng said, checking himself in a mirror. He found that his face was, as always, devastatingly handsome.

"Heh... then I can rest easy," Shen Ning’Er said, nodding with great seriousness. Then, the corners of her lips tilted upward in a barely perceptible smirk.

Gao Neng was speechless.

’Shen Ning’Er is becoming more and more of a siren, isn’t she?’

’I’ll definitely have to tame this siren when I get the chance!’

’Still, that last move from the Beast Race Sword Saint was a seriously close call.’

’Those few who stand at the pinnacle among the Strongest of the other races...’

’...are all terrifyingly powerful.’

Gao Neng hadn’t expected the Beast Race Sword Saint to be able to decisively unleash such a ferocious sword technique after being stabbed in the back.

"The Beast Race Sword Saint is powerful, yes... but ’powerful’ isn’t enough to describe you. If I had to describe you, I’d say you’re a monster!" Shen Changsheng said with a smile.

"Yes, to be able to block one of the Beast Race Sword Saint’s attacks at only Tier Nine, and even manage to injure him... It’s terrifying!" Wu Qingjing agreed with a nod.

’If that had been me up there?’

’I’d probably have died five times over by now.’

’We’re both Tier Nine...’

’...but Gao Neng’s power is on a completely different level from ours.’

"Commander Qin, were you able to glean anything from the Beast Race Sword Saint’s two attacks just now?" Gao Neng asked, ignoring Wu Qingjing and Shen Changsheng’s comments and casually posing the question to Qin Jianfei.

"Hm?!" Qin Jianfei was startled.

"I know that right now, Commander Qin, your only concern is victory or defeat in this war. But, from another perspective, if the Human Alliance had a few more Strongest, wouldn’t the scales of victory tip even further in our favor?" Gao Neng said, looking at Qin Jianfei again.

Qin Jianfei said nothing.

His gaze had already returned to the screen before him.

But unlike before, this time, there was a distinct gleam in his eyes, as if he were carefully recalling and memorizing something.

Gao Neng knew Qin Jianfei understood his point.

In truth, Qin Jianfei was a genius in his own right.

If he weren’t, how could he have become the Commander-in-Chief of the Military Department? After all, Qin Jianfei was actually younger than Shen Changsheng.

Shen Changsheng was nearly sixty years old.

But Qin Jianfei?

He was just a little over forty-five.

There was a nearly fifteen-year age gap between them, but in terms of strength, Qin Jianfei was superior to Shen Changsheng.

At the age of forty, Qin Jianfei broke through to Tier Nine.

At the time, the entire Alliance had placed high hopes on Qin Jianfei, believing he would very likely become another one of the Human Alliance’s Strongest.

Qin Jianfei himself thought so as well.

However, after he became the Commander-in-Chief of the Military Department, that conviction had faded.

He had too many responsibilities. He had to manage the Military Department’s various documents and oversee wars of all sizes in the four regions.

In five years, Qin Jianfei had only made breakthroughs during the first two, advancing from Tier Nine Early Stage to Tier Nine Late Stage. For the following three years, he made no progress whatsoever.

Was being stuck at the Tier Nine Late Stage for three years surprising?

Of course not!

After all, some people were stuck at the Tier Nine Late Stage for their entire lives...

Wu Qingjing, for example, had been stuck for even longer—nearly ten years.

Therefore, while Qin Jianfei regretted not breaking through to become one of the Strongest, he never considered his lack of progress to be abnormal.

Until... he heard what Gao Neng had just said.

Qin Jianfei finally understood.

For three years, his progress had been at a standstill. Qin Jianfei had always treated it as a ’natural phenomenon.’ He hadn’t given it much thought, assuming a breakthrough would come after a long period of accumulation, and instead poured more of his energy into his military duties.

"Wrong, so wrong... We were all terribly wrong!" Wu Qingjing suddenly exclaimed, overcome with regret.

Yes, Gao Neng’s words had sparked a realization in him, too.

’This great battle between the Strongest...’

’What an incredible opportunity this is!’

’Whether it’s the Beast Race Sword Saint or the other Strongest, watching their techniques collide is one of the ’greatest feasts’ of martial insight in history.’

’But what have we been doing?’

’We’ve just been worrying about who wins and loses the war, which Strongest will be victorious, and completely failed to observe and comprehend the ’abilities’ these masters are displaying.’

"Ning’Er, have you had any insights?" Gao Neng glanced at Wu Qingjing once before looking away. He had never intended to enlighten the man, after all.

’To put it bluntly...’

’...he’s already so old.’

’What are the chances of him breaking through to become one of the Strongest now?’

"Yes," Shen Ning’Er nodded. She had been observing meticulously since the start of the war, so she had naturally gained a great deal of insight.

"Oh? About to break through?"

"Do you think everyone is like you?" Shen Ning’Er shot Gao Neng a sidelong glance, her tone suddenly turning serious. "Besides insights, I also noticed a problem."

"What problem?"

"They are both peak-level Strongest in the Eastern District. The Beast Race Sword Saint can easily fight two opponents at once, but the Celestial Race’s Six-winged Great Angel... seems to be constantly suppressed."

"Could it be because Elder Qin is stronger than my master, and on top of that, the Blood Race’s Strongest, Bloodthirst, is also a peak-level Strongest? That might be why that Six-winged Great Angel is being suppressed," Gao Neng speculated.

"Let’s hope so..." Shen Ning’Er nodded lightly, her gaze returning to the screen, where the Six-winged Great Angel was struggling to hold its ground.