Chapter 749: Chapter 749

Seeing Cui Yulong step forward, Wang Tian'an couldn't help but sneer in his heart. Cui Yulong had been pulled forward a step by him, which meant that Cui Yulong had already lost a move. In other words, Cui Yulong's strength was surely inferior to his, which gave him even more peace of mind.

Feeling Cui Yulong still pulling on the wooden box, Wang Tian'an didn't let go. Instead, he took a deep breath, gathering strength for another attempt, and suddenly pulled back, shouting, "Let go!"

This time Wang Tian'an harnessed all his strength for his move, which was meant to snatch the Ink Pattern Black Gold Blade from Cui Yulong's hand and completely strip him of any power to resist. Moreover, he had calculated that, given Cui Yulong's forward step just now, this action should be enough to take the blade from his grasp.

"Sure!" Cui Yulong replied casually, sensing Wang Tian'an's surge in strength, he suddenly let go.

Wang Tian'an pulled back with all his might, expecting Cui Yulong to resist. But instead, Cui Yulong let go completely, taking him by surprise. As he had exerted his full strength without holding anything back, the wooden box flew towards him like an arrow released from a bow, startling him.

Had it only been the Ink Pattern Black Gold Blade, he might have been able to dodge it. But this was a large wooden box, and with all his force put into his pull, he hardly had any spare strength to dodge. The wooden box slammed into his chest, leaving Wang Tian'an with only a fraction of energy to try and avoid it. Still, he was too slow, and though he dodged it from hitting his chest, his left shoulder was struck hard by the box.

The force of the impact was precisely the strength Wang Tian'an had used to pull. In other words, the force he'd just exerted was now fully inflicted on his own shoulder, turning his face pale with pain as his left shoulder was almost fractured.

After hitting his left shoulder, the wooden box was then bounced back. Cui Yulong stretched out his hand and caught the box with ease. Throughout the process, Cui Yulong barely exerted any strength, yet he had managed to give Wang Tian'an a severe blow.

Although this move took place in the blink of an eye, the bystanders saw everything clearly. Seeing how effortlessly Cui Yulong put Wang Tian'an at a disadvantage, the crowd from Sha Men cheered excitedly.

Wang Tian'an's face turned even uglier. Clenching his teeth, he pointed at Cui Yulong and said, "Cunning tricks are no skill! Cui Yulong, do you dare to fight me head-on!"

"Why wouldn't I?" Cui Yulong responded proudly, looking down at Wang Tian'an and said, "If I can't defeat you within ten moves, I'll consider it my loss!"

"Hahaha..." Wang Tian'an laughed loudly and said, "Cui Yulong, whether you can beat me is still an unknown. To make such a boastful claim, ten moves? I'm fine even giving you ten moves!"

"Yu Long, don't be careless, this man is very strong!" Cui Yu said worriedly. The sudden declaration from Cui Yulong had him really concerned that Cui Yulong's overconfidence might cost him dearly.

"Don't worry, ten moves will be enough to deal with him!" Cui Yulong waved his hand at Cui Yu and, turning his head, gave Wang Tian'an a cold look, saying, "Come on!"

Enraged, Wang Tian'an found Cui Yulong's ten-move challenge deeply disrespectful. Although he had suffered a significant loss at the hands of Shen Tianjun, Cui Yulong was not Shen Tianjun. How could he dare be so arrogant?

"Cui Yulong, I will make you regret these words today!" Wang Tian'an said through gritted teeth, clenching the Five-Colored Spirit Snake Sword, and charged toward Cui Yulong. Before even reaching him, his right hand shook creating several sword flowers, sending multiple strands of sword Qi stabbing towards Cui Yulong.

Cui Yulong held up the wooden box horizontally, blocking the strands of sword Qi. Despite their fierceness, they didn't leave a single mark on the Heavenly Silkworm Wood, which housed the malign energy of the Ink Pattern Black Gold Blade—it was no ordinary object!

After blocking these attacks, Wang Tian'an had lunged at Cui Yulong, his longsword moving like a serpent, thrusting and slashing consecutively at Cui Yulong's vital points.

However, Cui Yulong hadn't yet drawn his blade, only using the wooden box to continually ward off Wang Tian'an's Five-Colored Spirit Snake Sword. In just a few moments, they had exchanged five moves. During these, Cui Yulong was mostly on the defensive, without even striking back once.

The members of Sha Men watched anxiously. Wang Tian'an's moves were lightning fast, and the ten moves were approaching swiftly. With Cui Yulong yet to counterattack, it was uncertain whether he could even make a move within the ten, let alone defeat Wang Tian'an.

"Old Cui the Second, don't waste your words on him, and forget about the ten-strike pact!" Ghost King Li Ruoyuan shouted loudly. "With someone like him, there's no point talking about justice or integrity—just kill him directly, and that would be best."

"Right, he ambushed and attacked us first. There's no need to talk about any promises with such a person, nor say anything about ten strikes!" Demon Queen He Qinghua also said loudly.

On Wang Tian'an's side, everyone was also clamoring, hoping Cui Yulong would honor the ten-strike pact. From the looks of it, everything seemed to be set in stone. Whether Cui Yulong could win was still an unknown, not to mention defeating Wang Tian'an within ten strikes.

The pact was quickly progressed through, and by the eighth strike, Cui Yulong still hadn't countered. At this point, even Cui Yu couldn't help but say, "Yu Long, don't rush, take your time, we have all the time we need!"

"We agreed on ten strikes, so it shall be ten strikes!" Cui Yulong shouted loudly and suddenly threw the wooden box in his hand toward Wang Tian'an.

This was the first time Cui Yulong counterattacked, and Wang Tian'an became more on guard. With only two strikes left, they were nearing the end of the ten strikes. If he were to suffer a setback in these last moves, he would suffer a tremendous loss.

Wang Tian'an stepped back, trying to distance himself from Cui Yulong, aiming to drag out the ten strikes. But the wooden box traveled so swiftly that he had no way to dodge it; he could only use his Five-Colored Spirit Snake Sword to block the box. At that moment, Cui Yulong suddenly stepped forward and slapped the wooden box, causing its lid to burst open. With a crisp sound of dragon's call, the Ink Pattern Black Gold Blade sprang out from the box, flying into the air.

As soon as the Ink Pattern Black Gold Blade appeared, a powerful evil aura immediately hit everyone face-on. Even the Five-Colored Spirit Snake Sword in Wang Tian'an's hand emitted a faint hum, as if resisting this evil aura or as if stimulated by the power of the Ink Pattern Black Gold Blade, making its colors more vivid.

With the Ink Pattern Black Gold Blade finally unsheathed, everyone watched intently at Cui Yulong, eager to see how he would defeat Wang Tian'an in these last two moves. Cui Yulong leaped into the air, swiftly grabbed the Ink Pattern Black Gold Blade, and with a powerful Force Split Mount Hua descended upon Wang Tian'an, shouting at the same time, "The Ninth Move!"

Cui Yulong descended from above, his great strength combined with the oppressive aura of the Ink Pattern Black Gold Blade was terrifying. Wang Tian'an was acutely aware of this, but he no longer had the opportunity to retreat. After the wooden box was deflected, he didn't even have time to back away and had to use the Five-Colored Spirit Snake Sword to block the attack.

The clash of the two famed instruments generated a force that shocked everyone around. Cui Yulong stood his ground, while Wang Tian'an shattered the stone tablet beneath his feet with his stance, demonstrating the terrible power of the strike. Luckily, he blocked it—his palm was numb, but at least he didn't lose ground. With this clash, Wang Tian'an finally realized Cui Yulong's strength was above his own. It appeared that Cui Yulong only pretended to be pulled forward by him the first time he tried to snatch the wooden box, causing him to suffer a considerable loss.

However, although Cui Yulong was stronger than Wang Tian'an, the difference in their strength wasn't vast. Wang Tian'an watched Cui Yulong warily, with just one strike remaining. If he could withstand this last move, then he would be able to declare with full justification that Cui Yulong lost!

At this point, people from Sha Men also forgot to remind Cui Yulong to disregard the ten-strike pact, for the final move was the most crucial. Victory hinged on this one strike.

After Cui Yulong landed, he didn't pause at all, clenching the Ink Pattern Black Gold Blade and bellowing once more, "The Tenth Move!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Tian'an tensed up, his hands gripping the Five-Colored Spirit Snake Sword involuntarily as he watched Cui Yulong intently, anxiously waiting for him to make his move. Others, too, looked on with similar apprehension, wondering what earth-shattering technique would be revealed in this final move.

However, the actual event defied everyone's expectations. After Cui Yu's loud call, Cui Yulong did not make a move; instead, he simply stood in place, smiling faintly at Wang Tian'an.

Wang Tian'an was thoroughly confused, puzzled by Cui Yulong's intention. Just when he was trying to figure it out, someone nearby suddenly cried out, "Be careful!"

Before Wang Tian'an could grasp what was happening, he heard a noise behind him, startling him. He hastily tried to dodge, but it was already too late. The wooden box that he had struck away had flown back and hit him in the back. Although it didn't hurt, it caused him to stagger and take an involuntary step forward.

Turning his head, he saw a small tree not far behind him. Previously, the wooden box had been deflected by him, then smacked by Cui Yulong, flying past him and hitting the trunk of the tree, which then bounced the box back. At that time, Cui Yulong had just grabbed the Ink Pattern Black Gold Blade and shouted for The Ninth Move. Cui Yulong's voice had masked the sound of the wooden box rebounding, and since everyone's attention was on Cui Yulong, they had not noticed the box's situation. Thus, the box returned without anyone's awareness. By the time the people nearby saw it, it was already too late, causing a setback for Wang Tian'an!

Cui Yulong looked at Wang Tian'an calmly, smiling lightly as he declared, "The Tenth Move, you've lost!"