After this brief delay, Ian Song's lower dantian sword essence had recovered to twenty percent, and his middle dantian to twenty-five percent. Planning to stall for more time with some banter, he smiled and said, "Elder Wang, may I ask your age?"
Elder Wang was momentarily taken aback. "I am eighty-six this year!"
"Eighty-six already?" Ian Song looked genuinely surprised. "I thought you were only sixty!"
"You sure know how to talk, kid." Elder Wang was visibly pleased by Ian's compliment, but quickly shifted his tone. "Don't think a little flattery will make me go easy on you. Hurry up and make your move!"
"Wait, I have a few more things to say!" Ian raised his hand.
"Go ahead!" Elder Wang waved his hand, fully displaying the demeanor of a master.
Ian chuckled, "Elder Wang, you're at such an advanced age. Why aren't you at home playing with your grandchildren and enjoying family life? Why come out here to fight life-and-death battles? Are your children unfilial?"
Elder Wang's expression suddenly turned cold. "Playing with children and enjoying family bliss is for ordinary folk. We martial artists have no interest in such mundane pleasures!"
Ian offered another round of flattery: "Haha, Elder Wang truly deserves the title of a master—your outlook is extraordinary! But I’m someone who respects the old and cherishes the young. Elder Wang, you’re even older than my grandfather, so I feel psychological pressure fighting you. How about letting someone younger take me on instead? The Saintess looks like a good choice. Why not let her do it?"
Elder Wang looked thoughtful at Ian’s suggestion, his gaze finally landing on the Heavensnare Saintess, as if genuinely considering a switch.
Feeling Elder Wang's gaze, the Heavensnare Saintess was startled. The gap between her and Ian Song was simply too great—she didn't even have the courage to face him in battle.
She quickly said, "Elder Wang, don't fall for this guy's tricks! I think he's just stalling for time!"
Ian was briefly surprised; he hadn't expected the Saintess to see through his intentions.
Seeing Ian's expression, the Saintess started to ponder. Had she accidentally hit the mark with her words? Thinking about Ian's usual straightforward personality, but how he was now rambling and stalling, she realized he really was trying to buy time. She studied him closely and noticed that, despite his efforts to hide it, there was still a trace of fatigue and weakness in his brows.
Her gaze shifted to the hiltless sword floating in midair. She analyzed to herself: That sword can release sword-qi on its own, but before we arrived, it was in Ian's hand. Maybe he was using his Gang Qi to suppress it earlier.
The reason the sword flew out of his hand and into the air was probably because our arrival made him stop using Gang Qi to suppress it.
With this analysis, the Saintess instantly understood: Ian must be bluffing. Suppressing the sword must have cost him a lot of Gang Qi. If she went all out, she might actually defeat him and avenge her previous humiliation.
Thinking this, she stepped forward and said loudly, "Elder Wang, there's no need to use a sledgehammer to crack a nut. Let me, your disciple, spar with him instead."
"Fine by me!"
Elder Wang nodded and stepped aside. Ian was surprised at the turn of events, but then it clicked—he instantly understood the Saintess's plan. She must have thought he was exhausted and wanted to take advantage of his weakness.
"Heh heh!"
Thinking of this, Ian couldn't help but smile to himself. Even though his current strength was less than half of his usual, dealing with an ordinary Transforming-Gang Ninth Stage opponent was still a breeze.
"President Song, please!"
The Heavensnare Saintess regained her graceful composure and gestured for Ian to make the first move.
"Ladies first—Saintess, please go ahead!" Ian smiled.
"Then I won't hold back!"
With a crisp shout, the Saintess launched into her Flickering Mirage Steps, darting forward like smoke. Her jeweled shortsword burst into dazzling sword-light, enveloping Ian completely.
Facing the Saintess’s attack, Ian traced a yin-yang Taiji circle with both hands.
"Taiji Reversal!"
In an instant, all the sword-qi was absorbed into the Taiji, and using the principle of redirecting force, it bounced the sword-qi back at her.
The Saintess dodged the rebounding sword-qi in a blur, slipped to Ian's side, and thrust her shortsword straight at his neck, clearly aiming to pierce it with a single strike.
Ian tilted his head, letting the tip of the sword graze his skin, sending a sharp sting through his nerves. At the same time, his right palm shot toward the Saintess's shoulder like lightning.
After refining his body with sword essence, Ian's physical strength was formidable—already comparable to a peak Innate Ninth Layer expert.
"Bang!"
With a single palm strike, he sent the Saintess flying.
"His palm strike was strong, but there was no Gang Qi. He really is injured—and it looks serious!"
Instead of anger, a hint of joy appeared on the Saintess's face after being knocked back.
Convinced Ian was seriously wounded, the Saintess decided to change her tactics.
"Ian Song, take my Heavensnare Violet Sword!"
"Boom!"
Serena Skye slashed out several times in quick succession, sending three-meter-long violet sword-qi blades from her jeweled shortsword to seal off all of Ian's escape routes.
Seeing this, Ian understood Serena's intent. He thought to himself, 'This woman really is clever—she wants to force me into a direct clash.'
Glancing at the hiltless sword floating in midair, Ian activated his sword essence and his body flashed forward like a phantom, appearing before Serena. With a rapid flurry of finger strikes, he sealed all her major acupoints.
"What...?"
Serena Skye's expression went blank with disbelief. Ian was supposed to be badly injured—how could he subdue her so easily?
Ian chuckled softly. "You are clever, and yes, my Gang Qi is nearly spent. But even so, capturing you is still child's play. You're a textbook case of outsmarting yourself!"
As he spoke, Ian took Serena's shortsword from her hand and pressed it horizontally against her throat. Facing Wan Tianchou and the others, he said coldly, "If you don't want her dead, get out of this cave!"
The reversal happened so quickly that the Heavensnare experts couldn't keep up. In the blink of an eye, Ian had captured the Saintess, leaving the Order's top cultivators stunned.
"Master, don't worry about me! Just kill that bastard!" Serena cried out, filled with grief and anger.
Wan Tianchou nodded. "Elder Wang, you five join forces and take this brat down!"
Hearing her master's words, Serena was briefly stunned. She hadn't expected him to be so ruthless, caring nothing for her life.
The five elders had originally been reluctant to act together, but seeing Ian capture the Saintess in an instant made them reconsider. Even with their cultivation, they couldn't have subdued her so quickly. Clearly, this young man's skills surpassed theirs.
In a flash, the five elders positioned themselves around Ian, forming an encirclement.
Ian wasn't nervous at all. Instead, he leaned close to Serena's ear and teased, "Once again, you've outsmarted yourself."