Firmament Sword

Huangfu Chongzhi shot a worried glance at Xu Luo. Of everyone present, Xu Luo was the strongest fighter, but their opponent, that teenager… it was obvious he was stronger than Xu Luo by more than just a little.

The teenager in the sky was also seething with rage. After shattering all the crossbow arrows from the military heavy crossbows aimed at him and his senior brother, he prepared to charge toward the siege engines below.

”Junior Brother, ignore them! Go kill the people on the watchtower!” Wan Tong gritted his teeth and charged directly toward Xu Luo and the others on the watchtower.

No matter how today’s battle ended, he, Wan Tong, would inevitably be sent before the Da Han Empire’s military tribunal. After all, of the five thousand soldiers in the Noble Legion, the vast majority were the actual sons of nobles!

Some were even the primary heirs to their families!

And now… they were all dead!

Every single one of them had been lost in this battle.

As the commander-in-chief, Wan Tong was well aware that even if he slaughtered every last one of his enemies, it would be pointless.

The nobles of the Da Han Empire would never let him get away with this!

He had once dreamed of overthrowing the Da Han Empire’s current Royal Family and becoming the Emperor himself. If that failed, his backup plan was to become the most influential figure in the imperial court.

But in just half an hour, his dream had been shattered. Now, only one path remained for his future… Flee. Return to his sect with his junior brother and run away in disgrace.

He had no other choice!

Wan Tong’s heart seethed with a murderous hatred for the person who had set the traps. No matter what, he had to kill that person first!

”Fine, we’ll kill them!” The teenager’s heart was also simmering with pent-up fury.

He was born in Da Han. Although he was from a sect, his youthful heart still considered the Da Han Empire his home. To see his country’s soldiers die so miserably in a foreign land, without even managing to touch a corner of an enemy’s sleeve… it was a stifling feeling that no ordinary person could bear.

Thus, for a teenager who was already bloodthirsty and drawn to slaughter, only one word remained in his heart now—Kill!

BOOM!

From far away, the teenager sent a blast of Sword Qi sweeping toward the watchtower!

The Sword Qi was too sharp, too fast!

It seemed to tear through the very air, slamming into the watchtower in an instant.

But the people on the watchtower had already retreated the moment Wan Tong and his junior brother were being barraged by the heavy crossbows.

All of this happened in the blink of an eye.

The now-empty watchtower was instantly obliterated by the teenager’s blast of Sword Qi!

The teenager swung his long sword, a cold sneer forming on his lips. ”You cowards who only know how to use cheap tricks—all of you can just die!”

He unleashed another blast of Sword Qi, this one cutting horizontally toward the tall, sturdy castle.

RUMBLE!

With a tremendous crash, the highest point of the castle—the entire watchtower—was sliced clean off horizontally. It began to slide slowly downward.

BOOM BOOM BOOM!

A huge section of the watchtower, taking the castle’s rooftop with it, smashed into the ground below, sending a tremor through the earth.

Xu Luo’s face was ashen. This was the castle he had just finished building. He never expected that a teenager about his own age would destroy the highest watchtower with just two sword strikes.

It felt like a hard slap across the face.

This feeling lit a raging fire in Xu Luo’s heart. The Shaking Light Star Soul and Kaiyang Star Soul seemed to sense their host’s rage. At almost the same time, they both erupted with a powerful energy, pouring it into Xu Luo’s Dantian.

A warm current surged through Xu Luo’s body. The bottleneck that had been holding him back shattered in an instant!

BOOM!

Peak Tier Five Great Sword Master!

BOOM!

Tier Six!

BOOM!

Tier Seven!

BOOM!

Tier Eight!

RUMBLE!

It was as if peals of thunder were exploding inside Xu Luo’s body. He even grew visibly taller in an instant, his entire aura undergoing a world-altering transformation.

This was the first time the Shaking Light Star Soul and Kaiyang Star Soul had helped Xu Luo break through in this way, allowing him to reach the level of a Tier Eight Great Sword Master in a single moment!

ROAR!

Xu Luo let out a furious roar, shot to his feet, and soared into the sky. An azure light flashed from his hand as he slashed directly at the teenager who was relentlessly trying to demolish his castle!

”You still dare come and court death?” The teenager let out a cold snort and charged toward Xu Luo without fear.

”Breaking Army Seven Kills!”

”Great Mountain Collapse!”

Xu Luo’s sword clashed against the teenager’s. With his left hand, he immediately unleashed Great Mountain Collapse.

Breaking Army Seven Kills was a powerful Cultivation Technique completely beyond the world’s understanding, one that had helped Xu Luo repeatedly defeat experts far stronger than himself.

But the teenager just smiled coldly and raised a palm to strike.

BANG!

Two incomparably powerful currents of True Essence collided. Xu Luo’s figure was sent flying backward, and he coughed up a mouthful of blood in mid-air.

All of his internal organs churned and roiled as if they had been completely rearranged. The agony was unbearable and impossible to control.

If the Kaiyang Star Soul hadn’t erupted with surging stellar power to instantly protect his body, that single palm strike would have been enough to kill him!

”Hm? You’re not dead?” the teenager said, a look of genuine surprise on his face. ”How is that possible? You took my palm strike head-on. How did you survive?”

”Ptooey!” Xu Luo was so enraged he nearly coughed up more blood. ’Is it really so strange that I wasn’t killed by your attack?’

”You’ve got some skill, I’ll give you that. But you’re no match for me. Today, I’m going to slaughter every last person here!” the teenager said coldly.

At this moment, a tiger’s roar came from the air. It was Xiaohai, who had seen Xu Luo was in danger and charged up.

”You damn animal!” Wan Tong’s eyes were bloodshot as he charged straight for Xiaohai.

Now, the mere sight of any beast was enough to drive Wan Tong into a frenzy. The slaughter in the forest hadn’t even stopped yet. With every soldier from the Noble Legion that died, Wan Tong felt his heart bleed another drop.

Xu Luo glanced at the teenager, calculating. ’With my current power as a Tier Eight Great Sword Master, if I use Shaking Light Burst, can I seriously injure him and buy my brothers a chance to escape?’

He knew the teenager wasn’t bluffing. If he said he would unleash a bloodbath here today, he would do it. With the teenager’s power, it would be effortless. And after the ambush Sui Yan had set up, it was no wonder their enemies were on the verge of a complete breakdown.

’I hope my life alone is enough to buy my brothers a chance to live.’ Xu Luo could feel the Kaiyang Star Soul constantly emitting power to repair his body. A bitter smile touched his lips. ’I calculated a thousand possibilities, but I never could have predicted that they had such a terrifying expert hidden among their ranks.’

’And a teenager, around my own age, no less. He has to be from a sect. And behind him… there must be an incomparably powerful faction.’

’So this is death? I’m not afraid, but I do have some regrets. Still, if I’m going to die, I’ll go out in a blaze of glory!’ A stubborn streak ran deep in Xu Luo’s bones. Otherwise, he never would have resorted so many times to a move like Shaking Light Burst, which injured the enemy by a thousand at the cost of eight hundred to himself.

But this time, Xu Luo knew grimly, this might be the last time he ever used Shaking Light Burst!

”Seven-Star Soul… I’m sorry. I’ve let you down. I couldn’t fully awaken you, and now… I won’t have the chance anymore,” Xu Luo muttered to himself as a powerful energy gradually began to condense around his body.

The teenager stood silently in the air, not even glancing at the battle between his senior brother and the black tiger Spirit Beast. He simply stared at Xu Luo, his eyes as cold as ice and filled with murderous intent.

”MEOW!”

Just at this moment, a cat’s meow suddenly rang out in the sky, so incredibly abrupt that it left Xu Luo, who had already prepared to die, completely stunned.

”Miaomiao?” Xu Luo’s eyes widened in delighted surprise.

”Call me Master Mao, you stupid human brat! Are you that eager to die? If you die, what’s Master Mao supposed to do?! Where is Master Mao supposed to find food?!” A yellow shadow suddenly shot in from the distance.

In mid-air, Master Mao swung his paw, aiming a vicious slap right at the teenager’s face.

”You little brat, stop pretending to be so cool and brooding! Master Mao is going to teach you a lesson today, you little terror!” Master Mao declared with the pompous air of an elder, instantly closing the distance to the teenager.

The teenager’s face went pale with rage. He recognized the cat at once—it was the same Spirit Beast that had been secretly spying on them in the forest!

”You worthless little cat! I was careless and let you slip away before. So you’re one of them! This time, don’t even think about escaping my grasp!” the teenager shouted, lunging directly at Master Mao. ”Now die!”

BOOM!

CLANG!

CRASH!

A rapid series of blows was exchanged in the blink of an eye.

Master Mao’s speed was incredible, but the teenager’s was just as fast!

Xu Luo was pleasantly surprised to discover that after not seeing him for several months, Master Mao’s strength had increased significantly!

In the past, when facing the Tier Seven Sword Venerable Qiushuiduan, Master Mao had been terrified, so scared by Qiushuiduan’s aura that he didn’t dare show himself. But now, facing this teenager who was clearly even stronger than Qiushuiduan, Master Mao was actually fighting him on equal footing!

’I haven’t seen him in a while. What happened to him to cause such a change?’ Xu Luo wondered, his gaze falling on Wan Tong, who was locked in a fierce battle with Xiaohai.

Wan Tong’s strength was indeed formidable. In just a few moments, he had already left several deep wounds on Xiaohai.

Without hesitation, Xu Luo lunged down.

Xiaohai could handle any Great Sword Master without pressure and could even hold his own against a Tier One Sword Venerable. But against Wan Tong, a Tier Two Sword Venerable, he was clearly outmatched.

Xu Luo had just advanced to Tier Eight Great Sword Master. Although he was no match for the teenager, he was not afraid of facing Wan Tong.

When Wan Tong saw Xu Luo charging over, a crazed light flashed in his eyes. He actually abandoned Xiaohai and charged directly at Xu Luo.

”You little beast! Everything that’s happened today is your fault! If my future is ruined, you’re not getting out of this alive either! Go to hell!” Wan Tong roared, thrusting his sword at Xu Luo’s throat.

Xu Luo shot back with a cold sneer, ”What do I care if you live or die? My fault? I only wish things were even worse for you!”

”Kill!” Wan Tong roared, full of confidence, intending to kill Xu Luo with a single strike.