Firmament Sword

Stunned by this sudden change, Lv Di stared, bewildered, at the transparent, scaly armor covering his body. He murmured, ”Is this the legendary... True Dragon Armor?”

”I... I actually managed to form the True Dragon Armor?”

”It’s real!”

”...” Xu Luo watched the stupefied Lv Di, momentarily speechless. ’I bet no one has ever seen him make a face like this,’ he thought.

”I, Lv Di... I have supporters. I’m not alone. There are people who support me, who like me. And now I’ve formed the True Dragon Armor... This feeling... is incredible!”

Muttering to himself, Lv Di closed his eyes and stretched out his arms as if to embrace the open air. In that moment, he was the happiest person in the world.

Xu Luo stood there quietly, with no intention of taking this opportunity to attack.

This was the Celestial Brilliance Annual Competition, a test of what the Celestial Brilliance Disciples had learned over the year. It wasn’t a fight to the death!

In the stands, Jin Ming’s eyes flashed with venom. He gritted his teeth and cursed, ”Idiot! Why aren’t you attacking? What are you waiting for? For him to fully recover and pulverize you?”

At the same time, in the private boxes, many of the Celestial Brilliance Elders were praising Xu Luo’s conduct, believing this to be the true bearing of a Celestial Brilliance Disciple!

”Luo Tian is impressive! He has the bearing of a master!”

”He didn’t take advantage of his opponent’s predicament. In fact, he’s the one who stimulated Lv Di’s full potential, giving our Celestial Brilliance its second person to form the True Dragon Armor since ancient times. Luo Tian deserves immense credit for this!”

”His character and martial skill are both superb. This is a blessing for the Medicine Garden, and for Celestial Brilliance as a whole!”

”To see him is better than to just hear of him. This Luo Tian is nothing like the arrogant tyrant from the rumors. On the contrary, he’s so courteous. I like this boy!”

”How could someone acknowledged by the Medicine King Ring be anything less? It reminds me of the Medicine King Ancestor back in his day...”

Su Qianqian sat there quietly, a faint smile playing on her lips as she watched Xu Luo on the stage. ’Brother Xu Luo would never stoop to taking advantage of someone’s predicament,’ she thought. ’Besides, this isn’t a life-or-death battle.’

Xie Yurou watched Xu Luo on the stage and grumbled, ”You dummy, attack him! What are you waiting for? Mmm... but then again, isn’t this exactly what I like about him? Hey... what am I even saying?”

Beneath her neat bangs, a look of admiration flashed in Qi Yue’s beautiful eyes. ’First Senior Brother knows when to press on and when to hold back,’ she thought. ’He has the true air of a master!’

To those who liked him, everything he did was admirable. To those who hated him, everything he did was detestable.

Xu Luo hadn’t expected his decision not to attack Lv Di would earn him such unanimous praise from the audience.

After a long moment, Lv Di finally emerged from that indescribable emotional state. He opened his eyes, looked at Xu Luo, and solemnly cupped one fist in his other hand. Then... he bowed deeply.

The once-raucous stands gradually fell silent as everyone’s gaze fixed upon the two figures on the stage.

”Luo Tian, thank you!”

Lv Di was not a man of many words. He couldn’t deliver long, eloquent speeches, nor did he possess a slick, tactful personality.

And so, a thousand unspoken sentiments were distilled into that single sentence of thanks.

A faint smile touched Xu Luo’s lips. He looked at Lv Di, gave a slight nod, and said, ”Let’s fight!”

Lv Di’s eyes lit up, feeling as if he had found a kindred spirit. The other man knew exactly what he wanted most right now.

His gaze filled with respect, Lv Di declared loudly, ”Luo Tian, you are a worthy opponent! In this fight... I will give it my all!”

”I wouldn’t have it any other way!” Xu Luo grinned.

The surrounding stands were silent. Everyone watched the two men on the stage, their eyes filled with admiration.

”This... is how fellow disciples should treat one another!”

”This... is the true spirit that Celestial Brilliance Disciples ought to have!”

”We must learn from their example!”

Lv Di became a Humanoid Barbarian Dragon, charging toward Xu Luo. Each step he took left a deep footprint in the incredibly hard floor!

His movements were both swift and heavy. The thuds of his footsteps, THUMP, THUMP, were like thunderclaps, as if a great mountain were moving at high speed!

”HRAAAGH!”

When he was still several dozen feet from Xu Luo, Lv Di’s aura had already reached its peak. He leaped into the air and threw a punch straight at Xu Luo!

At that moment, the nearly transparent, faintly visible True Dragon Armor on his body suddenly erupted with a boundless radiance!

Bathed in this light, Lv Di looked like a veritable War God!

Xu Luo channeled his Yin Yang Power. The Shadow Shaking Heart Method began to circulate wildly as the vast power within his Dantian surged into his arm. Finally, Xu Luo unleashed the final move of the Breaking Army Seven Kills—Vibrating Eight Desolates!

The two fists collided, letting out an earth-shattering BOOM!

The sound was louder than a crack of thunder!

RUMBLE!

A visible shockwave of energy radiated in all directions, blasting everything in its path!

The Referee, who was at the Venerable Realm, channeled his energy to resist the blast but still let out a muffled grunt. He was forced back more than a dozen steps before he could stabilize himself, his face a mask of horror.

And he had been standing quite far away to begin with!

As the shockwave slammed into the barrier at the edge of the stage, the supposedly indestructible ward trembled violently!

A sharp gasp rippled through the surrounding stands.

Xu Luo felt his blood roil in his chest. He stumbled back seven or eight steps, a trickle of blood leaking from the corner of his mouth.

Lv Di landed on the ground, a look of astonishment on his face. He had thought that single punch would be enough to decide the match!

He never imagined his opponent would be so resilient. Even a punch with his full strength hadn’t been enough to defeat him.

The result was unexpected, but it only fueled his fighting spirit!

’When it comes to physical prowess, I should be number one among the younger generation!’ This conviction swelled in Lv Di’s chest.

This wasn’t arrogance, but a powerful self-confidence!

A confidence born from true strength!

”I am the strongest!” Lv Di roared and charged at Xu Luo again.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

The two began trading blows. Whenever Xu Luo’s fist landed on Lv Di, the translucent True Dragon Armor would flare with brilliant light, completely neutralizing the attack.

The crowd in the stands watched, utterly captivated. The Elders in the private boxes were especially ecstatic, unable to contain their excitement.

The most excited of all was Lv Di’s master, the Celestial Brilliance Elder Feng Venerable.

This normally stern and rigid old man was now laughing with delight, like a happy child.

”Hahaha! As expected of the True Dragon Armor! Its defensive power... is second to none!”

BAM! BAM! BAM!

Occasionally, Lv Di’s fists would land on Xu Luo, creating sounds like metal striking stone, which also left the crowd astonished.

”Lv Di has cultivated the True Dragon Protection, but what about Luo Tian? How is his physical body so tough?”

”Gods... Is he some kind of monster? Other than his skill with elixirs... it seems there’s nothing Luo Tian can’t do!”

”It’s rather funny, isn’t it? The First Senior Brother of the Medicine Garden, the successor acknowledged by the Medicine King Ring, has shown no aptitude for refining elixirs. Yet his personal martial prowess... is so exceptional. It’s like he joined the wrong school!”

Of course, the people from the Medicine Garden were not happy to hear such talk. In their private box, Yuwen Ji, who had initially been certain of Xu Luo’s defeat, now seemed to have found hope again. He stood at the window, roaring, ”That’s the way! You’re tough enough! Yes... just keep fighting like that!”

The other Medicine Garden Elders watched him, a bit speechless. ’Being a master really isn’t easy,’ they thought. ’The disciple is fighting down there, but the master seems even more exhausted!’

Lv Di was also astounded. He never imagined Luo Tian’s body could be this powerful, almost like a Vajra Indestructible Body!

’No matter how strong the True Dragon Armor is... how could it compare to a body reforged by the Kaiyang Star Soul with Star Power?’

Xu Luo wasn’t completely sure about this, but he was confident he could take on anyone in close-quarters combat!

’But... this True Dragon Armor... it’s really tough!’ The webbing between Xu Luo’s thumb and forefinger had been split open by the force of the impacts, and blood was flowing freely. The intense pain made him grimace.

Lv Di, on the other side, wasn’t faring much better. He stared at Xu Luo as if he were a monster, wondering just what kind of Cultivation Technique the man practiced. He hadn’t formed any external armor, yet his body was like diamond, completely immovable!

Just then, Xu Luo let out a long cry. ”I’m going on the offensive!” he declared. ”Lv Di, you’re a good opponent, but... I can’t afford to stop here!”

”Bring it on! I must defeat you to advance as well!” Lv Di yelled back.

The excitement in the stands, which had only just begun to cool, was instantly reignited.

The decisive moment... had arrived!

Xu Luo executed the Shaking Light Step and immediately cast his Time Reversal Skill. His own movements grew faster and faster, while Lv Di’s, under the skill’s influence, grew slower and slower.

Gradually, almost no one in the stands could follow Xu Luo’s movements anymore.

’He’s too fast!’ That was the only thought in everyone’s mind.

THWACK! THWACK! THWACK... THWACK-THWACK-THWACK-THWACK!

Xu Luo moved so fast he was nothing but a blur, circling Lv Di and striking the same spot on the True Dragon Armor again and again.

The True Dragon Armor, famed as the greatest defense in the world, truly demonstrated its power. No matter how many times Xu Luo struck it, it refused to break!

However, Lv Di couldn’t withstand such a high-frequency barrage. He was becoming completely dazed.

It was only then that he suddenly realized the gap between himself and Luo Tian... was far greater... than he had ever imagined!

RUMBLE!

”Armor Break!” Xu Luo roared.

Finally, Xu Luo landed one last, thunderous punch right on the spot he had been targeting. Lv Di could no longer hold on and coughed up a mouthful of blood.

The faintly visible, almost transparent True Dragon Armor on his body... shattered!

As the crowd in the stands cried out in alarm, Xu Luo’s fist came to a halt, inches from Lv Di’s throat.

Lv Di was defeated!