Walker Of The Worlds

Chapter 2968: The Storm Between Pine and Ocean

As the clash drew to its peak, Lin Mu stood still for a moment, both swords at his sides.

Afternoon Pine in his left. Ocean Raker in his right.

The aura around him began to shift—denser, darker, more defined. The arena’s atmosphere condensed, and every spectator felt their throats tighten.

Even before he moved, the storm was already building.

HIgh Elder Yan Dao took a breath, feeling the building momentum of Lin Mu’s aura. He didn’t move, as if still calculating what Lin Mu would do next.

Instead of attacking him though, Lin Mu looked toward the Grand Elder and gave a calm yet urgent warning.

”Grand Elder. I intend to use the full might of these two swords’ skills.”

”The formation protecting the arena... raise it to its maximum threshold. If not, the disciples will be caught in the backlash.”

His voice was solemn, but the tone held a blade’s edge.

The disciples gasped. Even the elders’ expressions turned grave.

The Grand Elder, seated with his back straight like a blade unsheathed, nodded once.

”Understood.”

With a flick of his sleeve, the air rippled as the core formation array of the sect surged to full power. Defensive plates of invisible force rippled into existence around the massive arena, glowing runes weaving like chains of starlight across the sky.

But the Grand Elder didn’t stop there.

He closed his eyes briefly, and in the next moment—

Sword Intent burst forth.

It wasn’t simply pressure; it was presence. The sword will of a Transcendent Immortal covered the arena like a divine canopy. Pure, silent, unshakable. The sky above dimmed as if acknowledging the will of the sword itself.

Lin Mu gave a slight bow.

”Thank you, Grand Elder. Now I may go all out.”

The arena went still.

Lin Mu’s figure disappeared—

—then reappeared at the center of the battlefield.

Both swords raised.

He muttered two names under his breath, as if honoring old friends:

”Afternoon Pine—Great Slaughter Pine.”

”Ocean Raker—Great Ocean Rake.”

The moment he finished, the world changed.

The Great Slaughter Pine appeared first.

From the earth below his feet erupted a golden slash—

—but it did not fly forward.

Instead, the slash rooted itself in the ground and sprouted.

Like a divine tree blooming in fast forward, a colossal pine tree of gold and steel burst into existence, reaching nearly a kilometer into the sky. Its branches were like swords. Its leaves like daggers. Its bark shimmered with lines of dense Sword Intent etched into every inch.

And then—

It attacked.

Branches lashed out like a forest of whips.

Leaves detached like blades fired from a crossbow.

Millions of slashes filled the sky, raining down like a golden storm.

Each arc of Sword Intent howled like an immortal beast. The disciples watching felt their hearts hammer in their chests, even with the barrier protecting them.

The Great Ocean Rake came next.

Just as the Great Slaughter Pine attacked from the sky—

—the earth screamed.

Ocean Raker glowed with a bright blue light and Lin Mu slashed it downward in a sweeping arc.

A pillar of blue energy burst from the tip of the blade and crashed into the ground with the force of a tsunami. That pillar then split into five claw-like projections, raking through the earth like a titanic hand tearing reality apart.

The ground cracked.

Waves of blue Sword Qi churned into existence, rising high, then crashing down again.

A massive illusion of a storming sea spread across the entire arena floor, endless waves consuming and dissolving everything in their path.

And caught between these two powers stood Elder Yan Dao.

For a brief moment, time seemed to slow.

The elder’s sword trembled slightly in his hand.

Sweat ran in thin rivulets down his temples and along his jaw. His robes, once flowing like clouds, were now ragged at the edges from the sheer pressure.

He activated his defensive techniques, cycling his Sword Qi at maximum speed. Spiritual light bloomed from his blade, forming barriers, shields, and sword formations to stave off the coming storm.

”This is... beyond what any disciple should wield...”

”Even as a High Elder, I—”

He didn’t finish the thought.

He couldn’t.

Because at that moment, the Slaughter Pine’s barrage collided with his sword field from above.

And the Ocean Rake surged beneath his feet, rising like a predator’s mouth from the depths.

He was being crushed in that gap!

The elders watching rose from their seats in alarm, their eyes wide.

”He’s really at the peak of both intent and technique...”

”This isn’t just a prodigy. This is someone who has stepped onto the level of an Immortal Sword Lord!”

”And he’s still so young!”

Lin Mu, standing calmly as the storm unfolded, did not press the attack. He simply waited.

Even as Elder Yan Dao summoned everything he had—his last techniques, his deepest reserves, his decades of insight—he could not halt the collapse.

Golden branches slammed into his defenses from above.

Blue waves crashed into them from below.

His sword formations shattered one by one like glass against boulders.

And then—

Silence.

The energy dissipated.

The tree withered into golden dust.

The ocean stilled and dried into mist.

Elder Yan Dao stood at the center, barely upright, injuries and cuts marring his body, his robes shredded, his hands shaking, and his sword... broken.

His legendary blade had split diagonally at the hilt, the tip buried somewhere within the arena floor!

He was breathing, but ragged. Drenched in sweat.

And Lin Mu?

Lin Mu hadn’t moved an inch since he cast the two techniques.

Elder Yan Dao lowered his head, sheathed what remained of his blade, and gave a deep, respectful bow.

”I yield.”

”You are... no ordinary genius, Lin Mu.”

”You are a sword emperor in the making.”

The crowd had no words.

Only the deafening roar of silence filled the arena.

No one, from outer disciples to grand elder, could deny what they had seen.

Lin Mu—humble, quiet, with golden skin glowing faintly beneath his robe—stood alone. A storm in stillness. A mountain that moved.

And in their hearts, one thought echoed:

’We have just witnessed a man destined to carve his name into the very Heavens.’