Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

The instant Li Guanqi opened his eyes, his nascent soul blazed with light. Then, the tiny infant-like figure began to change. As it did, an overwhelming pressure bore down on him, and it felt as though his very soul was being torn apart.

His light-blue soul fused with his nascent soul, which swelled with power at an astonishing rate. As the energy within him surged, understanding dawned. The Divine Transformation Realm was only the beginning of the nascent soul’s evolution into a divine soul, creating what cultivators called a false divine soul. Once the nascent soul fully merged with his true soul, forming a complete divine soul, he would step into the Illusory Refinement Realm.

Boom!

A terrifying aura erupted from him, sending shockwaves rippling in all directions.

Li Guanqi didn’t look at the lightning raging above. Instead, he turned toward Xuan Luo and drew a finger across his neck in a single motion.

Xuan Luo’s chest tightened. For the first time in a long time, he felt a little anxious. He had killed countless people and crossed blades with many so-called prodigies, yet none had ever exuded such a regal presence.

And deep within Li Guanqi’s aura, he sensed something that scared him.

“Could it be,” Xuan Luo muttered under his breath, “that he’s been holding back?”

The thought sent a chill down his spine. Their battle had been brief, but every exchange could’ve been fatal had he hesitated even a moment. Still… what if Li Guanqi truly had been holding back?

Rumble!A dozen bolts of lightning as thick as water buckets came crashing down. The wind howled, and the air itself screamed from the lightning power in the air.

Xuan Luo’s eyes widened. Even a single strike from that heavenly tribulation could kill him. The sky tore open wherever the lightning passed, like cloth being shredded.

Even Nine Heavens stiffened at the sight, though it still kept its gaze fixed on Li Guanqi. There was worry in its eyes.

Li Guanqi smiled faintly and looked down. “Don’t worry. If I can’t even survive a heavenly tribulation, how could I ever call myself your father?”

Boom!

The heavens blazed with light as his aura continued to surge in all directions. Then, a blood-red arc of lightning sword light shot skyward.

“Shadow Demon Slash—Dark Night!”

Boom!

At that moment, the world seemed to dim. All light vanished except for his terrifying streak of sword light, shooting straight toward the heart of the storm.

Boom! Rumble!

The sword light tore through the bolts as if they were brittle bamboo, then surged higher into the churning clouds.

Rip!

It ripped a gash a hundred zhang long through the tribulation clouds, which spanned a thousand zhang across.

Li Guanqi raised his hand, drawing the lightning into his body, refining it to temper his spirit root. His vital force surged, stronger than ever before.

He had cut through thirteen bolts of lightning with a single strike.

He had stepped into the Divine Transformation Realm, extending his lifespan to two thousand years.

The tribulation lightning gradually dispersed. A river of flowing light, like the Milky Way itself, poured into Li Guanqi.

His dantian and sea of consciousness expanded several times over. A roaring tornado of thick spirit qi howled as it entered his body.

As the breakthrough continued, blood pounded through his veins. The faint cries of dragons and elephants echoed from within his body.

His muscles bulged, veins standing out along his neck as his face flushed completely red.

Sensing his agony, Nine Heavens slashed its own chest open. A drop of light-gold blood floated toward Li Guanqi’s mouth.

Li Guanqi looked at Nine Heavens in surprise, but it shook its head and gestured for him to take it.

He inhaled deeply, then swallowed the golden drop.

Rumble!

His aura flared so violently that Nine Heavens was thrown several zhang backward. The blood in his veins roared, and as he activated the Dragon-Elephant Subduing Sutra, he instantly broke through to its fifth level. The fifth dragon hologram within him grew more distinct, nearly lifelike.

Heaven and earth fell silent. The heavenly gift had ended, and a powerful shockwave rippled through the land.

Li Guanqi stepped forward.

Boom!

The ground beneath his feet fractured, cracks spreading outward from the sheer force.

Xuan Luo had never felt so threatened.

Standing in midair, Li Guanqi looked down at Xuan Luo and said calmly, “Try to last a little longer.”

Xuan Luo lifted his blade across his chest. He studied Li Guanqi intently, his eyes narrowing. ”That breakthrough... was it planned?”

Li Guanqi lightly flicked the Red Lotus Sword. The surrounding space tore open with a hiss.

“Yes. But I didn’t expect you to be this strong.”

Neither of them wasted another word. They disappeared from sight.

Boom! Boom!

Two dull booms rang out. The first came from the ground fracturing beneath Li Guanqi’s foot; the second came from space itself collapsing under him.

Blades clashed midair, arcs of light streaking across the sky like lightning. Sparks flew with every collision, each strike aimed to kill.

In an instant, they had exchanged more than a hundred blows, every move precise and deadly.

They were both seasoned veterans. For a split second, it was anyone’s game, and both sustained many more injuries.

However, Li Guanqi’s body was simply too tough. Xuan Luo’s knife could barely pierce his skin before stopping. It was difficult for him to slice through Li Guanqi’s muscles.

Only Li Guanqi knew the agony he’d endured to obtain that strength. Without the lightning’s numbing burn, he would’ve blacked out from the pain.

Xuan Luo was drenched in blood. A gaping wound marred his shoulder.

“Boundless Knife Slash!”

Boom!

Golden knife qi burst from his blade, filling the air with destructive knife intent. The light carved through space itself, leaving a web of cracks in its wake.

His knife shone with golden light as the sharp knife qi cut through space, forming a dense web of spatial tears around him.

Li Guanqi’s eyes narrowed as he formed a sword sheath of crackling lightning in his left hand, concealing Lightning Dragon Flames within. He dropped into a low crouch, gathering power.

Boom!

Xuan Luo teleported, reappearing a few zhang in front of Li Guanqi. He swung his knife upward in a blinding arc.

Li Guanqi sensed the immense power in that strike and refused to take it lightly. Still crouched, he exhaled slowly.

Just as the blade neared him, he quickly unsheathed his Red Lotus Sword with his right hand in a single fluid motion.

“Sword-Unsheathing Technique—Thunderbolt!”