Invincible Beyond Heavens: Cultivating With A Broken EXP System

“Li Yun, you must do your best.”

At this moment, Han Li and Han Xue also began to feel anxious. Lin Mo was not like Xu Feng or Hu Ming. He was a genuine expert. If the Hidden Dragon Ranking elites did not appear, then Lin Mo’s strength was unquestionably among the very best present.

“Hmph.”

Huo Ming gave a light snort. He was waiting for Lin Mo to defeat Li Yun so he could see what Han Li and Han Xue would say afterward.

After all, if Li Yun could not even defeat Lin Mo, then there was no possibility of him matching Xin Lu.

“Qin Ling, sit down. There is hardly any suspense left in this spar.” Shuan Chu said as he took his seat, lifted his cup of tea, and smiled leisurely.

Qin Ling did not answer. Her eyes remained fixed on Li Yun without moving.

“Li Yun… whether you are truly capable or merely boastful will be decided now. I only hope I was wrong about you.”

The Southern Martial Domain was vast beyond measure. Nearly a hundred sects stood within it, and geniuses were as numerous as clouds after rain. Not everyone present possessed sharp judgment, and even she herself knew that bias could sometimes cloud one’s view.

Because of that, Qin Ling remained especially cautious whenever she judged another person.

On the martial stage, the atmosphere changed the instant Li Yun and Lin Mo faced one another.

The noise across the summit gradually faded. Even those who had been speaking moments earlier fell quiet, their attention completely drawn to the two figures standing opposite each other.

Lin Mo held a long sword in one hand, his posture upright and steady. His aura was cold, narrow, and razor sharp. The pressure radiating from him felt like countless hidden blades buried beneath snow, silent and unseen, waiting only for the moment they would pierce flesh.

Li Yun stood across from him with his sword resting lightly at his side.

His presence was entirely different.

He was sharp like a sword as well, yet beneath that sharpness burned intense heat and restrained violence, as though thunderclouds and a blazing sun had both been compressed into a single body.

Li Yun did not underestimate Lin Mo.

Among the younger generation, Lin Mo was unquestionably formidable. His swordsmanship was polished through countless battles, his movements were stable and precise, and his Sword Intent had already reached thirty percent mastery.

A swordsman of that level could suppress many cultivators within the same realm.

Yet Li Yun’s thoughts were elsewhere.

Lin Mo was a swordsman.

And Li Yun himself walked the sword path.

If he crushed Lin Mo through fists, body arts, or some overwhelming hidden method, victory would be simple but meaningless. But if he defeated him through sword against sword, pressure against pressure, intent against intent, then every exchange could temper and sharpen his own understanding of the blade.

Because of that, Li Yun chose to use his sword.

Even then, he had no intention of revealing everything.

He only circulated forty percent Sword Intent rather than the full fifty percent he truly possessed.

That alone was already enough.

“You will last ten moves against me.” Lin Mo said arrogantly.

Li Yun smiled faintly. “First survive three moves against me.”

Lin Mo’s eyes instantly turned icy.

A moment later, he vanished.

Cold true qi erupted outward as his body split into several afterimages. Frost spread rapidly across the stage, coating the stone floor in a thin white layer.

His sword came from the left, then the right, then directly ahead. Each strike carried thirty percent Sword Intent along with biting cold that sought to freeze blood and dull reaction speed.

The audience erupted immediately.

“So fast!”

“That sword path is vicious.”

“Li Yun has finally met someone real.”

Yet Li Yun did not retreat.

He drew his sword in one smooth motion.

At the same time, the Overlord Thunder Scripture and the Great Sun Flame Scripture circulated at the thirteenth layer within him. Lightning qi surged through his meridians while flame qi flooded his limbs. Both powers poured into the sword body.

The blade began to hum. Then Li Yun moved.

Clang. Clang. Clang.

Three sword strikes from Lin Mo were blocked in succession with perfect timing. Every collision released clouds of steam as frost met flame. Sparks scattered across the stage while waves of heat and cold fought for dominance.

Lin Mo narrowed his eyes.

Li Yun’s defense was too precise.

Every block landed at the weakest point of his momentum. Every angle disrupted the rhythm of the next strike before it could fully form.

Without warning, Lin Mo accelerated.

“Cold Wind Hundred Shadows!”

His body spun through the battlefield as sword images appeared from all directions. Blade light descended around Li Yun like a tightening cage, while the surrounding cold qi thickened enough to blur vision itself.

Many disciples leaned forward, convinced Li Yun would finally be forced back.

Instead, lightning flashed beneath Li Yun’s feet.

A crack of thunder sounded under him as the Heavenly Lightning Codex activated. His figure shifted several meters in an instant, escaping the center of the encirclement before Lin Mo could fully close the trap.

The very next second, Li Yun reappeared at Lin Mo’s flank.

His sword slashed diagonally.

Lin Mo reacted quickly and turned to defend.

Boom!

The clash sent flame and lightning bursting outward, forcing both men apart.

Lin Mo’s expression darkened.

He had expected Li Yun to rely on brute strength. Instead, Li Yun was matching him through refined swordsmanship and an even sharper battle rhythm.

“Take this!” Lin Mo shouted, killing intent rising in his voice.

He gripped the sword with both hands and thrust forward.

“Frozen River Piercing Moon!”

A straight line of chilling sword qi exploded toward Li Yun, splitting the stage and freezing the stone in its wake.

Seeing the attack, Li Yun inhaled slowly. He then raised his sword high in the air.

Flame qi and lightning qi surged together. Forty percent Sword Intent wrapped around the blade. The air around him trembled violently.

Then he stepped forward.

“Thunderflame Gale Sword Art…”

The blade glowed with alternating arcs of lightning and streams of scarlet fire.

“…Second Form – Thunderflame Severing!”

His sword descended.

A crescent arc of thunder and flame burst forward with terrifying force, carrying cutting power, explosive heat, and violent lightning destruction all at once.

The two attacks collided at the center of the stage.

Boom!

The martial platform shook violently. Cold qi shattered. Steam exploded upward in white clouds. Lightning ran wildly through cracks spreading across the stone.

For a single heartbeat, both attacks struggled against each other.

Then Lin Mo’s Frozen River Piercing Moon split apart beneath the pressure.

The thunderflame arc continued forward.

Lin Mo’s eyes widened.

He crossed his sword before him at the last possible moment.

Bang!

The remaining force slammed into him and sent him sliding backward dozens of feet. His boots carved deep trenches through the frost-covered stone.

His arms trembled uncontrollably. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

The audience went silent.

One exchange had reversed the entire momentum of the battle.