Volume 2 - Chapter 70: Battle of Absolute Techniques, Li Hao Enters the Field
The formation trembled violently, and from it emerged five demonic souls, all at the Three Immortals Realm, roaring toward Lu Yuan.
However, Lu Yuan merely glared at them slightly, and the five demonic souls froze in place, unable to move.
The gap in their cultivation levels was far too great. The ancient True Dragon aura emanating from Lu Yuan instinctively instilled fear in the demonic entities.
With a cold snort, Lu Yuan raised his hand again, preparing to deliver his third strike.
But at that moment, a sharp and clear sound, akin to a low chant, pierced through the air, speeding toward them from the depths of the city.
Penetrating the formation, a sword slashed through the void!
In an instant, the blade aimed directly for Lu Yuan’s hand.
Lu Yuan’s eyes narrowed slightly. Confronted by the scarlet-golden sword light, his hand became covered in dark scales. Without dodging, he reached out to grab the blade directly.
Zizi!
The powerful sword energy merely stirred Lu Yuan’s hair as the blade collided with his palm, producing harsh sparks of thunder and fire.
The dark scales on his hand seemed as indestructible as a divine weapon. After a moment of friction, the Dragon Sky Sword was firmly grasped in his hand!
“A mere divine weapon…”
Lu Yuan sneered. Just as he was about to exert force to snap the sword, a dragon's roar erupted from the blade. The True Dragon Sword Soul burst forth, accompanied by the demonic souls of the Black Bird Demon King and the Ten Thousand Caverns Ghost Mistress.
At this moment, the demonic souls had already fallen under the control of the True Dragon Sword Soul, stripped of their original memories and consciousness, leaving only their determination to protect the sword.
Roar!
The dragon soul growled lowly, showing no fear of Lu Yuan’s dragon aura. It unleashed a torrent of sword energy, surging toward him.
The Black Bird Demon King and the Ten Thousand Caverns Ghost Mistress also launched their most potent demonic techniques—a storm of countless feathers swirled toward Lu Yuan, aiming to shred him apart.
A sinister ghostly wind emerged from the Ten Thousand Caverns Ghost Mistress, filling the sky with ghostly shadows. The shadows coalesced into a massive dark figure, its features obscured, and raised a hand to suppress Lu Yuan, as if to crush both him and the ground beneath him.
The combined attack of the three demonic sword souls unleashed an overwhelming power, far surpassing that of the five demonic souls within the formation.
Lu Yuan’s eyes flickered as he focused on the True Dragon Sword Soul. He let out a cold snort and said,
“Once I shatter this sword, I’ll free you from this servitude to the human race.”
It seemed he recognized the True Dragon Sword Soul from its previous life. Both of his arms transformed, covered entirely by dragon scales, and his fists gathered immense force as he punched out in rapid succession.
The massive hand descending from the ghostly shadow was shattered by the countless fist shadows he unleashed, and the sky filled with ghostly darkness dissipated.
The storm of feathers disintegrated under his roar, scattering like autumn leaves as he charged forward, following the torrent of sword energy upstream.
The sword energy couldn’t penetrate his body, blocked by a unique protective aura.
Walking against the current of the sword river, he raised his fist and delivered a crushing blow. The collapsing force shattered the torrent of sword energy and struck the True Dragon Sword Soul directly.
The sword soul let out a mournful cry, its body trembling as it was forced back into the Dragon Sky Sword.
In an instant, Lu Yuan appeared before the Dragon Sky Sword, gripping its hilt tightly with both hands.
Just as he attempted to break the divine weapon, his eyes shifted slightly, turning to look at the side.
There, in the void, a young figure walked toward him from beyond the city.
His steps were unhurried, but an ethereal aura surrounded him, blending seamlessly with the heavens and earth.
With each step, dozens of miles seemed to shrink beneath his feet.
In just a few steps, he stood not far from Lu Yuan.
Their gazes met, and Lu Yuan’s eyes narrowed. From the aura radiating off the young man and the intelligence he had gathered, it was clear—this was the very target he had come to eliminate.
The human prodigy.
“Three Immortals Realm…”
Lu Yuan’s eyes narrowed further as he sensed the young man’s aura. At such a young age, reaching the Three Immortals Realm was akin to the reincarnation of an ancient demon king among the demonic clans.
However...
No matter how talented, in the face of absolute power, talent was meaningless.
Lu Yuan chuckled coldly. The satisfaction of personally crushing such an unparalleled genius would surpass that of devouring a million lives.
“So, you stayed outside the city? Aren’t you brave, boy? You should’ve hidden within the formation.”
Lu Yuan laughed lightly, like an elder jesting with a child.
“And yet, you dared to come here alone. Aren’t you quite brave yourself?”
Li Hao smiled in return.
Although smiling, his heart was heavy.
He could sense the abyss-like power within Lu Yuan—a force far beyond any foe he had faced before. This was likely an Absolute Technique Stage demon king, a peer of Second Uncle’s cultivation realm!
Once a demon king entered the Absolute Technique Stage, they possessed ultimate killing techniques that could only be fully unleashed in conjunction with their martial domain. Even if others managed to learn these techniques, they could never replicate their full power.
“So young and so arrogant. Let’s see which is tougher—your mouth or your sword!”
Lu Yuan’s eyes narrowed as he sneered.
His hand suddenly exerted strength, attempting to shatter the Dragon Sky Sword.
Although the youth before him gave off an unusual aura, distinct from any other cultivator at the Three Immortals Realm, Lu Yuan remained unimpressed. The sword’s previous attacks had proven insufficient—stronger than the average Three Immortals Realm practitioner, but far from a threat to someone at the Absolute Technique Stage.
Even cultivators at the Reverse Fate Realm couldn’t stand against him; why would this youth succeed where others had failed?
Buzz!
As Lu Yuan tightened his grip, the Dragon Sky Sword began to tremble violently.
A surge of immense object-manipulating power abruptly flowed into the sword.
Radiant golden light exploded outward. In that instant, the Dragon Sky Sword was no longer being controlled by a dark aspect of Li Hao—it was now wielded by his true self.
With a sharp hum, the blade erupted with razor-sharp sword energy. It instantly sliced through the dark dragon scales on Lu Yuan’s hand, slipping out of his grasp like a slippery eel before soaring into the air.
The freed sword emitted a dragon’s roar, and the True Dragon Sword Soul, previously damaged, surged back to life. Empowered by the vast energy Li Hao poured into it, the soul’s true form emerged, releasing an earth-shaking cry of fury.
Lu Yuan’s expression darkened as he opened his hand, inspecting the faint crack in his palm where his dragon scales had been sliced. His gaze grew cold, and a murderous glint flickered in his eyes.
At that moment, he realized the source of the youth’s unsettling aura.
Li Hao had been holding back.
Against him, this human dared to conceal his strength!
Turning to face Li Hao, Lu Yuan paid no heed to the surging True Dragon Sword Soul. His gaze pierced directly at the youth as he spoke in a chilling tone, “It seems you’re even more exceptional than I thought.”
“You talk too much,” Li Hao replied.
With a casual motion, he raised his hand. The Dragon Sky Sword spun through the air, tracing arcs of dazzling sword light before shooting forward once more.
Its speed was now ten times faster than before.
The blade streaked through the sky, its sheer force parting the clouds above and kicking up a gale that swept across the ground below, sending dust and debris flying into the air.
Lu Yuan’s eyes glimmered with violet light. He raised his palm, releasing a burst of crackling thunder. Hundreds of arcs of lightning lashed out at the approaching sword, dissipating its sharp momentum before his hand once again shot out to seize it.
But the Dragon Sky Sword shuddered. At the instant his fingers brushed its edge, the blade twisted sharply, deflecting his grip and spinning around. It slashed toward his chest, leaving a trail of golden light in its wake.
The sword struck his chest, piercing through the protective aura surrounding him and shredding his outer garments. Sparks flew as the blade scraped against the dragon scales beneath his skin.
The dark scales covering his chest gleamed faintly as Lu Yuan’s true form began to emerge. Though the strike failed to wound him, a flicker of anger appeared in his eyes.
Surrounded by a mist of violet energy, he raised his palm, lightning crackling around it, and unleashed a massive strike.
The explosive impact sent the Dragon Sky Sword hurtling dozens of miles away, where it pierced through a mountain peak before transforming into a streak of golden light and rushing back toward him.
The three demonic sword souls entwined with the blade, amplifying its power to terrifying heights. The aura of destruction surged to the heavens as the sword barreled toward Lu Yuan.
Unfazed, Lu Yuan countered with a flurry of strikes. His palm prints shot out, each imbued with thunderous force, colliding with the incoming sword light. The shockwaves of their battle rippled outward, shattering the ground beneath them and causing divine glyphs on the formation to flare in response.
...
On the city wall, countless soldiers gathered but could do nothing to intervene. They could only watch helplessly, their eyes wide with awe at the dazzling battle unfolding before them.
Among the crowd were heirs of noble families, who had come seeking an audience with Li Hao. For many, it was their first time seeing the legendary youth in action.
Previously, Li Hao had slain fifty thousand demonic creatures with a single sword strike. At the time, they had only seen his blade, not the man himself. Some had secretly speculated that the feat might have been achieved by someone else.
Now, however, seeing him standing outside the formation and clashing with this terrifying demon king, even those who harbored jealousy and ill intent were left speechless, their mouths agape in shock.
...
Boom!
Suddenly, Lu Yuan delivered a thunderous palm strike directly onto the Dragon Sky Sword, diminishing much of its divine radiance.
His hand had now fully transformed into a dragon claw, and scales covered his face and neck. Half of his body had already entered a hybrid form, revealing his demonic lineage.
Rage boiled within him. The fact that a mere Three Immortals Realm youth had forced him to exert this much effort and reveal his true power was infuriating.
Seeing the Dragon Sky Sword preparing for another strike, Lu Yuan took a deep breath and stopped holding back.
He raised both claws to the sky, summoning dark clouds that rapidly gathered overhead.
A low, oppressive pressure spread through the air, accompanied by the faint rumble of thunder from within the storm.
“Limitless Thunder Dao!”
Lu Yuan’s icy gaze locked onto Li Hao as he raised his hands. Countless bolts of lightning erupted from the clouds, coalescing into a massive thunder blade that he hurled toward his foe.
Li Hao’s expression turned serious. With a twist of his wrist, the Dragon Sky Sword emitted a powerful burst of sword energy, forming countless streams of blade light that shot forth like a torrential spring rain.
This was a technique Li Hao had developed during a night of intensive training—a fusion of countless sword arts into a single technique: Spring and Autumn Sword Extremes.
...
“Bastard！”
Lu Yuan grew more and more enraged as the battle progressed, finally unleashing his true form.
Roar!