Translator: CinderTL
"Hurry! The sect has issued an order—whoever kills Li Chunjun will be rewarded with a top-grade magical treasure and a Golden Core Formation Elixir! The opportunity is right before us! Missing it would be a lifelong regret!"
Four streaks of sword light tore through the void at incredible speed.
"Hahaha! With Elder Xiang Li taking action, dealing with that traitor will be as easy as pie!"
"Elder Xiang, the traitor has protectors accompanying him. We must not underestimate them."
"Elder Yan, you worry too much. I know what I'm doing. Later, you all focus on tying down his protectors. I'll break through at full speed and deliver a thunderous strike to finish him off. Once he's dead, we'll retreat immediately. I'll make him understand—no matter how strong his protectors are, they're still just borrowed strength. In the end, the only thing we cultivators can truly rely on is ourselves!"
The leader, Xiang Li, spoke with unbridled arrogance.
And the one beside him offering advice…
Was actually an old acquaintance.
Yan Wuya.
One of the five Golden Core elders who had pursued Li Chunjun and Qin Zhou alongside Tian Jian and Bai Yang back then.
Yet his expression was grave. "According to Elder Shang's analysis, that traitor has already formed a Golden Core, overcoming the most difficult hurdle of the sword cultivation path. On top of that, the sect has long known he has mastered Sword Intent. If he's allowed to grow steadily from here, he'll inevitably develop combat power comparable to the previous Flame Phoenix Sword prodigy! That's why we must ensure absolute success this time!"
He glanced at Xiang Li. "We should focus on containment—delay them and wait for True Inheritor Zhou to arrive. Then we can strike together and eliminate him in one move!"
"Containment? Delay? If our Golden Core reinforcements are coming, do you think Zuo Tian and the others will just stand by and watch?"
Xiang Li's expression was resolute. "If this traitor will become a serious threat in the future, we must strangle him in the cradle before he reaches his peak—"
Before he could finish, he suddenly sensed something and sharply looked up.
The next moment, this Golden Core cultivator sneered. "Not only is the enemy not fleeing—he dares to counterattack and charge straight at me?!"
"Elder Xiang…"
"Stick to the plan!"
Xiang Li shot Yan Wuya a stern look. "If your actions prevent me from breaking through his protectors and killing this traitor, I will report it to the sect master—and you will bear the consequences!"
Yan Wuya swallowed his words.
"I will assist Elder Xiang with my full effort."
"Hahaha! Good!"
Xiang Li laughed wildly, and his sword speed surged even further.
Beside him, Yan Wuya and the other cultivators also erupted with full power.
At the same time, they channeled their magic energy, and top-tier spells condensed in their hands.
As the two groups were about to collide, spell fluctuations erupted from Yan Wuya and the other three True Cores.
On Li Chunjun's side, Jiang Yuxue, Qin Zhou, Zhang Weiqian, and Zhou Yuechen also brandished their swords without hesitation.
Razor-sharp sword light tore through the void, howling with the fury to rend all creation, and slammed into the spells unleashed by the four Golden Core elders of the Chiyang Sword Sect.
No words. No communication!
Over the past few months, the Taixu Sword Sect and the Chiyang Sword Sect had clashed repeatedly. Though Golden Core cultivators would retreat or pursue the moment they sensed danger, the growing hostility had led to over a dozen Golden Core casualties combined.
Under such circumstances, encountering a key figure like a future Flame Phoenix Sword prodigy, the Chiyang Sword Sect would naturally show no mercy.
And the Taixu Sword Sect would never allow them to harm their Sword prodigy.
In this kind of situation, striking first had become an unspoken rule.
Spells raged.
Sword light roared.
Brilliant, dazzling rays of light and sword energy collided violently in the void, and visible shockwaves of energy exploded outward from the point of impact.
But among these dispersing shockwaves, one was particularly unique.
It belonged to Xiang Li, the Golden Core cultivator.
He seemed to have activated some kind of fourth-tier talisman. After deflecting Zhang Weiqian's flying sword head-on, he maintained his terrifying speed and charged straight toward Li Chunjun, who was being protected at the center of the four.
Just as Zhang Weiqian was about to forcefully recall his flying sword, Li Chunjun shot him a glance.
Understanding his intention, Zhang Weiqian halted his sword.
"Li Chunjun! You were born a disciple of the Chiyang Sword Sect, and you'll die a disciple of the Chiyang Sword Sect! How dare you betray us!? Die!"
Xiang Li, empowered by the talisman, roared and spat out a breath. By violently compressing his essence and magic energy, he ignited a spell talisman seed and unleashed a Spell-Shattering Divine Thunder at point-blank range.
Yet at the same time, Li Chunjun's Scarlet Gold Sword was infused with every ounce of his essence.
Before even drawing his sword, his mind had already crystallized into focus. An intangible sword light soared behind him, rising into the heavens like a towering pillar.
Majestic and awe-inspiring, the sword light stretched endlessly, as if reaching thousands of miles into the sky.
BOOM—!
The thunderous roar of the Spell-Shattering Divine Thunder shook the void, as if intending to obliterate all illusions.
"Hahaha! Our sect has long known about your Sword Intent—did you think we came unprepared? My Spell-Shattering Divine Thunder is fueled by essence and is specially designed to break Sword Intent!"
Xiang Li let out a long laugh.
Riding the thunder, the deafening roar reverberated through the void, aiming to shatter that towering, sky-piercing sword light.
But…
But...
The thunder roared endlessly!
Yet, that sword light remained unbroken!
As it soared to its zenith and then slashed down, an aura capable of annihilating all things surged forth.
Xiang Li, caught in its path, felt like a mere mortal staring up at a falling meteor—the apocalyptic fury of the burning heavens bearing down on him, shaking him to his core.
His mind reeled, and his control over the Spell-Shattering Divine Thunder faltered.
In an instant, the deafening thunder was utterly overwhelmed by this destructive force.
"How...?!"
Xiang Li inwardly roared.
He knew with absolute certainty—no True Core cultivator could unleash such world-shaking sword energy!
This was Sword Intent!
Before attacking, he had mentally prepared himself to endure the backlash of Li Chunjun's Sword Intent. He had even preemptively unleashed the Spell-Shattering Divine Thunder, designed specifically to break Sword Intent!
But now, as this annihilating Sword Intent bore down on him, he realized—
His so-called Sword Intent-shattering technique was nothing but a joke.
This was no ordinary Sword Intent!
This was Minor Achievement...
No—Great Achievement Sword Intent!
But...
"HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?!"
To master Sword Intent before the age of twenty was already the mark of a once-in-an-era genius.
Yet... he had also refined it to Minor Achievement?!
What kind of monster was this?!
How could the world allow such an abomination to exist?!
"THIS ISN'T FAIR!"
Xiang Li unleashed a furious roar, channeling his resentment into Heartfire Ignition, transforming his despair into a raging force to resist the annihilating pressure of the Sword Intent.
By the time the towering sword light was finally dispersed by his overwhelming fury, a crimson streak of sword energy—faster than thought—was already upon him.
Its soul-piercing sharpness, so intense it seemed to freeze his blood, made him realize—
"DAMN IT!"
Without hesitation, he poured every last drop of his magic energy into his top-grade protective artifact.
And the moment he did—
BOOM!
A thunderous impact obliterated his defenses.
The force of the collision shattered his perfect control over his Golden Core physique.
Dizziness—a sensation no Golden Core cultivator should ever experience—flooded his senses.
At this moment...
He felt himself flying.
No—hurtling backward, spinning uncontrollably, unable to tell up from down, left from right.
Time stretched—whether seconds or mere instants, he couldn't tell.
When his vision finally cleared, he caught a glimpse of a crimson streak flashing past the edge of his sight.
Had it...
Pierced through him?
Or had it flown past?
The clearer his mind became, the more he understood.
He saw the fragments of his top-grade protective artifact scattering like shattered glass.
He saw the lingering flames of the Flaming Phoenix Sword Qi burning in the void.
He saw the sky growing further away...
The world around him darkening...
Until—nothing remained.
And then, he remembered.
That crimson sword light that had passed through him.
He had lost.
His plan had been flawless—
Using a fourth-tier talisman to break through Zhang Weiqian's defenses? Success.
Reaching Li Chunjun and unleashing the Spell-Shattering Divine Thunder to crush his Sword Intent?
That was where he had failed.
Li Chunjun's Sword Intent was nothing like the intelligence had suggested—some newly awakened power from months ago.
His Sword Intent...
His Sword Intent...
Had at least reached the Minor Achievement stage.
And within that stage, it was profoundly refined—far beyond ordinary comprehension.
He couldn't understand it. He couldn't even fathom it.
How could a cultivator, in just a few months, advance their Sword Intent to such a level?!
It was this defiance of common sense, this transcendence of his understanding, that sealed his fate.
While still reeling from the Sword Intent's suppression, he took Li Chunjun's strike head-on.
Even though he had activated his top-grade protective spiritual artifact in time—
It changed nothing.
It couldn't block it!
A peak-grade spiritual artifact, one of the finest defensive treasures, could not withstand the edge of Li Chunjun's lifebound flying sword!
The artifact shattered!
His body was pierced clean through by that sword.
Death.
...
"Whoosh—!"
Sword light tore through the air!
Li Chunjun, having just slaughtered a Golden Core cultivator in direct combat, shot toward the battlefield where the three True Core experts were engaged.
"Hiss—!"
Zhang Weiqian, who had been ordered to hold back, couldn't help but suck in a cold breath at the sight.
Before this, Li Chunjun's ability to kill True Core cultivators in open combat had already left them in awe, earning their genuine admiration.
But now…
He could kill a Golden Core?!
During the Zhou Tianyu battle, they could still rationalize it—the four protectors had restrained the Four Symbols Sealing Heaven Array, leaving Zhou Tianyu vulnerable. But this time, against Xiang Li…
This was pure, unadulterated strength.
A direct, overwhelming kill!
To possess the power to slay a Golden Core cultivator in open combat—
That was True Inheritance-level combat prowess!
Li Chunjun, still only at the Virtual Core realm, was already strong enough to unleash True Inheritance-level force?!
The Flame Phoenix Sword prodigy!
Once he reached the Golden Core realm, he would undoubtedly become the sect's second Flame Phoenix Sword prodigy!
Leading the Taixu Sword Sect to dominate the world, ushering in an era of glory even greater than thirty years ago!
At this realization, even the usually steady Zhang Weiqian couldn't contain himself. He roared at the top of his lungs:
"THE SWORD PRODIGY IS INVINCIBLE!"
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Author's Note:
Back when I got into that car accident, this was exactly how it felt.
You feel yourself flying through the air, your mind weirdly clear in its terror, still thinking, "How long have I been airborne? How far did I get thrown? Am I done for?"
Turns out, it was just a concussion messing with my spatial awareness.
(End of the Chapter)
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