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Before they could even step through the academy gates, a figure came charging out. Wang Dong'er's sharp eyes recognized him instantly—her heart leaping with excitement.
"Yuhao!"
But before he could respond, she spotted two more figures chasing after him from within the academy. To her, it looked exactly like a pursuit meant to corner and eliminate him.
Fury and murderous intent exploded within her!
"Who dares hurt him!"
Her Light Goddess Butterfly martial soul instantly attached. Like a golden bolt wreathed in dazzling blue light, she shot toward the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy's gate. As her soul rings shimmered, countless blades of light slashed through the air with overwhelming dominance.
"So that's the Yuhao she's been talking about? And our Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's core disciple?" Gu Tianchen's brows furrowed. "I didn't expect this Sun Moon Academy to be so hostile—they're outright hunting him down!"
Indignation flared in him. He was about to tear open a spatial rift and intervene—
—but Chen Junting clamped a hand on his shoulder, stopping him cold.
"Hm?"
Meeting Gu Tianchen's puzzled look, Chen Junting explained calmly:
"Don't rush in. I sense no killing intent from them—only intense fighting spirit."
And indeed, that's exactly what was happening.
The moment Wang Dong'er intercepted the two pursuers, they halted immediately—not pressing the attack. Instead, they let Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong'er reunite, their tender words of longing flowing freely.
Wang Dong'er blushed deeply but didn't pull away from Huo Yuhao's embrace—until she suddenly felt two pairs of eyes fixed on them. Only then did she remember why she'd flown over so recklessly.
She gently disengaged—but let him keep holding her hand. Suppressing her flustered excitement, she said evenly:
"Yuhao, let's deal with the enemy first."
Enemy?
Huo Yuhao, still red-faced, blinked in confusion—then followed her gaze to Ji Juechen and Jing Ziyang, who stood warily nearby. A sly grin spread across his face.
Ah—he understood now. Dong'er had mistaken them for foes.
Perfect.
These two had been pestering him endlessly. Today, with Dong'er's "misunderstanding," he'd finally get to teach them a lesson.
Even better—he could use this "two-on-two" as an excuse to fight alongside Dong'er again after so long apart.
"Ji Juechen! Jing Ziyang!" he called out dramatically.
"You've been ganging up on me in two-on-one fights this whole time! Now my girlfriend Wang Dong'er's here—time to pay the price!"
Jing Ziyang blinked, taken aback.
When did we ever bully him?
But seeing Wang Dong'er's righteous fury, she quickly caught on. Glancing at Ji Juechen—who stood like a wooden post—she decided to play along.
With a coy smile, she said, "Oh? So you're from Shrek Academy! Perfect—let's bring glory to our school!"
But as soon as the words left her lips…
…she waited. And waited.
No response came from Ji Juechen.
When she turned to him, she saw his gaze locked—riveted—on something in the distance.
Huo Yuhao and Jing Ziyang followed his line of sight—
"Brother Junting!"
Huo Yuhao's joyful cry rang out!
That instantly snapped Ji Juechen's attention.
"You know him?" he asked, voice low and urgent.
"Of course! He's my big brother—"
Before Huo Yuhao could finish, Ji Juechen's eyes lit up like twin stars. Without another word, he raised his Extraterrestrial Meteoric Sword and roared:
"Fight me!"
In the next instant, his body shot forward like a phantom ray, skimming the ground toward Chen Junting.
"Hey! Ji Juechen!" Jing Ziyang called out, trying to stop him.
"You can't just yell 'fight me' and charge! That's beyond rude!"
But Ji Juechen didn't care.
His aura surged—terrifying, unrelenting!
Two yellow, two purple, two black—
Six soul rings rose from his feet.
His eyes burned with obsession.
Because the moment he sensed Chen Junting, his sword intent had flared even more fiercely than when facing Huo Yuhao—as if craving a battle to the absolute limit!
"This guy's a lunatic," Gu Tianchen muttered—but still activated his martial soul.
"Though… that aura is monstrous."
His fourth soul ring flickered, ready to unleash Bone Prison—
—but for the second time, Chen Junting stopped him.
His reason?
"Hahaha—!" Chen Junting laughed.
"Old Gu, if you say he's as monstrous as all that, better not fight him—don't want you getting hurt and worrying someone."
Then, Chen Junting stepped forward.
A single footfall—yet it echoed like thunder.
From his body erupted the evolved Slaughter Sword Intent, crashing toward Ji Juechen like a tidal wave!
Gu Tianchen could only withdraw his martial soul, muttering:
"You just wanted to fight yourself, didn't you?"
Ignoring him, Chen Junting shot forward—Seven Kill Sword materializing in his hand.
He took this opponent seriously.
Ji Juechen—the "Sword Maniac"—was a true genius. With only Level 3 innate soul power and minimal fortune, he'd broken through to Title Douluo. Give him an immortal herb, and he might've become a Sword God. His talent and devotion to the sword surpassed even sword-type martial soul masters. In a high-tier xianxia world, he'd likely be born with something like the Primordial Sword Dao Saint Body.
Thus, Chen Junting resolved:
No soul bones. No soul skills. No Ultimate Metal suppression.
Just pure technique, domain, and sword intent against Ji Juechen's own.
At Chen Junting's approach, Ji Juechen's fanaticism cooled—replaced by razor-sharp focus. In that instant, he and his Extraterrestrial Meteoric Sword seemed to fuse into one.
This was a Soul-Infused Sword.
Man is sword. Sword is man. No distinction remains.
Also known as: Unity of Man and Sword!
Under his powerful soul energy, the meteorite sword began to hum faintly, its tip trembling imperceptibly…
Clang—!
Fierce sword intent erupted—then slashed upward.
A black sword beam tore through the air, growing larger with distance, echoing with faint dragon roars.
Whoosh—!
Chen Junting made no elaborate move—just a single thrust.
Slaughter Sword Intent coated the blade, waves of killing force surging forth.
The tip pierced through Ji Juechen's sword beam, engulfing him in an ocean of slaughter—mountains of corpses, rivers of blood.
Yet Ji Juechen didn't flinch. He pressed forward, undeterred.
And deep in his eyes—a spark of exhilaration flashed.
Sword against sword.
Intent against intent.
Parry. Downward slash.
Simple motions—yet to the watching Huo Yuhao and the others, each strike overflowed with profound sword principles, laid bare before them.
As the battle raged, Chen Junting sensed something—Ji Juechen's aura fluctuating with subtle, unstable energy…
"I suppose I'll have to break my word," he murmured.
Then let me give you a push.
After deflecting Ji Juechen's blade, Chen Junting's eyes flashed crimson. In an instant, his fused Slaughter Domain—merging Killing God Domain and Seven Kill Domain—erupted. Killing intent solidified, sweeping the battlefield like a storm.
But that wasn't all.
He stamped his right leg—violet light flared. Annihilation energy surged outward.
Domineering Dragon Soul Bone Skill—Tyrant Domain!
Under the influence of multiple domains, Chen Junting's sword intent transformed. On the Seven Kill Sword, Slaughter Intent and Destruction Energy—seemingly distinct—flowed together like water and milk.
The sudden shift overwhelmed Ji Juechen!
A single downward slash sent him staggering back.
Hummm—!
The Seven Kill Sword sang—so intensely that ambient light seemed to split, rushing toward the blade. Daylight dimmed, as if plunging the world into shadow.
Yet in the next moment—
"The land's vitality relies on wind and thunder;
Ten thousand steeds silenced—ah, how bleak!"
BOOOOM—!
Chen Junting's sword movement roared like thunder.
One strike—irresistible, unstoppable!
Sensing its power, Ji Juechen's eyes blazed as if struck by lightning.
As a sword-obsessed man, his heart burned with pure ecstasy!
Gripping his sword with both hands, he slowly pivoted—then swept horizontally.
The simplest motion, yet it felt as if he swung through molasses—dense, heavy, yet fluid and unbroken.
His Extraterrestrial Meteoric Sword, though moving slowly, carved a several-meter-deep trench into the earth, growing deeper with every inch it traveled.
The moment their sword tips clashed—
BOOOOM—!
A deafening explosion rocked the air.
Dozens of square meters of atmosphere collapsed, twisting violently. From the epicenter, the ground cracked and sank, radiating outward. Even the surrounding Blue Silver Grass was shredded by stray sword qi, reduced to ruin.
Chen Junting merely twisted his body to halt his retreat.
But Ji Juechen was blasted backward, his palms bloodied from gripping the hilt, tiger mouths torn open.
Yet his eyes burned brighter, his fighting spirit soaring higher.
At that moment, Chen Junting stood sword upright.
Behind him, a phantom of the Seven Kill Sword shot skyward. Sunlight glinted off its intricate patterns, magnifying the fusion of slaughter, annihilation, and pure sword intent.
And Chen Junting himself—
—seemed to merge completely with the sword.
This was his Unity of Man and Sword.
Spirit, energy, essence—all poured into the blade.
No trace of "man" remained.
"Osmanthus trees spread for a hundred miles,
Partridges cry beneath noon's shade.
Yanping's peaks stand as blades—
The sword departs; the river runs empty!"
A one-armed phantom materialized—grasping the spectral Seven Kill Sword.
In that instant, boundless slaughter, destruction, and sword intent crashed down upon Ji Juechen!
"—Sword Dao: Chen Xin!"
The sword fell—reversing the very flow of air.
Its terrifying pressure pinned Ji Juechen, making it nearly impossible to lift his sword.
Under that crushing weight, something inside Ji Juechen's mind shattered—
—and in that instant of clarity, enlightenment struck like a thunderbolt.
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