No matter how much Luo Cuilian refused to believe it, the reality of the situation was staring her in the face. As the realization sank in, the fury in her heart burned even hotter.
Melusine, however, didn't see anything wrong with their current predicament.
She had lived for over a thousand years, after all.
Although she had only spent two or three centuries truly immersed in the study of the Taixu Sword Qi—with the rest being refined by Fu Hua during her travels—Fu Hua would always return to teach her those optimizations anew.
When you actually did the math, the research into the Taixu Sword Qi spanned over ten thousand years, involving clashes with countless martial arts masters.
Luo Cuilian might possess incredible talent, but it was limited to the confines of this world. The moment she raised a hand or shifted her stance, Melusine already knew her next move.
With another palm strike, Melusine pushed Luo Cuilian back and, with an air of effortless calm, signaled for her to regroup.
Given Luo Cuilian's arrogance, she naturally wouldn't admit that she—the pinnacle of martial arts—was losing a contest of skill to a Western Dragon.
Gritting her teeth, she abandoned the thought of simple retaliation and took a starting stance with absolute gravity.
This time, she stopped trying to deceive with "illusions."
Utilizing her specialized footwork, Luo Cuilian moved far faster than before.
She also shifted her offensive away from standard fist techniques.
While her boxing was world-class, her true trump card was the legendary technique hailed as the treasure of the Chinese martial arts world: The Twelve Divine Palm Strikes of the Phoenix.
Originally, this technique had been passed down as the Five Immortal Palm Strikes of the Flying Phoenix, but Luo Cuilian had integrated seven strikes of her own creation to complete the Twelve Divine Palms.
Melusine didn't counterattack immediately.
Instead, she carefully observed every movement, yet she failed to see the "mystery" within the forms.
No, rather than calling them "techniques," it was more accurate to describe them as a method of exerting force that fused physical strength with occult energy.
It wasn't entirely without merit, but to call it a martial arts technique...
Then again, it made sense. Someone with Luo Cuilian's level of talent would inevitably default to overwhelming others with sheer power.
Rather than subtle patterns or sophisticated forms, a style that channeled raw strength to crush an enemy as quickly as possible was what suited her best.
And as the longest-living "Martial King," she was bound to be imitated. This led everyone to pursue the path of the most successful practitioner.
In that sense... the so-called "Martial King" shouldn't even exist.
With a silent sigh, Melusine tilted her head to dodge the "Phoenix Eye Pierces the Veil."
"Too much rigidity leads to breaking."
Before Luo Cuilian could recover her stance to block, Melusine's fingertips were already pressed against her solar plexus. Luo Cuilian's expression shifted drastically.
"A restless mind breeds its own openings."
Inch Punch: Sky-Splitter.
In the next heartbeat, a force capable of shattering tendons and snapping bones surged through Luo Cuilian's entire body.
The sheer agony—immense even for a Campione—forced her to instinctively abandon the martial arts contest.
Her Divine Might of Vajrapani flooded her body once more, finally halting the path of that destructive power.
But her condition had plummeted to its lowest point in years.
Her face was pale, her breathing heavy, and the strike to her solar plexus left her limbs weak, as if her body no longer belonged to her.
"Just what kind of martial arts is this!?"
Melusine's movements didn't look like any specific school or style, but Luo Cuilian knew better.
These weren't just movements made on reflex; this was true "Return to Form," where every punch and kick had long since transcended the shackles of form.
This certainly wasn't a level one could reach just by knowing the right stances.
Indeed.
The difficulty of the Five Taixu Mantras varied from person to person.
For instance, the "Heart Mantra" was impossible for most to master, yet it was effortless for Kiana or Cheng Lingshuang.
Conversely, the "Intent Mantra" was easy for most, yet Cheng Lingshuang had never even scratched the surface in her entire life.
For Amber, the "Soul Mantra" was something she only began to grasp upon leaving Uruk, whereas she had mastered the "Heart Mantra" quite early on.
But none of that concerned Luo Cuilian.
"The so-called pinnacle of martial arts is nothing more than a barrier of your own self-satisfaction. The path of the martial arts is endless."
Melusine had mostly vented her frustrations and didn't care to waste more words on this "Martial King." "Let's see how your 'pinnacle' fares against this."
Luo Cuilian was loath to admit defeat.
Hearing the "instructional" tone and the sarcasm only soured her mood further, but the thought of her own reflexive move to abandon the martial arts contest caused a crack to appear in her unbreakable heart of Dao.
Seeing her opponent get serious actually brought her a strange sense of relief.
Just as she was about to spit back a few harsh words, the hair on the back of her neck stood on end.
If she could previously feel the hidden, sword-like edge behind Melusine's every move, she now felt as if she were literally bathing in an incomparable, sharp radiance.
A golden light shot toward the heavens, yet strangely, it wasn't blinding.
Instead, it inspired a sense of reverent awe.
As the pinnacle of martial arts—even if Melusine looked down on that title—Luo Cuilian understood the sword.
This peerless sword intent made her realize instantly that the Dragon Girl's martial arts were evolved from swordsmanship, and this technique was surely authored by a supreme master of the blade.
A massive golden sword, visible only to Luo Cuilian, approached rapidly from the horizon.
Even with her clairvoyance, she couldn't see where the blade ended.
The sheer scale of the edges felt as though they could cleave the planet itself, and the pressure radiating from it made it crystal clear: this was unavoidable.
"The Way of Heaven is bright; the Way of Earth is peaceful; the Way of Man is void!"
The Dragon's Roar and Tiger's Howl.
This was the authority Luo Cuilian had usurped by defeating the Vedic goddess of hymns, Gayatri. It allowed her to exhale her breath and voice as ultrasonic winds, generating the power of shockwaves.
Because the destructive power increased the longer she chanted, it was used in the form of poetry. Even a short recitation could produce a demonic wind capable of blowing away massive divine beasts.
And when this authority was combined with her Divine Might of Vajrapani, it created a chemical reaction where the whole was far greater than the sum of its parts.
Watching Luo Cuilian chant her words of power, Melusine made no move to stop her.
Now that her emotions had leveled out, her anger had faded, and she lost interest in continuing the confrontation with this "Martial King."
She wasn't worth it.
Even though a Campione's body could achieve the effects of High-Speed Divine Words, and even though she finished the entire incantation, Luo Cuilian couldn't help but feel a sense of overwhelming helplessness as she faced the giant sword that seemed ready to split the world.
But she had no time to waste.
The demonic wind soaring into the sky was enveloped by the golden light as it crashed directly into the descending golden blade. However...
"It passed right through!?"
The golden storm, capable of easily sinking islands and triggering massive tsunamis, didn't even cause the blade to falter.
She instinctively looked back at Melusine, only to find that the Dragon Girl who had been standing in the air had vanished.
At this moment, it felt as if she were the only person left in the entire world.
Melusine had already determined the outcome and had no intention of sticking around to watch. By now, she had already returned below the clouds.
Looking at Athena, who was trading blows back and forth with Kusanagi Godou, she wore a look of zero surprise.
Anyone could see that Athena was stronger than Godou, but that was the nature of a Campione—winning against the odds was par for the course.
She wasn't in any rush to help, anyway. Their goal here was to stall for time.
As long as Athena didn't get seriously hurt, whether they actually won the fight was entirely secondary.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.