Chapter 564: Chapter 539: Tied for First Place
Lu Yan, with the Saint Soldier’s Formula, withstood Li Shenfeng’s domain. Then five kinds of magic fused around him, bolstering his strength to an extreme point.
Thud!
Lu Yan took another heavy step, his body like a sharp battle knife tearing through Li Shenfeng’s domain, rapidly closing the distance to Li Shenfeng.
Li Shenfeng’s face changed, becoming somewhat grave.
Aside from other Multiple-Origin Bodies, this was the first time Li Shenfeng had encountered an expert capable of breaking through his dual-domain.
"Yin and Yang Hand."
Li Shenfeng waved his palms, launching consecutive strikes towards Lu Yan.
Lu Yan was fearless, his palms slashing forward like knives.
Boom, boom!
In an instant, the two exchanged blows twice.
Lu Yan’s body swayed slightly as he took a step back.
Li Shenfeng, on the other hand, staggered backwards seven steps in quick succession.
"What? Li Shenfeng is at a disadvantage."
Some spectators gasped incredulously.
The Multiple-Origin Body Li Shenfeng, unexpectedly losing to Lu Yan—if it hadn’t been seen with their own eyes, it would’ve been hard to believe.
"What kind of physique does Lu Yan possess to be able to suppress a Multiple-Origin Body?"
"It should be a kind of Taoist Body, but as for which one, it’s not clear."
"A Taoist Body, to be this strong. Indeed, very unpredictable," another chimed in.
The crowd discussed quietly among themselves, eyes glued to the scene, afraid of missing a thrilling moment.
A Taoist Body, along with a Miracle Reviver, is very special.
Unlike an Initial Body, whose strength is easy to determine.
A Taoist Body and a Miracle Reviver, the weak are ordinary in strength, but the strong are unfathomably powerful.
"The fusion of five laws."
Li Shenfeng murmured to himself, his expression more solemn than ever before. His arms shook, his domain rapidly contracting, and eventually transforming into two war swords circling around him.
Above the sky’s Vault, two Magic River Phantoms appeared, descending with a grand force that infused into the two war swords and Li Shenfeng himself.
Two Magic River Phantoms trailed around Li Shenfeng’s body, eventually flying into the twin swords of his domain, merging with them, causing the swords to emit a brilliant glow.
"Yin-Yang Sword Formation."
Li Shenfeng whispered, the two war swords broke through the air, evolving into two distinct forces.
One yin and one yang, one hot and one cold, they cleaved towards Lu Yan.
As soon as this sword was released, Lu Yan felt the pressure. The sharp Sword Qi, even before it got close, caused his skin to feel as if it was about to be sliced open.
"Soul Pierce."
With a thought from Lu Yan, seven Soul Spikes flew out, aiming for Li Shenfeng.
Being the Tao Soul Fetus himself, the power of the soul was an important tactic he wouldn’t neglect to use.
Soul Attacks, faster than lightning, instantly struck Li Shenfeng’s Primordial Spirit.
But Li Shenfeng’s Primordial Spirit sat cross-legged within the sea of consciousness, surrounded by Magic Long River Phantoms, immovable as a mountain.
Boom, boom, boom...
Seven Soul Spikes were all blocked by the Magic Long River Phantoms and Soul Defence Treasures, resulting in seven thunderous explosions.
"A Multiple-Origin Body is truly worthy of its name, its soul much stronger than that of ordinary Initial Bodies, with an even tougher defense," Lu Yan reflected secretly.
However, even though the Soul Pierce’s attack was blocked, Li Shenfeng was not completely unaffected.
In fact, his Primordial Spirit violently shook, making it difficult for him to concentrate his spirit. Naturally, his strength also weakened a bit. His powerful force could not be completely exerted.
Lu Yan stepped forward, his palms slicing through the air like knives, attacking continuously.
Clang, clang, clang...
In the blink of an eye, the two exchanged more than fifty moves.
Finally, with a loud boom, both men retreated simultaneously.
"Again."
Lu Yan let out a long howl, stomped his foot, and charged toward Li Shenfeng once more.
"Kill."
Li Shenfeng also bellowed, maneuvering the twin swords of his domain toward Lu Yan.
All spectators could see were streaks of Sword Light and Knife Light colliding in midair, as the two moved with speed at its extremity.
Soon, the clash between the two reached a hundred moves.
Lu Yan gradually began to gain the upper hand.
The fusion of five laws made Lu Yan’s Immortal Power extremely formidable. Each of his movements bore a momentum capable of shattering the heavens and the earth.
Added to that was the tenth layer of the Holy Soldier Secret.
With this as his foundation, whatever Immortality Skill Lu Yan activated transformed the rotting into the miraculous, with staggering power.
Various Immortality Skills, effortlessly switched by Lu Yan’s hands, gradually made Li Shenfeng struggle to cope.
"Lu Yan, take my final move. If you can withstand it, I concede defeat," Li Shenfeng declared, delivering two successive sword strikes against Lu Yan’s onslaught before using the recoil to retreat and create distance between them.
Then, he brought together the twin swords of his domain in his hands.
The twin swords of the domain, in his grasp, merged into one.
"Yin-Yang Unification, Shatter Mount Meru."
Li Shenfeng roared, his body and the domain’s sword becoming one, turning into a beam of Sword Light that pierced through the air towards Lu Yan.
This beam of Sword Light was so radiant that it seemed invincible.
Among all the spectators, except for Yuan Tiandao, who remained relatively calm, everyone else was shocked. They weren’t targeted by the Sword Light, but they still felt an overwhelming sense of impending disaster. Even Ni Hongshuang looked grave without any confidence in withstanding it.
"Lu Yan..."
Shen Yinuo’s heart tightened, her fists clenched, filled with worry, afraid that Lu Yan couldn’t resist this sword.
"Heavenly Punishment Blade, Man Perishes."
Lu Yan didn’t retreat but advanced, his hand substituting for a blade, slashing out a deathly Blade Light.
As the Blade Light emerged, the place seemed to turn into a purgatory, filled with an aura of death, causing many to shiver in fear.
Boom!
The Blade Light clashed with the Sword Light, the Blade Qi and Sword Qi sweeping across all directions, causing the powerful beings watching the fight to change color and instinctively retreat quickly. They fell back to the edge of the platform and put up numerous defenses in front of them.
But a few less powerful ones were penetrated by the Sword Qi and Blade Qi, leaving a series of wounds on the surface of their bodies.
If they hadn’t retreated in time, they would likely have been seriously injured.
They gasped in shock.
It was merely the aftermath, yet they almost couldn’t resist it. What would have happened if they had been at the center of the attack?
They would probably have been killed in one move, both body and spirit annihilated.
The gap was too large.
The blade light and the Sword Light detained each other for only the duration of a breath.
In the next moment, the Sword Light shattered. Li Shenfeng coughed up blood profusely and was sent flying backward, landing heavily on the ground.
Meanwhile, Lu Yan rapidly approached, with the deadly blade light already at Li Shenfeng’s throat.
Li Shenfeng’s face was pale, and with a look of disbelief towards Lu Yan, he finally let out a long sigh, "I lost, utterly and completely."
"You flatter me."
Lu Yan restrained his aura and stepped back, fist cupped in the other hand as a salute.
Li Shenfeng got up, returned the gesture, and then went to the side. He took several Healing Pills and began to heal his wounds through meditation.
"This battle, Lu Yan wins. Next fight, Huang Wu versus Ni Hongshuang," announced an elder from the Origin Dynasty.
"I concede."
Huang Wu conceded very simply, outright admitting defeat.
In the third match, Shen Yinuo faced a strong opponent and after a fierce battle, Shen Yinuo emerged victorious.
Lu Yan noticed that, with each subsequent battle, Shen Yinuo’s strength seemed to gradually increase. The bloody light covering her body became more intense, carrying an aura of destruction.
Especially after evolving a kind of blood flame, which possessed terrifying power capable of burning everything.
In the fourth match, Yuan Tiandao made his entrance, and his opponent directly conceded.
Quickly, the first round of five battles came to an end.
The second round began.
In the first battle of the second round, Lu Yan once again took the stage, facing a purple-haired woman.
She conceded right away.
Having witnessed Lu Yan’s strength, there was no need for her to fight further. Instead of wasting energy, she chose to save her strength to face other opponents.
And so, battle after battle, round after round, the competition continued.
In the blink of an eye, seven rounds of battles had been fought.
Seven rounds, and Lu Yan won them all.
His only remaining opponents were Ni Hongshuang and Yuan Tiandao.
Like him, maintaining a seven-round winning streak were Yuan Tiandao and Ni Hongshuang.
During this period, the most attention-drawing battle was undoubtedly between Ni Hongshuang and Li Shenfeng.
Both were Multiple-Origin Bodies and masters of dual-domain laws.
But Li Shenfeng seemed demoralized after his loss to Lu Yan and, after fighting Ni Hongshuang for hundreds of moves, he was defeated by a moment’s carelessness.
Shen Yinuo lost three matches.
One was against Lu Yan, where she directly conceded.
The second was against Yuan Tiandao, where she also conceded immediately.
The third was against Li Shenfeng.
In that battle, Shen Yinuo did not concede right away but fought fiercely against Li Shenfeng, tapping into all her potential and growing stronger as the fight went on.
Eventually, after more than a hundred exchanges, she was defeated by Li Shenfeng.
However, after this battle, Shen Yinuo appeared stronger, with her bloody aura becoming more pervasive and intimidating, causing everyone to take her seriously and not underestimate her.
"The eighth round, Lu Yan versus Ni Hongshuang," declared the elder from the Origin Dynasty.
It was unknown whether it was intentional or not, but the showdown between Lu Yan and Yuan Tiandao was scheduled for the very last round.
Lu Yan stood opposite Ni Hongshuang.
"Do you want to fight?" Lu Yan, almost reflexively, asked.
No sooner had he asked than Lu Yan felt a tinge of regret.
The opponent was a Multiple-Origin Body, not one to easily surrender without a fight.
The main reason for Lu Yan’s question was that, in the previous six matches, each person who faced him conceded right away, prompting his query.
To his surprise, Ni Hongshuang showed no displeasure but instead pondered thoughtfully. After a moment, she said, "The battle you just had with Li Shenfeng, did you use all your strength?"
After pondering briefly, Lu Yan replied, "Not to the fullest."
At these words, Li Shenfeng’s face turned white, revealing a bitter smile.
Yuan Tiandao, on the other hand, allowed his gaze to shift slightly.
"If that’s the case, what point is there in fighting? I concede," Ni Hongshuang said, conceding straightforwardly after hearing Lu Yan’s words.
And thus, out of eight battles, Lu Yan fought only once but achieved eight successive victories, temporarily ranking first alongside Yuan Tiandao.
Afterward, match by match continued.
Shen Yinuo secured another victory.
And Yuan Tiandao won naturally without a fight.
He won all eight matches without even taking action.
After eight rounds, Lu Yan and Yuan Tiandao both maintained eight consecutive wins, tied for first place.
Ni Hongshuang ranked second with seven wins and one loss.
Li Shenfeng and Shen Yinuo, like each other, lost three matches, sharing third place.
"Coming up, the final round, Shen Yinuo versus Ni Hongshuang," announced the elder from the Origin Dynasty.
This took everyone by surprise.
According to the previous order, Lu Yan should have been the first to take the stage, and his opponent was Yuan Tiandao.
Everyone was eager to see a clash of titans.
However, the order had changed.
Outside the Sea of Magic, figures stood suspended in the high sky.
These silhouettes were the top experts from all the major forces, those at the third step of creation.
Before them floated a massive mirror. This mirror reflected every detail of the battles unfolding within the Sea of Magic.
