"I guess I'm ready," I said to myself as I decided that it was time for me to go out.
The automaton opened a portal for me which allowed me to exit the Lord of Lords pagoda and enter the Poison God's trial grounds once again.
I looked around and saw the massive serpent gazing at me in the distance, while Dao Shen, well, the person possessing his body was nowhere to be found.
As if I was electrocuted, every hair on my body stood up, something was coming.
"You're finally out! Damn rat!" he said as he charged at me sword pulled out ready to rip me apart in a single swing.
But, something was strange, the movement of Dao Shen's body was too slow as I was easily able to trace the sword with my eyes and was easily able to dodge to the side.
Confusion was plastered on his face as he looked at me and the sword again, he then sent a divine sense to probe me and spoke, "Lucky dodge, you're still at the Ascendant stage, Die!" he said as he swung again.
The blow was slightly faster than before, a testament of his newfound prudence and warry of my ability to dodge his first strike, but it was still not much that I couldn't easily evade.
More swings followed to which I simply evaded and dodged like they were nothing.
"And here I thought you got stronger," I taunted.
Enraged Dao Shen's body began surcharging in Qi as he suddenly disappeared from my vision and appeared behind me, his sword ready to rip my head off my shoulders, but all I had to do was move two fingers to immediately stop the sword from moving.
"You're the owner of the Dao of Swords, but why are you so weak?" I asked. A genuine question, since many more cultivators who used swords were far stronger than this guy, faster and more powerful when it comes to the sword.
But this guy moved in a mechanical almost textbook type of swordmastery.
"Ah," I said as I let go of his sword, "That's why you'll never be human, no matter how much you train and practice," I said as I backed away.
The enraged sword spirit charged at me once again swinging the blade with wanton abandon, but at the same time with clear and easy-to-deduce patterns.
I ducked and dodged and then Roundhouse kicked him in the chest sending him tumbling on the ground several times over.
"Dao Shen already mentioned to me, that one of the most annoying and hardest Paths to Deal with is Body cultivation, since poison doesn't work on either of us, I have a far stronger advantage than you, though I'm sure Dao Shen can easily take me out, you on the other hand, will never be able to, you're too mechanical, you're not a human, you can't invent and innovate, you can't lix and mash or create, you can only replicate what you know and all you know are the patterns of the Sword Martial Path that are in the Poison God's book," I mentioned as I began channeling Qi in my body.
"Though it is unwise to tell you your shortcomings, I'll still do it," I said as I looked at him, "Since it wouldn't matter even if you know where you're lacking, you gave me more time than I should have, and I'm far more powerful than I used to be," I said as I flashed forward with incredible speed.
I've never had the opportunity to go all out in the Lord of Lords pagoda lest I break something inside it, but here, unfettered by the incredibly large area I can go all out.
"Fist of Roaring Ki, Fist of Eternal Gold!" I swung forward a blow so heavy and so destructive, the blinding golden light that appeared was all the sword spirit could see.
A massive gauntlet of pure gold shot forward from my fist, threatening to break everything in its path as if it were an extinction-level meteor.
Blocking a blow of this magnitude was nothing short of suicide, and he knew it. So he dodged to the side, my blow was pretty slow compared to his move, and thus he spoke, "You'll never hit me with that," he said.
"I know," I replied as a massive impact immediately followed.
Looking back, the Sword Spirit finally realized my true aim.
"MEI LEING!!!" he shouted as he realized that the blow had struck at the massive serpent.
My goal was never to kill the serpent but to test his defensive capabilities. And from the screech it ripped after being struck by the Fist of Eternal Gold, I see an opportunity to kill it.
"YOU!" He shouted.
"You what? You can't just say You and expect me to understand, English motherfucker do you speak it?" I taunted even more as I moved forward.
"Fists of Roaring Ki, Ancient Titan's Stomp!" my foot struck down at the ground, cratering the entirety of the platforms around me, as for the force of impact it was so sudden and powerful it caused the sword spirit to be flung up.
I followed after and swung my fist forward which he tried to block using the sword.
"Fist of Eternal Gold! Spiral!" adding a twist to my fist, the impact it created caused a powerful cone of pressurized air to burst out like the muzzle of a cannon. Creating a current so powerful it flung the cultivator spinning further upward.
I kicked up in the air flying even faster and more powerfully as I reached the confused sword spirit, before he could retaliate and swing his sword, I had already launched another Fist of Eternal Gold to his ribs, I felt the breaking on impact as he was sent flying like a ragdoll. Not to allow a good opportunity to pass me by, I flew after him as he was desperately trying to stabilize himself.
"Ancient Stomp!"
I planted both my feet into his chest, causing the impact to blast him right into the ground with enough power you could see the entire solid rock around him morph and ripple as if it was a pond of water.
Bumping both my fists together, "Fist of Roaring Ki, Eternal Gold's Wrath!"
Two gauntlets of pure golden Qi materialized around my fists and then I struck forward, causing a cone of pressurized air to blow and flow forward as if it was a cannon shot.
The blow was enough to press him against the ground further, and before he could even take a breath, another blow followed after, then another and another.
I continuously struck down with every ounce of energy I could use as impact after explosive impact echoed.
Blood sprayed out of his nostrils and eyes as he desperately tried to block any of the blows.
Yet sadly before I could even finish him off, I felt shivers running down my spine again.
Instinctively I raised both my hands forward like a boxer to protect my head, which I was thankful for as the tail of the giant serpent had somehow reached me like the swing of a whip, crackling the air itself into creating a lightning and thunder blow that smashed me into the ground.
I couldn't feel my arms for a moment and realized they were both broken from the impact, I was already on my back from that blow.
"You brutish fool!" he said, "If it's power, then I have more! Show him his place!" the sword spirit said as the serpent swung its tail once again at me.
I kicked the ground as fast as I could, and thankfully I was able to avoid the chopping tail swing that broke every piece of the platform I was right on.
I flexed both my hands aside and they were instantly straightened and healed.
With both my hands and feet on the ground in a tiger's pounce, I surcharged my feet with Qi and kicked forward.
My body shot like a bullet as I dodged a second tail swing.
My objective was to take out the sword spirit as I charged him, but he instantly dissipated and appeared on top of the serpent's head.
"Blow!" he said and the serpent opened its mouth shooting a massive poison spray at me.
I wasn't too confident in facing a poison spray I didn't know so I dodged aside like a cat on the run, from side to side as I approached the serpent as fast as I could.
And just as I was close I kicked the ground flying right in front of the serpent's face.
For style points, I bit on the flesh of my thumb, "Let's Rumble!"
Electrifying Qi surged as my size increased to incredible proportions, enough that it caused even the serpent to be stunned as my sheer new size was enough to cause it to back away from fright.
I roared as if I had a thousand years of frustration, with enough power that the serpent's entire body shuddered and the platform stones shook shuddered, and broke.
Time for the Titan to attack!
Updat𝒆d fr𝒐m freew𝒆bnov𝒆l.c(o)m