Clouds surged and darkened across the sky, and in an instant, a drizzle began to patter down within this domain.
The moment the first raindrop struck the ground, Xu Junlin gripped his spear with both hands and pushed off the earth with abrupt ferocity!
Li Guanqi immediately saw mysterious golden patterns surface across Xu Junlin’s skin.
At this moment, Xu Junlin’s power peaked!
Thud!
Terrifying force poured out unrestrained, and Xu Junlin’s muscles swelled taut in an instant.
The hard rock of the earth abruptly caved in several zhang deep, and a web of fissures spread out tens of zhang in a flash!
Li Guanqi’s gaze turned sharp. Daring not to underestimate his opponent in the slightest, he instantly pushed the Dragon Elephant Prison-Suppressing Art within him to its limit.
Relying on his acute perception of the world’s power, Li Guanqi clearly sensed the trajectory of Xu Junlin’s spear, Coiled Dragon.
Shifting his footwork by a mere three inches, he leaned sideways and thrust his sword straight toward Xu Junlin’s eyes.
This strike was swift and vicious. Just as Li Guanqi thought Xu Junlin would pull back to parry...
Xu Junlin snapped his wrists downward!
The original thrust instantly altered its trajectory, and the broad spear blade slammed violently toward Li Guanqi’s chest!
Li Guanqi’s expression shifted slightly. He brought his sword across his chest to block while simultaneously smashing a fist into the spear shaft.
Bang!
Thud!
A violent blast rang out, and both figures were flung back hundreds of zhang before barely skidding to a halt!
Both Li Guanqi and Xu Junlin now wore exceptionally grave expressions.
Li Guanqi had underestimated Xu Junlin’s strength and his attainments in the way of the spear.
And while Xu Junlin had anticipated this, the webbing between his thumbs and index fingers had torn open, his hands trembling uncontrollably on the spear.
He, too, had underestimated Li Guanqi’s strength, and...
Xu Junlin narrowed his eyes. The sudden shift in technique he had just executed was something even Xiao Chen and the others would not have had time to react to.
Yet not only had Li Guanqi reacted, but he had also brought his sword back to block and knocked him back with a punch.
Such terrifying reflexes were on a completely different level from those of the men he had fought before.
Both men cast aside the final trace of hesitation in their hearts.
Buzz!
Coiled Dragon flared with brilliant golden light. A dense layer of golden dragon scales seemed to emerge along its shaft, while the dragon-head carving at its pommel appeared to slowly awaken.
As golden light surged, the entire golden dragon seemed to come to life!
“Apocalypse: Dragon Roar!”
Boom!
The rock beneath Xu Junlin’s feet shattered instantly, and a formidable pressure erupted!
A terrifying spear intent shot straight into the clouds, carrying with it a soaring, unyielding battle lust.
Sharp Geng Metal power cleaved heaven and earth, cracking the space within a hundred zhang around Xu Junlin into a dense mesh of pitch-black fissures.
Li Guanqi narrowed his eyes. He could sense that Xu Junlin’s aura was infinitely approaching the peak of the early Mahayana realm!
It even showed faint signs of stepping into the mid Mahayana realm, brimming with overwhelming momentum.
The pressure swept in all directions like a raging whirlwind.
Dust and gravel flew across the earth as gusts of wind surged, sweeping even the falling raindrops back up into the firmament.
Li Guanqi stood in place, the hem of his robe snapping in the gale, his expression grave as he looked upon the imposing Xu Junlin.
Xu Junlin had still been too modest; his strength was formidable even by Li Guanqi's standards.
He truly lived up to his name as the foremost candidate of the Eight Generals back then!
“Phew...”
“Seems I need to take this a bit more seriously...”
With those words, Li Guanqi assumed a cloud-hands opening stance, the thunder primal energy within him roaring as it surged instantly into Red Lotus.
In a flash, the petals at the hilt of Red Lotus blossomed, and Li Guanqi murmured softly,
“Apocalypse: Red Lotus!”
Boom!
Space collapsed. Tiny arcs of lightning wrapped around Li Guanqi, while a purplish-black hue settled over the blood-red blade.
In the next instant, both figures vanished simultaneously from where they stood!
Thud!
Clang, clang, clang!
Clang, clang, clang!
Two afterimages crossed in midair, accompanied by a relentless barrage of clashing metal that rattled like a sudden downpour.
Sword light and spear shadows crisscrossed, forcing Li Guanqi so fiercely that he could not close the distance!
Xu Junlin’s expression was more serious and solemn than ever before. The spear in his hands scooped and jabbed one moment,
and swung down like a staff the next!
As the saying went, an inch longer meant an inch stronger, and the spear was the king of weapons!
Facing a spear with a sword, whether in reach or sheer striking force, was an all-around disadvantage.
To say nothing of a premier spear master like Xu Junlin!
Even against Li Guanqi’s four-foot-long sword, he did not fall behind in the slightest, even maintaining a subtle upper hand.
From birth until now, Xu Junlin had fought countless life-and-death battles.
He was as seasoned as a hunter hidden deep in an ancient forest, his control over attack distance exceptionally refined.
Moreover, guided by his other hand, the spear could shift techniques rapidly even in the tightest of spaces.
All of this gave Li Guanqi no small amount of trouble.
Yet Xu Junlin dared not be careless in the slightest. Up to this point in the battle, both were still feeling each other out.
Li Guanqi was full of praise for Xu Junlin’s mastery of the spear.
Yet Xu Junlin was equally stunned by Li Guanqi’s attainments with the sword.
Though he seemed to hold the upper hand, every move and technique he used would never produce the same effect a second time.
In fact, blind overconfidence or an inadvertent opening might even cause him to fall right into Li Guanqi’s rhythm of combat!
Indeed, even in the middle of battle, Li Guanqi was absorbing experience at an uncanny rate.
Gradually, the wounds on Xu Junlin’s body multiplied.
Clang! Clang!
Boom! Boom!
Clang, clang, clang!
Bang!
Xu Junlin swept his spear across, knocking Li Guanqi back hundreds of zhang, and let out a fierce shout as anger flashed deep in his eyes.
In an instant, Xu Junlin’s aura surged once more; he was truly getting serious now.
“Li Guanqi!”
“I want your full strength! Are you trying to humiliate me?!”
Li Guanqi stood on the distant earth, falling silent for a long moment.
He sighed softly. “Is that truly necessary?”
Covered in blood, Xu Junlin gripped his spear with both hands and said in a deep voice,
“It is! It is absolutely necessary!”
“That is the very purpose and reason I came here today.”
“I, Xu Junlin, have never been afraid of losing, nor am I afraid to admit someone is better than me.”
“Even that guy I used to despise—though I still despise him now, I still admire him.”
Li Guanqi paused slightly, then looked at the distant Xu Junlin and spoke softly.
“Alright. I understand.”
Rumble!
The moment his words fell, Li Guanqi’s entire bearing underwent a drastic transformation!
A cold sweat broke out across Xu Junlin’s back, his pupils shrinking to pinpricks and trembling slightly.
The Li Guanqi who had wielded Red Lotus and slaughtered six Mahayana cultivators in a fury that day had appeared!
With a wave of his hand, Li Guanqi donned a set of ferocious lightning armor.
At the same time, beneath the already dim firmament above, an unimaginably thick layer of clouds rolled in!
Lightning flashed within the clouds, sending thick bolts crashing down toward the earth one after another.
Expressionless, Li Guanqi looked at Xu Junlin and murmured softly,
“Are you ready?”
“Rea—”
Thud!
A tremendous kick struck Xu Junlin, bending his body like a boiled prawn as he was sent flying backward.
He hurtled back more than a thousand zhang, smashing clean through a mountain peak and coughing up blood before finally coming to a halt.
Suddenly!
Li Guanqi’s figure appeared behind him.
“You weren't ready.”
“Because... you still underestimated me.”
Chapter 1101