Sword Ruins Ability, Raging Flame!

A tempestuous pressure erupted in an instant. Surging waves of purple air rippled outward in all directions. The blast forced Guan Qingyun back more than ten zhang! A scarlet light abruptly burst from Li Guanqi's palm! In a flash, the crimson glow enveloped the dark-green Canglang Sword. Immediately after, an illusory silhouette of Canglang—nearly ten zhang long—materialized beside Li Guanqi. Its scarlet eyes fixed on Guan Qingyun as it reared back and let out a deafening roar toward the heavens! Red light shimmered across Canglang's blade, a fine layer of dragon scales flowing over it like rippling waves. Standing in the center of the surging air currents like a god of slaughter, Li Guanqi shattered the bluestone beneath his feet, his figure blurring into an afterimage as he surged toward Guan Qingyun! "Bestow! Gale!" In that split second, Guan Qingyun shifted slightly, feeling the hairs on his arms stand on end! Yet his gaze instantly turned ruthlessly sharp, and he slashed his sword again and again! A thunderous roar shattered the air! "Raging Flame!!" *Sizzle!!* A blazing, fierce fire elemental force suddenly erupted from the advancing blade!! Caught completely unprepared, Li Guanqi arched backward into an iron bridge stance! A scorching blast flickered past his face, the heat instantly scorching away his eyebrows and the hair along his forehead. Guan Qingyun suddenly shifted his stance, bringing his sword cleaving savagely down toward Li Guanqi's face! He bellowed fiercely, "Die!!" Li Guanqi planted his left hand firmly against the ground, his right leg snapping upward like a whip as his knee rammed into Guan Qingyun's wrist! *Bang!* A dull crash rang out. Li Guanqi rode the momentum to leap back several zhang, finally slipping out of immediate peril. Yet Guan Qingyun gave him no room to breathe at all, sticking close to him and pressing in! *Clang, clang, clang, clang!!* The two exchanged more than a dozen strikes in midair within an instant, but the explosive flames hindered Li Guanqi at every turn. Scorching fire poured out in torrential waves with every sweep of the sword, baking his face with searing pain. His white robes gradually caught fire as well. Even so, Li Guanqi's sword remained as fast as lightning! To the spectators, even after unleashing the power of his Sword Ruins, Guan Qingyun was still being beaten back step by step by Li Guanqi's overwhelming pressure! Li Guanqi swung his sword with ferocious savagery, long since numb to the tearing pain at the web between his thumb and forefinger! He felt as if all the blood in his body were boiling hot! Facing such a formidable opponent gave him a sensation he had never felt before. The immense pressure stimulated his senses, sending subtle shivers of excitement throughout his entire frame. *Clang, clang!! Bang!!* A blast of bursting fire met purple sword light with a tremendous detonation. The two silhouettes each flew back more than ten zhang. His white robes burned entirely away from his upper body, the youth shot backward with his sword casket on his back. His feet gouged two long trenches into the stone before his right foot slammed down, halting his momentum. Guan Qingyun had it far worse, forced to spin violently several times through the air before he could dissipate the terrifying force! Only then did the watching crowd finally exhale the breath they had held. In an instant, cheers almost threatened to tear the sky apart, and the rumbling of dozens of war drums drove the atmosphere to its absolute peak. "Holy crap!! That's absurdly strong!!" "No kidding! How are these two only Foundation Establishment cultivators?! If they break through to the Core Formation realm, what will they even be like?" The twenty-some sect disciples still competing in the Hundred Sects Tournament took on exceptionally grave expressions. Perhaps before this they had looked down on Li Guanqi and the Great Xia Sword Sect. Now, however, the strength Li Guanqi put on display was enough to crush any one of them! A young disciple clad in blue robes said with a bitter tone, "If I faced him... my chances of winning wouldn't even be thirty percent!" And the disciple who spoke was the Eldest Senior Brother of the Flying Swallow Tower, currently ranked seventh! He was not the only one. When the disciples of the other sects imagined themselves in the arena, they realized they might not even survive three moves against the blind youth! Even Zhao Beichen of Ziyang Palace stared up at the high platform with a grim, heavy countenance. After all, Li Guanqi's sword speed had reached the horrifying rate of eight strikes in a single breath! Eight strikes. What did that even mean? It did not mean Guan Qingyun was weak; on the contrary. In the face of such intense combat, Guan Qingyun had only taken a few shallow cuts instead of collapsing on the spot. Only terrifying strength could accomplish such a feat. Against such blistering speed, if Guan Qingyun had blinked or lost focus for even a sliver of an instant, he would have faced eight strikes unleashed by Li Guanqi in an instant! Li Guanqi ripped away the charred, tattered remains of his upper robe. With a flick of his wrist, Canglang traced several flourishes in the air, flinging off the blood clinging to the blade. Waves of exhaustion slowly crept into his heart. Maintaining such blinding sword speed took a heavy toll on him, severely draining his physical stamina. Moreover, to withstand the blazing flames surging from the other's soul armament sword, he had been forced to pour even greater strength into his strikes. Yet he stood his ground, still carrying an air of effortless calm. His chest heaving violently, Guan Qingyun fixed his eyes on Li Guanqi, terrified that the youth might make another sudden move. Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, Guan Qingyun said in a deep voice, "I have to admit, you're strong!" "I never thought that when I opened my Sword Ruins, the person facing me wouldn't be Zhao Beichen!" "Li Guanqi, was it? I'll remember you!" Meanwhile, the disciples of the Great Xia Sword Sect stared intently at the youth upon the arena. Every single one of them prayed he could defeat Guan Qingyun and make all the heroes under heaven truly respect the Great Xia Sword Sect! By now, many people had noticed the dense, intricate crimson patterns covering Li Guanqi's body. Guan Qingyun was no exception; he assumed it was some profound secret technique that granted Li Guanqi a massive surge in power. Li Guanqi drew a deep breath, feeling the origin power within his body, and the bluestone beneath his feet abruptly shattered! Seeing this from a distance, Guan Qingyun could not help but curse under his breath. "What an obstinate mule!" Though words left his mouth, his hands did not falter, instantly unleashing an exquisitely intricate sword art. Blazing scarlet flames burned atop the sword light, every strike carrying overwhelming might. Yet Li Guanqi paid it no heed, his blade slashing out in relentless succession!! As time wore on, sustaining the Sword Ruins rapidly depleted the origin power inside Guan Qingyun. Li Guanqi surged forward, sweeping his sword horizontally toward Guan Qingyun. In his haste, Guan Qingyun had no choice but to block with his blade across his chest! *Clang, clang, clang, clang!!* Li Guanqi's figure spun rapidly like a top, unleashing a flurry of purple sword light in an instant!! And just as Guan Qingyun fought desperately to parry the onslaught, the hum of Li Guanqi's divine sense caught a fatal opening!