Next!

By now, Li Guanqi had defeated three Xuanmen Palace disciples in succession. Formidable! Li Guanqi's strength had become an undeniable truth acknowledged by all. Moreover, the strength he displayed was marked by an unfazed composure, no matter who stood before him. And as stories of his past deeds began to circulate, everyone wanted to see just how far this blind youth could go. Before long, the fourth Xuanmen Palace disciple stepped onto the stage. A burly youth, he gave Li Guanqi no room to breathe at all, unleashing a relentless barrage of furious strikes. Amid flashing sword-light, his gaze grew increasingly ruthless! He threw himself at Li Guanqi with a suicidal, life-for-a-wound style of combat. Li Guanqi, by contrast, skirted his opponent with leisurely grace, like a stroll in a courtyard. Seizing an opening, his right hand shifted sword stances three times in rapid succession, driving his blade straight through the youth's palm. The edge came to a halt a single finger's width before the youth's eyes! The youth's throat bobbed with difficulty, his voice dry and hoarse. "I yield..." Fifth opponent! Three strikes! Sixth opponent! Seven strikes! ... Time and again, Li Guanqi strained the crowd's nerves to their limit. Yet spurred on by the scolding of their elders, the Xuanmen Palace disciples also unleashed remarkable strength. After all, anyone selected for this tournament was among the finest in their sect. Spells, talismans, spirit incantations, sword techniques, and cultivation arts! A dizzying array of methods was brought to bear without end. Through it all, Li Guanqi's origin power drained at a terrifying rate. Fresh wounds multiplied across his body. When his sword severed the ninth disciple's wrist, the youth's body swayed slightly, and he quickly planted his sword into the ground to steady himself. Then, his proud frame slowly straightened! Face as pale as paper, Li Guanqi looked around the arena, his dazed eyes flashing as he shouted at the top of his lungs, "Next!!" *Whoosh!!* A grim-faced youth leaped onto the high stage! At the pinnacle of his momentum, the youth fixed a grave stare on the sword-scarred boy before him, not daring to underestimate him in the slightest. Whenever the crowd thought Li Guanqi could go no further, he always surprised them again and again. Li Guanqi's mind was exceptionally lucid. His hands slowly drew together, but in the end, he resisted shifting Canglang to his left hand. He could naturally sense that the opponent before him was no ordinary foe. Yet he felt that the time to use his left hand had not yet come! *Boom!!* As the call to begin rang out, the challenger charged forward without the slightest hesitation, instantly unleashing his strongest move! The razor-sharp metal origin power stung Li Guanqi's skin even across more than ten zhang. Seeing Li Guanqi standing stock-still where he was, the onlookers could not help but break into a cold sweat. Suddenly! In the sky, Ge Qing's eyes narrowed slightly, and even Long Qu, concealed high in the void, let out a soft exclamation of surprise! The wounded youth slowly raised his sword!! In that instant, Li Guanqi's entire demeanor underwent a radical shift! Where he had been as calm as a pool of clear water, it was now as though a tranquil sea had suddenly surged with monstrous, crashing waves!! Momentum! Every Nascent Soul cultivator was stunned! A powerful sword cultivator could temper themselves to comprehend their own sword intent. And the prerequisite for intent was momentum! Only by first comprehending momentum and then refining it to find one's own momentum could one comprehend their own sword intent. Yet the youth before them had already touched upon momentum while still in the Foundation Establishment realm!! How could this not shock them? On the stage, the Xuanmen Palace disciple felt that boundless momentum even more acutely! It was as though a colossal wave had materialized before his eyes, reducing him to a tiny skiff that could capsize at any second! Li Guanqi's brow furrowed, cold severity radiating from his features. That reckless, unyielding battle lust sent a tremor through countless hearts. Purple lightning surged continuously like the rushing waters of a river, rolling out wave upon wave. The sword hummed, vibrating into a clarion chime!! Li Guanqi took a sudden, forceful step forward and slashed out with all his might!! Channeling terrifying power mingled with the last of his origin power, he swung his blade! In an instant, a burst of bloody mist erupted from his right arm! He had already lost the strength to maintain his Sword Ruins ability during the battle with the sixth disciple. This was the absolute last strike he could muster! *Boom!!* Li Guanqi let out a fierce roar: "Thunder Tide!!" This was a sword strike he had created beneath Daqian Waterfall, born from his own insights. Several zhang away, the youth had no time left to dodge. He could only muster every scrap of his origin power and pour it into his sword. In an instant, the blade blazed with a blinding crimson-gold glow. The youth took seven swift steps, his profound footwork rendering his figure ethereal and elusive. *Boom!!* Sharp metal spiritual power erupted instantly. His sword feinted several times, thrusting straight toward Li Guanqi's vitals! The youth roared, "Thousand Parting Sword Slash!!!" In an instant, his sword dissolved into hundreds of illusory sword-lights rushing at Li Guanqi! *Boom!!* A violent explosion erupted, and the bluestone paving stones across more than ten zhang shattered into pieces! The massive arena trembled violently, and a figure was blasted backward several dozen zhang by the detonation! *Thud!* The figure crashed to the ground and lay motionless, his breath faint and ragged. Amid the billowing dust, a figure stood proudly in the center of the arena. *Drip. Drip.* Covered in blood, every wound across Li Guanqi's body had mangled, gaping flesh, looking terrifyingly gruesome. A mop of messy black hair fell across his face. Every eye in the venue was riveted on the figure on the stage. Yet just then, a faint murmur carried from the stage. Across the vast summit of Mount Tianyu, dead silence reigned. Everyone held their breath, straining to hear what the youth was trying to say. Then, a feeble, slurred voice escaped the youth's lips. "N-next..." At this moment, even Qin Xian, whose heart was forged of iron, could not hold back tears from streaming down his aged face! Li Nanting streaked toward the stage in a flash of light, opening his arms and catching the grievously injured boy in his embrace. Gently patting the boy's back, he choked with emotion, "There are no... there are no more nexts." "You... you won!" Indeed, only now did everyone realize the truth of what had happened. By his own power alone, the youth on stage had consecutively routed ten cultivators of the same realm!! The first Purgatory Challenge had succeeded!! And his opponents were none other than Northern Region's Xuanmen Palace, celebrated as one of the Three Sects and Six Palaces!! At that moment, countless people erupted into wild cheers and roaring applause! Magnificent! That was the universal verdict on Li Guanqi's battle today. And for Li Guanqi himself, they spared no praise. For he deserved every word of it. His reputation as a monstrous talent spread like wildfire. On the stage, having heard the old man's words, Li Guanqi closed his eyes and collapsed directly into his arms. Cradling the unconscious youth, Li Nanting took to the air and flew away from the summit of Mount Tianyu! And Great Xia Sword Sect's ranking rose straight to twelfth place!