Spirit Ruins Ability: Blade Break!

Bang, bang, bang! The sword in Zhao Beichen's hand traced an arc of fan-shaped sword light, blindingly swift. In the blink of an eye, the sky full of icicles was reduced to powdered ice, scattering into the air. Seizing this chance, the woman closed in instantly, her longsword wrapped in an incomparably fierce frost energy. If even a trace of it touched flesh, one would likely suffer severe frostbite. Boom! With an indifferent look in his eyes, Zhao Beichen took a stride forward. His speed was so extreme that an afterimage lingered in his place for half a breath! The sword in his hand flashed with dazzling golden radiance, slashing instantly toward the woman's vitals! "Great Desolation Tyrant Sword!" A desolate, ancient aura slowly emanated as the youth swung his sword violently toward her waist. Bang! Clang! Though she blocked horizontally with her ice-blue longsword, the colossal force blew her backward dozens of yards in an instant. Yet while still in midair, the woman abruptly coughed up a huge mouthful of blood! Pfft! Li Guanqi suddenly bolted upright from the elevated platform! A fingernail-sized notch had abruptly appeared on the blade of the woman's soul armament sword! One had to remember that soul armaments were personal lifebound soul armaments, nurtured within one's own body. They were inherently extraordinarily tough, to say nothing of the fact that every soul armament was forged from precious materials gathered through painstaking effort. Yet the other party's blade had notched the woman's soul armament sword with such ease! This sight left the onlookers momentarily stunned. "Since when have soul armaments been so fragile?" Someone scoffed, "I doubt it's that simple." "Didn't you see Zhao Beichen's momentum shift just now?" Not only the spectator cultivators, but even elders from prominent sects looked toward the stage with deeply grave expressions. Qin Xian also muttered in a low voice, "The spirit ruins ability that kid awakened probably isn't simple at all!" "Could it be... Blade Break?!" On the elevated stage, the woman glared with beautiful eyes fixed on Zhao Beichen nearby. In a low, sharp voice, she demanded, "Your spirit ruins ability is Blade Break!" Indeed! Zhao Beichen's spirit ruins ability was Blade Break, capable of shattering any wielder's soul armament! As long as his strength was on par with his opponent's, his spirit ruins ability could shatter their soul armament! Once the spirit ruins lost its vessel—the soul armament—it naturally could no longer exert any power. Zhao Beichen walked forward step by step, a playful sneer curling the corners of his lips. "Oh? You have quite an eye to recognize my spirit ruins ability." "However... your Lingxiao Pavilion's path of advancement ends right here." As he spoke, the aura billowing from Zhao Beichen grew increasingly terrifying, surging in the blink of an eye straight to the pinnacle of Foundation Establishment Great Circle! In other words, the current Zhao Beichen was virtually indistinguishable from a half-step Core Formation powerhouse. If there was any difference, it was merely that he had not truly broken through the realm. The origin energy within his dantian had not yet condensed into a core. That soul-crushing, powerful aura could be felt with absolute clarity even by Li Guanqi below the stage. This caused him to narrow his eyes slightly, calculating how much of a chance he would have if he faced Zhao Beichen. Yet even after pondering for a long time, Li Guanqi could not reach a definitive conclusion. In the end, his judgment was that if both of them stood on the arena stage, the outcome would be no better than a fifty-fifty toss-up! Boom! The entire crowd stood up! Leaving three afterimages in his wake, Zhao Beichen struck relentlessly downward at the woman again and again! The Great Desolation Tyrant Sword was Ziyang Palace's supreme sword art. Its subtleties were notoriously obscure and difficult to comprehend, yet Zhao Beichen was the very first Foundation Establishment disciple to master it to the fourth layer! Three strikes! When the first strike fell, the blade of the ice-blue longsword in the woman's hand began to crumble. Frost surged around her as she gritted her teeth! On the second strike, under the sword light imbued with wild desolation, the frost flower mark between her brows began to dissipate. Everywhere the two passed, the arena floor was slashed into countless shattered fragments. Blood dripped from the woman's right hand, the webbing between her thumb and forefinger split open, and her face turned pale as paper! Dodging and weaving, she could only frantically resist, brandishing her broken sword to whip up gusts of frost. When the third strike descended, razor-sharp sword light blasted outward in all directions, causing the entire arena to tremble faintly. Amid the chaotic sword light, the crowd could only vaguely see the dazzling frost flower behind Ji Linglan shattering bit by bit! Frost faded; blood dripped from the broken sword. Across the woman's body were a total of eighteen sword wounds, blood soaking her robes into a wash of crimson. In a daze, Ji Linglan collapsed limp onto the ground, her eyes hollow. Behind her, Zhao Beichen sheathed his sword with an indifferent expression and stood upright, speaking softly. "With just you?" "I'm afraid you can't touch my Ziyang Palace!" The rampant aura around him slowly receded, returning once more to his usual detached demeanor. At that moment, the summit of Mount Tianyu was completely silent. Everyone was shocked by the sheer magnitude of Zhao Beichen's strength. The power the two had just displayed was in no way inferior to any cultivator newly entered into Core Formation! In fact, many mid-Core Formation cultivators shook their heads with solemn expressions, admitting they might not even be able to defeat Zhao Beichen! He was a bona fide monstrous prodigy! A monstrous genius ranking among the very best in the entire Northern Region! High in the sky, Ge Qing took a deep breath. Even though both fighters were merely at Foundation Establishment, the display had still broadened his horizons. Who would have thought that Foundation Establishment disciples could reach such terrifying heights nowadays? The old man declared in a deep voice, "Ziyang Palace versus Lingxiao Pavilion—Ziyang Palace wins!" Immediately afterward, the old man looked toward the record stele. Following Ziyang Palace's victory, its points began climbing steadily. Finally, it settled into first place! Yet at that moment, an arrogant Zhao Beichen suddenly turned his head toward the spectator stands. Following his gaze, the crowd saw the white-robed youth carrying a sword casket on his back. Li Guanqi! The fellow who had led the Great Xia Sword Sect all the way to this point! The darkest of dark horses! No one had expected that an obscure sect like the Great Xia Sword Sect would be led by a single youth straight into the final battles of the tournament. Sixth place. A rank the Great Xia Sword Sect had never dared to dream of. The crowd could not help but look forward to how magnificent a fight between Zhao Beichen and Li Guanqi would be! Seeing Zhao Beichen suddenly look toward the blind youth, countless gazes gathered upon the two. A wicked, charming smile suddenly surfaced on Zhao Beichen's handsome face. Lifting his sword to point at Li Guanqi, he murmured softly, "To be honest, I'm very much looking forward to fighting you." "You are very strong." Hearing this, Li Guanqi could not help but shrug. He picked up the slightly trembling little girl, turned, and flew away through the air. As he departed, he spoke softly. "Wait for me." The moment those words were spoken, an uproar erupted across the venue! The spectators naturally knew that the Great Xia Sword Sect still needed to win once more tomorrow! Yet judging from Li Guanqi's earlier performance, he was already at the end of his tether.