The Sword Casket's First Sword!

The sword light was swift as lightning and completely silent. With no time to think, Li Guanqi had no choice but to abandon Li Hua before him and slash out with a backhand strike! Clang!! Treading on empty air, Li Guanqi raised the sword level in his left hand, deflecting the incoming sword light with a single blow. The reddish-gold longsword instantly flew back hundreds of zhang! Li Hua, pale-faced, his trouser legs scorched yellow and dripping wet, stumbled backward through the air. By now, Li Hua was utterly terrified out of his wits. If he hadn't kicked Yang Dinghai just now, the one who died would have been him. He had never seen Li Guanqi fight before. Even when he saw Lin Quan's wretched state back at the courtyard, he had merely thought Li Guanqi was a bit cruel. Only when he truly faced Li Guanqi did he realize the youth was far more than just cruel. The look in his eyes and his demeanor when killing sent a chill straight to the marrow of the bone!! Suddenly!! The heavenly tribulation thundercloud in the sky, which was already about to disperse, abruptly shot forth a spear of lightning!! In the spark of a flint, Zhao Beichen shoved Li Hua violently with a raised hand! Squelch!! It was precisely because of this shove that the Thunder Spear instantly pierced straight through Li Hua's right shoulder, tearing past his scapula and carrying him plunging from the sky down toward the ground! Boom!! The Thunder Spear, a zhang or so in length, instantly blew apart half of Li Hua's shoulder, pinning him firmly atop the mountain peak! "Ahhh!!!! Ahhh!!!" "Zhao Beichen!! Quick, save me!!" "It hurts!! It hurts so much!!!" Yet in midair, Zhao Beichen turned a deaf ear to Li Hua's cries. Beckoning with one hand, he drew the longsword flying back into his grasp. Zhao Beichen's expression was grave, his eyes wild and haughty as he looked at Li Guanqi. "I have to say, I truly admire your character, yet I marvel at your stupidity." "Even if you withdraw from your sect, Ziyang Palace will never let this matter rest." At this point, Zhao Beichen gave a slight smile. "Heh, fortunately you didn't kill him. Tianxiao Sect won't trouble the Great Xia Sword Sect; at most, they'll negotiate compensation." "Still, I really cannot fathom why you couldn't wait until after tomorrow's duel with me to kill them?" Li Guanqi looked at him calmly and said softly, "Once tomorrow passes... I won't be able to kill them all." "It's just as well. Right here, we can treat this as our battle for the championship!" Hum!!! In an instant, an incomparably powerful aura erupted from Li Guanqi! "Half-step Core Formation!!" Zhao Beichen's pupils contracted, and the aura around him surged violently upward by a huge leap! Boom!!! A glint of madness flashed in the depths of Zhao Beichen's eyes. As proud as he was, how could he ever shrink from battle? In the span of a breath, he had brought his aura to its peak, only a single step away from the Core Formation realm. "Words are useless. Today, either you die or I live—only one of us will walk out of here alive!" Boom!! In an instant, the two figures transformed into two streaks of light and collided. Zhao Beichen, who had previously held something in reserve, did not dare hold back in the slightest now. If he had thought before that Li Guanqi could be toyed with at his whim... Now... he would face him with every ounce of his strength!! Boom!! Light flashed at Zhao Beichen's glabella, and immediately, the soul armament sword in his hand radiated a dense, golden mist-like glow! He had long seen that the sword in Li Guanqi's hand was likewise a soul armament. 'Blade Break!' Clang-clang-clang-clang-clang!! In a flash, the sword lights before them merged into an unbroken expanse, basic sword stances unfolding into myriad variations in their hands. Li Guanqi was taken aback inwardly. He hadn't expected Zhao Beichen's sword speed to be this fast as well! As their swords clashed, bursts of sparks exploded! Each strike of Canglang, wrapped in lightning, left Zhao Beichen's arm numb. Li Guanqi lowered his gaze slightly, and within the spirit ruins at his glabella, the blood-red longsword faintly flickered with crimson light! In the space of a breath, Li Guanqi barked in a low voice: "Gale!!" Swish, swish, swish!! Instantly, the speed of Li Guanqi's left-handed sword skyrocketed—ten strikes in a single breath! The terrifying sword speed instantly forced Zhao Beichen backward in defeat, step by step. Their figures shifted rapidly as they dodged and weaved. Before long, over a dozen sword wounds were added to Zhao Beichen's body. Though he evaded the fatal spots, his sect robe was still shredded and drenched in blood. Yet from beginning to end, Zhao Beichen's gaze did not waver in the least, remaining terrifyingly calm. Suddenly! The sword momentum in Zhao Beichen's hand abruptly shifted, faintly revealing a grand, majestic momentum! The sword in his hand hacked toward Li Guanqi with an exceedingly profound offense! "Nine Luminaries Azure Cloud Sword!!" Sensing danger, Li Guanqi flicked his wrist, his sword momentum surging abruptly! Instantly, wherever the sword light passed, it was as if six lotus flowers raged with lightning, bursting forth! Bang! Bang! Bang!! Boom!! Li Guanqi's heart tightened. In that instant, the boundless sword light completely submerged him! The sword in his hand traced a watertight shield of sword light, his left hand trembling slightly. Clang, clang, clang, clang!! The clamor of clashing sword lights rang incessantly. Yet very quickly, Li Guanqi realized something was wrong. He discovered that a notch had been chipped into Canglang! When he looked up, his eyes met Zhao Beichen's mocking gaze!! With a bang, the sword in Li Guanqi's hand instantly shattered into countless fragments! Canglang shattered! Yet the instant the longsword shattered, the sword light in Zhao Beichen's hand suddenly transformed into an indomitable thrust that lunged fiercely forward!! Boom!!! A figure was knocked flying over ten zhang! As the tumbling figure rolled, it was revealed to be a suit of pitch-black armor! Zhao Beichen stood in place, panting heavily. He hadn't expected the other party to possess such a dharma artifact!! 'Soldier pellet!' Zhao Beichen narrowed his eyes, his origin power fluctuating violently as he said in a deep voice, "A Mohist soldier pellet!" "You obtained it in the secret realm!" Li Guanqi looked down at the soldier pellet pierced at his chest, frowning slightly. It seemed he had still underestimated Zhao Beichen's strength; a soldier pellet of this level could not completely block his opponent's attack! Looking up at him, he said softly, "It seems that secret realm truly was your Ziyang Palace's doing." Zhao Beichen sneered coldly. "Even if you know, what can your Great Xia Sword Sect do to me?" "Even if you killed an elder, it is nothing more than a drop in the bucket to Ziyang Palace!" "As for you, even your soul armament is shattered—what do you have left to fight me with?" Li Guanqi looked expressionlessly at Zhao Beichen, who was drenched in blood and pale-faced. Slowly, he unslung the huge sword casket from his back. Zhao Beichen's heart jumped. Frowning slightly with narrowed eyes, he couldn't help thinking inwardly: 'His sword casket isn't just for show? Why have I never seen him use it!' 'Didn't their sect say... no one has ever seen him open that sword casket?!' Li Guanqi struck a palm heavily against the sword casket, and violent lightning origin power surged wildly into it!! In an instant, countless blood-red, mystical runes appeared across the pitch-black casket! Crack, crack, crack! Fissures suddenly appeared on the left side of the casket. Immediately after, a longsword with a reddish hilt shot out with an explosive burst!! An enigmatic, ethereal voice abruptly sounded in Li Guanqi's mind! "Sword Name—Red Lotus!"