Pang Li's spiritual energy enveloped his longsword, turning the entire blade crimson.
It seemed that even if Pang Li possessed a heavenly spiritual root, his innate talent was not particularly impressive.
Li Guanqi sneered, his sword thrusting forward in rapid succession!
*Clang! Clang! Clang!*
Every strike was fast as lightning. In a single breath, he struck out twice in a row, tapping precisely against the weak points of his opponent's longsword.
Pang Li's slashing sword forms were forcibly interrupted.
Over several dozen strikes of his fierce sword technique, he was entirely unable to get near Li Guanqi.
To Li Guanqi, the flustered, exasperated Pang Li was riddled with flaws.
*Clang!*
By the time those ferocious moves were exhausted one after another, the spectators below were utterly dazzled.
After forcing Li Guanqi back with a sword strike, the disdain in Pang Li's eyes had vanished, replaced by solemn gravity.
From that brief exchange, he had already realized that his opponent's strength was definitely superior to his own!
Li Guanqi flicked his wrist, twirling his sword into a flourish as he sneered, "Is this all you've got? You're hardly giving me any fun at all."
*Boom!*
The bluestone slabs beneath Li Guanqi's feet shattered instantly, and his figure shot forward like a lunging leopard!
His movement technique, Thunder Flash, quietly engaged.
With terrifying speed, he was before Pang Li in practically the span of a breath!
By the time Pang Li reacted, Li Guanqi was already three feet away!
A cold glint flashed in his eyes, leaving Pang Li to rely purely on instinct to raise his sword in defense!
Yet how could Li Guanqi's sword be so easily parried?
Like an agile serpent, the sword abruptly shifted form, turning from a thrust into an encircling coil!
*Slash!*
Sword light flashed, and three strikes in rapid succession pierced Pang Li's body!
The sword in Pang Li's hand repeated his previous techniques, surging with origin energy in a grand, imposing display.
Yet this time, Li Guanqi merely stood where he was, advancing step by step as if strolling through a courtyard.
With every gleam of his blade, he struck out just before Pang Li could complete a move!
Moreover, the force behind every single strike weighed a full thousand jin!
The monstrous power and blinding speed of the onslaught forced Pang Li to break off the sword techniques he was trying to execute.
*Bang! Bang! Bang!*
Pang Li began to stumble backward continuously, each step shattering a large section of the blue bricks beneath him.
The spectators below swallowed hard. Anyone could see that the two combatants were simply not in the same league.
Having unleashed the Raging Fire Sword Technique twice in a row, Pang Li had already expended an enormous amount of origin energy.
In stark contrast, Li Guanqi's breathing rhythm had not changed from start to finish.
Furthermore, Li Guanqi's lower stance was remarkably solid, and his bodily control was nothing short of extraordinary.
The disciples of Ziyang Palace were even beginning to suspect whether Pang Li was intentionally holding back.
From their perspective, Pang Li was being utterly timid with his sword, forced to pull back on defense before he could even finish a swing.
Across the massive martial arts arena, all everyone could see was Li Guanqi advancing relentlessly, alone with his sword.
Opposite him, Pang Li did nothing but retreat over and over again.
*Thud!*
Li Guanqi kicked Pang Li back several dozen feet, asking in a low, cold voice, "Is this the full extent of your power? Or was all that arrogance you showed earlier merely backed by your identity as a disciple of Ziyang Palace?"
His chest caved in, Pang Li coughed up a large mouthful of blood.
His aura had plummeted, yet his eyes burned with fury.
Li Guanqi stood just three feet away, yet Pang Li could not touch him in the slightest!
Li Guanqi continued to mock him with cold eyes. "Slow! Too slow!"
Then, Li Guanqi moved.
*Swish!*
A cold glint flashed. Hardly anyone caught sight of Li Guanqi's movement.
The hand Pang Li used to grip his sword fell abruptly to the ground!
Pang Li turned his head slowly as searing agony stabbed into his nerves.
Staring at his empty wrist, Pang Li let out a shrill scream.
"Ah! My hand! My hand!"
"Ahhh!"
The piercing shriek echoed toward the sky. Pang Li collapsed to the ground, his left hand clutching the severed wrist tightly.
Retreating frantically, he produced several medicinal pills and swallowed them whole.
His features twisted with madness, Pang Li then took out a crimson pill and downed it with desperate resolve!
*Boom!*
Li Guanqi stopped in his tracks, staring impassively at Pang Li, whose eyes had turned blood-red several dozen feet away.
Beside the arena, Li Nanting narrowed his eyes slightly and said to the old man next to him in a deep voice, "Old Man Miao, using a Spirit Burst Pill... isn't that going a bit too far?"
With his hands tucked into his sleeves and his gaze lowered slightly, the old man replied softly, "It was stated clearly that in a life-or-death battle, any means are permitted."
Standing where he was, Li Guanqi murmured softly, "A Spirit Burst Pill, is it? His aura is almost near the middle Foundation Establishment stage now."
As the pill's power erupted within his body, Pang Li's eyes flared blood-red. Surging origin energy stopped his bleeding as he roared with unhinged fury, "I want you dead! Spirit Incantation! Two hundred ninety-three, Flame Burst!"
*Boom! Boom! Boom!*
In an instant, more than a dozen head-sized fireballs materialized across the arena, hurtling straight toward Li Guanqi.
The crowd below cried out in shock, "A spirit incantation! Pang Li has actually cultivated Flame Burst to such a degree!"
Seeing this, Li Guanqi shook his head slightly. He had thought Pang Li had some genuine trick up his sleeve.
In that case...
With a shift of Li Guanqi's intent, the acupoints within his body opened, and the circulation of his origin energy finished almost instantaneously.
*Buzz!*
"Thunder Whip!"
A whip of purple lightning over a zhang long abruptly materialized in his left hand!
*Crack! Crack! Crack!*
*Boom! Boom!*
As the whip lashed out, the myriad fireballs were shattered before they could even draw near his body.
Then, the lightning whip dispersed, and Li Guanqi sheathed his sword, closing the distance in a flash!
High upon the stage, Li Guanqi treated everyone to a sheer display of fist-to-flesh brutality!
Every swift blow was packed with terrifying force. While ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators had tempered bodies with strong resilience, Li Guanqi's fists carried far more than a thousand jin of force!
With his spirit incantation shattered, Pang Li had no ability to fight back.
Blood splattered through the air, quickly staining the stone slabs below.
With a breath held tight in his chest, Li Guanqi rained ferocious punches upon Pang Li like a downpour.
A moment later.
Li Guanqi swept his leg out like a massive greataxe, striking across Pang Li's legs!
*Snap! Crack!*
Two crisp sounds rang out, and Pang Li dropped to his knees with a thud!
His face mangled, Pang Li was soaked in blood, his chest caved in.
His legs were bent at an unnatural angle, leaving him kneeling upright before Li Guanqi.
Breathing heavily, Li Guanqi raised his fist and glanced toward Li Nanting nearby.
Yet just then, Pang Li, whose swollen eyes were reduced to mere slits and whose mouth was full of blood, raised his head unsteadily and grinned savagely at Li Guanqi.
His twisted fingers reached out to grab Li Guanqi's wrist, and he rasped in a faint, trembling whisper, "Even... if you win... so what... *Cough, cough!* I am... the disciple of... the Palace Master of Qingxiao Palace! As long as... I don't die, I will definitely... find a chance... to kill that... wretched little girl!"
Li Guanqi slowly drew his gaze back and looked down at Pang Li.
Seeing Li Guanqi turn his eyes toward him, Pang Li's savage grin deepened.
Soon, he would pay a horrific price for his sheer arrogance!
High upon the viewing platform, the white-haired elder murmured softly, "What an exceptional seedling."
Having said that, the old man rose and departed.
Chapter 69