When they saw more than a dozen Lord-rank fierce beasts severed in two by a single streak of light, their carcasses splitting apart and blood geysering into the sky like a spring, everyone froze in utter astonishment.
In the command center, Yun Yan's eyes went wide and round, the staff officers stood slack-jawed in shock, and the soldiers across every defensive position stared dumbfounded. The barrage of artillery fire momentarily ceased.
"Wh-where did that light come from?" someone stammered, bewildered.
"What light? That's blade light! Blade aura!" another shouted, snapping back to his senses. "It has to be Director Huang Tian! He made his move!"
No sooner had the words left his mouth than everyone saw a figure on the eastern horizon holding a snow-white war saber, strolling through the open sky. Ripples dispersed in the air beneath his feet. In barely two or three seconds, he arrived over the coastal mudflats, the vast winds billowing through his sleeves and black hair.
"It really is Director Huang!"
"Flight? Is that physical flight?!"
"I remember when Director Huang broke through to the War God realm, he couldn't fly freely through the air, right? He was just so fast that a single leap let him glide for several kilometers, making it look like flight—so, did he break through again?!"
"Beyond War God, the same realm as the Twin-Winged Giant Dragon?"
Cries of astonishment rose from all directions. From the common soldiers to Yun Yan and his staff, everyone was both shocked and overjoyed—and their shock far outweighed their joy. There was no other reason than the sheer speed. It was simply too, too fast!
Only about a month had passed since the Great Change began, yet Huang Tian had surged forward at a blistering pace, breaking through one bottleneck after another until he stepped into the realm above War God.
And ordinary people?
Within a month, anyone who could become a Warrior-rank martial artist was already hailed as a genius!
If someone managed to master one or two strikes of the Triple-Wave Saber on top of that, they were considered a genius among geniuses!
For example, a Warrior-rank martial artist from Mili Jian named Liam, who had recently appeared on the news, had mastered the first two strikes of the Triple-Wave Saber, prompting their media to proclaim him Mili Jian's number-one talent in aptitude and comprehension!
Yet geniuses of Liam's caliber were exceedingly rare. In the entire Great Yan Federation, excluding Huang Tian, one could find at most one or two. The vast majority of people were completely ordinary—neither stupid nor brilliant—and managing to learn the Spiritual Energy Guidance Technique and successfully absorb spiritual energy within a month or two was already considered satisfactory.
This contrast made Huang Tian's progress appear all the more absurd!
It was as if everyone was a loach burrowing comfortably in the mud, only for one individual to suddenly soar into the heavens and transform directly into a dragon—
In fact, it was not just Yun Yan and the others who were stunned; even Xiu Miluo, who prided himself on his vast worldly knowledge, stood frozen.
"Physical flight—he broke through to the Planetary rank! How could he be this fast?!"
Inside the gray starship, watching Huang Tian walk across the void on the light screen, Xiu Miluo stood up with a start, his spiritual energy releasing uncontrollably and churning up a violent gust of wind.
"In barely twenty-odd days, he actually broke through to the Planetary rank? This makes no sense!"
His mind churned in disbelief. According to his previous estimates, even though Huang Tian possessed remarkable talent, was tempered by turbulent times, and had ample resources, it should have taken him at least several months to break through.
And that was under ideal conditions. On the path of cultivation, being stuck at a bottleneck for several years or even over a decade was completely normal. For Huang Tian to advance to the Planetary rank, taking three to five years would already be considered rapid.
That was also why Xiu Miluo had believed Huang Tian would face near-certain death against the Twin-Winged Giant Dragon. A gap of a full major realm was an insurmountable chasm!
Unless, of course, one grasped a domain, or even a Law!
Once a domain was unleashed, one was invincible within the same rank and capable of challenging higher realms. And once a Law emerged, crossing an entire major realm to defeat an enemy was effortless!
Yet could a mere native hope to comprehend a domain, let alone a Law?
What kind of cosmic joke was that!
As a mid-Stellar rank powerhouse, he, Xiu Miluo, had not even grazed the edge of a domain!
And now, though Huang Tian had not grasped a domain or Law, he had nevertheless broken through to the Planetary rank!
Furthermore, far from taking three to five years, or even three to five months, he had succeeded in just over twenty days!
It was far too fast!
"Does he not have cultivation bottlenecks at all?!"
Xiu Miluo began to doubt reality itself. Could a mere native truly possess such astounding talent?
Or was there some hidden secret—perhaps an extraordinary opportunity he had stumbled upon? Yet on second thought, that seemed improbable. The vast Milky Way Galaxy held countless planets, with hundreds of thousands of registered life-bearing worlds alone. Across so many worlds, no such profound encounters had ever manifested, so why would an insignificant native planet possess anything remarkable?
It was utterly absurd!
"Still, there must be a reason for him to break through so quickly... Could it really just be his sheer talent?"
While Xiu Miluo was lost in bewilderment, the waves rolled and sea winds whistled along the coast of Fuxia City.
*Roar!*
Between the sea and sky, the Twin-Winged Giant Dragon stared at Huang Tian standing with his saber. A low growl rumbled in its throat, its gaze laden with wariness.
It still remembered that half a month ago, when it secretly drove a beast tide to assault Fuxia, this very human had stepped forth and easily slain several Lord-rank fierce beasts. He had been formidable, but ultimately an entire realm lower, so it had not paid him much heed.
Yet now, this human was on the same level as itself—
Thoughts of retreat arose in its mind, but having seen so many of its subordinates slaughtered before its eyes, fleeing without a fight would be humiliating. Besides, the grudge from the nuclear bombing remained unsettled—
After hesitating for a single breath, it suddenly opened its maw wide.
*Rumble—*
A cloud of grayish-black fog billowed from its mouth, blanketing the sky as it surged toward Huang Tian, carrying a foul, nauseating stench!
*Whoosh—*
Answering this toxic fog was a dazzling flash of blade light, cascading like an overturned heavenly river. Wherever it passed, the thick toxic fog split apart, and its momentum remained undiminished. Seeing the biting blade light slash toward it on a diagonal, the Twin-Winged Giant Dragon's pupils contracted. It strained with all its might to evade, but the blade light was simply too fast!
*Squelch—*
The blade light struck home. A wound a hundred meters long was carved diagonally across its flank, and translucent dragon blood gushed out, glinting like jewels under the sunlight.
Excruciating pain washed over it, but the dragon had no time to dwell on it, because it saw the human striding across the sky with his saber raised!
*Wail—*
With a mournful cry, knowing it was no match, the Twin-Winged Giant Dragon plunged headlong into the sea below. Its three-hundred-meter-long body crashed into the waves, and dragon blood surged from its wound, blooming into one crimson flower after another in the seawater.
*Splash—*
Huang Tian followed it into the ocean without hesitation. The moment he entered the water, he saw that the Twin-Winged Giant Dragon had already swum several kilometers away. He immediately channeled his spiritual energy, and with a roaring boom, shot forth like an arrow loosed from a bow. The incoming seawater parted to both sides, forming a colossal vortex!
Hearing the disturbance behind it, the Twin-Winged Giant Dragon looked back, only to discover in horror that the human's speed underwater was even greater than its own. In the blink of an eye, he was right behind it!
*Chirp-roar!* It shrieked and fought to flee deeper into the abyss. In the next instant, however, its body went stiff. It felt a hand firmly seize the left horn atop its head, the fingers clamping down with immense force, forcibly locking it in place!
*Crash!* The Twin-Winged Giant Dragon struggled frantically, thrashing its tail in an attempt to break free. The surrounding seawater surged violently under its frantic flailing, stirring up countless turbulent currents!
Yet no matter how it struggled, it could not shake off the tiny figure atop its head.
On the contrary, a second later, its entire body felt weightless. Huang Tian, standing atop its skull with blue veins bulging and muscles tensed along his arms, hauled it straight out of the deep sea by raw strength alone!
*Boom!!!*
Man and dragon breached the ocean together!
A scene resembling an epic myth unfolded before the eyes of everyone on shore:
A single man, clutching a giant dragon over three hundred meters long, soared into the sky from the boiling sea, lifting tens of thousands of water spouts in his wake!
Countless torrents of seawater cascaded from the dragon's body, forming hundreds of waterfalls in midair that refracted the sunlight into dazzling rainbows!
"So... so magnificent—" someone nearly groaned aloud.
"It looks just like an immortal subduing a dragon from the ancient legends—"
"Too powerful! Humans can actually evolve to become this strong! Slaying dragons and tigers, pacifying the sea!"
"Traversing the sky in the flesh, subduing the dragon's head with a single hand—how is this any different from an immortal or god?"
"Divine Huang! He truly lives up to the name Divine Huang now!"
"We are witnessing a myth!"
High above, fierce winds howled like knives!
*Roar!*
The Twin-Winged Giant Dragon thrashed violently, whipping its long tail like a lash toward a sea of clouds.
*Rumble!*
The cloud bank shattered under the strike, scattering across the sky like drifting white down. Where the giant tail swept past, the air detonated with sonic booms, rings of white vapor exploding in its wake!
No matter how the dragon thrashed, Huang Tian remained immovable. His left hand firmly gripped the dragon horn, while his right arm pulled back high, curling into a fist that detonated the air with a loud crack before smashing down ruthlessly upon the dragon's skull!
*Thud!!*
The moment that punch landed, all sound in the world vanished. Only rolling shockwaves tore outward in all directions, completely scattering the drifting clouds across the sky!
The Twin-Winged Giant Dragon's body went instantly rigid, its skull caved in, and dragon blood sprayed like a waterfall!
Huang Tian let go, and the colossal carcass plummeted straight down toward the coastal hills below!
*Rumble—*
The dragon's body crashed directly onto a hill, instantly leveling its crest as boulders shattered and topsoil erupted.
The hard rock was pulverized to dust, while soil and vegetation were blasted away in an instant, creating concentric waves of earth tens of meters high that roared outward in all directions!
When the dust settled slightly, the scene revealed that the original hill had been completely flattened, replaced by a giant crater stretching several kilometers across!
Inside the crater lay the colossal dragon corpse, fresh blood welling out to form a vast pool, soaking into the soil and countless broken plants—
Silence enveloped heaven and earth, followed by an explosion of wild, ecstatic cheers from every defensive position!
"The Twin-Winged Giant Dragon is dead! We won! We won!"
"Divine Huang is invincible!"
"Divine Huang is invincible! Humanity will prevail!"
Amidst the jubilant uproar, Xiu Miluo watched Huang Tian on the starship's light screen, his expression growing increasingly grim.
"Not only did he break through quickly, his combat strength is astonishing! Although I forced the Little Gray Dragon to ripen, its massive size gave it strength comparable to an ordinary early Planetary rank martial artist. For Huang Tian to kill it within a few moves means his strength has already reached the mid-Planetary rank, or even late Planetary rank!
"This is simply inconceivable! He has been walking the path of cultivation for less than a month. How could his combat power be this formidable? His force exertion techniques, timing, and secret offensive arts are no worse than those of senior Planetary rank martial artists who have cultivated for centuries!"
He exhaled heavily, his gaze turning colder. "He cannot be allowed to keep growing!"
To possess near late-Planetary strength upon just advancing to the early Planetary rank—if he were allowed to cultivate for a while longer, would he not pose a threat to Xiu Miluo himself?! While the probability was infinitesimally small, one had to remain guarded. Xiu Miluo resolved to nip him in the bud!
As for befriending Huang Tian or taking him as a disciple, the thought flickered through his mind only to be instantly discarded. For the same reason: lack of trust!
He did not believe Huang Tian could let go of his grievances and befriend him. Since the Great Change began, nearly one-eighth of the world's population had been slaughtered by fierce beasts!
The Great Yan Federation had suffered comparatively fewer casualties, yet over thirty million had died, including quite a few casualties among those connected to Huang Tian, such as cousins, middle school classmates, and teachers.
Under such circumstances, even if Huang Tian promised in person never to seek revenge once he grew stronger, Xiu Miluo dared not take that gamble—
Moreover, he was intensely curious about Huang Tian. "Is it truly extraordinary talent, or some other reason that allowed you to bridge the gap from a mere mortal to rivaling senior Planetary powerhouses who have cultivated for centuries in just one month?"
Xiu Miluo exhaled slowly and commanded, "Yun'an, fly to Fuxia City!"
"Understood, Master!"
The gray starship shuddered, then streaked toward Fuxia like a ray of light!
*Whoosh—*
After slaying the Twin-Winged Giant Dragon, Huang Tian continued walking across the vast sky with war saber in hand. Facing the boundless ocean, he swung his blade again and again. Blade aura swept across the waters like a torrential storm, like an overturned heavenly river!
Some streaks of blade aura split straight down, gouging deep trenches into the sea. The water rose like sheer walls on both sides, revealing the panicked fierce beasts beneath before subsequent blade light shredded them to minced flesh.
Some streaks swept across obliquely, skimming the sea surface. Wherever they passed, the heads of countless fierce beasts were severed clean off, blood gushing like fountains!
Other streaks of blade aura surged into the sky, bisecting fleeing avian fierce beasts midair, scattering feathers and blood mist over the boundless sea.
Blade light roiled across the vast expanse of sky!
Chilling! Biting!
Overwhelming the heavens and earth, flooding every corner!
Though the sea beasts numbered in the hundreds of millions, they were now lambs awaiting slaughter.
Blade light was everywhere!
Whether they were colossal, thick-skinned behemoths or nimble, swift creatures, all were overtaken and effortlessly slain by the blade light.
An entire expanse of sea was dyed crimson!
The blood was so thick it could hardly disperse. Carcasses floated densely across the surface, bobbing with the waves. The stench of blood was so overpowering that even the howling winds could not scatter it, stinging the eyes of anyone who looked on!
A short while later, once the hundreds of millions of fierce beasts had either fled or perished, that stretch of the ocean fell entirely silent. Only then did Huang Tian sheathe his saber, take a step forward, and return to the ground.
By this time, Yun Yan and the others had gathered. Looking at Huang Tian standing clean and spotless before them, then glancing toward the mountain of corpses and sea of blood in the distance, their hearts, despite their joy, could not help but feel a prickle of awe and dread.
*Ahem.* Yun Yan forced a couple of coughs, a smile surfacing on his face. "Di-Director Huang, are you unhurt?"
The moment the words left his mouth, he realized he had asked a foolish question. Huang Tian was untainted by a speck of dust—how could he possibly be hurt?
Sure enough, Huang Tian smiled and replied, "I am uninjured."
"Ah, good—good to hear! Good to hear!" Yun Yan coughed again to mask his embarrassment. Remembering something, he hurriedly changed the subject. "Di-did you break through again?"
"I made some progress," Huang Tian nodded.
During his half-month of closed-door cultivation, he had ingested and refined all the spirit plants sent from the capital, successfully reaching the peak of the second rank. Then, just as the Twin-Winged Giant Dragon led countless sea beasts to assault Fuxia, he naturally advanced to the third rank!
Moreover, alongside his breakthrough, he had crossed the threshold of a new Law: Water!
To this day, he had stepped across the thresholds of three Laws: Water, Fire, and Metal!
Although they had already guessed his breakthrough, seeing Huang Tian nod in confirmation still sent waves of shock through Yun Yan and the others. It was simply too defying of nature! Others took a month just to guide spiritual energy into their bodies, yet in a month, he was subduing dragons with one hand!
He was monstrous to a degree that hardly seemed like someone from New Star!
"Slaying the Twin-Winged Giant Dragon and those sea beasts took quite a toll. I will head back to regulate my breath and recover. I leave things here to you," Huang Tian said, his gaze sweeping across the horizon.
"Rest assured, we will handle the aftermath," Yun Yan responded immediately.
Huang Tian nodded slightly. With a shift of his body, he appeared over a thousand meters away in the next second. After several flashes, he returned to his temporary residence in Fuxia, a detached villa.
The villa was surrounded by a dense bamboo grove, quiet and secluded. Many flowers were planted in the courtyard, their fragrance rich and intoxicating. He stood with his hands behind his back before a cluster of blossoms, gently taking in their scent.
*Step, step—*
Just then, light footsteps sounded behind him, followed by a voice carrying a hint of appreciation and pity.
"Young man, you are quite impressive—the most astonishing person I have encountered on this native planet!"
Chapter 268