[Yu Xian, Combat Strength: 118]
[Edward, Combat Strength: 155]
Both Yu Xian and Edward possessed means of assessing each other's might.
Yet what they saw differed. Yu Xian's Appraisal had been modified by Zhenwo Changjing, displaying the universal combat strength recognized across the myriad realms, whereas Edward saw an entirely different sight.
Edward possessed a "Threat Radar."
Once activated, every living creature emitted a distinct color spectrum: white signified harmless, green mild threat, blue alert-level threat, and red extreme danger.
At this moment, in Edward's eyes, Yu Xian radiated a crimson glow, marked as extreme danger.
Their battle intent mounted steadily, their eyes burning with the lethal resolve to slay the other.
In a split second, both sides unleashed their peak energy without holding back, almost simultaneously.
True Crimson Power enveloped Yu Xian's entire frame, blazing like a raging fire. Edward donned his Demon Blood Armor, dark red energy seeping from the plating like countless writhing tentacles.
The airborne bacteria and viruses perished in droves. The space they occupied instantly turned into a forbidden zone for all life.
Boom!
In a flash, both struck out together, their fists clashing in midair.
A horrifying wave of energy swept across everything around them. The ground caved in instantly, countless particles of matter reduced to atomic dust in the blink of an eye.
Seizing the opening, Edward gripped his sword with his other hand and swung a diagonal slash toward Yu Xian. But Yu Xian vanished into thin air before him. When he reappeared, he was already behind Edward, slamming a spiral lance into Edward's back, and together they plummeted toward the earth like a red meteor.
Rumble!
The earth was ravaged once more as a bottomless crater tore open in an instant. The ground undulated like ocean waves, rolling outward in layered folds into the far distance.
"Great Blood Explosion Art!"
At the bottom of the crater, Edward roared, discharging energy throughout his entire body to trigger a colossal detonation that hurled Yu Xian off his back on the spot.
"Your end has come!"
Edward whirled amid the boundless torrent of air. Enveloped in energy, he rocketed toward Yu Xian like an arrow from a bow, thrusting his sword straight for Yu Xian's chest.
All of this unfolded with blistering speed; barely three seconds had passed since the battle began.
Just as the blade was about to pierce him, Yu Xian teleported once more to evade the strike. Appearing higher above, he manifested a dense cluster of eyeballs all around him, from which countless rays of golden light rained downward.
His thrust thwarted, Edward had no choice but to raise both arms before him to weather the concentrated barrage. Under the immense impact, he was driven into the earth once again.
The kinetic force of these beams was staggering.
Cracks spiderwebbed continuously across the ground behind Edward. Gritting his teeth against the bombardment, he tried to swing his sword, but the blade simply could not move.
The beams were too chaotic.
Different angles demanded different force to parry.
The moment he deflected one ray, another would disrupt his movement, to the point where swinging to block did more harm than good.
After a few attempts, he decisively gave up and simply held the blade before him, quietly storing up power while seeking an opening to counter. He refused to believe Yu Xian could sustain such an output indefinitely without draining himself.
Yet he soon realized Yu Xian truly had no fear of a battle of attrition. The beams firing from those eyeballs showed no signs of stopping; instead, their cadence grew increasingly frantic. Continuing like this would only put him at an even worse disadvantage.
"Go!"
Fixing his eyes on Yu Xian with murderous intent, Edward let out a furious roar and hurled his longsword toward Yu Xian above.
Braving the onslaught of beams, the longsword shot upward, only to graze past Yu Xian.
Yet that was precisely Edward's objective.
In an instant, he swapped positions with the sword, flashing directly above Yu Xian. The dark red energy he had quietly concentrated in his hand slammed straight at Yu Xian. At the critical juncture, however, Yu Xian teleported away once more.
"I anticipated that long ago!"
A red glint flashed through Edward's eyes as he sneered inward.
He immediately directed the energy he had long been gathering in his back to unleash an even stronger attack. The moment Yu Xian reappeared, he was met by an explosion that inundated the entire crater.
This blow was his true trump card.
Boom!
The crater was thoroughly detonated by the red energy.
Having flashed behind Edward, Yu Xian bore the brunt of it. The eyeballs around him burst apart, his protective True Crimson Power was blasted away on the spot, and in the blink of an eye, his clothes and skin were shredded to pieces.
The titanic shockwave propelled him out of the crater, hurtling him high into the sky before he began to fall.
Deep beneath the earth, a dark red cruciform gleam flashed from the pit. Edward shot from the subterranean depths straight toward the sky, pointing his sword at the descending Yu Xian. His speed mounted continuously, determined to slaughter Yu Xian before the youth could regain his senses.
He knew full well that his greatest advantage was his wealth of experience. He had lived hundreds of years longer than Yu Xian, and had survived countless perils in the Abyss.
When it came to combat, he was far more seasoned than Yu Xian.
Therefore, he could not afford to drag this out; he could not give Yu Xian the chance to grow mid-battle.
After all, experience was something easily accumulated in combat. Especially when clashing with a veteran, even a greenhorn could mature with frightening speed.
In midair, Edward channeled his vast stores of energy into his sword.
The dark red blade instantly radiated a blazing yet restrained crimson glow. This power was potent enough to detonate the energy within Yu Xian's body, reducing him to ash.
Earth only needed one Star Rank expert.
Die!
Edward glared at the falling Yu Xian, driving his sword straight toward the crown of Yu Xian's head.
In that split second, a surge of black matter suddenly erupted from Yu Xian's body. At the vital juncture, the black matter actually shoved Yu Xian aside, taking the sword thrust itself and dissipating like smoke in an instant.
*What?!*
Edward froze briefly, then immediately abandoned all thought of what the black matter was. Looking down at the still-falling Yu Xian, he dove swiftly, slashing his blade toward him.
Yet the moment Yu Xian was shoved by that black matter—the Shadow Gu—he had already regained consciousness.
Now he slowly opened his eyes, murmuring to himself, "What is the hardest thing in the world? The answer is..."
Just moments ago, Edward's full-power strike had shattered his protective True Crimson Power. In that final fraction of a second, though he hadn't had time to defend, his intent had moved before his body could, and an invisible force had deflected the most lethal part of the explosion.
He seemed to recognize what that power born after refining the bloodlines of Leigong and Dianmu truly was.
True Intent!
When willpower and mental power merged and united in flawless harmony, the force that took shape was True Intent.
This was a power akin to a martial realm. Only through genuine, flawless unity could it take effect; and once any power combined with True Intent, its might would multiply exponentially.
"I will defeat Edward!"
Watching Edward dive toward him, Yu Xian unified his mind in an instant, bringing his willpower and mental power into perfect harmony.
His previously furious heart settled into tranquil calm at that moment, for he knew he could defeat Edward.
At this moment, True Crimson Power merged with True Intent, instantly taking on what seemed like a life of its own.
"Die!"
Edward aimed his sword straight between Yu Xian's brows, plunging like a falling star.
Yet in the next breath, he saw Yu Xian's right hand catch his blade. The exquisitely sharp sword failed to slice even the skin of Yu Xian's hand, caught firmly in his grasp instead.
*How is this possible?!*
A Star Divine Artifact was virtually unmatched in both hardness and sharpness in this world.
Even if Yu Xian had energy shielding him, catching a blade infused with his full power bare-handed was utterly impossible.
Edward was completely stunned. By all logic, the moment Yu Xian gripped the edge, his hand should have been severed by the razor-sharp sword.
This made no sense at all!
Yet Yu Xian clearly cared nothing for whether it made sense. A blistering red light blazed from his eyes.
"This punch is for all the innocent!" Yu Xian said to the shocked Edward, wrenching the sword downward.
In the next second, his left fist slammed into Edward's abdomen. With a deafening detonation, the sky itself was cleaved in two by the shockwave.
And Edward was launched straight off Earth by the punch, first smashing through a communication satellite, then plowing through swathes of space debris, and finally coming to a halt only after shattering four or five meteorites in succession.
Even protected by the Demon Blood Armor, the titanic impact caused him to vomit blood continuously, while sheer terror gripped him to the core.
He could not comprehend why Yu Xian had suddenly grown so much stronger. The dread of facing the unknown was overwhelming.
"This kick is for the Shadow Gu!"
Yet Yu Xian gave him no time to ponder. Flickering several times through space, he reappeared before Edward and kicked him hurtling toward distant Mars.
Yu Xian knew that the Shadow Gu had just sacrificed itself under Edward's sword to save him.
That was the lifesaving trump card Cui Xianzhen had left him; when faced with a mortal crisis, the Shadow Gu would lay down its life to protect him.
Yet he had never intended to sacrifice the Shadow Gu, only for it to be scattered into smoke by Edward.
That was a treasure very, very, very, very, very, very precious to him!
Chapter 201