In outer space, Edward hurtled at a hundred times the speed of sound, completely unable to halt his momentum even if he wanted to.
Countless meteorites shattered upon impact with his body along the way. Glaring fixedly at Yu Xian as the distance between them stretched, Edward gritted his teeth and released the longsword in his grip. The next instant, he abruptly swapped places with the blade. The colossal force Yu Xian had planted in his abdomen transferred onto the sword as well, causing it to vanish into a streak of red light.
Demon Blood Armor—True Blood Form.
Drawing a deep breath, Edward manipulated the Demon Blood Armor to unleash his final trump card.
Countless spikes bristled from within the armor, all plunging into Edward's flesh. Blood gushed continuously from his body, filling every void inside the armor in the blink of an eye.
The blood then seeped through the armor to the exterior, etching numerous blood-colored patterns across the surface, while a hexagram formed over the chestplate.
The demon and the mummies of Marcus and the others—once mere ornaments—seemed to come alive. The demon at the center parted its jaws and snarled, "Brat, I'll slaughter you!"
Evidently, Edward had fused deeply with the Demon Cross, making the outer armor a part of his very flesh.
He opened his hand, and the longsword that had flown off to unknown reaches instantly reappeared in his grasp. Massive blood-crimson bat wings unfurled from his back, and he shot rapidly toward Yu Xian.
On the other side, Yu Xian had long noticed Edward's transformation through the eyeball bubbles he had stationed across the surrounding meteorites.
The sole reason he hadn't interrupted Edward was that the process of thoroughly fusing with the Demon Cross was astonishingly fast, completing almost instantaneously, leaving no opening to stop it.
"Auntie, I have to admit, a Star Divine Artifact really is a good thing!"
Yu Xian observed Edward's newly altered form and remarked to Zhenwo Changjing, who had been watching in silence throughout the battle.
He used to look down on Star Divine Artifacts, considering them an unorthodox trick. But now, locked in true combat with Edward, he tangibly felt just how formidable a Star Divine Artifact could be.
Had Edward not been protected by the Demon Cross, he would have died countless times over by now.
Yet thanks to the Demon Cross's preposterous defense, Edward was continually injured but never killed, clinging to life with the tenacity of a cockroach. Even Yu Xian had to admit that putting Edward down was an exhausting chore.
Once this battle ended, he would pour his full efforts into forging a Star Divine Artifact of his own. In any case, he was different from ordinary Star Rank powerhouses—he had no fear that a Star Divine Artifact would corrupt his power.
Other Star Rank powerhouses were either complete or deficient.
The complete preserved their overall purity, breaking through to Star Rank through their own intrinsic power.
The deficient forged a Star Divine Artifact, investing their power into it to achieve the Star Rank.
The former had to maintain their integrity; should they carve away a portion of their power to craft a Star Divine Artifact, the delicate balance would shatter, causing them to self-detonate.
As for the latter, with the bulk of their power invested in a Star Divine Artifact, their own person became their greatest vulnerability.
Only Yu Xian, whose cultivation method differed, could preserve his own immense strength while simultaneously forging a Star Divine Artifact. After all, his power was as good as innate, leaving zero possibility of self-detonation.
As for materials to forge a Star Divine Artifact—didn't Edward have them right on him?
In an instant, countless eyeball bubbles materialized around Yu Xian, unleashing a barrage of dense light beams straight at Edward.
Edward, hurtling forward at high speed, ground to a halt. After weathering dozens of beams, he swept his longsword forward. A surge of turbulent energy cleaved from the blade, rushing toward Yu Xian.
Edward hadn't expected this slash to injure Yu Xian; he merely aimed to wipe out those eyeball bubbles.
In truth, neither Yu Xian nor Edward was well suited to fighting in outer space. Although both could lock onto each other, in the vast expanse of the void, every attack was far too easy to evade.
A slight shift in position was all it took for an attack to miss.
Yu Xian's beams and Edward's attack didn't even collide; instead, they missed each other by a hair.
Thus, the two attacks brushed past one another mid-flight. Yu Xian's beams were intercepted by a drifting meteorite, while Edward's strike missed by a country mile, sailing thousands of meters above Yu Xian's head before continuing deeper into outer space.
Neither anticipated such an outcome. Both froze for a beat before frantically retaliating in stubborn refusal to yield. Beams of light and sharp red energy flew wildly across space, yet neither managed to land a single hit.
"Going on like this is a pure waste of energy."
Yu Xian furrowed his brow. His combat strength was 37 points lower than Edward's, which meant the energy inside him was most likely far less than Edward's—after all, 37 was already a significant gap.
He had been able to suppress Edward primarily because he was complete while Edward was deficient, and on top of that, he had comprehended the power of True Intent, allowing his actual explosive output to exceed Edward's, thus giving him the upper hand.
When it came to raw energy reserves, however, he certainly couldn't match Edward.
He had to shift the battlefield!
With a thought, Yu Xian gazed toward distant Mars and made up his mind instantly.
Flashing right before Edward, he threw a punch straight into Edward's abdomen. But having fused deeply with his Star Divine Artifact, Edward's reaction speed had multiplied several times, and he blocked the blow with his right hand in an instant.
Edward then swung his sword with his left hand at Yu Xian, only for Yu Xian to catch it bare-handed as well. The two grappled in the vacuum of space, eyes locked in a death stare.
Suddenly, Yu Xian grinned. A bubble expanded rapidly behind him, instantly engulfing them both. The surroundings shifted dramatically—in a flash, they were transported onto the surface of Mars.
The moment his feet touched the ground, Yu Xian unleashed both the power of True Intent and True Crimson Power at once. Before Edward could react, Yu Xian landed a vicious kick right between Edward's legs. Edward let out a shrill, piercing shriek as the kick launched him high into the sky.
Midair, Yu Xian flashed above Edward's head and slammed a downward kick onto his skull. Just as Edward reached the heights, he plummeted back down. A thunderous roar shook the surface of Mars, forming a crater tens of thousands of meters in diameter.
Lying at the center of the crater, Edward's face twisted in agony, his eyes completely bloodshot.
"Brat!!!!"
He bellowed in fury, energy erupting from the wings on his back like thrusters, propelling him skyward. In an instant, his fist blasted toward Yu Xian's cheek.
Yu Xian didn't dodge. Although he could have evaded Edward's strike, suffering that setback earlier in the crater had taught him a lesson: petty cleverness might bring momentary triumph, but it could never sustain a lifetime of victory.
If his experience fell short of Edward's, then he would crush Edward in fair, head-on combat.
The power of True Intent was, in essence, an extension of one's will. Playing tricks and relying on petty cleverness would only undermine the resolve of his will, yielding no benefit whatsoever.
So—bring it on!
Yu Xian unleashed a punch of his own.
With the dual reinforcement of the power of True Intent and True Crimson Power, his fist was harder than a Star Divine Artifact. So long as his will remained unshakable, how could a mere Star Divine Artifact shake his True Crimson Power?
Their fists collided. Edward felt a burst of excruciating pain rip through his knuckles; even with the armor's protection, he could hardly withstand Yu Xian's heavy blow.
Yet he refused to yield!
Edward simply could not accept that after enduring and scheming for hundreds of years to finally attain his current power, a mere brat had surpassed him in just a few short months.
That resentment hurt far worse than any physical pain.
Chapter 202