Translator: CinderTL
Pan Ruo!
Fang Xiu's strike wasn't aimed at Li Chunjun but at Pan Ruo.
And this strike could be described as a stroke of genius.
First, he was certain that Li Chunjun must have some life-saving trump card, and before forcing it out, the chances of killing him were slim.
Second, Pan Ruo was also a core member of the Taixu Sword Sect, talented and formidable. If Li Chunjun sensed that Pan Ruo's life was hanging by a thread, he might be forced to use his trump card to assist, thereby depleting his resources.
Third...
This was his personal agenda.
When they embarked on this mission, they had already received a substantial sum as advance payment. Only by completing the mission and killing the target could they earn the hefty reward.
Although Li Chunjun was his primary target, the difficulty of killing him clearly exceeded his current capabilities.
Only a Core Formation Realm cultivator might have a chance to eliminate him.
In such a scenario, even if he forced Li Chunjun to reveal his trump card, Fang Xiu couldn't guarantee whether Li Chunjun had a second, third, or even fourth card up his sleeve.
Rather than risking his life for nothing, it was better to eliminate Pan Ruo first.
Even if the assassination of Li Chunjun ultimately failed, he could at least reap some benefits from this direct disciple of the Peak Master.
At this moment, Pan Ruo was expending considerable energy controlling eight sword beams to slaughter the surrounding believers. Even if he diverted some attention, it was primarily focused on Li Chunjun.
Faced with this sudden strike...
Although the sword released from the talisman couldn't match the stealth and flexibility of a true Core Formation attack, in the midst of this chaos, he had no time to react appropriately.
"Not good!"
In his panic, he could only activate a protective spiritual artifact gifted by his Master.
Yet, even so, when the Celestial Sword Talisman struck, the sharp sword light within tore through the protective aura, and the residual sword energy slammed into his body, severely injuring him to the brink of death.
"Did Li Chunjun not come to aid? Or... did I throw the talisman too quickly!? Or perhaps Li Chunjun simply doesn't care about his teammate's life!?"
Seeing this, Fang Xiu's heart sank.
At this point, he could only press the advantage and secure Pan Ruo as a guaranteed prize.
With this in mind, the Qi Refining ninth-layer cultivator's aura surged, his power climbing steadily, breaking through the usual limits of a Qi Refining cultivator and displaying a hint of Core Formation might!
Meanwhile, when Fang Xiu unleashed the Celestial Sword Talisman, Li Chunjun had already sensed it.
In fact, even before Fang Xiu made his move, Li Chunjun had faintly detected his presence and felt a trace of danger emanating from him.
This danger...
Wasn't as intense as that from Qin Zhou and others but far surpassed that of an ordinary Qi Refining cultivator.
At the time, he speculated that a Core Formation-level cultivator might be hiding among the believers.
This speculation was confirmed the moment Fang Xiu made his move.
A Core Formation Great Cultivator!
At least level 21!
Li Chunjun's original plan was to use this trial to reach level 20 and then focus on comprehending secret techniques, killing moves, and sword intent.
The reason he didn't immediately rush to Pan Ruo's aid upon sensing this was that he considered the possibility of killing a Core Formation cultivator...
Which would undoubtedly cause his level to skyrocket.
He just hadn't expected Pan Ruo to be so weak.
Even with a protective spiritual artifact, he failed to withstand the Celestial Sword Talisman.
If he didn't intervene, this talented disciple might be in mortal danger.
Whether he would die or not, Li Chunjun didn't know, nor did he care.
But he was well aware that the higher-ups of the Taixu Sword Sect were likely observing this grand performance.
This deliberately placed "Core Formation cultivator" was probably the bonus question beyond the normal scoring of this trial.
Thus, if he truly wanted to "showcase" himself, this bonus question had to be secured.
"Core Formation experience would push my level past 21. Since I can't maintain a perfect level 20, I might as well go all out, unleash everything, and wreak havoc!"
Li Chunjun made his decision.
Seeing that the "Core Formation cultivator" no longer hid his power and was pushing his aura to the limit, Li Chunjun's Divine Sense, which rivaled Core Formation, also erupted completely.
The Scarlet Gold Sword, originally used to intercept "Divine Arts," swiftly turned, transforming into a golden streak of light, leaping forth like a meteor piercing the moon, and shot straight toward the ascending "Core Formation cultivator," Fang Xiu!
"Lifebound Flying Sword!?"
Fang Xiu immediately noticed the incoming golden light!
A Lifebound Flying Sword was the core of a sword cultivator!
If he could destroy this Lifebound Flying Sword, the cultivator would either be severely injured or...
Lose their foundation!
A future Sword Prodigy with a damaged foundation would merely be a slightly more dazzling genius.
This would still serve to stifle the future Flaming Phoenix Sword Prodigy!
"Hahaha! You're digging your own grave!"
Fang Xiu let out a long laugh, not dodging or evading, but pouring all his Core Formation-level Qi and Mana into his palm.
As golden light and flames surged, a terrifying blade aura formed in his hand, spanning dozens of meters, and slashed down at the incoming Scarlet Gold Sword!
Top-tier Arcane Art—Heaven-Splitting Blade Technique!
"Boom!"
Flames and golden light exploded and scattered in the void!
The dozens of meters of blade aura from the Heaven-Splitting Blade Technique shattered upon impact with the Scarlet Gold Sword, dispersing into a sea of golden light and flames.
The direct clash with the Heaven-Splitting Blade Technique also caused significant vibrations in the Scarlet Gold Sword, sending it spinning wildly back as if out of control.
But this loss of control lasted only a moment. As a layer of golden light flowed over the sword, all the sharpness and flames were completely neutralized by this golden light.
The profundity of it...
"Taiyi Essence Gold!?"
Fang Xiu's expression of delight instantly froze.
Li Chunjun...
Had only been in the Taixu Sword Sect for two months, yet he had already refined Taiyi Essence Gold, a top-tier fourth-grade material, into his flying sword!?
"Buzz!"
The sword light shifted, seemingly ready to burst forth again and strike down.
"Your opponent is me!"
At that moment, a roar erupted from the side.
Pan Ruo, who had seemed on the verge of death, suddenly sprang into action, also unleashing a talisman.
The sword energy within the talisman, surpassing even the Celestial Sword Talisman, poured out like a flood, carrying a majestic momentum as it swept toward Fang Xiu.
"Die!"
He had been pretending to be weak, intending to lure Fang Xiu closer for a decisive kill.
Seeing that Fang Xiu hadn't taken the bait and was instead engaged with Li Chunjun, and to avoid missing out on the contribution, or perhaps to save Li Chunjun from harm to his Lifebound Flying Sword...
Pan Ruo could no longer hold back. The third-grade superior talisman, Sword Energy Storm, was unleashed, and the overwhelming sword energy instantly enveloped Fang Xiu's body.
This Qi Refining ninth-layer cultivator, who could only unleash a Core Formation-level attack through a secret technique, wore a bitter expression.
Indeed...
Which genius from a major sect didn't have a plethora of trump cards? They were never easy to kill.
Not to mention the Flaming Phoenix Sword Prodigy, even Pan Ruo, a slightly lesser genius, was beyond his ability to threaten.
Perhaps...
It was precisely because of his lack of capability that he had been fortunate enough to infiltrate this group of cultists, serving as an "unexpected" element to test these true geniuses.
With this realization and a sense of helplessness, his body was torn apart by the raging sword energy storm.
The violent sword energy even swept through the surrounding believers, over twenty of them being shredded by this third-grade superior talisman, which rivaled a Golden Core strike.
Seeing this, Li Chunjun's expression remained unchanged. The Scarlet Gold Sword returned to his hand, and he redirected his focus to the other believers.
A Core Formation cultivator...
Didn't seem like it. More likely, a cultivator using a secret technique to unleash Core Formation-level combat power.
Whether he was or not didn't matter.
Since the experience hadn't exploded, he would proceed with the original plan, slightly lowering his efficiency to ensure he maintained a perfect level 20 by the end of the battle.
...
On the Silver Wing Boat.
The high-ranking figures observing the scene through the Mirror Light Art were somewhat at a loss.
After a while, one of them spoke up, "So, who gets the points for this bonus question?"
Their gazes naturally fell on a leaderboard visible only to them.
According to the leaderboard, Li Chunjun's score was 985, with Pan Ruo close behind at 911. There was a gap, but it wasn't insurmountable.
In third place was Xuan Wu, with a score of only 681, essentially out of the running for the top spot.
But now the situation had changed.
With Pan Ruo securing the 100-point bonus and the talisman's instant annihilation of over twenty believers, his score had skyrocketed to a four-digit 1091.
Thus, Pan Ruo had surged to the top of the leaderboard.
"Naturally, the points go to the one who made the kill," Lei Yuan said indifferently.
"That's not necessarily the case. Pan Ruo killed the 'unexpected' we deliberately placed using a talisman..." Bai Lian began to argue.
But before he could finish, Lei Yuan retorted, "According to the rules we set earlier, if the opponent uses a talisman, our side is also allowed to use talismans in response. My disciple Pan Ruo was attacked by the Celestial Sword Talisman and retaliated with the Sword Energy Storm Talisman. What's wrong with that?"
He then added, "At most, you can deduct the points from those believers."
Even after deducting those points, Pan Ruo still had 1011 points.
"Without Li Chunjun's strike, Pan Ruo's Sword Energy Storm might not have been able to kill that Qi Refining cultivator in one go. So, I think the points should be split evenly," Bai Lian suggested.
"Pan Ruo pretended to be injured to lure the 'unexpected' into pursuing him. Li Chunjun's strike didn't actually have much effect... At most..." Lei Yuan paused, "He gets 10 points for morality."
"Morality points? Since when did righteousness and morality become virtues for us sword cultivators? We rely on our strength, our swords striking without hesitation, moving forward relentlessly," a cultivator close to Lei Yuan chimed in.
Huan Ming remained silent, his gaze fixed on Li Chunjun in the Mirror Light Art.
He noticed that since clashing with the Heaven-Splitting Blade Technique, Li Chunjun's killing efficiency had noticeably decreased.
This situation...
"Is he injured?"
"Let's end this farce!" Jiang Yuqiu, also noticing this, grew restless.
Lei Yuan nodded as well.
While fighting for his disciple's benefit was one thing, he didn't want the future Flaming Phoenix Sword Prodigy to suffer any harm.
"I'll give the order!" Huan Ming said gravely.
With his command, several "reinforcements" in the form of Core Formation cultivators appeared, rushing toward the battlefield.
(End of the Chapter)
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