At Last

The moment Li Xiao finished speaking, Zuo Qianshan suddenly laughed.

"You think... you've got me beaten?"

His voice echoed through the night sky. The blood at the corner of his mouth stood out starkly in the pallid moonlight.

In the next instant, the pitch-black Sword Qi surrounding him abruptly doubled in size.

Demonic Qi surged through the black sword light, and Killing Intent soared skyward, pressing the surrounding air until it crackled faintly.

Li Xiao's pupils contracted.

The Sword Qi of the Life-Slaying Amitabha Sword Scripture was not formed from True Qi.

Its essence was something more fundamental.

Buddhist intent, Demonic Qi, or some other power could be condensed into Sword Qi.

Even though Zuo Qianshan's True Qi had been thrown into chaotic reverse flow by the hidden tampering with the Pills, the black Sword Qi had lost none of its power. Driven by its master's resolve to fight to the death, it had grown even more violent and fierce.

The black Sword Qi slashed down from above, forcing Li Xiao to raise his own Sword Qi to block it.

Golden and black sword light collided, erupting in blinding radiance and a deafening roar.

But Li Xiao's golden Sword Qi was nowhere near as dense or powerful as Zuo Qianshan's. It lasted less than three breaths before it began to buckle. Li Xiao was thrown back several yards, his feet plowing two deep furrows through the roof tiles.

Shi Xin struck from the side. He pressed his palms together, and the Lotus Mark bloomed into a golden barrier before Li Xiao.

But the black Sword Qi twisted like a venomous snake with a mind of its own, abruptly changing course to slash at Shi Xin's barrier.

The golden lotus shattered. The Buddhist light split apart. Shi Xin grunted and staggered