The pale-gold Guardian Sword felt weightless in Tu Hu's hands.
Ahead, a "Groundshaker Behemoth," shaped like a rhinoceros and covered in a thick shell of rock, roared as it charged.
Its powerful hooves made the ground tremble with every step. Yellow-brown energy gathered at its nose, quickly building toward a devastating impact capable of splitting mountains and shattering stone.
Tu Hu remained calm in the face of the ferocious charge.
Block.
He held the greatsword across his body.
The next moment, the Groundshaker Behemoth crashed into an invisible barrier with tremendous force.
Boom!
A deafening impact rang out.
Tu Hu still stood where he had been, but the Groundshaker Behemoth had struck something like an ancient mountain range. Its frenzied momentum vanished without a trace. The force of the impact sent its massive body reeling backward, and the yellow-brown energy at its nose dispersed instantly. Fine cracks appeared across its rocky shell, and its enormous eyes filled with confusion and pain.
Tu Hu turned his wrist, guiding the horizontal greatsword forward.
Strike.
The motion was simple and swift.
The instant Sword's Edge pointed toward its target—
Pfft!
The Groundshaker Behemoth's massive body stiffened. Its life force was extinguished in an instant, as if by an invisible blade.
The light in its eyes quickly faded, and it crashed to the ground with a thunderous thud.
Its body dissolved into points of starlight, then gathered back into mist, leaving behind only a horn to prove it had ever existed.
[Challenger Notice: Defeated monster "Groundshaker Behemoth." Sacrificial Power gained: 2,820.]
[Challenger Notice: Guardian Sword Aura comprehension +8.3.]
Tu Hu slowly sheathed his sword, sensing the power of the Sword Dao that seemed to exist beyond the physical world. His mastery of Guardian Sword Aura grew ever more natural.
All along the way, whether