He had focused on the Extreme Wind Secret Canon, but he had long since caught up to its creator. He had even developed a blade technique of his own that let him bring his full strength to bear!
Everyone in the circle of the strong knew one thing: only a self-created secret technique could let you bring your full strength to bear!
But Li Zheng had only comprehended the eighth level. Even if he had begun to forge his own path, he still wasn't Muxuan's match! Judging by their fight so far, Muxuan was certain Li Zheng couldn't withstand his second strike if he went all out!
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
They said there were no wrong names, only wrong nicknames! Li Zheng's nickname was Blade Maniac, and every form of his blade technique was frenzied, fierce, and violent, surging on like an endless tide. His blade flashed like a waterfall!
But Ye Muxuan's nickname was Wind Blade. Every one of his strikes was precise, sharp, and swift—and he lost nothing in speed!
Ten strikes!
A hundred strikes!
The gleaming blade light fused with his comprehension of the Origin Law of Wind, crashing against the shore like a raging sea and kicking up a thousand heaps of snow! Endless blade light joined into a snowy-white halo and surged toward Ye Muxuan!
Rows of seats encircled the arena in the Slaughter Arena's Decisive Battle Space. Nearly a hundred people watched from the hundreds of seats. The World Lords, who had all been sitting calmly, shot to their feet, their eyes fixed on the two fighters locked in battle!
"I can't block that strike!" A World Lord with a Flame Mark between his brows stared at the blade, frowning as he weighed his words before speaking softly.
"I don't think I could either!" Beside him, a World Lord with a snowflake mark between his brows frowned in agreement.
"Don't bother thinking about it. That strike is already an Immortal Level secret technique! And because it's self-created, it lets Li Zheng bring all his comprehension and strength to bear. Of course it's unstoppable." Beside the two stood a black-clad Immortal Deity with long hair and an even more profound aura. He watched the unending blade light in the arena and nodded.
"An Immortal Level secret technique?"
At those words, the dozens of World Lords present grew solemn!
Every World Lord who could earn a slot to study the Initial Universe had earned the Origin Laws' recognition as a World Lord General. They had fought on the Outer Battlefield for at least fifty thousand years and were even more formidable in battle. Against ordinary Peak World Lords, they could slaughter them as easily as dogs! But now that Blade Maniac Li Zheng had unleashed this strike, the World Lords felt that it had somehow transcended the World Lord level!
Li Zheng didn't merely approach the Immortal Level—he actually had Immortal-level combat strength!
At the very least, this strike showed that he could face an Immortal head-on instead of having to flee at the sight of one!
Even Rain Sword Kong Yan and Thunderbolt Spear Zhendan nodded!
But...
As the World Lords considered what they had seen, Ye Muxuan finally struck back against Li Zheng's self-created Strongest Secret Technique!
The First Form of his self-created blade technique!
Wind Severing!
A Marquis-level Secret Technique! It embodied the full extent of Ye Muxuan's current comprehension of the Origin Law of Wind!
With one strike, cold, razor-sharp blade light swept out, easily splitting the oncoming, gleaming halo in two!
The remaining force still cut through Li Zheng's battle armor and tore through the inner armor formed by his ninth-level World Lord Plant Lifeform. The tip of the blade came to rest against Li Zheng's Origin Bead!
The Origin Bead cracked. The World Lord died!
Li Zheng's gaze fell on the long, gleaming blade of the Wind Shadow Blade, then on the slender hand gripping its hilt. Even now, that hand was perfectly steady, without the slightest tremor. Then his consciousness was expelled from the Slaughter Arena!
"Whew!" In the seats outside the Decisive Battle Space, even the few Immortal Deities who had remained seated now stood up! That strike had made even them feel threatened!
This was a Marquis-level blade technique!
A Marquis-level technique in a World Lord's hands couldn't kill a Marquis Immortal, of course. Achieving Marquis Rank meant attaining an undying body, and the gap in fundamental strength was simply too great. Even so, the strike had caught their attention!
The depth of one's Law Comprehension and the level of one's self-created secret technique were not the same thing! Many World Lords had deeper Law Comprehension than Immortals. Among the Core Members of the Five Great Powers in particular, every generation had World Lords whose Law Comprehension could even rival that of a King-level Immortal! But the secret techniques they created often fell short of King Rank!
Understanding something and being able to use it were two different things! Otherwise, why would the Extreme Wind Secret Canon, a Marquis-level canon, cost five billion Military Merit? That was worth fifty thousand Hunyuan Units in cash! It would be a huge expense for an ordinary Immortal, let alone a World Lord! Muxuan himself had once spent all the spoils and Military Merit he had amassed over more than fifty thousand years just to exchange for this secret technique, which could take him all the way to Marquis Immortal. He had spent ten thousand years cultivating it and greatly improved his strength, yet still couldn't break through to Immortality. That was why he had set his sights on a slot to study the Initial Universe!
Though Li Zheng and Ye Muxuan had both casually brought out treasures worth hundreds of thousands of Hunyuan Units, one was a prodigy of the Blade Race with an astonishing background, while the other was exceptionally talented, had just killed a Sky Wolf Race World Lord, and had enjoyed extraordinary fortune. That was why they possessed such treasures. Ordinary World Lords, even if they had been active on the Outer Battlefield for nearly a hundred thousand years, couldn't necessarily afford them through their own strength and status!
Ye Muxuan only had a little over four hundred thousand in his account, after all! That was the entire cash fortune of a World Lord General who had been active on the Outer Battlefield for more than a hundred thousand years!
In the outer seats of the Slaughter Arena's Decisive Battle Space, no one was sitting anymore! Everyone—World Lords and Immortals alike—had been dazzled by Ye Muxuan's strike!
Dazzled, truly!
Even though several of those present had already achieved Marquis Rank!
Of the nearly hundred people there, fewer than five believed they could create a secret technique at the same level. They were the cream of the World Lords! And among the dozen or so Immortals, seven were Marquis-level Immortals!
Rain Sword Kong Yan and Thunderbolt Spear Zhendan watched the strike in silence, their expressions shifting. Though they didn't want to admit it, they knew the truth: Wind Blade Muxuan, who had once stood alongside them, had now pulled ahead. A thousand years ago—or even a hundred—they didn't think Wind Blade Muxuan had been this strong. Yet in just a few short decades, he had improved by leaps and bounds!
World Lords found it easiest to comprehend the Laws, but there were limits to what made sense! The three had once been equally renowned, with comparable Law Comprehension. Their self-created secret techniques had all reached the Immortal Level, with the strongest only at the peak of Military Lord Rank! But now, not only had Li Zheng caught up and nearly reached their level, Ye Muxuan had pushed his secret technique to Marquis Rank first! That meant he had advanced his Law Comprehension even further, taking a step beyond the peak!
On Longyan Planet, Blade Maniac Li Zheng looked at the black-clad man before him, his expression complicated. At last, he handed over the Wind Jade Gold and said solemnly, "You win!"
Before you continue