A Dead Even Match

Above the sky.

The overwhelming aura of the True Dharma Realm threw the spiritual energy of heaven and earth into disarray. Ripples spread through the void like water, as if it might shatter at any moment.

"Liu Zhengyang, do you really think you're still the man you used to be? Kneel and kowtow now, and I might spare your life," Li Batian said again, his tone full of mockery.

"You talk too much." Liu Zhengyang's smile remained unchanged.

"Very well. Since you want to die, I'll grant your wish!"

Li Batian let out a roar, and the Crimson Gold Battle Armor he wore burst with blinding golden light. Flames around him transformed into a hundred-foot-long fire python, baring its fangs and claws as it hissed and lunged at Liu Zhengyang.

Wherever the python passed, the air warped and twisted from the heat. The ground was engulfed in raging flames, radiating enough heat to melt gold and iron.

Facing this earth-shattering attack, Liu Zhengyang stood with his hands behind his back, the smile on his face unchanged. He didn't reveal even a trace of his aura.

The next moment, he lightly tapped out with a fingertip. That seemingly ordinary gesture held a power beyond comprehension. At its touch, the flames shattered instantly, as if they had never existed.

"You broke through?!"

At the sight of this, Li Batian's pupils contracted. He looked as if he had seen something unbelievable.

Liu Zhengyang said nothing, only smiled, still as calm and unruffled as ever.

"Hmph. If that's the case, then I won't hold back either!"

The next moment, flames surged around Li Batian. A towering Dharma Aspect clad in Crimson Gold Battle Armor and wielding a flaming war spear appeared behind him.

Its eyes burned with true fire capable of incinerating all things. It towered between heaven and earth, its pressure crashing down like mountains and seas in upheaval. The sky over all of Cangyun City turned crimson.

Before this Dharma Aspect, Liu Zhengyang looked as tiny as an ant. Yet even so, his expression remained unchanged.

"Show me your Dharma Aspect!" Battle intent blazed in Li Batian's eyes as he spoke again.

"Is there any need?" Liu Zhengyang merely smiled calmly.

"Arrogant!"

Feeling slighted, Li Batian's eyes flared with rage.

The Dharma Aspect behind him struck out with both fists. A sea of flames transformed into countless fiery fists, carrying the laws of fire as they rained down like a storm. Every punch held the power to destroy heaven and earth.

Yet facing the shower of fists, Liu Zhengyang barely moved. He didn't even use a martial skill; one punch was enough to block them all.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

As the two continued to fight, terrifying power rippled outward, making even Cangyun City tremble.

Naturally, the various forces that had come to Cangyun City for the grand competition noticed the battle raging above the city.

"Liu Zhengyang can actually go toe-to-toe with Li Batian? How is that possible? Wasn't he crippled?" On top of a tall building, a woman watched the scene in the sky, her eyes full of astonishment.

"Liu Zhengyang? First Elder, is this the peerless prodigy you mentioned before?" Guo Jingjing suddenly asked the person beside her.

"That's right. Back then, he wielded a long spear and nearly swept through every cultivator of the same realm in Cangzhou. He was known as the Spear Demon. Unfortunately, something happened later, and he fell from his pedestal..."

"What happened?"

"He fell in love with someone he shouldn't have..."

"Someone he shouldn't have?"

"Yes. That woman came from a certain superpower. When that faction learned the two were in love, they sent people to take her back. Liu Zhengyang fought them over it..."

"Did he succeed?"

"No. Liu Zhengyang lost. The woman was taken away, and he was badly injured. His foundation was destroyed, leaving him no hope of ever reaching the True Dharma Realm..."

"Afterward, he founded the Falling Cloud Sect and gradually faded from everyone's sight."

"I thought he'd never make another breakthrough in his life. I never expected him to reappear and already be able to fight Li Batian to a draw. The world is truly full of surprises..."

"'Is there any need?' Tsk, he won't even summon his Dharma Aspect? As expected of the sect master. He's way better at acting cool than I am..."

Watching the battle in the sky, Gu Qingzhou drew in a sharp breath, looking as if he'd learned something.

"When did Father break through to the True Dharma Realm?" Liu Ruyan was also rather shocked.

She had always thought her father was in the Question Dao Realm. Only now, when he fought someone from the True Dharma Realm, did she realize that he had already broken through...

"What kind of method is this?" Unlike Gu Qingzhou and Ruyan, Jiang Shuyu's eyes held only astonishment and confusion...

"What's wrong?" Mo Shang noticed that Jiang Shuyu looked troubled and couldn't help asking.

"Don't you think it's strange..." Jiang Shuyu suddenly asked, looking at Mo Shang.

"It is a little strange. The sect master seems to be fighting the other person effortlessly, as if he's hiding his strength. Every time, they end up evenly matched..." Mo Shang thought it over before answering.

After watching closely, Mo Shang had noticed something very strange: every time Liu Zhengyang struck, his power was just enough to cancel out his opponent's attack.

And no matter how much power Li Batian used, it made no difference. Liu Zhengyang could always block it with ease, giving people a very strange feeling.

The battle didn't last long. Before long, the two stopped.

By now, there was no trace of contempt in Li Batian's gaze as he looked at Liu Zhengyang. Only a hint of wariness remained.

Liu Zhengyang, by contrast, stood in his green robes fluttering in the wind, still calm and unruffled. A faint smile lingered at the corners of his mouth, unchanged.

"I never expected that even after your foundation was completely destroyed, you'd still reach this point. How did you do it?" Li Batian asked again.

During their exchange just now, Li Batian had been shocked to discover that no matter what he tried, he could only fight Liu Zhengyang to a draw...

Li Batian couldn't help feeling startled. There was only one explanation for how easily Liu Zhengyang had matched him: Liu Zhengyang's strength surpassed his own!

"City Lord Li, do you want to keep going?" Liu Zhengyang didn't answer the question. He simply asked with a faint smile.

"Hmph. You're lucky this time..."

With that, Li Batian snorted and returned to the merchant association. He took his son and left without continuing to tangle with Liu Zhengyang.

"Father, why didn't you kill them?" Seeing his father about to take him away, the young man couldn't help feeling displeased.

"Shut up, you useless good-for-nothing! How did I end up with a son like you?"

After Li Batian left, Liu Zhengyang returned to the merchant association as well...

"Father, are you all right?" Liu Ruyan immediately went over to him, concern in her voice.

"I'm fine. Don't worry." Liu Zhengyang patted Liu Ruyan on the head and smiled.

"Father, I had no idea you were so powerful!" Admiration shone in Liu Ruyan's eyes as she spoke again.

"I'm all right. I can trade a few blows with anyone, that's all. It's nothing special. I still have things to take care of, so you all go have fun..." Liu Zhengyang smiled again. His figure dissolved into specks of light and vanished where he stood.

"I'll take my leave as well." Seeing this, Sword Thirteen didn't linger and left.