Outside the forest.
In front of Shrek Academy, Ning Rongrong clasped her little hands together and gazed anxiously at the distant forest.
Lightning flashed and thunder roared there, sword energy crisscrossing the air. She could no longer imagine how fierce the battle between Qin Xiao and Sword Douluo had become.
"To think Qin Xiao could hold out this long under Uncle Jian's attacks. He already deserves a place among the powerhouses of the Douluo Continent."
Ning Fengzhi was surprised too.
The fighting strength Qin Xiao displayed astonished even him.
"Will he be all right?"
Ning Rongrong asked Ning Fengzhi anxiously.
"Rongrong, don't worry. Uncle Jian knows how to hold back. He certainly won't hurt Qin Xiao."
Ning Fengzhi shook his head slightly, signaling that Ning Rongrong need not worry.
Yet...
He saw no relief on Ning Rongrong's face. Instead, her little face scrunched into a frown.
"What's wrong? Don't you believe me?"
Ning Fengzhi asked in surprise.
"Dad, I think you misunderstood. I wasn't asking whether Qin Xiao would be all right. I was asking whether Grandpa Sword would be all right."
With her little face furrowed, Ning Rongrong asked in complete earnest.
"What?"
"You're worried about Uncle Jian?"
Ning Fengzhi froze, then gave a helpless smile. "Rongrong, what are you thinking? Others might not know how strong your Grandpa Sword is, but surely you do?"
"He's a rank ninety-six Titled Douluo, and his martial soul is the Seven Kill Sword, unmatched in killing power. His combat strength rivals that of a rank ninety-seven Titled Douluo. It's no exaggeration to say that, one-on-one, very few people on the entire Douluo Continent can threaten him."
"No matter how gifted Qin Xiao is, he's still only eighteen, with rank ninety-two strength. Never mind beating your Grandpa Sword-even a draw would be difficult. I think your Grandpa Sword could defeat him with just his first seven soul skills."
At those words, Ning Rongrong's expression shifted slightly, and she kept shaking her head. "No, I don't believe it."
"If you don't believe me, just watch."
Ning Fengzhi shrugged helplessly.
Even he was at his wits' end with this willful little princess.
Still, he trusted Sword Douluo to prove his words through strength.
Once Sword Douluo returned victorious, Ning Rongrong would have to believe him, even if she did not want to...
But the very next moment, Ning Rongrong suddenly pointed into the distance. "Dad, look! What skill is Grandpa Sword using?"
What skill could there be that you haven't seen?
Ning Fengzhi wondered, somewhat puzzled.
Ning Rongrong had practically grown up at Sword Douluo's and Bone Douluo's sides. She could recognize nearly all their soul skills.
Could Uncle Jian have comprehended a new soul skill and be testing his sword on Qin Xiao?
With that thought, he followed the direction of Ning Rongrong's finger-and froze.
A sword dozens of meters tall descended from the sky, and an even taller giant grasped it!
Of course Ning Rongrong would never have seen this skill.
It was so destructive that Sword Douluo never used it when sparring with Bone Douluo!
Yet today, he had used it in a match against a young junior?
Was that really necessary?
Ning Fengzhi could hardly believe it.
"Dad, what soul skill is that...?"
Seeing Ning Fengzhi seemingly overwhelmed by shock, Ning Rongrong could not help tugging on his sleeve.
Ning Fengzhi immediately felt a wave of embarrassment.
He had just been boasting that Sword Douluo would, at the very most, need his eighth soul skill to beat Qin Xiao...
Yet now...
"God-Demon Dual Slash!"
Ning Fengzhi said with a wry smile, "That's your Grandpa Sword's ninth soul skill..."
At that, delight spread across Ning Rongrong's face. She laughed. "Haha, Dad, you were wrong!"
Still laughing, she waved her little fist like a triumphant victor.
"Boy, are you afraid now?"
"If you admit defeat now, I can refrain from unleashing this slash!"
Sword Douluo declared loudly.
He had decided to give Qin Xiao one more chance.
"The word 'fear' has never existed in my dictionary."
Qin Xiao's answer was utterly resolute.
To become strong, one needed a heart as firm as a rock.
Having achieved what he had today, Qin Xiao's heart was already as unyielding as metal and stone! The formidable might his opponent displayed could never subdue him.
The more powerful Sword Douluo became, the more fiercely Qin Xiao's fighting spirit blazed!
"Come forth!"
"Thunder Tai Tan!"
At once, he stopped holding back. His first soul ring actually detached itself from him.
Then lightning burst forth, dazzling enough to make it difficult to keep one's eyes open.
Roar!
The next moment, an enraged roar came from within the lightning. A Titan Giant Ape, nearly as tall as the phantom Sword Douluo had manifested, appeared between Qin Xiao and Sword Douluo.
"What is that? A Titan Giant Ape?"
"But something still isn't right!"
Sword Douluo's voice was filled with surprise.
The enormous beast that had appeared out of thin air had purple fur, with thick bolts of lightning coursing around him.
"Those roaming bolts alone could easily blast a Soul Saint to death!"
Without a doubt, Thunder Tai Tan's sudden appearance sent Sword Douluo's heart pounding.
The lightning-wreathed Titan Giant Ape's power far exceeded Sword Douluo's expectations.
In truth, Thunder Tai Tan's strength depended on Qin Xiao's cultivation.
Normally, with Qin Xiao's cultivation at only rank ninety-two, the Thunder Tai Tan he summoned could never have been this fierce.
But after fusing with the Thunder Emperor Armor, Qin Xiao's cultivation had multiplied. The Titan Giant Ape's cultivation rivaled that of a rank ninety-six Titled Douluo, making his actual combat strength even more terrifying!
"Boy, you truly grow more astonishing by the moment."
"You do indeed qualify to face a full-power slash from me!"
Sword Douluo offered a word of praise, then warned solemnly, "Be careful."
As his voice faded, the enormous phantom finally drew the gigantic Seven Kill Sword.
Whoosh!
He swung his hand in a slash that seemed to tear the firmament apart.
An enormous rift appeared, and countless streaks of sword energy slashed down, dense as raindrops.
Clink, clink, clink...
The sword energy struck Thunder Tai Tan's body like rain pelting a glass window.
Qin Xiao had already taken shelter in the crook of Thunder Tai Tan's arm.
"What formidable defense!"
Sword Douluo sounded somewhat astonished.
Simply put, Qin Xiao's first soul skill was considerably stronger than he had expected.
However...
"This is not my strongest attack yet. The sword rain is merely the opening act. The real show is still to come!"
Sword Douluo acknowledged that this lightning-wreathed Tai Tan was powerful, but he had even greater confidence in his own attack.
Since he first made his name, no one had ever withstood his ninth soul skill!
Not even a Titled Douluo!
Boom!
As if to prove his words, Qin Xiao spotted an even more powerful streak of sword energy emerging from the rift overhead.
This sword energy took the form of a Seven Kill Sword magnified countless times, a full hundred meters long.
Its terrifying might seemed poised to tear heaven and earth apart and split the entire world in two.
The Seven Kill Sword truly deserves its reputation as the foremost weapon of slaughter. This attack is who knows how many times stronger than Tang Hao's.
Qin Xiao's pupils contracted as he made the comparison inwardly.
Of course, Qin Xiao could not judge how much combat strength Tang Hao might unleash without his old injuries.
But however heaven-defying the Clear Sky Sect's secret arts were, raising rank ninety-five strength to rank ninety-seven combat power was about their limit.
If I hadn't fused with the hundred-thousand-year Titan Giant Ape, I would have to use the Thunder Emperor Finger to withstand an attack of this level.
But now, there's another way.
Qin Xiao made his decision at once.
Before you continue