The clear ring of the sword carried a strange, soul-stirring power, and the champions who had been about to move involuntarily faltered.
In that brief hesitation, they seemed to see a razor-sharp streak of light pierce the sky like a sweeping rainbow.
Even after it had flashed past their eyes, that fierce, dazzling, unrestrained brilliance lingered on their retinas.
Wh... what was that?
The champions looked up blankly and saw what appeared to be someone standing within that light, shooting into the sky at a speed they simply could not comprehend.
Krum stared at the light in disbelief, then looked down at the Firebolt beneath him.
How... could anything be faster than a Firebolt?
Zhang Xiao pressed his lips together as the wind howled past his ears. Layers of soft, waterlike light shone from the longsword beneath his feet.
Fast. It was far too fast. When he had tested the sword a few days earlier, he had never tried to find its top speed. The slightest push had already brought him to the limit of what he could manage on a broomstick.
Among the enchantments he recognized alone were lightness, levitation, Windbreaker, and Agility, to say nothing of the layers upon layers of things he did not recognize at all!
Had he not already entered the clear-minded state, Zhang Xiao would have begun to doubt whether he could control the flying sword at full speed.
Something was wrong with this flying sword! It was ridiculously powerful!
Even in the clear-minded state, Zhang Xiao felt everything around him move a little too fast. One moment, the key had still been far away; almost in the blink of an eye, it was right before him.
It was vibrating violently, seemingly preparing to turn with agonizing slowness.
He merely reached out, and the