Yuan’s Ascension

Suddenly, above the miniature star, a layer of nebulous rosy light shone. The rosy light expanded, covering a vast area.

Hao Shanjing felt a terrifying, invisible force pressing down on his massive body, pulling him in the opposite direction of Wu Yuan's escape route. His speed was reduced abruptly. It was all extremely bizarre.

Whoosh~ The saber barely missed its mark. The aftershocks only brushed against the surface of the miniature star, failing to damage it. The vines, too, were greatly affected.

Gravity? Celestial Body Dao! Hao Shanjing realized.

He had long known that the Celestial Body Dao was as profound as the Longevity Dao.

Among the three Lesser Laws of the Celestial Body Dao was the Law of Gravity, which was incredibly strange yet effective when applied skillfully.

All beings and objects were affected by gravity. Legend had it that if one could thoroughly comprehend the Gravity Dao, one could tear and obliterate an enormous star from the firmament with a mere thought.

The Celestial Body Dao excelled at defense, yet it wasn’t just durable. Through the Gravity Dao, one could limit the enemy's speed or divert attacks. These were also part of defensive tactics.

"Kill!" Without any hesitation, Hao Shanjing charged at Wu Yuan again, only to be met with another invisible force pulling him back, reducing his speed.

Hao Shanjing had the advantage in mana and unleashed several ether arts. Even if his large size somewhat slowed him down, his speed was still terrifying, slightly faster than Wu Yuan.

However, the repeated gravitational distortions made it impossible for him to catch up with Wu Yuan. He roared in fury and frustration, but Wu Yuan wasn’t affected in the least.

Occasionally, he caught up, but the delay was too long, allowing the miniature star to recover enough to withstand a couple more strikes.

"Li Xia, if you’re capable, don't run, fight me head-on!" Hao Shanjing roared in anger.

"Running away is a skill too," Wu Yuan's laughter rang out, "If you're capable, catch up to me first."

...

"He can't catch up."

"Though Hao Shanjing's offense is fiercer and his defense is ridiculously strong, Li Xia's tactics are more strange. Neither side can gain the upper hand," many spectators realized.

In the world outside, such fights often ended in a stalemate, with one side fleeing and the other unable to pursue.

But this was the Dragon Star Tournament. A winner must be determined.

"The only option is to drag it out and see whose mana runs out first," many discerning immortal cultivators judged.

A war of attrition in the Dragon Star Tournament? This was extremely rare, indicating the two sides were evenly matched.

"Haha, this is exciting."

"Hao Shanjing is strong enough. As a body refiner, he lives up to their reputation as war deities. His attack power can even outmatch a sword cultivator! Amazing."

"In terms of Dao comprehension, Hao Shanjing might be slightly superior."

"But the Celestial Body Dao is better at defense and allows for a greater variety of tactics."

"The battle between the Longevity Dao and the Celestial Body Dao, a clash between two Intermediate Laws. Is it truly just a fight between two Golden Core youngsters? It's been a million years since we've watched such an epic battle in our Dragon Star Immortal Sect," many of the sect’s immortals sighed in awe.

At the Golden Core phase, the majority of cultivators could reach the seventh or eighth-level Domain stage of a Lesser Law.

Reaching the True Intent stage? That was a one-in-ten-thousand top-tier genius.

And someone like Xing Luo, who reached the fourth or fifth-level True Intent stage before a hundred years old, was considered one of the top-tier geniuses in the entire immortal continent, qualifying to enter the Moonsilver World.

As for reaching the initiate threshold of comprehension for an Intermediate Law? This was no longer a simple matter of Dao comprehension speed. It required talent, opportunity, and luck. Being able to comprehend the Intermediate Law at such a young age meant that one’s future was limitless.

Such individuals were rare even throughout the Redmoon Immortal Continent. On average, only one such genius would emerge every few hundred thousand years.

"The odds are in Li Xia's favor," Mountain Master Xu judged. "Although he employed many artifacts, his soul is strong, and with his lifebound flying swords as the core, his mana consumption is not high."

"Hao Shanjing is able to exhibit such strength due to his ether art. Once his vital ether is exhausted, he won't be able to withstand Li Xia's counter-attack." Mountain Master Xu shook his head, and the observing immortals nodded in agreement.

They were highly knowledgeable and could understand the situation in the arena clearly.

In terms of burst power, a body refiner was stronger than a sword cultivator. But once their ether was exhausted, a body refiner's strength would decline significantly, making them inferior to a sword cultivator.

One had stronger bursts, the other had more endurance.

…

Within the spherical arena.

Boom! Boom! Hao Shanjing charged at Wu Yuan again and again, but under the invisible gravitational constraints, it was difficult to catch up.

Of course, given Hao Shanjing’s terrifying strength, Wu Yuan dared not make any changes to the sword array.

Once the 'Star Ruins Sword Array' was disassembled, the gravitational power wouldn't be as strong without the miniature star as the core.

Suddenly, Hao Shanjing stopped.

"Haha, Li Xia, you are indeed strong. I never thought you would push me this far." Hao Shanjing held the heavy saber in his hand, his eyes filled with an intense battle lust. Giant vines, like tentacles, extended several li into the distance.

"Take my final move!" Hao Shanjing's eyes glowed, staring intently at Wu Yuan. "If you can withstand it, I will concede."

"Show me what you've got," Wu Yuan said coldly. "If you don't bring it out soon, you can start calling me Senior Brother."

The victor would become the Golden Core Great Senior Brother.

"Haha!" Hao Shanjing's laughter echoed as his massive form began to shrink, followed by the swift retraction of his vines. However, his vital aura spiked.

In the blink of an eye, Hao Shanjing's towering body returned to its normal size, only three meters tall, and the once all-encompassing vines had vanished. However, his vital aura had reached an unprecedented level.

Boom! Hao Shanjing moved.

Like a meteor piercing through the firmament, he dashed towards Wu Yuan.

Whoosh~ Gravity pulled him to the side, but it barely reduced his speed.

What? Over five hundred li per second? Wu Yuan's eyes widened, his heart about to leap out of his chest.

What kind of speed was this?

One had to understand that Hao Shanjing’s speed was previously comparable to a first-stage Amethyst Cradle cultivator with a ninth-degree immortal root, barely reaching a speed of three hundred li per second. Under the limitations of the gravitational pull, it was only slightly over two hundred li per second.

It was already quite terrifying. But now? It more than doubled.

Wu Yuan's attempt to limit Hao Shanjing’s speed with gravity distortion was almost laughably ineffective.

With such speed, his strength most likely skyrocketed as well. In all likelihood, he could shatter the miniature star with a single saber strike.

It’s the advanced ether art, Life Burn! This Hao Shanjing has grasped the Longevity Dao! With this technique, combined with Hao Shanjing’s previous power burst, Wu Yuan finally recognized his opponent’s abilities.

Life Burn, as the name suggested, was an ether art that burned one’s lifespan!

This ether art put a huge strain on the soul chamber. Few people cultivated it as each usage of the technique drained one’s vital essence.

Only those who practiced the Longevity Dao had no fear. With their powerful vital essence and exceptional recovery abilities, their bodies could compensate for the side-effects. However, each time they employed this move, it was still a gamble with their lives on the line.

With a third-degree immortal root, one can cultivate two basic ether arts and one advanced ether art upon reaching the Spiritual Body phase. Wu Yuan now understood that his opponent had prepared this as his trump card.

"He’s fast!"

"Hao Shanjing." At this moment, countless spectators felt their blood boiling with excitement as they kept their eyes glued to the battle.

Too fast, too fierce!

Such explosive speed caused the expressions of some weaker Amethyst Cradle Reverends to shift involuntarily.

"Life Burn! He actually staked all his vital ether on such a gamble."

"For a Spiritual Body cultivator, this ether art is still too strenuous to employ."

"Can Li Xia withstand it?" The many immortals watched the battle in anticipation.

Could he withstand it? If Wu Yuan could, he would win. If he couldn’t, he would lose.

…

The moment Wu Yuan understood what his opponent’s move was, he immediately retreated. At the same time, he slowed down his opponent with gravity pull.

On top of that, countless flying swords filled the sky, immediately merging with the pre-existing Star Ruins Sword Array.

The scene of thousands of flying swords left all spectators, including the immortals, dumbstruck.

In the blink of an eye, three miniature stars, about one li in diameter, materialized around Wu Yuan. He stood in the center, the stars revolving around him.

Each miniature star was made up of 729 flying swords, with three lifebound flying swords as the core. Three Thousand Swords Arrays.

Die! Wu Yuan's face turned beet red as he strained his soul to its limits, relying on sheer will to hold everything together.

Due to insufficient soul strength and lack of multiple lifebound flying swords, ordinary sword cultivators would not typically assemble more than one Thousand Swords Array. It was far too difficult to control multiple Thousand Swords Arrays simultaneously.

But Wu Yuan had a total of nine lifebound flying swords. As Earth Immortal Qing Feng had said, Wu Yuan could control three Thousand Swords Arrays while battling his enemies. This was Wu Yuan's strongest move.

However, for Wu Yuan, who was still at the Golden Core phase, controlling two Thousand Swords Arrays was already a strenuous task, almost pushing his limits.

Three arrays? Even with Wu Yuan's strong will and soul, it took everything he had.

I dared not use my full power before as it's a one-shot deal. If I don’t manage to defeat my enemy after executing it, then it's over for me. If a match is a sure win, why risk it? Wu Yuan eyes burned with battle fervor.

But now, Hao Shanjing activated Life Burn. I honestly don't have much confidence that I can block it. Let's see whose ultimate move is stronger.

Wu Yuan's thought processing speed was thousands of times faster than an ordinary man. By the time he counter-attacked, Hao Shanjing was still dozens of li from him.

Three miniature stars formed, arranging themselves in a trident formation. Then, they smashed toward Hao Shanjing with unmatched ferocity.

Three Thousand Swords Arrays vaguely formed the Three Talents Sword Array.

The distance between them was too small. Even Hao Shanjing, a peerless genius with incredible battle awareness, could not avoid it.

"Kill!" Hao Shanjing roared angrily, raising his saber high. Since it was unavoidable, he would split the three miniature stars.

At the moment when the two sides made contact, Wu Yuan roared inwardly. Explode!

His soul could no longer maintain the stability of the three miniature stars, teetering on the brink of collapse.

Boom! Boom! Boom! The three miniature stars detonated, and the flying swords charged in all directions. Sword qi crisscrossed through the air.

The strongest strike of the Star Ruins Sword Array – Star Explosion!

"What?" Hao Shanjing was instantly stunned. At such a close distance, the overwhelming flying swords and sword lights immediately engulfed him.

Rumble~ At his peak state, Hao Shanjing could have held on. But after prolonged combat, along with the execution of Life Burn, he only lasted a moment.

With a hum, Hao Shanjing transformed into a streak of white light, disappearing from where he stood, transported away by the array.

If he had remained behind? It meant certain death!

The moment the three miniature stars exploded, Wu Yuan’s mind went blank, as though on the verge of blacking out. He could only watch helplessly as the sword lights that shrouded the sky enveloped him.

He too was unable to avoid it.

With a hum, Wu Yuan vanished the moment the sword qi touched his body, disappearing from the spherical arena.

With a rumble, the flying swords and sword qi swept across the entire arena. Such a fearsome move left all spectators with gaping mouths.

Soon, the arena’s array restored the battlefield back to normal, and the chaos calmed down.

However, the arena was now devoid of combatants. Only thousands of flying swords remained, scattered haphazardly across the ground.

Countless spectators scrutinized the arena. No one was left? This meant both combatants had sustained ‘fatal’ injuries and were directly transported out of the arena.

So, who won?

"The final match of the Golden Core hereditary disciple ranking battle, Li Xia versus Hao Shanjing! The victor is Li Xia!" An announcement echoed throughout the vast arena.

"The title of Golden Core Great Senior Brother of the Dragon Star Immortal Sect belongs to Li Xia!"

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