Chapter 839: Chapter 839

The leader of the Sky Clan, the self-proclaimed Heavenly Emperor Piao Miao, finally sensed the severity of the situation.

"Something's wrong!" he shouted sharply. "There's something off about that human! You Xu is in danger! Long Li!"

Without needing his reminder, Long Li, previously charging at full speed toward the Supreme Pillar, suddenly flickered. He activated Phantom Strider as well and veered off, rushing to support You Xu.

But Heavenly Emperor Piao Miao understood well that Long Li alone wasn't enough to stop Li Pin.

He quickly turned to Emperor Ashura. "Ashura! What are you waiting for!?"

Ashura had also sensed something strange between Li Pin and You Xu.

You Xu... he really couldn't hold out anymore.

It wasn't because You Xu was weak. It was because Li Pin was too strong!

Ashura almost couldn't believe the thought that had crossed his mind. His heart grew cold.

The spatial intricacy in that sword strike... it didn't feel like a Tyrant's technique at all. It was the kind of mastery only a Sacred Monarch, fully attuned to the laws of space, could display. Has he broken through?

In the midst of the fiercely intense Overlord Competition, he gained insight into the spatial techniques You Xu was using during their clash, and broke through right then and there?

That's... impossible!

Part of him had hoped to see You Xu and Li Pin push each other to the brink so the Divine Race could swoop in for an easy win. But in the end, the Divine Race and the Void Clan were allies. Whether it was You Xu's death or Li Pin's breakthrough, neither outcome was acceptable.

Urged by Heavenly Emperor Piao Miao's alarm, he didn't hesitate. He turned to Scorching Flame. "What are you standing around for!? Move!"

Scorching Flame frowned. The spatial waves coming off Li Pin told him enough. In the end, he didn't bother calling You Xu a failure again.

He stepped into the void, rushing down toward Li Pin. His voice was low and firm, with a commanding edge.

With a step into the air, he swiftly descended toward Li Pin and shouted in a commanding tone, "Human! That's enough."

Unfortunately... he overestimated his importance. He seemed to have grown accustomed to having absolute authority among the Divine Race that his tone still demanded the same level of deference when speaking with anyone else.

He forgot that the Humans and Divine Race had always been enemies.

Li Pin ignored the Divine Lord's words entirely. The only person in his eyes now was You Xu.

With Heavenly Fate revealing weaknesses and grounded in the laws of Phantom Space, Li Pin unleashed a slash of eternal brilliance with his Ruoxi Sword. Space itself seemed to rejoice, and the world echoed in harmony.

Sensing the danger, You Xu poured out all his strength. The Reverse Void Blade in his hand swept high, splitting the space apart like a starry abyss. It formed a chasm so vast that no creature from the Material World could ever cross it.

With that strike, he brought the mysteries of space to their peak. Even the elite Sacred Monarchs of the Human Race would find themselves outshone in that moment.

But... he was too late. His blade might have sealed the space, but it could not lock down time.

At the very moment his strike bloomed in radiant splendor, the Eternal Swordlight had already pierced through him at a speed so fast it escaped perception.

He thought this brilliant slash, which locked down the space before him, would stop Li Pin's sword. But what he didn't realize was that by the time he swung his blade, Li Pin's strike had already landed.

With no space left to cross, time simply skipped ahead. The Eternal Swordlight showed its true nature: once drawn, it struck instantly.

You Xu believed he had just unleashed the brightest strike of his life. And in terms of power, it was flawless. A hint of satisfaction even flashed in his eyes. It felt as though in that one blade, he had glimpsed a purer form of space.

With that satisfaction, he looked at Li Pin, as if seeking to see his own recognition reflected in the eyes of this enemy, or rather, in those of a now acknowledged worthy opponent, someone who could appreciate his mastery of space.

And he got what he hoped for. He saw admiration in Li Pin's eyes, alongside a trace of regret.

That flicker of regret made him realize something. He turned his senses inward.

The Eternal Swordlight had already exploded inside him. Its power was tearing his Divine Body apart at an incredible pace.

If Li Pin hadn't used this exact method before to slay other prodigies, like the Sky Clan's Mo Xu, he might never have noticed it so quickly.

"Time and space..." You Xu murmured.

The next instant, the swordlight's destructive force fully erupted within him. It consumed his body, thoughts, consciousness, and True Spirit.

A faint wave of his inner spirit still lingered. It was a final sigh, mixed with sorrow, wonder, helplessness, and even despair. What a... perfect sword...

Long Li rushed over at full speed, disbelief written all over his face. "You Xu!"

The Heavenly Emperors of the Sky Clan jumped to their feet in fury, watching helplessly as their Supreme Seed fell to Li Pin's blade. Their bodies pulsed with murderous intent.

"How could this happen?"

Even Ashura and Wu Chang of the Divine Race looked shocked.

It wasn't just them. The Heavenly Emperors of the Unique Lifeform Alliance, Chaos Clan, Demon Race, and other factions all wore expressions of surprise.

You Xu... actually died?

Not long ago, You Xu was forced to unleash the Yin-Yang Reversal and Void Crush at the cost of the Eternal Oblivion Force. Still, no one thought he would die in this tournament. At worst, they expected both fighters to end up badly injured.

That was also what many wanted to see. Many even felt a twinge of schadenfreude in their hearts at that thought.

But now, You Xu was really dead, killed by Li Pin's sword....

"Wait, compared to before, this sword left almost no trace in the air! Without any trace, You Xu couldn't react in time, so... he couldn't block it!"

"Can't you see? Li Pin has broken through! He's grasped the power of space!"

"Is that even possible? Did Li Pin really learn the mysteries of space from his fight with You Xu and truly master it? Can such a monstrous genius really exist?!"

The Heavenly Emperors looked visibly shaken. Some couldn't believe what they were witnessing. Others simply refused to accept that Li Pin had broken through mid-battle and grasped the power of space in such a short time.

Because when compared to him... these legendary figures, once supreme prodigies admired by millions in their youth, suddenly felt their own lives had been wasted.

The only exceptions were Divine Martial Emperor and Ji Shun. Though surprised, they had somewhat expected it. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ novèlfire.net

They hid their excitement and stared at Li Pin as he sheathed his sword.

They needed to know if this space-defying strike was a one-time burst of brilliance or if Li Pin had truly mastered spatial laws and become a Sacred Monarch.

Like a meteor blazing across the sky, the Scorching Flame Divine Lord descended even faster than Long Li, the Sky Clan's prodigy.

Unlike Long Li, who relied on talent to manipulate space, this Divine Lord truly commanded it. The spatial ripples spreading out from him were clear signs of a Sacred Monarch's domain. At the sight, even some humans and allied races who had just started cheering for Li Pin involuntarily caught their breath.

Shimo and Tyrant Wu Jin were flabbergasted.

"The power of space!?"

"Scorching Flame... he's actually mastered the power of space!?"

They knew Scorching Flame well. They assumed he should be close to the Top-Tier Tyrant level.

In terms of the Supreme Ladder system, that would place him barely at the ninety-fourth step. This was with the aid of a unique Supreme Divine Weapon and in the absence of the Eternal Oblivion Force.

As for them... though their breakthrough to the ninety-fourth step had also been extremely difficult and heavily reliant on luck, it was clear they were in the same league as Scorching Flame.

By using the right tactics and letting expendable participants exhaust Scorching Flame first, they might stand a chance at defeating him. But all of this was based on the assumption that Scorching Flame hadn't grasped spatial power yet and was still at the Tyrant level.

Now that he'd revealed control over space... his strength might have already jumped to the ninety-fifth step, or maybe even reached the level of a Heavenly Emperor.

An invincible Sacred Monarch! How are we supposed to fight that!?

Scorching Flame descended with an overwhelming spatial force and instantly appeared before Li Pin.

He cast a cold glance toward the spot where Yu Xu's Divine Body was torn apart and completely annihilated.

Scorching Flame wore a chilling expression. "I told you to stop. Didn't you hear me?"

"Spatial power." Li Pin shifted his gaze from Yu Xu to the Scorching Flame Divine Lord. "Stronger than I expected... Let's hope you don't disappoint me."

"Hah! Don't get ahead of yourself!" The Scorching Flame Lord's expression turned cold. "Do you really think that just because you've grasped spatial power, you're invincible in the Ten Thousand Tribes Dominion War?"

Li Pin looked at Scorching Flame, unperturbed. "Enough talk. Fight."

He could tell that the man hadn't grasped spatial power for long. It was a good chance for two newly ascended Sacred Monarchs to test one another and stabilize their realms.

"If you're that furious, then go all out. Come! Kill me!" barked Li Pin.

Scorching Flame roared, "Li Pin, you're too arrogant!"

His tall, broad frame radiated golden light. Clad in golden armor and wielding a matchless war halberd, he looked like an unstoppable god of war.

With a thunderous shout, he charged down like a meteor, wrapped in surging spatial energy, as if tearing through the skies.

The vast and overwhelming power he unleashed felt like a divine army marching to war. It pounded at Li Pin's inner spirit far more intensely than anything Yu Xu or the others had shown.

Each of the Nine Sovereign Races had their own gifts. The Sky Clan were blessed by space, whereas the Divine Race excelled at manipulating minds.

Relying on this talent, Scorching Flame's halberd strike came with an illusion. In that instant, Li Pin felt as if he were trapped in a siege by a god-nation's army. Everywhere he looked, there was nothing but slaughter and destruction.

Li Pin's fighting spirit surged. "Perfect!"

Before the slaughter and destruction could fully overwhelm him, a demonic figure slowly rose deep within his inner spirit, seeming to engulf the entire sky and block out the sun.

It was the Primordial Abyss True Demon Form.

The figure was like the abyss itself, like a void incarnate. With a terrifying, devouring force, it swallowed the illusion whole, dissolving it into nothingness.

At the same time, Li Pin drew the Ruoxi Sword.

Before the Scorching Flame's halberd could even reach him, a slash of Eternal Swordlight surged forth, piercing space and time and striking Scorching Flame straight on.

At the last moment, Scorching Flame seemed to sense danger and activated a powerful defensive treasure.

But the Eternal Swordlight carried a power that transcended matter and energy. It was like the universe was being reforged, redefining the very elements of earth, water, fire, and wind.

Even with the treasure's protection, Scorching Flame's Divine Body shook violently. The strike sent him flying over a thousand meters.

In the end, he barely stopped himself by unleashing power beyond his limit. This triggered a surge of Eternal Oblivion Force within him.

Li Pin was taken aback. "That's it?"

Why does it feel like... Scorching Flame is even weaker than Yu Xu?

Wait. No. It isn't that Scorching Flame is weaker. It is that I have grown stronger.