The Empress's No.1 Lackey

Black and crimson patterns swirled on the divinely crafted blade, silently slashing down upon its target, the scattered Sword Qi causing Tian Hai to feel a piercing pain at his brow.

As if it were splitting open.

Tian Hai, the little monk, neither dodged nor evaded, his eyes suddenly calm and waveless. As he fell through the air, he brought his hands together in prayer above his head.

"Buddhist Golden Bell Shield!"

Hum... A pale golden Qi Shield, shaped like an ancient bell, abruptly expanded, spinning halfway around him and blocking the Taia Sword from piercing through.

"Hiss—"

The dense and fragmented Sword Qi shattered upon the Golden Bell Shield, sparking a misty glow.

The Taia Sword was blocked for a moment, and then with a "crack,"

the Golden Bell Shield, which had withstood Jin Jian's full force Magic in the previous battle without breaking, suddenly cracked at the tip, the fracture spreading like a spider web.

The next second, it shattered into countless pieces.

Tian Hai's face changed slightly, yet he did not retreat or dodge.

Instead, with a thought, the Six Paths Stick rooted in the ground beside him uprooted itself and flew towards him, "clang," barely blocking the Taia Sword's lethal strike.

"What a powerful weapon..."

In the eyes of the countless martial artists watching, a fervent and greedy light flickered, especially among those who practiced the Sword Dao, finding it hard to suppress their covetous desires.

Even with Zhao Douan unable to harness its true power, the inherent sharpness and hardness of the Taia Sword alone was enough to breach the Buddhist Golden Bell Shield...

The might of the Divine Artifact was evident for all to see.

"It is said that six hundred years ago, the Grand Ancestor Emperor once held the Taia Sword and sliced off half of the Witches' Mountain. Though the tales might be exaggerated, they are probably not too far from the truth,"

thought the crafty Commandery Princess Xu Junling, lost in a daze.

Suddenly she understood why some among the "Eight Princes" harbored different intentions towards the throne.

Setting aside the throne and power, the heritage of her own Xu royal dynasty was already terrifyingly deep.

Any who could ascend to the throne and don the imperial robes would, even if their cultivation fell short and they were not as skilled as the Imperial Princess, still be able to wield the Divine Artifact with the Emperor's Dragon Qi and enter the ranks of the world's mightiest.

She couldn't help but think, if Zhao Douan with a sword could contend with Tian Hai,

what then was the splendor of the Imperial Sister, who was the Third Imperial Princess during the Xuan Sect's coup d'état many years ago?

And just as she was lost in thought, the battle on the stage underwent another abrupt change.

Tian Hai, utilising the Six Paths Stick to block the deadly edge of the Taia Sword, saw a glint flash in his eyes, and without warning, he struck out with his palm!

"Buddhist Vajra Palm!"

Outside the shield, Gongshu Tianyuan's chubby face trembled, "Brother Zhao is in danger."

However, contrary to expectations, Zhao Douan showed no signs of panic. The hand not holding the sword spread its fingers and pressed towards Tian Hai.

In that moment, the dark clouds crowding the sky above the stage seemed disturbed, as an autumn rain began to fall.

In the Martial God Map, Old Xu once used a single palm strike, "Star River Inverted," to make the stars of the heavens fall, dispensing with the night.

With the Taia Sword, Zhao Douan could barely cause a slight disturbance to the cloud layers.

Under the intense scrutiny of the crowd, the two palms collided suddenly.

First there was silence, and then, violent torrents radiated from the center of their palms, splashing in all directions.

Zhao Douan and Tian Hai both felt a fierce wind brush against their faces at the same time; the former's hair was blown into disarray, fluttering backward, while the latter's yellow silk band on top of his head fluttered like a banner.

Both men seemed to have gulped down a great breath of air, their cheeks bulging as their bodies almost simultaneously retreated backward, their weapons separating as well.

This time, Zhao Douan once again employed the "Falling Leaf Body Skill," gently swinging out more than a yard to land steadily.

The moment he touched down, the hem of his robe "snap" burst apart, the torn fragments fluttering away as the shield behind him vibrated intensely several times.

"Thump, thump, thump..."

Tian Hai's feet stomped successively on the ground, retreating over a dozen yards before he stabilized his body, leaving a series of footprints indented in the ground.

The cold autumn rain freely passed through the shield, which only weakened the obstructing Mana and vital force, equally drenching both opponents in the ring.

...

Outside the arena.

The spectators clung to the edge of their seats, captivated by the exchange that had been as fierce as a sudden storm, and it was only now that they finally remembered to breathe.

"Huff..."

You Jinhua, clutching the rail, unconsciously tightened her grip, causing her daughter to grimace. Still, the woman found it difficult to calm the tension in her heart.

Heaven knows, she had nearly shouted out in fright just moments ago, thankfully pinching Zhao Pan hard on the thigh in time to avoid making a scene in public.

The civil officials led by the female chancellor Mo Chou also felt their hearts skip half a beat.

It was almost as if they themselves were on the stage, having just endured a tense and exhilarating battle.

"It seems that Lord Zhao is gradually adapting," the Minister of Rites cautiously inquired.

Xue Shence nodded, the Great Yu's Military God himself taken aback.

He hadn't expected Zhao Douan's foundation in martial arts to be much stronger than anticipated.

Beside them,

Ma Yan was not surprised.

Only he fully understood how many times Zhao Douan had sought the Masters for sparring sessions over the past two months. The so-called lack of combat experience had already been greatly supplemented.

Moreover, Tian Hai had previously exhausted himself in a—fight against Jinhua, revealing his style and Cultivation Technique without reserve, while Zhao Douan remained an enigma.

He was about to explain when he suddenly let out a light exclamation.

On the stage above, Tian Hai, leaning on the Six Paths Stick, watched as the rain-drenched ground beneath his feet unexpectedly began to freeze, hoarfrost crystallizing.

Cold air, silent and breathless, emanated from around his body.

At each of the indented footprints, a swirl of mist began to rise.

"Crack, crack..."

To the surprise of onlookers, the cold raindrops on Tian Hai's feet suddenly solidified into ice and rapidly climbed up, tracing along his two legs, swiftly reaching his waist, his abdomen, his chest, his neck...

Eventually, his face went numb as a thin layer of ice enveloped most of it.