Chapter 45: True Form?

Watching the battle scene displayed in the void.

"Using offensive swordsmanship integrated into the domain of defense, only the artistic conception remains unchanged." A slightly weathered and dispirited man smiled. "This Beiming, though inferior to Beta Leo, is still rare. Once he enters our Sword Palace and is properly nurtured, perhaps a miracle will occur, and he may one day rival Beta Leo."

"This kid, he chose your Sword Palace? Even if he's from your Sword Palace, aren't you blushing to praise him so? His swordsmanship is indeed decent, having reached a very high level in defense. But even if he improves further, wanting to compare with Beta Leo... haha, how long has it been since our entire Mangya Kingdom produced a Beta Leo?"

"Woodflower Dao Lord, you're praising him too much."

"Woodflower is from the Sword Palace, it's normal for him to praise his own."

"But this Beiming is quite good at defense."

...

The mighty beings watched and commented, but Ji Ning and Beta Leo were locked in a frenzied battle.

"Boom~~~" The surroundings seemed to collapse, space in chaos. Just two great hammers, each causing heaven and earth to tremble, forced Ji Ning to use three or four divine swords in succession to block; a single sword was no longer enough.

"Though he excels at heavy hammers, these are Eternal Divine Weapons; he should only have these two." Ji Ning struggled to defend.

It was indeed very difficult.

Beta Leo unleashed his most skilled hammer technique, open and aboveboard, mighty and overwhelming! Ji Ning was completely suppressed, barely holding on by perfectly executing every sword stroke within his newly realized 'Lingxi Domain', avoiding direct clashes.

"His hammer technique is so profound I can't even understand it. Though it shares the same open and aboveboard style as the golden-robed emperor in the 'Snowscape Illustration', it's clearly far, far superior." Ji Ning marveled. If the golden-robed emperor was a toddler learning to walk, Beta Leo was a fierce warrior sprinting like a tiger or leopard.

Fortunately, he had integrated the 'Stellar Style' into his 'Lingxi Domain'; otherwise, relying solely on 'Lingxi Single Thread' would have been impossible to withstand.

"Still holding on?" Beta Leo was slightly surprised, then spoke, "Beiming, be careful."

"Hm?" Ji Ning's expression changed slightly.

Hum~~~

The surrounding scene changed.

Originally on a sea island, with the endless ocean in the distance, though the island was shattered by the battle, the distant ocean remained unaffected.

But now Ji Ning was astonished to find the scene transformed: as far as the eye could see, it became a vast plain, with towering mountains. Atop one lofty mountain stood a divine temple, radiating billions of rays of light, illuminating the entire plain.

Ji Ning and Beta Leo were now battling on the plain.

"Ning'er."

Yuchi Xue and Ji Yichuan appeared, looking at Ji Ning with joy.

"Junior apprentice-brother." Yu Wei also appeared.

An invisible force influenced Ji Ning's soul and true spirit, stirring his deepest obsessions. In his heart, he cared for his parents and his senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei—the most important people to him. He longed to one day rescue his senior apprentice-sister and reunite as a family of three.

"Break!" Ji Ning continued battling Beta Leo, completely unaffected, and let out a furious shout. Instantly, Yuchi Xue, Ji Yichuan, and Yu Wei, who were watching him, vanished.

"Unaffected." Beta Leo was somewhat surprised.

"Such a powerful heartforce illusion? Hm?" Ji Ning's expression changed, for beneath his feet was still the endless plain, and in the distance the towering mountains remained.

Ji Ning understood clearly.

Since the end of the Three Realms catastrophe, his state of mind had improved. When he comprehended the 'Heartsword Style', his heartforce had touched the threshold of the fifth level, but he had yet to truly break through. Though his heartforce was decent, it was nothing compared to Beta Leo's heartforce illusions.

Ji Ning's greatest strength was his soul and true spirit. Nourished by the power of the Blueflower Mist, his soul and true spirit were comparable to a one-step Dao Lord.

For an illusion to succeed, it depends on the target's 'heartforce', 'secret arts', and 'soul and true spirit'. Suppose an Eternal Emperor, even if maddened, it would be extremely difficult to move even a trace of his 'soul and true spirit'. Ji Ning's soul and true spirit were strong, and his heartforce and secret arts were decent, allowing him to withstand the illusion.

"Bind." While battling Ji Ning, Beta Leo shouted.

"Boom~~~"

The plain ground suddenly split open, and countless chains flew out, directly entangling Ji Ning.

"Illusion? Break!" Ji Ning's powerful true spirit and will tried to dispel everything.

"Haha, illusion? You underestimate heartforce cultivators. Illusion is reality, reality is illusion." Beta Leo shook his head. "What you see is fundamentally real."

Ji Ning had no time to ponder.

Swoosh.

A black-red gourd appeared beside Ji Ning, and two dragon-like divine thunderbolts surged forth. One thunderbolt brought rolling black clouds and surging black water; the other brought crimson clouds and blazing flames. They swept through the surroundings, shattering the chains that tried to bind Ji Ning, but the chains regenerated endlessly.

The two Dao-Divine Thunders swept the area, making Ji Ning appear like a god amidst lightning. Even Beta Leo, locked in combat with Ji Ning, was affected by the thunderbolts.

"Omnipresent." Beta Leo said calmly.

Whoosh~~~

Instantly, golden light surged from every part of the plain, surrounding and binding Ji Ning. Despite the two Dao-Divine Thunders madly destroying them, the golden light was omnipresent and inexhaustible.

"Attack." Ji Ning directed the two Dao-Divine Thunders to sweep the surroundings.

"Boom, boom, boom."

The great hammers swung, shaking the earth and mountains.

Wherever Ji Ning's sword passed, a Lingxi Domain formed, barely holding off the assault. Fortunately, the power of the Blueflower Mist bolstered his strength.

...

"Stop." Beta Leo retreated.

At the same time, the surrounding plain, the distant towering mountains, and the temple on the peak all shattered and dissipated, revealing the true scene. The island had long been completely destroyed; both stood in midair battling, surrounded by the endless vast ocean.

"Stopped?" Ji Ning was momentarily stunned.

Even with the Yuan Yi Water-Fire Gourd, Ji Ning was struggling, feeling he might fail at any moment, but he kept holding on, buying time.

"I concede." Beta Leo suddenly announced loudly.

"Concede?" Ji Ning was even more bewildered. The other's hammer technique was extremely profound, and Ji Ning didn't sense him going all out; he seemed to be fighting casually. Yet even so, Ji Ning felt that if it dragged on, his defense would eventually break, and defeat was near.

"I promised Qianxingzi to pass on this heartforce inheritance to him." Beta Leo suddenly produced a white feather. "You are the last person I'm to fight this time. After our battle, I will leave Star Island. Before that, I give this heartforce inheritance to you. After you learn it, fight Qianxingzi and pass it on to him."

With that, the white feather flew toward Ji Ning.

"Oh." Ji Ning took it dumbly. This white feather was the number one heartforce inheritance from Feather Garment Dao Lord, which had been in Beta Leo's possession.

"You are clearly stronger than me..." Ji Ning looked at Beta Leo.

"Why cling to winning or losing on Star Island?" Beta Leo smiled calmly.

"But you are a special lifeform! You haven't revealed your true form yet." Ji Ning couldn't help saying.

Having fought many special lifeforms over the years, he knew they usually took human form, as human form represented cultivators, the most numerous in the endless territories. But in human form, their strength might only be ten or twenty percent, or even less. Once they revealed their true form, their power became formidable.

If their innate abilities were strong, they became even more heaven-defying.

"True form?" Beta Leo smiled, glancing at Ji Ning. "Since coming to the Star Tower, I have never revealed my true form."

"Farewell." Beta Leo said loudly.

Space twisted, and Beta Leo vanished.

Ji Ning stood there stunned, holding the white feather. Had he won? Why did it feel so unsatisfying? He hadn't even seen Beta Leo's true form.

...

At the bottom of the Dark Abyss.

The mighty beings watched.

"When I first saw Beta Leo's true form, I mistook him for an ancient cultivator." Thousand Waves Dao Lord laughed. "In all his battles on Star Island, he never used his true form, only this transformed body."

"With his level of insight, if he used his true form, he could probably slay a one-step Dao Lord."

"Such strength should be the limit for World-level cultivators."

Ancient cultivators and the Mangya Kingdom's royal clan represented the limits of their races—few in number but with heaven-defying talents. Waterwalker, as a special lifeform, rivaled ancient cultivators. Beta Leo was the same... If he revealed his true form, his strength would increase tenfold or more.

"Alright, Beta Leo has decided to leave Star Island." The white-bearded old man smiled. "Whether he chooses the Light Palace or the Heartforce Palace is up to you."

With that, the white-bearded old man turned and walked away, then vanished.

"Let's go."

"Quick."

"Thousand Waves Dao Lord, our Heartforce Palace truly has too few Dao Lords."

Immediately, several Dao Lords shot up into the sky, flying out of the Dark Abyss toward Star Island.

...