Chapter 1457: Withstanding the Backlash Head-On

Whoosh!

A blood-red blade thin as a cicada's wing swept silently across the puppet, and faintly, it seemed as if a subtle, strange sound rang out.

And Li Luo's face also turned deathly pale in an instant, because at that very same moment, countless blood-red fissures suddenly appeared all over the surface of his body. Fresh blood flowed out, transforming him directly into a blood-soaked figure, looking utterly horrifying.

At the same time, a terrifying force descended like an uncontrolled calamity dragon, surging into his body and wreaking mad havoc.

This was the backlash of casting the "Dragon Blood Nightmare Art."

Just as everyone had anticipated, with such a vast disparity in level between the two sides, Li Luo was bound to suffer backlash when casting the "Dragon Blood Nightmare Art."

"It really came."

Li Luo murmured to himself, but his eyes were quite calm. Others could foresee this, so how could he, as the caster, not have thought of it? Moreover, the "Dragon Blood Nightmare Art" was inherently less effective against outsiders.

And next, Li Luo was going to test whether he could withstand this backlash force head-on.

At Li Luo's brow, the "Ancient Tracing Phase Pattern" erupted with dazzling purple-gold radiance. The ability of the Mid-Ninth Grade Heavenly Dragon Phase was pushed to its absolute limit, and instantly his entire blood began to boil. As his blood surged, it seemed as if an ancient dragon's roar echoed forth.

As the Heavenly Dragon Phase was elevated to Mid-Ninth Grade, the Heavenly Dragon bloodline within Li Luo likewise received a boost, which would enhance the strength of his physical body.

Under Li Luo's full exertion, the countless hideous wounds on his body actually began to heal rapidly, but the backlash force came wave after wave like a tide, constantly leaving new wounds across his body.

Yet Li Luo's physical body did not collapse under the erosion of this tide-like backlash force, which proved that his body could withstand the backlash.

Simultaneously, deep within his body, the Myriad Phase Wheel sensed the backlash force rampaging inside him and instantly erupted with a terrifying suction, drawing it all directly into the golden wheel.

"Li Luo, you're being far too delusional—time to be eliminated!" Just as Li Luo swiftly suppressed the backlash within him, Fang Xingyun's offensive had already rapidly closed in, and at the same time that sharp shout rang out.

Accompanying that sharp shout was the vast, violent dragon-shadow thunder-light.

However, the instant his shout fell, Li Luo suddenly raised his head, and within those pupils, a sharp glint surged forth.

Fang Xingyun's heart jolted violently. Li Luo had actually withstood that backlash force? This kid was simply too monstrous!

Moreover, since Li Luo had withstood the backlash, then that Nightmare Art was about to activate!

Just as this thought flashed through Fang Xingyun's mind, he suddenly heard a piercing tearing sound ring out.

Riiip!

Fang Xingyun's pupils contracted. He jerked his head up to look at the seven Marquis Platforms suspended above, and saw that on one of them, a glaring, eye-catching massive crack had actually appeared at this moment.

The crack pierced deeply through this Marquis Platform, nearly splitting it in two.

Energy like a tide poured out from the fissure, dissipating into the heavens and earth.

At the same time, this Marquis Platform began to show signs of collapse. Countless massive stones tumbled down, transforming into countless specks of light that burrowed back into the crown of Fang Xingyun's head.

"What kind of Nightmare Art has such terrifying power?!"

A storm of shock surged through Fang Xingyun's heart. Li Luo's Nightmare Art had actually directly cleaved one of his Marquis Platforms, on the verge of collapse. Though this was only temporary, in a battle at this level, such an upheaval would overturn the entire fight.

"Enough of this—I'll crush him first!"

Fang Xingyun's thoughts shifted rapidly, and finally a ruthless glint surfaced in his eyes. No longer minding the upheaval with the Marquis Platform, he gathered all his phase power, and the thunder-light halberd in his hand pierced through the void, blasting toward Li Luo.

However, with one Marquis Platform heavily wounded, the "Dragon Shadow Thunder-Light" surging on that thunder-light halberd was also dimming at an alarming rate.

Seeing this, a smile appeared on Li Luo's blood-drenched face, and then the Dragon-Elephant Thunder Blade in his hand suddenly cleaved downward. The void shattered instantly, and a deafening dragon's roar echoed out from within.

The next instant, three massive dragon shadows roared forth, carrying surging energies of different attributes, and finally converged together into a single resplendent, ancient dragon banner.

That was...

The Three Dragon Heavenly Banner Canon!

"Three Dragon Town Divine Light!"

Li Luo gripped the dragon banner and swung it casually. Immediately, vast, surging resplendent divine light swept forth, crushing the heavens, and collided with the piercing "Dragon Shadow Thunder-Light."

With Li Luo now possessing a Mid-Ninth Grade Heavenly Dragon Phase, the power of the Three Dragon Heavenly Banner Canon he executed had also seen a clear increase.

Boom!

At the instant of collision, the entire world seemed to fall silent. Then a terrifying energy storm ravaged outward, blanketing the sky, shattering mountain after mountain below. The lakes between the peaks were also swept up, transforming into mountain floods that poured out in all directions.

The battling teams from both Holy Academies were all caught in the blast, blasted backward frantically.

Amid this chaos, only the ice sculpture formed by Lv Qing'er and that Sixth-Grade Marquis Realm powerhouse from the Thunder Tribulation Holy Academy remained utterly still, like indestructible ten-thousand-year-old glacial ice. At the same time, any energy that entered this region would be assimilated into wisps of cold air that lingered all around.

At this moment, inside and outside the Crossing-Space, countless gazes were fixed tightly on the source of that energy storm.

The aftershocks there were dissipating.

Then, they saw that tall, straight figure standing tall at the horizon, a head of purple-gold hair dazzlingly radiant.

That was Li Luo!

Countless gasps of astonishment rang out. Li Luo had actually survived that certain-kill strike from Fang Xingyun!

That was a Destiny-grade Marquis Art unleashed by a Seventh-Grade Marquis Realm powerhouse!

Quite a few Marquis Realm powerhouses of the same Lower Seventh Grade were utterly shocked at this moment. They found it incomprehensible—no matter how monstrous a Dual-Phase Second Grade was, it shouldn't go this far, right?

Though Dual-Phase Prodigies were rare, they weren't unique in all the world, but who had ever seen any Dual-Phase Prodigy capable of reaching this step?

Countless gazes shifted from Li Luo's body to not far away, where Fang Xingyun's figure also emerged. And at this moment, the latter's expression had become uglier than ever before.

Clearly, Li Luo withstanding his certain-kill strike had dealt him an enormous psychological blow.

Fang Xingyun felt deeply frustrated. He knew that the main reason Li Luo had been able to withstand it was that Nightmare Art had caused him tremendous impact.

"Vice-Dean Fang, it seems your seventh Marquis Platform is about to dissipate." Just then, Li Luo suddenly reminded him kindly.

Fang Xingyun was greatly startled upon hearing this. He hurriedly raised his head to look at the heavily wounded Marquis Platform, and indeed saw that the latter was now tottering on the brink of collapse, its radiance dimming continuously, until finally it could no longer maintain its form and transformed into countless specks of starlight that scattered down, returning to the crown of Fang Xingyun's head.

At this moment, Fang Xingyun was directly cut down one grade from the Seventh-Grade Marquis Realm, plummeting into Sixth Grade!

Fang Xingyun's entire body turned to ice. Because with his realm falling from Seventh Grade, the Thunder-Light Domain that had originally enveloped this region was also beginning to dissipate.

The suppressive effect of that domain also vanished abruptly.

Fang Xingyun was slightly dazed. He stared at Li Luo ahead. After withstanding the backlash of the Nightmare Art, the latter still seemed as lively as ever. Moreover, as the Marquis Domain dispersed, the phase power fluctuations surging around Li Luo were also slowly rising.

The situation at this moment seemed to have taken a turning shift.

Li Luo gazed at Fang Xingyun's dazed expression, and the smile on his handsome face grew incomparably radiant.

"Vice Dean Fang, you seem to be only a Sixth-Grade now..."

"Sixth-Grade..."

"Then I won't have to worry."

As his voice fell, Li Luo's right palm clenched, and a vicious, ferocious dragon-shaped great bow flashed into being.

Fighting a Sixth-Grade titled marquis, Li Luo had plenty of experience and plenty of confidence.

Therefore, this battle was already beyond doubt.