Chapter 680: King-Level Experience Card

Hum!

Li Luo's plain, unadorned slash came down. The energy between heaven and earth seemed to show no unusual movement whatsoever, yet the very instant that slash fell, the sky was split apart, the thick clouds cleaving cleanly down the middle.

A streak of blade-light descended from the heavens, aimed straight at the Regent.

That streak of blade-light was equally plain and unadorned, yet the Regent's expression changed drastically beneath it.

A look of horror rose in his eyes as well.

Because at this moment, he actually sensed the aura of death from that utterly ordinary streak of blade-light. Within it seemed to be contained a terrifying, high-level power—a power that had already surpassed the Marquis Realm.

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At this point the Regent had no time to consider how a mere Fiend Palace realm cultivator like Li Luo could possibly possess such terrifying power, because he knew that if he let that slash land on his body, he might die today.

To die at the hands of a mere Fiend Palace realm brat—absolutely laughable to the extreme.

"Great Mountain River Palm!"

The Regent's phase force within his body erupted without reserve. At this moment he resembled a great sun spanning the sky; resplendent phase force burst forth with astonishing might, causing even the void to tremble violently.

His five fingers formed a palm; with one strike he directly activated his strongest phase art.

In an instant, continuous mountain ranges and rivers took shape once more. Anyone familiar with the geography of Great Xia would recognize them—those endless mountains and rivers were precisely some of Great Xia's ancient peaks and waterways, because this Great Mountain River Palm had originally been created by the Palace clan's ancestors after contemplating Great Xia's mountains and rivers.

And as rulers of Great Xia, when members of the Palace clan cultivated this Marquis-grade art and unleashed it within Great Xia's borders, they could obtain a certain special augmentation that amplified its might.

At this moment, the power of the Regent's palm was even more vast and domineering than when he had fought Qin Zhenjiang earlier.

Mountain ranges and rivers as solid as reality manifested in the void, like a painting of ten thousand li of rivers and mountains. That grand, sweeping momentum radiated outward, causing the many Marquis-level powerhouses present to feel an extremely oppressive pressure.

Compared with that grand momentum like a ten-thousand-li landscape painting, that grayish streak of blade-light cleaving down appeared extraordinarily unremarkable—yet the two collided just like that.

Ssshk!

At the moment of contact, a piercing tearing sound seemed to ring out.

The eyes of the many powerhouses in the spectator stands suddenly widened, because they saw that the continuous mountain ranges standing in the void were at this moment being torn apart with the greatest of ease by that grayish streak of blade-light. The Regent's full-power palm had failed to obstruct it in the slightest.

Like a knife through tofu.

The blade-light shredded everything before it with irresistible force.

A few breaths later, it reached the Regent.

The Regent was horrified. With a slap of his palm, a golden crown seemed to flash into being above his head. The crown was tower-shaped, with five tiers in total, and on its body a purple-eyed mark flickered with strange light—clearly a Purple-Eyed treasure.

The moment the Fivefold Golden Tower Crown appeared, it radiated a curtain of golden light, shielding the Regent within it.

Hum!

The blade-light slashed down, landing on the golden light curtain.

This time, the blade-light finally failed to break through. The two stalemated, the void trembling violently. After a dozen or so breaths, the blade-light finally began to dim and dissipate—but as it did, a crack suddenly appeared on the golden crown.

The entire arena fell deathly silent.

Everyone stared at the scene dumbfounded, as if they had seen a ghost.

No one had expected that Li Luo's seemingly casual slash would force the Regent—a powerhouse at the Fifth Rank Marquis—to such a wretched state, not only unleashing his strongest phase art but also sacrificing a defensive Purple-Eyed treasure!

What on earth was going on?!

Stunned gazes slowly shifted, turning toward Li Luo in the spectator stands.

Even the usually composed and calm Eldest Princess was shaken by the scene before her. For a moment her phoenix eyes stared somewhat blankly at the youth standing with his blade, her heart and spirit trembling violently.

Who could have imagined that at the moment she was about to give up, it was Li Luo who stepped forward!

This fellow always brought her too many surprises and miracles.

Vice Principal Suxin, Yu Yu Hongxi, Zhu Zhu Qinghuo, and the leaders of the various factions were also staring at Li Luo with uncertainty and suspicion. That power within him was clearly abnormal—it absolutely did not come from Li Luo himself.

"Do I now have the qualifications to disagree?"

Under the gaze of the entire arena, Li Luo stood supporting himself on his blade. He slightly raised his head, his gaze indifferent as he watched the Regent, and said in a deep voice: "Just now, I suddenly had an epiphany. My strength advanced by leaps and bounds, leaping straight to the Eighth Rank Marquis realm."

Countless people's mouths twitched. Could you at least come up with a halfway believable excuse?

The Regent's gaze fixed darkly on Li Luo. Of course he didn't believe a single word of this so-called epiphany. The power contained within that slash just now had a special force that surpassed the Marquis Realm level—otherwise it wouldn't have broken through his Great Mountain River Palm so easily.

The Regent's gaze shifted, then stopped on the Jin Yu Zhu Xuan Xiang Blade gripped in Li Luo's hand.

He seemed to have thought of something, and a shadow immediately rose in his heart. In all of Great Xia, there was only one person capable of wielding that kind of power that surpassed the Marquis Realm—and that was Pang Pang Qianyuan!

Although Pang Pang Qianyuan could not appear in Great Xia due to the incident deep within the Dark Cave, if he relied on certain mediums, his power was not entirely unable to be projected across.

For example, the Jin Yu Zhu Xuan Xiang Blade in Li Luo's hand!

That had originally been Pang Pang Qianyuan's personal blade. It was perfectly normal for him to have left certain contingencies within it. This was also the main reason the Regent had previously ordered Gong Shénjun to find a way to obtain this blade.

And now it seemed the Regent's earlier guess had indeed come true.

"Principal Pang, this is a matter of our Palace clan. Are you truly determined to meddle?" the Regent said in a low, measured voice.

"Principal Pang?"

The many powerhouses were shocked. The terrifying power that had suddenly surged within Li Luo—was it actually from that Principal Pang?!

On the side of the Saintly Mystic Star Academy, the Purple-Glint mentors were also stunned. Only Vice Principal Suxin, her jade-like countenance calm, said: "No wonder it felt somewhat familiar. So it was the Principal who made a move. However, he did not appear in person; instead, he used the Jin Yu Zhu Xuan Xiang Blade as a medium to transmit his power to Li Luo. He intends to borrow Li Luo's hand to help the Princess turn the tide."

"The Principal is in a special place like the Dark Cave, yet he can still project his power out?" Cao Sheng found it somewhat inconceivable. He had been to the depths of the Dark Cave, so he understood very well just how dangerous it was. Although the Principal was a King-level powerhouse and had used the Jin Yu Zhu Xuan Xiang Blade as a medium, accomplishing this still seemed far from easy. "The Principal must have other arrangements. Perhaps from the very beginning, he foresaw today's situation," Vice Principal Suxin said.

"Since the Principal has stepped forward, Gong Yuan's scheme today probably won't be so easy to succeed," Cao Sheng said with a sigh of relief.

The other mentors all nodded. Although the Principal had not appeared in person, by borrowing Li Luo's hand he had already made his stance clear. The backing of a King-level powerhouse still carried tremendous deterrent weight.

"I was wondering why this kid suddenly became so reckless. So he has ties with that Principal Pang," Yu Yu Hongxi of the Gold Dragon Treasure House said, her red lips curving slightly.

Lv Qing'er also quietly let out a sigh of relief, gently patting her chest.

Beside her, Vice President Ning Kuo's expression stiffened somewhat as he said: "That Principal Pang actually really did make a move. This is somewhat at odds with the Saintly Mystic Star Academy's stance of neutrality."

"Then by all means step forward and have a word with him," Yu Yu Hongxi said with a faint smile.

Vice President Ning Kuo gave an awkward dry laugh. Reason things out with a King-level powerhouse? One punch from him and he'd teach you what survival of the fittest really meant.

Amid the many shocked gazes, Li Luo also smiled. He showed no embarrassment at being exposed. Gripping the Zhu Xuan Xiang Blade, he said: "The Regent truly has the eyes of a hawk. Actually, I'm just here to pass along a message from Principal Pang. The old gentleman says that the Little King is, after all, the legitimate heir. If the Regent wishes to seize the throne, it remains a matter of lacking proper justification."

"As for the matter of that Guardian Grand Array, Dean Pang said there's no need for you to be overly fixated on it. Back then, the late King had once asked him to study this array, hoping that future members of the royal Palace clan—even if they were women—would also be qualified to inherit it. And Dean Pang said his research has already yielded some leads, so even if the future young King is a woman, she will still be able to wield the Guardian Grand Array."

"So, Regent, let today's matter be put to rest here."

The square was utterly silent. Only Li Luo's faint voice rang out, and this seemingly calm voice struck everyone's ears like a thunderclap, making their hearts pound with dread.

Of course, what frightened them was not Li Luo himself, but the one standing behind Li Luo's words.

That Dean Pang had ultimately expressed his support for the young King.

The Regent's eyes, dark and murky, fixed on Li Luo—or rather, on the one standing behind him. Things had already been pushed to this point—did the other party truly think a single sentence could suppress everything entirely?

What utter arrogance.

Do you really think you are the very sky over Great Xia?

"Dean Pang, you disappoint me greatly," the Regent said slowly, a nameless emotion welling up within his low voice.

The hearts of the many present gave a jolt—the Regent actually dared speak to that King-level strongman in such a manner? Was he planning to tear all pretense away completely? Was he not afraid of Dean Pang emerging from the Dark Cave in the future?

Li Luo also furrowed his brow slightly, staring at the Regent. Had this fellow gone mad?

"After all, you are not descending here in your true form right now. Even if you can channel your power through this blade as a medium to Li Luo, how long can it last?"

The Regent stared at Li Luo indifferently, yet his gaze gradually turned cold and sinister.

"Moreover, do you truly think I am powerless against you?"

In the Regent's sleeve, a black bell appeared between his fingers. Then he flicked it, and the bell swayed, sending an invisible sound silently spreading through the void at this moment.