Chapter 780: The Third Realm

Boom!

In midair, a coiling black dragon rode forth on nether water, its dragon cry echoing through the mountains and forests. This dragon cry seemed different from when Li Luo had unleashed it before; it was suffused with a peculiar spiritual quality.

That black dragon, at this moment, seemed to possess vitality.

The black dragon swung out its dragon claws, the light directly tearing apart the void. Black water coiled around them, as if forming layer upon layer of whirlpools. The black water brimmed with an extremely domineering corrosive force, and wherever it passed, even the energy of heaven and earth was melted away.

And the massive Sea-Splitting Mysterious Light ahead collided, at this moment, with the black water flowing between the black dragon's claw-light.

At the instant of collision, the void there seemed to twist, and then a terrifying energy shockwave ravaged outward.

However, this time, the Sea-Splitting Mysterious Light, which had previously gained the upper hand with overwhelming force, did not display its might again. Instead, beneath the black dragon's claws, it began to tremble.

Black water surged forth endlessly, corroding and shaking the mysterious light.

The banner members on both sides noticed this situation, and their expressions immediately shifted.

On the side of the Fifth Unit of the Qingming Banner, all faces showed bewilderment. Clearly, they were equally baffled by this scene. After all, the gap in strength between the two sides was far too great; from the very start, they had braced themselves to be crushed. Yet who could have imagined that in the blink of an eye, they had actually managed to hold their ground against Lu Lu Qingmei's astonishing attack.

And from the looks of it, this time, they even held a slight upper hand.

Zhao Zhao Yanzhi, Li Shi, and Mu Bi exchanged glances, all feeling it was somewhat inconceivable. It wasn't that they had never seen Li Luo use this "Marquis-rank Art" of his before, but this time, the water-riding black dragon was clearly a little different.

Could it be that during this period, Li Luo had once again improved this "Marquis-rank Art" he cultivated?

"A Marquis-rank Art cultivated to the Da Cheng Jing?"

At the same time, Lu Lu Qingmei's slender willow brows also furrowed slightly. Given the opponent's overall strength, even if he had unleashed a Marquis-rank Art, it shouldn't have been enough to overpower her "Sea-Splitting Mysterious Light"—unless Li Luo had cultivated this Marquis-rank Art to the Da Cheng Zhi Jing.

If that were truly the case, then this Li Luo's talent in physiqi arts was simply too terrifying. Marquis-rank Arts, for geniuses like them, they had naturally all cultivated them before, but whether it was her or Li Li Qingfeng of the Golden Blood Banner, the Marquis-rank Arts they all cultivated were only at the Xiao Cheng Jing Zhong Jie.

Lu Lu Qingmei's gaze flickered slightly, and a hint of interest rose in her eyes.

This Li Luo, if one day he were to step into the Fiendish Body realm, would be an opponent capable of stirring up some fighting spirit in her.

While she was thinking this, the clash in midair had already produced a result. The Sea-Splitting Mysterious Light was entirely dissolved by the black water, and the black dragon, radiating a powerful pressure, roared once more, transforming straight into a black streak of light, charging toward the First Unit of the Sacred Scale Banner.

In this clash, Li Luo launched his first counterattack.

The black dragon swept across the sky, trailing shadows and the chilling sound of water, charging directly toward Lu Lu Qingmei, who was positioned above the First Unit of the Sacred Scale Banner.

Lu Lu Qingmei's eyes reflected the imposing black dragon, her countenance unchanged, as her slender jade hands swiftly formed seals before her.

Pfft!

The black dragon opened its maw at this moment, and dark nether water gushed forth, like a Heihe radiating an aura of extreme cold, directly engulfing Lu Lu Qingmei's slender, graceful figure.

The black nether water surged ceaselessly, while seemingly forming whirlpools in certain spots, with layer upon layer of nether water continuously dissolving a certain physiqi fluctuation within.

Li Luo's gaze fixed on that spot, and his brow furrowed slightly as well.

In his perception, there existed a fluctuation there like a boulder, emanating an indestructible aura.

Even though the nether water possessed corrosive, dissolving power, it still failed to erase that fluctuation.

The black water surged on, and after a long while, finally dispersed.

Then Li Luo saw a graceful figure within, utterly unmoved.

Lu Lu Qingmei stood tall, holding a glazed staff covered in cracks, though at this moment, a suit of battle armor had actually appeared on her delicate frame.

The battle armor seemed to be forged from dragon scales. It did not appear bulky; instead, it clung tightly to Lu Lu Qingmei's delicate frame, accentuating her slender, graceful curves.

The scales upon it seemed inscribed with extremely profound luminous patterns, which, in their interplay of light and shadow, inhaled and exhaled the energy of heaven and earth.

At this moment, Lu Lu Qingmei, holding her glazed staff and clad in dragon-scale battle armor, seemed like a female war god.

Her aura was terrifying.

Seeing this, Li Luo actually recognized it.

That was not a treasure, but a Marquis-rank Art belonging to the Dragon Scale Lineage.

Its name was the "Heavenly Dragon Scale Armor Art."

Even though Li Luo, under that earlier crisis, had gained some improvement in his comprehension of dual physiqi power, the gap in strength between the two sides, whether in terms of banner leaders or overall power, still could not be ignored.

Lu Lu Qingmei was not the Li Tong he had encountered before; she was a top-tier genius of this generation among the Five Dragon Lines. Li Luo had the Nine-Turn Dragon Breath Fiendish Refining Art, and so did she. Li Luo had the Tri-Phase, and she had the Void Ninth Grade. Li Luo had Marquis-rank Arts, and she had them as well.

Therefore, under these circumstances, for Li Luo to seek victory at this moment was clearly unrealistic.

Thus, he decisively shook his head and said with a smile, "Great Banner Leader Lu Lu Qingmei's strength is exceptional. I am willing to concede."

Although they still had some fighting strength left on their side, there was no need to truly fight to the bitter end, because that wouldn't change anything either. Besides, this wasn't a life-and-death battle, just a sparring match between banner units.

Regarding his words, the many banner members of the Fifth Unit of the Qingming Banner didn't feel any discouragement. Encountering such an opponent and being able to fight to this extent was actually already a quite stunning performance.

Didn't you see the complicated expressions on the faces of those banner members opposite? Clearly, they were also very shocked that Li Luo had forced Lu Lu Qingmei to deploy the "Heavenly Dragon Scale Armor Art."

Hearing Li Luo's words, Lu Lu Qingmei's countenance remained calm as ever. She glanced at the incense stick that still had a portion unburned and said, "Won't you hold on a little longer?"

Li Luo smiled and said, "If there's a chance in the future, I'll come to ask Great Banner Leader Lu for guidance again. In this clash, you've already given me an opportunity; it's just that my strength was insufficient, and I failed to seize it."

Then he waved his hand, and immediately this space responded. Pillars of light enveloped all the banner members of the Fifth Unit of the Qingming Banner, and then space twisted, about to send them out.

Lu Lu Qingmei watched the Fifth Unit of the Qingming Banner, who had chosen to withdraw voluntarily. She was silent for a few breaths, and then, just as Li Luo's figure was about to disappear, she suddenly raised her jade hand, and a ray of light shot toward Li Luo.

Li Luo caught it reflexively, and saw a perfectly round pill appear in his hand. He was no stranger to it—it was unmistakably a "Divine Fiend Pill."

He looked toward her with some surprise.

That incense stick hadn't finished burning; Lu Lu Qingmei seemingly had no reason to give him a "Divine Fiend Pill."

However, before he could react, his figure had already been sent out of the Fiend Demon Cave.

As the Fifth Unit of the Qingming Banner was teleported out, behind Lu Lu Qingmei, the handsome-looking youth finally stepped forward and asked with some confusion, "The incense hasn't finished burning, why give him a Divine Fiend Pill?"

Lu Lu Qingmei lowered her head slightly, her slender jade finger pointing at the dragon-scale armor on her delicate frame. The youth looked, and his gaze instantly hardened. He saw that on the dragon-scale armor, which possessed astonishing defensive power, some of the dragon scales were now beginning to take on a dim color, with cracks appearing upon them.

"If his strength were equal to mine at the Extreme Fiend realm, my 'Heavenly Dragon Scale Armor Art' shouldn't have been able to block his earlier Marquis-rank Art."

"Therefore, his strength is worth a Divine Fiend Pill."

The glazed staff in Lu Lu Qingmei's hand vanished, and her gaze lingered on the spot where Li Luo had disappeared.

"This Li Luo has the bearing of his father. I think perhaps, in the future, the position of Dragon Head among the younger generation of the Five Dragon Lines... Li Li Qingfeng may not necessarily be able to hold onto it."