Chapter 892: The Lesser Marquis Art

When Li Luo and Deng Deng Fengxian stood in the square before the Sha Demon Cave, tens of thousands of flag members from the four banners stood divided around them, countless deafening roars erupting—mostly from the Qingming Banner and Jin Guang Banner, each side cheering wildly for their own grand banner chief.

For they knew well that this duel would decide who truly led the Four Banners of Longya Pulse in the future.

The victor, under certain conditions, held the right to command all four banners, and the other three grand banner chiefs were bound to obey.

The members of the other two banners mostly watched with idle curiosity, their gazes complex and wistful as they looked at Li Luo, standing tall in the arena—half a year ago, if anyone had told them this third young master, just returned from Outer Shenzhou, would become a serious contender for leadership of the Four Banners, they would have laughed outright.

Back then, Li Luo was merely at the Sha Gong Realm; that level, among the four banners, couldn't even compare to some elite flag members.

Yet who could have imagined that this third young master, with nothing but his Sha Gong Realm strength, had charged through the past half-year, seized the position of Qingming Banner's grand chief, and even claimed the Golden Dragon Pillar in the "Dragon Pool Struggle," stunning everyone present.

Now, he intended to use his own strength to challenge Deng Deng Fengxian—the long-reigning veteran grand banner chief who had dominated the Four Banners of Longya Pulse—for the title of supreme leader.

Such rapid advancement caused all to shed their former disdain for Li Luo; though raised since childhood in the remote Outer Shenzhou, his talent clearly rivaled any prodigy from Inner Shenzhou.

Truly worthy of being the son of that third elder.

At the sidelines, Li Li Fengyi and Li Jintao stood side by side, watching the arena.

"Deng Deng Fengxian recently exchanged for many alchemical materials to refine Sha Gang; he's nearly exhausted this year's contributions—I suspect his Sha Gang has reached ninety zhang." Li Li Fengyi furrowed her brows, her eyes fixed on Deng Deng Fengxian, faintly sensing a sharpness emanating from his body.

Ninety zhang of Sha Gang was top-tier even among Ji Sha Realm cultivators; previously, among the twenty banners, only a handful like Li Li Qingfeng and Lu Lu Qingmei had reached it.

Generally, once Sha Gang reached ninety zhang, one was qualified to attempt the Tian Zhu Jing.

Li Jintao chuckled: "Third brother may lag in rank, but every step he's taken is solid and stable. His 'Three Light Glass'—even Li Li Qingfeng never mastered it."

"Three Light Glass may be powerful, but with such a rank gap, it may not withstand Deng Deng Fengxian's 'Golden Armor Spirit Knife,'" Li Li Fengyi said, uneasy.

After all, Deng Deng Fengxian was no pushover; Li Li Fengyi had clashed with him many times before and always been suppressed. Though she resented it, deep down she acknowledged his strength.

Unlike them, Deng Deng Fengxian rose step by step from within the Jin Guang Banner; his battle record was equally brilliant.

Had it not been for Li Luo's startling emergence as a dark horse this past half-year, the position of supreme leader of the Four Banners of Longya Pulse would have firmly belonged to Deng Deng Fengxian.

"I told you to fight Deng Deng Fengxian first—your Turtle Shell Technique would've countered his 'Golden Armor Spirit Knife' well," Li Li Fengyi complained.

Li Jintao scratched his head and smiled: "I think third brother won't want to win the Four Banners' leadership this way—it wouldn't truly subdue their hearts."

"Men and their pride," Li Li Fengyi snorted, but ultimately said no more on the matter.

As they spoke, two powerful streams of Xiang Li erupted like storms in the arena, causing the air to roar.

Around Deng Deng Fengxian, golden Xiang Li swirled; behind him, a colossal phantom beast vaguely emerged—a beast with dragon claws, most strikingly marked by a golden horn glowing with strange light on its forehead.

Upper Eighth Rank, Golden Horn Dragon Beast Xiang.

The Golden Horn Dragon Beast was a dragon-type; Deng Deng Fengxian's original Xiang was Lower Eighth Rank, but after years of refinement with Spirit Water and Miracle Light, it evolved into Upper Eighth Rank.

This Xiang, paired with his 'Golden Armor Spirit Knife,' was the most piercing and formidable.

Waves of powerful Xiang Li radiated from Deng Deng Fengxian, filling the crowd beyond the square with overwhelming pressure.

"Grand Banner Chief Li Luo, if we were equal in rank, I'd likely lose to you—so don't blame me for overpowering you with rank," Deng Deng Fengxian said calmly.

Higher realm meant stronger Xiang Li—that was the core of Xiang Li suppression.

Li Luo smiled: "Being higher in rank than your opponent? That's also your own ability."

Though Li Luo was only at the Sha Ti Realm, he possessed three Xiang Palaces; with stacked Xiang Li and the evolution of dual Xiang forces, his Xiang Li intensity even surpassed ordinary Ji Sha Realm cultivators—so to him, Deng Deng Fengxian's Xiang Li suppression was largely ineffective.

Deng Deng Fengxian nodded slightly, fixed his gaze on Li Luo, raised his hand—and brilliant golden Xiang Li gathered rapidly, forming the faint shape of a golden dagger.

Boundless sharpness surged forth; the nearby space visibly bore cuts and slashes.

Everyone's eyes sharpened—clearly, Deng Deng Fengxian had no intention of prolonging the match; his first move was his ultimate technique.

The Lesser Marquis Art: Golden Armor Spirit Knife. Li Luo stared at the forming golden spirit blade, his expression growing serious—this blade, if caught off-guard, could pierce through his flesh.

But he certainly wouldn't give his opponent that chance.

At that moment, Li Luo's Xiang Li surged rapidly through his body; his fingertips swiftly formed seals, unleashing a dual Xiang force forged from Water Xiang and Lei Xiang.

Boom—

Xiang Li shot skyward, instantly interacting with heavenly energy to form a dark cloud; countless raindrops howled down, while lightning flickered within the clouds—each raindrop shimmered with faint streaks of Lei Guang.

The Lesser Marquis Art: Lei Yu Technique.

This Xiang technique was what Li Luo had cultivated during this period using the "Sudden Enlightenment Heart" state.

The Lei Yu covered the entire square; a flag member curiously reached out to catch a drop—immediately, his palm stung and went numb, and the raindrop felt unnaturally heavy upon contact.

"Is this a Lesser Marquis Art? Seems a bit weak?"

"This technique is peculiar—it appears to slow and control the battlefield. Grand Banner Chief Li Luo is clever; everyone knows Grand Banner Chief Deng Deng Fengxian's 'Golden Armor Spirit Knife' moves like lightning, striking with terrifying speed—under this Lei Yu, its velocity is reduced, its piercing force weakened."

"..."

Deng Deng Fengxian's golden Xiang Li swirled around him, forming a luminous shield that blocked all the falling Lei Yu. He glanced sharply, murmuring: "A 'Lesser Marquis Art'?"

But if his 'Golden Armor Spirit Knife' could be so easily countered, he'd be vastly underestimated.

Thus, Li Luo must have other preparations.

But it didn't matter.

Deng Deng Fengxian raised his palm; the golden spirit blade fully formed. He remained expressionless, then flicked his finger.

Zzzz—

A clear hum rang out; the next instant, everyone saw a streak of golden light tear through the rain curtain—countless Lei Guang-infused raindrops shattered into powder under the blade's overwhelming sharpness.

The golden light swept past, as if carving a golden scar across the heavens.

Faster than words could describe.

Li Luo formed a single hand seal; lightning flickered across his body, then his figure vanished in a flash—accompanied by faint thunderclaps, leaving afterimages.

The Lesser Marquis Art: Lei Guang Zong.

A movement technique using dual Xiang force from Lei Xiang and Ming Guang Xiang—faster by more than a notch than Li Luo's previous "Lightning Flash Technique."

His speed drew gasps from the crowd; even Li Li Fengyi and Li Jintao at the sidelines reacted with surprise.

"I've never seen my little brother use these techniques before," Li Li Fengyi murmured.

Though Lesser Marquis Arts aren't true Marquis Arts, they're far harder to master than Dragon General Arts—yet in this brief moment, Li Luo has already unleashed two of them—this is truly strange.

Li Li Jingtao smiled and said, "I heard from Father that over this past month, Third Brother has been training under the Old Master; perhaps this is one of the gains from it."

"However, only a Three-Phase cultivator like Third Brother, who has cultivated the power of dual Phases to the Third Realm, is suitable for this kind of training. If a normal person were to do it, such mixed cultivation would be worse than focusing all effort to perfect a single Lesser Marquis Art, breaking many methods with one technique."

Li Li Fengyi nodded slightly; these words were indeed correct. Li Luo's flashy methods suited only him. Yet the two Lesser Marquis Arts Li Luo had just revealed contained the Phase attributes of Water, Thunder, and Light, which seemed slightly different from the three Phases he had displayed before. Could it be that he had used some medium object to cast them?

While they spoke, Li Luo's figure retreated violently, putting as much distance as possible between himself and that golden spiritual blade. Beneath the curtain of rain filling the sky, his expression remained extremely calm.

At the same time, the other Lesser Marquis Art he had been brewing in his hand was also unleashed.

It seemed as though a jade-green light point flew from Li Luo's hand and fell to the ground. In the next instant, the earth shook violently; a massive tree was seen rising from the ground, its countless thick branches intertwining with one another.

After a few breaths, a green tree dragon took shape, letting out a low roar. Then, carrying a shocking momentum and immense Phase power, it struck down heavily with one claw toward that golden spiritual blade breaking through the air.

It slammed down with great force.

Lesser Marquis Art: Green Dragon Tree.