Chapter 833: Invitation to Battle

On the Weeping Emperor Battlefield.

Yue Shu and Xuan Chengming fixed their eyes on the group of over a dozen Tyrants surrounding Blood Slaughter and Mo Xu. The hostility from those Tyrants was open and undisguised. Yue Shu and Xuan Chengming had already made up their minds.

Yue Shu said, "Li Pin, I'll go in first to hold them off. Once the match starts, don't worry about anything else. Just rush to the Supreme Pillar as fast as you can."

Xuan Chengming followed in a light tone, "Your movement technique is top-tier. As long as you reach the Supreme Pillar, the preliminary round will end, and so will this crisis. So... don't waste time. With that many Tyrants, the two of us can only hold out for so long."

But the tension in their fluctuating inner spirit made it clear—they had already steeled themselves.

"No need," Li Pin said. "You two move together and head straight for the Supreme Pillar. Leave the rest to me."

"With yesterday's record of wiping out the myriad races, I'm the best choice to draw their attention."

Before they could protest, his tone hardened. "I'm the lead commander. Follow my orders. That's final."

The two exchanged a glance and saw the same worry in each other's eyes.

After a long pause, Xuan Chengming said solemnly, "We'll reach the Supreme Pillar as fast as we can."

"Don't let yourselves be burdened by the Eternal Oblivion Force," Li Pin reminded them. Then he added, "That's an order too."

"Li Pin—"

The two still wanted to speak, but Li Pin cut them off with a wave of his hand.

Following Divine Emperor Yuan Jie's announcement of the start of the Ten Thousand Tribes Overlord Competition, he gave a low command, "Go."

Then he shot forward like a streak of light, heading straight for the Sky Clan's forces.

The Bloodslaughter Divine Lord, who had been worried Li Pin would dash straight for the Supreme Pillar, froze in surprise. A moment later, he shouted, "How dare you!"

This human... even after angering all the races in the Prodigy Competition, he's still charging straight in instead of running!?

But beside him, Tyrant Mo Xu's eyes flashed coldly. "Perfect."

He quickly leapt into the air to intercept Li Pin. At the same time, he sent a voice transmission to Bloodslaughter, "I'll hold him off. You get ready to unleash our strongest strike and finish him in one blow. Don't give him the slightest chance to breathe!"

"Got it!" Bloodslaughter replied, invigorated. "Watch out for his sword technique! It's infused with spacetime power!"

A Pinnacle Cosmic Radiance Divine Weapon, brimming with spatial power, appeared in Mo Xu's hand. His expression brimmed with confidence.

He said, "Don't worry! I may not have fully grasped the spatial laws to reach the Sacred Monarch Realm, but with this weapon, the Sky Clan's innate talents, and a Heart of Space to deepen my insight... I can manipulate space as well as most Sacred Monarchs. His sword technique, borrowed through external means, won't even come close to touching me—"

Before he could finish, he suddenly sensed a chilling, razor-sharp trace slicing through the void. It moved fast, far faster than he could react.

"Not good!"

He didn't have time to say a word. The spatial power within his Pinnacle Cosmic Radiance Divine Weapon surged to the limit.

But... that surge only allowed him to see the sword light piercing toward him more clearly.

The space before his eyes shattered like a bubble stabbed by a blade.

He pushed his power to the limit, unleashing spatial power on par with a Sacred Monarch, but before that sword light, it failed to show even the slightest trace of brilliance. He could only watch helplessly as it pierced straight through him.

How... how could it have no effect?

That was the only thought in Mo Xu's mind.

Li Pin hadn't even grasped spatial laws. The spatial power he had unleashed should have matched that of newly ascended Sacred Monarchs. My Cosmic Radiance Divine Weapon should have interfered with the sword's trajectory...

Yet none of it mattered. The sword strike landed precisely at a key node in his spatial power, almost as if Li Pin had known in advance how he would react and placed the sword there to bypass the ripples of spatial power spreading outward.

By the time the next wave came to restore the space, the sword had already broken through the spatial layers and run him through.

It felt... as if he had deliberately shown a weakness, cooperating with this human, allowing himself to be killed.

***

Whoosh!

Li Pin, merged with his sword, leapt forward in a flash, sweeping past the Sky Clan Tyrant.

The Tyrant behind him shattered into pieces and fell on the spot before he could come back to his senses. He became the first Tyrant to fall in the Overlord Competition.

The sudden twist left the Bloodslaughter Divine Lord, who was about to strike with a killing move, momentarily stunned.

The alien spectators watching from afar, waiting to swoop in after both sides were worn down, froze.

Even You Xu, who had just taken flight and was focused on Scorching Flame, Shimo, and Wu Jin, instinctively slowed down.

***

Aboard the human warship, White Emperor, having watched Li Pin's strike, couldn't help but praise, "Impressive!"

"How did he do it?" Heavenly Emperor Gu You's eyes gleamed with surprise. "How did he instantly see the flaw in that Sky Clan Tyrant's spatial power, then seize the perfect moment to strike a fatal blow with such precision?"

He wasn't the only one confused. The Divine Martial Emperor, Heavenly Emperor Taiyi, Heavenly Emperor Hollow, and others all wore the same puzzled expressions.

Heavenly Emperor Bi You speculated, "Could it be that Li Pin's understanding of space has already reached an extremely profound level? And the Sky Clan Tyrant's spatial power just happened to have a noticeable weakness, which Li Pin caught and used to land a killing strike?"

The Divine Martial Emperor said with astonishment, "No! To us, the Sky Clan Tyrant's spatial technique looked a bit crude, but for any Tyrant who hasn't fully mastered spatial power, it's still exceptionally skillful.

"In theory, no Tyrant would go unaffected. And Li Pin... he managed the remarkable feat of striking the exact weak spot with a single sword... This reminds me of a battle between True Spirit and non-True Spirit cultivators."

True Spirit versus non-True Spirit? Completely understanding every inner spirit change and battle intent?

Emperor Gu You's voice trembled in disbelief. "That's... impossible, right? Both are Tyrants who have already formed True Spirits.

"It can't be that Li Pin mastered some powerful inner spirit secret art that instantly breaks through the opponent's spiritual defenses, glimpses all inner spirit operations, and strikes with complete insight?"

Gu You found it hard to believe. "A single strike breaking through inner spirit defenses... is unlikely. There isn't much difference in inner spirit power between Cosmic Radiances, Tyrants, Sacred Monarchs, and Heavenly Emperors.

"Even if a Heavenly Emperor fought a Cosmic Radiance mentally, they would still rely on secret arts to slowly wear each other down, making it a prolonged battle of attrition. But..."

Ji Shun spoke up, "Almost every exceptional human prodigy usually has some extraordinary gift, what we call innate talent. I remember Mo Xuan and the others once asked Li Pin about his talent, and he said... perception. He can see flaws better than others."

"You mean... the flaws he perceives aren't limited to combat techniques or energy use, but even include inner spirit secret arts, True Spirits, spatial and temporal laws?" Divine Martial Emperor said in astonishment.

"Maybe so. Otherwise, it's hard to explain how his sword strike could be so intricate and precise," Ji Shun said.

At his words, all the Heavenly Emperors' pupils dilated sharply.

"Seeing through True Spirits and spatial powers? What an incredible gift!"

"If that's true... Li Pin may be far stronger than we imagined."

After their shock, joy quickly replaced their surprise. Perhaps Li Pin's performance in this Ten Thousand Tribes Dominion War would far exceed their expectations.

***

While the Heavenly Emperors exchanged words, Li Pin didn't pause for even a moment on the battlefield.

He bypassed the Bloodslaughter Divine Lord of the Divine Race and unleashed the Grand Oblivion Art. Seemingly unaffected by any obstruction, he chased after Long Li and You Xu, whose speed had unconsciously slowed a fraction.

His gaze... fell straight onto You Xu, who clearly wielded spatial power far beyond the other two Sky Clan members.

"A supreme prodigy of the Sky Clan who became a Sacred Monarch in just one epoch?" He gave his Ruoxi Sword a sharp flick. "Come. Let me see if you're really as strong as the rumors say."

You Xu, who had been focusing mostly on Scorching Flame, Shimo, and the Tyrant Wu Jin, lowered his head and looked down at the approaching Li Pin from above.

At the same time, he caught a glimpse of Mo Xu from the corner of his eye, already slain with a single sword strike.

Whether You Xu ever took Mo Xu seriously or knew his origins didn't matter. At this moment, Mo Xu had only one identity, a member of the Sky Clan, a comrade fighting alongside him in the Overlord Competition.

And now he was dead, killed instantly by Li Pin.

Combined with Li Pin's earlier rampage, killing three Cosmic Radiances of the Sky Clan, this was a bold act.

"Li Pin, you've got some nerve," You Xu said calmly.

Li Pin smiled slightly. "You're not the first to say that."

You Xu's voice turned colder. "But I will be the last."

Long Li started to speak. "You Xu, let me—"

Before he could finish, You Xu waved him off. "You're no match for him. Go secure your spot."

Long Li didn't argue. He immediately turned and leapt away.

Li Pin didn't stop him. His gaze stayed fixed on You Xu.

"I want to give it a try," Li Pin said.

"Very well..." You Xu replied, slowly drawing a blade.

A blade that radiated a presence sharp enough to cut through anything, even time and space itself.

This was the Reverse Void Blade. Forged from indestructible material, it was meant to become a Supreme Divine Weapon. But the refinement process had failed, so it fell just short. Still, in terms of power, it ranked among the finest of Sovereign Divine Weapons, nearly worthy of being called a Pseudo-Supreme.

By bringing out this blade, You Xu made it clear: despite what he had said, he did not take Li Pin lightly.

Just then, the Bloodslaughter Divine Lord hurried over, his tone brimming with excitement. "You Xu, let's fight together! This time, Li Pin must die—"

He was cut off by a single icy word.

"Scram."

That one word drained all color from his face.

Humiliation, fury, and killing intent surged in his eyes. But in the end, they were all swallowed by cold rationality.

He stood where he was, flanked by more than ten Tyrants, and didn't take another step forward.

The battlefield now belonged only to Li Pin, who had just swept through all the other races in the Prodigy Battlefield, and You Xu, the supreme prodigy of the Sky Clan who had become Sacred Monarch in just one epoch.