Ming was now utterly enraged, like a wild beast gone berserk. He didn't hold back anymore. Arcs of lightning began crackling across his body as he gripped his blade with both hands and swung it down with full force, like thunder splitting the sky.
Seven Thunder Slash!
It was Ming's strongest attack.
"Mountain-Crushing Strike!"
Zihua still used the most powerful move from his basic Mountain-Splitting Sword Technique. In terms of technique alone, it didn't even come close to Ming's Seven Thunder Slash.
But at the very moment he swung his sword, a thread of bloodline power—guided by Zihua—instantly fused with his spiritual energy.
BOOM!!
A massive explosion roared out as shockwaves swept across the arena.
Ming had been convinced his ultimate move would crush Zihua. But the moment their weapons collided, he felt a horrifying force surging through the clash—like an ancient, savage beast barreling straight toward him.
"Puh!"
Blood sprayed from his mouth as the impact sent his blade flying and launched his body like a cannonball. He slammed into the ground with a heavy crash.
"Ninth level... That's ninth-level power!" That was the last thought in Ming's mind before everything went black.
The arena fell into stunned silence.
Everyone stared in disbelief at Zihua—and at Ming, who now lay on the ground, unconscious and seriously injured.
It was clear that Ming had gone all-out. He'd used his strongest technique, and he still lost.
What's more, he'd been defeated head-on, not tricked or caught off guard—just plain overpowered by one strike from Zihua.
"How is this possible?"
Nobody could understand it. Zihua had only just reached the eighth level of the True Martial Realm. How could he overpower Ming, who had long since reached the peak of the same level? Especially in a direct confrontation?
And Zihua's sword technique was clearly inferior to Ming's.
"This kid..." Even Yun was completely baffled.
Only Zihua knew the truth behind what had just happened. And right now, even he felt thrilled by the result.
"Bloodline power... So this is what it feels like!" He clenched his fists as excitement surged through him, his eyes glowing with intensity.
"And I only guided a small portion of it—maybe twenty to thirty percent of my bloodline power. And just that one sword strike was nearly ten times stronger than normal. I seriously injured Ming with one blow!" Zihua thought to himself.
If just a partial release could do this... what would happen if he went all out?
Zihua hadn't awakened his bloodline power for very long, and his overall strength was still quite low. The portion of bloodline power he could access was minimal—just a small fraction. Only when his strength grew significantly would he be able to draw on more of it, and the effects would become even more terrifying.
"Whew..." Taking a deep breath, Zihua realized that everyone around him was staring at him. He didn't say a word—just composed himself, then turned and walked away.
From beginning to end, he didn't bother to glance at Ming again.
After all, he had never considered Ming a real opponent. The only reason he even fought him was to test the power of his own bloodline.
Meanwhile, Nan—who had brought Ming in to deal with Zihua—looked absolutely furious.
"That bastard Zihua... He actually beat Ming head-on? Looks like I'll have to wait until my big brother returns to teach him a lesson!" Nan clenched his fists tightly, glaring viciously at Zihua's retreating back.
"Just wait, Zihua. You may have a bit of talent, but you're nothing in front of my brother. When the Sword Token Tournament comes around, my brother will show the entire Bai family what true despair looks like!"
******
Night fell under a clear, moonlit sky.
"Young Master, the news of you defeating Ming has already spread throughout the family," Xuerou said excitedly. "Many Bai family members—and even some elders—have praised you. Some even said that despite wasting three years in the Anti-Demon Dungeon, your natural talent hasn't diminished much at all."
Zihua couldn't help but smile.
Defeating someone like Ming meant nothing to him. What he cared about was the family's attitude toward him.
That incident three years ago had left the entire clan resentful of him. Today's battle wouldn't erase that resentment, but at the very least, it could help shift their opinions a little more in his favor.
After all, in this world, strength earned respect.
And the fact that he had managed to defeat Ming—someone at the peak of the eighth level of the True Martial Realm—while he himself had just entered that very realm, was impressive enough to win over quite a few Bai family members.
"Ming was nothing. I didn't even know his name before today—completely irrelevant. But that Wei..." Zihua's eyes narrowed slightly.
Wei was at the peak of the tenth level of the True Martial Realm, and was considered something of a genius. His combat power was said to rival even those in the Sea Transformation Realm.
The gap between them was massive. Unless he recklessly used the Immortal-Slaying Forbidden Technique, there was no way he could be confident in defeating Wei at his current level.
To defeat—or even kill—Wei at the Sword Token Tournament, Zihua would need to reach at least the ninth level of the True Martial Realm, ideally the peak of the ninth level.
But the tournament was only half a month away. Even with the Bloodline Inheritance Technique accelerating his cultivation speed to many times that of a normal person, it was still unlikely he could reach that level in such a short time.
"If I had some high-grade pills to assist my cultivation... maybe it would be possible." Zihua muttered to himself.
The next morning, Zihua went to the Bai family's Treasure Pavilion. The pavilion was managed by one of the clan's elders.
"Young Master, I'm truly sorry," the elder said with a respectful tone. "If you needed ordinary Spirit-Energy Gathering Pills, I could spare a few. But top-grade ones... we only have a handful, and since the Sword Token Tournament is coming up, the Clan Leader has already ordered that the remaining ones be allocated elsewhere."
"So they've already been handed out?" Zihua frowned slightly but didn't seem too surprised.
Ever since the decline of the Bai family, the resources they had at their disposal could no longer compare to what they once had three years ago.
Take the top-grade Spirit-Energy Gathering Pills, for example—back when the Bai family was at its peak, they could easily acquire quite a few every year. But now, they were lucky to get a dozen or so in an entire year.
And with the Sword Token Tournament approaching, the Bai family's upper ranks—including Zihua's father—were placing immense importance on it. Those precious pills had already been distributed to the most powerful members within the family, the ones with the best shot at competing against Wei. The goal was to help them raise their cultivation levels as much as possible before the tournament.
As for Zihua... no one really believed a guy who had just been released from the Anti-Demon Dungeon could possibly represent the Bai family in a fight against someone like Wei.
Sure, he had defeated Ming the day before, but Ming was only at the peak of the eighth level of the True Martial Realm. While the clan did acknowledge Zihua's impressive talent and strength, no one seriously thought he posed a real threat to Wei.
"If the clan has no top-grade Spirit-Energy Gathering Pills... then I've got no choice but to go there." Murmuring to himself, Zihua soon left the family estate alone.