C11 True Origin Talisman

Witnessing the notch on his own scimitar and the pristine condition of the Cyan Astral Sword, Fang Xing of the Spirit Stealing faction nearly ground his teeth to dust.

Weapons wielded by practitioners at the Genuine Force Stage are collectively known as sharp weapons, ranging from grades one to nine.

Grade one is the lowest, while grade nine is the highest.

Chu Yan wielded a sixth-grade Cyan Astral Sword, whereas Soul Stealing's curved blade was merely fourth-grade.

Had Chu Yan's strength been significantly inferior to Soul Stealing's, resulting in his immediate demise, the disparity in weapon grades would have been inconsequential.

However, Chu Yan was only slightly outmatched. After their clash, it was natural for the superior sixth-grade sword to inflict some damage on the inferior fourth-grade scimitar.

"Damn it!" Soul Stealing's eyes seethed with barely concealed murderous intent. "Chu Yan, I had no idea you'd concealed your power so deeply. You've clearly regained your strength, yet no one was the wiser. But that ends now. Even if you've recovered well, you're still just at the second level of the Genuine Force Stage! I'm about to show you the vast gulf between the second and fourth levels!"

"Second level of the Genuine Force Stage?" Chu Yan looked at Soul Stealing with a cold sneer. Suddenly, he let out a thunderous roar, and the air around them surged violently. "And now?"

As his words fell, Chu Yan launched an offensive.

In an instant, his sword's energy crackled like lightning, transforming into a fierce streak of light that lunged straight for Soul Stealing.

"Third level of Genuine Force? Impossible!" Soul Stealing's eyes darted frantically, filled with shock and rage.

A single thought dominated his mind: Advancing during combat?

But he had no time to ponder further as the pressure Chu Yan exerted was overwhelming, rivaling that of a fourth-level Genuine Force Stage practitioner.

Before the emergence of the Spirit Absorbing and Soul Seizing techniques, Chu Yan had already ascended to the pinnacle of the second level of the Genuine Force Stage. His recent skirmish had ignited a fierce battle spirit within him.

And so, the barrier to the third level of the True Martial Realm, as thin as rice paper, was effortlessly pierced.

The instant Chu Yan returned to the third level of the True Martial Realm, a long-lost power surged through his entire being.

His speed increased, his strength amplified, and his vitality surged with newfound vigor!

Soul Stealer narrowly dodged the oncoming blade of light. In the next breath, the Cyan Astral Sword arced through the air, striking down with the ferocity of thunder and lightning.

The crushing pressure that followed momentarily seized Soul Stealer's breath.

He hastily lifted his scimitar overhead.

Crack!

The tip of the Cyan Astral Sword struck the notch in the scimitar, and within a split second, it cleaved deeper, turning a tiny nick into a gaping fissure, threatening to split the blade in two.

"Damn you!" Soul Stealer cursed, both shocked and enraged. His muscles roared like the dragging of steel plates as he flexed his arms, twisting the scimitar into a coil around the Cyan Astral Sword and flinging it into the distance.

Watching Chu Yan's sword fly from his grasp, Soul Stealer sneered triumphantly, "Without your sixth-grade weapon, what will you fight me with now? Death-Dealing Fist!"

His deadly technique was not limited to the scimitar. In that moment, his fists converged, unleashing a punch of extreme ferocity that could shatter boulders and penetrate steel.

Chu Yan, far from alarmed at his opponent's discarding of his weapon, was actually elated. Now restored to the third level of the True Martial Realm, he could execute more complex maneuvers.

He shifted his stance, evading the incoming punch. His arm snaked like a dragon, climbing along the other's limb, and with a sudden movement, the air vibrated with the echoes of a dragon's roar and a tiger's growl. His fingers reached out, aiming for his opponent's head.

"Not good!" Soul Stealer realized with a start.

He had assumed Chu Yan's advantage lay solely in the sixth-grade Cyan Astral Sword, but now he recognized his own naivety.

Chu Yan's martial prowess was evidently far superior to his swordsmanship.

Despite the Soul Seizing realm being superior to Chu Yan's, he was not without his own cunning. As Soul Stealing's fingers nearly clasped Chu Yan's head, his body twisted violently, his arm inexplicably thickening mid-air, jolting Chu Yan's arm several inches away. In a split second, Chu Yan's fingers pierced into Soul Stealing's arm and yanked fiercely. A tearing sound echoed as Chu Yan was repelled, leaving Soul Stealing with a gaping wound on his arm, bone visible through the torn flesh, blood spurting wildly as if it were free.

The excruciating pain twisted Soul Stealing's features into a mask of venomous hatred, panic, and bewilderment as he glared at Li He Xing. "The Crown Prince assured me Chu Yan was utterly drained of his power. How is it that this man has not only retained his strength but seems even more formidable than before? What's happening?" In agony, Soul Stealing's body tensed, drenched in sweat.

Frantically, he retrieved a porcelain vial and dusted the wound with white hemostatic powder. But the relentless bleeding washed the powder away as soon as it settled, creating a harrowing sight.

Chu Yan, observing his opponent's disarray, felt a surge of confidence that his earlier conjecture was correct. "The training in the Return to the Ruins Tower was indeed worthwhile. I've only just regained the third level of Genuine Force, yet I'm already capable of contending with a fourth-level practitioner. Such a feat was once unthinkable!" he mused.

"Chu Yan, I swear, if I don't kill you today, I'll no longer be human!" In that moment, Soul Stealing unleashed a guttural roar and produced a cyan Glyph. The talisman was inscribed with intricate, winding patterns. Though it was merely a sliver of paper, it exuded a formidable presence, as if a massive stone weighed upon the heart.

Upon seeing the talisman, Chu Yan felt a sudden sinking in his heart.

He had encountered similar talismans in the past.

"To think that I would have to resort to a True Essence Talisman to take you down today. It's infuriating!" Soul Stealer was drenched in blood, his face ghostly pale from excessive blood loss, which only added to his ghastly appearance.

"This True Essence Talisman was a reward for my great deeds, a gift from the Crown Prince himself. Once unleashed, its power rivals that of a full-force strike from a Pulse Condensation Period Cultivator. Let's see how you manage to escape this time!" Soul Stealer roared with rage as he pressed the talisman into the wound on his arm.

In an instant, the talisman absorbed the blood and emitted a faint green glow.

The dim light carried the ominous sensation of rocks shattering and skyscrapers tumbling down, making the air around feel oppressively heavy.

Soul Stealer's gaze upon Chu Yan was filled with venomous resentment.

Given his current state, he couldn't activate the True Essence Talisman through ordinary means; it required the sacrifice of his own blood and the shortening of his lifespan.

Activating this talisman would cost Soul Stealer at least twenty years of his life, leaving him with a chronic ailment that would never fully heal.

With such a grievous price paid, his hatred for Chu Yan ran deep to the core.

"Not good!" Chu Yan, witnessing the talisman's green glow, didn't hesitate and charged at Soul Stealer.

If the talisman were to be fully activated, the consequences would be catastrophic. He had to intervene.

But as he lunged forward, Chu Yan caught a glimpse of a malicious grin on Soul Stealer's face.

Before the talisman could take effect, Soul Stealer spat something out.

A long, poisoned nail, like a predatory snake, shot from his mouth, aiming straight for the distant Xiao Pei.