Chapter 1165: Peak Showdown

Proofreader: Papatonks

Hu~

An oppressive silence fell, with only the howling wind’s presence being known as it fluttered the old man’s white hair. There were no shouts, no clashes, on the square. Even Danqing Shen’s group of three stopped.

All eyes were on the old man, built like a god, with sharp eyes and a deadly aura.

It only took one moment for the Dharma Kings and two emissaries to be on the ground, wounded.

[Behold the power of the Invincible Sword! He’s the living proof that the Sword Star Empire shall never fall!]

All of the empire’s soldiers were filled with worship and respect. While everyone else saw him as a monster. Ling Yuntian felt regret.

[I must’ve lost my mind to spare this insane freak back then!]

Regret always came after.

“Ha-ha-ha…”

Baili Jingwei cackled, stepping forward as he turned smug, “Steward Zhuo, you lose. The Patriarch hasn’t been seen for the last century, but he’s still alive. As long as he is present, the empire will stand forever. You’ll be the one to do the dying today, along with all those traitors going down with you. Your hundred year plan is wasted!”

Roar~!

The soldiers roared in approval and excitement. The empire’s strongest symbol was their god, the Invincible Sword. The Sword Kings could fall, but never him!

Bali Yuyu turned a worried look to Zhuo Fan, her fists clenched.

She didn’t know how he got away from Patriarch last time, but now his seven experts were on the ground. How was he going to cope with the old man?

Ignoring the crowd’s confusion, worry and joy, Zhuo Fan made a move.

He took his time walking towards the Invincible Sword.

“Prime Minister Baili, I thought I told you, my plan was layed out to control the speed of your actions. And why, you’d ask? Ha-ha, so I could get ready and enter the final battle.”

Zhuo Fan showed a smirk, his hand flashing black as a dark blade came out, covered in four colors at the edge, before shooting for Baili Yutian.

“Keep them safe!”

“Right!”

Danqing Shen’s group gave their all in keeping the convicts alive.

Ding!

For the first time, Baili Yutian took out his thundering divine sword as he turned into a purple glow charging at Zhuo Fan.

Black and purple intersected, with the two sword soon clashing in a violent display. 

Boom!

The shock wave shuddered the earth and rippled the sky, followed by a fierce gale and duststorm.

Baili Jingwei and the emperor ducked at once, sticking their heads to the ground, and letting the deadly winds pass over their backs, but they still felt pain. As for the soldiers, they exploded in a shower of blood and gore, adding a dark red tint to the already bloody spectacle.

More than a hundred thousand lost their lives just then, reduced to gunk on the ground, never knowing what hit them.

The shock wave went for a thousand miles, laying the imperial capital to ruin.

Baili Jingwei finally looked up after it passed, only to see rubble and dust replacing the lavish imperial capital. The other lucky survivors looked around shellshocked.

[Mommy, what power was that? It leveled imperial capital!]

Everyone that lived were shaking in fear and alarm. Only Baili Jingwei laughed, “See that? This is the power of the Patriarch. Zhuo Fan, you’re nothing but a conniving ant before him!” 

The terrified soldiers perked up at the prospects.

[This is the Patriarch’s divine might. One sword is enough to send all enemies to hell. We won!]

Bali Yuyu crawled to her feet, hearing Bali Yuyun’s cackle and shook. Her heart was a mess, in frantic worry as she looked around. 

[Where’s the punk? He couldn’t be dead. But with Patriarch’s power…]

Bali Yuyu grew restless.

“Prime Minister Baili, you’re getting ahead of yourself.”

Baili Jingwei froze, peering through the settling dust at the scaffold and the safe convicts.

Only the three protectors looked a bit pale and coughed blood.

Zhuo Fan had them take the aftermath, but it also left them wounded.

Danqing Shen sighed, “Such is the Invincible Sword’s power, able to give us heavy wounds without trying. Taking on that strike would’ve annihilated us for sure. The old man is a terrifying monster.”

“Yeah.” The other two agreed.

Baili Jingwei snickered, “Obviously, since none can withstand the Patriarch’s godly might. Did you think Zhuo Fan can take his strike? Ha, what a sick joke!”

“Not just take it, but win.”

Danqing Shen wiped his mouth of blood, showing a wide smile, “Prime Minister Baili, didn’t you find it strange how having fallen in with the empire for a hundred years we betrayed our homelands and struck at our own people, letting the whole world scorn us yet turned our back on the empire at the very end?”

Baili Jingwei stared at him hard.

Danqing Shen grinned and shouted, “Because we saw hope in defeating the strongest. That is Zhuo Fan!”

The other two nodded, showing conviction.

Baili Jingwei grimaced, whipping his head to turn to the fight.

Hu~

A wind blew the dust away and revealed two men with divine swords grinding on each other.

Baili Yutian held the Sundering Sword in his aged, but strong hands, looking excited. Zhuo Fan, in white, grinned as he met him with the black demonic sword, shining eerily. The black and white complemented each other to bring about new, deep contrasts. The sword screeched as they grounded, sending off sparks.

The two were matched.

“Impossible! He blocked the Patriarch’s strike?”

Baili Jingwei cried out, looking out of it, shaking his head to break away from reality, “No, no one can take the Patriarch’s strike, no one…”

Everyone was just as shocked, even the Sword Kings and the soldiers. Only Danqing Shen’d group grinned.

[We knew the brat will be the end of the Invincible Sword. I felt it the moment we fought.]

[The empire will fall at his hands.]

“Zhuo Fan, finish him, and be the peak of the world!”

Zhuo Fan’s ears twitched at the shout, but his mouth widened.

[That’s a given.]

Sss~

The Qilin arm flared scarlet as Zhuo Fan worked his magic and the swords began to shift. The black sword used overwhelming power to push the purple one back. The Invincible Sword gripped the Sundering Sword as he staggered back one step at a time, the veins on his hands throbbing with strain, yet still unable to match the pressure.

He grit his teeth, landing his sharp eyes on Zhuo Fan, filled with battlelust. 

[Ten thousand years, that’s how long I waited for a worthy opponent. This fight, this peak battle is where I belong.]

“Ha-ha-ha…”

Baili Yutian laughed with joy, “Zhuo Fan!”