Chapter 508: A Move Hasn't Even Been Fully Displayed Yet

The Invincible Ten Directions was a legacy forged by Wu Wudi, a legendary titan within the chronicles of Feng Yun. It was divided into internal and external disciplines; the external school comprised the Ten Formidable Martial Arts—ten distinct disciplines spanning the blade, spear, sword, halberd, staff, fist, palm, leg, finger, and claw—each of which stood unmatched across the realm in its day.

The internal discipline, known as the Sacred Martial Art of the Black Tortoise, possessed a mystical and peerless efficacy, capable of transforming even a man long wasted by chronic infirmity into a peerless master capable of clashing with Duan Lang, who possessed the power of the Dragon Yuan.

When the Ten Formidable Martial Arts were unleashed in concert with the internal power of the Black Tortoise, they manifested as three ultimate maneuvers: the Advance, the Defense, and the Kill. Together, they rendered the user virtually unrivaled under heaven, a testament to the fact that Wu Wudi's terrifying might had once thoroughly defeated the challenging Lord Godless.

Wu Wudi had once carved the Advance style of the Invincible Ten Directions within the subterranean depths of the Lingyun Grotto, where it was later discovered and mastered by Nie Feng.

Meanwhile, during Emperor Wenlong’s reclusive exile within the Forest of Ten Thousand Bamboo, a twist of fate led him to strike up a deep, lifelong friendship with the Ten Martial Artist; appreciating Wenlong's rare disdain for imperial power, the master passed unto him both the internal Black Tortoise art and the defensive style of the Invincible Ten Directions.

"Do you think Old Liang has actually mastered the Invincible Ten Directions?" Song Qingfeng spoke up, breaking the silence with his speculation.

Just as Fang Qi began to reply, "After all, he might not even be able to squeeze out a single move," Alva, standing upon the martial grounds, curled his fingers in a beckoning gesture toward Liang Shi.

In the very next instant, everyone present—including Gabriel, the elders of the Frost Dragon Clan, Luo Piaoling representing the Black Dragon Clan, Theia representing the Red Dragon Clan, and the several elders bringing up the rear—witnessed an utterly unbelievable sight.

Liang Shi's lips parted slightly, and in a low, resonant murmur, he intoned: "Invincible Ten Directions!"

Almost in the blink of an eye, the crowd realized that Liang Shi's figure had vanished entirely from where he stood.

Then, a heartbeat later, a single Liang Shi seemed to split into a dense mass of overlapping phantoms, surging forth from every conceivable direction to assault Alva.

Those layered apparitions occupied every vector, dealing out strikes of the fist, palm, leg, finger, and claw, with various weapon forms seamlessly interwoven between them.

Had they been mere ordinary techniques, it would have been one thing, but what struck terror into the onlookers was that every single strike and stance was honed to absolute perfection, complementing one another in a flawless, seamless tapestry.

There was nowhere to hide, and nowhere to flee; two fists could hardly match four hands, let alone ten hands, or twenty?!

Furthermore, each blow struck with the roaring fury of wind and thunder, possessing the raw power to pierce gold and shatter stone!

Even though Alva relied on a cultivation realm that surpassed Liang Shi's by a whole major tier to bitterly hold his ground, he found his defenses completely shattered in a mere instant.

Yet the Invincible Ten Directions had only just begun to unfold; Liang Shi crooked two fingers, guiding objects with his raw inner energy, and directly summoned the blades, spears, swords, halberds, and staffs from the weapon racks bordering the martial arena.

Bolstered by this array of weaponry, the momentum of this particular style of the Invincible Ten Directions grew exponentially more terrifying.

In a flash, the various weapons seemed to come alive, imbued with a sentient, divine essence, as though monstrous, terrifying fiends were manipulating them from the shadows; blades and swords crisscrossed through the air, and before they even touched flesh, their dreadful intent had already sliced the atmosphere and the earth asunder.

Intertwined with the barrage of fists, palms, legs, fingers, and claws, such techniques appeared to be something far beyond what mortal men could ever hope to withstand!

"What kind of martial technique is this?!" They truly watched as Alva failed to execute even a single countermeasure before his entire body went flying backward like a tattered sack, his heavy armor rendered utterly useless, marred by deep, bloody rents; had this been a duel of life and death rather than a mere sparring match, he would have likely been hacked to pieces on the spot.

The members of the Frost Dragon Clan, who had been wearing sneering derision upon their faces just moments ago, now looked like drakes caught by the throat, their mouths agape, unable to utter a single word.

This completely subverted everything they knew to be true!

When did the cultivators of the Desolate Sea ever become stronger than those of the Spiritual Province?!

"Im... Impossible!" It defied all belief.

"What do you mean, impossible?!" Jiang Xiaoyue glared at him with her large, rounded eyes puffing up in anger. "Now you know how formidable he is, don't you? Talking about one hundred or two hundred pills, you know nothing but how to brag."

Boss Fang appeared quite detached, whereas the young girl proved to be the one holding a grudge.

"It's Gabriel!"

"Ybori, you go!" Gabriel barked, pointing at the young man sitting behind him who shared a sixty to seventy percent resemblance with his own features.

"..." Jiang Xiaoyue watched for a long while before muttering, "I told you it was a hundred pills!"

"..." Gabriel's face turned entirely black with rage.

However, his command for Ybori to step up was not born of blind fury; Liang Shi's single move had clearly exacted a heavy toll on his energy, and Ybori was a formidable expert of the First Heaven Martial King realm, standing a full two major tiers above Liang Shi.

Setting everything else aside, the sheer disparity in realm and cultivation alone would be more than enough to give Liang Shi a bitter struggle.

Casting a provocative glance toward Boss Fang's side, he glared and muttered, "I simply refuse to believe he can win again!"

The words had barely left his lips when Liang Shi, standing beneath the stage, spoke up: "I hadn't even finished executing the Advance style of the Invincible Ten Directions just now, but as for the ensuing techniques, even I find them difficult to control. Are you certain you wish to try?"

Gabriel: "!!??"

His eyes widened as he stared fixedly at the martial arena.

He hadn't even finished executing it?!

He had already battered his opponent into such a state, and it wasn't even finished?!

"Bluffing!" Ybori said coldly. "I see you are merely afraid!"

He beckoned toward Liang Shi: "Come!"

"..."

Under the strain of the previous, overwhelmingly powerful technique, the weapons Liang Shi had manipulated had all been reduced to a carpet of shattered fragments strewn across the ground.

But now, as the Invincible Ten Directions was summoned once more, his entire form soared into the air, and the true essence of the Black Tortoise Sacred Art swept all the metallic shards into a swirling vortex.

At this precise moment, the Invincible Ten Directions coalesced into a singular whole!

His entire being resembled a gargantuan divine weapon of the ten directions descending upon the world, striking like a sudden thunderclap in a dry sky, its momentum carrying the raw power to split the heavens and the earth apart!

Those standing beneath could not help but feel the crushing insignificance of a mortal facing the vastness of heaven and earth; ordinary men would likely lose even the resolve to raise their weapons in defiance.

Yet, for the warriors of the Western Polar Region, who had scrambled for survival from between the jaws of ferocious beasts since childhood...

"What a joke!" Ybori roared, drawing his massive blade backward into a distinct, specialized stance.

"Martial Technique: Heaven-Capsizing Slash!" In an instant, he unleashed ten-tenths of his might to meet the assault, his overbearing momentum—bolstered by being two major realms higher—carrying a terrifying sword-intent as he struck upward.

A hurricane erupted, and the surging aftershocks flipped the heavy, four-sided bronze cauldron at the edge of the arena completely over, while the weapons on the nearby racks flew backward like sharp arrows.

An earth-shattering boom reverberated as the Invincible Ten Directions, acting like a piercingly sharp sword, tore directly through the opponent's massive shroud of martial energy, causing Ybori’s armor to disintegrate inch by inch in an instant.

Offering almost no resistance whatsoever, the massive blade slipped from his grasp and went flying, blood erupting violently from the web of his thumb.

Yet the momentum of this strike remained entirely unchecked!

Like a moth to a flame—it was entirely a moth to a flame!

Beholding such an outcome, Ybori was left utterly stupefied, his previous, overbearing arrogance completely obliterated.

He could even smell the distinct aura of death!

"Stop!" A Western Polar Region elder of the Ninth Heaven Martial Emperor realm intervened in a flash, his immense martial energy erupting between the two combatants.

In the absolute nick of time, he managed to ward off the residual force of the strike.

Had he failed to act, their Frost Dragon Clan would have likely lost a core, genius scion on the spot.

By this time, Ybori’s face had already turned the color of ash.

Too terrifying! What manner of martial technique was this?!

At this very moment, this was the sole thought occupying everyone's mind.

...

The entire venue fell into a prolonged silence before people slowly began to recover their senses.

Cheers and gasps of admiration erupted in a continuous wave.

Gabriel's expression was terrifyingly dark; two experts in a row had actually suffered defeat at the hands of an obscure, unknown cultivator from the Desolate Sea, and he could no longer sit still: "This time, I shall go personally!"

With a single bound, he dropped into the martial arena.

"Have you no shame?!"

"An entire realm higher and you still have the nerve to step up?!"

"This martial artist has already fought two bouts in succession. Can it be that the warriors of the Western Polar Domain are truly so utterly shameless?"

Gabriel’s face grew darker by the moment as he bellowed in his flawed Lingzhou dialect, "Any one of you may come forward!"

It was enough that they possessed one of such fearsome caliber; it was obvious Liang Shi had now expended far too much of his strength to possibly wage another battle.

Yet even were Liang Shi at the absolute zenith of his power, Gabriel’s own cultivation surpassed that of the previous two combined, leaving him certain that the man would be no match for him.

As for the others, he simply refused to believe there could be anyone more formidable remaining.

Of course, this was strictly speaking among those of the same generation.