The King of the Northern Region's title as the strongest in the Northern Region was absolutely true.
A Super Danger Beast bone spear, three times heavier than pure steel, was wielded in his hand with the force of a mountain collapse and a tsunami, a ferocious tide of ten thousand beasts.
Slashing diagonally, sweeping horizontally, thrusting upwards, piercing—each move carried a sharp, whistling edge, fighting him was like facing a dangerous tide of Danger Beasts alone.
Lin had now seen the characteristics of the King of the Northern Region's spear technique.
His offensive was like a raging storm, surging and continuous, as if tireless and endless.
It was nothing but offense, each spear thrust forcing the opponent to meet it head-on.
Once the opponent retreated, they would remain on the defensive, with no chance to turn the tables.
Prolonged defense inevitably leads to loss, and once the opponent showed even a slight flaw, it would be their demise.
In contrast, Lin's swordsmanship was even more extreme.
It was also purely offensive with no defense; the sword, once drawn, did not return.
Wielding the sword with one hand, the yatsufusa in Lin's hand was as flexible as a fingertip, like a part of her body.
Turning, slashing, horizontal cutting, moving like a nimble snake, the trajectory of the yatsufusa wielded in Lin's hand was extremely tricky, the sword shadows dreamlike and illusory, every move directly targeting vital points that demanded a response from the enemy.
Compared to the King of the Northern Region's brutal and overbearing spear technique that forced the opponent to clash head-on, Lin's blade forced the opponent to defend.
In this situation, it should be a case of 'where paths meet, the brave win,' and whoever retracted their move first would fall into a disadvantage.
However, the length of the bone spear was more than twice that of the yatsufusa.
This purely offensive (05) and non-defensive fighting style should have given the King of the Northern Region a great advantage, but the blade in Lin's hand was always able to threaten the King of the Northern Region one step faster than the spear tip.
The King of the Northern Region had no choice but to actively conform to the rhythm of Lin's sword momentum and clash head-on.
Otherwise, the blade of yatsufusa could definitely cut off his head before the bone spear pierced Lin's vital point.
Both combatants were extraordinary beings, with spirit, qi, mind, body, and will far surpassing ordinary people. The destructive power generated by their ultimate martial arts techniques far exceeded that of the weapons themselves.
The ground of the ice-rock hall, harder than diamond, and its stone pillars were easily marked with deep gashes, as if cut by a sharp knife through tofu.
The clash of blades and the friction of the air as they swung generated astonishing heat. The frost on the walls, dome, and pillars of this icy hall, buried beneath the snow, began to melt from the heat, dripping down like a moderate night rain falling within the hall.
Around where Rin and the King of the Northern Region fought, the scenery twisted under the clash of their blades and spears, like looking through cooking smoke, with a sense of ethereal fragility that threatened to shatter.
Most miraculously, a peculiar force generated between their exchanges vibrated all the falling water droplets from the dome, sending them scattering in all directions.
"Boom! Squeak!"
Like the heavy grinding sound of a train on steel tracks, the sparks generated by the clash of their blades and spears shone as brilliantly as fireworks at a festival.
Although Rin's swordsmanship held a rhythmic advantage over the King of the Northern Region, the battle still appeared evenly matched. Even Rin had to admit that, at least in spear martial arts, she could not surpass this King of the Northern Region.
The bone spear in the King of the Northern Region's hand suddenly vibrated intensely. This was not a natural tremor of the spear caused by arm movement, but an oscillation of the spear shaft itself, like a rattlesnake's tail.
The vibrating spear tip emitted a buzzing sound, like the ringing of a large bell in a temple! An ordinary person hearing it would feel their eardrums go numb, and not just their ears, but even the roots of their teeth.
Spear Absolute: Tide of a Hundred Beasts!!!
In that instant, the explosive sounds of the bone spear swinging through the air erupted in a hundred-voice chorus of roars! The condensed killing intent, combined with the swinging long spear, materialized a hundred beasts!
This ultimate spear technique unleashed hundreds of thrusts in an instant, each containing the distinct characteristics of a different beast: the ferocity of a tiger, the deterrence of a lion, the agility of a snake, the ruthlessness of a wolf, the swiftness of a leopard... one spear, one beast, a hundred beasts emerging in a flash!
They charged at Rin like a surging flood from the heavens!
Facing such a unique skill, Rin reacted the moment her opponent's opening move appeared. The moment of absolute kill had arrived!
Rin stepped with a sword-step, her body rotating sideways, yatsufusa held horizontally five inches from her chest. A vast and chilling killing intent surged forth instantly, her condensed sword intent almost solidifying into a real blade.
In an instant, blade, sword qi, and sword momentum converged into one... Slash!
Secret Sword: Swallow's End!!!
The blade of Rin's yatsufusa carried layers of light and shadow, dividing from one into two, two into four, four into eight, creating a thousand layers of blade light, densely spread, forming an incomparably sharp sword net.
The blade light was woven, the blade shadows like a curtain, and the tearing sound of air splitting was a high-pitched, ear-splitting shriek like a death knell, making one's teeth ache and shiver.
Innumerable rays of blade light clashed and annihilated each other in an instant, like the crisp sound of wind chimes, clear and pleasant, yet the danger beneath its beauty was eternal damnation.
All the blade lights instantly converged into one, a blade that spanned the myriad phenomena of space, instantly annihilating everything into nothingness. With one slash, all things became illusory!
Be it a fierce tiger, a majestic lion, an agile snake, or anything else, all were cut down!
"Om—" There was no metallic clang of clashing blades and spears, only a soft hum like the whisper of a wind chime echoing in the air as the bone spear, crafted from the indestructible bones of a Super Danger Beast, silently shattered into ten thousand pieces with this single sword cry.
Rin's single slash cut through all the ice-stone pillars in this mountain hall, which was comparable to a plaza and required ten people to embrace, cut through the throne that symbolized the royal power ruling the entire Northern Region, and even cut through every single water droplet falling in the air within a hundred meters around her.
Where the blade passed, all things were divided!
yatsufusa returned to its sheath, the cold blade to its home.
Rin stood before the King of the Northern Region, holding the sheathed yatsufusa in her left hand, her arms hanging down, a gentle smile on her face, looking relaxed and at ease.
The water droplets melting from the frost in the hall were instantly dried by the hurricane Rin's sword swing created. The entire cold hall now appeared very dry, and even Rin's Imperial uniform remained dry and neat.
Her Night General's cape still swayed slightly in the faint breeze echoing through the hall. As for the King of the Northern Region, aside from his shattered bone spear, he appeared completely unharmed, standing opposite Rin at a distance of five steps, with not a single tear in his animal skin clothing.
Were it not for the utter devastation of the battlefield, anyone would have thought Rin was merely having a friendly conversation with the King of the Northern Region.
"The Northern Region's defeat at your hands is not unjust…"
The unmoving King of the Northern Region let out a sigh full of helplessness. Rin hadn't even activated her Imperial Arm's abilities, only engaging him with her sword.
The beast bones of a Super Danger Beast were no less in quality and hardness than orichalcum. Under conditions where all objective external factors were equal, losing in the skill he prided himself on left him with nothing but a sigh of surrender.
He couldn't even utter a resentful complaint or an unwilling curse.
Looking at the exceptionally skilled warrior before her, Rin's clear and pleasant voice said, "Rest in peace. I have no intention of sacrificing my own Seventh Expeditionary Force subordinates for the lives of your people."
Hearing this, the King of the Northern Region let out a deep sigh of relief, slowly closing his bright, tiger-like eyes, and softly murmured, "Numa Seka… the future of the Northern Region… I leave to…"
Then, the King of the Northern Region, with closed eyes, became as still as a wax figure. Rin slowly walked forward, and the King of the Northern Region's large head seemed to know of Rin's arrival, sliding down from his neck and into Rin's outstretched hands.
Blood spurted four feet high from the severed neck, like a shower of blood. The tall, headless body fell backward with a crash, like a golden mountain collapsing or a jade pillar toppling.
Rin used Essence of the Demon to freeze the King of the Northern Region's head in chilling ice, then turned away without another glance. Her fluttering cape as she turned reflected the decisiveness of someone who had completed their task and was moving on, leaving only a headless corpse in the dilapidated, empty hall, silently explaining the fate of the vanquished to the next person who might enter such a palace.
Judging from the fact that the Northern Region Grand Commander possessed an Imperial Arm, it was impossible for the King of the Northern Region not to have one. If he had been sitting there with his Imperial Arm, even Rin might not have been able to kill him with just her sword.
However, he clearly did not want this Imperial Arm to fall into the Empire's hands along with his own head. Knowing it was a path to death, he entrusted his Imperial Arm to his people who were retreating to the Ice Circle (Death Forbidden Zone), while he himself sat on the throne in the hall with his most proud weapon, awaiting the arrival of the Imperial army...
Throughout the entire battle, Rin only struck the King of the Northern Region once, and that single strike directly severed his head.
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