High Martial: I Grind Professions

"His technique is impressive and his evasion is superb, but his energy intensity and Law fluctuations... feel like they’re only at a high-star Grandmaster Level?

How could he possibly have passed the latter stages of the 7th Layer, let alone survived so long on the eighth? We all know how difficult the Heaven-Reaching Tower is."

"Indeed," a burly man who specialized in defense added with a booming shake of his head. "His attack power seems a bit lacking, and there’s nothing special about his defense. He’s relying entirely on his Body Technique and skill to maneuver.

With strength like that, he’d have a hard time even reaching the middle of the 7th Layer. There’s no way he could pass a trial like the ones in the latter stages."

"He must be hiding his true strength," Ares Titan said gravely, his golden pupils flashing as he stared intently at Li Wen’s every subtle movement.

"His aura is too steady. In the face of Naraku’s attacks, his heartbeat and energy fluctuations show almost no significant change. This doesn’t look like someone fighting with all they have."

"Mmm," Isabel agreed with a slight nod. Her silver eyes twinkled with curiosity, and the elegant line of her lips curved into a faint smile.

"His Primordial Spirit fluctuations... are very restrained, but they give me the feeling of... an abyss lying beneath a calm sea.

He seems to be probing and observing, all while expending the minimum possible effort. Interesting."

Her gaze seemed to pierce through the virtual projection, landing on Li Wen’s profound eyes.

...

「On the arena stage.」

The fierce clash continued for several minutes.

Naraku had been on the offensive for a while, but to no avail. The humiliation from Li Wen’s taunts, mixed with the frustration of a prolonged, fruitless battle, began to burn like wildfire within him.

He suddenly retreated to create some distance. His cloak billowed on its own, fluttering loudly in the still air.

"Hmph! An insect is just an insect, only good for dodging like a rat!" Naraku’s voice dripped with mockery and impatience. "The warm-up is over. It’s time to end this tedious farce!"

"Shadow Devour: Eternal Night Descends!"

BOOM!

A terrifying energy, far greater than anything he had shown before, erupted from within Naraku.

Shadows surged madly from his body, instantly enveloping and devouring him.

A massive shadow sphere, over five kilometers in diameter, formed in the sky above the arena.

The surface of the sphere writhed and warped, emanating terrifying Law fluctuations of consumption, corrosion, and confinement.

The light across the entire Star Sea Arena dimmed abruptly, as if it had plunged into eternal darkness.

A powerful gravitational pull emanated from the shadow sphere, tugging at Li Wen’s body.

Simultaneously, countless shadow tentacles, far more condensed than before, shot out from the sphere like venomous vipers, silently lashing out to crush Li Wen.

This attack, in its speed, power, and the intensity of the shadow Law it contained, far surpassed his previous "Thousandfold Fissure"!

"Here it comes!" Below the stage, Isabel’s eyes narrowed, and her body leaned forward slightly.

"Naraku’s getting serious! I had a hard time dealing with this move last time myself." Sisko Shadowblade’s flippant expression vanished.

"This will decide the match," Kane Blazefire said, holding his breath.

"Let’s see how he handles this." Raymond gripped the hilt of the greatsword slung across his back.

Ares Titan’s gaze was scorching, his focus absolute.

...

「On the field.」

As the terrifying "Eternal Night" descended, enveloping him in its light-devouring gravitational field and countless Law tentacles, Li Wen felt an immense pressure, as though he were submerged in the viscous depths of the sea.

Naraku’s aura had surged in an instant, and the threat level of his attack had multiplied.

’So he does have a few tricks up his sleeve,’ Li Wen thought, but his eyes showed no trace of panic.

In his state of absolute focus, his opponent’s outburst had instead allowed him to see things even more clearly.

He no longer held back.

He formed no hand seals, nor did he gather any power.

Li Wen simply raised his right hand calmly, holding his index and middle fingers together.

He aimed at the core of the crushing "Eternal Night" and pointed, a casual, almost dismissive gesture.

At his fingertips, a speck of dark golden light, so deep it was almost black, suddenly ignited.

HUMMM—!

The void trembled! A vast, ancient, and terrifying will suddenly descended—an intent so dreadful it seemed capable of returning all of creation to oblivion!

Accompanying this will was the phantom of a colossal, dark golden finger, seemingly pointing from the very end of the river of time.

Countless tiny, esoteric runes flowed across the colossal finger, flickering in and out of existence, emanating an aura of annihilation that made one’s very soul tremble.

Wherever it passed, space twisted and collapsed in silence, as if the very foundations of reality were crumbling.

Before this colossal, dark golden finger, the all-encompassing darkness of the Eternal Night was as fragile as mist before a blazing sun, pierced and scattered piece by piece!

"What?!"

"Such a powerful Primordial Spirit Secret Skill!"

"This pressure... Peak of the Saint Realm?!"

Cries of astonishment erupted from the spectators almost simultaneously.

Everyone was stunned by this sudden eruption of terrifying power, which far exceeded anything they had sensed from him before.

The oppressive Primordial Spirit pressure emanating from the dark golden finger violently shook the minds of most people present, as if they were facing an irresistible, divine power.

"Such pure Primordial Spirit power! Without amplification from any Dharma Artifact, relying solely on the Secret Technique and his own Primordial Spirit, its might can actually reach the Peak of the Saint Realm."

An intense light flared in Isabel’s beautiful eyes. She subconsciously tightened her grip on her Magic Staff, her voice laced with incredulous astonishment.

"His Primordial Spirit’s intensity... is likely approaching the Peak of the Ninth Layer! No wonder..."

She recalled something her teacher once said. Some geniuses from lesser civilizations who rise from obscurity often possess an extraordinary resilience and strength of will and Primordial Spirit.

The hardships and life-or-death trials they endure far surpass those faced by the sheltered geniuses of the empire.

"He walks the path of the Primordial Spirit, just like you?" Ares Titan snapped his head toward Isabel, his golden eyes filled with surprise and solemnity. "And that Primordial Spirit Secret Skill... it’s frighteningly tyrannical!"