Chapter 987 - Passing The Trial
The black sword and the fire greatsword collided in midair. A ring-shaped shockwave erupted from the impact and spread outward. Their first exchange ended in a draw.
Although Han Wu’s stats weren’t as high as the Final King’s, his weapon was stronger than that black sword.
Han Wu had already reached the Eighth Form and could unleash the fire greatsword’s true power. He wouldn’t do that himself, though. It wasn’t that he lacked the ability. Letting the Fire Dragon Spirit control the fire greatsword was far more efficient.
Han Wu could unleash the fire greatsword’s full power, but Esna could increase its output fivefold. Better still, Han Wu could conserve both stamina and energy in the process.
After the initial clash, Lingray gained a rough understanding of Han Wu’s strength. He stepped back and called out, “I have a general idea of what you can do. Now comes the real fight!”
With that, Lingray activated his special Form, Sword Demon. It wasn’t a single Form but a fusion of several of his Forms.
In Sword Demon form, Lingray turned completely black, as if he had fused with the black sword in his hand. He swung it again, and black energy transformed into waves of blade aura that shot toward Han Wu.
Han Wu wasn’t about to fall behind, so he activated his own special Form, Dragon Firebearer. His stats increased tenfold, and explosive dragon fire engulfed him. He could feel the flames burning his flesh, yet an endless stream of power filled him.
The fire greatsword in his hand released towering flames right on cue. They crashed head-on into the incoming blade aura, and both attacks were destroyed on contact.
At that moment, Esna produced even more flames, and the flames clung to Lingray relentlessly.
The latter swung his black sword and blocked every last flame. In Sword Demon form, the blade aura was only one part of his offense. His true strength lay in his swordsmanship. In the next instant, Lingray closed the distance and brought his black sword crashing down on Han Wu with devastating speed.
Han Wu raised the fire greatsword to block the strike, but the blade aura pinned him in place.
This made Han Wu realize that he was no match for Lingray in a direct confrontation. Once he confirmed that, he shifted Forms without hesitation, activating his special fusion Form of Demon Shadow, Crystal Lich King, and Desert Reaper.
Han Wu exuded a cold, dangerous aura, and thirteen Shadow Blades crisscrossed through the air, driving Lingray back. At the same time, a massive tide of bone sand poured out around Han Wu. Under his control, the bone sand formed into his Seventh Form, Jackal Deathsworn. The Jackal Deathsworn howled and charged at Lingray.
Han Wu wasn’t finished. He continued summoning. Special undead skeletons, assembled from bones of multiple species, appeared one after another, each with Eighth Form strength. Then a Ninth Form Bone Dragon answered Han Wu’s call.
Every one of these undead skeletons shared a single trait. As long as Han Wu was alive, they would reassemble and continue attacking his target no matter how many times they were destroyed!
Lingray now had to defend against thirteen Shadow Blades while battling an army of undead skeletons. He was so busy that he couldn’t reach Han Wu himself.
As a seasoned fighter, Lingray quickly realized that this approach would wear him down, so he immediately switched to his special King form. The transformation altered his appearance. He wore a crown, a magnificent robe, and a red lion armor, looking both powerful and regal. Although his stats dropped to less than half of the Sword Demon form, this wasn’t a downgrade. It was an upgrade.
Lingray issued a command. “Warriors, come!”
Dozens of heavily armored warriors of varying appearances answered his call. Every single one had Eighth Form strength. Wielding a wide array of weapons, they clashed head-on with Han Wu’s undead army.
That was still only a fraction of Lingray’s power. He raised his black sword once more and roared, “Soldiers, come!”
Entire formations of armored soldiers materialized in neat ranks and charged toward Han Wu in formation.
Han Wu immediately fired off volleys of Bone Bullets. Countless fist-sized bone projectiles tore through the advancing ranks, killing soldiers by the dozens. When the soldiers died, they dissolved into light instantly, which gave Han Wu no chance to raise skeletons from their remains.
After a prolonged stalemate, Han Wu’s skeleton army was the first to crumble under the pressure. Left with no other choice, he switched Forms again. This time, he used his strongest one, the Demon King Transformation.
The moment it took shape, all of Han Wu’s Forms layered onto it and amplified its power. Then he gathered his energy and activated its Second Stage, the Fire Dragon King Transformation!
Its firepower far surpassed that of the Dragon Firebearer. Esna also took the shape of a dragon made of flame, infusing Han Wu’s fire with boundless Dragon Fear. Every soldier that came near was burned to ashes.
Seeing this, Lingray activated his strongest Form as well. “White Soul King!”
In an instant, the Golden Will bent to Lingray’s command and formed a terrifying Divine Pressure. The Golden Tree responded, and countless golden branches reached out to surround Han Wu.
“Are you a sore loser? This is cheating!” Han Wu cried out immediately.
Han Wu was powerful and feared no opponent, but even he didn’t think he could stand against the Golden Will itself. This was the White Soul Civilization, and the Golden Tree stood on its own home turf. Here, the Golden Will could wield not just a sliver of its power but almost to its full might. Fighting it was practically the same as taking on the entire White Soul Civilization alone.
When Han Wu stopped resisting, Lingray realized that he had used power that went beyond the rules. That was indeed unfair. He quickly withdrew the Divine Pressure and looked at Han Wu with admiration. Forcing him to resort to the White Soul King form was enough to earn his respect.
“You’ve passed the trial!” Lingray declared.
The surprise came so abruptly that Han Wu could hardly believe it. Moments earlier, they had been fighting with everything they had, and now Lingray was telling him he had passed. The sudden shift left him speechless.
“What? You’re not happy about it?” Lingray teased.
“Of course I am,” Han Wu replied quickly.
Knowing when to quit while he was ahead was one of Han Wu’s finest qualities.
“Then shouldn’t I get a Golden Tree branch for passing the trial?” Han Wu asked.
Lingray smiled and beckoned a branch over before cutting off a section with his black sword.
“This branch is enough for you to unseal the Golden Rune,” he said and handed the severed branch to Han Wu.
Han Wu accepted it and sincerely thanked Lingray.
If the Final King hadn’t stopped using Divine Pressure on his own, Han Wu would have been crushed even in the Fire Dragon King Transformation. In the end, the Golden Will had gone easy on him.
“Now that I’ve passed the test, could you tell me what your weakness is?” Han Wu asked, holding the branch.
Lingray smiled without a word. He simply raised the black sword in his hand.
Han Wu immediately understood what his weakness was.