Xu Mengqing's face turned from green to white, especially as he saw the earnest expression on the demon's face when he said those words. Rage flared up inside him. "You're underestimating me too much!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Mengqing charged at the demon, his body enveloped in a blue-green aura of soul power—clearly wind attribute. His speed was astonishing, and in the blink of an eye, he was already in front of the demon, thrusting his long blade towards him.
Bang!
The demon's body trembled as a light yellow soul power burst forth, enveloping him in an aura of the Huaxia attribute. Just as Xu Mengqing's blade made contact with the demon's soul power, the blade's surface began to spin furiously, rapidly slicing through the demon's soul power.
Pfft!
The sound of flesh being pierced echoed as Xu Mengqing's blade penetrated the demon's shoulder. The demon had shifted his body at the last moment, so the blade didn't pierce his heart but went through his shoulder instead.
Xu Mengqing's Martial Soul's special trait was "Soul Break," which gave it enhanced effectiveness in breaking through soul power. In Xu Mengqing's mind, this ability had served him well, allowing him to penetrate the demon's soul power with one strike.
Despite aiming for the heart, Xu Mengqing knew that it was unlikely his strike would hit such a critical area. After all, someone whom Lin Qian held in such high regard wouldn't be so easily taken down.
A victorious smile appeared on Xu Mengqing's face. "Looks like I've won."
"Is that so?" The demon, seemingly unfazed by the blade piercing his shoulder, grinned, showing a row of white teeth. "Don't celebrate too early."
Seeing the demon smile like that, Xu Mengqing's instincts told him something was wrong. He tried to pull his blade out with a burst of strength, but at that moment, the demon's muscles tightened, and his Huaxia attribute soul power surged, locking the blade in place.
No matter how hard Xu Mengqing tried, his weapon seemed to be rooted in the demon's body, refusing to budge.
Whoosh!
With a powerful swing, the demon's massive war blade, gleaming like cold moonlight, slashed towards Xu Mengqing. The enormous blade effortlessly shattered Xu Mengqing's soul power and was about to slice through his neck. However, just as the gleaming blade was about to sever Xu Mengqing's head, it stopped abruptly. Though the demon's blade didn't make contact, the force of the swing left a shallow cut on Xu Mengqing's neck.
The demon then flipped his hand, making his war blade disappear, and casually pulled Xu Mengqing's long blade from his shoulder before planting it in the ground before him. "You lost!"
Xu Mengqing stood there, stunned, as if he had just been pulled from the water, drenched in sweat. For a moment, he felt like he had been staring death in the face. The feeling of surviving that close encounter overwhelmed him, and his body went limp as his soul power dissipated, causing his primordial weapon to revert to its core components.
It was only then that Xu Mengqing noticed the wound on the demon's shoulder, which had been caused by his blade, was healing at an astonishing rate. The wound sizzled as if cauterized by flames, and in a blink, the injury was completely gone. Xu Mengqing couldn't believe his eyes, wondering if he had been hallucinating.
When the demon swung his blade, Xu Wuwei's heart nearly stopped, fearing that the demon might accidentally kill Xu Mengqing. Fortunately, the general that Lin Qian had summoned knew the difference between sparring and a real fight.
But from what they had just witnessed, they could clearly see the difference in strength between Xu Mengqing and this demon. They finally understood why Lin Qian had such confidence in his generals.
Reflecting on the demon's earlier words, the group could only nod in agreement. Indeed, if the demon had used his full strength, that one swing might have ended Xu Mengqing's life.
"I accept my defeat wholeheartedly." After putting away his primordial core and components, Xu Mengqing admitted his defeat to the demon, though the earlier dejection was quickly replaced by a renewed sense of determination. "But I will become stronger, and one day, I will defeat you."
"Is that so? I'll be waiting for that day," the demon replied, laughing as he respectfully nodded towards Xu Mengqing.
Lin Qian, who had been watching silently, smiled as he spoke again. "You've seen the strength of my generals. I dare say that none of you can match him for now."
Everyone present nodded in silent agreement. The quick bout between the demon and Xu Mengqing had left them with no doubts about the demon's overwhelming power.
What they didn't know was that the demon had not fought at full strength. Before the fight, Lin Qian had instructed him to hold back, not wanting to overpower Xu Mengqing completely.
Had the demon used his full strength, Xu Mengqing wouldn't have been able to break through his defense, let alone pierce his shoulder. In a real fight to the death, the demon could have easily killed Xu Mengqing with a single blow.
"The matter is settled. In the upcoming war against the Blackhorn Kingdom, except for the four elders, the rest of you should not interfere. Focus on curing the effects of the Soul Transformation Fruit and restoring the bodies of those damaged by it," Lin Qian said, dismissing the group. "Yue Liqun, stay behind."
"Demon, guard the gate. Do not leave your post unless I command it."
"Yes, Your Majesty!" the demon replied, bowing before leaving the courtyard to stand guard at the gate.
The others also took their leave, leaving only Lin Qian and Yue Liqun in the courtyard.
Yue Liqun carefully took out the octagonal crystal that Lin Qian had given him earlier and looked at it with curiosity. "Your Majesty, what exactly is this?"
"Honestly, I'm not entirely sure what it will do," Lin Qian replied with a strange expression as he glanced at the crystal. "It's called the Reset Crystal. It was originally meant to reset attribute points, but who knows what it will do now?"