Death... and me

3060  Diliy's Test

Roan passed by the various buildings, which seemed quite old and rundown. There were technological devices everywhere, but they seemed all to be out of place. It was pretty obvious the sect didn't care too much about the circuitry formations and all that came with it. They only used what was necessary, but that was about it.

It wasn't hard to guess why the World Splitting Sect was so much smaller than the other powers. The requirements to join were sky-high. One wouldn't even be able to join if they hadn't learned at least the First Level of Sword Intent. That cut the numbers by over 99% from the very start.

What was left, instead, was a bunch of extremely talented individuals who dedicated all their lives to the sword. The sect was small but was still considered the second strongest power in the country, only behind the Rusbav Royal Family. That alone said a lot.

Roan was brought into the main palace, which caught some of the elders and disciples attention in there. Those at the Nascent Soul Realm usually couldn't enter this place unless ordered. Above all, Elder Tassio, one of the main elders, was guiding him.

Finally, they arrived at a small chamber deep into the palace. "Sect Master, I've brought him," Tassio announced.

The door of the small chamber opened, allowing Roan and Tassio to enter. Inside, it was completely different, though. A Spatial Formation created a huge area of several kilometers of distance, protected by various powerful formations as well. The Sect might not care too much about its appearance, but it definitely cares about the level of equipment it uses to give everyone the best possible training.

Diliy was there, holding his sword against Woterto, the other Transition Realm Sword Cultivator Roan met in the Sunlight Realm. Diliy seemed to be fine at that moment, not a single drop of sweat on his face. However, Woterto was bleeding all over, his breath was irregular, and his sword had quite a few dents on it.

Seeing that Roan arrived, Diliy smiled at Woterto and sheathed his sword. "Let's end it here. Our little friend there has just arrived... although he wasn't the one I was expecting. Why don't you stay?"

Woterto sighed and sheathed his sword as well. "Very well. I'm still far from understand where the next step of the Sword Intent is, so perhaps this conversation could give me a clue."

Diliy nodded and approached Roan, his smile now gone. "Alright, I heard from your brother back in the Sunlight Realm that you were actually the one who taught him his Sword Skills. Is that true?"

Straight into the main topic. Roan liked that. "That is indeed the truth. Although the idiot could be said to have a similar level of proficiency with the weapon now." He might not like Rean, but he would not lie about his abilities.

Diliy raised his hand, and his sword aura gathered around it together with his Spiritual Energy. "In that case, let's give it a test. I will suppress my cultivation to the same realm as yours."

Roan didn't seem to mind. "Very well." However, he didn't bring out a sword. Instead, he also raised his hand and filled it with his Sword Aura and Spiritual Energy.

Woterto and Tassio were taken aback. Wasn't Roan underestimating the Sect Master way too much? However, seeing that Diliy didn't say anything, they also kept quiet.

Diliy then flashed, reaching Roan in a moment and slashing out. At the same time, his killing intent flared. He was truly trying to kill Roan right there and then.

Roan wasn't fazed by that, though. Since Diliy wanted to use the same cultivation level as him, he at least had to show how bad that idea was.

'Light Style, Enhancement!'

'Death Style, Shadow Steps!'

*Zush!*

Roan easily dodged Diliy's attack, following with an attack of his own. Naturally, he, too, was going for the kill.

'Death Style, Three Claws of the Dragon!'

Three hands filled with Sword Aura encircled Diliy from all sides, causing his to open his eyes wide. In that one movement, he understood that Roan couldn't be underestimated. The Sword Aura the disappeared from his hand. No, instead, it retracted into it, just like it did when he showed his ability to Rean back in the Capital.

'Severing Space!'

His hand seemed to multiply even more than Roan's Three Claws of the Dragon, hitting each of attacks and protecting himself.

'Hmph!' Yet, the moment he switched to defend against the attack, another Roan appeared out of nowhere. 'Death Style, Stellar Piercer!'

"Interesting!" Diliy's eyes shined with excitement. His other hand was also filled with Sword Aura and Spiritual Energy, using it to slash out. At first, he intended to use only one hand, but that was obviously impossible against someone like Roan.

*Clang, clang, clang, clang...*

Sounds like metal striking each other came of of the exchange, which seemed ridiculous considering neither side was using any weapon. Roan didn't stop and continued his relentless assault. "You aren't the only one who can use both hands like swords," his cold voice echoed. He obviously lost in the Sword Intent contest, but as long as Diliy kept his cultivation suppressed to his level, he definitely won in everything else.

*Clang, clang, clang, clang...*

Finally, an opening appeared, and Roan aimed for Diliy's heart!

*Boom!*

Instantly, Diliy's cultivation was released, and his Peak Transition Realm returned. The blast of Spiritual Energy forced Roan away, also destroying the clone he had just created. The combat was over.

Diliy looked at his chest, and a tiny cut could be seen. His heart would truly have been hit if he had not released his cultivation at that last moment. "So I am no match to you in the same cultivation realm, even with my more advanced Sword Intent..."

Woterto and Tassio had their mouth wide open. They never would have imagined Diliy could lose like that.

Roan put his hands down and nodded. "Indeed. However, you were not too far. That advantage of Sword Intent is truly remarkable. You forced me to use around 80% of my full power. It seems like I did the right thing to come here to learn more about it from you."

"80%..." Diliy took a deep breath. "What would your 100% look like?"

Roan raised his hand again. This time, his hair changed into a mix of Black and White colors. Right after...

*Bzzzz...*

A Dark Red Lightning surfaced, giving an ominous feeling to everyone around. Roan... displayed for the first time what he learned from Foliana's Red Lightning, creating his personal version!

And as always, any Golden Tickets and Stones are welcome. ;)