Meanwhile, somewhere outside the Luvile Universe, Lani and a lot of cultivators and demon beasts had gathered. Obviously, they were all from the Luvile and Suiton Universe. As for the place, it was the trade route that both universes claimed to be theirs.

It was then that a Spatial Gate appeared nearby. From inside, an old man came out. He looked around until he finally spotted everyone gathered there.

​​

"Oh! Seems like this is the right place. So, who's gonna be my opponent?"

Everyone looked at the newcomer. There were only Divinity Realm experts present, so they could tell the guy's cultivation. Just like Lani, he was also at the Peak of the Divinity Realm.

The representative of the Suiton Universe then came out to receive the man.

"Senior Phantom Blade, thank you for helping us this time around."

The man sighed as he shook his head.

"Just call me by my name, Tixan Loume."

Lani looked at the guy and had no idea who it was. However, he didn't think that it was strange since each Universe was just too big. Besides, it's not like he ventured outside the Luvile Universe that much.

Lani then stepped forward as he brought his staff out.

"I'll be your opponent this time. As per the agreement, the losing side will give up the trade route for the next Chaos Cycle. Is everyone clear with that?"

Taxin and the Suiton Universe members nodded. Obviously, the Luvile Universe's members did the same thing. Right after, one member of each side came out to preside over the battle.

"The battlefield is everywhere up to 10 thousand kilometers from where we are at the moment. If any of the two sides leave this range, they would be declared the loser. No one other than the two fighters can intervene in this battle."

"That's all. Everything else is valid."

Lani and Taxin nodded and waited for the guys who spoke the rules to give the order. Lani had a serious expression on his face as he looked at Taxin. However, Taxin himself seemed to be quite bored with the current situation.

Lani found one thing strange, though. They called the guy Phantom Blade, but Lani couldn't see any sword, saber, or anything like that on the man's hands.

"Very well. The battle starts... now!"

The moment the guy gave the order, Taxin slowly moved his hands. No, that was only an illusion due to the laws interacting with his movements. In fact, Taxin was just way too fast. He was so fast that almost no one could tell how he moved it.

Without even leaving the place he was in, Taxin initiated the first attack. For a moment, the battlefield seemed to stop in time.

'It's over.'

*Clang!*

However, contrary to Taxin's expectations, Lani raised his staff in the same leisurely manner as Taxin. Before anyone knew it, a shockwave of Spiritual Energy and Laws hit Lani's staff before parting into two.

Even the Peak Divinity Realm cultivators and Demon Beasts were shocked by what they saw. They knew that Taxin attacked Lani, but they couldn't tell how he did that at all. Worse than that, they also had no idea how Lani reacted fast enough to stop it. If it was any one of them, they would have been cleaved in half already!

Lani then looked at Taxin as his complexion turned even more grave.

"Impressive. I've never seen someone use Sword Laws with only their hands. Not only that, but there was something in the power of your attack that far surpassed the Sword Heart Level."

As mentioned back in the Heavenly Competition, one must first understand the Sword Intent. After that, there was the Sword Heart. One doesn't need to think much to understand that it was several times harder to comprehend and achieve mastery with this one. Waka Ulin of the Ulin Universe was someone who had just reached the Sword Heart Level. By no means had he achieved mastery on it. Still, that was enough for him to get one of Dalin's five slots in the Heavenly Competition.

Taxin's bored face finally showed some surprise. It was already unexpected that Lani could even react fast enough to stop his attack, but he could also tell what he did.

"I was told that some weakling from a forgotten Universe would be my opponent. But who could have thought that you defended against my first attack? Praise, praise..."

Lani just smiled on the surface. However, he was really shocked by what he just saw.

'What kind of freak did they send here? Is this really the guy I was supposed to fight instead for Krune? If I didn't open the Chaos Meridians and my mental energy wasn't spread, I probably wouldn't have defended against that attack in time. And that was just an attack using his hands.'

Suddenly, Lani's expression changed as he brandished his staff twice in two different directions.

*Clang, clang!*

Lani succeeded in defending against two more invisible sword attacks. Seeing that, Taxin became even more interested in Lani.

"My Sword Laws have indeed surpassed the Sword Heart Level. Did you know? No one seems to have reached this level in the Lower Realms. At the very least, no one who is still alive did. I couldn't find any information whatsoever even though I was part of one of the Universes' Powerhouses. Because of that, I didn't even know what to call the next level of Sword Arts. I was forced to pay a significant price to contact the Higher Realms to find out what it was called."

*Clang, Clang, Clang!*

"Only then did I find out that it was called Sword Assimilation. One's entire body would be considered a sword. Every attack would have the power of the Sword Laws."

It was then that...

*Vup!*

Lani disappeared from his position using Spatial Laws before appearing right behind Taxin.

"Is that so?"

Lani's Staff transformed into hundreds of afterimages as all of them hit Taxin simultaneously.

*Bang!*

However, Taxin didn't even move. He just looked back at Lani with a smile as if Lani hasn't done anything at all.

"Impressive movement technique. You are faster than most of the opponents I've seen in the past. Unfortunately, it's also possible to use Sword Laws to protect oneself. As for someone who has reached Sword Assimilation, it also becomes something instinctive."

*Za!*

Suddenly, Taxin moved as he attacked Lani as well. Immediately, Lani and Taxin exchanged thousands of attacks in a single moment.

*Boom!*

The exchange was over as fast as it started. In the end, Lani was forced to retreat as several parts of his robe seemed to have been slashed. However, that was all. Although it was possible to see his skin under the cuts on the robe, there were no injuries.

Still, Lani couldn't help but praise his opponent.

"Really impressive. I was only barely able to avoid your attacks. The really frightening thing is how impossible it is to perceive it with either Divine Sense or the naked eye."

However, Taxin was even more surprised than Lani.

"The real impressive one here is you. I thought I wouldn't find anyone capable of contending against me in the Lower Realms anymore. Oh, right! What's your name?"

"Lani Gobel."

Taxin nodded.

"Lani Gobel. It's not that my Sword Arts is invisible. It's just that they have surpassed the level of what can be displayed in the Lower Realms. That's why it looks like they are invisible. It's also the same reason why people started to call me Phantom Blade. If we were in the Godly Path Realm, you would definitely be able to see it with your Divine Sense. Still, you're obviously seeing them here. How?"

Lani smiled before saying.

"Unfortunately, that's a little secret."

There is no way Lani would talk about the Soul Cultivation Technique. He knew very well just how problematic it would be if others found about it.

Taxin didn't seem to care, though. Everyone had their own secrets. That was normal.

"It's okay. It has been a long time since I had this much fun. Make sure to not hold back because I'll increase my speed and power now."

Right after seeing that, Taxin flashed in Lani's direction. Sure enough, he was at least twice as fast now. However...

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

*Crash!*

The one who was sent back retreating this time wasn't Lani, but Taxin instead. Everyone watching the battle opened their eyes wide. They couldn't even see Taxin's movements at all. However, not only did Lani see it, but he even won the exchange just now.

It was then that they noticed something different about Lani this time. His entire body was covered in pitch-black energy. When their Divine Senses touched it, all they could tell was that they could feel the presence of all primary elements in that.

Elements Regulation Technique, Culmination!

Lani fused the laws and elements together, which obviously created that black color. Krune also had the same result when he did it. However, Krune would only need one glance to tell that Lani's proficiency was heads and tails above his own. Well, Krune was still in the Advanced Stage of the technique while Lani had already fully comprehended it.

As mentioned before, you can fuse all five primary elements and laws together. At the same time, you can select which element and laws will have priority in that fusion. Lani had just used the Lightning Element and Laws to achieve a speed even greater than Taxin.

Of course, he wouldn't be able to be this fast in the past. It was all thanks to the Chaos Meridians and Mental Energy perception that he was able to reach this level. Just the Elements Regulation Technique wouldn't be enough to deal with Taxin.

"Only twice as much your original speed and strength? That's far from enough."

Taxin's eyes shone after seeing that.

"Hahaha! Just where the hell have you been all this time? No, forget it! Let's enjoy this moment!"

And just like that, Lani and Taxin began to get serious.