Ninth then scouted the entire plain and became slightly serious.

“Refine jades as the fuel.” He then concluded.

“Since you’re so insightful, you should know that your best choice is to pay for my losses.” Li Qiye smiled.

Listeners thought that this might be the first time Ninth had heard such a demand.

“I’ve changed my mind, I will take your life.” Ninth paused for a moment before declaring.

The atmosphere immediately became colder. Those nearby felt a chill cold enough to reach their bones.

“So suicidal.” One of them said after seeing Li Qiye’s mistake.

“You’re only at the ninth sword, can’t reach the apex. But I suppose the same thing can be said about the thirteenth.” Li Qiye shook his head.

Others became slack-jawed after hearing this. They have experienced his arrogance and contempt before. However, he didn’t care for the thirteen slashes? It became an issue of ignorance.

If Ninth could have all thirteen slashes, it meant that he would be able to fight a dao lord. Not even the Five Overlords could make this statement. In fact, Ninth would be able to kill all five without a problem.

This was the reason why the sacred ground was so feared. All eyes were on Ninth; they knew that he wouldn’t let this comment go unpunished.

However, Ninth remained the same without any emotional fluctuation. He simply held his sword and entered the plain.

“Here we go.” Everyone became more lively, wanting to see the show.

“Will Li Qiye follow the footsteps of Celestial Ape Demon King and Starshooter King?” One youth asked.

“Very likely, can’t you see how strong Ninth is? He massacred a hundred thousand men with one single slash. Li Qiye has no chance.” Another youth responded.

“Don’t forget about Li Qiye’s supreme formation. The two kings couldn’t do a thing to him.” An older expert said.

“Well, the two kings just got slaughtered despite working together.” The second youth retorted.

“It depends on how strong the ninth slash is.” One ancestor joined in: “If it’s strong enough to break the formation, Li Qiye will be finished.”

“How strong do you think it is?” His friend asked.

“I don’t know.” The ancestor replied: “I haven’t seen it before. The sacred ground has few successors and not all of them can reach the ninth slash.”

Other sects’ merit laws and techniques were well-known to the public. This wasn’t the case for the sacred ground due to its few members.

These successors were either unknown or would shock the world. Ninth was a case of the latter.

Plus, not all of their fights were in public. Those who got to see the later slashes were most likely victims and dead men tell no tales.

After entering the plain, Ninth stopped and stared at Li Qiye. He pointed his sword straight at his foe and declared: “You’re dead.”

“Very well, let’s see your mastery with the ninth slash. This will be a good learning experience for you.” Li Qiye smiled.

The crowd smiled wryly as well. Li Qiye was treating this famous sword technique as if it could be found in any random market.

“Buzz.” He raised his hand and the earth’s loop became bright. The lines, fortresses, and towers resonated and became resplendent as well.

Everyone could feel a majestic power moving beneath the plain. It seemed to be endless.

“He’s controlling the formation again.” One expert stated. All the spectators were eager to see the true extent of this formation's power.

This time around, the power didn’t gather around Li Qiye to become a pulse. He was still lying lazily on his chair.

It created countless swords instead. Every inch of the plain was taken up by energy swords ravaging the air.

“Incredible energies.” The crowd was impressed because from an energy purity perspective, it wasn’t inferior to Ninth’s.

“Is Li Qiye a swordmaster too?” Someone thought.

“No, it’s just the power of the formation. It’s magical and profound enough to manifest into different forms.” A big shot from the last generation replied.

Ninth slowly floated upward and released his own energies. They cut into space and left behind long scars.

“Fifth slash, Worldless.” Ninth uttered.

“The fifth already?!” People were astonished because Ninth didn’t start with the fifth variation during the battle against the two kings.