Chapter 424: Big Dipper Godblade (1/2)

Chapter 424: Big Dipper Godblade

Ting-!

The resulting explosion caused a spider web of cracks to appear in the ring’s shield and then explode in to a shower of shimmering sparks. The audience watched the golden great sword pierce through it and speed off into the heavens. Another roar, then suddenly a five-clawed dragon emerged from the roiling clouds above1. It’s limbs each bore a shimmering star, seven across its whole form, and where it moved the clouds parted like the sea. The sense of majesty it exuded was dumbfounding.

Booomm—! Chu Cheng’s body went sailing out of the ring. The dragon curled and swam above, partly hidden in the clouds. The blazing golden greats word, however, was ever visible. Even Chu Dong – himself the peak of ninth rank – took several uneasy steps backward. Once he regained his composure his eyes immediately shot to where his son had flown.

As the explosion of golden light receded it became seven beams of rainbow-hued glare. They each raced toward the Pharmacist and converged at the top of her head. From there they delved deep in to the Adepts body and vanished. Subtle flashes of golden light shone in her eyes, but silence was the prevalent scene. Her qipao fluttered though there was no breeze and she stood as serene as a goddess, hands clasped at the small of her back. Her pale face was offset by blushing cheeks2.

No one waiting in the resting area was enjoying their fancy new sofas. Long ago they had forsaken them and stood to watch the breathtaking clash. The young upstart Chu Cheng had already displayed a level of power few would have thought him capable of. His last attack had the power of a peak-level Adept behind it. Yet still he’d lost and didn’t even leave a mark on his foe.

This was the Pharmacist, representative of Skyfire Avenue, and even her own people watched with wide eyes and opened mouths.

“Is she even human?” The Barber slowly shook his head in disbelief. He used to think he was strong, but then he lost to Lan Jue and now this. She was a ninth level adept, like him! Not a Paragon. How was there such a difference between them?

The Accountanthad long since been stricken mute by the dramatic scene before him. All he knew was that if that sword was pointed his way, he’d have to bequeath everything he owned to his dad because he’d be dead meat.

The great quaking blast of power reached all the way to the VIP platform. It was silent as the grave. Both Metatron and Lucifer watched with expression dark and gloomy. They were a hair’s breadth from Paragon, but they knew they couldn’t beat her in a fight.

The Avenue was a whole lot more frightening than they’d originally thought.

The Terminator let out a long breath. His eyes swung to Jun’er, who was vociferously celebrating her mother’s victory. He couldn’t think of what to say. And the Gourmet? He looked as stunned as everyone else. If he weren’t a Paragon, he asked himself, could he face her toe-to-toe? He didn’t like the answer.

This was the first time ever the Pharmacist had revealed her true strength. Even against powerful foes from the Citadels, she had never needed to resort to tipping her hand.

Chu Cheng, beaten and bruised, struggled back to his feet. Rivulets of blood flowed from his nose and mouth, but his eyes were bright. He liked it.

Chu Dong came quickly and looked over his son. Only once he was sure there wasn’t any lasting damage did he heave a sigh of relief. “Failure is the mother of success,” he said, “don’t worry about it.” It was a rare word of comfort from the man.

However Chu Cheng hardly noticed. His eyes were glued to the Pharmacist, he had since floated down and away from the ring. “Goodness gracious,” he hummed. “That right there is the woman of my dreams.”

Smack! Chu Cheng’s face whipped back toward Chu Dong after his father slapped it back around.

The Pharmacist slowly made her way back to the waiting, clearly in no hurry. The eye of every Adept followed her, but she acted like nothing was out of the ordinary. She took a seat, instead of leaving immediately as she had always done before.

Lan Jue made an effort to keep the shock he felt out of his expression. The whole fight was still roiling in his mind, and now finally he thought he had an inkling as to what her power was.

Legend told of the Big Dipper Godblade, which was less an actual weapon than it was the apex of Celestial Master Qian’s martial knowledge. He couldn’t be sure whether that distinctive golden sword was real or just condensed energy.