The fight had raged for minutes; my nerves settled like dust after a storm. I finally felt out Lixue’s depth—she was, as she’d said, almost my equal. Power matched like mirrored moons, yet her swordcraft cut cleaner than mine, a river slicing stone. Overall, I stayed on the back foot, but the gap was a thin blade’s width.
I let the knot in my chest loosen, like ice cracking under dawn, and threw myself into the fight. Before coming to the Palace of Ice Crystal, I’d feared the ninth-floor guardian might be a thunderhead like Luo Lin—or worse. Now it felt like I’d overthought it, a shadow bigger than the tree. Even so, I couldn’t afford to thaw my focus; the cold would bite me for it.
After all, Lixue held the last gate of the Nine Cold Labyrinth—she had to hide some peak above the clouds. She was a Sword Wielder, one of the so-called strongest paths. Her twin blades wore no rank, but a sword that births a Sword Spirit like FrostyLily Dream, a peer of Xinuo, is no dull star. It shouldn’t fall short of my Shattered Light.
One thing gnawed at me like winter wolves—I still couldn’t rouse Shattered Light’s power. Lixue, judging by her strikes, could awaken some of Ice Illusion Moon. On that front, my footing was on thin ice.
…
“Ice Wheel · Flash Pierce.”
While I struggled under Lixue’s pressure, dozens of spiked ice wheels flared around me, like cold suns with thorns, and rushed in without warning. I slashed hard, knocked aside her twin swords, and blew Sword Aura through Shattered Light to unleash the Sword Qi Storm.
Clang, clang, clang!
A massive tornado roared up around me, a dragon of wind and steel, shredding the incoming ice wheels and pushing Lixue back a few steps.
When the whirlwind faded, Lixue didn’t press. She sighed like frost mist and said, “The warm-up’s over. I don’t enjoy slow fights, so I’ll get serious. Brace yourself.”
Her words fell, and a blizzard ripped through not just this hall—the entire Palace of Ice Crystal howled white. The cold sank like knives; ice crept along my Sword Aura in pale lace. She drifted into the air, snow lifting her like a ghost. What was she planning? Before the thought set, her twin swords swept.
“Blizzard · Sky Slash.”
Two colossal ice-blue sword auras tore through the falling storm, arrowing toward me. Bad—danger surged in me like a black tide. I sank into a half-crouch, leveled Shattered Light at my waist, and drew an arc of Sword Aura.
Boom!!
The colliding auras erupted midair, a sunburst of frost and force; the gale snarled and tore at my hair. That was close. I reached for a breath, but Lixue didn’t leave me one.
“Blizzard · Ice Rift.”
“Blizzard · Ground Spike.”
“Blizzard · Water Dragon.”
She unleashed three arts in one breath?! Ice spikes and water dragons flooded the sky and ground, a glacier stampede. I couldn’t freeze up—I had to move. Since her assaults were all ice—
“Netherflow Rage Flame Slash!”
A ten-meters-plus blade of fire wrapped Shattered Light in crimson heat. As I swung full-force, air sizzled and steam roiled from sky and stone, like rain meeting forge. But I couldn’t stay on the back foot forever. I gathered for a counter, when more than ten ice swords, forged from Sword Aura, dove from above.
Forced, I swallowed my breath and shaped Sword Aura again, throwing up another technique to catch the falling blades. Ever since Lixue got serious, every strike hit like a half-step Divine Realm, high-tier blow. Each of my answers had to burn costly arts.
This couldn’t go on. I had to get serious too. I hurled Shattered Light skyward.
“Sword Domain—open!”
Dazzling gold flooded the sky, a dawn poured from blade. Then countless swords of pure Sword Aura formed—big and small, straight and curved—filling heaven and earth around us.
“So that’s your Sword Domain? Good.”
Maybe it was my nerves, but her battle intent climbed like wildfire in winter pines.
“In that case, I’ll unfold mine—Heavenly Snow Dance Burial!”
At her words, ice elements surged to her like a sea returning to moon. Ice-blue radiance cocooned her, bright and beautiful. Within that glow, her clothes dissolved like frost at noon. In their place, an opulent ice-blue one-piece dress unfurled, crystalline and regal. Her beret became a delicate ice-crystal tiara, glinting like a winter star. The dress was lavish, set with gemlike ice and mysterious motifs—likely heavy amplifiers—yet nothing felt gaudy. It carried a natural, noble grace, like snow on pine. Her black tights became white stockings tied with lace ribbons at the sides. Her boots became blue-and-white high boots, ice-lotus blooming at the toes.
…So strong—like a mountain rising under snow.
I could feel it—Lixue now towered over her earlier self, strength doubled like flood after dam break. That attire wasn’t mere glamour; it was her Sword Domain. If I remembered Xinuo’s lecture right, Sword Domains split into two kinds: field-type, like mine, and special-type. Special-type pours all effect and force into an evolved item or weapon, spiking power in a heartbeat. Neither is strictly better; each cuts along its own edge.
Field-type excels at range—broad buffs, forced conversion of all energies inside into Sword Aura, and it shaves an enemy’s strength. It shines in brawls. Special-type suits duels. It explodes and endures, multiplying the body’s faculties and every sword art and swordcraft you wield.
“Then, let’s continue. Polar Snow · Shatter.”
Her eyes sharpened like winter spears, and she whipped her twin blades.
Crack. Thud.
What—?!
Space near me shattered like glass, fissures spiderwebbing, then collapsing in slabs. I knew I couldn’t cancel that force with an offensive art. I poured Sword Intent out, seized every nearby blade in my domain, and bound them into a massive shield of swords, facing every direction.
Boom!!!
The strike landed as the shield completed, a starburst of cold and ruin. Swords broke one by one inside the wall, snow of steel falling—but the shield held, barely, before collapse. Too strong. That blow hit the peak of half-step Divine Realm, with a hint beyond, like a cresting wave. It was on par with my full-force strike.
…
