With Heaven-Defying Talent, I Actually Became Lu Xueqi

At this moment, the crowd beneath the stage noticed a strange scene.

After Zhang Xiaofan summoned his artifact, Lu Xueqi simply stared intently at him, carefully scrutinizing him as though trying to see through him completely. She showed no intention of attacking immediately.

This abnormal behavior caused many of the Peak Masters and disciples of the Qingyun Sect below to break into murmurs.

Seeing this, Master Shuiyue frowned slightly and softly rebuked,

“Xueqi, what are you waiting for?”

Hearing Master Shuiyue’s voice, Lu Xueqi finally returned to her senses. She looked at Zhang Xiaofan in front of her. Her expression remained unchanged, but her heart grew slightly heavy.

For this battle, she did not plan to use her full strength, only intending to unleash the power of the First Level of the Upper Purity Realm.

After all, she still had to guard against Qi Hao and Lin Jingyu, those two transmigrators. If her full strength was revealed, it would put her at a disadvantage.

By concealing part of her power, she could deliver a fatal blow to the enemy should any unexpected situation arise later.

When Zhang Xiaofan saw that Lu Xueqi hadn’t attacked immediately and was only observing him, he was slightly stunned.

Yet, he did not take advantage of her hesitation. Instead, he retracted the glow of the Soul-Devouring Staff, wrapping it around his own body.

After Lu Xueqi regained her focus, she said to Zhang Xiaofan,

“Junior Brother Zhang, make your move.”

Zhang Xiaofan nodded slowly.

“Alright.”

As soon as he spoke, Zhang Xiaofan pointed with his right hand, and the Soul-Devouring Staff in front of him flared with azure light.

A wave of destructive aura burst forth, transforming into a dazzling beam that blasted toward Lu Xueqi.

Lu Xueqi remained calm. She waved her right hand.

A massive phantom of the Tai Chi Diagram silently appeared, shielding her front.

“Boom!”

Zhang Xiaofan’s azure light struck the Tai Chi Diagram phantom with a loud blast.

Under Zhang Xiaofan’s tense gaze, the blow caused the Tai Chi Diagram to tremble slightly but failed to break through its defense.

Lu Xueqi was not surprised.

Though she only used the power of the First Level of the Upper Purity Realm, and it was from the 《Tai Chi Profound Purity Dao》’s corresponding level, defeating Zhang Xiaofan was not difficult.

She had already cultivated all her techniques to perfection and even grasped new levels of comprehension, making her combat strength far exceed others of the same realm.

Zhang Xiaofan’s fierce strike widened the eyes of many Peak Masters and disciples below the stage.

They hadn’t expected his blow to be so terrifying. The burst of power was in no way inferior to that of cultivators at the Seventh or Eighth Level of Jade Purity Realm. Even those at the Ninth Level would feel threatened.

Zhang Xiaofan’s strength, at the Seventh Level of Jade Purity Realm, was now fully revealed, leaving everyone in shock.

As Zhang Xiaofan’s master, Tian Buyi was utterly stunned.

He suddenly stood up, eyes wide, staring at Zhang Xiaofan with utter disbelief.

In his mind, Zhang Xiaofan’s current strength should at most be around the Third or Fourth Level of Jade Purity Realm.

Zhang Xiaofan had always come across as dull and wooden, like a block of wood, often angering him.

He never imagined that Zhang Xiaofan had silently raised his cultivation to the Seventh Level of Jade Purity Realm. It was truly astonishing.

Beside Tian Buyi, Tian Ling’er also widened her eyes.

She didn’t understand what kind of change had happened to her Junior Brother Xiaofan. How had his cultivation reached the Seventh Level of Jade Purity Realm, surpassing her by one whole level?

Seeing that his strike had failed, Zhang Xiaofan’s expression turned grave.

He suddenly withdrew the Firestick floating before him and gripped it tightly.

His spiritual power surged through his body, pouring entirely into the Soul-Devouring Staff.

In an instant, the staff glowed with brilliant azure light, blood-colored patterns along its shaft flashing, accompanied by the “swishhh” sound of flowing blood.

After charging up, Zhang Xiaofan hurled the Soul-Devouring Staff with full force.

“Boom!”

A loud explosion, air shattered, the sound barrier broken, as the staff shot toward Lu Xueqi like a streak of light.

Lu Xueqi’s expression tensed slightly but she didn’t panic. She maintained the phantom of the Tai Chi Diagram in front of her.

Another thunderous crash, this time even more intense than before.

Zhang Xiaofan’s Soul-Devouring Staff slammed into the Tai Chi Diagram phantom, shaking it violently.

Lu Xueqi frowned slightly. She realized that this casually formed phantom was showing signs of collapse under Zhang Xiaofan’s full-powered strike.

That surprised her.

This Tai Chi Diagram phantom carried power that even a cultivator at the First Level of Upper Purity Realm would struggle to destroy easily.

Yet under Zhang Xiaofan’s strike, despite only being at the Seventh Level of Jade Purity Realm, it showed signs of shattering, evidence of his terrifying combat strength.

Seeing that the Tai Chi Diagram phantom before Lu Xueqi trembled continuously but still did not shatter, Zhang Xiaofan’s heart sank.

He hadn’t expected even his full-powered strike to fail in breaking through her defense.

Immediately after, his figure flickered, moving like a mirage to appear in front of the Soul-Devouring Staff. He slapped the staff forcefully with his palm.

With terrifying power wrapped in immense force, “Bang!” the Tai Chi Diagram phantom in front of Lu Xueqi was directly shattered.

The Soul-Devouring Staff’s momentum remained undiminished as it continued to surge toward Lu Xueqi.

Lu Xueqi narrowed her eyes slightly and raised her right hand, flicking a finger.

In that instant, a dazzling blaze erupted, rushing toward the Soul-Devouring Staff.

“Boom!”

A thunderous roar sounded as the firelight radiated scorching heat, bursting forth with terrifying might and instantly blasting the Soul-Devouring Staff away.

The staff's body even glowed faintly red from the intense heat.

Seeing this, Zhang Xiaofan’s expression turned to horror.

He couldn’t believe it.

“How is this possible? That last strike of mine carried enough power to threaten even a Second Level Upper Purity expert, why was it still no match for Senior Sister Lu Xueqi?”

Just then, the flame unleashed by Lu Xueqi transformed into a blazing phoenix and pounced toward Zhang Xiaofan.

His expression changed drastically as his figure darted, splitting into multiple afterimages, quickly retreating into the distance.

Lu Xueqi watched with slightly furrowed brows.

She sensed that the Dao techniques Zhang Xiaofan employed were very unusual, different from the orthodox Qingyun Dao methods. This made her slightly puzzled.

However, this subtle difference was extremely faint.

Others likely wouldn’t notice it.

Only someone like Lu Xueqi, with her incredibly high cultivation and Heaven-Defying Comprehension, could detect such slight variations.

Zhang Xiaofan’s performance on the dueling platform thoroughly shocked the many Peak Masters and Seat Elders below.

They were startled to discover that Zhang Xiaofan’s strength far exceeded expectations.

The power he had just unleashed was actually enough to contend with an Upper Purity cultivator.

This realization filled everyone with shock.

Those disciples who had previously doubted Zhang Xiaofan’s cultivation now widened their eyes.

They never would have imagined that Zhang Xiaofan could be this terrifying.

Some even began to question the outcome of this duel.

After all, while Lu Xueqi currently appeared overwhelmingly powerful, Zhang Xiaofan’s performance was nothing to scoff at either.

However, at this moment, Zhang Xiaofan was silently cursing in his heart.

Although the power he had just unleashed was formidable, he still had to avoid the edge of Lu Xueqi’s attacks.

Moreover, to unleash such overwhelming combat strength required a massive expenditure of spiritual energy.

Though he cultivated in the Triple-Path and had an exceptionally strong spiritual foundation...

Such consumption still couldn’t be sustained for long.

After watching Zhang Xiaofan continually evade her attacks, Lu Xueqi formed a hand seal and gently exhaled.

Immediately, several streams of spiritual energy were expelled from her lips, pouring into the firebird.

In an instant, the previously singular and powerful firebird suddenly split into multiple firebirds.

These newly formed firebirds then came at Zhang Xiaofan from different directions.

Sensing the change, Zhang Xiaofan’s expression shifted dramatically.

He gripped the Soul-Devouring Staff tightly in his hand.

As the firebirds closed in, he suddenly swung the staff with great force.

“Bang!”

A thunderous boom echoed as the incoming firebird was instantly shattered.

Next, an eruption of intense heat burst forth.

Even Zhang Xiaofan’s clothes and hair tips were slightly scorched and curled by the heat.

But he dared not relax in the slightest.

Because while he had just destroyed one firebird, the remaining two immediately surged toward him.

Seeing this, Zhang Xiaofan’s face turned pale.

Then, gritting his teeth fiercely, he bit down on his own tongue, causing blood to spray from his mouth and land directly on the Soul-Devouring Staff.

After absorbing his blood, the Soul-Devouring Staff flared with bright azure light.

In an instant, it turned into a streak of radiance and blasted toward the remaining two firebirds.

“Bang! Bang!”

Two more thunderous booms rang out. The Soul-Devouring Staff had, in the blink of an eye, smashed apart Lu Xueqi’s remaining two crimson firebirds.

Lu Xueqi, seeing this, showed no sign of surprise.

If she hadn’t divided the firebird to chase Zhang Xiaofan, that full-force strike, had Zhang Xiaofan taken it head-on, would have left him seriously injured.

But once split into three, the overall power was naturally diminished. Being destroyed by Zhang Xiaofan was within reason.

After dispersing Lu Xueqi’s two firebirds, the Soul-Devouring Staff flew backward.

It hovered before Zhang Xiaofan, radiating a faint azure glow.

At this point, having lost some of his vital blood, Zhang Xiaofan’s face turned slightly pale.

He stared at Lu Xueqi with a grim expression.

He hadn’t expected that after his rebirth, Senior Sister Lu would have grown so powerful.

He clearly remembered that in his past life, Lu Xueqi’s cultivation was, at most, between the Eighth and Ninth Levels of Jade Purity Realm.

At that time, he was only at the Fourth Level of Jade Purity Realm, yet still had a fair chance of defeating her.

Had he not withdrawn his attack when Lu Xueqi unleashed her Divine Sword Lightning Summoning True Art, he...

He might very well have been the true victor.

But this time was completely different. Not only had Lu Xueqi broken through to the Upper Purity Realm...

Her mastery of magic arts had grown profoundly deep. That earlier flame technique was incredibly fearsome.

What unsettled Zhang Xiaofan even more was the faint sense that Lu Xueqi hadn’t even used her full strength.