Just then, a magic circle suddenly appeared beneath Yao Nitian's feet!

A wave of evil energy howled in all directions like a raging tide, its power considerable.

This indiscriminate defensive counterattack momentarily stalled Ruoyu's sword moves.

But… only momentarily.

A second later, the sword energy surged, unstoppable, smashing the evil energy blocking Ruoyu's blade into fragments.

Yao Nitian, startled, quickly grabbed the demonic staff at hand to meet the attack head-on.

*Clang!*

Weapons clashed, the resounding clang instantaneous.

The contest between sword energy and evil energy stirred up a turbulent flow of power.

This exchange forced Li Ruoyu back three steps, while Yao Nitian… flew backward a full thirty feet, his feet leaving the ground.

At this moment, the arrogant Yao Nitian opened his eyes, his expression solemn. "What power is this?"

The energy released from Ruoyu's sword… was neither the true meaning of swordsmanship, nor the holy aura of the Buddhist faith, nor pure brute force… yet her sword energy possessed aspects of all three.

Yao Nitian had never encountered such an opponent. The special attributes of a traveler from another world clearly exceeded his understanding, causing him to waver.

"Are you asking me?" Ruoyu replied in a deep voice. "Sorry, I practice many different techniques, each with its own lineage. I don't know how to classify the 'power' I'm currently using." She paused. "I only know… this power happens to be able to restrain your evil spirit power."

As she spoke, she had already closed the distance between herself and her opponent, adjusting her stance.

Before her voice faded, her ultimate move was unleashed…

Ruoyu's figure instantly transformed into multiple afterimages, surrounding her opponent.

In the blink of an eye, dozens of lightning-fast sword lights struck Yao Nitian from all directions… each carrying the force of a thousand pounds, the energy fierce and sharp.

【Butterfly Spirit Divine Shadow】was an advanced fighting technique recorded in the "Dragon Slaughter Chapter" of the Seven Chapters of Ghost Valley. It was also the strongest single-target attack skill Li Ruoyu possessed, aside from 【Bipolar Harmony】.

According to Ruoyu's past record, any NPC who took this move head-on, except for Boss-level characters, would at least be seriously injured.

Undoubtedly, this record… would continue in this battle.

"Ugh—" Although Yao Nitian used external demonic energy and staff parries to ensure he didn't suffer any fatal injuries, he still endured more than ten sword strikes in this round of attacks, his injuries quite severe.

"Damn it… to be taken advantage of by this unknown junior…" Yao Nitian thought with resentment after taking the blows. At the same time, he leaped backward, jumping into the air, once again creating distance between himself and Ruoyu.

"Can you escape?" Ruoyu showed no hesitation after retracting her sword, pursuing him relentlessly.

In terms of speed, she was much faster than Yao Nitian. In terms of techniques, as a swordswoman, she was naturally more skilled than the demonic monk by more than a level.

In this battle, Yao Nitian could rely on his century of foundation and his ability to summon evil spirits. However… Ruoyu, known as the 【Thousand Evil Slayer】, happened to be the bane of evil spirits. 【Holy Seal】 in her hand took evil spirits as experience, making it extremely effective against opponents with Yao Nitian's attributes.

It could be said… that in this battle, Ruoyu had the upper hand in all aspects. If she wanted, she could finish it quickly.

But… she didn't.

On the surface, Ruoyu was indeed aggressive. Whether in words or actions, she was constantly on the offensive. But in reality… she was only using seventy percent of her strength in each move.

For example, in the 【Butterfly Spirit Divine Shadow】 just now, if Ruoyu had used her full strength, Yao Nitian would have been beaten to near death long ago. The reason she secretly held back and created this seemingly fierce illusion was for one purpose, and that was…

"Junior! Don't push people too far!" On the other side, seeing Ruoyu pursuing with her sword, Yao Nitian quickly formed a demonic seal in the air, shouting angrily, "All the evil in the heavens, heed my call!"

With that cry, the evil spirits circling in the air swarmed down, attacking Ruoyu.

"Hmph…" Ruoyu snorted coldly at the sight, a slight smile on her lips.

In that instant, only one person in the entire martial arts tournament arena realized what that expression meant.

"I see…" Feng Bujue thought as he watched Ruoyu on the stage. "She wants to use Yao Nitian's 'ability to summon evil spirits' to farm 【Holy Seal】's spirit slaying count." Thinking of this, he also showed a hint of a smile. "Maximizing profits reasonably when in a dominant position; not being arrogant when gaining power, not being impatient when having the upper hand… With this kind of strategy, this kind of calmness… she would be more than qualified to be a captain in other guilds…"

Just as Brother Jue was pondering, the dozens of evil spirits had rapidly flown down, surrounding Ruoyu.

And Ruoyu… had been waiting for this moment.

But lo!

The figure spun, the sword shadow followed.

Qi erupted in thousands of clusters, falling like petals; light bloomed in ten thousand blossoms, scattering like lotus.

With a single move of 【Fallen Blossom Scattering Skirt】, she slaughtered the evil spirits, leaving them in tatters, shattering them into glittering dust.

"Ha—" At the same time, Yao Nitian, more than ten meters away, had suddenly landed, taking advantage of the few seconds Ruoyu was delayed by the evil spirits, he had already charged up his next move: "Demon Transmission~Ten Directions Seal!"

When shouting the name of the technique, Yao Nitian rapidly spun the demonic staff in his hand twice, then thrust it into the ground.

The next moment, he retracted his arms, crossed his hands to form a seal, and then pushed his arms out!

Instantly, ten layers of swastika-shaped evil energy flew out from his palms, soaring into the sky and falling towards Ruoyu's location.

"Ignorant swordswoman, accept your death!" Yao Nitian immediately uttered a declaration of certain death when he unleashed his ultimate move, seemingly very confident in the power of this move.

However, his attack… ended in failure.

*Boom—*

A shocking explosion rang out, and a giant swastika-shaped pit was instantly carved out on the stage. All ten layers of violent energy were unleashed here, but… Ruoyu's figure had already appeared elsewhere.

【Name: Desert Shadow, No Trace】

【Skill Card Attribute: Active Skill, Permanently Learned】

【Skill Category: Combat】

【Effect: Perform a super-high-speed movement at the instant of being attacked (cooldown time is three minutes, can only be activated when attacked from a distance, there must be a movement trajectory between the target location and the current location)】

【Consumption: Stamina Value 300】

【Learning Requirements: Combat Specialization A】

【Note: Created by the Jianghu figure known as "Shadow Death God," Stone the Hero. Stone the Hero's qinggong is superb, he is upright, and has spent his life fighting for justice and eliminating evil. Unfortunately… he was born with an extremely common face, his presence so weak that no one can remember what he looks like except for his wife and children, and no one can even remember his name. So… people have always just called him "Stone the Hero."】