Chapter 69 – Destroy all Evidence
Kaelun staggered, his robes torn and blood leaking from several wounds. Yet his eyes burned with something sharper than pain—fear. That orb… it wasn't normal. Jin had revealed something dangerous. Something that couldn't be ignored.
"You..." Kaelun said through clenched teeth, "That was no ordinary fusion. That was four elements. Four."
Jin said nothing. His chest rose and fell slowly, recovering essence. The orb had taken its toll on him too.
Kaelun's hand trembled. Darkness pooled around his body like a writhing serpent. "You should have hidden that better."
Suddenly, his wind and darkness flared violently. He made a seal with both hands.
Jin's expression darkened. "A forbidden technique?"
Kaelun growled. "You shouldn't be allowed to exist."
Wind blades surrounded him, enhanced and sharpened, spinning faster than sound. The shadows condensed into a cloak over his body, merging with the blades. His veins darkened, his skin graying as his essence burned twice as hot, twice as fast.
Jin muttered, "He's killing himself just to kill me."
Kaelun moved.
Faster than before.
His blades tore through the platform, his body almost imperceptible.
Jin moved too.
He activated a spatial rune beneath his feet, vanishing just before Kaelun struck. He reappeared mid-air, above Kaelun.
His hands moved in a fluid motion.
And his blade appeared.
The runic longsword glowed. Jin closed his eyes.
Then danced.
The Sword Dance ignited—his body becoming a flowing current of precise, devastating strikes. Fire curved in his blade, wind cloaked his steps, ice snapped in each arc, and earth steadied his footwork. The air cracked with power.
Kaelun tried to retaliate. His blades collided with Jin's sword, again and again. But Jin's movements were unpredictable, seamless—every strike a transition from the last. The fusion wasn't just in the orb.
It was in him.
Kaelun roared and struck forward with all his might. Jin slid beneath the strike, twisted mid-air, and plunged his sword through Kaelun's chest.
The wind died.
The shadows faded.
Kaelun's expression froze.
And then he fell.
Silence filled the platform.
Then the realm acknowledged it.
"Victory: Jin."
All those who had finished their matches stood in shock. Jin had slain a late-stage Adept Realm cultivator, fifth on the leaderboard.
They couldn't look at him the same again.
Even Lyra, resting after her own brutal match, stared at Jin with a complicated look. He was rising too fast. Burning too bright.
Later, as Jin stepped into the waiting space, he found no one outside. Everyone else was still fighting when he had finished his previous match. But now… all eyes turned to him.
The third round was over.
The Will's voice echoed.
"Thirteen remain. Thirty-minute rest. Matches will resume."
Jin sat in silence, breathing deeply.
He looked up at the scoreboard. Thorne had defeated Selene. That meant only Thorne, third place, and number 7 were left among the original top ten—besides himself and Ignis.
Lyra had won her match too. She sat not far from him, tired but smiling. She glanced down at the marble she was given—number 1.
There was a sharp intake of breath from nearby cultivators. The one who held that number would skip two rounds, guaranteeing a place in the final four.
Jin couldn't help but chuckle and scratch his nose in embarrassment. She had used the technique he'd taught her, after all. The timing was perfect.
Now it all came down to the final battles.
And Jin's next opponent?
A mid-stage Adept Realm cultivator—blessed child of his sect—with lightning essence and incredible speed. Known for his ability to weave between five distinct techniques almost instantly.
Jin's eyes narrowed.
The real war… had just begun.