There was an obvious difference between the two groups, whether it be in terms of speed or mobility, and unsurprisingly, it was the five elder birds that pulled ahead. No matter how the Sword King tried, he was still born an earthly person. His methods could never compare to a true aerial beast! Furthermore, his opponents were Vogels, not ordinary birds. Their physical capabilities were on another level. The Featherwind Sect also specialized in aerial combat, and as the foremost experts in the sect before its collapse, the five elder birds were obvious masters in this area! Add in Magic and Martial Energy, and their capabilities far outstripped the Sword King's!
As they gained the higher ground, the Sword King grimaced. This was the one thing he feared would happen. Instinct Realm or not, he could not sustain his flight forever. It took considerable effort and energy to stay afloat. And once the birds gained sufficient distance, they could harass him until he ran out of energy. A battle of attrition was the worst-case scenario for him. He immediately drew a breath, sheathed his sword, and halted. His aura also receded like the tides, returning him to a mortal once more. With one hand resting on his sword's handle, wisps of Martial Energy swirled around his feet. Zing! He suddenly vanished and reappeared above the weakest bird, Elder Crus, who was now a Perception Realm Novice. At an unfathomable speed, he unleashed a single fatal strike. Then, he vanished, reappeared, and executed four more continuous attacks at an increasingly greater speed and strength. He attacked all five birds in the blink of an eye!
The Sword King landed back on the flying ship with a peculiar gaze. It was too easy! However, the birds soon transformed into a mist that swarmed him. He was about to cut them down when he realized his sword was coated in a bizarre substance. It inhibited his flow of Martial Energy and cut off his control! The substance jumped to attack him directly, causing him to leap away from his sword. The mist caught up to him and consolidated into a dozen chains that bound his limbs. Although he tugged at them, they were stronger than they looked. He could not break free! Despite this, he kept a tranquil air. Closing his eyes, he unleashed his senses. True Perception activated! The strange scene then fell apart. It turned out to be an incredibly powerful illusionary spell.
Elder Argo and Crus dove toward him the front and back simultaneously, having capitalized on his brief lull. The armor on their wings glowed in a mysterious light from their Martial Energy. They were relics from their time in the Featherwind Sect, Superior Noble Grade armaments that could greatly enhance their power. Although their side lost in Rank, they surpassed him in treasures! The two birds accelerated with murderous intent. They wanted to bisect him before he recovered! Right before they could touch him though, his eyes snapped open! He instantly captured the situation and reacted! Swords of light flashed in his hands as he stopped the two birds' charge. Boom! The tremendous impact created by their collision hinted at the enormous power behind their strikes. It might have been a fatal strike had he not stopped it.
He focused the Martial Energy from one of his swords into a point-blank explosion that blasted Elder Crus back. Then, with his now freehand, he summoned his true sword, shredded the bizarre substance, and slashed at Elder Argo in the fraction of a second. His speed was frightening to behold! Elder Argo was the strongest opponent at Perception Realm Master. Taking him out would have a large effect on the battle! His sword hit Elder Argo's armor like a hammer against metal, sending sparks flying everywhere. The Sword King was stunned. Normally, his sword would have easily cut through any armor, so this resistance was truly abnormal.
To Elder Argo though, this was nothing surprising. His armor was the best Superior Noble Grade armor in the Featherwind Sect, and he was a Grand Rank 2 Lord, close to the boundary of Half-Rank 3 King. On the other hand, the Sword King might be an Early Rank 3 King, yet his sword was barely a Lesser Noble Grade weapon. It might even be a Mortal Grade! This was a bigger problem than it seemed. Rank 1 Mortals used Mortal Grade treasures, Rank 2 Lords used Noble Grades, while Rank 3 Kings used Monarch Grades. By using the correct treasure for their Rank, they could exhibit their full power! This was why higher graded treasures were so valuable in the larger world and why entire civilizations went to war for them. The difference between a Rank 3 King with a Monarch Grade treasure and one without was like day and night! Conversely, this is why the Sword King failed to pierce through Elder Argo's armor. His sword was fundamentally too fragile and weak to break through. It fractured from the recoil instead.
The bird quickly distanced himself. He knew that a treasure grade could help close the gap, but never cross it. A serious attempt from the Sword King could shatter his armor. In the end, what mattered was not fancy armaments or treasures. It was the individual! The Sword King was about to give chase when seven talismans surrounded him. The timing and coordination were impeccable. Elder Ludin had activated his Bloodline Ability and casted a variation of his Seven Encloses Heaven spell, which he used in the Battle of the Maelstrom Gulf. Seven barriers locked the Sword King firmly inside. He took a stance, raised his palm, and tried to shatter the barrier with one strike. It shook violently but dispersed the force in seven directions. Previously, the same spell resisted five warships ramming into it, and that was when they were spread thin. Now that they were concentrated using Superior Noble Grade talismans, their defensive power reached new heights!
Elder Crus activated her Bloodline Ability and then her technique, Demon Wind Resurrection. Since she backlashed to Perception Realm Novice, her once towering and gigantic doppelganger retained a mere fraction of its size. It was barely ten times her size now. The doppelganger shot into the Seven Encloses Heaven barrier and attacked the Sword King, but the man remained ever calm. He thrusted his sword forward with equivalent force to negate the technique. Cloud Sea Style: Swallowing Sea! Boom! A large horizontal shockwave erupted from the point of impact. Despite that, the doppelganger did not dissipate like he imagined, but split into two! The two smaller birds lost half the energy but gained twice the speed! They disengaged from the Sword King, collided with the barrier, and divided into four, then eight, then sixteen… They became mere blurs of light as they multiplied at a ridiculous rate. At the same time, they attacked the Sword King from every conceivable angle! He stood at the center of a massive storm!
He laughed, released his perception, accelerated his body, and raised his sword. One man and one sword then slashed through the air at inhuman speeds to intercept every projectile. Countless sounds like the pattering of rain came from the innumerable attacks, yet he effortlessly repelled the waves of attacks. It was indescribably majestic and mesmerizing, fully displaying his immense awareness and swordsmanship. He earned his reputation as the Sword King. No one else could replicate the same feat! Things were going smoothly when he was suddenly slashed on the back. It was a light wound, but he frowned. He did not sense the attack. The same happened when he intercepted a bird with his sword. He hit air, but the bird reappeared in another direction, nearly hitting him. His perception was being manipulated again! Whoever did the deed was obviously experienced in combating an Instinct Realm. As the birds increased and his senses remained unreliable, the pressure mounted. Left without a choice, he conjured another sword in his freehand and unleashed his True Perception. This dangerously multiplied his concentration and Martial Energy expenditure! It was rapidly turning into the worst-case scenario, a battle of attrition!
Right as his mental state wavered, Elder Unvo notified Elder Argo. The falcon had been amassing his Martial Energy for this exact moment! His energy then manifested into an extremely life-like doppelganger with a monstrously powerful aura that radiated throughout Guanhuang. Everyone could feel it! Elizabeth and her friends flinched and paled because this aura was the one that cleaved Liguang into two! It started the Battle of Liguang! Demon Wind Requiem! The sky was bathed in a white light as a gigantic wing streaked down onto the Sword King. It threatened to flatten the world!