Even the Sword King felt a faint sense of danger. Letting that technique fall upon him might be bad news! He immediately switched strategies and exhaled a frosty breath. The air quickly suffused the barrier, causing layers of ice to grow on the birds. It slowed them down, and when he struck them down, they directly shattered into pieces. They could not split anymore! The Seven Encloses Heaven barrier also grew increasingly brittle under his technique and a simple swing of his sword was enough to shatter it. In less than a second, he destroyed Elder Crus and Ludin's techniques and they spat out blood as a result. Standing in the air, the Sword King's clothes fluttered in the breeze as he fearlessly looked up. Elder Argo's ultimate technique descended like the sky was falling down, yet he alone stood against the heavens. He resembled a true hero of legend!
His second sword transformed into wisps of Martial Energy that coiled around his actual sword, bathing it vibrant blue, but that was not enough. The Sword King infused even more energy into it and made it glow blindingly bright! It lit up the battlefield like the light of dawn! Everyone could see it! At the same time, everyone innately felt how dangerous the Sword King's sword became. The man stomped off the air and jumped into the sky to meet the attack head-on. His movements were as swift as lightning! Cloud Sea Style: Star Rain! Boom! The two techniques collided in a monstrous explosion, powerful enough to scatter the clouds!
However, one side clearly overpowered the other as Demon Wind Requiem lost ground. It was being pushed back! The Sword King then pierced through the technique like a rising star. Demon Wind Requiem fell apart and disappeared! Elder Argo barely had time to react before he saw a figure shoot past him. Blood splashed. His armor and wing were nearly sliced clean off, and they would have been, had he not reacted. What a fearsome attack! The bird looked behind to see the Sword King standing carefreely. This was a Rank 3 King!
The man flicked the blood off his sword and drew a deep breath. The chaotic storm of energies was drawn towards him in a mesmerizing vortex of colors. His aura strengthened with every breath and his wounds closed with shocking speed. When he was done, he was fully healed. It was his recovery method, Cloud Sea Style: Sipping Cloud! This showed how important a strong recovery method was. It could be the difference between life and death!
"Surely, you're not done yet. Show me everything you got!" he sneered from above.
Although the Featherwind Sect had dominated every battle they were in thus far, they could not surpass the Sword King. He was simply too strong! However… the sly figure of Elder Terus suddenly emerged from behind him. The bird swept a vicious attack through the man's blind spot! The Sword King snorted, having seen through the ambush already. He spun around and slashed. He would bifurcate Elder Terus in one hit! Yet the bird smiled. This was what he was waiting for! Elder Terus changed his target to the Sword King's fractured sword. Bang! With one clean strike, the sword shattered into a thousand pieces! As the fragments flew and glinted in the sunlight, the Sword King was briefly dazed. Elder Terus casted a spell, causing their reflections to shine like the starry night sky. Over a hundred beams then assaulted the Sword King at point-blank distance! He was quick to defend himself, but the force propelled him back a great distance.
Meanwhile, the birds fell into formation with Elder Argo in the front, Elder Ludin and Elder Terus the sides, Elder Unvo the center, and Elder Crus the rear, all of them using their respective recovery methods. They demonstrated remarkable teamwork and coordination throughout the battle, something they never would have dreamt of before. Back in the Featherwind Sect, it was always tense since they competed to become the next Rank 3 King. Of course, it was a friendly rivalry, but a rivalry nonetheless. They rarely trained together or exchanged pointers, and when they did, it was superficial. That changed when the sect fell. They realized they had fallen from grace. If they wanted to survive, then they had to rely on each other. There was no other way. Hence, since they arrived in the human world, they spent that time recovering their strength, as well as developing new strategies and practicing their teamwork. They wanted to prepare themselves for the worst. The fruits of their labor were finally beginning to show itself now.
But could that defeat a Rank 3 King? No! Rank Transcendent Kings were famed and feared precisely because it was hard to bridge the gap between Rank 2 Lord and Rank 3 King. They were monsters of their generation, absolute apex experts that could shake the world one day! It was not something a lowly group of Rank 2 Lords could achieve. Commander Infernal Witch King from the Luminous Central Origin would have killed them all the same. No… She would have done the deed faster now that the five birds backlashed. Against overwhelming strength, all manner of trickery was useless. That was the absolute truth of this world! So then, how could they survive against the Sword King, much less gain the upper hand? The answer was simple… He was weak! Certainly, he was a genuine Rank 3 King, an Instinct Realm, who carved his way to the top of the human world. There was no doubt about that. Yet, there were three big differences between him and Rank 3 Kings like Commander Infernal Witch King.
First was experience. Although the Sword King became an Instinct Realm years ago, that could be considered recent among Rank 3 Kings. For example, Commander Infernal Witch King had decades, if not centuries, of combat experience fighting high-level opponents. Her abilities and systems had been revised, refined, and perfected to an unimaginable level. She had earned her place as an Early Rank 3 King! Conversely, the Sword King had none of that experience to draw from. He was the first Instinct Realm in over a century, meaning he had no peers or rivals either. He stagnated at the zenith. Objectively speaking, he was a very weak Early Rank 3 King.
Second was background. Commander Infernal Witch King had full access to the Luminous Central Origin's resources, whereas the Sword King had none. It could not be overstated how important this was. The Luminous Central Origin was a Rank 3 civilization, which meant they could consistently nurture Rank 3 Kings over the generations. With such a rich history of geniuses and experts paving a way forward for their descendants to walk on, she had the culmination of the civilization's entire knowledge, wisdom, and experience at her fingertips. She had zero obstacles! Conversely, as admirable as it may be that the Sword King reached Instinct Realm by himself, it also meant that he stood without that support. He was wandering in the darkness, looking for a way forward, while she had everything explored for her already. The difference was gigantic!
Third was armament. As was said before, a Rank 3 King needed Monarch Grade treasures to demonstrate their true power. Commander Infernal Witch King had a Monarch Grade armor and weapon tailormade for her needs, multiplying her defensive and offensive power many times over. She could produce twice the power with half the effort. This was how she dominated the battlefield in the Fall of the Featherwind Sect so long ago. This was how she could hound the five elder birds to their deaths! She was a true demoness! Conversely, the Sword King had a simple Mortal Grade sword. Just one strike against a Noble Grade armor fractured it, so how could it stand on a fight of this level? He might as well be unarmed. Everything added up to create this bizarre scene where the five elder birds gained the upper hand against a Rank 3 King.
Looking at his stump of a sword, the Sword King's expression darkened. To lose their sword was the greatest humiliation a swordsman could bear, especially for him, the Sword King. He chuckled slowly and glared at the five birds with cold eyes, burning with killing intent. He would massacre them all! Boom! Suddenly, a massive and monstrous aura slammed down across the lands in a gigantic tidal wave. Everyone was frightened silly! It felt like an ocean was crashing down from the sheer weight of the aura, making it hard to breath! It was so potent that weaker-willed individuals directly fainted from the pressure, while stronger-willed people froze on the spot. Despite the vast distance, over a hundred thousand people were affected in an instant! The Sword King was furious!