Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

Ryu took a step back before drawing a line across the air with his finger. A sword of qi formed, dancing with silvery runes that almost instantly suppressed the momentum of Jojo's sword. Stars danced around him and [Absolute Domain] took shape, a light smile playing his handsome features as he took a step to the side, and then another. He moved with an unmatched fluidity, every step he took carrying a beautiful sort of elegance to it.

To his surprise, Jojo didn't immediately get frustrated after two misses. It was like she had forgotten about everything else, even her own mind and personality, when she entered the midst of battle. In fact, Ryu felt that his Dividing Chaos Dao was even somewhat stonewalled. It was as though even her soul had become a piercing blade, focused and unbothered by everything around her, thrusting forward with an indomitable will.

She struck again and again, the wide arcs of her great sword forming a storm of scythes in the air. From afar, even they had a hidden beauty to them, forming the shape of a lotus with petals of flickering flames.

Jojo's dress fluttered in the air, pressing hard, and Ryu quickly noticed several hundred moves ahead that he was actually slowly being cornered.

A smile tugged at the corners of his lips. This woman had sworn not to use any Raging Inferno Sect techniques, just by virtue of that, it was already unfair that he had used [Absolute Domain]. He had mostly done so to end the battle quickly, and he had used it quite casually. Ultimately, he didn't want to spend a lot of time on this woman's whims as he had better things to do, but maybe... he should change his tactics.

Although he was using the technique casually, for Jojo to be able to rely on her instincts alone in an attempt to counter it, was more than just a little bit commendable.

"Alright," he said lightly.

[Absolute Domain] vanished and Jojo became almost like someone stuck in a tug of war battle just after their opponent let go of the rope. Her momentum faltered as though the things she had just been calculating went up in smoke.

Even so, she reoriented herself almost instantly and "found" Ryu again. This time when she swung, her strike was a hundred times stronger. It was obvious to Ryu that she had been holding back for the sake of cornering him, but since that was no longer necessary, she rushed forward with everything she had.

BOOM.

Their swords clashed.

In the midst of battle, Jojo's hair and brows looked much more like flames than they ever had before. They flickered between corporeal and incorporeal, and yet the harsh winds that kicked up beneath their clashes couldn't even begin to blow them out.

The more fiery her hair became, the stronger her attacks and Ryu discovered that even his bones were starting to becoming a hint numb.

'What a battle genius...' Ryu's eyes lit up.

He had heard of people attacking the identical spot again and again, but what Jojo was doing was far beyond that.

She wasn't attacking the identical spot, but rather, regardless of the angle or his attempts to counter, she was forcing his limbs and joints into the same positions again and again before applying pressure.

How could he feel numbness? His body should be leagues beyond what Jojo could imagine? The answer was that she was grinding at his joints, pinpointing the identical area again and again.

It was like a young person developing arthritis because of too many consistent and repetitive actions. But Jojo was actually accelerating this even as she got stronger.

This wasn't a technique, but it was rather pure skill. With this kind of skill, she could grind down a far stronger opponent just by depending on her instincts.

Ryu rarely praised anyone, it was too difficult to impress. But this woman...

BANG! BANG! BANG!

He changed his stance and Jojo almost immediately furrowed her brows. Their fierce exchange only became wilder, a flurry of strikes echoing over the Radiant Star Sect.

The air seemed to radiate with a subtle spread of aura.

To one side, there was a silver domain forming that moved to suffocate the world. On the other, there was a world of purple red.

Ryu could feel that Jojo's strikes were still turning stronger, but every time they did, he poured on just a little bit more, then just a little more after that.

At some point, he grinned. Using his free hand, he drew another line across the air, shaping a second sword.

His arms danced and the pressure on Jojo exploded.

The disciples below felt their hearts clench.

Dual wielders were incredibly rare, and True Dual Wielders were the bane of everyone's existence. They always had far higher combat prowess than their counterparts and fighting them felt like you were facing off against two enemies at once.

When Ryu used a weapon like the sword, a weapon that could more comfortably be dual wielded, his advantage rose like a tide and it seemed as though Jojo's fire might be smothered out completely.

And yet she stood like an indomitable wall. Her stance became more defensive. She picked and chose her spots, not allowing the sudden reversal to impact the brightness of her heart.

'Brightness?'

Ryu's gaze flickered, but at that moment Jojo's chest truly began to glow as though a portal was opening up from within her heart.

Her great blade suddenly accelerated, appearing before Ryu's neck in an instant and blowing by his defenses.

Ryu raised an eyebrow as he was completely cut through.

Many gasped, but just as quickly, Ryu disappeared into sparks of fire, appearing within Jojo's guard. His swords rested on her neck, causing her to blink in slight confusion.

Just then, when she realized that Ryu wasn't doing anything for some reason, she pulled back. But she hadn't expected this.

Ryu smiled. "You're a little too inexperienced. Go back and train a bit."

The previously calm Jojo almost blew her top.