Chapter 186: Limit Break [PART 1]
The empress’s voice resonated in Li Yao’s mind.
[Get ready.]
Li Yao raised her hands skyward, and the weather transformed instantly. Dark clouds materialized across the once-clear sky, spreading across the battlefield. Lightning began crackling through the clouds.
The sect masters paused their assault, eyes drawn upward. They exchanged glances, wondering what Li Yao was planning. Even the cult leader stopped to observe what was happening.
A smirk crossed the cult leader’s face. Was she intending to join the fight now that he had sustained some injuries? Despite the wounds inflicted by the combined might of the sect masters, he knew he still had plenty of power in reserve.
Above him, the clouds condensed into a particularly dense formation. A massive lightning bolt, thick as a tree trunk and blindingly bright, formed and hurtled downward, aimed directly at the cult leader.
"Is this your move?" he mocked, raising his hand confidently to catch the attack.
But before the lightning could reach him, something unexpected happened. The cult leader’s body suddenly stiffened. His expression froze mid-sneer, then twisted into one of pure agony. A gut-wrenching scream tore from his throat as he clutched his head with both hands, howling in pain.
The sound was so terrible, so primal, that even the subordinates fighting below ceased their battles, all eyes drawn to the spectacle unfolding in the sky.
[NOW!] the Empress commanded.
In an instant, the lightning bolt that had been descending toward the screaming cult leader vanished—and in its place appeared Li Yao, materializing directly before her enemy. Without hesitation, she slapped a talisman against his forehead.
Their eyes met. Li Yao’s gaze was cold and determined; the cult leader’s was filled with dawning horror. Despite his agony, he desperately reached for the talisman, fingers clawing to remove it before activation.
But it was too late.
The talisman ignited with power. Inside his spiritual sea, a blinding white light erupted, spreading outward in consuming waves that erased everything in its path. It is said that having one’s soul destroyed was the most excruciating experience possible—and now the cult leader was experiencing this torment for the second time. Still weakened from the first soul shock that had struck his clone, he couldn’t react quickly enough to protect his soul from this critical blow.
Rage filled him. No! He refused to let it end like this!
Li Yao and the others had already retreated to a safe distance, watching the cult leader’s torment with wary eyes. The sect masters trembled at the sight, making mental notes never to provoke Li Yao in the future. What power could reduce the mighty cult leader to this state?
Eventually, the cult leader’s screams subsided. He hung suspended in the air, motionless, silent. Then, fine cracks began appearing across his skin, spreading like a spiderweb across his face and exposed arms.
[That’s not good,] the Empress observed, her tone concerned.
"Why? What’s happening? Didn’t the talisman work?" Li Yao asked, confusion evident in her voice.
[It worked, but...] the Empress began.
"But what?" Li Yao pressed impatiently.
[Although it worked, it wasn’t as effective as we had expected,] the Empress explained. [It seems that the cult leader isn’t so simple. He actually has a mutated soul.]
"What’s that?" Li Yao asked.
[It’s a special kind of soul...] the Empress started to elaborate, but seeing Li Yao’s expression, she abbreviated her explanation. [Just know that it’s stronger than a normal soul, so the talisman didn’t deal as much damage as we would’ve liked.]
The Empress thought to herself that normally, such a powerful soul shock would have completely obliterated the soul, either killing the target outright or reducing them to a mindless husk. She hadn’t anticipated this outcome. No wonder this cultivator had so easily dominated others in the same realm.
[But it’s not all bad,] she continued, and Li Yao paid close attention. [With this amount of damage to his soul, he can’t mobilize true qi.]
[This would’ve been easy to deal with, but it seems that the other sect masters aren’t faring all that better,] the Empress observed.
Li Yao glanced at their allies. The prolonged battle had clearly taken its toll. Despite their impressive showing, the sect masters were visibly exhausted, their combat power significantly diminished. Although they had been receiving a steady supply of recovery pills, such common pills were insufficient for experts of their caliber. They would need at least fifth-grade pills to properly restore their strength.
"Since he can’t use true qi, it should be all about body refining then, right? I’ll take him on," Li Yao declared confidently.
[Well, it’s not that simple,] the Empress cautioned.
Suddenly, the aura surrounding the cult leader intensified. The cracks on his skin spread further, covering more of his visible body. Li Yao watched with growing unease. Although she could no longer sense any spiritual pressure from him, she could feel his power increasing steadily.
...
"What is happening?" Li Yao asked, her eyes fixed on the cult leader.
[He’s attempting a Limit Break,] the Empress replied.
[The body always has a limit on how much power it can exert at a certain realm,] the Empress explained. [This is known as the Limit.] She paused. [But when someone forces a limit break, they can exert even more power.]
"How much more are we talking?" Li Yao’s eyes narrowed.
[It depends on the base stats. Some can go one realm above, while others can go up to three realms,] she elaborated. [The highest realm one can reach is called the Absolute Limit. If you go past it, you literally turn into dust.] The Empress’s tone grew more somber. [This is because limit breaking consumes lifespan, as you can see from the state of his body.]
Li Yao studied the cult leader more intently, noting how he indeed appeared to be aging rapidly before her eyes. Deep wrinkles formed across his skin, and his hair was visibly graying at the edges. Yet despite these alarming physical deteriorations, his power continued to surge relentlessly upward.
"What is his body cultivation?" she asked.
[Luckily, you both have the same body cultivation realm, which is the seventeenth layer,] the Empress replied.
"And his absolute limit?" Li Yao asked.
[You share that too at three layers. In your absolute limit, you’ll both be at the twentieth layer,] the Empress explained.
Li Yao’s expression shifted. "What do you mean we share the same absolute limit? You want me to limit break too? No way! What if I grow into an old hag and senior brother doesn’t like me anymore?"
"You won’t have a senior brother anymore if you don’t do it," the Empress thought, though she didn’t say it aloud.
Instead, [Don’t worry about it. I’ll use my lifespan instead.] The Empress thought to herself that it didn’t matter as she could recover the lost years after just a few proper spirit meals.
"So, how do I do it?" Li Yao asked.
[The limit break isn’t something you can just be taught how to do,] the Empress replied. [Everyone has their own way of breaking through the limit. The most common way is through anger.]
"Idk if you know ts, but I’m quite angry rn, so why isn’t anything happening?" Li Yao retorted.
[It’s not that kind of...] The Empress sighed internally. Fortunately, she had anticipated this. Well, actually, she hadn’t but oh well...
[Actually, when I noticed him get hurt just now, I spread my divine sense and sensed something,] she began. [His soul clone was actually...]
As the Empress revealed what had truly transpired, Li Yao’s expression transformed completely. The frustration drained from her face, replaced by something far more terrifying: cold, pure rage.
The lightning clouds that had been gathering across the sky suddenly froze. The sect masters nearby felt an inexplicable chill crawl down their spines, causing them to shift their attention from the transforming cult leader to Li Yao.
The same spider-web cracks that marred the cult leader’s skin began appearing on Li Yao’s body as well. The Empress immediately channeled her own life force into Li Yao, preventing the cracks from spreading further while simultaneously healing those that had already formed.
Li Yao’s normally expressive eyes turned emotionless and cold. The blue eyes from her spirit form gradually shifted to a brilliant silver. Her hair also began transforming from the roots downward, the blue spirit hair bleaching to pure white as the power surge coursed through her body.
Across the battlefield, the cult leader had completed his own transformation. His body was now covered entirely with cracks. Despite his deteriorated physical state, the power emanating from him was undeniable.
When Li Yao and the cult leader’s eyes met across the distance, it was on sight...
...
Author’s Corner
I introduce this mostly because the the next arc will start immediately and the mc’s don’t have time to grow. I thought that Li Yao as a main character profile, it’s within her character to gain a new "form" every now and then.
What do you guy’s think?