A Chaotic World

Lu Tianzi stood before the Piercing Wind Overlord with eyes shining with determination.

Everyone else kept a fair distance from them, all of them curious about what they would be witnessing next.

They had heard the news – the Piercing Wind Overlord was intending to invite Lu Tianzi to join them not just as an honorary member of the Frost Guards, but also in their quest of retaking Frostguard Mountain. But before that, the Piercing Wind Overlord would be testing Lu Tianzi's combat capabilities.

No one was surprised that the Piercing Wind Overlord would extend such an invitation to Lu Tianzi. By inviting him as an honorary member, the Frost Guards would be able to gain a skilled physician. It could also be seen as a reward to him for treating the Piercing Wind Overlord, something that all of them was grateful for.

However, what they were curious about was why the Piercing Wind Overlord was going to test Lu Tianzi's combat capabilities.

And was it really necessary for an Overlord realm powerhouse to personally test a mere Fourth Cycle Origin Core realm martial artist?

The Piercing Wind Overlord was still in the process of recovery, and there were still multiple Ninth Cycle Origin Core realm martial artists in their midst. Surely any of them would suffice as the tester!

That was when an unbelievable rumour involving Lu Tianzi and Nanshen Qin started spreading from the hunting group, causing everyone's interest in this test to grow.

Right now, every single member of the Frost Guards was gathered in the cave, their focus fixed upon Lu Tianzi and the Piercing Wind Overlord.

"Don't worry, I won't be going all out," the Piercing Wind Overlord reassured Lu Tianzi with an amiable smile.

"You can't even if you wanted to. You have yet to fully recover after all."

The Piercing Wind Overlord felt the corner of his lips twitch. "In any case, this is what we will be doing. If you are able to touch any part of my body despite being under the effect of my domain, then you will have passed."

"Any part of your body?" Lu Tianzi asked.

"That's right," the Piercing Wind Overlord nodded confidently. "Be it my arm, my hair, my feet, as long as you can come into contact with any part of my body, that will be the end of it."

"You are really making me feel competitive!" Lu Tianzi spoke his mind with a grin on his face.

This was not even about landing a proper hit. Even if the Piercing Wind Overlord was so much as forced to block, Lu Tianzi would already be considered the victor.

Lu Tianzi had never participated in a match with the rules this skewed towards him before, so he could not help but feel like failing was not an option. But at the same time, this did not mean that Lu Tianzi was confident of victory.

While the rules were in his favour, their cultivation levels were not.

Up till now, Lu Tianzi had never truly experienced the domain of an Overlord powerhouse. Therefore, he could only guess that it would be much stronger than the one that Linye Caixia had exhibited back at the Timeless Flame Sect.

If that was really the case, then this might turn out to be a little tricky after all.

"Here I go," the Piercing Wind Overlord said. "Try not to crumble under the pressure."

As soon as his sentence ended, an illusory bottle gourd shimmered into existence behind the Piercing Wind Overlord.

Almost immediately, Lu Tianzi felt his surroundings change.

It was similar to the time when he faced Linye Caixia's incomplete domain – he was obviously still in the same location, facing the same opponent. However, it felt like there was now something fundamentally different about his surroundings, as though the world laws governing it had changed somehow.

Moreover, this feeling was much stronger than when he had faced Linye Caixia.

The bottle gourd behind the Piercing Wind Overlord suddenly turned sideways, with its mouth facing Lu Tianzi. The next moment, a howling wind erupted forth, smashing hard into Lu Tianzi.

"Tch!" Lu Tianzi cursed in his heart while immediately driving his origin core to hold on. Had he not done so, he would have been instantly swept off his feet by the powerful gale.

Even after channelling his origin force to remain stationary, Lu Tianzi could feel himself slowly sliding backwards, unable to completely resist the strength of the howling winds.

This was completely unlike facing Linye Caixia's incomplete domain.

Lu Tianzi finally understood why the Piercing Wind Overlord dared to set the rules so disadvantageous for himself.

Under this relentless battering from the powerful winds, it was simply impossible to take a single step forward, much less come close to touching the Piercing Wind Overlord.

Lu Tianzi had to muster quite a bit of effort just to prevent himself from getting swept away, but his mind remained clear of what he had to do.

Just holding on alone was not enough.

Rather than spending all his effort on that, he had to carefully observe his surroundings so as to understand the exact situation that he was in. Only then would he stand a chance of getting himself out of this pinch.

Lu Tianzi's eyes shone with a silvery light as he hurriedly looked for some sort of opening.

Unfortunately, an Overlord's domain was unlike any ordinary combat technique, and there was never an opening to be found in the first place.

The Limitless Mirror Eye allowed Lu Tianzi to see through the flow of energy, but the flow of energy had been simple from the beginning. The Piercing Wind Overlord's origin totem – the illusory bottle gourd – was the core of the domain, supplying energy to the far reaches of the domain and imbuing the area with the power of the world laws.

Unless an origin totem could be destroyed, there was no way to cut the flow of energy. It was a straightforward setup that had absolutely nothing to be taken advantage of.

Still, his actions were not completely in vain as it still allowed Lu Tianzi to realise something.

Initially, he had thought that the strong winds would all be coming from the illusory bottle gourd. But after taking a closer look, he quickly came to realise that this was not the case at all.

The illusory bottle gourd was only pointing its mouth towards Lu Tianzi. But contrary to what he had expected, there was actually nothing coming out of it. Instead, the winds actually originated from his surroundings.

All around him, the previously cold and stale air of the cave had somehow transformed into a stormy blizzard under the governance of the domain. It was as though the mere appearance of the illusory bottle gourd had brought the winds of the world under its command, now bent on wrecking the lone victim that was Lu Tianzi.

This was a different kind of domain as compared to Linye Caixia's.

While Linye Caixia's domain created powerful burning warriors that attacked her target from various angles, the Piercing Wind Overlord's domain created a world of storms where his opponents would find themselves in a situation akin to a lone boat on the stormy seas.

As if that was not enough, the overwhelming pressure of an Overlord powerhouse suddenly descended upon Lu Tianzi. Had it been any other Fourth Cycle Origin Core realm martial artist, this pressure alone would have forced them to crumble.

"This is my domain – Descent of the Mountain Winds," the Piercing Wind Overlord said with a smile. "You are enduring well for now, but there has to be a limit as to how long you can last in this state. Now then, show me what you will do in such a situation."

Lu Tianzi gritted his teeth and raised his arm up high with the Fallen Sun in his hand. Two illusory green vortices appeared behind him as he drove his origin core to the limit.

The Frost Guards might not know, but this was not the first time that Lu Tianzi had experienced the pressure of an Overlord powerhouse. Back then on Mount Asui, Lu Tianzi had even managed to forcibly dispel the pressure from Elder Qiren of the White Tiger Immortal Sect!

His origin force gathered upon the Overlord rank treasure sabre, imbued with a surge of Battle Intent.

He had done it once on Mount Asui, and he was intended to replicate that feat once again right here and now!

With that determination in mind, Lu Tianzi slashed out with the Fallen Sun.

He did not activate any inscription skill or used any fancy techniques. All that was contained within that slash was Lu Tianzi's origin force and Battle Intent, coupled with his own comprehensions into the world laws.

This slash of his created a crescent shaped sabre light that parted the sea of pressure as it moved, heading straight towards its target that was the Piercing Wind Overlord.

"Not bad, but not quite good enough either," the Piercing Wind Overlord remained calm.

He simply stood in place as he watched Lu Tianzi's attack, showing absolutely no intention of dodging.

And the reason why was revealed soon enough.

Under the battering of the howling winds, this crescent shaped sabre light trembled as soon as it appeared, and was quickly worn down into nothingness before it could even get near the Piercing Wind Overlord.

Hmm?

Lu Tianzi frowned.

The same move that had successfully dispelled the mental pressure from Elder Qiren was actually rendered absolutely meaningless, without the Piercing Wind Overlord even having to react to it at all?

Despite them both being at the Overlord realm, was there such a huge difference in strength between the Piercing Wind Overlord and Elder Qiren?

No, that was not it.

Back then, Lu Tianzi was just facing the mental pressure from Elder Qiren alone. But now, it was not just the mental pressure from the Piercing Wind Overlord, but also his complete domain.

The presence of the domain changed everything.

Since that was the case, Lu Tianzi could only try using the strongest attack in his arsenal. Without hesitation, he slashed out with the Moon Culler.

Returning Wraith Sword!

A powerful sword light shot forward, releasing a much greater pressure than the sabre light from before.

No matter what, this was a sword technique from his master Xihuang Yuanfeng. The sheer power created by the technique was not something that could be trifled with.

Yet before his very eyes, the sword light suffered the same tragic fate as the sabre light from before, dissipating into nothingness even before reaching the Piercing Wind Overlord.

This time, Lu Tianzi truly widened his eyes in shock.

Even this did not work?

Unfortunately, he had used his beastial bloodline activation when facing Nanshen Qin earlier.

Activating his beastial bloodline always placed a great strain on his body. Even though this strain was gradually becoming lighter as he advanced in cultivation level, it was still not to the extent of being insignificant.

Lu Tianzi had never activated his beastial bloodline twice in a day before, and truly did not want to do so unless he was out of options.

Though it seemed like he was indeed fast approaching such an outcome...

Lu Tianzi could not help but recall Ruan Ling's words.

She had once told them that Overlord powerhouses wielded absolute power in their domains, as well as the ability to lord over all lives. Without a domain of your own, it was impossible to stand your ground against an Overlord realm powerhouse.

When he first heard that, Lu Tianzi had doubted those words.

But now, he was slowly being forced to believe it.

Caught within the Piercing Wind Overlord powerhouse's complete domain, it was no exaggeration to say that he felt completely helpless.

"Is this all you've got, Young Sir Lu?" the Piercing Wind Overlord said with a teasing smile.

He knew from the start that this might be too tall an order for the Fourth Cycle Origin Core realm martial artist. Still, he wanted to see if Lu Tianzi could pull off a miracle. Even if that was not possible, he could also use this opportunity to test Lu Tianzi's resilience.

Lu Tianzi did not answer.

Instead, his attention was fully focused on the illusory bottle gourd behind the Piercing Wind Overlord.

Without a domain, it was impossible to stand your ground against an Overlord realm powerhouse...

This meant that the only way to fight an Overlord was to have a domain of his own.

A domain was a power that was belonged almost exclusively to Overlord realm powerhouses, the keyword here being 'almost'.

Linye Caixia, for one, had managed to come up with her own incomplete domain. Even if it was incomplete, that should give her some sort of fighting chance when facing an Overlord.

And according to Nanshen Qin, she was not the only one who had formed her own incomplete domain while in the Origin Core realm.

In that case, why couldn't Lu Tianzi do the same?

With the Eternal Wraith Sword, a martial artist would be able to create a domain around him where his sword could fly around freely in accordance to his will, effortlessly reaping the lives of any opponents who dared to step within.

This was written within the manual for the Eternal Wraith Sword Art.

The words used were the same, but were both domains referring to the same thing?

There was only one way to find out.