Chapter 168: The Sudden Change

Everyone knew Theo wielded the Empyrean Edge. Like Patriarch Corvinus, they assumed he would rely on the divine sword’s sheer brute force to overpower his opponent while merely claiming to duel with Blade Arts. Most of the operatives present were blade-masters, intimately aware of the depth and nuance of true swordsmanship.

The Empyrean Edge was unmatched in raw output, yet, against a Supreme-tier blade-master, refined techniques could parry or deflect brute force. Without deep mastery of Blade Arts, Theo might actually struggle.

Then, everyone was stunned.

As Corvinus spoke, Theo did not draw the Empyrean Edge as expected. Instead, his gaze swept over the courtyard’s manicured gardens. With a point of his finger, a tall stalk of spirit-grass quivered. A single, crystal-green leaf floated up, landing gently in his hand. Gripping the fragile leaf between his index and middle fingers, Theo smiled, satisfied, and rose into the air.

Everyone’s eyes widened. The Sovereign grabbed a leaf? For what? A grass sword? High-level Blade Arts could indeed infuse leaves or flower petals with Aether to act as blades, but that was a parlor trick meant for crushing far weaker foes or showing off to junior operatives.

In a duel of equals, with your opponent wielding a Provincial-grade Extreme-Dao Weapon, you pick a leaf? Who dies if not you?

The Abyssal Sovereign, ignoring the divine weapon in his spatial ring, chose a leaf and flew up to meet a Holy Master. Was he insane? His battle record was notoriously bloody, but this was far too dismissive of a Supreme-tier opponent.

Lady Livia’s disdain deepened into outright disgust.

Sylvia’s eyes, however, sparkled. Outsiders knew Theo only by the Senate’s exaggerated rumors and Syndicate propaganda. But she, from countless late nights grading his Academy assignments to watching his meteoric rise, knew her former student intimately. He seemed reckless, but he was ruthlessly calculated. He never acted beyond his means. If he chose a leaf to face Corvinus, it meant Corvinus only warranted a leaf. Her eyes brimmed with anticipation, deeply curious about her student’s surprise.

***

Seeing Theo approach wielding a single leaf, Corvinus’s expression turned grim. He wasn’t world-famous, but he was undeniably renowned within the Imperial Capital’s generation of Holy Masters. Across thousands of duels, he had never been so belittled. This wasn’t just contempt for him—it was a mockery of Blade Arts entirely.

His eyes flickered with gloom. Since Theo underestimated him so profoundly, he would teach the Syndicate upstart a permanent lesson. He would show the Grand-Patriarch that no matter how monstrous Theo’s potential was, it meant nothing if he was dead.

Theo, ignoring Corvinus’s sour expression, gently brushed the edge of the leaf, speaking calmly. "If you block this strike, you win. I will officially gift you the Primeval Obsidian Sword."

Silence fell over the Academy. No one spoke or mocked. They deeply doubted Theo’s mastery of Blade Arts, but a figure of his stature wouldn’t speak so lightly. There might be something profound at play.

Corvinus’s eyes steadied. Offering the Obsidian Sword proved Theo’s confidence. But in a clash of pure Blade Arts, Corvinus was entirely certain he could defeat him, let alone block a single strike. He could counter any move the Sovereign threw at him.

Gripping his Viridian Aether-Blade tightly, he said solemnly, "Sovereign, make your move."

Theo nodded deliberately.

The Primeval Blade-Soul Matrix activated. His demeanor shifted instantly. Standing there, he was no longer a man; he was a piercing divine blade, ready to cleave the heavens in two. The fragile leaf in his hand surged with vast, oceanic blade-intent, flooding all directions like a raging river, shaking the very spirits of the observing operatives.

The Academy courtyard erupted in a storm of blade-qi, stirred entirely by Theo’s intent. Even the holstered swords of the Supreme-tier elders trembled uncontrollably, threatening to unsheathe themselves in submission. The sudden change stunned everyone.

The Grand-Patriarch’s jaw dropped. "The Primeval Blade-Soul Matrix? And it is near perfection! The Sovereign’s Blade Arts... they surpass even my own!"

The elders gasped in an uproar. Just his aura caused such a widespread phenomenon across the Academy? His Blade Arts were truly this monstrous? Surpassing the Grand-Patriarch? The Ancestor’s lifetime pursuit, yet the Abyssal Sovereign had achieved it effortlessly? His talent outshone even the legendary Emperor’s.

But amidst the awe, deep doubts lingered. Even with such mastery, he still held only a leaf.

Corvinus, though slightly less skilled in pure intent, wielded an Extreme-Dao Weapon. Blocking one strike from a leaf shouldn’t be hard. Was the Sovereign too overconfident?

***

Theo ignored their scattered thoughts. While running the Blade-Soul Matrix, a secondary system—the Aetheric Overclocking Matrix—activated, resonating perfectly with his newly acquired Chaos-Forged Matrix.

The Overclocking Matrix was an ancient Syndicate protocol designed to briefly unleash tenfold combat power. But triggering it was notoriously unreliable, a one-in-ten-thousand chance. However, since his physiology had evolved with the Chaos-Forged Matrix, Theo had discovered something wondrous.

The Chaos-Forged Matrix boosted the Overclocking trigger rate to one in a hundred—an enormous leap. But what thrilled him most was a hidden synergy. With the Chaos-Forged Matrix acting as a foundation, his very *first* attack utilizing the Overclocking protocol always guaranteed the tenfold boost!

The implications were catastrophic for his enemies. This was the source of his arrogance. His foundation was already reality-breaking, paired with the supreme intent of the Blade-Soul Matrix, and now multiplied by a guaranteed tenfold boost. Corvinus’s mere Provincial-grade weapon could not possibly withstand him.

Under Corvinus’s solemn gaze, Theo raised the leaf, executing a simple, downward strike.

His aura surged to apocalyptic levels! An incandescent wave of blade-qi burst from the fragile leaf’s tip. Countless eyes widened in sheer horror.

The intent was dazzling, outshining the midday sun. The world seemed to hold nothing but this singular, devastating strike. The spatial fabric cracked. The courtyard’s reinforced paving disintegrated into dust. The Academy’s grand warding arrays wailed under the pressure.

This strike was world-ending. Its oppressive aura left Lady Livia, once nonchalant and haughty, wide-eyed, her mouth agape. Her body tightened involuntarily in shock as she witnessed true power.

The Academy’s Grand-Patriarch, sensing the strike’s full might, was left dazed in the void. This strength? Not just a Vanguard-tier operative—even an Exarch couldn’t produce such output. The Sovereign’s power was simply absurd!

Amidst the sea of shocked, incredulous faces, only Sylvia looked up at Theo...