The Post Sky Tipping Era
Chapter 583 - 416: Deciding Life and Death

Chapter 583: Chapter 416: Deciding Life and Death

Lin Caiyi felt a mix of shock and uncertainty at the moment. She saw that divine needle penetrate straight through her defenses. Though its sharpness was extreme, breaking her Mid Grade Spiritual Artifact, the Xuan Turtle Armor, and even embedding itself into the Magic Battle Platform, the damage she herself sustained was minimal—essentially negligible.

But.

The opponent had gone all out, overcoming the defense of a Mid Grade Spiritual Artifact with this strike; it couldn’t possibly have had no effect.

Regardless.

Lin Caiyi swallowed a Spirit Pill, recovering much of her mana. She immediately soared into the air, simultaneously manipulating the Mid Grade Spiritual Artifact Xuan Turtle Armor to quickly distance herself from Li Yi. As a cultivator, her strength lay in spells and spiritual artifacts; close-quarters combat was far from her forte.

However, Li Yi remained utterly still, standing there without making any movement whatsoever, merely lifting his gaze to watch her retreat.

Buzzz!

The Fei Mu Needle came under his control, trembling slightly as it freed itself from the Magic Battle Platform. It instantly flew back, spinning like a radiant golden miniature sword around Li Yi.

Since his killing move had already been revealed, there was no need to hold back anymore.

"Li Yi, I admit your strength is impressive—different from other Soul Realm evolvers. But it’s a pity; you’re not a cultivator. Your methods are too limited. Despite your use of unscrupulous tactics to gain a momentary upper hand, the loser of this duel will ultimately be you." Lin Caiyi, sensing her mana filling up once again, regained her confidence.

The fear of nearly being shattered with a single punch earlier was gradually fading away.

"My methods are unscrupulous?"

Li Yi couldn’t help but laugh. "Then what was up with that Heavenly Thunder earlier? A strike exceeding the full power of a Spirit Power Realm expert—this clearly isn’t something a Foundation Establishment cultivator can pull off. If it weren’t for my unique bloodline and the Jiao Long Armor I’m wearing, I would’ve truly been done in by you. As expected, you cultivators are inherently devious. Compared to you, I’d actually consider myself quite virtuous."

"And seriously, how can you naïvely believe I’m bound to lose this duel? You’re on the brink of death and still unaware of it?"

Lin Caiyi responded coldly, "This fairy only suffered a slight setback; the duel isn’t over yet. I’ve already seen through your tricks. Next, I’ll show you my trump card."

With that, she waved her sleeve, instantly unleashing a barrage of array flags—nine in total. Each flag bore intricate runes, radiating astonishing energy fluctuations and exuding an ominous presence. Under her control, the flags scattered to different positions. Then, holding an Array Plate in her hands, she prepared to deploy a killing formation, using her final means to annihilate Li Yi.

Though arranging formations during a duel could be considered unsportsmanlike, with the Heavenly Thunder Talisman and Xuan Turtle Armor already employed, Lin Caiyi couldn’t afford to consider such trivialities.

This was a life-and-death duel—one of them had to perish for the battle to end.

"Lin Caiyi was hiding a killing formation all along? Had I known sooner, I’d have used it right away." Outside the Magic Battle Platform, Lin Taoist’s eyes lit up upon seeing this: "Good, very good. After consuming the Spirit Pill, Lin Caiyi’s mana has mostly been restored. Once the formation is set, she won’t need to maintain the defense of the Mid Grade Spiritual Artifact Xuan Turtle Armor anymore. She can focus solely on activating the formation, ensuring this upstart’s death."

"Does Lin Caiyi have that many hidden cards? Her resources nearly rival those of a Golden Core cultivator. It seems Juxia Sect has definitely invested some resources—giving even a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator such a trove of spiritual artifacts."

"She made it past the most perilous moment without major incident. The advantage is still ours."

While the Foundation Establishment cultivators displayed confidence, the Golden Core cultivators furrowed their brows in deep contemplation.

Though the Magic Battle Platform isolated divine sense probes, it was evident to the discerning eye: Li Yi’s earlier strike had landed effectively. While Lin Caiyi appeared unscathed, they didn’t believe the attack had merely pricked her lightly.

"Fellow Daoists, I fear this duel doesn’t bode well for us." A Golden Core cultivator transmitted telepathically.

"Lin Caiyi isn’t weak, but the opponent is fiercer. In a life-and-death struggle, his grasp of timing is exceptional. That divine needle... it must be extraordinarily dangerous. Its true effects haven’t surfaced yet."

"Wait, something’s wrong." Suddenly, Zhang Yihua’s expression darkened drastically among the Golden Core cultivators.

The array flags originally suspended in mid-air suddenly lost control; one plummeted straight to the Magic Battle Platform.

Could a Foundation Establishment cultivator fail to control their array flags?

Such an occurrence was impossible.

One after another, the second flag, third, fourth... the array flags hovering in mid-air began falling incessantly like dumplings into boiling water, entirely losing their control.

Lin Caiyi’s expression shifted dramatically as she finally realized something was wrong. There was an issue with her mana—no, it was her divine sense dissipating... and dissipating rapidly.

"What’s happening?" She staggered, nearly losing her balance entirely and almost plummeting.

Frantically, she performed an internal inspection, checking her condition.

Only then did Lin Caiyi understand: she’d been poisoned. And it wasn’t just any poison; it was tyrannical—spreading through her Dantian and Divine Sea at an alarming rate, so stealthy she hadn’t noticed until her divine sense malfunctioned.

Pushing all other concerns aside.

Lin Caiyi urgently retrieved an antidote Spirit Pill and swallowed it.

But it didn’t help; the poison continued to spread—in fact, accelerating.

She hurriedly brought out another antidote pill, but before she could take it, she suddenly lost her balance and plummeted from the air. If not for forcibly channeling some mana to stabilize herself, she might have become the first Foundation Establishment cultivator to die from falling on Xuanxian Continent.

Still, she remained wobbly, eventually collapsing limply onto the Magic Battle Platform, her body devoid of strength and stripped of mana.

"You—you poisoned me?" Lin Caiyi glared at Li Yi with gritted teeth, overflowing with rage.

"Just realizing now? Foundation Establishment cultivators aren’t worth much, huh? I thought you’d be able to withstand this poison." Li Yi glanced at her emotionlessly, then a resplendent silver Gang Qi began to manifest: "And did you truly believe I’d come to a death match unprepared? Your arrogance will now cost you dearly."

He finished speaking and released the silver Sword Gang, striking forward.

Covering several hundred meters instantly.

Lin Caiyi’s pupils contracted drastically—she understood that without a defensive spiritual artifact, this strike would undoubtedly cleave her in two, leaving no chance for survival.

"Damn it!" She cried out in fury as a Spirit Talisman flew out from her clothing, emitting a faint glow. This glow formed a protective shield around her.

Boom!

The Sword Gang collided—it shattered immediately. The protective shield remained undisturbed.

"Another trump card? But the poison will only deepen. Let’s see how long you can hold out." Li Yi then reached out across the air, and with a swirl of Gang Qi, a high-energy sniper rifle on the platform landed in his grasp. He aimed and fired without hesitation.

The energy beam struck Lin Caiyi’s protective shield again, still unable to penetrate it.

But after each attack, the Spirit Talisman’s glow dimmed noticeably.

Lin Caiyi’s eyes now brimmed with fear and despair—this Spirit Talisman was a gift from her master before she left Earth, her last trump card. Once depleted, she’d have no means of self-preservation left.

Repeated gunfire eroded the Spirit Talisman’s spiritual power. Without the infusion of mana, the Spirit Talisman couldn’t last long.

"Lin Caiyi is doomed." Watching this unfold, the ten-plus cultivators from Xuanxian Continent all became restless, their expressions grave.

Anyone could tell by now—Lin Caiyi was cornered, with no chance of turning the tides. Winning against Li Yi was out of the question; even preserving her life seemed impossible.

Though they longed to provide aid, they were powerless.

The Magic Battle Platform’s formation remained intact; even Nascent Soul cultivators couldn’t interfere. Only Taoweng Immortal, the platform’s creator, could lift the formation and halt the duel.

However, for the sake of a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator, it was inconceivable that Taoweng Immortal would break his promise, offend the Golden Academy, and risk nullifying this visit’s purpose altogether.

With joy for some and sorrow for others, the Golden Academy students erupted into cheers as they watched the scene.

"Li Yi is going to win. That female cultivator has reached her limit—even standing is beyond her now."

"These cultivators are so damned treacherous; even in this situation, they still have hidden trump cards. No wonder they strut around with their noses in the air and look down on others. If I had as many treasures and tricks, I could easily take down any Foundation Establishment cultivator too."

"Watching this, it’s clear—it’s about wealth. I get it now; the essence of cultivator duels isn’t about true strength but about who’s richer. These cultivators are all inheritors of privilege, and we’re the underprivileged. To win, we’d need to out-spend them and have even more trump cards."

After witnessing the duel between Li Yi and Lin Caiyi, their understanding of many things crystallized.

Was Lin Caiyi really strong?

She was formidable, but not to the point of being unattainable.

The key lay in Lin Caiyi possessing treasures like the Mid Grade Flying Sword, Low Grade defensive Spiritual Artifact Profound Light Shield, Mid Grade defensive Spiritual Artifact Xuan Turtle Armor, Heavenly Thunder Talisman, protective talismans, mana-restoring elixirs, and an impressive formation technique... All these combined forged an unassailable presence for Soul Realm evolvers.

And this was the difference in resources between worlds.

Bridging this gap was nearly impossible.

Boom!

With one final gunshot, the Spirit Talisman lost all its power, disintegrating completely, and the protective shield vanished into thin air.

Lin Caiyi now lay gasping on the ground, her eyes and lips tinged green—proof the poison had taken full effect.

"Time to move on." Li Yi put down the sniper rifle, and the silver Gang Qi coalesced again, transforming into a long spear in his grasp.

"W-wait!" Lin Caiyi, consumed by despair, raised a trembling hand in panic and said, "I surrender. Didn’t you mention earlier that you wanted me? I’m willing to become your servant, your handmaid. If you agree to detoxify me and spare my life, I’ll do anything you ask."

The traditions of Xuanxian World revealed themselves.

When pushed to desperation with no way out, male cultivators would offer themselves as servants, and female cultivators as handmaids—temporary submission exchanging for survival’s promise.

Once recovered, they’d later seek their chance to rebel—changing their status in an instant with a regenerative elixir and transformation artifact. Few second chances lacked theatrical comebacks.

Still, such ploys were better suited for Xuanxian Continent, where they’d been done to death and left nobody trusting anyone anymore. But on Earth, this strategy remained novel, possibly holding sway.

"Servant? Handmaid? Ridiculous. Us Earthlings swear oaths like breaking wind—our words are untrustworthy even to ourselves, let alone you." Li Yi sneered. "And don’t misunderstand—I never wanted you as a person. I wanted your life. Now, obediently proceed to die."

With these words, he hurled the silver spear, transforming it into a piercing streak of light.

Cautious as ever, Li Yi maintained an eight-hundred-meter distance, guarding against any potential mutual-destruction attempts.

Lin Caiyi reached true desperation; the Gang Qi Long Spear descended without respite, piercing through her chest in an instant.

Her eyes widened as blood gushed uncontrollably, her life force fading away at an astonishing speed.

With traces of hatred, Lin Caiyi collapsed onto the Magic Battle Platform, unwillingly defeated.

Dead!

The Foundation Establishment cultivator from Xuanxian Continent lost the duel and perished in full view of the crowd.

With Lin Caiyi dead and the platform sensing the absence of her energy, the formation began to collapse.