Ryu clashed with the Seventh Order Ancestor, sending several out several [Pierces]. However, unlike the previous rounds, it seemed that Ryu was finally at a disadvantage. This was simply the reality of the matter, if he insisted on using his spear with a single arm, he would only barely pull out a twentieth of his strength, it was impossible to use that level to defeat someone two cultivation stages above him.
Still, even as he was slowly forced backward, Ryu's eyes continued to shine, taking in aspects of this Ancestor's spearmanship for himself.
The elders began to grow nervous, even Castle Master Toria fiddled with the ring on her finger. If Ryu was struggling now, how could he stand up to the Eight and Ninth Order Ancestors? After all, this was only the weakest of the Seventh Order Ancestors.
Ryu, however, was calm. His Phoenix Martial Forms gave him an unyielding level of stamina. Just the few dozen fights he had gone through until now wasn't enough to put a dent toward his fatigue. At the same time, the strong blows of this Ancestor weren't making it past his Ice Silk protective armor.
'Still, this is my limit here.. It seems I need to take it up a single notch.' Ryu's eyes glowed a fierce silver light. '[Third Perspective].'
Suddenly, the world seemed to enter the palm of Ryu's hand. The unreadable movements of the Ancestor felt as though they had slowed to a snail's pace. The secrets, no, the mysteries of her spearmanship all lay bare before him.
Ailsa's brow twitched at this sudden change. 'This is the true state of the first ranked Heavenly Pupils? This cool qi… It seems Life Partner hasn't realized yet.'
Ryu's feet shifted, his soles gliding across the ice beneath his feet as he marginally dodged the tip of a coming spear. In the next instant, the tip of his spear trembled, shooting past an impossibly small window to pierce the Valkyrie's throat.
His hand snapped outward, decapitating her directly. Before the Awoken Moon Sect elders could even comprehend what had happened, Ryu had already moved on to the second Seventh Order Ancestor.
[Third Perspective] was too useful. It allowed Ryu to see the battlefield from angles his opponent could never imagine. This blew flaws that would otherwise be hidden wide open. To gain that sort of battle perspective would usually take countless years on a battlefield, but Ryu was gifted it simply by virtue of his Heavenly Pupils. It seemed Ryu owed Ailsa once more. If it wasn't for her, he'd never use it so freely.
It was at this moment that curious observers began to approach the Awoken Moon Sect. Considering how quickly they made it here, their cultivations were definitely not low. In fact, they were the elders of the Awoken Moon Sect rival Sects.
Unfortunately for them, the Sect had been shrouded by a wall of white mist that perfectly blended into the snowy landscape.
"Could it be they'll really gain themselves a Throne?" The elders muttered to themselves, deep frowns common place on all their faces.
The Pedestal Plane was just preparing to undergo many changes, the addition of a third Throne would shift the balance once more. The other Thrones could be ignored since they had taken up positions in the Core Region, but for a Throne to appear in their Outer Ring… It was troublesome.
"According to observers from before they put up their Sect's formation, he was a male. Why would a male want to join this Sect? It can't be that his talent in womanizing is greater than his cultivation talent, right?"
"Let's hope that that's the case. If he's made such a foolish decision, there likely isn't much to worry about. A man won't be able to gain much from the Awoken Moon Sect. We've likely worried for nothing."
"Still, we need to comprehend his limits appropriately. You all know as well as I do that the higher ups won't be fond of the Awoken Moon Sect improving their station. If they do, the ones who'll be blamed is us and no one else."
"What are we supposed to do?" An elder responded with an annoyed tone. "We're not allowed to directly attack them, but we still have to hinder them? What kind of nonsense is that?"
The elders fell into silence, each of them having their own theories. In fact, many of them were close to the truth.
If the Awoken Moon Sect was once a higher order Sect, even in their decline, the Faith protecting them was not a joking matter. The truth was that those who sought to oppress the Awoken Moon Sect weren't afraid of their Faith, but rather… The Faith of the Ice Phoenix Clan that had once protected them. If that slumbering Faith was stirred, none of them would survive.
Many laymen believed that the Shrine Plane had been destroyed, but this wasn't the case. The Shrine Plane was sealed. Why? Because even the rulers of the Martial Plane couldn't finish the job. They had no choice but to bide their time, waiting for the accumulated Faith of the Shrine Plane's finest to slowly dwindle.
In order for this to happen, they needed to make sure that the subordinate Sects and Clans of those Shrine Plane powers no longer had a leg to stand on. To now, many of them had been forced into dormancy, disbanded or destroyed, but more stubborn ones like the Awoken Moon Sect continued to hold on.
"In any case, he's young." A once silent elder spoke. "Whether he is talented or not is irrelevant. Sometimes there are things even geniuses cannot do without enough time. And since he's a Throne… We won't have to worry about Faith backlash if we kill him."
The role of a Throne was a double-edged sword. You were free from the constraints of a Sect's rules, and you could use their resources as you pleased, but for this very reason, you didn't have the protection of the Sect's Faith. Since you chose to walk alone, using your own talent to hold you up, you would be alone to the very end.
Ryu, even as he felled Ancestor after Ancestor, was well aware that he had placed a target on his back. But, he had done so purposefully. He wanted this pressure, a pressure so heavy that it threatened to sink him to his knees. Only this way could he grow as fast as he needed to.
He didn't want to grow complacent, nor did he want to forget what he was fighting for. Pushing himself into a corner in this way would be his own martial path.
Ryu took a strong step forward, his qi pouring into his spear as he faced the final Seventh Order Ancestor.
His spear curled forward, blurring in the air into a smear of violet and black coated in a thick white.
In the next moment, he retracted his attack, three bloody holes signaling the collapse of the Valkyrie.