The Cannon King’s Fury

Vartak’s old face sank as soon as Leon finished speaking.

The air seemed to freeze.

The lively discussions that had filled the battlefield moments ago vanished into silence. Countless pairs of eyes shifted between the young swordsman in midnight robes and the veteran expert whose name had long echoed throughout the Forsaken Domain.

A faint wind swept across the battlefield, stirring Leon’s shoulder-length black hair. His purple eyes remained calm, unwavering, as though the oppressive aura rolling toward him simply didn’t exist.

Vartak slowly stepped forward, his aged gaze filled with cold disdain.

"Kid, you’re very brave." His voice was deep and heavy, carrying the weight of decades of bloodshed. "I’ve roamed the world for half my life and have encountered countless Pinnacle Realm prodigies. Most of them, like you, hadn’t learned much. Their personalities were each more arrogant than the last. Their ending was also very tragic."

His lips curled into a cruel smile.

"They all died in my hands."

Every word landed like a hammer.

Many spectators instinctively held their breath.

They knew he wasn’t exaggerating.

Throughout his long life, Vartak had crushed countless geniuses before they could fully mature. Some had possessed astonishing talent, while others had carried the hopes of powerful households and sects.

None of that had mattered.

The dead never became legends.

Vartak’s face darkened further.

With a wave of his sleeve, he slowly flew forward, stopping in the open sky opposite Leon. His overwhelming Mana surged around him like crashing tides, causing the surrounding clouds to churn violently.

His cold voice echoed across the battlefield.

"Arrogance requires the capital to be arrogant. If you don’t have the ability, the price for angering me will be very heavy..."

Leon merely smiled.

He didn’t answer.

Threats like these had long since lost their meaning to him.

Ever since arriving in this world, countless enemies had attempted to intimidate him with their status, age, or cultivation. Every one of them believed experience alone could determine victory.

Yet here he still stood.

Words were cheap.

Only strength could decide the outcome.

Behind him, Anna watched the confrontation with obvious concern.

Her beautiful pink eyes never left Leon’s figure.

Although she believed in his strength, Vartak wasn’t an ordinary opponent.

He stood several stars higher in the Pinnacle Realm and had accumulated decades of combat experience.

This battle would be far more dangerous than any Leon had faced before.

Taking a quiet breath, Anna stepped forward.

Her white-and-pink robes fluttered gracefully as she arrived beside Leon, one hand already moving toward the hilt of her Amethyst Mist Sword.

"Fellow Brother, let me help you."

Her voice was cold as she fixed her gaze upon Vartak.

She knew why he had appeared today.

He had come because of her.

She couldn’t allow Leon to shoulder everything alone.

If Leon were to fall protecting her...

That thought alone made her heart tighten painfully.

She didn’t want such guilt to haunt her for the rest of her life.

Before she could draw her sword, Leon slowly turned toward her.

A gentle smile appeared on his face.

His peach blossom eyes softened as they met hers.

"Fellow Sister," he said quietly, "be obedient."

His voice carried neither command nor arrogance.

Only warmth.

A warmth that somehow reached straight into her heart.

"I’m here to protect you."

The simple sentence struck Anna harder than any Sacred Art.

Her entire body trembled.

Her breathing caught.

For a brief moment, even the sounds of the battlefield disappeared from her ears.

Eh...

Why does my heart feel numb?

What’s happening to me...?

She stared blankly at Leon.

His calm smile.

His unwavering eyes.

His quiet confidence.

Everything about him made her heartbeat uncontrollably faster.

Warmth spread across her cheeks.

Her legs suddenly felt weak, as though all the strength had drained from them.

She almost stumbled.

W-What’s wrong with me?

Her thoughts became a complete mess.

This wasn’t the first time Leon had spoken to her gently.

Yet today...

Every word seemed to carry an inexplicable charm.

Anna bit her lower lip.

Ah...

This guy must have used that bewitching technique again.

She secretly grumbled inside, trying to calm the chaos in her heart.

Seriously...

Why are you still playing such a vulgar game at a time like this?

Couldn’t you save it for when no one else is around?

The enemy is right in front of us!

How am I supposed to fight like this?

I’m so angry...

She puffed her cheeks slightly before turning away with an exaggerated huff.

Trying her best to hide the blush creeping across her face, she walked a few steps to the side.

"Just show off," she said proudly without looking back. "Don’t beg me when you’re beaten to tears."

Although her words sounded dismissive, one hand remained resting on her sword.

Her beautiful eyes secretly watched every movement on the battlefield.

The moment Leon was in danger...

She would attack without hesitation.

Leon simply smiled.

He knew exactly what kind of person Anna was.

Her pride never allowed her to express concern directly.

Yet her actions always betrayed her true feelings.

Watching her pretend to be indifferent brought a faint smile to his lips.

She really was amusing.

Even more amusing than Maya.

Turning back toward the battlefield, Leon’s expression gradually became serious again.

His gaze met Vartak’s.

Without the slightest trace of fear, he spoke calmly.

"Old man, ability isn’t something that can be proven with words."

A faint smile curved his lips.

"You have to pull it out and let people see whether it’s really hard."

The battlefield became deathly silent.

Some spectators widened their eyes.

Others nearly choked.

Several elders exchanged strange expressions.

That sentence...

It sounded ordinary.

Yet somehow...

It didn’t.

For a heartbeat, even Vartak failed to react.

Then...

His face twisted with fury.

"Hmph!"

"You’re courting death!"

His voice exploded across the sky like thunder.

His sleeves billowed violently as terrifying Mana erupted around him.

Never.

Not once in his entire life...

Had a junior dared mock him so openly before countless spectators.

Usually, younger cultivators trembled in fear the instant they saw him.

Yet Leon had challenged him again and again without the slightest hesitation.

If he failed to crush this arrogant youth today...

Wouldn’t the entire Forsaken Domain begin whispering that Vartak had become weak?

That the Cannon King was no longer worthy of his title?

His eyes turned ice cold.

"Kid..."

"I’ll show you today whether I’m hard or not."

The instant those words left his mouth, he struck.

Boom!

His palm shot forward.

The terrifying force distorted the surrounding void.

Space rippled violently beneath the overwhelming pressure as a colossal palm condensed from pure Mana, descending toward Leon with crushing momentum.

The fierce wind howled.

Mountains trembled.

The spectators immediately retreated in alarm.

No one dared remain within the attack’s range.

Leon didn’t underestimate his opponent.

Facing an expert who stood two stars above him within the Pinnacle Realm, carelessness would be fatal.

His expression sharpened instantly.

Mana surged throughout his body.

Without hesitation, he raised his own hand.

"Ultimate Hand Strike!"

A magnificent palm condensed before him, radiating immense power as it rushed forward to meet Vartak’s attack head-on.

The distance between them vanished in an instant.

Then—

The two palms collided.

BOOM!

The explosion echoed across the heavens like the birth of a storm.

Blinding light erupted between them.

Violent shockwaves swept through the battlefield, tearing through the surrounding air and sending countless spectators stumbling backward.

The sky itself seemed to tremble beneath the impact.

Leon and Vartak were both forced backward.

With big boom sound.