Cultivation is just so scientific! Chapter 1542 - 817: The Great Battle (Part 2)

In the heavens above, two formidable Great Thunder Cultivators hurled bolts of lightning back and forth at one another, all while employing Thunder Escape to evade the strikes. Their forms had blurred into nothingness, leaving just twin streaks of thunder zipping about without pause, with endless arcs of electricity slicing through the air.

"Come on!" Li Shiming bellowed with laughter, his entire being buzzing with delight.

The thrill of pouring every ounce of his Thunder Skill into the fray washed over him; foes from before had been far too feeble. Not even Great Cultivator Ren Mu of the Central State Commerce had delivered such a thrilling clash.

Great Cultivator Ren Mu had stayed too composed, and since the grudge against Central State Commerce hadn't escalated to a life-or-death struggle, he'd surrendered willingly once Li Shiming's superior might became clear.

Master Wang He stood apart; capturing Li Shiming was imperative, commanded by a mighty force.

Thus, he unleashed his full might, holding nothing back at all.

The pair of Thunder Cultivators handled their Thunder Skills with effortless flair; one had dwelled at the Great Thunder Cultivator realm for close to a millennium, honing Thunder Skill to the pinnacle possible for a Nascent Soul Cultivator.

Li Shiming, on the other hand, drew from his life-bound artifact IBMz15, which offered unmatched analysis and decision-making on the battlefield throughout the Cultivation World.

As the duel with Master Wang He intensified, IBMz15 accumulated more insights into Thunder Skills, drawing Li Shiming's Thunder Cultivation battle methods ever nearer to Master Wang He's expertise.

Master Wang He started with the advantage, yet he gradually sensed mounting strain from Li Shiming's ripostes, finding it impossible to dominate him outright, not even in the span of a hundred breaths.

Amazement gripped him as he observed this Great Thunder Cultivator shift from awkward handling of Thunder Skills to masterful command—a feat that would demand decades or centuries from typical Thunder Cultivators—accomplished by Li Shiming in mere hundreds of breaths.

Master Wang He realized that overpowering Li Shiming grew ever more improbable, particularly because Li Shiming's lightning carried no trace of the ’Shenxiao Thunder Pearl’ aura.

In other words, from the battle's outset, Li Shiming hadn't drawn on the ’Shenxiao Thunder Pearl’, battling purely with his Thunder Spirit Power against him.

Should Li Shiming's Thunder Cultivation fighting prowess reach his own caliber, bolstered by the ’Shenxiao Thunder Pearl’, he wouldn't stand a chance against Li Shiming.

"Mr. Li, why not reveal your true power?" Master Wang He asked solemnly.

Though the Yuqing Sect had reports of a Thunder Cultivator detecting the ’Shenxiao Thunder Pearl’ aura on Li Shiming, Master Wang He hadn't sensed it himself, leaving him uncertain if the pearl accompanied Li Shiming.

This detail held vital weight; without the ’Shenxiao Thunder Pearl’ on Li Shiming, killing him wasn't an option—he'd need to keep him alive to uncover the pearl's location.

Moreover, he aimed to compel Li Shiming to expose the means of hiding the ’Shenxiao Thunder Pearl’.

Not even the Yuqing Sect's mighty figures could detect the ’Shenxiao Thunder Pearl’ presence, much less retrieve it outright.

What technique could evade the awareness of those mighty figures, especially with their mark embedded in the ’Shenxiao Thunder Pearl’?

"Mr. Wang, to draw out my maximum effort, you'll have to try harder!" Li Shiming shot back with a grin.

An exhilarating rush filled him, at last facing a rival of true caliber, absorbing countless lessons from Master Wang He.

Such fighting insights defied words; they embodied Master Wang He's almost thousand-year grasp of Thunder Skill deployment, a profound philosophy of combat beyond telling.

Before, Li Shiming's Thunder Skill handling had been blunt: one lightning strike failing meant unleashing ten, ten insufficient called for twenty or thirty, persisting until a barrage of simultaneous bolts crushed the foe.

That crude deployment of Thunder Skill stemmed from his brief time as a Thunder Cultivator. Though IBMz15 offered solid analysis and forecasts of battle scenarios, lacking rich examples from elite Thunder Cultivator fights, its projections missed solid backing.

Through this clash with Master Wang He, IBMz15 absorbed the ways of top Thunder Cultivators in action, refining upcoming strategies to mirror the styles of premier Great Cultivators more closely.

The skirmish pressed on, with Li Shiming now syncing to Master Wang He's fighting tempo, the two trading strikes on equal footing.

Li Shiming's ’Heavenly Human Technique’-forged Thunder Spirit Power equaled the might of Master Wang He's supreme Great Cultivator Spiritual Power, derived from the ’Yuqing Thunder Scripture’, rendering the contest evenly poised in any Great Cultivator's eyes.

Yet Li Shiming noted something peculiar: despite Master Wang He's command of Thunder Skills, he never infused his assaults with the full weight of Thunder Rules.

Peak Great Cultivators' real power rested not in spiritual power volume, but in their deep comprehension of rules, attaining lofty heights in their core cultivation rules at minimum.

Given the finite Rule Power in Peak Great Cultivators, assaults brimming with Rule Power could only be unleashed a handful of times, yet they packed the ultimate punch, often sealing wins in duels of peers.

Still, Master Wang He displayed no will to tap that force, seeming instead bent on dragging out the fight.

"Is he biding time for Yan Gao Great Cultivator to finish his fight?" Li Shiming pondered inwardly.

No need arose for him to watch Yan Gao Great Cultivator's tussle with the five late-stage Golden Corpses; IBMz15 fed the unfolding action straight to his mind nonstop.

He understood that Yan Gao Great Cultivator's scrap with the five late-stage Golden Corpses might drag on for a full day without a victor emerging.

While dodging Master Wang He's lightning once more via Thunder Escape and retaliating with his own, Li Shiming saw Master Wang He execute Thunder Escape not in their ongoing zone but emerge amid the rival fray.

It appeared Master Wang He had prepared a ploy, and materializing in that other arena, he promptly unleashed ’Thunder Flash Show’.

Dozens of lightning streaks erupted from the ’Heavenly Strike Thunder Hammer’, hurtling toward the five late-stage Golden Corpses.

Hampered by the gravitational field and the ’Invisible Primordial Magnetism’ divine power field, the five late-stage Golden Corpses couldn't leverage their swiftness, leaving them vulnerable to the sudden onslaught.

Every one of the dozens of lightning bolts from ’Thunder Flash Show’ slammed into the five late-stage Golden Corpses.

Lightning shredded the garments of the five late-stage Golden Corpses, exposing their authentic late-stage Golden Corpse forms, which mimicked the features and builds of ordinary cultivators.

"What a freakish abomination!" Yan Gao Great Cultivator and Master Wang He had long synced their teamwork flawlessly; bolstered by Master Wang He's aid, he too released ’Meteorite Descent’ in full, summoning meteors that plummeted from above, morphing into massive blazing orbs en route.

’Thunder Flash Show’ inflicted scant harm on the late-stage Golden Corpses, its chief impact being the lightning's numbing jolt, which momentarily froze the five late-stage Golden Corpses.

That stun let the flaming meteors of ’Meteorite Descent’ land true, the enormous fireballs smashing onto the late-stage Golden Corpses.

The late-stage Golden Corpses were hurled skyward no more, but sent crashing down hard to the earth beneath.

Spotting Master Wang He abandon their duel, Li Shiming pursued without delay.

Yet as he closed in on a particular spot, his body hairs prickled, and a profound terror surged through him.

"Danger, utmost peril!" his thoughts screamed in frenzy.

Were this a realm free of spatial limits, he'd have invoked Divine Foot Skill to flee instantly, yet here, such a move lay beyond his grasp.

Even as he dashed into the emptiness of the adjacent battlefield, a lone finger materialized, aimed straight down at him.