Chapter 1528: Testing Skills

Martial cultivators were different from essence-gathering cultivators.

Their attacking force was mostly superior when both sides were average at their cultivations. Their pure physical might sometimes even matched that of cultivators with average essence energy, while martial energy matched their highest concentration of essence energy, so what if martial energy was condensed and used to strike?

Wouldn't martial energy have the upper hand in a close quarters fight?

Considering Gong Kim-Jin's prowess, it was quite clear that he could even fight against a Mid-Level Martial Master Stage Cultivator and struggle for some time against a High-Level Martial Master Stage Cultivator.

If he combined his Essence Gathering Cultivation which was also said to be exceptional, with his Body Tempering Cultivation, then it was no doubt that he could battle with High-Level Seventh Stage Cultivators like core disciples and even kill them!

Compared to Top Disciple Brim Hisler, he was indeed exceptional.

The crowd couldn't help thinking that it was no wonder that Gong Kim-Jin was said to be the most expected and favored candidate to win the Nine Western Territories Young Expert Competition!

*Clang!~*

*Crack!~*

*Clang!~*

Sophie kept creating new glaives as she struck him and dodged his attacks simultaneously, battling him with grace and artistic movements.

Gong Kim-Jin seemed to have the upper hand despite Sophie's attempt to strike back. Each fist he made overwhelmed Sophie before she somehow managed to find her footing and defend against him, leaving him craving for more fight.

He had never met a peer who could exchange fists with him like this and still stand, moving gracefully like a heavenly swan.

But soon, he was starting to find her ridiculous. 

With each flaming glaive he broke, she quickly conjured one again, making him both excited but annoyed. Yet, it seemed almost as if the flaming glaives were becoming stronger and stronger as time passed by, making him incredibly confused as to what the limit of her strength is!

Looking at her calmness, it could be mistaken as internal suppression of panic, and hearing the people jeering at her for acting pompous against him, he snorted at those fools. 

Clearly, they couldn't tell that this woman hid her strength. But he, on the other hand, wanted to see the limit of her strength!

"Sophie Alstreim! Why are you holding back like this!? Am I not powerful enough to make you go all out!?

Gong Kim-Jin stopped attacking her as he stopped to ask, his voice resounding in the Grand Wedding Hall.

"What...?"

"Did he just say 'all out' to her?"

"Does this mean she is still holding back? I heard that she was a blacksmith and an alchemist and so didn't know any battle techniques, but it seems like..."

The youngsters were all taken aback before they began discussing this revelation. Even the Eighth Stage Experts appeared fairly taken aback, but the Ninth Stage Powerhouses looked solemn as if seriously considering Sophie's true power.

Sophie had already readied herself for another strike, but looking at her opponent stop and question her, she became confused.

"Huh? I'm testing my skills while battling against a top disciple like you, as my love asked me to, but then, why are you asking me to go all out? Even you are not qualified to face my true power. So why should I?"

Sophie's voice echoed, causing the expression of the guests to stiffen!

"Testing skills...?"

Gong Kim-Jin's lips twitched as he asked.

This woman... Her footwork was fine, but her skills in controlling the glaive were lacking. Is that what she meant by testing skills? She was practicing, randomly swinging, and defending against him with her glaive all this time while he seriously fought her, giving respect to her prowess, even almost falling in love at first sight?

He was actually a chivalrous person, but a vein popped out of his head at the moment, feeling himself become humiliated by her words.

"Fine, I'll show you who you're dealing with..."

He somberly uttered as his essence energy flared!

Blackish-brown energy began to swirl around him as he used both his essence and martial energy combined. His prowess instantly grew a lot more by the second before it stopped at High-Level Seventh Stage!

The closed mouths of the youngsters went agape!

Crossing two levels in the Law Dominion Stage wasn't easy at all.

Having an Impeccable Domain doesn't make them cross two levels but using it makes them cross two levels! But in this situation, without even using his domain, Gong Kim-Jin achieved the prowess of crossing two levels to fight!

Then what if he used his domain?

Their minds truly couldn't help but tremble while even some Eighth Stage Experts raised their brows in shock at his power.

"This energy..." 

Sophie's eyes also went wide as she looked at Gong Kim-Jin. Her reaction allowed him to regain his pride and confidence, but then he saw her shake her head. He chuckled at her disbelief, about to show her what he was made of, when her voice echoed again.

"Truly weak. I still won't use my full strength."

"You...!?"

Three more stifled veins popped up on his forehead.

Gong Kim-Jin's expression was no longer amicable. This woman was blatantly humiliating him when she didn't have the strength to back it up.

*Thud!~*

Taking a step forward, he rushed towards her again, taking the same martial stance as he used his fist to punch!

*Boom!~*

Tremendous energy exploded out of his fist even before his attack could reach her. That blackish-brown wave of metallic energy flashed through the air as it weighed heavily, looking as if it was pounding the air and gaining enough momentum to crush a mountain into shreds!

The metal-like pounding sounds shook the hearts of many people while they watched the helpless woman freeze in its wake.

Many powerhouses narrowed their eyes at this moment, seemingly expectant to see Sophie's true power. After all, in their eyes, she wasn't helpless but calm, perhaps even confident. 

The moment the brownish-black wave of metallic energy crashed onto Sophie, it engulfed her whole, seemingly erasing her entire existence. 

The eyes of many characters popped wide open in disbelief. 

Surely, she couldn't have been just standing there, willing to take it head-on like a fool!?

Just when Ancestor Dian Alstreim panicked that she might truly be put in a spot, that vicious and heavy-looking brownish-black wave abruptly had a hole blown through it as Sophie escaped.

In her hand was a two-meter long and one meter wide hammer, blazing with her flames. She quickly closed the distance and held the hammer with two hands, lifting it up all the way.

Gong Kim-Jin had just been full of smiles while looking at her being encased in his attack that would weigh her down and explode on her in intervals, causing her to be unable to defend against it with her meager skill, but she punctured a hole in it and escaped, towering above before she brought that hammer down on him.

His scalp turned numb at that exact moment, causing him to finally no longer hold back! 

"Domain!~"

He screamed as a one kilometer radius brownish domain instantly engulfed her along with him! He raised both of his hands, sand and earth forming on top of his head when that flaming hammer finally landed on his head!

*Bang!~*

Gong Kim-Jin's knees caved in as his kneecaps shattered! The strength of Sophie's hammer swing was unimaginable to him as even his eyes were about to roll back from the sheer impact. Flames descended on him but with his earth essence energy protecting him, he remained unharmed but shaken.

Nevertheless, he managed to stay conscious and opened his mouth.

"Ahhh!!!!"

He screamed as he pushed her back along with her hammer, using up all his strength along with his domain's mountainous aura and strength to finally push her a few meters back. He swiftly took a deep breath and retreated to a kilometer away, looking at her in incredulity while his arms trembled, but it was unknown if it was from the impact or from fear.

Still, his expression was full of disbelief.

She... she was still using her Low-Level Law Dominion Stage Cultivation, and yet, how could her energy compare to his prowess that should've completely reached High-Level Seventh Stage!?

'She... has she conjured a Supreme Domain!?' 

His mind screamed inwardly, and even the powerhouses present thought so.

However, she hadn't even used her domain, so how could she be so powerful!?

"Well, a piercing and searing blade like my glaive can slice you like cutting vegetables. It would be bad, so this hammer should be enough to crush you a bit instead..."

Sophie grinned at Gong Kim-Jin as she waved around her flaming hammer, seemingly testing its might.

"Sophie, that's enough. I got bored, so finish him with your full strength."

Davis laughed, but inwardly, he felt that someone might use this situation to harm her, so he told her to finish this battle.

"Full strength!?"

Sophie's body froze as she turned to look at Davis.

"Yes, you can use your full strength. There's no need to hold back anymore."

Hearing his permission, Sophie felt crazy.

Was it really okay to reveal her full power? Wouldn't that make her vulnerable in the long run!? 

"Don't worry. You're already being coveted, so go all out."

His voice echoed in her head, making her eyes go wide into moon-like saucers. She licked and moved her lips.

"Domain~"

Gong Kim-Jin had just taken a breather, feeling glad that Davis interrupted even though he had seen him as a rival, but suddenly, he saw a crimson world engulf him. Surrounding him were wisps of flames, swaying within the wind as if they were going to extinguish.

But then...

*Swish!~*

They all rose into flames, abruptly transforming into armaments in an instant.

First, he saw that damned flaming glaive, and then the hateful flaming hammer behind him. However, looking around, he saw them number in the dozens. That's not counting the hundreds of other armaments, ranging from spears to swords, poles, bows and arrows, scythes, daggers, and all kinds of weapons! 

All of them were blazing with intense flames, ready to crush him into bits and burn him into ashes!

Gong Kim-Jin's black pupils trembled, deep fear and disbelief embedding into him as he felt like he was trapped in a life or death situation since the armaments around him all radiated peak-level seventh stage might.

No, even higher!