On the grand plaza.
The light of a sword and the shadow of a ruler overlapped and flashed relentlessly. In just a short time, Xiao Yan and Nalan Yanran had already clashed over a hundred times.
Their speed was dizzying, so fast that the eyes of the ordinary Yunlan Sect disciples could no longer keep up. The ground beneath their feet was rapidly scarred with one mark after another from the blasts of their Dou Qi and the friction of their weapons colliding. The battle was exceptionally fierce.
The more they fought, the more shocked Nalan Yanran became. With every collision, her longsword would bend to a dangerous arc under the terrifying force carried by the enormous ruler. According to her original plan, she was not going to reveal her full cultivation as a Two-Star Dou Grandmaster right away.
But the moment Xiao Yan charged forward, Nalan Yanran sensed that his aura was incredibly strong. The fluctuations of Dou Qi he erupted with had already reached the level of a Dou Grandmaster. Therefore, from the very first exchange, she had been forced to unleash her hidden cultivation.
This was why Yun Leng and the other elders had frowned the instant the battle began. They had not expected Xiao Yan to force out Nalan Yanran's full strength in a single encounter. And even then, he was still able to fight her to a standstill.
This was not at all what they had envisioned. The confidence and ease Yun Leng and the others had felt before the match had now been replaced with grim expressions. If Nalan Yanran, the Young Sect Master, were to lose with so many powerful figures from the Jia Ma Empire watching, where would the Yunlan Sect put its face?
Yun Leng was already starting to regret inviting so many outsiders to witness the event. Of course, more than regret, he was filled with resentment. Why did this Xiao Yan possess such strength?
"Grand Elder, it seems the situation is slipping from our control. That Xiao Yan's cultivation level is actually on par with Yanran's!" the Second Elder, Yun Li, whispered from the side, his voice laced with undeniable worry.
Yun Leng shook his head slightly, his voice low and serious. "Patience. Let's watch a while longer. Yanran's strength is more than just this. If it's merely a matter of equal cultivation, Xiao Yan has no chance of winning."
He was well aware that the Sect Master had taught Nalan Yanran many of the sect's high-level Dou Techniques. If she used those techniques and Xiao Yan had no trump cards of his own, she could still secure victory. The frightening possibility, however, was that Xiao Yan might also have trump cards.
After all, Yun Leng refused to believe that someone who was considered trash three years ago could, in just three years, cross three major realms to become a Dou Grandmaster without some profound foundation.
On the guest platform.
Zhou Changqing watched the intense battle below with great interest. Although the fight, in his eyes, was like children brawling and held little substance, it was still quite amusing as a form of entertainment.
He couldn't help but want to laugh, especially seeing Xiao Yan still holding back, feigning weakness just to maintain a slight upper hand. It was the classic protagonist style.
He also took a slight interest in the Wind Spirit Fractal Blade that Nalan Yanran was using. When performed, the technique resembled a sword control art, and it even had a hint of the legendary "Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin," though the number of sword forms was far too small, only five.
Still, it was undeniably cool. Who didn't have a dream of being a sword immortal? And he shouldn't forget, he was a swordsman himself.
After all, a heavy sword is still a sword!
With that thought, Zhou Changqing began observing more closely. He planned to find a scroll for a similar Dou Technique in the future, or perhaps create one himself once he had accumulated enough knowledge. He could just imagine it: in a future battle, he would unleash such a technique, and behind him, ten thousand heavy sword forms would gather, crashing down on his enemies like a torrent of steel.
Back in the plaza.
Nalan Yanran had pushed her Dou Qi to its absolute limit, continuously unleashing several formidable Xuan-rank Dou Techniques of the Yunlan Sect. But even so, she could not defeat Xiao Yan.
Worse, Xiao Yan found an opening, flashed behind her, and struck her back with an Octane Blast. Fortunately, Nalan Yanran managed to use the Willow Catkin Body Technique, a treasured movement skill of the sect, along with her Dou Qi armor to deflect most of the force.
Even so, she still suffered minor injuries, and a trace of blood trickled from the corner of her mouth. As the Young Sect Master nurtured with all the resources of the Yunlan Sect, Nalan Yanran naturally had more up her sleeve. Though she had been blasted into the air by Xiao Yan, she used the opportunity to break free from his combat rhythm.
Suspended in mid-air, her clothes fluttering, Nalan Yanran twisted to face Xiao Yan. A cyan light flashed in her eyes as a vast amount of Dou Qi surged forth. She was actually hovering in the air, defying gravity for a moment.
Then, she pointed her longsword at Xiao Yan, the coldness in her eyes reaching its peak. "Xiao Yan, I admit I misjudged you back then. You are a true genius, a genius worthy of being my, Nalan Yanran's, opponent!"
"But that's as far as it goes. Let's settle this!"
The next second, her longsword trembled and pointed toward the heavens. The sunlight pouring down from the great sun seemed to be drawn in, converging upon the tip of her blade. In an instant, the sword's point erupted with a light as brilliant as a second sun.
At the same time, the pale cyan Dou Qi energy around Nalan Yanran began to boil violently, like roiling water, sending out tangible ripples of energy that spread outward in waves.
Feeling the pressure from this attack, Xiao Yan's eyes narrowed, his expression turning slightly more serious. She was about to unleash her ultimate move.
Slowly exhaling a breath of turbid air, Xiao Yan angled his Xuan Heavy Ruler toward the ground, pouring his Dou Qi into its body as if it were free.
"As you wish..."
After his faint reply, the intricate patterns on the face of the Xuan Heavy Ruler instantly lit up with a cyan glow. Boiling energy filled the ruler's body, surging and rising from its surface like flickering flames.
In a flash!
The surrounding temperature climbed drastically, quickly reaching a terrifying level. Even the air itself seemed to twist and warp.
A few breaths later.
Both fighters reached the peak of their power-up at the same time. The light on the longsword was so blinding it could outshine the sun, while the cyan of the flame patterns on the ruler had deepened to its utmost limit.
"Wind's Zenith: Setting Sun's Radiance!"
"Flame Splitting Tsunami Ruler!"
At that moment, Nalan Yanran's sharp cry and Xiao Yan's low shout fell in unison.
"Voom!"
"Swish!"
From the sky, an intensely brilliant pillar of cyan-white sword light shot out from the tip of the blade, aimed directly at Xiao Yan. The pressure was so immense that the stone tiles on the ground began to crack, the fissures spreading far and wide.
From the ground, a crescent-shaped cyan ruler gleam slashed upward toward the heavens. Everywhere it passed, space itself seemed to twist and distort.
"BOOM!!!"
The two attacks moved at extreme speed, colliding in less than a second. Instantly, an explosion that echoed across the entire mountain peak erupted, shaking one's very soul.
Terrifying energies intertwined and clashed, like heavenly thunder igniting an earthly fire, producing a violent, horrifying explosion. The resulting shockwave of energy completely engulfed more than half of the grand plaza. The brilliant light forced many of the Yunlan Sect disciples to shut their eyes.
"This is bad! Raise the defensive barrier with all your strength!" Yun Leng's expression changed drastically as he roared the command.
Though many of the Yunlan Sect disciples were momentarily stunned by the terrifying explosion, they reacted instantly to the Grand Elder's voice. They circulated their Dou Qi, coordinated with one another, and used a secret art they had cultivated to merge their power, forming a massive energy shield that enveloped the plaza.