Chapter 392: 390. The Sword Flies Up (2/4)
"Blocked it."
Wanyan’s lips immediately curled upwards.
The spear tip pierced the sword sheath; though a tremendous force followed, Wanyan still managed to block it. She immediately wanted to create some distance and draw her sword to confront the enemy, but as she was about to retreat, something unexpected happened.
"Attempting to stop my Dragon-Breaking Spear without even drawing your sword?" The young man raised an eyebrow, revealing a hint of disdain, clearly provoked by Wanyan’s relaxed smile.
Of course, this was not the bored ridicule of the strong against the weak, but genuine contempt. Because the Dragon-Breaking Spear was born to break defenses, and a woman who didn’t understand the spear was still complacent about blocking a single strike.
After those words, the spear suddenly shifted direction, making a sweep and then smashing down swiftly. The gust of wind it stirred caused a thin layer of dust to dance around the entire arena, astonishing the surrounding spectators.
Wanyan barely managed to block the sweep, her hands still fixed in the previous posture, making it impossible to intercept the descending spear. She could only choose to retreat quickly, luckily having a space of more than twenty steps to fall back into.
Yet, the rhythm of the battle was firmly controlled by the young man—a retreat wouldn’t dodge this strike.
From her past experience, she knew sacrificing something was necessary.
Bang!
The long spear slammed down with a tremendous noise, the dispersing gust of wind leveling the dust on the competition platform. Immediately following was another sound as the sword in Wanyan’s hand flew out and dropped onto the platform.
"Interesting, using the sword sheath’s tip to deflect my Dragon-Breaking Spear’s force and then seizing the chance to retreat." The young man chuckled lightly, "But you, a swordswoman, having your sword knocked away by me, how will you fight?"
The young man fell silent, unmoving.
He believed the battle was already over.
A woman, no matter how profound her Body Refinement, couldn’t possibly surpass the physical strength of his own body, let alone compare to his overall power while holding his spear.
"Surrender."
Wanyan didn’t reply, standing calmly.
Yet, the crowd around the arena was boiling with excitement.
"Who just called out Wanyan like a fool?" The blue-robed figure immediately looked towards Lin Kewu.
"If not for that guy, how could Wanyan have handed over the advantage and then lost?" Akun’s expression was somewhat cold as his gaze followed the direction of the shouting.
However, to no avail.
He didn’t find who had just called out Wanyan.
"There’s no hope for the Inner Courtyard now." The young man with the surname Lin sighed, for once lost, Akun’s uncle would only allow Wanyan into the Outer Courtyard. Once in the Outer Courtyard, the Divine Profound Realm couldn’t accept her as a disciple.
What he had done was all for nothing!
"Senior Brother Lin, how about we buy a spot?" Akun quickly suggested.
The Hundred Sects Alliance indeed had regulations; a Three-star Influence could choose up to one hundred people. But no influence truly adhered to this. Once the selection ended, the major influences would contact those they originally wanted to recruit but missed due to lack of quota.
This way, another line emerged.
One could buy a spot!
For the Inner Courtyard of a Three-star Academy, only fifty White Crystals were needed if the talent meets the standard!
"Of course."
The young man with the surname Lin nodded.
As their conversation unfolded, the man holding the spear on the competition platform spoke again, "Since you won’t admit defeat, take another strike!"
The spear tip quivered, the whistling sound immediately piercing the air.
The sword lying beneath the arena couldn’t be approached by anyone, naturally making it impossible to help her toss it back up.
Thus, he didn’t plan to use the Dragon-Breaking Spear.
"Look at that!" Suddenly, a shout erupted from the crowd, and everyone followed the voice to look. The sword initially lying on the ground had unexpectedly unsheathed itself and soared into the air.
This scene left many shocked!
When the sword flew towards Wanyan, the crowd’s astonishment and clamor intensified.
"Man and Sword Unity!"
"Only when reaching the realm of Man and Sword Unity can the sword return to one’s hand."
Some high-level figures in the influences, who had originally lost interest in Wanyan, renewed their focus on her.
Bang!
The long sword landed at Wanyan’s feet.
Wanyan naturally picked it up, her face showing surprise. She immediately raised her hand and swung it, a fierce cry emanated from the sword edge—the sound of Sword Qi. Accompanying this sound, Wanyan spoke.
"Shattered Thirteen Swords."
Martial Arts of Perfection, unleash!
The young man with the spear’s face changed dramatically; the spear thrust he had made instantly attempted to retract but was too late.
The sword edge brought with it blue Sword Qi and slashed thirteen times consecutively.
With each slash, the young man retreated one step!
On the second slash, he retreated once more!
The spear in his hand was evidently being used as a shield. When the thirteenth sword descended, the sword broke free, like a wild horse, plunging into the crowd and wedged into the crevice between the tiles.
"I won!" Wanyan’s sword moved again and was already at the young man’s throat.
"Victory!"
"Wanyan, you’re amazing!"
The blue-clad figure and others immediately erupted in shouts of excitement.
Many sitting on the high platform favored Wanyan.
"To have the sword return to one’s side, she’s undoubtedly touched the realm of Man and Sword Unity, but she couldn’t have the sword return to her hand—it seems she hasn’t truly achieved genuine Man and Sword Unity." The speaker was an elderly woman, with Divine Profound cultivation and also the representative of the Three-star Influence here.
"Enough, be content. This girl’s talent in Sword Dao is not bad. If she opens the Meridian Gate, her Swordsmanship will surely be superior. Whether she has truly reached the realm of Man and Sword Unity, what does it matter." This time, the speaker was a young man, with cultivation equal to the old woman, but he directly withdrew a token from his Storage Ring and handed it to the servant beside him, "Go give it to the winner of platform number 3."
"Yes."
The servant immediately leapt down.
In addition, more than ten others moved towards Wanyan’s direction.
One-star and Two-star Influences knew they couldn’t compete, so they didn’t take out their disciple tokens.
"What’s Senior Brother Kewu trying to do?" Luo Mi leaned against the stand, feeling somewhat helpless.
Under the watchful eyes of everyone, he unexpectedly used Sword Control to interfere with the competition.
He was a bit too excessive for the one he liked.
Similarly, Yang Xi also noticed Lin Kewu using Sword Control Skill, yet he had no other intentions, focusing solely on Wanyan, observing her left and right.
"That’s the woman Senior Brother Kewu likes; she seems just average, her talent lags far behind Lele." Luo Mi was suddenly speechless.
"Senior Sister, if Zhao Qing hears you say this, do you think she’ll fall out with you?" Luo Mi laughed heartily; he thought it possible, considering Senior Sister Zhao Qing had often ’mistreated’ Senior Brother Lele because of Yang Xi.
As Luo Mi focused his gaze downward again, he saw Lin Kewu pushing through the crowd vigorously.
No doubt, he knew Senior Brother Kewu was eager with longing.
At this moment, facing the sudden presentation of more than ten tokens, Wanyan appeared a bit at a loss.
"Young lady, our Inner Sect of Three-star Mountain Liu Sect welcomes you."
"Our Shield Sword Sect welcomes you... You’re a swordswoman; our Shield Sword Sect suits you well."
The group spoke, talking over one another.
Lin Kewu was already slowly squeezing through to within a dozen steps of Wanyan.
"Wanyan!"
Lin Kewu called out softly, his face full of joy akin to a stranded traveler in a desert spotting an oasis.