Chapter 217: Going Too Far
If among the Four Great Sects, one had to choose the "fifth sect," then the famed Heaven Lance Thunder Flame Fort of the Northern Frontier would undoubtedly be one of the most qualified. The Heaven Lance Thunder Flame Fort’s two ultimate techniques—one being the "Heavenly Lance" and the other the "Thunder Flame"—were renowned throughout the land. This time, the Heaven Lance Thunder Flame Fort lived up to its reputation, with two of its disciples entering the Thirty-Two Battle. Moreover, both disciples had profound force at the eighth level of the Spirit Profound Realm, and their overall strength far exceeded that of the previous ranking battle. Among all participating sects, they were only slightly inferior to the Four Great Sects.
Facing a member of the Four Great Sects as the first opponent in the Thirty-Two Battle, Mu Xiongyi instinctively tensed up. But when he saw that his opponent was Ling Jie, only sixteen years old with profound force at the sixth level of the Spirit Profound Realm, he immediately breathed a huge sigh of relief and grinned smugly: "Heh heh, this Ling Jie is clearly here just to gain experience for the next ranking battle. I’ve got this one in the bag."
"Better be careful. The strength of a Tian Jian Villa disciple can never be judged solely by profound force levels." Mu Xiongrong, who had also made it into the thirty-two, said in a low voice.
"Ha! Big brother, rest assured. If I can’t even beat a sixth-level Spirit Profound brat, I might as well impale myself with my own lance... I’m off!"
Mu Xiongyi let out a loud shout, leaped onto the Sword Discussion Platform, and with a swing of his burly right arm, whipped out a nine-foot-long bronze lance, pointing it straight at Ling Jie: "Mu Xiongyi of the Heaven Lance Thunder Flame Fort, Northern Frontier, requests your instruction!"
"Sure, sure." Ling Jie showed no sign of tension facing a strong opponent. With a cheeky grin, he slowly took out his weapon—the Sky Severing Sword. This high-grade Earth Profound Device was one he had subdued at the Sword Control Platform just last month. Though it couldn’t compare to the extremely rare Heaven Profound Swords, among Earth Profound Swords, it was absolutely top-notch, with astonishing power.
"Elder Ling, we can begin," Ling Jie said.
"Good!" Ling Wugou nodded. "Disciples of Tian Jian Villa, Ling Jie—versus—Mu Xiongyi of the Heaven Lance Thunder Flame Fort, begin the match!"
Mu Xiongyi struck first. Without any visible buildup, he thrust his lance directly forward. With the sharp whistle of air, the lance tip shot toward Ling Jie’s throat like a striking venomous snake. Ling Jie squinted his eyes and thrust out the Sky Severing Sword to meet the lance head-on. A series of crackling collisions of profound force erupted, with sword shadows and lance glints clashing dozens of times in just a few breaths. The deafening noise was like simultaneous thunder and lightning.
The sword was like a fierce tiger; the lance, a venomous dragon. The battle between tiger and dragon grew increasingly intense, and in the blink of an eye, hundreds of clashes had already passed. In the stalemate, neither seemed able to gain the upper hand.
"This Ling Jie is truly remarkable. He can hold his own against an opponent two levels higher than him without falling behind," Cang Yue couldn’t help but praise.
Yun Che shifted his gaze from the Sword Discussion Platform and said with certainty, "Senior Sister, you’ve got it backwards. You should say Mu Xiongyi is the remarkable one for being able to last so many exchanges against Ling Jie. But the key point is that Ling Jie is holding back. Otherwise, he would have lost long ago."
"Ah?" Cang Yue blinked her beautiful eyes, her face full of surprise.
Yun Che had fought Ling Jie before. Though it was only a brief exchange of three strikes, it was enough for him to roughly gauge Ling Jie’s true strength. He said slowly, "The swordsmanship of Tian Jian Villa excels in ‘sword intent,’ not simply the ‘sword momentum’ driven by profound force. Right now, Ling Jie is only using sword momentum and is already evenly matched with Mu Xiongyi, who is two levels higher in profound force. If Ling Jie unleashes his full sword intent, Mu Xiongyi will lose quickly."
Yun Che’s words were soon proven correct. After hundreds of collisions between sword and lance, Ling Jie seemed to lose patience. With a subtle change in his eyes, the sword shadows he swung suddenly became elusive. In the end, the sword shadows almost completely vanished, leaving only faint, shifting traces barely perceptible.
To outsiders, this change was merely surprising, but Mu Xiongyi, facing Ling Jie, felt as if he was suddenly facing a different opponent. Every one of his lance strikes was delivered with full force, the lance whistling through the air. But when they collided with Ling Jie’s sword, there was no longer the previous ear-splitting impact; instead, there was only a faint "ding." Then the power he had poured into the lance vanished like a stone thrown into the sea, disappearing without a trace, leaving an unbearably hollow sensation. The most astonishing thing was that his eyes could no longer track Ling Jie’s sword shadows, and even the sound of the sword cutting through the air had completely disappeared—as if the sword in Ling Jie’s hand had mysteriously vanished.
Though startled, Mu Xiongyi did not panic. He stopped trying to track Ling Jie’s sword shadows, released all his reserved profound force, and intensified his lance momentum. The nine-foot lance became like an enraged dragon, coiling and soaring with an awe-inspiring aura.
But contrary to his expectations, under his several-fold stronger lance momentum, Ling Jie was not forced back. Ling Jie’s wrist turned slightly, and the Sky Severing Sword moved like a bending spirit snake, threading through the violent storm of force and layers of lance shadows, thrusting straight at Mu Xiongyi.
Pfft... pfft...
Mu Xiongyi’s profound force defense was easily torn open. With sharp pain, two wounds deep enough to see bone appeared on his chest—yet Mu Xiongyi had not even noticed when Ling Jie’s sword had approached his chest.
Greatly alarmed, Mu Xiongyi let out a roar, swung his lance in a sweeping strike to force Ling Jie back, then leaped high into the air. Gathering all his strength into his right arm, he hurled the lance forward violently. The lance transformed into a meteor as swift as lightning, carrying a terrifying spatial ripple as it flew toward Ling Jie.
"It's... it's the Heaven Lance Thunder Flame Fort's ultimate technique... the Heaven-Supporting Lance!"
From dozens of zhang away, people could clearly feel the astonishing power of this lance thrust. If struck by it, even a peak Spirit Profound cultivator would probably lose half their life.
Ling Jie quickly retreated, but instead of dodging completely, amid countless gasps of shock, he pointed his sword toward the incoming lance...
Ding!!
There was no violent clash. When the Sky Severing Sword struck the lance, there was only a faint, barely audible hum.
"Excellent use of the 'Adhesion' technique!" Ling Yuefeng nodded in approval, a rare satisfied expression on his face.
"Xiao Jie’s talent far surpasses mine, and his courage is quite remarkable. At Xiao Jie’s age, I would never have dared to do that," Ling Yun said with a smile.
The surging sword intent rose like a flood, firmly adhering to the lance carrying violent profound force. Then, the Sky Severing Sword swung the lance in a huge arc in front of Ling Jie. The direction of the "Heaven-Supporting Lance" tip reversed and shot toward the now dumbfounded Mu Xiongyi.
BANG!!!
Stone fragments flew from the Sword Discussion Platform. The lance slammed deep into the ground at Mu Xiongyi’s feet, the entire shaft buried beneath the surface, leaving a crack several zhang long.
Mu Xiongyi stumbled back two steps, plopped onto the ground, and broke out in cold sweat on his forehead. If the lance had been aimed just a little more forward, there would now be a transparent hole through his body.
"I... I concede." Mu Xiongyi’s will to fight was completely shattered. His chest heaving, he said timidly.
"Heh, thanks for yielding." Ling Jie sheathed his sword, looking smug.
"Ling Jie of Tian Jian Villa wins. Advancing to tomorrow’s Sixteen Battle!"
This result surprised many, but even more considered it inevitable. Yun Che rested his chin on his hand and murmured to himself, "Both being from the Four Great Sects and at the same profound force level, yet the gap in strength is this huge... As expected of Tian Jian Villa."
He was, of course, referring to Xiao Nan of the Xiao Sect and Ling Jie of Tian Jian Villa. Both were at the sixth level of the Spirit Profound Realm, but the difference in their strength was far from ordinary.
The Thirty-Two Battle continued. By noon, all matches in Group One were completed. In the afternoon, Group Two matches began. Compared to Group One, Group Two’s battles were far more intense and exciting, as the overall strength of Group Two far surpassed that of Group One.
By evening, the Thirty-Two Battle was entirely finished. All sixteen fighters advancing to tomorrow’s elimination round had been determined. Among the Four Great Sects, aside from Xiao Nan, who was defeated by Yun Che, the other eleven all entered the top sixteen, occupying two-thirds of the spots.
The matchups for tomorrow’s Sixteen Battle were displayed on the profound stone at the center of the Sword Discussion Platform after the competition ended.
Yun Che’s opponent for tomorrow, like Ling Jie’s opponent today, was from the Heaven Lance Thunder Flame Fort of the Northern Frontier—Mu Xiongrong.
"You’ve seen today’s matches. Mu Xiongrong’s specialty is completely different from Mu Xiongyi’s. Mu Xiongyi trains in the 'Heavenly Lance,' while Mu Xiongrong cultivates 'Thunder Flame.' Thunder Flame is far harder to train than the Heavenly Lance, but its power far surpasses it. In the ranking battle, any weapon is allowed, including firearms! Mu Xiongrong, bearing Thunder Flame, carries dozens of different firearms on him, each one emerging endlessly and making it hard to guard against... Be very careful tomorrow!"
Today’s match, in which Yun Che had won again with a crushing victory, had greatly delighted Qin Wushang. But seeing that tomorrow’s opponent was Mu Xiongrong, he couldn’t help feeling worried... Compared to Mu Xiongrong, he would actually prefer facing someone from the Four Great Sects. This Mu Xiongrong’s attack methods were too terrifying. One slight mistake could result in disability. If it came to that, this star that had brought radiant glory to the Cangfeng Mystic Palace would be forever dimmed.
"Rest assured, Lord Qin. I won’t get hurt that easily. And," his eyes flashed, and he smiled, "Tomorrow, I’ll win for you to see again!"
"Oh, good!" Qin Wushang laughed. After every match Yun Che had fought, he found himself once again realizing he had underestimated Yun Che. Now, he no longer thought that Yun Che had reached his limit here. Instead, he was filled with hope and anticipation, wanting to see just how far he could go... Could he enter the top eight... or even break the centuries-old "monopoly" of the Four Great Sects and enter the top four with dazzling brilliance?
After the matches, when the four from Cangfeng Mystic Palace returned to their courtyard, there were already three people waiting for them inside—or rather, waiting for Yun Che alone.
Among the three, one was a middle-aged man with an imposing aura. The other two young men had been seen in today’s arena. One was Mu Xiongyi, defeated by Ling Jie; the other was Mu Xiongrong, who had defeated his opponent to enter tomorrow’s sixteen-player battle and was Yun Che’s opponent.
Seeing Yun Che, the middle-aged man strode directly over and said to him, "I am Mu Tianbei, current Fort Master of the Heaven Lance Thunder Flame Fort. I apologize for the sudden intrusion, but there is an important matter I wish to discuss with you, young friend Yun."
Mu Tianbei had a rough appearance and carried a deep arrogance. After all, in the Northern Frontier region, the Heaven Lance Thunder Flame Fort was an undisputed tyrant. As its fort master, he practically had absolute control there, with everyone obeying him. Throughout the entire Cang Feng Empire, the Heaven Lance Thunder Flame Fort’s reputation was second only to that of the Four Great Sects.
He addressed Yun Che directly, without even glancing at Qin Wushang or even Princess Cang Yue beside him—an outrageously arrogant display. Qin Wushang frowned but said nothing. Yun Che stepped forward and said, "So it’s the renowned Fort Master Mu. May I ask what important matter Fort Master wishes to discuss with this junior?"
"Very simple," Mu Tianbei said, staring straight at Yun Che. "I’ve been watching your performance in the ranking battle these past few days, and I’m filled with admiration. With talent and strength like yours, even among the Four Great Sects’ disciples, few can match you. Staying in a mere Cangfeng Mystic Palace is a waste of a shining pearl. How about joining my Heaven Lance Thunder Flame Fort instead?"
Hearing these words, even with Xue Wushang’s normally good composure, he was boiling with rage. It was one thing to poach talent, but this Mu Tianbei was doing it right in front of him, right in front of Princess Cang Yue, without even hiding his contempt for the Cangfeng Mystic Palace. He clearly held neither the Cangfeng Mystic Palace nor the imperial family in any regard. This was going too far.