The nearby true disciples who had approached the duel ground turned pale. The weaker ones could not withstand the shock and spat blood.
Only then did they react. They retreated at once and dared not approach the duel ground again.
By then the entire arena lay buried under flying sand and rock. The clash of the two strongest techniques had produced power far beyond expectation. Even the closest elder referees could not see clearly into the center at first.
Fortunately, the chaos ended quickly. Rocks fell and the dust cleared, revealing the duel ground in ruins. When they focused, everyone realized with horror that both combatants still stood in their original places. Could it be… a draw? Had they tied?
A thin mist still clung to the arena, obscuring details. When the mist dispersed completely, Guyang’s figure appeared first. Li Tianming stopped and fixed his gaze on the duel ground, staring intently at Guyang and silently praying: Don’t be hurt. Please don’t be hurt.
Xue Wujiang frowned and looked over as well, his thoughts the opposite of Li Tianming’s…he had hoped Guyang would collapse immediately. Fresh chapters posted on nοvelfire.net
As the mist vanished, Guyang stood unharmed, his expression as calm as before. He slowly withdrew his fist. Then a rumble rang out.
Everyone looked up in shock. Opposite Guyang, Yunhai lay collapsed on the ground. With the mist gone, they could clearly see Yunhai’s condition and they recoiled in terror.
Half of Yunhai’s head was gone; the other half had been blown apart. His body held no intact place…riddled with wounds…and he lay utterly dead, without even a trace of life.
“He’s… dead!?” the head referee gasped, eyes wide with horror.
At his words, countless true disciples around them stared in stunned disbelief. Yunhai…First among the true disciples at the First Layer of Baoyuan Realm…was dead. Guyang had killed him with a single punch.
The scene shocked everyone into silence. Yunhai had occupied the top spot of the true-disciples contest and no one had dared challenge his status. Now an accident had occurred: Guyang had actually killed Yunhai. It felt impossible and outrageous; they could hardly believe their eyes.
All they knew was that Guyang had unleashed one final fist technique…a tremendously powerful martial art…and with one blow had slaughtered Yunhai. Who could have imagined it? Guyang had concealed a trump card.
Their astonishment turned to admiration: admiration for Guyang’s terrifying strength, for the depth of his hidden card, and for the absurdity of his talent.
In the stands, after seeing the scene clearly, Xue Wujiang paused as if he could not accept it. When he stared at Yunhai’s grisly corpse, realization hit him: Yunhai had indeed been killed by Guyang. Rage surged through him instantly.
“This true-disciples contest forbids lethal force! Guyang dared to break the rules and kill during a match…this is a grave crime!” Xue Wujiang shouted. “Disregarding the rules and killing at will…how does that differ from the demonic sect? Guyang must die!”
His true yuan exploded as he intended to seize the chance and strike at Guyang. Li Tianming, sharp-eyed, noticed Xue Wujiang’s move and blocked him.
“Accidents happen between juniors in sparring. If you want to interfere, you’ll have to get through me first,” Li Tianming sneered. Those were the same words Xue had used before; Li returned them unchanged.
Xue Wujiang flew into fury and tried to bypass Li Tianming to attack Guyang directly, but Li would not allow him to go around. The two elders’ power matched, so neither could force the other.
“You old men, do you plan to just watch?” Xue Wujiang, blocked, turned his glare to the grand elders of Beixue Gate and Fengshuang Gate. “If this Guyang grows, will any of our three sects survive? Do you want Liuyun Sect to trample us forever?”
His words stirred the two elders but they were not fools; they answered with cold smiles and sharp words.
“Don’t call us fools, Xue Wujiang. Your Yunhai struck first and tried to kill; he died by counterstrike…he had it coming. As for Guyang’s future, it benefits the four major sects of Haonan Province. We have no personal grudge against Liuyun Sect; why should we make one?” the elders declared. “You hail others as demonic sects, yet your Baiyang Sect acts most like one.”
Their blunt rejoinder reminded everyone how domineering Baiyang Sect had been; even the other major sects often clashed with them. Asking the two elders to aid Xue Wujiang was impossible.
Besides, Guyang had shown exceptional talent and strength…an omen of great fortune. To try to punish and suppress such a prodigy risked disastrous backlash. They were not foolish enough to act against him.
“Idiot! You fools! Just you wait!” Xue Wujiang raged, but he knew resisting now would do no good. With Beixue and Fengshuang effectively siding with Liuyun Sect, he spat a final curse and strode away from Beixue Gate; trying to kill Guyang within their territory would be impossible, so he left.
As Xue Wujiang departed, the two grand elders’ expressions tightened briefly before they turned to Li Tianming. Li relaxed and then looked at Guyang on the duel ground with a serene, satisfied smile. He felt immense relief and pride; his gaze warmed with admiration.
“Congratulations, Elder Li. Liuyun Sect has indeed produced a true dragon this time,” one elder said. “With a talent like Guyang, he may achieve legendary feats in Chu State,” the other added. “He will surely rank among Chu State’s prodigies. Congratulations, truly congratulations.”
They bowed and congratulated Li Tianming. He returned their bows; after their public support for Liuyun Sect, he responded to keep appearances.
After the formalities, they descended from the stands. The Beixue elder personally stepped forward.
“Then the true-disciples contest concludes successfully,” he announced. “Next came the distribution of rewards.”
He looked at Guyang with astonishment, recalling how the young man had continually reshaped their understanding of genius during the contest.
“Congratulations, Guyang. You placed first in the true-disciples contest. This is your reward.” The Beixue elder produced a storage ring and handed it to Guyang.
Guyang accepted the storage ring with a slight bow. “Thank you, Elder,” he said, then glanced inside the ring at the reward and brightened with delight.