Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Thud! Thud!

There was the sound of heavy footsteps as a young man approached the arena.

He had a slender, well-proportioned body, and had thick brows and thin lips. He looked cunning and sinister.

He was the person ranked seventh on the Windcloud Scoreboard. The people of the outer yard called him Boss Wen. It was Wen Chong!

Xu Xiaoshou felt a powerful aura press against his fist. He knew that Wen Chong had a technique that required charging up. He might not be able to last one move against him if he allowed him to charge up his technique.

He took a whiff of the Spirit Crystal in his hand and chuckled slightly. “h.e.l.lo, Junior!”

Wen Chong staggered he was so furious, and the pressure from his aura dissipated without Xu Xiaoshou having to do anything.

Even though his aura was powerful and extraordinary, he was still a junior who had entered the outer yard one year later than Xu Xiaoshou.

The crowd had been worried about how Xu Xiaoshou would be able to hold his own against Wen Chong's powerful aura. They didn't expect the lad to have an a.r.s.enal of devious techniques, each of them marvelously effective.

“I'm going to die laughing. I have to hand it to Xu Xiaoshou!”

2

“My G.o.d, he dares to speak like this in front of Boss Wen. My legs would've given out from under me if I were in that situation.”

“Haha, how do you think he's managed to survive until now? Xu Xiaoshou is also rather powerful.”

In the arena, Wen Chong stared at Xu Xiaoshou with hawk-like eyes. “Xu Xiaoshou, you're quite impressive. You dared to touch my person. You must be mentally prepared to die.”

2

Xu Xiaoshou knew who he was talking about. It was Liu Zhen. Everyone knew that!

He was secretly lamenting the situation. Why was he so unlucky? He just defeated the lackey, and now the boss had come without giving him time to recover first!

2

He couldn't help himself from turning around and shooting daggers at the judge.

Angry, the judge waved his hand and said furiously, “Battle, start!”

Xu Xiaoshou immediately put distance between them. Wen Chong's most powerful technique wasn't his aura. Instead, it was a spiritual technique by the name of “Shadow-Splitting Spiritual Technique.”

2

The technique could conjure up to seven clones at once. This coupled with Wen Chong's dagger techniques meant that Xu Xiaoshou wouldn't be able to escape if he was caught in one of his attacks.

2

Even though the Shadow-Splitting Spiritual Technique was an Acquired-stage technique, its practicality could rival Innate-stage techniques.

A cold smile appeared on Wen Chong's face when he saw Xu Xiaoshou retreat. That was exactly what he wanted him to do.

The longer he charged up the Shadow-Splitting Spiritual Technique, the more clones he could conjure at one time. Since Xu Xiaoshou wanted to put more distance between them, he could use this opportunity to stall for time.

1

Wen Chong laughed coldly after he made a forceful hand gesture. Xu Xiaoshou would definitely die when he summoned his seven clones!

The candidates in the arena had still been rather noisy before the battle started. However, now they were deathly silent. It was a different story for the spectators in the spectator seats. They'd never stopped being noisy.

“Has Xu Xiaoshou gone insane? Doesn't he know that Boss Wen's Shadow-Splitting Spiritual Technique can also be charged? Is he putting distance between them to stall his death?”

“I heard that he only knows the White Cloud Sword Technique. Maybe he really doesn't know about Boss Wen's technique?”

“It's over, it's over. That lad will be torn into shreds after Boss Wen and his seven clones charge forward at the same time.”

“That's right. He's not the only one with a ninth-grade spiritual weapon. Other people have one too! Like Boss Wen's pair of purple daggers. Tsk, tsk. Those are terrifying!”

“Look, Xu Xiaoshou's still holding the wooden sword. F***, he, he closed his eyes?”

Liu Zhen had woken up after being cared for by the medical personnel. The moment he arrived at his spectator seats, he saw that the battle between the two candidates was about to break out.

His pupils dilated, not because of Wen Chong's Shadow-Splitting Spiritual Technique, but because he saw the familiar sight of Xu Xiaoshou closing his eyes.

“That is… the sword technique that he didn't manage to use at the final moments of the last battle?” he thought to himself.

“Both parties are going to reveal their trump cards at the start of the battle? Do they really need to be this restless?”

Xu Xiaoshou intended to do just that. His body was no longer capable of engaging in a drawn-out battle. Since both the Shadow-Splitting Spiritual Technique and the Fleeting White Cloud needed to be charged, then he was going to decide the battle with one attack!

However, to not injure his opponent, Xu Xiaoshou was using the wooden sword!

8

He was a caring candidate, always thinking about his opponent.

2

He had tested the wooden sword out yesterday. It had decent offensive capabilities. At the least, it could slice through the bark of a tree.

In reality, the strength of Fleeting White Cloud didn't lie within the weapon but in the Sword Will!

On the other side, many illusory figures appeared around Wen Chong. No one dared to breathe. They knew that the battle would be decided in an instant.

The judge crouched down. Truth be told, people in this line of work feared these kinds of head-on battles the most.

But he wouldn't be able to determine a winner if he didn't allow the candidates to duke it out. However, someone might die if he allowed them to cross swords.

“Whoos.h.!.+”

The judge looked at Xu Xiaoshou and became immensely fl.u.s.tered when he saw his wooden sword, closed eyes, and his gradually fading aura.

“Try a little harder!” he thought.

“Don't you have a ninth-grade spiritual sword? Take it out and use it!”

“I'll be able to save you if you last against Wen Chong's first charged attack!”

“Buzz!”

The crisp hum of a sword rang. Everyone grew tense as they looked at Xu Xiaoshou's sword.

Hm, a wooden sword?

Were they hearing things?

Could it be Wen Chong's dagger that was trembling?

Everyone looked back in unison and saw the glimmer in Wen Chong's eyes as he charged forward, his body turning into a blur as he s.h.i.+fted and changed position, weaving between his clones to slice his dagger at Xu Xiaoshou.

He closed the distance…

Half the arena!

One meter!

Xu Xiaoshou… still had his eyes closed!

Everyone was cursing internally. He was about to die, yet he still hadn't opened his eyes. His eyes might stay shut forever if he didn't do something!

The judge instantly darted forward. Xu Xiaoshou must've gone mad. He was heavily injured and must have given up on the compet.i.tion!

However, just as the two candidates were within inches of each other, Xu Xiaoshou suddenly opened his eyes. No one knew when he had moved the sword in his right hand!

This attack was extremely slow, like a fleeting white cloud, and instantly calmed down the restless spectators.

“Buzz!”

Another hum of a sword was heard. This time, everyone saw what happened. It was Xu Xiaoshou's wooden sword that was dancing with joy, not Wen Chong's dagger.

“A wooden sword?”

“What's happening?”

Everyone in the spectator seats was waiting for a reaction. However, they didn't expect themselves to be hit by the attack.

“Clang…”

This sound caused everyone's sword to tremble, as if the swords had been drawn by the Sword Will and connected as one.

This scene was incredibly familiar. All of the swordsman at the scene involuntarily thought back to the unknown hum of a sword that had spread throughout the outer yard two days ago.

Could that have been caused by Xu Xiaoshou?

“This… How is this possible?”

“Am I seeing things?”

In the air, Xiao Qixiu's eyes widened, and he grabbed onto his sword in shock.

Acquired-stage Sword Will?!

Was that really from Xu Xiaoshou?!

In the arena, after the buzzing sounded, Wen Chong immediately changed his plan of attack. He retreated while he was right under Xu Xiaoshou's nose, then immediately got his seven clones to guard his front.

Clang, clang, clang…

The sword glow collided with the purple daggers, and the sound of metal against metal endlessly rang out.

Wen Chong was immensely shocked. That lad's strike had created several hundred sword glows. It was a net of blades that looked extremely slow, but it blocked his opponent's path of attack and forced him to retreat time after time.

“How could it be?”

“Didn't that lad train his body? How could he have such a terrifying sword technique?”

Creak, creak, creak!

Wen Chong's clones got diced one after the other, and thin sword marks had appeared on Wen Chong's body. Fresh blood oozed out of his wounds!

Outside the arena, Liu Zhen was shocked. This sword technique…

He remembered that Xu Xiaoshou had been holding Hiding Pain during their battle. If he hadn't activated the dark energy explosion to interrupt Xu Xiaoshou's attack, he would've turned into mincemeat.

Sure enough, this lad was hiding his true strength, just like he'd expected!

In the arena, Wen Chong was forced back to his original position by the sword glows, and was close to being pushed out of the arena.

He put away his dagger and brought his arms in front of his chest. A barrier of spiritual energy shot out from within his body and instantly repelled all of the sword glows.

“Spirit Surge Barrier!”

The spiritual energy scattered, and Wen Chong's pupils dilated.

Xu Xiaoshou's fringe was swept upward with his forward momentum, and his wooden sword landed on Wen Chong's throat.

“You lose.”

Gulp!

Wen Chong involuntarily swallowed. As his Adam's Apple bobbed, a bit of blood oozed from the wound left behind by the sword energy of the wooden sword.

His face was covered in blood, but they were all superficial wounds. He was still in peak condition. But he had lost.

One sword. One sentence.

The person ranked seventh on the Windcloud Scoreboard had been defeated!

The wind swept past the arena. It was silent in the spectator seats. The judge turned his head around in a daze.

Xu Xiaoshou withdrew his sword and turned around. He had to head back and recover. That sword technique had exhausted all of his spiritual power.

His legs were trembling…

“Tolerate it,” he told himself. “You cannot fall. So many people are watching. You have to finish the act!”

3

Wen Chong's eyes were filled with indignance. Aside from the time they'd spent charging up their attacks, the battle only lasted a few seconds, yet he was defeated?

6

The person ranked seventh on the Windcloud Scoreboard, Boss Wen of the outer yard, had been defeated!

He didn't look back. Even though he was in the barrier, he still felt like he could hear the crowd's unfeeling laughter.

Even Liu Zhen was able to beat up Xu Xiaoshou in his battle, yet Boss Wen had been defeated in one move!

This Xu Xiaoshou had dared to tease Di Xin'er with a wooden sword, yet Boss Wen hadn't been able to do anything about it when he entered the field.

A fierce expression pa.s.sed over Wen Chong's face!

The purple dagger that he'd tucked within his sleeves radiated a mysterious aura, and Wen Chong's turned into a blur once again as he charged toward Xu Xiaoshou!

3

“Careful!”

“Stop it, Wen Chong!”

“The battle has ended! It's ended!” the judge roared as he pounced forward. He didn't expect such an outcome to occur just because he'd been late in announcing the end of the match.

Anyone could see that Xu Xiaoshou had won. To think that Wen Chong would take action and launch a surprise attack!

He wouldn't be able to stop Wen Chong's attack in time!

“Got ambushed. Pa.s.sive Points +1.”

Xu Xiaoshou was greedy for Pa.s.sive Points and was thus always paying some attention to the notification panel. When he saw this notification, he abruptly turned around to retaliate.

Creak!

Wen Chong's ninth-grade spiritual dagger fiercely pierced Xu Xiaoshou's shoulder, and blood sprayed everywhere.

Creak!

Xu Xiaoshou's right hand pierced through Wen Chong's chest straight to his heart!

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