When Xuan Ke learned that her next opponent was Chen Yuyang, she felt just as surprised.
However, she quickly let it go.
She knew this match wasn’t specially arranged by the clan elders.
It was purely a coincidence.
Before the battle began, Xuan Ke went out of her way to visit Xuan Ji.
“Great-grandfather, your great-granddaughter’s next opponent is Chen Yuyang. How should I handle this fight? Should I concede directly, or should I go all out?”
Upon hearing this, Xuan Ji slowly opened his eyes and gave Xuan Ke a deep look.
He didn’t answer her question directly, only saying faintly, “For the sake of the clan’s interests, I hope you build a good relationship with him.”
“But this is your own path. How you walk it, I won’t interfere or force you.”
Hearing this, Xuan Ke was stunned for a moment, then understood her great-grandfather’s meaning.
’Grandfather respects my choice.’
’As for the clan’s interests, that depends on whether I’m willing to act. And if I’m to decide…’
Xuan Ke’s thoughts were firm.
Fight!
She wanted to see with her own eyes just how formidable this youth—whom her great-grandfather had praised with the term “stunningly brilliant”—truly was.
Even though Xuan Ke knew very well that with her strength, she most likely wasn’t his match.
But if she could take this opportunity to understand the real gap between them and witness the demeanor of a true top-tier prodigy with her own eyes, it would still be a worthwhile trip for her.
With this thought in mind, Xuan Ke stepped onto the battle stage.
The two stood on opposite sides of the stage, facing each other.
Xuan Ke observed the youth before her.
His gaze remained calm.
His handsome face looked exceptionally refined under the sunlight.
Thinking about how he had easily defeated even her own brother, Xuan Ke felt her heart race involuntarily.
A sense of inexplicable anticipation and nervousness arose in her heart, and her palms even began to sweat.
“Hehuan Sect, Chen Yuyang.”
Chen Yuyang broke the silence first, cupping his hands toward Xuan Ke.
Startled back to reality, Xuan Ke quickly cupped her hands back.
“Xuan Clan, Xuan Ke.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, the girl seemed to remember something.
Her lips parted slightly, and she couldn’t help but ask, “You… you have a good relationship with Yan Luo of the Yan Family, right?”
Hearing this, Chen Yuyang was slightly taken aback, a hint of strangeness flashing in his eyes.
He hadn’t expected the other party to suddenly bring up such an irrelevant question at this moment.
But Chen Yuyang still nodded frankly.
“That’s right.”
After all, Yan Luo was someone he had guided; she was practically his half-disciple, so their relationship was naturally good.
Xuan Ke nodded slightly, but her mind couldn’t help wandering again.
’To have such strength at such a young age, and to be so strikingly handsome… it’s no wonder he attracts women.’
’But the fact that the arrogant and conceited Yan Luo would fancy a man… that’s still somewhat surprising…’
“Daoist Xuan, please begin.”
Seeing that Xuan Ke’s gaze was a little unfocused, as if she was spacing out, Chen Yuyang raised his hand in a gesture of invitation.
Xuan Ke snapped back to reality again.
Hastily gathering her thoughts, she gripped the hilt of the sword at her waist with both hands.
Clang.
The blade was drawn from its sheath.
Chen Yuyang also adopted a combat stance.
However, Xuan Ke then said seriously, “Daoist Chen, I know I’m not your match.”
“But I want to know just how big the gap between us is.”
“Next, I will unleash my current strongest technique.”
“If you can take this technique, I will concede voluntarily.”
After thinking it over, Chen Yuyang felt this was more straightforward and saved unnecessary entanglement, so he nodded.
“In that case, please enlighten me!”
Xuan Ke took a deep breath, and the spiritual energy within her began to circulate rapidly.
Her robes fluttered without wind, and a blazing flame ignited around her.
The flame was dark red and extremely condensed.
Just as it swelled to over three meters high, its size suddenly compressed.
With a series of crackling sounds, the red flame transformed into a crimson thunder-fire force.
Thunder serpents slithered, encircling Xuan Ke, emitting an oppressive pressure that made one’s heart tremble.
Seeing this, Chen Yuyang’s eyes showed a hint of surprise.
Thunder-fire… this little girl did have some skills.
Thunder—the power of heavenly punishment—was wild and domineering.
It wasn’t something one could casually wield.
Either this girl practiced a special technique, had a strong talent, or possessed a unique constitution.
Of course, possibly all three.
As Xuan Ke’s spiritual energy continued to climb, the thunder light above the stage grew even more dazzling.
The surrounding air seemed to darken, and the air itself twisted.
Fine lightning covered the girl’s body, with several especially thick bolts interwoven among them.
The two strongest currents were attached to her twin swords.
The blades trembled incessantly under the thunder light, emitting sharp sword cries even before moving.
[Cang Lei Jue—Divine Might!]
The girl exhaled, and both eyes opened wide.
Crimson lightning flickered in her pupils as well.
Xuan Ke’s body naturally floated half a foot off the ground.
At the same time, an invisible oppressive force radiated outward.
The spectating cultivators below the stage involuntarily held their breath.
Cloud Lian’s expression also showed some surprise.
’Such strong thunder-fire power…’
Although the move had yet to be released, Cloud Lian already felt immense pressure.
The next moment, Xuan Ke moved.
Her petite figure transformed into a crimson blur, appearing before Chen Yuyang as if teleporting.
Her speed was undeniably extreme.
The twin swords in her hands crossed each other—one thrust straight for the throat, the other stabbed fiercely at the chest.
The angles of her strikes were extremely cunning and vicious.
Fast, and vicious!
Most importantly, before the swords even arrived, the wild thunder light had already spread outward, penetrating the body.
Under normal circumstances, facing such an incredibly fast sword strike while being numbed by the thunder light, it would be difficult to react effectively.
Unfortunately for her, Chen Yuyang’s physical body was incomparably powerful.
His resistance to thunder was off the charts.
Over a hundred lifetimes and a hundred refinements, the number of heavenly thunderbolts he had endured was no less than eighty thousand, if not a hundred thousand.
In the past, sometimes even when he wasn’t transcending tribulations or breaking through realms, just normally cultivating to improve, he would be struck by several heavenly thunders for no reason.
He was long accustomed to it.
Thus, even when struck by this thunder-fire, Chen Yuyang didn’t pause for even an instant.
Almost at the same moment Xuan Ke struck, Chen Yuyang acted.
His hands transformed into claws, moving even faster than Xuan Ke, and directly, simply, and roughly grabbed the blades of her twin swords as they swung toward him.
The moment the swords were caught, the crimson thunder light wrapped around them was shattered by the energy surging from Chen Yuyang’s palms, dissipating into scattered red sparks.
Xuan Ke felt her twin swords, which she was driving with all her strength, clamped firmly, unable to advance even a hair.
Her figure also stopped, her face full of shock.
’This all-out strike, condensed with my full spiritual energy and using my ultimate technique… was caught barehanded so easily?’
On the other side, after instinctively catching the swords.
Looking at his hands gripping the blades, Chen Yuyang frowned slightly, hesitating inwardly.
’Using my bare hands to catch the sword… did I overdo it?’
’Ah, I should have blocked with my own sword. That would have looked less exaggerated.’
But what was done was done.
Since he had already done it, Chen Yuyang could only let it stand.
Thinking this, Chen Yuyang’s body trembled slightly, as if stimulated by the electric light.
The skin on his neck and wrists also flushed slightly red, and a faint white mist rose from his body surface.
Seeing this, although Xuan Ke was still deeply struck, she felt a little comforted.
At least… her attack had elicited some reaction from him, slightly injuring him… right?
But even so, her twin swords were fifth-grade spiritual weapons nonetheless.
They were extremely sharp, yet he just caught them with his bare hands like that… just how powerful was his physical body?
Xuan Ke withdrew her spiritual energy.
The crimson lightning around her gradually faded, and she relaxed her arms.
Feeling her energy receding, Chen Yuyang also let go.
“That was a fast sword strike. For a moment there, I almost couldn’t react,” Chen Yuyang then said, feigning a slightly shaken expression.
Of course, this was just modesty, and also a bit of an attempt to make up for his earlier display.
However, to be fair, Xuan Ke’s technique was indeed powerful.
Both speed and power were top-notch.
If it were an ordinary cultivator of the same realm, without advance preparation, being directly slain by this sword strike wouldn’t be surprising.
“Daoist Chen is too modest.”
Xuan Ke knew Chen Yuyang was being humble.
She sheathed her twin swords back into her waist scabbard, forcing a bitter smile.
But at this moment, rather than feeling dejected, she looked at Chen Yuyang with more curiosity.
’He doesn’t look particularly muscular, so how is his body so formidable?’
’Even some of the clan’s Nascent Soul body cultivators couldn’t catch my technique barehanded so easily.’
’Is it because of the rumored Bright Sun Body?’
’Or has he cultivated some extremely special body-tempering method?’
Xuan Ke couldn’t help but feel curious.
Below the stage, at the Xuan Clan’s observation area, a group of elders couldn’t help but discuss among themselves.
They also expressed much admiration and amazement at Chen Yuyang’s strength.
At the same time, they deeply understood what the ancestor meant by ‘must not be offended.’
“This match, Hehuan Sect’s Chen Yuyang wins.”
The presiding cultivator announced the result loudly.
Chen Yuyang cupped his hands toward Xuan Ke once more, gave a simple nod, and turned to walk off the stage.
“Wait, Daoist Chen, please hold on!”
Seeing this, Xuan Ke quickly called out to stop him.
Chen Yuyang paused in his steps and turned sideways.
“Daoist Xuan, is there something else?”
“Daoist Chen, do you have any free time recently?”
Xuan Ke stepped forward, her eyes burning as she looked at the youth.
“Specifically… for what?”
Chen Yuyang didn’t directly answer whether he was free or not, instead raising an eyebrow to ask further.
“I’d like to ask Daoist Chen to spar with me a few more times,” Xuan Ke said, taking a slightly deep breath.
“Of course, I won’t waste Daoist Chen’s time for nothing.”
After speaking, Xuan Ke quickly added, “If you spar with me, I will also give you a satisfactory reward—whether it’s spirit stones, pills, heavenly materials or earthly treasures. As long as my Xuan Clan has them, or I can obtain them, you can choose.”