Chapter 48: I am Xiao Yan

“Next, Number twenty-four!”

“Next, Number eight!”

Zhu Lan felt an unprecedented sense of confidence as she stepped onto the stage.

‘Whoa, is this the security provided by a big shot’s equipment?’

Though she had been bullied miserably the previous night, Zhu Lan was now fully revitalized!

‘Tremble, you unlucky opponents! Welcome your Queen Lan!’

“Junior Sister Zhu Lan! We brothers will support you forever!”

“Go, Junior Sister Zhu Lan! You can definitely make the top ten!”

“Go, Junior Sister Zhu Lan! Your father-fans will always love you!”
…

“I am Xiao Yan. Junior Sister, please excuse me.”

Zhu Lan’s opponent bowed.

The cheering outside the arena vanished instantly, replaced by a deathly silence.

“This… Junior Sister Zhu Lan is likely in grave danger.”

“It can’t be helped. Her opponent is the expert ranked second on the Small Prodigy Rankings. Even if she loses, she can do so with pride.”

“It’s okay, Junior Sister Zhu Lan! You’ve already done great getting this far!”

At that moment, Zhu Lan was in no mood to listen to the shouts from outside.

Her mind was filled with question marks.

‘?’

‘???’

‘Who?’

‘Who is my opponent?’

“Ex… excuse me.”

Zhu Lan’s expression looked as if she had swallowed a fly.

‘The second-ranked expert on the Small Prodigy Rankings? Brother, are you kidding me?’

Xiao Yan didn’t say much.

He drew his long spear and attacked.

Zhu Lan unsheathed her sword to parry, but the shock left her forearms numb.

Xiao Yan was a veteran in combat.

After only a few exchanges, he spotted Zhu Lan’s weaknesses.

“THUNDEROUS SHOCK!“

Xiao Yan leaped into the air, delivering a heavy downward strike.

Zhu Lan had no confidence in blocking such a terrifying blow and dodged to the side.

However, her evasion played right into Xiao Yan’s hands.

He shifted his grip and swept the spear….

“WIND-THUNDER HOWL!“

A powerful blast of energy erupted.

Zhu Lan couldn’t dodge in time and hurriedly raised her sword to block.

Bang!

Zhu Lan was sent flying.

The terrifying impact made her blood surge, and her spiritual energy failed to circulate for a moment.

If it had been the version of her from 2 days ago, she would have been crippled or knocked out of bounds by that sweep.

But because she was protected by the Earth-grade Gold Silk Armor, most of the force was redirected.

Although she was sent flying, she didn’t fall off the stage.

“Oh?”

Xiao Yan was surprised to see that his opponent hadn’t been knocked out.

“Earth-grade armor?”

His surprise lasted only 1 second before he turned and attacked with his spear again.

Zhu Lan’s temper flared. She didn’t care what rank he was; she was going to have a proper fight today.

She pushed out a wave of biting cold air.

Xiao Yan instinctively dodged the Frost Palm, and Zhu Lan used the speed boost from her Auspicious Cloud Boots to reach his back in an instant.

“POWERFUL STRIKE!“

‘So fast!’

Xiao Yan’s pupils shrank, surprised by Zhu Lan’s speed, but his reactions were quick.

He rapidly swung his spear back to parry.

Clang!

Metal clashed against metal.

“FIXED UNIVERSE!“

Xiao Yan used one hand to brace his spear against Zhu Lan’s sword while his other hand formed a seal to strike out with a palm of condensed energy.

Zhu Lan wanted to retreat, but she discovered with horror that her movements had become exceptionally sluggish.

Xiao Yan retracted his spear and spun around….

“DRAGON-RIDING TURNING HORSE!“

The tip of the spear, radiating cold energy, pointed at Zhu Lan’s neck.

Just as it was about to pierce her throat, the tip stopped. Instead, Xiao Yan used the shaft of the spear to sweep Zhu Lan off the arena.

“Xiao Yan wins!”

Zhu Lan’s mind remained dazed even as the elder announced the result.

‘Even with cheat-like support, a piece of cannon fodder like me can’t compare to these true geniuses.’

Zhu Lan could only hope the elder would say something like, “Your strength is decent; enter the losers’ bracket.”

However, he didn’t.

The fight had looked like a one-sided slaughter.

Moreover, at this stage of the competition for the top fifty, there were usually no more chances for a losers’ bracket.

Zhu Lan wanted to cry. She had practiced for so long, only to be matched with a high-level expert who was basically smurfing.

She was only one step away from the top fifty.

“Junior Sister, thank you for the match.”

As Zhu Lan wallowed in her sadness, a voice came from behind her.

Xiao Yan had approached her to complete the basic etiquette of an arena duel.

“Thank you for the match.”

Zhu Lan wasn’t in the mood, but since he had gone out of his way to come over, staying silent would only make her look even more pathetic.

‘Damned genius.’

Xiao Yan cupped his hands and left the area.

“How does it feel?”

Just as Xiao Yan left, another voice came from behind her.

Zhu Lan turned around.

Ye Feng was standing nearby with a faint smile.

“I lost, waaaah! I’m still too weak. If only I were a bit stronger.”

Zhu Lan was currently too miserable to bicker with Ye Feng.

Ye Feng offered a rare moment of comfort.

“That kid actually has some genuine skill. Your strength is actually decent; losing was just a matter of bad luck.”

He reached out to pull Zhu Lan up.

“I’ll go beat up that guy named Xiao tomorrow to vent your frustrations for you.”

The Sect Grand Competition usually only determined the top ten before concluding.

However, to determine their own rankings within that top ten, the disciples would choose opponents from the previous year’s Small Prodigy Rankings to challenge.

If they succeeded, they would replace that disciple’s position on the list.

“Okay.”

Zhu Lan didn’t doubt the male lead’s words.

She was weak, but the male lead was a big shot.

Thinking of this, Zhu Lan asked curiously, “Ye Feng, did you break through again? Can you win if you face Daozi now?”

Ye Feng answered honestly, “I am currently at the middle stage of Foundation Establishment. I suspect it still won’t work; I can’t win. However, if it were a life-or-death battle, Daozi would have no way to kill me.”

Zhu Lan was somewhat surprised.

After all, Xiao Yan was the second-ranked expert on the Small Prodigy Rankings, yet Ye Feng said he would beat him up.

However, against Daozi, who was only one rank higher than Xiao Yan, Ye Feng said he couldn’t win.

Undoubtedly, only people at the level of Daozi and the male lead could be considered geniuses among geniuses, monsters among monsters.

“Continue practicing tonight.”

“Why?”

Zhu Lan blurted out.

She didn’t want to spar with the male lead at all.

Every time, she couldn’t gain even a slight advantage and would be beaten for 2 hours, ending in a miserable defeat every single time.

It wasn’t fun at all.

“The Ancestral Dragon’s Blood hasn’t been used up yet. Body tempering works best after sparring.”

Zhu Lan muttered under her breath, ‘But I feel like the Ancestral Dragon’s Blood is useless. I haven’t felt any improvement.’

Ye Feng said patiently, “Quantity leads to quality. Once you finish the entire bottle of Ancestral Dragon’s Blood, your physical strength will rise by several levels.”

“Ye Feng, actually, I’m a sword user. No matter how high my physical strength is, it won’t help my swordsmanship much, right?”

Zhu Lan asked the question that had been weighing on her heart.

She clearly felt that she knew too few techniques.

She didn’t even have a single sword manual.

If word got out that a sword cultivator’s skill was just “POWERFUL STRIKE,” people would laugh themselves to death.

“There’s no rush; take it step by step. Temper your body first. If your physical strength isn’t enough, you won’t be able to handle the consumption of powerful martial arts later. I’ll teach you sword techniques afterward. Don’t worry, just focus on body tempering for now.”

Ye Feng’s words seemed to possess a magical quality, calming Zhu Lan’s restless heart.

Ye Feng was right.

Body tempering could…

“Your body’s flexibility isn’t high enough. There are some positions we won’t be able to develop later if you don’t.”