"Good luck, little coward," Hanyuan snickered, giving Qin Yu a mock-salute as his friend's name echoed across the plaza.
Qin Yu's knees knocked together once, but as he stepped onto the stone of Arena 2, a transformation took place. The trembling stopped. His gaze became sharp, a reflection of Qi beginning to swirl around his blade. His opponent was a girl named Zhao Yao, a 8th layer disciple with a temperament like a forest fire.
"I'll carve that scholarly look right off your face, nerd!" Zhao Yao sneered. She didn't wait, drawing a jagged-edged saber. "Spring Flower Slash!"
Her blade turned into a chaotic whirlwind of red energy, looking like petals caught in a storm.
"Spiraling Water Sword—Gentle Stream!" Qin Yu countered.
BOOM!
The collision of fire-tinged wood energy and cold water sent a shockwave that cracked the tiles beneath their feet. Hanyuan watched from the stands, leaning his chin on his palm. Tsk, to get such a fierce opponent in the first round is rotten luck, he thought with a sigh.
The two were locked in a violent exchange. Clang! Clang! Clang! Saber and sword clashed fifteen times in rapid succession, sparks flying like golden hail. Zhao Yao's fury grew with every parry.
"You stay down!" she gritted through her teeth, overextending her next strike in her impatience.
Qin Yu didn't panic. He saw the shift in her balance. With a fluid, snake like movement, his sword slipped under her guard.
Slash!
"AH!" A sharp cry erupted as the water tip of Qin Yu's sword carved a bloody line across Zhao Yao's waist. Before she could recover, Qin Yu delivered a decisive kick to the back of her lead leg.
She collapsed, the wind knocked out of her. She struggled to rise, but the referee called the match before she could steady herself.
"Winner: Qin Yu!"
Qin Yu exhaled a massive cloud of tension, his aura receding as he scrambled off the stage. He hurried back to Hanyuan and slumped onto the bench. "Phew... my heart nearly stopped. I thought I was dead three times."
"Stop whining, you won," Hanyuan laughed, then lowered his voice. "Though you might want to watch your back. She's still glaring at you, Brother Yu."
Qin Yu stole a glance toward the med station, where Zhao Yao was being bandaged. She was indeed staring at him, her face a mask of wounded pride and venomous promise. "Great," Qin Yu moaned, covering his face with his hands. "I finally make it through the first round and I've already earned a life enemy."
The competition showed no mercy, moving directly into the matches of the higher tier disciples.
In Arena 1, a name was called that made Hanyuan's focus sharpen instantly.
"Mu Rongbing versus Lin Tao!"
Mu Rongbing stepped onto the platform, her pink hair fluttering in the wind. Her opponent, a 19-year-old at the 8th Layer, didn't even taunt her. He looked terrified.
"Mu Rongbing, I admit you are a genius, but I won't lose without a figh.."
The air on the stage turned to solid ice before he could finish. Mu Rongbing didn't even draw her sword. She simply raised two fingers, pointing toward the sky.
"Absolute Zero Burst."
A pillar of pure, white frost erupted from the stone floor beneath Lin Tao's feet. In the span of a second, the youth was encased in a block of ice, his eyes frozen wide with terror and his body trapped in a perpetual mid stance.
The silence that followed was chilling.
"Mu Rongbing wins!" the referee announced, his voice slightly shaken.
She turned and left the arena without a backward glance, the frost on the floor shattering into diamonds behind her.
The announcer's voice rang out again.
"Second Round: Hanyuan versus Wu Jiong. Arena 3!"
Hanyuan stood up, his obsidian eyes igniting. Wu Jiong was a known name, a 7th Layer disciple with an Earth element technique. He was famous for his Brute Strengrh and his defence.
Hanyuan ascended the steps of Arena 3, his grip tightening on the Cold Cloud Spear. Across from him stood Wu Jiong, a square jawed youth whose presence felt as heavy as a lead weight.
"I've seen your matches, Junior Brother," Wu Jiong said, striking his chest with a thud that sounded like a drum. "You've got a sharp spear, but a mountain doesn't fear the wind. Let's do our best!"
"I intend to," Hanyuan replied, his obsidian eyes narrowing as he felt the heavy pressure of the 7th Layer radiating from his opponent.
"Begin!" the referee shouted.
Wu Jiong didn't wait. He closed the distance with surprising speed for an Earth cultivator, his silhouette flickering as he launched a massive fist shrouded in thick, golden brown Qi.
"Great Mountain Fist!" he roared.
Hanyuan didn't evade. He wanted to test the weight of his Fist. He funneled his frost Qi into the spear and met the punch with the Star-Point Piercer.
BOOM!
The collision sounded like a boulder shattering against a wall. The sheer force traveled down the spear shaft and hammered into Hanyuan's wrists. It felt like he had tried to stop a falling landslide with a twig. He took 2 steps backward, leaving two shallow Footprints in the stone tiles.
Shit, his raw power is terrifying, Hanyuan thought, his arms vibrating.
Wu Jiong didn't give him a second to recover. Another heavy fist aimed for Hanyuan's head. Hanyuan twisted his waist with a violent snap, the blade of the saber passing a hair's breadth from his ear. As he pivoted, he swung the blunt end of his spear into the side of Wu Jiong's head.
CLANG!
A metallic ring echoed across the stadium. Hanyuan's arms went numb from the Impact. Is his head made of literal steel? he wondered in frustration. Wu Jiong's head didn't even snap to the side; he simply grinned, enduring the blow as if it were a playful tap.
Hanyuan retreated three rapid steps and launched a volley of three rapid fire thrusts. Clang! Clang! Wu Jiong's armored forearms swatted the first two away like they were flies. The third thrust was more precise, grazing the big man's waist and leaving a thin line of red on the bronze skin.
It was an opening,or so Hanyuan thought.
"Got you!" Wu Jiong grunted.
CRUNCH!
Taking the grazing wound on purpose to close the distance, Wu Jiong delivered a crushing roundhouse kick to Hanyuan's side. The sound was sickening. Hanyuan felt several ribs buckle and a white-hot flash of agony blinded him for a second.
He was sent stumbling, his vision reeling. "I can't let him land a another blow", Hanyuan thought through a haze of pain.
Wu Jiong roared and charged for the finishing strike, his fist glowing with intense Earth Qi.
"Now or never!" Hanyuan hissed. He summoned his Qi and spun the spear with a violent snarl.
"Whirling Silver Veil!"
The spear became a high speed blue blur. A thick curtain of frozen frost Qi materialized instantly, appearing as a shimmering silver wall. Wu Jiong's fist slammed into the veil.
BOOM!
The ice curtain shattered, the force nearly snapping Hanyuan's wrists again, but the goal wasn't just to block. The shattering ice created a thick cloud of frozen mist, completely obscuring Wu Jiong's vision for a crucial second.
From the heart of the mist, a needle of blue light appeared.
Hidden by the Fog, Hanyuan had already transitioned into the Star-Point Piercer. He lunged through the exploding ice, the tip of the Cold Cloud Spear finding the center of Wu Jiong's chest before the big man could react.
BOOM!
The concentrated Qi erupted. Wu Jiong was launched backward with enough force to send him tumbling ten meters across the arena floor. He slammed into the stone and stayed down, coughing out blood. He tried to push himself up, his arms trembling, but his internal meridians were locked by the sudden intrusion of frost Qi. He slumped back, unconscious.
The referee stared for a second before waving his hand. "Bai Hanyuan wins!"
Hanyuan walked off the stage, his right hand clutching his fractured ribs, his breath coming in shallow gasps. He limped back to the stands and collapsed into the seat beside a wide eyed Qin Yu.