The first and only person Xue Yueliang challenged was met with surprise.

Until a few moments ago, she had been faithfully guarding her ranking, only to give it up for this.

Does she have confidence she will win?

The question reverberated in every idle person's mind, but their answer to their doubt differed. Some sneered, some laughed, and others looked on with expectation.

In the battle between the kingdom's prince and a dark horse with unknown origins, a sense of anticipation hung in the air, although the winner should be clear in their minds. Other than them, the princess and Lei Fu's faces stiffened, "Why would she challenge him?" They questioned.

Would she think I didn't warn her?

Did he not pass on my message?

A sense of anxiety appeared in their hearts, and Yao Niang increased the speed of her fan as if hoping to stop the challenge from occurring

. "It's no use, Your Highness." Mo Luli sighed, "You could never make it in time."

Though the Qinxia Kingdom was relatively small, and the fan was one of the fastest transportation in the kingdom, but it was still not fast enough. The princess bit her lower lip in contemplation, and after pondering for a bit, she relaxed, "She won't be able to kill him."

"Are you afraid for His Highness?" Mo Luli asked, wondering if she had misunderstood the current situation.

"I'm worried she will get caught in a situation bigger than her."

In contrast to the varied and extreme reactions, the Third Prince smiled, seeming to have expected this, "It seems you get tired of watching from the sidelines."

"It's only natural to want to participate after seeing such a vigorous battle." Xue Yueliang smiled, hiding her dislike behind polite words.

Mao Ya smiled, the earth forming steps beneath his feet as he steadily climbed up, each step crumbling to death within seconds of forming. Though the site appeared magnificent, it showed that he had much to improve in the way of the earth, as his creation was still unstable, but she could not fault him because of that. It was much better than what most people were capable of.

"Well, Young Miss, I hope we learn a lot from each other." Mao Ya said, cupping his fists to her politely and a gentle smile accompanying his actions.

"Likewise." Xue Yuelilang smiled, cupping her fists, but did not delay a second further, turning into a flash of wind as her sword swung at the still Mao Ya.

"Hah." He heaved his heavy sword, blocking the unexpected attack, but the sharp claws of Hei Yu attacked him from his left.

"Earthern Wall."

A firm wall appeared between him and the beast, saving him from the attack as he retreated backwards.

"Blood Moon Waves!" Xue Yueliang exclaimed, and waves of sharp sword Qi fled her sword, shooting toward him. Another wall came up, blocking two waves f the attack, with the last being smashed away by his sword.

"Grr!" Hei Yu growled from behind him, swatting him, "Earthern Encase!"

Mao Ya exclaimed, steadying himself after taking several steps backwards. Hei Yu and Xue Yueliang's movements were perfectly synchronised, not allowing him a chance to retaliate, firmly putting him on the defensive. Mao Ya steadily retreated, not finding an opening to launch an attack, but even in this disadvantageous situation, he did not lose his cool.

Unlike his calm demeanour, Xue Yueliang frowned. Though she had the initiative, not even the faintest cut appeared on his body. He neutralised her attacks perfectly, only being forced to step back a few times.

"Crackle."

The quiet crackling of fire sounded as it coated her sword, increasing the preciseness and danger of her attacks. Mao Ya ducked, slipping past the flaming attack, leaving a few strands of his hair that turned to ash soon after.

"Hiss."

Hei Yu's claw smashed him into his back, hurtling him forward, but it only took a few moments for him to steady himself. Xue Yueliang took advantage of these few moments of instability, "Blood Moon Waves!" Watching the attacks hurtling toward him, Mao Ya exclaimed, "Earthern Wall!"

Alas, he took too long to respond, causing him to rely on his heavy sword to defend against the first wave, shouldering the second, and by the third did the wall form, shielding him from it.

Watching the cut that formed on the prince's arm, Xue Yueliang smiled. Not so long ago, he was someone she could not even dare make eye contact with, but now not only did she battle him as his equal, she even injured him.

Now's not the time to celebrate. Xue Yueliang thought, wiping the smile from her face; as she fixed her grip on the sword, "Do you not know any other moves?"

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Mao Ya asked, but she did not answer him. It was never fun to have your weak spot prodded, and she had no intention of entertaining him. She dashed toward him, but, rather than a defensive stance, she was met with a small smile. "Well, I can tell you my skills are not this much."

He raised his heavy sword into the air, then slammed it unto the ground, "Earthern Shockwave."

The land where his sword landed split, forcing her and Hei Yu backwards. The shattered earth grew, threatening to engulf them, as they retreated further away.

The men's robe swirled around her, engulfing her figure, making it hard to see what was her or the excess clothes.

"Fiery Wind Blade," she muttered, and the crackling flame surrounding her sword was strengthened by the wild wind, then rushed to Mao Ya.

"Haah," Mao Ya relied on his heavy sword to block the attack, and the ever-cracking earth stopped spreading, allowing her to finally walk.

"You have the grace of a dancer," the prince complimented, putting off the flames caught onto his sleeves, "With your talent, I would have asked you to join me, but why did you challenge me now?"

Mao Ya asked, shaking his head, mourning her loss. "There's no way I can take this but ill intent."

With his words landing, the calmness in his gaze and demeanour changed, and mad anger swelled underneath.

Ill intent? Though she wished him nothing but harm, how she gave him this impression eluded her. "Cleave the Mountains!"

Mao Ya roared. His movements with the sword slowed down but gave an impeccable feeling of being undodgeable.

Locking in? Xue Yueliang was startled; she tried to get rid of the aura binding her to the earth, "Swirling Wind Blades!"

A tornado-like torrent of wind surrounded her, but the feeling of being locked in did not decrease. She did not give up, leading the wind blades to Mao Ya, hoping to push him back and delay the attack.

Her hopes were diminished as she saw golden characters form around him, protecting him.

Talismans. The sight of them began to displease her.

Though she was not lacking in wealth, she had underestimated how important they were, placing her at a disadvantage. Mao Ya's sword made a full arc, and a giant crescent wave rushed at her with an overwhelming intent to destroy, and her face paled.

If she was not careful, this attack would seriously injure her, "Blazing Inferno!" She exclaimed.

The flame around her sword expanded, covering her up, as she swung her sword forcefully, "Blood Moon Waves!"

She was tired of using the same attack repeatedly, but she did not have much choice.

The beams of sword Qi were followed by fierce flames, exploding on contact with Mao Ya's attack, weakening it, but could still feel the danger it emitted. She clenched her teeth, thinking she had no other choice, but just as she was about to act on her determination, a furry black figure appeared in front of her, "Hei Yu!"

The attack hurtled toward them, and in the shock she felt, she hurried and made the wrong decision, "Get out of the way!"

She flung him to the side, but by now, there was not much she could do to block the attack, so she braced her arms, shouldering it.

The attack was really worth its name; Xue Yueliang did not doubt that this attack could be brought to a level where it would cleave mountains. For now, the attack split the flesh in her arm, blood spurted out, and her arms trembled, the sword almost falling from her grip. The force of the attack pushed her back, almost flinging her out of the arena, but she forcefully stopped herself. Her forceful stopping caused her to spurt out a mouthful of blood as her face paled.

She did not waste a second, allowing the burning flames to seal the wounds shut, minimising the blood loss. Sweat dripped from her forehead, and the blood covering her added to her dispirited look. However, the amount of pain she felt or the danger of not being able to secure the first spot did not register in her mind as her gaze flitted toward Hei Yu, only sighing in relief when she determined he was okay.

"Heh, I did not think you would prefer a beast's life over your own," the prince sneered, amused by the situation.

Although he appeared carefree, his laboured breathing and stalling revealed he was not as well as he pretended to be. Her eyes turned toward him; if she disliked him before, she was now burning with rage and hatred; her calm and calculated gaze turned murderous.

Her feelings were mirrored in Hei Yu's eyes, as his stance turned aggressive, looking at Hei Yu as if he was a mortal enemy. Though being injured or getting hurt where to be excepted, she could not stand the thought of Hei Yu dying.

He needs to die.

Noticing the change in their mood, the prince shook his head, labelling them as immature, as he prepared himself for whatever attack that may come at him. Though he won't be able to use the same attack again for a while, he was not too bothered by that. There were only a few hours until the end of the three-day time period; as long as Xue Yueliang did not win until then, he would secure his ranking, and her final ranking would be twenty-third.

Though he and everyone knew Mo Mei did not deserve to be ninth, Dai Xing was helping her maintain her place.

This can only go well for me. A hint of self-satisfaction appeared beneath his solemn facade, but that did not anger her.

It will be all the more satisfying when he cracks. Xue Yueliang ignored the stinging pain in her arms and the suffocating feeling in her chest as she rushed with her sword. Her attacks were swift, but even when she was uninjured, she couldn't harm him and was even less likely to do so now.

Well, I didn't think this would be easy.

She narrowed her eyes as a berserk aura burst from within her body, ad the blood flowing in her veins glimmered, making her skin appear translucent and pushing her physical strength to its limits.

Though she did not like the Qin blood that flowed through her veins, she did not mind relying on it to get what she wanted, and at the moment, that was to kill this prince. The heavy sword blocked the attack that aimed for his chest, but he was forced back a few steps, but more than being physically pushed back, he was also taken aback.

"You- you are the Qi-"

As the prince of the Qinxia Kingdom, Mao Ya naturally recognised the various bloodline auras of the clans but was surprised he had not heard of her before. More than him, Xue Yueliang could feel about two dozen different auras resonating with her blood - her clan members.

Though she did not turn around to see their expressions, she could imagine how they would react.

This still feels disgusting.

She did not care which methods she used to achieve her goals, it did not stop her from being disgusted at the idea of considering them as her family. Among these auras, one seemed to stick out, making her wonder who it was, but her situation did not allow her to satisfy her curiosity.

"Don't say something so disgusting."

Xue Yueliang cut him off, performing the Blood Moon Waves. Activating her bloodline power seemed to have a positive effect on it, increasing its attacking power by a high margin as it cut through the prince's defences, landing on his chest.

"Urgh."

While shouldering the heavy attack that landed on him, an ominous red light appeared from behind him, and shiny claws reflected the light of the moon.