On the life-and-death platform, at one moment, both of their eyes suddenly opened, and their gazes met. In Duan Jun's eyes, a fierce killing intent flashed without concealment, while Yang Ye remained calm and undisturbed, with no hint of emotion.
The two stood up. Duan Jun swung his Qingfeng sword and smiled with a hint of amusement, saying, "Don't say I didn't give you a chance. I'll give you three moves!" Although Yang Ye was already a Xuan practitioner, Duan Jun was not afraid. He was at least two ranks higher than Yang Ye, and his weapon and swordsmanship were things Yang Ye lacked. So, he decided to play a cat-and-mouse game.
"Fool!" Yang Ye muttered quietly as he gripped his long sword and walked toward Duan Jun. When he got within two meters of Duan Jun, suddenly, a fierce look flashed in his usually calm eyes. The next moment, Yang Ye stomped on the ground with his right foot, using the force from the ground to propel his body like a cannonball, charging toward Duan Jun with his sword aimed directly at him.
At the spot where Yang Ye stomped, the previously hard floor completely caved in. This was Yang Ye's full-powered strike!
The moment Yang Ye launched his attack, an outer sect elder, who had been almost asleep on the sidelines, suddenly opened his eyes with a look of surprise.
When Yang Ye’s body shot forward, Duan Jun's face changed dramatically, and his eyes filled with horror. The close distance and the sudden surge of Yang Ye's attack left him no time to dodge or block. He could only watch as Yang Ye’s long sword struck his chest.
Clang!
Yang Ye's long sword struck Duan Jun's chest with a crisp sound, and Duan Jun was sent retreating backward ten steps.
Seeing that the sword didn’t penetrate, Yang Ye frowned but didn’t pursue. He glanced at Duan Jun's chest, and noticed that beneath his clothing, a layer of silver light was flickering!
"He’s wearing Xuan Armor!" Yang Ye thought, his eyes narrowing as he felt his internal Xuan Qi surge.
Duan Jun took a deep breath, feeling a sense of lingering fear. Looking down at his chest, he saw that his high-level yellow-grade Xuan Armor had been dented.
"Such powerful force! At least a thousand jin!" Duan Jun’s expression turned grave as he realized he had underestimated Yang Ye.
“Wow!”
In an instant, Yang Ye had repelled Duan Jun, causing an uproar among the servant disciples below. Some even had excited looks in their eyes. After all, Yang Ye was a servant disciple, and seeing him repel an outer sect disciple made them thrilled!
“This Duan Jun, using full force to catch a rabbit, yet he underestimated him so much. He’s a fool, but luckily he’s wearing Xuan Armor!” Jiang Qiushui said with a gloomy face.
Several other outer sect disciples nodded in agreement, breathing a sigh of relief in their hearts. They had wagered several months' worth of energy stones, and some greedier ones had even bet a year or two’s worth. If Duan Jun lost, the consequences would be unbearable!
Meanwhile, Xiao Bao’er clenched her small fist, her eyes shining with excitement.
“I admit I underestimated you, but now I’ll tell you, you still have no chance. Because I’m going to get serious!” Duan Jun looked at Yang Ye, his Xuan Qi slowly circulating. As the Qi flowed into his long sword, the sword trembled slightly.
“Is he using swordsmanship?” Yang Ye muttered as he watched Duan Jun’s sword emit faint ripples. Then, Yang Ye’s pale golden Xuan Qi poured into his own long sword, causing it to emit a faint golden glow. However, the light was weak, and one would hardly notice it unless they looked closely.
“Looks like Duan Jun is getting serious!” Below, Jiang Qiushui’s grim expression softened slightly. “This time, one move will decide the winner!”
“Duan Jun is about to use the Fenshen Sword Technique!” One of the outer sect disciples smiled. “The Fenshen Sword Technique is an advanced yellow-grade sword skill. If Duan Jun uses it, it means he can unleash a sword qi. This servant disciple is doomed!”
“The Fenshen Sword Technique? I didn’t expect Duan Jun had already learned it. Haha, this servant disciple is finished!”
“Haha, three hundred energy stones, that’s enough for me to reach the innate realm. Hahaha…”
“Sigh, I should’ve bet more when I found out Duan Jun had mastered swordsmanship. Only bet one hundred energy stones. I’m going to lose big this time!”
“Yeah, a huge loss. Duan Jun kept this hidden too well!”
At this moment, about fifty outer sect disciples seemed to already see the pile of energy stones in front of them.
Seeing the excited outer sect disciples, Bao’er snorted unhappily and glanced at Yang Ye on the stage, a trace of worry flashing in her eyes.
On the stage, at one moment, Duan Jun’s eyes flashed with viciousness as he gripped his sword and slashed at Yang Ye.
Fenshen Sword Technique!
With that, a snow-white sword qi, about one meter long, shot from the tip of Duan Jun’s Qingfeng sword toward Yang Ye. The sword qi was extremely fast, making a whistling sound, and it reached Yang Ye within two breaths.
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When the sword qi was just a meter away from Yang Ye, he moved. He stomped his right foot hard on the ground, using the force to propel his body forward at lightning speed. At the same time, he thrust his sword directly toward the snow-white sword qi.
Shiiing...
Perhaps due to the overwhelming force, Yang Ye's sword created visible air distortions as it passed, emitting a sharp whistling sound.
“Taking the initiative!” The outer sect elder on the sidelines murmured. “Interesting, this is the first time I’ve seen someone perfect the basic swordsmanship to such an extent. Not bad!”
Boom!
When Yang Ye’s long sword collided with the snow-white sword qi, a burst of energy exploded. Then, the snow-white sword qi, like snow meeting boiling oil, was instantly split by Yang Ye’s sword. Yang Ye did not slow down, and in the next two breaths, both he and his sword appeared right in front of Duan Jun. With a swift motion, he slashed at Duan Jun’s left and right legs.
Duan Jun’s face was filled with disbelief. He never imagined that his sword qi would be so easily cut through by Yang Ye. This was swordsmanship, yet before he could recover, Yang Ye was already right in front of him. His heart filled with horror, and he instinctively raised his sword to block, retreating quickly.
Clang, clang...
The sound of swords clashing filled the air, creating a melody of steel meeting steel.
Seeing Duan Jun being forced back, with his sword constantly clashing and retreating, the servant disciples below were completely stunned. Not only the servant disciples, but even the dozens of outer sect disciples nearby were frozen in place.
A servant disciple... defeating an outer sect disciple? Was this the first failure of a completely useless person in history?The dozens of outer sect disciples beside them were also in shock. They couldn’t believe that Yang Ye had broken through the sword qi with a single strike. How much strength and speed did that require? Originally, even if Duan Jun lost, it wouldn’t have been a big deal, but now, if Duan Jun lost, it would cost them the energy stones that they had gambled on the little girl — energy stones they could never afford to repay!
Seeing Yang Ye break through the sword qi with a single strike, Bao’er’s face lit up with joy, her lively eyes sparkling with excitement.
On the platform, Yang Ye had actually been able to finish off the man in blue long ago. The reason he hadn’t was that he was practicing his swordsmanship. His basic swordsmanship was so familiar that he could perform it with his eyes closed, but he lacked real combat experience. Now that he had the chance, he wasn’t going to miss it.
The more Yang Ye fought, the smoother and easier it became, while Duan Jun became more and more exhausted and struggled more and more. Yang Ye used the same few moves, but the way he applied them was so flexible that it gave Duan Jun a headache. Moreover, Yang Ye’s speed and strength shocked him. He never imagined that basic swordsmanship could have such power!
“It’s time to end this!”
Feeling his basic swordsmanship becoming more refined, Yang Ye’s lips curled slightly, and then, he accelerated his attack, launching a fierce offensive against the man in blue.
Seeing Yang Ye suddenly increase his power, Duan Jun panicked. His sword technique became disordered, and Yang Ye’s eyes lit up. His sword thrust forward into Duan Jun’s chest. Duan Jun was horrified, and quickly raised his sword to block. At that moment, Yang Ye suddenly changed the thrust into a slash, striking at Duan Jun’s right hand at an extremely tricky angle.
“Ah!”
Duan Jun’s palm was pierced, and blood sprayed out. The intense pain made him scream, and his Qingfeng sword flew out of his hand, landing off the stage, while a cold gleam flashed as Yang Ye’s sword pressed against his throat.
Duan Jun was defeated!
Seeing the sword pressed against Duan Jun’s throat, the previous noise on the stage completely vanished. There was not a sound to be heard, and it was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop. Everyone was stunned.
Seeing this scene, Du Xiu’s face turned pale, and his body trembled uncontrollably. The two people who had been with him had already run off, and at this moment, his heart felt dead.
“Haha…” Bao’er laughed heartily, using both her hands and feet as she looked at the outer sect disciples around her, as if saying, "See? I was right!"
The dozens of outer sect disciples who were looked at by Bao’er were still dumbfounded. They never expected that Duan Jun, after using a sword technique, would still be defeated. They still couldn’t accept this outcome.
On the platform, Yang Ye looked at the terrified man in blue and said, “I can spare your life.”
Upon hearing this, Duan Jun’s face lit up with joy, and he quickly asked, “Really?” Then, as if thinking of something, he added, “You… tell me, what conditions do you want?”
“Your cultivation resources, and gold coins!” Yang Ye replied.
“Okay, okay!” Duan Jun nodded eagerly, then took out a bag and a silver card from his pocket and handed them to Yang Ye, saying, “There are twenty energy stones inside, I just received them today. And this card… it contains about 10,000 gold coins, which you can redeem anywhere in the Great Qin Empire!”
Upon hearing about the 10,000 gold coins, Yang Ye’s eyelid twitched, and he immediately accepted the bag and the card.
Seeing Yang Ye take the bag and card, Duan Jun’s eyes flashed with a trace of resentment, and he thought to himself, Just wait. I’ll pay you back a hundredfold for this today.
After confirming that the bag contained the twenty energy stones, Yang Ye smiled and nodded at Duan Jun. When Duan Jun saw Yang Ye smile, he felt a sense of relief. However, just then, Yang Ye’s eyes narrowed, and his sword suddenly swept toward Duan Jun’s hands and legs!
“Ah!”
A piercing scream rang out across the platform as Yang Ye severed Duan Jun’s hands and feet in one swift motion. Blood sprayed out like a fountain from his limbs, and the intense pain twisted Duan Jun’s face in agony.
“Why? Why? Why?!” Duan Jun screamed hysterically as he lay on the ground, looking at Yang Ye.
Yang Ye sneered and said, “I said I wouldn’t kill you, but I never said I wouldn’t cripple you. I can’t sleep with a threat by my side!”
After speaking, Yang Ye sat down cross-legged and took out an energy stone to restore his internal Xuan Qi.
Hearing Yang Ye’s words, Duan Jun spat a mouthful of blood in anger, then continued to curse on the ground in a frenzy.
Below, the outer sect elder glanced at the prostrate Duan Jun, shook his head, and instructed people to take him down.
“Hey, bring me the energy stones!” Bao’er ran up to Jiang Qiushui and the others, extending her little hand and saying, “I’ve calculated it, you all owe me 19,000 energy stones. Hurry up and hand them over!”
Upon hearing this, the faces of the fifty outer sect disciples turned pale instantly.
* (Sword Qi): A mystical energy or force generated through the sword, often used in martial arts fiction to represent a sharp, long-range attack from the sword.
* (Yellow Grade): A rank or level in a martial arts cultivation system, with "yellow" typically representing a mid-tier level of ability.
* Talismans; magical or spiritual symbols that can be used for various purposes, including enhancing one's abilities, protection, or even offense. In some settings, they are highly valuable and require significant cultivation to use or create.
* Yellow Grade: At the current stage, it refers to a relatively high level of martial skills or techniques.
Innate (Xiantian): A realm higher than that of the Xuan practitioner, representing a higher level of cultivation or ability.
Xuan Armor: A type of protective armor, belonging to the Yellow Grade defense items, often used to shield the wearer in battle.
* (Split Spirit Sword Technique): A sword technique that allows the wielder to unleash sword energy or sword qi, often described as a special and powerful form of swordsmanship.