Victory Once Again!

"Hmph! It's fine. I said I'd beat him up, so I'll definitely beat him up! No room for discussion!" Xun'er snorted, sounding somewhat indignant.

She had already made her declaration, so naturally she had to keep her promise. Even if she might not be able to win, she still could not admit defeat.

"Alright, alright. It's best that you have such confidence."

Yun Xi felt relieved as he watched Xun'er suddenly become so "assertive."

Dong~~

"The match has ended. All contestants, please return to the resting area for a short break. This afternoon, today's second round—the Top Fifty Semi-Finals—will begin." The referee's voice echoed throughout the arena.

"I need to recover quickly. I hope I won't run into an overly powerful opponent in the next match."

Xun'er supported her forehead with one hand, then seemed to recall something and spoke helplessly, "But among the final fifty, there probably won't be many who are weaker. Most of them likely made it this far through their own strength. Tsk, troublesome."

Turning her head to look at the people in the resting area, all sitting cross-legged, Xun'er circulated her cultivation technique and began recovering the Dou Qi she had expended earlier.

"Contestants, please enter the arena."

After resting for about an hour, the referee's somewhat solemn voice rang out, laced with Dou Qi so that everyone present could hear it clearly.

"Whew~"

Xun'er slowly opened her eyes. The stars within them gradually faded away. Clenching her fists and sensing the abundant Dou Qi in her body, she was now at her peak!

Without further hesitation, Xun'er leaped up. Her toes lightly tapped the edge, and after several jumps, she landed steadily in the center of the arena.

"Look, Gu Xun'er has entered the arena."

"I think Gu Xun'er has a chance of making it into the top ten. What do you think?"

"Sigh, every one of these Gu Clan youngsters is terrifying. The strongest of our sect's little ones is only a One Star Dou Zhe."

"I wonder who her opponent will be?"

As Xun'er stepped onto the stage, whispers arose from the stands. Clearly, her previous match had ended too quickly, leaving everyone unsatisfied.

Feeling the gazes of the surrounding spectators, Xun'er felt uncomfortable all over. She preferred peace and quiet and did not particularly enjoy being the center of attention.

Not long after Xun'er entered the arena, her opponent for this match slowly stepped forward as well.

"It's you?"

After seeing her opponent's face clearly, Xun'er could not help but cry out.

Her opponent was the girl with the strength of a Nine Star Dou Zhe whom she had seen in the arena after the first battle had ended. At the time, Xun'er had said she wanted to spar with her. Unexpectedly, her wish had come true.

"Hm? Do you know me?"

The girl was somewhat puzzled. She did not know the exquisitely pretty little girl before her. If they had met at all, it had only been in passing while watching the earlier matches.

"It's nothing, it's nothing. Let's fight first. Let me see how strong you are."

The moment she finished speaking, Dou Qi erupted from Xun'er's body. Golden Dou Qi enveloped her entire body, while golden flames covered her hands.

Seeing Xun'er enter a fighting stance, the girl's expression became serious as well. With her Nine Star strength, she could tell at a glance that Xun'er was only at Five Star strength. Yet she did not dare underestimate her in the slightest, because she knew that anyone who had made it into the top fifty had to possess real ability.

Red Dou Qi surged out, forming a fiery red barrier around her. Her Nine Star strength was displayed in full.

"The match begins!"

The referee's casual words were like sparks, instantly igniting the tense atmosphere in the arena.

Swoosh!

The distant girl was the first to attack. Her Dou Qi erupted and spread across both fists, and in an instant, she closed in on Xun'er.

The distance between them rapidly shrank, but faced with her aggressive opponent, Xun'er strangely remained rooted to the spot. Only the golden light around her grew brighter.

Bang.

The girl's Dou Qi-wrapped fist landed heavily on Xun'er's body, producing only a soft, muffled sound.

"Hm?"

The girl was slightly puzzled. The punch she had prepared seemed to have struck cotton, as though it had caused Xun'er no harm at all.

Just as she froze in surprise, a tremendous rebounding force surged from Xun'er's hand and slammed back into her body.

Boom!

Amid the astonished gazes of the crowd, the girl's figure shot backward.

Having retreated only a few steps, Xun'er looked at the girl in the distance with a hint of smugness.

Swallow Counterattack could reflect a proportion of the damage from an opponent's attack back at them. After days of practice and battle, Xun'er's understanding of this Dou Skill had steadily deepened, raising its reflected damage from one-tenth to three-tenths.

During her earlier battles, this Dou Skill had brought her quite a few pleasant surprises.

Turning her gaze back to the arena, the girl was deeply shocked to see that Xun'er had only been pushed back a few steps. If she had not hastily attacked the floor behind her with Dou Qi and used the recoil to slow herself down, she would have already been sent flying out of the arena.

"Mystic Mid-Rank Dou Skill: Flame God Break!"

Daring not to be careless any longer, the girl directly unleashed her strongest attack.

Flame-attributed Dou Qi churned, gradually forming a humanoid phantom behind her. A flicker of dark golden light also appeared upon her flame-covered fist. Accompanied by bursts of piercing air, the girl punched toward Xun'er once more.

"Hmph! Again?"

Staring directly at the fiery red figure rushing closer, Xun'er snorted and prepared to use Swallow Counterattack again.

Swoosh~

A palm and a fist collided once more. Golden light coiled around Xun'er's palm as Swallow Counterattack activated again, but to her surprise, this time it failed to reflect the attack back at her opponent.

"What?!"

When the reflection failed, Xun'er cried out and hurriedly withdrew her hand. In an instant, a Heavenly Flame barrier formed around her body.

Bang!

The girl's heavy punch struck the barrier solidly, producing a resounding impact.

Just as Xun'er felt delighted, a familiar voice entered her mind.

"The fire barrier won't last long. Use your spiritual power now to find her weakness."

Hearing Yun Xi's seemingly casual words, Xun'er released her spiritual power, enveloping the entire arena.

Under the scan of her spiritual power, it was as though the entire arena had fallen into slow motion. She could clearly see the waves of flame on the girl's fist right before her.

"Found it!"

She instantly withdrew her spiritual power. From its release to its withdrawal, only two seconds had passed, but those two seconds allowed Xun'er to find her opponent's weakness.

Her hand seals shifted, and four palm seals appeared. Trailing golden tails of light, they shot out sideways from four different directions.

The girl, who was attacking the barrier with all her strength, could only watch as the light seals flew away. There was nothing she could do. All her Dou Qi was tightly concentrated around her fists, and both fists were in the midst of attacking. It was already too late to pull back.

Smack!

The instant the four light seals flew out, they shot back again, striking the girl's lower abdomen one after another. Unable to dodge in time, she was blasted out of the arena.

As the girl flew out of the arena, Xun'er naturally claimed victory without question.

"Gu Xun'er wins! However, let me make this clear: the Clan Competition is only for sparring. I hope everyone will refrain from striking ruthlessly. If anything like this happens again, you will be directly disqualified from the competition."