Battle Against a Ninth-Layer Spirit Pill Realm Cultivator

Five disciples?

Fang Wang raised an eyebrow, curiosity stirring in his heart. Besides himself, Zhou Xue, and Gu Li, were there actually two more disciples with Earth Origin Treasure Spirits?

This made him curious about the upcoming martial competition.

After Zhou Xue was replaced, the Second Vein lost another match. Its peak master directly conceded and did not send the last two people onto the stage.

It was not until evening that a vein peak finally challenged the Third Vein. This time, however, Yang Yuanzi cut off Li Yu and had the other disciples take the stage first, leaving Fang Wang for last.

Such an arrangement was meant to let Fang Wang recover as fully as possible to his peak condition, while also giving the other disciples a chance to shine.

The other Third Vein disciples participating in the battles all smiled. They, too, feared that Fang Wang would block every opponent by himself, leaving them no chance to take the stage.

The Nine Meridians Martial Competition was meant to bring glory to the vein peaks, while an individual's number of victories concerned the great opportunities to come. They all wanted to take a gamble.

Zhou Bo went up first. He held on for a hundred exchanges before being defeated. Fortunately, he was not seriously injured. The second to take the stage was Senior Disciple Li Yu. Li Yu possessed seventh-layer Spirit Pill Realm cultivation and won three consecutive matches before finally losing.

Li Yu's performance did not surprise the disciples of the various veins. They all felt it was only natural. The peak masters, however, sighed softly, somewhat disappointed in Li Yu.

Fang Wang knew that Li Yu was already over two hundred years old. The fact that he still remained in the Spirit Pill Realm was enough to prove that his aptitude was ordinary.

Gu Li was the third to take the stage. The disciple who had defeated Li Yu was replaced by his peak master. Relying on her Earth Origin Treasure Spirit and the Gu Family's inherited Five Saints Sword Technique, Gu Li dazzled the entire city. Despite only being in the Spirit Sculpting Realm, she defeated an opponent at the first layer of the Spirit Pill Realm.

Every vein possessed inherited cultivation techniques and spells, but aristocratic clan disciples like Gu Li had their own techniques and inheritances. They entered the Taiyuan Sect more for the resources controlled by the Nine Great Sects.

Quite a few of the disciples who had taken the stage earlier were sword cultivators, but none were as pure as Gu Li. With her magnificent Five Saints Sword Technique, Gu Li's name began to spread.

The opponents who followed were all below the second layer of the Spirit Pill Realm, with even some Spirit Sculpting Realm disciples among them. Fang Wang suspected that Yang Yuanzi had spoken to the other side in advance.

After winning three straight matches, Gu Li was replaced. The ensuing martial competitions saw both wins and losses, but in the end, the Third Vein defended its current ranking. This made the disciples of every vein realize that the Third Vein had truly risen.

Over the next three days, Fang Wang did not make an appearance. The other disciples had all fought, challenged in turns by the lower-ranked vein peaks. In the end, the Third Vein held firm to its ranking.

The battles over those three days were exceptionally thrilling, mainly clashes among the top five vein peaks. The Second Vein unexpectedly produced a genius with an Earth Origin Treasure Spirit as well, and he was even in the Spirit Pill Realm.

That person was named Ye Xiang. He had been in the sect for fourteen years and had not participated in the previous Nine Meridians Martial Competition. He had not appeared in the battles of the previous days either, so his reputation had never been prominent. This time, he won seven matches in a row and became famous throughout the Taiyuan Sect in one stroke.

The Second Vein he represented secured second place. They could not defeat the First Vein, but neither could the vein peaks behind them defeat them.

When the First Vein fought the Second Vein, it was a complete sweep. When the Second Vein fought the other vein peaks, it was likewise an overwhelming sweep...

On the morning of the sixth day, another vein peak challenged the First Vein, and this time, Lu Yuanjun made his move.

Lu Yuanjun claimed nine consecutive victories in one breath. Every battle ended within two moves, and he had not even shifted his feet. He appeared even more at ease than Fang Wang, while his opponents were stronger than those Fang Wang had faced.

Although Lu Yuanjun won quickly, his opponents were barely injured. They were merely sealed at once and could only concede helplessly.

Thus, Lu Yuanjun also claimed nine victories and secured one of the final nine slots. After that, he no longer took the stage, leaving the others to fight.

At noon that day, as soon as a martial competition between two veins ended, Yang Yuanzi immediately declared, "Third Vein, challenge the First Vein!"

The entire city erupted at those words!

After lying low for several days, the Third Vein was finally charging toward a higher ranking, and this time, it was directly challenging the First Vein!

What the observing disciples anticipated was not the Third Vein's results, but Fang Wang's appearance. Facing the strongest-ranked First Vein, the Third Vein would surely send Fang Wang out. Otherwise, there would be no fight at all!

"Fang Wang, you go first," Yang Yuanzi directly ordered.

Fang Wang nodded. Amid the encouragement of his fellow disciples, he walked to the edge of the pavilion. His heart burned hot. The First Vein was packed with experts, and the one he most wanted to challenge was Lu Yuanjun. He wanted to see just how great the gap between himself and Lu Yuanjun was.

Yet at that moment, an uproar swept through the city, because someone from the First Vein's pavilion leaped onto the Martial Competition Platform.

"Why is it him?!"

Li Yu cried out in alarm, his tone filled with dejection.

Fang Wang focused his gaze. Standing on the Martial Competition Platform was a man in blue robes. His long hair was casually tied behind his head with a straw rope. His features could be called handsome, but the stubble on his face made him look unkempt, giving him a roguish air.

"Xu Lang, ninth-layer Spirit Pill Realm, a Top-grade Mysterious Origin Treasure Spirit. He is the First Vein's disciple second only to Lu Yuanjun, the former Senior Disciple of the First Vein, and once the Taiyuan Sect's number one genius. Only after losing to Lu Yuanjun did he yield his position. Senior Brother Fang, you must be careful!" Zhou Bo said quickly, briefly introducing the other's background.

Ninth-layer Spirit Pill Realm!

Not only was Fang Wang not intimidated, his heart instead surged with excitement.

Good. You came at the right time!

He leaped into the air, like a white crane gliding past, and landed lightly upon the Martial Competition Platform.

Xu Lang rested his right hand on the bamboo rod at his waist. He raised his chin, looked at Fang Wang with disdain, and smiled. "Junior Brother Fang, Lu Yuanjun said you were very strong. I hope you do not disappoint me."

Fang Wang held his right arm level. The Celestial Palace Halberd condensed into existence beneath his palm, and he caught it in one smooth motion. "I will naturally give it my all, but I also hope Senior Brother Xu will not blame your junior brother here after losing to me."

The thirty-two Golden Mirrors could not only reflect images, but also carry the conversations of the disciples on the stage far and wide. Hearing their exchange, everyone sensed the smell of gunpowder in the air.

A female disciple of the First Vein said to Zhou Xue with a chuckle, "This clansman of yours is quite confident."

Zhou Xue smiled. "He is only nineteen. This is precisely the age when one's spirit burns brightest. If he is not confident now, when will he be?"

Nineteen!

The First Vein disciples' expressions changed slightly. Only Lu Yuanjun maintained his smile, as though he greatly anticipated Fang Wang's performance.

Faced with Fang Wang's domineering reply, Xu Lang snorted coldly and drew the bamboo rod from his waist. Within the bamboo rod was actually a longsword.

Without another word, Xu Lang fiercely hurled the bamboo sword. Cold light flashed, and its speed was not the slightest bit inferior to that of Fang Wang's previously thrown Celestial Palace Halberd—if anything, it was even faster!

Fang Wang's eyes narrowed. The Celestial Palace Halberd in his hand shot forth like a heavy cannon, carrying a roar that seemed capable of tearing everything apart as it charged head-on.

The instant the two weapons collided, the bamboo sword erupted with extraordinarily powerful Sword Qi, shaking the Martial Competition Platform!

Fang Wang and Xu Lang stepped forth almost simultaneously. Even with Fang Wang using Shadowless Steps, when he grasped the Celestial Palace Halberd, Xu Lang had likewise seized the bamboo sword's hilt. One had to know that Xu Lang had moved a greater distance.

The two gripped their respective weapons. Fang Wang swung his halberd one-handed, its force immense and heavy. Xu Lang nimbly evaded, flipped into the air, then turned and slashed his sword at Fang Wang.

The two launched into a fierce close-quarters battle. The sounds of halberd and sword clashing rose and fell, blade gleams flashing as cold light glittered.

Their movement techniques were simply too fast. Within a radius of fifty feet, their figures crossed and interwove again and again. Disciples below the Spirit Pill Realm could not see them clearly at all, and the entire city fell silent as the spectators feared missing even a single instant.

The Third Vein disciples broke into a cold sweat for Fang Wang, while the First Vein disciples were astonished.

"Senior Brother Xu's weapon is a top-grade magical artifact! He spent a million contribution points to exchange for it!"

"This proves Fang Wang's Life-Bound Treasure Spirit is of an extremely high grade. It is very likely an Earth Origin Treasure Spirit."

"It must be an Earth Origin Treasure Spirit! Just compare him to Ye Xiang!"

"At nineteen, he can already battle a ninth-layer Spirit Pill Realm cultivator. One must know that Senior Brother Xu is no mediocre man—he is a genius too!"

"No wonder Senior Brother Lu said he was stronger than all of us. What a pity. Why did such a genius not enter our First Vein?"

Watching Fang Wang's performance, the corners of Zhou Xue's lips rose slightly. Her pupils were filled entirely with Fang Wang's figure.

Xu Lang erupted with an even stronger sword intent. With one slash, over a hundred streaks of Sword Qi swept toward Fang Wang like a raging storm, their momentum vast and mighty.

Fang Wang planted the Celestial Palace Halberd into the ground with one hand. Xuan Yang Spiritual Energy erupted, forming an invisible barrier to block the attack. His robes billowed violently, yet his stance remained as immovable as a mountain, carrying an aura that said none but him would do. When the Sword Qi struck, a wall of energy thirty feet high rose in an instant, a spectacular sight.

Xu Lang leaped into the air, gripping the bamboo sword in his right hand while condensing his Life-Bound Treasure Spirit in his left. It was also a sword—a sword with only a hilt. He held it in reverse, and beneath the sunlight, the outline of its blade could faintly be seen.

Fang Wang looked up. True Mysterious Sun Fire burst from his eyes, and his right hand ignited with True Mysterious Sun Fire, swiftly covering the Celestial Palace Halberd. Then he released it and fiercely kicked the halberd's tail with his right foot. The Celestial Palace Halberd, blazing with raging flames, was kicked into the air and spun. When its blade pointed downward, he swiftly seized its shaft and slashed upward.

The vast True Mysterious Sun Fire transformed into a fire dragon that soared skyward!

The entire sequence took place in the blink of an eye, dazzling the eye. Before Xu Lang in the air could swing his sword, an enormous fire dragon had already appeared before him, its head several times larger than his entire body!