Among the crowd drawing their swords, a tall, powerfully built man radiating Sword Qi walked up until he stood directly opposite me. He pointed his sword at my throat and said coldly, "Ranked one hundred eighty-first on the Cloud-Joining Sword Rankings, Wang Shuan! I have come to challenge you, fellow Daoist!"
"Ha, what's the Cloud-Joining Sword Rankings?" I sneered, but Qingyang Qili hurriedly whispered, "Brother Luo, it's the Sword Rankings of the Cloud-Joining Pavilion... Although private fights aren't allowed in the Sword Pavilion, anyone can challenge another disciple by announcing their name and certified ranking on the Sword Rankings. The mentors are the only ones not included by name, but among the disciples, the Cloud-Joining Sword Rankings are the most authoritative list..."
"Who are you? State your name!" Wang Shuan roared, then swiftly thrust his sword at my face!
Buzz!
Without hesitation, I drew the divine sword Qingmu. As the enemy's sword thrust toward me, I moved like a coiling dragon and serpent, my blade and his nearly pressed together as we rushed toward each other. Yet in that instant, my sword had already knocked his aside. Then my blade turned, and my Sword Qi roared like a dragon and cried like a phoenix as I swept it across his throat!
"My name? Even if I don't tell you, you'll know it soon enough—and remember it for the rest of your life. My apologies." I returned my sword to its sheath and stood in the middle of the arena.
Wang Shuan wore a blank expression. He still intended to swing his sword at me, but blood suddenly sprayed wildly from his neck, splattering across the ground. Only then did he realize that, like water released from a breached dam, his energy was pouring away—and that he had already been wounded!