Overall Group Competition Begins

Holding the broken sword, Yi Yun stood up and slowly probed into it with his spiritual power, savoring the memories within the broken sword.

He slowly swung his sword, seemingly still immersed in that dreamlike spiritual world.

The sword strike that cleaved the Bronze Giant's head was naturally clearer than the sword mark left by the Pure Yang Sword Palace. As long as Yi Yun it, it would exist clearly in his mind.

The understanding one can gain from merely observing sword marks is naturally limited. However, the feeling of witnessing the sword strike with one's own eyes and imprinting its image in one's mind is entirely different.

Yi Yun slowly entered a profound and mysterious state, wandering in that dreamlike world. He vaguely felt that some things he couldn't understand before seemed to be gradually becoming clear.

So that's how it is...

Yi Yun muttered to himself, unaware of how much time had passed. Suddenly, his ears twitched as he heard footsteps outside the Sword Tomb.

The footsteps were light but rhythmic, the intervals between each step as precise as a clock—the sound of a master footstep.

Cang Yan...

Yi Yun immediately realized who the footsteps belonged to.

Yi Yun was quite surprised that he could actually hear footsteps outside the Sword Tomb; it was somewhat unbelievable.

Because once the gate to the Sword Tomb is closed, the world inside the Sword Tomb is isolated from the outside world.

But now he not only heard the footsteps, but he also recognized who they belonged to.

"That kid, he still hasn't come out."

Outside the Sword Tomb, Cang Yan muttered to himself, somewhat annoyed.

There was only one hour left before the start of the final group competition. Yi Yun seemed to lose track of time as soon as he entered the Sword Tomb, and he had to be reminded every time.

However, if Cang Yan directly summoned Yi Yun, he was afraid of disturbing Yi Yun. Martial artists are very sensitive to being disturbed while cultivating.

Just as Cang Yan was repeatedly glancing at the hourglass, the gate to the Sword Tomb suddenly opened.

Yi Yun appeared at the door. "The final group competition is about to begin?"

Yi Yun heard Cang Yan's soliloquy while he was in the Sword Tomb.

Cang Yan was taken aback for a moment, then said irritably, "You're always right on time, always arriving just in time. Almost everyone in the arena has arrived. You still have an hour left; you can meditate and rest a bit to get yourself in shape. Your opponent today is very strong, extremely strong!"

Cang Yan used the word "strong" twice in a row to describe Cloud Dragon Divine Kingdom's opponent in the final group.

"Old man, I don't expect you to win the championship. Just play with the spirit of my Tai'a Divine Kingdom. That'll save those brats from continuing to gloat in front of me!"

Cang Yan looked displeased; he was in a bad mood after being bullied by the two White Robe elders.

"Understood," Yi Yun replied, seemingly lost in thought. His consciousness was still immersed in the Sword Intent he had just comprehended, and he was somewhat unable to extricate himself from it.

Seeing Yi Yun's nonchalant attitude, Cang Yan became depressed. "What are you thinking about? Right now, in the entire Tai'a Divine City, you're the only one we can count on for the finals."

"Kid, let me tell you, there are a few really strong players in the Cloud Dragon Divine Kingdom's Younger Generation Group this time. If you can beat one of them, or even win five matches in a row, I'll ask the city lord for a sword for you!"

Cang Yan sensed that Yi Yun was the type to not act until he saw a clear benefit, so he directly threw out the bait.

"A knife?" Yi Yun was slightly taken aback.

Cang Yan smiled mysteriously, "Don't let the city lord's scholarly appearance fool you. He actually wields a sword, and he loves collecting all sorts of fine blades. His private armory is full of good swords. If you can win five matches, you can choose any sword you like!"

"The city lord's collection?"

Yi Yun's heart stirred. The Sound Killing Blade he was currently using was only from the armory of Tai'a Divine City. Although it was a good blade, it was naturally far inferior to the collection of the Lord of Tai'a Divine City.

He already possessed that mysterious broken sword, but his knife was indeed ordinary.

If I could have a good sword to help me, my combat power would be further enhanced!

However... in fact, that broken sword could not be brought into the open. Yi Yun dared not take it out easily and could only use it as a trump card. Therefore, he was actually missing a sword.

Thinking of this, Yi Yun glanced at Cang Yan, chuckled, and said, "Um... Senior Cang Yan, how about I have a sword too? Elder Jian Ge, you must be a sword collector, right?"

Hearing Yi Yun's words, Cang Yan's beard twitched. "You brat, you're pushing your luck! You're not even at the Origin Foundation Realm yet, and you're already carrying two Saint-level weapons. Aren't you afraid of attracting unwanted attention? With your current strength, you can't even unleash the full power of Saint-level swords!"

Cang Yan said with dissatisfaction, then changed the subject and said, "Hmph, if you can win, what's wrong with getting you a good sword? Don't even mention that old codger Jian Ge's collection, I can even snatch the sword that Jian Ge uses!"

This battle concerns the honor of the Tai'a Divine Kingdom. Although the Sage-level swords are precious, rewarding Yi Yun with them is nothing.

However, Cang Yan also knew that it would be very difficult for Yi Yun to defeat even one of those experts, or even to win five matches in a row!

If Yi Yun performs exceptionally well, once the opponent discovers his extraordinary strength, they will definitely send out a master to end Yi Yun's winning streak.

Hearing Cang Yan's assurance, Yi Yun smiled, "Then this junior thanks Senior Cang Yan."

Seeing Yi Yun's smiling face, Cang Yan rolled her eyes. This kid, he's even thanking her. Does he think he already has the sword and saber?

Yi Yun followed Cang Yan to the arena. The final group competition was about to begin!

Yi Yun arrived at the contestants' table, where Chu Xiaoran was also present. Only Yi Yun and Chu Xiaoran were qualified to participate in the Tai'a Divine City's final group competition.

However, Chu Xiaoran's strength was clearly not something to rely on; basically, only Yi Yun could fight her.

Take another look at the opponents, the final group of the Cloud Dragon Divine Kingdom, which has gathered fifteen people!

Apart from the weakest group being eliminated in the Younger Generation Group stage, everyone from the Cloud Dragon Divine Kingdom was present.

After going through the Younger Generation Group finals, they still have a full squad?

Yi Yun paused for a moment, then asked Chu Xiaoran beside him, "Xiaoran, wasn't there a Younger Generation Group final before the general group final? Our Tai'a Divine City had Demon Blade and Yang Gan fighting, both of them are very strong, but not a single person from the Cloud Dragon Divine Kingdom was defeated?"

Upon hearing Yi Yun's question, Chu Xiaoran gave a wry smile and said, "It was that fat man in yellow who made the move. He's an expert in Illusion Technique. Yang Gan didn't understand the situation and fell into the fat man's Illusion Technique, resulting in his defeat."

"As for the Demon Blade, he's in much better shape. He used his sword intent to break through the fat man's Illusion Technique and slashed at him three times. Although the fat man avoided vital points each time, he was still seriously injured."

"But the fat man was older than the Demon Blade and had a deeper cultivation. He used a gourd of strange smoke called Seven Illusory Wolf Smoke. This wolf smoke was very strange and could form Illusion Technique barrier. The Demon Blade could not maintain absolute clarity in the Seven Illusory Wolf Smoke array and was eventually defeated by the fat man in yellow."

"Illusion Technique?" Yi Yun's heart skipped a beat, somewhat surprised. He hadn't expected that anyone would use Illusion Technique as a means of attack.

This is similar to the ability of the Heavenly Auspicious Purple Sun Ginseng.

When Yi Yun first encountered the Heavenly Auspicious Purple Sun Ginseng, he was caught in its Illusion Technique and almost fell off a cliff.

Demon Blade is a very strong swordsman. Although he is not as strong as Qin Haotian and Li Xiao, he is by no means easy to defeat. Swordsmen like Demon Blade, who are dedicated to cultivating their swordsmanship, generally have very firm beliefs in their martial arts.

Even so, he still fell for the yellow-clad fat man's Illusion Technique, which shows that the yellow-clad fat man was indeed extraordinary.

Yi Yun subconsciously looked towards the Cloud Dragon Divine Kingdom group and met the gaze of the fat man in yellow.

The fat man in the yellow shirt leaned back in his chair, propping his chin up with one hand, and looked at Yi Yun with great interest, his gaze like that of a hunter eyeing its prey.

"That's really interesting."

The fat man in yellow chuckled. Yesterday, he had seen the one-armed cloaked man again, and this time, the one-armed cloaked man offered an even higher price to have the fat man in yellow cripple Yi Yun.

The fat man in yellow was skilled in illusion Illusion Technique. Illusion Technique is a form of mental attack, and a person's soul is very fragile; once injured, it is difficult to heal.

Therefore, when it comes to psychological attacks, it is very easy to hurt others and also easy to be attacked back at oneself.

In the world of Illusion Technique, inflicting permanent damage to the opponent's soul is actually not difficult.

The fat man in yellow didn't care who the one-armed cloaked man was, but the price he was offered was tempting, so he didn't mind doing it for him, since the Cloud Dragon Divine Kingdom and the Tai'a Divine Kingdom were originally hostile forces.

"This fat guy has his eye on me!"

Yi Yun frowned slightly. Just then, he heard the fat Yi Yun's voice transmission in his ear, "I'll be the first to fight. Have you tried to find out anything about me from that little girl next to you? I advise you to find out more, otherwise you might not even know how you died later."

Hearing the fat man's words, Yi Yun was stunned for a moment, then pinched the bridge of his nose with a helpless expression. This fat man really has a high opinion of himself.

"I've done my research. I heard you can use Illusion Technique, and I'm actually quite scared."

"Um?"

The fat man raised an eyebrow and sat up straight, staring at Yi Yun from a distance of several dozen feet.

He stared at Yi Yun for a good dozen breaths, then suddenly laughed, "You're really a newborn calf that's not afraid of tigers. Who gave you that courage?"

The fat man in yellow was at the peak of the mid-stage of the Origin Foundation Realm, just a little short of entering the late-stage of the Origin Foundation Realm.

During the competition, due to the age difference, the yellow-robed fat man's cultivation level will be suppressed to the early stage of the Origin Foundation Realm. However, his Illusion Technique will not be suppressed. Illusion Technique cast with the cultivation level of the early stage of the Origin Foundation Realm will not be much different.

This is also the source of the fat man in the yellow shirt's confidence.

He wasn't good at direct combat, but he could prevent enemies who were skilled in direct combat from using their abilities effectively.

This is the extent of the fat man in the yellow shirt's abilities.

Yi Yun ignored the fat man and began to meditate and regulate his breathing, digesting the insights from the Sword Tomb while adjusting his aura to reach his best condition before the competition.

Meanwhile, the referees from Tai'a Divine City had already stepped onto the Divine Desolation Stage, and the final group competition had officially begun!

...(To be continued~^~)