The Sword Duel

Lottery?

Li Fan watched as the Foundation Establishment disciples on the deck gathered around, while the Nascent Soul cultivators attacking them stopped ten feet away from the treasure ship, not attacking directly, just waiting for them to draw lots. He was momentarily confused.

'Profound Heaven Sword Intent says that Little Yao is fighting according to ancient customs. You saw it yourself. If they had attacked like before, everyone would have died in an instant. It's a rare grand event for killing tribulations and sword duels. It would be a shame to not even have a lively spectacle. So, following the ancient customs of sword duels, before the grand assembly, the elders would first evaluate the disciples, showcasing the strengths and weaknesses of both sides to gain fame. If there were three consecutive victories, according to the rules, they would be recognized as rising stars and exceptional talents by both sides, and not allowed to be killed. The rule was established back then to prevent some renowned sects from using elixirs to nurture prodigies and kill off all the promising young talents from other sects. Thus, a person would be forced to withdraw after three duels. Since your opponent has arranged such an opportunity so meticulously, this is your only chance of survival. However, in this way, Little Yao definitely won't have you rotate. There are only five Foundation Establishment cultivators on the other side. Fighting through one killing tribulation is meaningless. Fighting three rounds consecutively, if you lose, you naturally die. Even if you are lucky enough to win one match, you might still be captured by the swarms of enemies for revenge. Therefore, to fight all three rounds, you would need your own elders to protect you. But Little Yao is weak and alone. They are waiting for him to make a move and will surely stand by and watch. However, this is the only way. If he doesn't flee, he will surely die if they fight. Even you juniors will still fall into their grasp and die. By doing this, perhaps those with strong fate might survive one or two, or even delay until reinforcements arrive... However, I estimate that they dare to put on such a grand display at the entrance of Bamboo Mountain, they must have set up this formation using the opportunity of the killing tribulation, and have already made their plans. You have completely fallen into their trap.'

Li Fan remained silent, but he could indeed see that the heavenly soldier formation to the north was still, the east was clear and empty, the west had the Devil cultivators from Tiantai Mountain and Zhou Sheng with three others, each leading their disciples. To the south, the Nangong family's female general had attracted three Nascent Soul cultivators, also bringing two disciples at the peak of the Foundation Establishment Realm.

Now he could see their faces clearly. A female cultivator stood with the Nangong family's female general, smiling charmingly as if they were best friends. She wore silk robes and a celestial dress, with clouds and mist swirling around her. Her celestial dress was well-chosen for her Integrated Body cultivation, and her looks were around 70 points. Apart from being flat-chested and being a Nascent Soul cultivator, she didn't have many distinguishing features. She was the type of person who would disappear in a crowd at a dance party, a mere background character to highlight the heroic demeanor of the Nangong family's female general. She probably had no other purpose, perhaps just a friend... However, a disciple beside her was even more eye-catching. He looked no older than fourteen or fifteen, with a pair of slender, long eyes and a melon-seed face as fair as snow. He also wore brocade robes and a moon-white robe, with his black hair tied up in a crane's coronet, exuding the demeanor of a dashing young master, the standard XXBOYS idol type from the entertainment industry. Those who dislike him might find him sharp and pointy, while those who like him would exclaim, 'Ahhh, kiss kiss hug hug, I'm dying, I'm dying!' In short, it was quite rare to have such a plastic surgery-level face. The other two Nascent Soul cultivators were likely twin brothers, looking exceptionally similar, with square faces and thick eyebrows. Their attire was also quite different from the cultivators of Li Country, leaning more towards a fantasy style, with both celestial robes and treasure armor. It was hard to tell if they were Daoists or warriors. One held a saber, the other a pestle. Judging by their radiance, they were at least high-grade treasures. Behind them followed a dark-skinned youth, about the same age as Zhang He, also with a square face and thick eyebrows. While not handsome, his eyes were bright and piercing. He had broad shoulders and long legs, with a sturdy build, clearly not an ordinary person. The cultivators who followed the Nangong family's female general looked calm, showing no hatred towards Ink Bamboo Mountain, likely invited for a sword duel.

"They challenge, we accept. You disciples, go out according to the order you draw. You can fight with all your might. If there is a heavenly talent whose fate is not yet exhausted, I will risk my life to send you out. Even if you lose, perhaps the rogue cultivators over there will appreciate you and take you as a disciple." Yao Xuanzhou spoke calmly, handing the lot cylinder to the disciples around him.

These Foundation Establishment disciples understood the gravity of the situation and remained silent. After all, they knew that what Yao Xuanzhou said was just comforting words. Why would the rogue cultivators who came to join the fun forcefully save them and offend the Immortal Palace? Falling into the hands of the Immortal Palace and Tiantai Mountain would be a quick death, and the methods of immortal cultivators used to deal with people were enough to make children cry at night, terrifying them to death. Thus, drawing lots meant going to die, and not drawing lots meant waiting to die. In any case, they were targeted by Ink Bamboo Mountain, it was just a matter of who died first. It was a dead end. Dying early or late was still death, at most it just delayed things a little. Perhaps by delaying a little, they could fight for a chance, which was still a glimmer of hope. After all, maybe a miracle would happen? Therefore, none of the disciples present refused, and they silently drew their lots. They were all in the same boat. Li Fan naturally drew a lot as well, 'Nine'. Considering there were about thirty people on the ship, this was considered a bad draw.

Yao Xuanzhou glanced at Li Fan without speaking. He didn't take the lot cylinder to the bottom of the ship for Yuan Xuanbao and Lu Qi, who were locked up, to draw. He thought that those on the deck had a better chance of winning three consecutive matches, and he hoped that after the fights, the Immortal Palace would spare the disciples of Bamboo Mountain who had made mistakes... Li Fan didn't have time to think further, because Zhou Sheng had already thrown out the jade tablet in his hand, which enlarged in mid-air, forming a flat jade platform, presumably serving as a venue for the Foundation Establishment disciples who could not fly to duel.

"Ink Bamboo Mountain disciple Zheng Hua, I request guidance!" The disciple in black clothes who drew lot number one flew up, stepped on the ship's railing, and leaped onto the jade platform. Li Fan had never interacted with this senior brother Zheng Hua and didn't know his background. He looked like a young man. If he was also sixteen and at the Foundation Establishment stage, he should have been honing his skills at the peak realm for some time. His decisive move suggests he is not weak, right? And the opponent who would face him, as expected, had to be from Tiantai Mountain. "Go." Thus, the female nun Cijing, with a white snake wrapped around her arm, pushed a Vajra warrior beside her onto the jade platform.

"Tiantai Mountain's Yuan Lang comes to take your dog life!" The Vajra warrior, using the momentum of the push, flipped his hands and produced a pair of drum-beating golden hammers. Like Mount Tai pressing down, the twin hammers smashed directly towards Zheng Hua's head! Speaking of which, this female nun's disciple is actually an eight-foot-tall, broad-shouldered, burly Vajra warrior. Is this truly a disciple? Is she teaching the Joyful Zen or the art of the bedchamber, cough cough... In short, the twin hammers were as large as pumpkins, coated in gold paint, and looked heavy enough to crush mountains. Zheng Hua immediately dodged sideways, while simultaneously attacking with his bamboo sword, shooting sword energy from a distance. The Vajra warrior, unable to hit with his golden hammers, instead had two holes pierced in his body by the sword energy. Enraged, he became bloodthirsty, his muscles bulged, and his entire body grew five parts larger. He swung his hammers, creating gusts of wind as he smashed ferociously. Golden light flashed all around him, and the resulting gale was so strong that even sword energy couldn't penetrate it, only leaving faint white marks on his muscles. He was actually practicing a body-refining technique. Zheng Hua was not to be outdone. While wielding his sword with his right hand, he used his left hand to form seals and unleash various escape techniques in return. For a time, colorful sparks flew, and the two fought back and forth, their moves indistinguishable, making for a particularly ugly and unbearable spectacle...

There was no way. Li Fan had watched the opening cinematic for a long time, with flying swords, magic treasures, and sword energy, all covering the sky and earth, breathtaking. But when the two of them actually fought, the concentration of light and particle effects was extremely low, and it even dropped frames? This? This? This?

'Profound Heaven Sword Intent says, do you now understand how this seat feels when teaching the child to play with mud every day?' Ah, I really do. It's not that I'm looking down on the skill level of Ink Bamboo Mountain's disciple Zheng Hua. To be fair, how much Qi can a Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator have? How many exquisite moves can they unleash? Isn't it just one move after another? This is also a good way to delay time. If the fight lasts longer, perhaps reinforcements will arrive. There's no problem with that. Yao Xuanzhou frowned as he watched, while Zhou Sheng, not far away, appeared relaxed and even chatted and laughed with Cijing, forming a stark contrast. Zhou Hao probably anticipated that Ink Bamboo Mountain was using ancient sword duels to delay time, and it was clear he had backup plans. Thus, he didn't care about the ongoing duel. He even gracefully floated to the south and paid his respects to the cultivators brought by the Nangong family, completely unconcerned that Ink Bamboo Mountain could escape his grasp.

After watching the two of them leap around, exchanging moves for about twenty rounds, Master Yao suddenly spoke, "Don't delay, finish it quickly." The cultivators outside, who had no interest in appreciating such low-level duels, were stunned and couldn't help but turn their heads to look at the jade platform. Thus, Zheng Hua, who was entangled with the Vajra warrior's twin hammers on the platform using the Bamboo Mountain Sword Method, suddenly abandoned his evasive maneuvers, retracted his move, raised his sword, and fiercely turned back. With a hop, he spun around and charged straight back, crashing into Yuan Lang's embrace, his speed increasing tenfold! This sudden change of move caught Yuan Lang off guard, as he hadn't retracted his two golden hammers. Before he could react, his golden body was pierced by a sword! And it wasn't over yet! Zheng Hua suddenly roared, and a bolt of purple lightning erupted from his mouth and nose! It struck directly into the sword wound pierced by the wooden sword! With a series of crackling and popping sounds! Purple lightning led the way, followed by the sword strike. Zheng Hua, in a state of human-sword unity, directly blasted a bloody hole through Yuan Lang's chest with the thunderous sword strike! He was almost drenched in blood! The thunderous sword fire was incredibly fierce! With a single explosive strike, the huge Vajra warrior was completely blown into pieces of flesh! Even his wooden sword shattered due to the excessive Dao energy from this strike!

"Vile thief!" Nun Cijing shrieked, pointing a finger. The white snake in her hand weaved like a silken ribbon, darting straight at Zheng Hua! It clamped down on Zheng Hua's neck!

But Zheng Hua let out a furious roar of his own. Purple lightning flashed all over his body. He abandoned his wooden sword, his hands crackling with lightning, almost like sharp talons. He grabbed the white snake and tore it apart, ripping the serpent in two!

"Golden Core realm!" "What!" Zhou Sheng and the other cultivators exclaimed, then felt a chill run down their spines.

Of course, they weren't panicking simply because a Bamboo MountainFoundation Establishment disciple had suddenly ascended to Golden Core level. After all, pills and techniques for rapid advancement weren't that rare these days; they had heard of them.

Their shock stemmed from the fact that Nun Cijing had been killed.

Yes, just moments ago, the instant her white snake was torn to shreds, in the blink of an eye, while her spiritual sense was severely damaged. A Nascent Soul had perished.

A line of blood split downwards from her divine court. Her entire body was cleanly sliced in half, falling from the sky. She didn't utter a sound, her spiritual sense instantly extinguished, gone without a trace.

Yao Xuanzhou didn't bother with the head. He coldly watched Zhou Sheng, extending two fingers to wipe the blood from his ink-feather-like flying sword. "Next match."

The black-robed disciple who drew the number two stepped forward, landing on the jade slab already splattered with the flesh and blood of the divine warrior. He stood beside Zheng Hua, whose neck had been bitten off, killing him, but who still clutched two pieces of the white snake, his hands crushing the serpent's body into pulp. With a blank expression, he drew his sword and bowed.

"Ink Bamboo Mountain disciple Wang Tanzhi requests guidance!"