The winds and clouds gathered, and the heavens and earth changed color.
Hua Yunfei represented Taixuan Sect in battle. Behind him, a crowd of disciples waved banners and shouted, their voices rising in a mighty chorus.
Facing this scene alone, Fang Yang showed not the slightest fear.
"Hua Yunfei cultivates the Heaven-Swallowing Devil Art. He's destined to become prey for the Ruthless Lineage of Yao Guang Sacred Land. There's no way he can resist the natural suppression of the Indestructible Heavenly Art."
"This time, he's representing Taixuan Sect in battle. Most likely, it wasn't his own choice, but a demand from the sect's elders. They want him to defeat me and restore their dignity."
"So Hua Yunfei definitely won't use his full strength, and he certainly won't display the secret arts of the Ruthless Empress in front of everyone."
After thinking it over, Fang Yang decided not to use the Sun Emperor Fist. He would wait for the right moment to use Nine Secrets: Jie and test his own strength.
"Since Fellow Daoist Fang isn't making a move, then I'll have to take the initiative."
Hua Yunfei was very polite, far more so than Lin Yi, who had just been sent flying. After greeting Fang Yang, he made his move.
Stars appeared in broad daylight, and night descended.
Stars adorned the black canopy overhead, shining with brilliant light. It was the ancient power's vision, Stars Shining on the Blue Sky.
The moment this vision appeared, all sound fell silent.
No one had expected Hua Yunfei to take Fang Yang so seriously. He had opened with such a rare technique.
The stars fell like meteors, crashing toward Fang Yang. Their auras locked onto his figure, leaving him nowhere to run.
"Not bad."
Unaffected, Fang Yang even had time to comment on Stars Shining on the Blue Sky.
Li Rui's Divine Light Glazed World wasn't the most powerful vision recorded in the Yaoguang Scripture. It also fell far short of the Stars Shining on the Blue Sky Hua Yunfei had displayed.
Still, Fang Yang didn't know whether the difference in strength between the two visions came down to their users or the visions themselves.
After all, he didn't have the cultivation method for Stars Shining on the Blue Sky. He could only judge their strength based on what he'd seen.
"Arrogant!"
Seeing Fang Yang remain so calm as the stars descended, many Taixuan Sect disciples began to take offense.
But in the next instant, that mood vanished, replaced by sheer disbelief.
The stars in the distance hung motionless in the sky, no longer falling.
A wind began to blow.
Purple Qi Coming from the East!
It surged forth in a mighty torrent.
The two visions collided with a tremendous crash.
The stars shattered into dust.
The purple qi roiled and turned to mist.
The two visions ground against each other, evenly matched for a time, with neither able to overpower the other.
Yet everyone understood that Fang Yang was younger and had a lower cultivation realm. If they fought at the same realm and clashed at the same age, the vision Purple Qi Coming from the East would surely overpower Stars Shining on the Blue Sky.
"Stars Ablaze, Becoming a Sea!"
Hua Yunfei unleashed the Star Peak Secret Art.
For a prodigy like him, a vision that others regarded as a trump card was nowhere near his strongest offensive technique.
Starlight rained down. With Stars Shining on the Blue Sky empowering him, he transformed into the Night Son of Heaven, commanding the power of the nine heavens' stars to attack.
The stars became a Heavenly River, pouring down from the blue sky. Carrying boundless force and endless Dao power, they struck at the place where Fang Yang stood.
A brilliant sea of stars filled Fang Yang's eyes.
"Beautiful."
Fang Yang praised it from the heart.
After admiring the sight of Stars Ablaze, Becoming a Sea, he timed his move and unleashed the Primordial Sacred Light Art at full power.
Now that he had Nine Secrets: Jie and the Sun Emperor Fist, the Primordial Sacred Light Art was no longer his strongest technique.
A great cauldron rose and sank within the Primordial Sacred Light. Ten thousand dragon heads emerged from it, each one lifelike, as if a True Dragon had descended into the world.
"He actually used the Primordial Sacred Light Art to recreate some of the Dragon-Patterned Black Gold Cauldron's essence?!"
"Who can stand against him?"
The Taixuan Sect disciples didn't understand what they were seeing, but quite a few elders had seen the Extreme Emperor Weapon of Yao Guang Sacred Land.
Compared with the Extreme Emperor Weapon, the Dragon-Patterned Black Gold Cauldron Fang Yang had conjured was naturally crude and unworthy of notice.
But in a battle between cultivators of the Four Extremities Realm, it was an astonishing killing technique—victorious in every battle, unstoppable in every attack.
"He's merely a Candidate Holy Son. Why is he allowed to study the Dragon-Patterned Black Gold Cauldron and comprehend the essence of an Extreme Emperor Weapon?"
The Star Peak elder sounded half worried, half confused.
"Have you forgotten Li Ruoyu's message?"
"Fang Yang isn't just a Candidate Holy Son of Yao Guang Sacred Land. He's also the Holy Lord of Yaoguang's sworn junior disciple."
Someone explained.
The outcome of the battle was no longer in doubt.
The ten thousand dragon heads tore through the sea of stars and devoured it. Like an avalanche, they swept all before them, swallowing Stars Shining on the Blue Sky in the blink of an eye.
Without the countless stars to empower him, the Star Peak Secret Art Hua Yunfei wielded lost three-tenths of its power. He was even less able to contend with Fang Yang.
"I concede."
Hua Yunfei gave a wry smile, clasped his hands, and admitted defeat. He seemed utterly carefree, true to the temperament he usually showed.
"Thanks for letting me win."
Fang Yang was just as courteous.
He was in high spirits.
Because...
[Defeated Hua Yunfei, Fate Points +1,000]
Fang Yang hadn't expected Hua Yunfei to be worth so much.
This was the first time he'd encountered an opponent who gave him Fate Points just for defeating him.
Then what if he killed him...
Fang Yang abandoned the thought.
He had no grudge against Hua Yunfei, for one thing.
More importantly, Hua Yunfei was a Gu Insect of the Ruthless Lineage. That alone was reason enough to keep his distance, lest the Ruthless Lineage set its sights on him.
The onlookers fell silent. Even the Taixuan Sect Master couldn't accept what had happened. He tugged at his beard with his right hand, unaware of what he was doing.
After a long while, the Taixuan Sect Master let out a deep sigh and said,
"Yao Guang Sacred Land lives up to its reputation. Even its Candidate Holy Son can sweep through our Taixuan Sect's younger generation. The young truly are to be feared!"
"You flatter me, Senior. I only managed to defeat Brother Yunfei by relying on the advantage of an Extreme Emperor Weapon. If your sect had one as well, the outcome of this battle would still be uncertain."
Fang Yang replied modestly.
A little flattery never hurt.
Besides, the last thing he'd said was true.
Hua Yunfei hadn't used his full strength.
Neither had Fang Yang.
If they fought for real, with blades bared,
Fang Yang wasn't at all confident that he could defeat Hua Yunfei, who had mastered the Ruthless Secret Technique, relying on the Sun Emperor Fist—which didn't suit him particularly well—and the Nine Secrets: Jie he'd only just obtained.
The Taixuan Sect Master felt conflicted at Fang Yang's words.
He couldn't tell whether Fang Yang was praising Hua Yunfei's extraordinary talent or criticizing Taixuan Sect for lacking the resources to give its disciples a brighter future.
Thinking of the Holy Lord of Yaoguang behind Fang Yang,
the Taixuan Sect Master decided it was better to assume the former.
In a far-off corner,
"Didn't you say Fang Yang was bound to lose?"
Ye Fan teased the young woman beside him.
"And your brother had to pay a price just to narrowly defeat Hua Yunfei of Star Peak. Fang Yang won so cleanly—doesn't that mean he could beat Ji Haoyue, too?"
"I remember you once said something very sensible: 'If you haven't seen someone for three days, look at them with new eyes.' My brother narrowly defeated Hua Yunfei two years ago, when he was younger than Hua Yunfei is now. Of course he can beat him easily today."
Ji Ziyue stomped her foot in anger, defending her brother.
What Hua Yunfei? What Fang Yang?
Her brother was destined to become the Divine King of the Eastern Wasteland.
The person he should be compared with was Jiang Taixu, the Divine King from several thousand years ago.
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