"Whoosh, whoosh!"
Almost as soon as a thought stirred in Chen Fan's mind,
Chen Jianjun landed steadily three meters in front of the high platform.
The sleeves of his robe had been cleanly torn away below the elbows, revealing two sturdy arms with a few faint scorch marks. They were clearly only superficial wounds.
His hair was still neatly tied behind his head. His face was slightly pale, but he stood straight, his breathing even.
Seeing this, Chen Fan let out a small breath of relief. "Good. It looks like he's only used up too much Soul Power..."
At the same time, Qian Daoliu's figure appeared before Chen Jianjun.
By comparison, Qian Daoliu looked much worse off.
His plain gray robe was covered in countless small cuts. The most conspicuous one ran from his left shoulder to his chest, splitting the fabric open to reveal a thin layer of undergarment beneath.
Most of his hair had come loose, and a faint dusting of frost still clung to it. A lock of his bangs had been sliced off right at the roots. His face was smudged with grime, and a streak of blood still clung to the corner of his mouth.
As the two appeared, the entire arena fell into dead silence.
Countless eyes fixed on Qian Daoliu's filthy face, then shifted to Chen Jianjun, who stood at ease. Everyone's minds buzzed!
This...
Had Qian Daoliu lost?
The Adjudicator Elder of Spirit Hall, Spirit Hall's number-one executioner... had been defeated?
"Hiss!"
"Terrifying!"
"How is this possible..."
After a brief, stunned silence, someone in the crowd finally sucked in a sharp breath. As if the sound had spread like an infection, gasps rose one after another, rippling through the crowd.
Some clenched their fists without realizing it. Others pinched their own thighs hard.
Qian Xunji's eyes widened as he drew in a sharp breath, staring at Chen Jianjun with deep wariness.
His father had lost?
Was Chen Jianjun really that powerful?
"Qian Daoliu... Qian Daoliu actually lost?"
"How is that possible? The Adjudicator Elder of Spirit Hall actually..."
"Didn't you see what happened to Chen Jianjun's sleeves? He's not exactly unscathed, is he?"
"But didn't you see that Qian Daoliu's hair was sliced off? If that strike had landed a little lower, it would've taken his head!"
"And look at Qian Daoliu's face—he's covered in grime. Chen Jianjun may be pale, but he's clearly still standing firm!"
The crowd's murmuring grew louder. The older Soul Masters stared wide-eyed, as if they'd seen a ghost.
Qian Daoliu's reputation in the Soul Master World had been built on mountains of corpses and seas of blood.
During his tenure as Spirit Hall's Adjudicator Elder, he had stained his hands with countless lives. Whenever his name was mentioned throughout the Soul Master World, the older generation of Soul Masters went pale.
And now...
He had actually lost?
In a head-on, one-on-one fight, he had lost to Chen Jianjun?
And he had lost so... miserably?
"Your sword strike... was on par with Tang Chen's Ring Detonation."
Qian Daoliu paid no heed to the surrounding stares. Keeping his eyes on Chen Jianjun, he said in a low voice, "I just don't know which of you is stronger."
"I'd like to spar with him."
Chen Jianjun spoke frankly. "Of course, I won't insist."
"By comparison, I'd rather see your swordsmanship for myself."
Qian Daoliu's praise set off another uproar!
"My heavens... just how powerful is the Grand Sect Master of the Seven Kill Sect? Even Spirit Hall's Adjudicator Elder..."
"Didn't you see Qian Daoliu's robe? With that many cuts, if any one of those strikes had been half an inch off..."
"Enough!"
Someone yanked hard on his companion's sleeve, signaling him to shut up.
Qian Daoliu's gaze had just swept across the crowd.
It wasn't particularly sharp; in fact, it was almost calm. Yet every person it passed felt a chill crawl down their spine, as if an invisible sword were pressed against the back of their neck.
Up on the platform,
Chen Fan took it all in. The stone hanging over his heart finally dropped away completely.
He hadn't really been surprised by the outcome.
The Nine Kill Sword, combined with Ultimate Frost.
And they were both at the same level: ninety-ninth-rank peak.
If Qian Daoliu had been facing an ordinary Peerless Douluo, the fight might not have ended so quickly.
But...
Chen Fan glanced at Qian Daoliu and shook his head slightly. Qian Daoliu was different!
Qian Daoliu was far too straightforward.
The Nine Kill Sword combined with Ultimate Frost was unbelievably fast, precise, and ruthless, but it wasn't impossible to dodge. It simply reduced the opponent's chances of evading it.
If Qian Daoliu had taken to the air and refused to engage, it would've been very difficult to hit him.
But unfortunately, Qian Daoliu was too straightforward. Dodging simply wasn't in his vocabulary.
Just like when Qian Daoliu had fought Tang Chen.
If Qian Daoliu had been willing to maneuver and keep his distance, avoiding the sharpest blows, perhaps the result wouldn't have been so one-sided.
But no. He had to meet force with force, testing just how sharp his opponent's sword was in the most unyielding way possible.
Well... there was no denying it: he really was so straightforward that it was kind of adorable.
"Father, he... really won?"
Chen Xin was also finding it hard to believe. He stared fixedly at Chen Jianjun and murmured to himself.
Down below the platform,
the commotion in the crowd only grew louder!
The nobles who had been sitting in their seats, snacking on melon seeds and enjoying the spectacle, now wore all manner of expressions. Their gazes darted back and forth between Chen Jianjun and Chen Fan, their faces a sight to behold.
"I regret it!"
A certain marquis in brocade robes groaned in a low voice. He kept his voice down, but his companion still heard him. "If I'd known Chen Jianjun could fight Qian Daoliu to a standstill, I—I would've brought my eldest granddaughter too..."
"Isn't your granddaughter only thirteen?"
"So what if she's thirteen? It's called planning ahead! There might be another chance someday, right? What do you know!"
Elsewhere, several noble representatives from the Heaven Dou Empire were whispering among themselves, debating whether they should send a carrier pigeon back to the empire right away and ask the royal family to send over any princesses of suitable age.
Even if they were a few days late, that would be fine!
As long as they showed their intentions, anything was worth it if it meant getting in with the Seven Kill Sect!
"The Seven Kill Sect's foundations are far deeper than we expected."
"Deeper? Did you see Qian Daoliu's robe? That was Spirit Hall's Adjudicator Elder, and he was cut up like that!"
"Send a message. Now."
"You don't have to tell me. I've already sent someone."
In the corner, Tang Wei's expression was more vivid than anyone else's.
He had expected Chen Jianjun to have Soul Power and an aura comparable to Tang Chen's, but Tang Chen had become a Peerless Douluo many years ago. Chen Jianjun, at most, had only reached that level in the last couple of years.
By all rights, Chen Jianjun shouldn't have been this powerful.
But who could have expected...