A Tiny Bit of Shock

Booom—!!

The entire arena nearly exploded.

"Woooooo!!"

"That was so cool, Arthur!"

"Mr. Arthur~~~!!"

"Arthur! Arthur! Arthur!!"...

The commentator rose to his feet and shouted excitedly:

"The winner has been decided!!"

"Contestant Arthur defeated every other opponent with just one strike!!!"

"As expected of the strongest Nine-Star Swordsman of our Sobeia Kingdom—!!!"

Qi Yan was somewhat dumbfounded. "N-No, wasn't that magic? Isn't that against the rules?"

"Magic? No, that was swordsmanship. Magic swordsmen are swordsmen too, and anyone who can become a high-star swordsman is a magic swordsman. What backwater village did you come from? You don't even know that?" the enthusiastic fellow beside him explained.

"..."

Qi Yan was speechless. The man had actually guessed right—he really had come from a world without magic.

He had originally thought that this place merely used magic to enhance physical abilities or gather magical power to unleash a few slashes. He had not expected magic itself to count as part of swordsmanship.

"So strong!"

Erza's expression turned extremely serious when she saw Arthur's attack. Defeating so many people with a single strike—was this the strongest Nine-Star Swordsman in the Sobeia Kingdom?

If she changed armor, she should be able to withstand that attack. Without changing armor, even she was not sure.

"Tch! Still such a show-off!"

Seeing that Arthur was so much more popular than him, Clay felt a little displeased.

"Very good!"

The king nodded in satisfaction as he watched the screen. Clay was someone he had watched grow up. He had been a swordsmanship prodigy since childhood and had never been arrogant or complacent, always striving to improve his sword techniques. His strength had risen rapidly. If the Magic Council did not only recognize wizards, then with Clay's strength, he would definitely have a place among the Ten Wizard Saints.

"Next is Group D, the final group. Contestants, enter the arena!!"

After the defeated swordsmen had all been carried away for treatment, the commentator announced for the final group of contestants to enter.

"My turn?"

Qi Yan stood up and walked toward the contestants' entrance.

The moment he entered the arena, another wave of enthusiastic cheers erupted.

"Alan! Alan! Alan!!"

Qi Yan turned around and saw a young man around his age entering the arena with fiery red hair. The young man wore a bright, sunny smile and waved at the audience.

"Waaah! It's Alan!!"

"He's so handsome!!"

"Go, Alan!! Knock them all down!!"

Many girls in the audience screamed. Alan was extremely handsome, his swordsmanship was exceptional, and most importantly, he was young. At only nineteen, he was the dream lover of countless girls.

Although Clay and Arthur were not old either, they were more than ten years older than Alan. In the eyes of fourteen- and fifteen-year-old girls, they were practically half old men.

"Tch! Just a brat."

Seeing how popular Alan was with the young girls, Clay felt somewhat jealous.

"It's the genius swordsman Alan!!"

"He is the youngest Nine-Star Swordsman in our Sobeia Kingdom!!"

"He is also the only Nine-Star Swordsman in this group! Can he sweep through the competition like the other two Nine-Star Swordsmen? Let's wait and see!!"

Qi Yan glanced at him before walking into the arena.

Once he took the field, Qi Yan could tell that these people avoided opponents with higher star ratings and prioritized eliminating those with lower ratings. After he entered, he felt no fewer than ten gazes settle on him.

It seemed they had picked him as an easy target. Qi Yan's lips curved upward slightly.

This disguise would be discarded once he earned the prize money from the competition anyway, so he might as well give them a tiny bit of shock.

"There's definitely no suspense in this match!"

"Yeah! Alan is a Nine-Star genius swordsman!"

"As expected, the swordsmen of our Sobeia Kingdom are the strongest. That female swordsman is a little impressive too, but she still can't compare to our nation's Nine-Star Swordsmen."

"We just need to enjoy Alan's performance!"

"That's right! That's right!"...

Everyone in the audience believed there was no suspense in this round. The gap between a Nine-Star Swordsman and an Eight-Star Swordsman was enormous, and geniuses were completely different from ordinary people.

"Now, the first round of Group C's match begins—!!"

Clang—!!

As the starting gong sounded, the fourth battle began immediately.

Almost at the exact instant the gong rang.

"Sun Breathing: Eleventh Form: Sun Halo Dragon, Head Dance!!!"

"Roooar—!!!"

A soaring dragon's roar rang out across the arena. Then, in the next instant, a massive flaming dragon twisted through the air and passed through every contestant.

"Uwaaaaaah!!"

"Waaaaaah!!"...

Every contestant, including the genius Nine-Star Swordsman Alan, was sent flying by that strike.

The fire dragon vanished, revealing a man with dark crimson hair and a red haori standing where the dragon's head had dissipated. The contestant number tag hanging from his back read "0556."

Bang bang bang bang!!

All the contestants crashed to the ground, having lost their ability to fight.

"..."

The entire venue fell silent.

In the contestants' resting area, Erza, Clay, and Arthur all rose to their feet, staring in shock at the calm man in the arena.

Clay's eyes widened in disbelief. "H-How is this possible?! How could anyone's swordsmanship reach such a level? No, impossible. Absolutely impossible!"

Arthur said gravely, "It has happened right before our eyes, yet you're still saying it's impossible? That man is standing right there."

"So strong! He's unbelievably strong!"

Erza could not find any extra words to say. Her eyes remained fixed on the man in the arena. Shock and astonishment were not enough to describe what she felt.

A single word sprang into her mind: God!!

If there truly was a god among swordsmen, then this man was the Sword God.

Inside the royal palace.

Smack!!

The king slammed his hand onto the table and stood up, staring at Qi Yan on the screen with a shocked expression. The king himself was an old Nine-Star Swordsman, once honored as the strongest swordsman in the Sobeia Kingdom. Later, as he gradually grew older, he slowly retired, and the younger Arthur became the strongest Nine-Star Swordsman.

Though he had grown older, his insight had only become keener.

Those who did not understand swordsmanship might think Qi Yan's attack and Arthur's attack were no different, both clearing the field in a single strike. But in the eyes of truly top-tier swordsmen, the difference between the two was not merely slight.

They were worlds apart.