Chapter 42
The Fallen Blossom Slash would not stop until it drew blood.
This was Ye Qinghui's second day since absorbing the Bodhi Spirit Pill. His cultivation had recovered by seventy to eighty percent, and he felt spiritual energy surging endlessly through his dantian. As a peerless treasure, the pill could not only help him draw in spiritual energy from his surroundings but also conceal his cultivation, keeping others from seeing his true strength.
He wielded the Flowing Light Sword with nimble precision, meeting the Fallen Blossom Slash head-on again and again without giving an inch. He kept it from getting close.
"How strange. He clearly has no Inner Core, so why has his cultivation reached the level of the Golden Core Late Stage?" Jiang Wan's lovely brows knitted together. A sharp glint flashed through her alluring eyes as she summoned a second Fallen Blossom Slash.
The two Fallen Blossom Slashes circled Ye Qingchuan like crimson phantoms. Even someone with three heads and six arms would have struggled to withstand such fierce attacks. Ye Qingchuan calmly used defensive spells against strikes from every direction while watching for a chance to attack Jiang Wan, who controlled the slashes nearby.
Finding an opening, he flew straight to Jiang Wan and engaged her at close quarters.
Jiang Wan's Swordsmanship was formidable, but against the gifted sword cultivator Ye Qinghui's Flowing Light Illusion, controlling both her Spirit Sword and the Fallen Blossom Slashes drained too much of her Divine Sense. Gradually, she began to lose ground.
Just as Ye Qinghui was about to end the fight with a single stroke, Jiang Wan's exhausted Divine Sense caused the deadly Fallen Blossom Slashes to veer off course. Mistaking their target, they suddenly swept toward her face.
Shock crossed Jiang Wan's face. She had no time to react, and the circling slashes were about to strike her pretty face. Time seemed to freeze from one heartbeat to the next. Everyone held their breath.
Ye Qinghui did not seize the chance to win. He turned the Flowing Light Sword instead. Blue light flashed, driving back the onrushing Fallen Blossom Slashes and shielding Jiang Wan.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
"Senior Brother Ye truly is a gentleman, blessed with an Innate Sword Bone and superb Swordsmanship. Wanwan admits defeat." Given a chance to catch her breath, Jiang Wan stopped fighting. She recalled both Fallen Blossom Slashes, cupped her hands, and conceded to Ye Qinghui.
Admiration and affection had suddenly appeared in her eyes when she looked at him.
The Cultivation World had always admired strength. A cultivator like Ye Qinghui, who cared for the greater good, possessed an unwavering Dao Heart, and refused to take advantage of someone in danger, was as rare as a phoenix feather or a qilin horn. Jiang Wan had met plenty of men, but now she saw just how different Ye Qinghui was.
[Oh no, oh no. First Senior Brother saved the beauty, and now she's fallen for him.] Ye Zhenzhen looked as though she had just stumbled upon a juicy secret. This romantic subplot had never existed in the original book! [Senior Sister Jiang is gorgeous and so bold, too. I'd love to have her as my First Senior Brother's wife.]
"Junior Sister Jiang, you were gracious." Ye Qinghui spoke sparingly, like a distant immortal, and stepped down from the arena with a cool expression.
He had always been like a flower high on a mountain ridge. Though he cared deeply for the Three Realms, only his own Junior Sister received his gentle words and smiles. To everyone else, he usually offered nothing but an unreachable figure walking away.
[First Senior Brother, you're hopeless at romance. Keep this up and you'll be alone forever.] Ye Zhenzhen despaired of him, then took a few more reluctant looks at the beautiful young woman onstage.
Jiang Wan's gaze followed Ye Qinghui until he stepped down from the arena. Light played across her features, concealing a quiet tenderness. Her heart had clearly been stirred.
After that match, the other contests continued in full swing.
Having absorbed the Inner Core containing Ye Qinghui's Innate Sword Bone, Ye Qingyun defeated Lu Lingxuan of Spirit Sword Manor. In the quarterfinals, Ye Qinghui, Shen Xingyan, Jiang Kui, and Ye Qingyun emerged victorious and advanced to the next round.
Ye Qinghui would face Jiang Kui of Thousand Mechanisms Palace, while Shen Xingyan would face Ye Qingyun. The four of them would fight for the two places in the final.
Seeing that Cloudsky Sect Leader Ye Ruheng was absent, Jiang Buqun, the leader of Thousand Mechanisms Palace, exchanged a glance with Immortal Venerable Shen. He then whispered a few instructions to Jiang Kui. Jiang Kui nodded in understanding, his gaze sharpening.
"Ye Qinghui, we never got the chance to fight in the Illusory Forest. Now we can finally see which of us is stronger." Jiang Kui ran a hand along his sword blade, a contemptuous smile tugging at his lips. "I won't hold back."
"Come on!" Ye Qinghui gripped his Spirit Sword, cutting a striking figure.
As his cultivation recovered step by step, he felt spiritual power surging through him. No one could defeat him.
Blue and silver sword lights flared. The two figures crossed the arena like shooting stars. Ye Qinghui no longer hid his strength. Like a dragon swimming through water, he moved with unpredictable grace, every stroke unstoppable. Jiang Kui refused to yield, unleashing savage silver-white sword lights amid an overwhelming killing intent.
Their sword strikes collided again and again, sending violent ripples through the spiritual energy. Winds howled, and waves of force swept across the arena.
But while Jiang Kui's Swordsmanship was fast and ruthless, it lacked Ye Qinghui's balance of offense and defense and his endless variation. After more than a hundred exchanges, Ye Qinghui had seen through the patterns in his swordplay and parried his Sword Moves with ease. Jiang Kui grew flustered, forced from attack into defense as he began to lose ground.
Suddenly, Jiang Kui darted aside and glared at Ye Qinghui in frustration. The scar on his face looked especially vicious.
[First Senior Brother, watch out!] Ye Zhenzhen saw Jiang Kui reach toward his waist and knew he was about to use a Hidden Weapon. She sprang upright in Ye Qingyao's arms and warned Ye Qinghui with all her might.
Ye Qinghui faintly heard his Junior Sister's cry and ducked to one side. Several Golden Centipede Silver Needles flew past, just grazing his hair.
That was close!
The Golden Centipede Silver Needles were a Hidden Weapon of Thousand Mechanisms Palace, engraved with golden centipedes. Their poison was deadly: an ordinary cultivator would die from it, while even a powerful cultivator would be unable to use his inner strength.
"Jiang Kui, you used a poisoned Hidden Weapon!" Ye Qinghui rebuked him righteously. "Hidden Weapons are strictly forbidden in the Immortal Sects Grand Tournament. You broke the rules and should withdraw at once."
Jiang Kui glanced at Immortal Venerable Shen on the judges' stand. Seeing him smile and give a subtle signal, with no intention of stopping the match, Jiang Kui grew bolder. He bared his teeth and argued, "Ye Qinghui, what makes you call this a Hidden Weapon? It's simply my weapon. How is it any different from Jiang Wan's Crimson Slash?"