"Lu Tianxiang of the Lu Lineage in Lu Prefecture pays his respects to the Seventh Princess!"
"Zhu Kang of Huai City pays his respects to the Seventh Princess!"
In an instant, everyone else was stunned.
Who was this beauty whose looks could topple cities and kingdoms?
The Seventh Princess?
There was only one Seventh Princess in all of Great Xia.
Could she be...?
"Xu Mao of Huai City pays his respects to the Seventh Princess!"
"Our respects to the Seventh Princess!"
In an instant, all the spectators dropped to their knees, their faces flushed with excitement.
The Seventh Princess!
Meeting the legendary Seventh Princess, whose beauty matched her wisdom and whose cultivation talent was peerless, would give them something to brag about for ten years.
On the arena platform, Xia Longfei's legs were trembling.
It really was the Seventh Princess!
He fell to his knees on the platform with a thud and cried, "Xia Longfei pays his respects to the Seventh Princess! I failed to recognize Your Highness. Please forgive my offense!"
Only Xia Yu remained standing quietly on the platform, looking conspicuously out of place.
An Qing glanced at him, her expression unchanged.
"You may all rise!"
"Thank you, Seventh Princess!"
An Qing sat in the seat of honor and said mildly, "I only came to watch. Carry on..."
"Yes! Thank you for your forgiveness, Your Highness!"
Xia Longfei spoke loudly. At that moment, his heart surged with excitement. His chance to soar to wealth and glory had arrived.
He would thoroughly defeat Xia Yu before the Seventh Princess, humiliate him, and let her see his talent.
If the Seventh Princess took a liking to him, he could soar straight into the heavens.
At that thought, he could barely contain his excitement.
He stood, drew his longsword with a clang, and pointed it at Xia Yu. "Xia Yu, today I'll show you what a genius is!"
"Make your move. I'll give you three attacks!"
Xia Yu froze for a moment. Who gave this fool so much confidence?
Rubbing his nose, Xia Yu said coldly, "Fine."
The next instant, a glint of cold light shot out, impossibly fast.
Many people saw only a flash of cold light before it was over.
The spear tip rested against Xia Longfei's throat.
Xia Longfei was dumbfounded!
What had just happened?
What was going on?
When had Xia Yu attacked?
He had lost!
He had lost without even seeing how his opponent attacked!
In an instant, sweat drenched his forehead, and his face turned pale.
"As I recall, this was a fight to the death! Learn to be smarter in your next life!" Xia Yu said coldly.
"Xia Yu, stop!"
Hearing that Xia Yu intended to kill his son, Xia Hongji immediately stood.
Xia Yu turned his head and looked at him calmly. "Hand over the Sacred Martial Token, as agreed in our wager."
"Wager? What wager? I know nothing about it! Release my son at once, and the Xia Lineage will spare your life! We can even let you return to the Xia Lineage!"
Xia Hongji shouted hastily.
Xia Yu shook his head. "If you'd had even a single peanut to go with your liquor, you wouldn't have gotten this drunk."
Pfft!
The tip of the Sin Dragon Spear pierced Xia Longfei's throat with ease.
Xia Longfei's eyes widened. Even as he died, he could not believe he had actually been killed.
I'm a peerless genius who summoned a heavenly phenomenon. How could I die?
One final thought flashed through his mind.
"Longfei!"
Xia Hongji roared.
"Kill him! Kill him!"
Xia Hongji had gone utterly mad. The son in whom he had placed such high hopes had died right before his eyes.
His only son!
"Kill him! He betrayed the Xia Lineage and murdered the young patriarch! Kill him!"
The Great Elder roared as well.
Four figures charged onto the platform.
Flashing blades and swords lunged at Xia Yu in an instant.
In that same instant, Xia Yu thrust his spear.
Heaven-Breaking!
Four points of cold light flashed and vanished.
Suddenly, it was as though someone had pressed pause on the arena platform.
The four figures stood frozen on the platform, blood and bloody foam bubbling from their throats.
One thrust!
With just one thrust, four experts of the Xia Lineage had died.
The sight left Xia Hongji and the Great Elder rooted to the spot.
Too fast!
What level had Xia Yu's cultivation reached?
Xia Yu pointed his spear and said coldly, "My dantian was shattered while saving your son. Not only did you strip me of my position as young patriarch and pocket the Sacred Martial Token my mother left me, you even sent assassins after me."
"Today, you repay your debts."
Xia Hongji's face darkened, and he said through gritted teeth, "Had I known, I would've killed you back then!"
"I'm right here," Xia Yu said coldly.
"Hong Yu, attack with me! Kill him!"
Xia Hongji and the Great Elder leaped up together, lunging toward the platform.
They were the Xia Lineage's strongest cultivators, both in the Origin Command Realm.
The moment they reached the platform, Xia Hongji and the Great Elder saw a point of cold light rapidly growing in their vision.
They tried to dodge. They had prepared themselves before coming down.
Yet they found they could not evade it. It was too fast!
Instinctively, they raised their weapons, trying to block it.
Pfft!
Before they could raise their weapons, the Sin Dragon Spear had already pierced their throats.
"You... you've actually reached the Origin Command Realm?"
Xia Hongji pointed at Xia Yu, blood pouring from his throat.
Meanwhile, Xia Yu stood where he was, his aura abruptly surging.
Sudden enlightenment!
Xia Yu had entered a state of sudden enlightenment!
After killing his enemies and clearing the knots in his mind, he had actually achieved sudden enlightenment!
The heads of the Xu, Gong, and Zhang Lineages exchanged glances. This was an excellent opportunity to get rid of Xia Yu.
Once Xia Yu died, the Xia Lineage would be utterly finished.
All three looked toward Zhu Kang.
Zhu Kang remained expressionless, his eyelids lowered, not moving an inch.
The other members of the Xia Lineage watched Xia Yu with conflicted feelings.
"Xia Yu has betrayed the Lineage. He must be killed," the Xia Lineage's second elder said grimly.
He also knew that once Xia Yu died, he would be in charge of the Xia Lineage.
The patriarch's seat!
At that moment, his eyes lit up.
I'll stake everything on this!
With that thought, he charged onto the platform without another word.
But someone was faster than him.
A flash of sword light appeared, forcing the Xia Lineage's second elder to an abrupt halt.
"Anyone who takes a single step toward Young Master Xia will be cut down without mercy!"
Wu Zichi stood with his sword in hand, his expression icy.
The aura of his eighth-level Origin Command Realm cultivation suddenly filled the air.
The second elder immediately retreated, sighing inwardly. It seemed he had lost his chance.
"Young Master Xia has shown great kindness to our Myriad Treasures Pavilion. Anyone who attacks him makes an enemy of the Myriad Treasures Pavilion!" Duanmu Lin declared.
"Xia Yu is one of mine. Anyone who attacks him will have all nine branches of their clan exterminated!"
Then An Qing's voice rang out across the entire arena.
In an instant, everyone fell silent.
Who among those present possessed the Seventh Princess's power?
The spectators surrounding the arena were all brimming with excitement.
Did you hear that? Did you hear? The Seventh Princess said Xia Yu was one of hers!
Heavens, there's something going on here!
Hearing the Seventh Princess's words, Zhu Kang immediately stepped forward. "By order of the Seventh Princess, city guards, stand ready! Anyone who makes a disturbance that disrupts Young Master Xia's enlightenment, or dares approach the platform, is to be killed on the spot! Exterminate all nine branches of their clan!"
"Yes!" More than a hundred city guards immediately stepped out.
The entire arena fell utterly silent!
Two hours later, Xia Yu slowly opened his eyes, and the surging aura around him swiftly disappeared.
"Thank you, Seventh Princess!" Xia Yu cupped his fists in salute.
"The first level of the Spirit Origin Realm. Fight me. I'll lower my cultivation," An Qing said mildly.
"All right." Xia Yu nodded.
"Let's go somewhere else."
An Qing rose into the air, and Xia Yu looked toward Xia Yao.
"Rest assured, Young Master Xia. I'll take good care of Miss Xia," Duanmu Wenshan said immediately.
"Thank you!"
Xia Yu followed her.
Outside Huai City.
In a grove, two figures faced each other from more than thirty feet apart.
"I've suppressed my cultivation to the first level of the Spirit Origin Realm. Make your move," An Qing said calmly.
Xia Yu remained silent and slowly took a step forward.
With every step, his aura climbed higher, joint by joint, like a sesame stalk bursting into bloom.
Thirty feet...
Twenty feet...
"Watch out!"
Before you continue