Battle against Duan Yi

"The match is over. Number Two wins," the referee announced.

Then a beam of white light flecked with silver stars descended from the dais onto Long Haochen, healing his injuries.

Yet even under the seventh-tier knight skill, Holy Healing Art, Long Haochen could not hold on. He spat out a mouthful of blood and lost consciousness.

Once the match ended, the golden barrier covering the entire Trial Arena was removed. Ye Hua and Li Xin hurried onto the Trial Arena floor and carried him away.

"Second match: Number One against Number Three. Both contestants, prepare."

Jiang Feng and a tall knight seated a short distance away rose at the same time and stepped into the arena.

Number Three wore black armor, and his shield and heavy sword were black as well, giving him a solid, imposing appearance. All his equipment was spirit demon level and possessed considerable power.

Jiang Feng still wore the dark silver armor he had used for two years, a piece of Magic Level equipment. In his hand was a long spear.

He did not rely much on equipment. Even if this suit of armor was destroyed, he still had another set he had obtained from the top floor of the Administrative Hall in Starjoy City.

"Begin!"

At the referee's command, neither summoned his mount. Both immediately charged toward the other.

Jiang Feng held back because Dragon Baby was still young and only a Level Five Magical Beast. Even if he entered the Trial Arena, he would not be much help.

Duan Yi, meanwhile, decided that since Jiang Feng had no mount, he would not summon his either. He would fight fairly first, then work with his mount to win if his own strength proved insufficient.

In truth, a Guardian Knight was bound to be at something of a disadvantage against a Retribution Knight.

Both launched a knight's charge. Jiang Feng pointed his spear forward, and its tip instantly became dozens of points of light stabbing toward Duan Yi.

Clang, clang, clang, clang...

A string of piercing clashes rang out. Duan Yi held his shield before him, but his charge was forcibly halted.

From their very first exchange, Duan Yi felt Jiang Feng's strength. An ordinary third-tier skill, Lightning Thrust, became an attack he could barely fend off in Jiang Feng's hands.

Without the slightest hesitation, the heavy sword in Duan Yi's right hand shone with golden light as dense light element gathered around it.

Holy Sword.

He held his shield before him with his left hand and brought his Holy Sword down in a powerful slash with his right.

But it missed. Jiang Feng sidestepped the blow and lashed out with his spear.

With a bang, Jiang Feng's spear slammed into Duan Yi's heavy shield. Duan Yi felt an enormous force surge through his arm, leaving the entire limb aching and numb. The shield nearly flew from his hand.

Duan Yi's expression changed in shock. What terrifying strength!

He felt that this plain, unadorned strike was even fiercer than the Lightning Thrust just now, leaving him struggling to defend himself.

Was Jiang Feng born with divine strength?

Duan Yi could not help wondering. Hailed as a prodigy since childhood, he was a Guardian Knight whose external spiritual power had only just reached 380, yet Jiang Feng's strength clearly far surpassed his own.

Jiang Feng pressed his advantage. Pure light element suddenly gathered around his spear, making it shine brilliantly.

Was that Holy Sword?

Duan Yi was puzzled. But his opponent was holding a spear!

And why did this Holy Sword look even stronger than the one he had just unleashed?

Jiang Feng swung his spear at Duan Yi. Enhanced by Holy Sword, its power was even more astonishing.

But as a Guardian Knight, defense was Duan Yi's greatest strength.

He cast one defensive skill after another on his shield, then met Jiang Feng head-on with a little more confidence.

Boom!

The Holy Light Barrier shattered instantly. Shield broke, and Holy Secret Heart Shield shattered.

Three successive defenses were blasted apart in an instant, and the spear smashed into Duan Yi's shield.

Duan Yi grunted and staggered back a dozen steps. He thrust his heavy sword into the ground and finally steadied himself.

Below the arena, Yang Wenzhao, who had just finished his own fight, watched with his pupils contracting and shock coursing through him.

If Jiang Feng's previous two matches had failed to reveal his strength clearly because his opponents were weak, this time he was facing a knight of the same tier-and one whom even Yang Wenzhao had to take seriously.

Yet Jiang Feng had sent him flying with a single sweep of his spear.

Had Jiang Feng's strength already reached a level where he could crush them?

How was that possible? How could such a powerful knight have been completely unknown before?

Yang Wenzhao held his breath, his eyes wide. He watched the battle in the arena without daring to let his attention stray for even a moment.

The senior figures on the dais were also astonished.

"This boy not only has considerable cultivation, but his external spiritual power is absurdly strong. I wonder just how high it is." Han Ci, seated at the center, sounded intrigued.

Hearing Han Ci's words, the man beside him immediately asked, "Holy Knight Commander, would you like me to have the boy's power measured?"

"Not for now. I want to see whether the contestants in the finals of this Demon Hunt Squad Selection Tournament can force him to use his full strength," Han Ci said with a smile.

This year's Demon Hunt Squad Selection Tournament had given him a pleasant surprise. Not only had several Fifth Order Knights emerged, including Yang Wenzhao and Duan Yi, but there were even two prodigies whose talent surpassed that of their generation.

One was Long Haochen, a fourteen-year-old peak Grand Knight. The other was Jiang Feng, a fifteen-year-old second-level Fifth Order Knight.

At that moment, Han Ci was deeply curious about their innate spiritual power. To attain such cultivation at their age, it should be no lower than eighty.

Then could one of them possibly be a Child of Light?

Han Ci shook his head, feeling he was being too greedy. In the Knight Temple's history of more than six thousand years, a Child of Light had never appeared.

Still, as long as these two gifted knights with innate spiritual power above eighty developed smoothly, both were certain to sit upon Divine Thrones in the future.

If Yang Wenzhao could also reach his full potential, perhaps the Knight Temple would one day have six Divine Seal Knights at once.

That would mark the Knight Temple's greatest flourishing in six thousand years, as well as the Temple Alliance's strongest era.

If he dared to dream a little bigger, perhaps it would even be the time when humanity counterattacked the Demon Race and reclaimed control of the Holy Demon Continent.

As Han Ci thought, a smile of longing appeared on his face. Countless times, he had imagined humanity breaking through the darkness and greeting the dawn. That was the ultimate dream of everyone in the Temple Alliance, and a mission they would fulfill.

In the Trial Arena, Duan Yi's heart was heavy. He had discovered that although they were both Fifth Order Knights, the pressure he felt from Jiang Feng was nothing like that of a Fifth Order Knight.

Without using many skills at all, Jiang Feng kept him completely suppressed, leaving him powerless to strike back.

At that point, Duan Yi no longer cared about fairness. After being knocked away once more, he decisively summoned his mount-a massive beast.

It stood over six meters tall and measured more than nine meters in length. Its thick limbs resembled four enormous pillars.

Long reddish-brown fur hung from its body, and two enormous tusks protruded from its mouth. More striking still was the single golden-red horn atop its head, which radiated a powerful aura.