As soon as Liu Chenyu finished speaking, someone reassured him, "Old Liu, don't worry.
"Although your disciple froze for a moment just now, his sword intent didn't seem to falter. I don't think he was affected much."
Before Liu Chenyu could respond, someone countered:
"Your eyes aren't much good either. Didn't you notice that Xu Changxing's sword intent is much weaker than it was yesterday?
"If he wasn't affected, why would there be such an obvious change?"
Liu Chenyu glanced at him and said with some irritation:
"I think Changxing's sword intent has simply become more restrained.
"It seems he gained quite a lot from yesterday's fight."
Li Pingyang, who had never quite gotten along with Liu Chenyu, suddenly scoffed:
"Come on, Old Liu. Even if you're protecting your young, you can't tell barefaced lies, can you?
"In just one night, your disciple's sword intent became that restrained?"
Liu Chenyu looked disdainful. "Yesterday, you thought my disciple couldn't get past the fifth round.
"And what happened? Didn't that good-for-nothing little disciple of mine knock Han Mingguan flat?"
Li Pingyang's expression darkened. "I admit I misjudged him yesterday.
"But today, your third disciple has clearly been affected, yet you're still refusing to admit it.
"If you have the guts, make another bet with me. Let's wager on whether your third disciple can win this match!"
The corner of Liu Chenyu's eye twitched. He was about to respond when someone beside him cut in:
"If you're adding another wager, you'd better hurry.
"The match has already begun."
At those words, Liu Chenyu instinctively looked toward the arena. Sure enough, Ye Hong had already deployed several defensive artifacts around himself.
What startled him slightly was that Xu Changxing hadn't brought out a single artifact. He was still standing there in a daze.
What's going on? I clearly gave him a defensive formation disc yesterday. Why isn't he bringing it out?
While he was lost in thought, Li Pingyang said excitedly:
"Old Liu, why is your disciple standing there without moving?
"Don't tell me you only ever had him practice his swordsmanship and forgot to temper his state of mind?
"That's negligence on your part.
"Tsk, tsk. Looks like we won't be making that extra wager.
"This little disciple of yours clearly won't last long."
Amid his incessant chatter, Ye Hong made the first move in the arena.
A shuttle-shaped artifact hurtled straight toward Xu Changxing's face.
Yet Xu Changxing was still standing there in a daze.
The sight left all the Core Formation elders on the raised platform dumbfounded.
The elders who had bet on Xu Changxing winning all frowned deeply, clearly already brewing curses in their minds.
Meanwhile, the eyes of the Core Formation elders who had bet on Ye Hong lit up.
Under the elders' watchful gazes, the Flying Shuttle reached Xu Changxing.
At that moment, Xu Changxing finally moved.
"Go!"
Verdant Sword Light flashed into being, instantly scattering the treasured radiance the Flying Shuttle cast over him.
Before almost anyone could react, the Greenwood Sword had already collided with the Flying Shuttle before him.
In the next instant, the sharp Sword Light pierced through the Flying Shuttle and continued slashing toward Ye Hong.
The Flying Shuttle seemed to lose all its momentum, hanging briefly in midair.
Crack!
Only when the Greenwood Sword was halfway to its target did the watching Core Formation elders hear that crisp sound.
It was the sound of the Flying Shuttle shattering.
But the Core Formation elders had no time to be shocked, for the Sword Light swept onward without losing momentum and was already upon Ye Hong.
Ye Hong's expression changed abruptly, and he hurriedly activated the defensive artifacts he had already placed around himself.
To his horror, however, the moment he sent those defensive artifacts out, he heard a succession of cracks.
Before he could work out what was happening, a glimmer of verdant light appeared before his eyes.
It was the Greenwood Sword's Sword Light!
After cleaving through his Flying Shuttle, that Sword Light had continued unabated, cutting through three of his defensive artifacts in succession!
Ye Hong's pupils abruptly contracted, and he froze completely.
The Core Formation elders on the raised platform were equally stunned.
Just moments earlier, when the Flying Shuttle hurtled toward Xu Changxing, nearly all of them had thought Ye Hong was about to win.
None of them had expected victory and defeat to reverse in the blink of an eye.
Li Pingyang, who had been mocking Liu Chenyu, even forgot to close his mouth. The rest of his sentence simply would not come out.
"Xu Changxing of Flying Stream Peak wins!"
The Core Formation Stage elder in the arena was the first to recover, announcing the result of the match in a loud voice.
That declaration sent a slight shudder through Ye Hong.
Only then did he finally realize with full clarity that he had actually lost!
Ye Hong clenched his fists, his eyes filled with unwillingness to accept the result.
For this match, he had specially prepared a killing formation capable of countering flying swords.
Besides that, he had also prepared artifacts that could interfere with a flying sword's trajectory.
He had even prepared dozens of defensive artifacts.
The three he had just thrown out were only the ones he normally used, not his strongest artifacts at all.
He had lost before he even had a chance to use those carefully prepared artifacts!
Ye Hong wanted to accuse Xu Changxing of launching a sneak attack, but although his lips parted, not a single word came out.
He knew perfectly well that saying such a thing would only invite humiliation.
That streak of verdant Sword Light had cut through four of his artifacts in succession and gone straight for his face.
Calling that a sneak attack would only make him a laughingstock.
But he simply couldn't accept it.
Never mind all the artifacts he had prepared-he hadn't even had time to unleash the full power of the three defensive artifacts he had placed around himself.
If he had fully activated those three defensive artifacts beforehand, Xu Changxing's flying sword could never have reached him.
But that Sword Light had been far too fast, so fast that he had no room to bring any of his abilities into play.
Those three defensive artifacts had only activated on their own, which was why all of them had been cut apart.
The more Ye Hong thought about it, the harder it became to accept.
But when he looked up, he found that Xu Changxing had already turned and was walking out of the arena, as though he had merely stepped in to go through the motions.
That sight made Ye Hong lose all reason.
He suddenly threw back his head and howled:
"Xu! Chang! Xing!
"I refuse to accept this!"
Outside the arena, Han Mingguan watched the seemingly crazed Ye Hong and suddenly felt rather fortunate.
If Xu Changxing had unleashed a strike like that against him yesterday, he would most likely have been the one throwing back his head and howling.
Just as Han Mingguan was privately counting his blessings, a steady voice suddenly sounded behind him:
"What do you make of today's match?"
At some point, Pei Yong'an had come to stand beside his disciple.
Even a Nascent Soul cultivator could hardly help showing a little extra care for a disciple who could inherit his mantle.
At the question, Han Mingguan recalled that streak of verdant Sword Light once more and said:
"Master, do you think it's too late for me to switch to sword cultivation?"
Pei Yong'an: "..."
Before you continue