Under everyone's gaze, Tang Yao leaped onto the arena. Mu Shixue was already standing opposite her. "Senior brother."
To be honest, hearing Mu Shixue call her senior brother always felt strange.
Tang Yao cupped her hands. "Please offer me your guidance."
Clang-
The instant the bell rang, Mu Shixue struck!
Her movements were extremely fast, her blade like lightning as it drove straight for Tang Yao's throat. Tang Yao did not meet it head-on. Tapping her feet lightly, she activated the Flowing Cloud Instruction and drifted backward, easily evading it.
"Why does Tang Yao keep dodging?"
"Scared, isn't she? Junior sister Mu's swordsmanship is fierce. She's clearly not playing around."
Only the new disciples in the stands remained silent. There was no explaining it to these senior brothers and sisters.
Only they knew Tang Yao's strength. Over the past few days, they had all improved considerably thanks to her guidance.
Hearing the constant discussion below, a trace of impatience flashed through Mu Shixue's eyes, and her attacks grew even fiercer.
Yet Tang Yao kept dodging. The occupational habit she had developed from teaching these past few days even made her explain earnestly, "Junior sister, more haste, less speed. You can't be so impatient."
Mu Shixue grew somewhat angry at those words. Then, putting all her strength into it, she unleashed a blast of sword wind. The powerful Sword Qi seemed to tear through the air as it slashed straight toward Tang Yao.
There was no dodging this strike. Reacting extremely quickly, Tang Yao gripped her azure sword and blocked it, fine beads of sweat forming on her forehead.
The two swords collided, sending sparks flying!
This was pressure born of cultivation. Faced with Mu Shixue's Golden Core Realm cultivation, Tang Yao, who had yet to form her Golden Core, struggled somewhat.
Tang Yao spun aside, then abruptly raised her hand. In an instant, sword light fell like rain, countless azure sword phantoms assailing Mu Shixue from every direction. The unbroken stream of sword phantoms wove an invisible net of blades.
Mu Shixue bit her lip and tightened her grip on her sword, holding an attacking stance. She could not distinguish which one was real.
Or perhaps every one of them was real.
On the dais, Elder Yun cried out and rose to his feet. "This is the perfect combination of the Azure Cloud Sword's second form and the Flowing Cloud Instruction!"
Beside him, Sect Master Ren was equally excited, as though he could see the Azure Cloud Sect's future.
Every disciple looked astonished. They had all heard the elder's voice. Could Tang Yao really be a dark horse?
Never before had a disciple fused these two supreme arts so perfectly.
Seeing nothing but cheers below the arena, Mu Shixue gritted her teeth and suddenly pulled a dark green pill from her sleeve. After staring at it for two seconds, she abruptly swallowed it.
Mu Shixue's presence suddenly surged, spiritual power churning around her. Her beautiful eyes grew somewhat vacant, faintly tinged with black Qi.
Her eyes turned blood-red, and her speed increased severalfold. No matter how many sword phantoms there were, she slashed at them all, her attacks covering a vast area.
A single slash actually damaged the arena, sending tiny fragments of stone flying as dust rose on all sides.
"Has she gone mad?!" the disciples below cried out.
Mu Shixue suddenly appeared behind Tang Yao, raised her sword overhead, and swung down with all her might. With no time to dodge, Tang Yao took the blow head-on.
Boom-
A small crater was smashed into the arena, and Tang Yao sank deep into it. Her internal organs felt as though they had been twisted together. A muffled groan escaped her, and blood seeped from the corner of her mouth.
Seeing Mu Shixue's muddled state, perhaps the Crimson Flame Sword was the best solution.
Mu Shixue was about to launch her second attack. Seeing that something was wrong, Sect Master Ren was just about to call a halt to the match.
At that moment, scarlet flames ignited in Tang Yao's palm, instantly condensing into a longsword of fire!
The blade blazed with heat, firelight flowing over it. Even the surrounding air warped under its scorching heat.
"What sword is that?!"
"What a scorching presence..."
Sect Master Ren exchanged glances with the elders and slowly spoke its name.
"The Crimson Flame Sword..."
Sect Master Ren leaned his face toward Elder Yun. "Yun Feng, hit me. This isn't a dream, is it?"
Yun Feng did not hold back, swinging his hand over in a fierce slap. The pain in his palm made him shout with excitement.
"It's real!"
Neither of them cared that disciples were still present. They were a hair's breadth from embracing each other and weeping.
Sect Master Ren said, "The Crimson Flame Sword, third on the sword rankings... its previous master's contracted divine beast was the Vermilion Bird."
"This child will surely achieve greatness!" The elders were also shedding tears. At the thought that they had believed the rumors and tried to stop Tang Yao from coming, they wanted to slap themselves twice.
In the arena, this Devil Qi was extremely cunning. It concealed almost all its presence, as though someone were controlling it remotely, leaving those outside the arena unable to sense it.
The moment the Crimson Flame Sword appeared, most of the Devil Qi was instantly suppressed. Mu Shixue's attacks slowed, the red in her eyes faded, and she regained a sliver of awareness.
The figures before her blurred. Mu Shixue bit her lower lip hard, trying to make out her surroundings, panic beginning to appear on her face-
Wh-why is this happening?
"Why... Devil Qi..." Horror filled Mu Shixue's heart as she stared helplessly at the black-purple phantom coiling around her right hand.
But this pill was clearly from that person...
She abruptly raised her head and looked toward the spectator seats. The face that met her gaze was still that familiar one. The other person curled their lips into a cold sneer, and Mu Shixue instantly felt as though she had plunged into an ice cavern, her whole body turning cold.
She had been deceived...
"Mu Shixue!"
Tang Yao's voice brought her thoughts back to the arena. The Crimson Flame Sword had just dispersed some of the Devil Qi hidden within her, allowing her to regain some clarity.
"I... I can't control it..." Mu Shixue raised her head with difficulty, the bloody hue in her eyes flickering in and out.
The radiant girl she had once been was gone. Now she was utterly disheveled, the sweat on her forehead soaking her hair, an expression of pain covering her face.
Tang Yao's brows knitted tightly. Someone had set Mu Shixue up.
That person's target-
Was it Mu Shixue or her?
Tang Yao stepped forward and swept her blade across. A scorching wave of fire instantly formed a barrier, enveloping the two of them and blocking the view from outside.
"Don't resist," Tang Yao said quietly, bringing two fingers of her left hand together and pointing them at Mu Shixue.
A strand of fiery-red spiritual power flowed into her meridians and began clashing with the Devil Qi rampaging through her body. Mu Shixue closed her eyes, cold sweat soaking the dark hair over her forehead.
An uproar broke out below the arena.
"What's going on? Why is fire blocking off the arena?"
"Junior sister Mu doesn't look quite right..."
The Vermilion Bird's Li Fire finally forced out most of the Devil Qi. Tang Yao swept her sleeve, and the barrier of flames instantly dissipated.
At the same time, Mu Shixue staggered, braced her sword tip against the ground, and dropped to her knees in exhaustion. Raising her hand in pain, she said, "M-master, I want to... report..."
Someone in the stands seemed somewhat disappointed at the sight. He could not understand-how had the Devil Qi in Mu Shixue's body been removed?
Then his fingertips moved slightly. The pupils of the girl in the arena suddenly widened a little, and her entire body stiffened, freezing for an instant.
Immediately afterward, Mu Shixue's vision went black. Her body could no longer hold out, and she collapsed unconscious.
In an instant, the crowd below erupted, and the scene spiraled out of control.
"What's going on?!"