On the high platform where the Lineage, the clan leaders transmitted their voices through the void, while an undercurrent was surging within the Ju Lineage area.
Ju Jinyu gazed at the central battle platform and quietly transmitted his voice to Chi Boqian: "Brother, the outsider you found is truly astonishing. At the Eternal Silence Realm Initial Stage, he forced the Shangguan Lineage to use two inherited techniques and even forbidden divine abilities. I have cultivated for countless epochs, and this is the first time I have ever seen such a thing."
Upon hearing this, Chi Boqian's lips curled into a composed pride, his gaze clear and open, without any intention of showing off, and he responded in a deep voice.
"Brother Jinyu, my judgment of people has never been wrong. Qin Yu's potential is far greater than what he has shown today. Let's wait and see what he does next."
Ju Jinyu's eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at Qin Yu from afar, his sense of importance growing even stronger. The atmosphere within the Shangguan Lineage's camp was noticeably more oppressive.
Shangguan Lingxiao's face was grim, his gaze fixed on Qin Yu on the battle platform for a long time. After a while, he whispered to the elder beside him, "Investigate thoroughly. Find out Qin Yu's background and which hidden sect he belongs to."
An elder stepped forward slowly, his body slightly hunched, clearly very old, yet his eyes remained sharp and piercing. "Clan leader, the information we can gather at the moment is very limited. Rumor has it that this young man hails from the Source of Epochless · Middle Layer, not a disciple nurtured by an upper-level clan."
Shangguan Lingxiao frowned, a look of doubt in his eyes. "The middle-level territory? How could such a place cultivate such a heaven-defying prodigy?"
The elder continued, "There's another matter: this person has a deep-seated grudge against Hua Jingmeng of the Hua Lineage. Hua Jingmeng once issued a bounty, relentlessly pursuing and killing Qin Yu, but ultimately all her efforts failed."
Shangguan Lingxiao's gaze sharpened: "There's such a past?" "Besides, there's another rumor: the Ancient God Clan was wiped out overnight, possibly related to this boy, but it's just a rumor, without any concrete evidence."
Shangguan Lingxiao remained silent, tapping his fingertips lightly on the armrest of his chair, before finally speaking slowly.
"Continue to investigate secretly. This person is now a major threat to the Hua Lineage, and also a potential formidable enemy to our Shangguan Lineage. We must not act rashly before we understand his true strength."
"Your subordinate will remember the clan leader's instructions." The elder bowed and replied. In the Hua Lineage area, the Hua Family Lineage patriarch, Hua Nongrui, sat quietly, her gaze fixed on Qin Yu. The battle just now kept replaying in her mind: Qin Yu calmly dismantled the Annihilation Tribulation Finger, deciphered the Dao Silence Heavenly Book, and finally severely injured Shangguan Jiayan with three swords. Each scene made her heart grow heavier.
"Qin Yu..." she murmured softly, her brows furrowed. "No wonder Jingmeng suffered so many setbacks at his hands; this man is indeed unfathomable."
She turned her head to look at Hua Jingmeng beside her. At this moment, Hua Jingmeng's expression was calm, and there was even a hint of gloom hidden in her eyes.
Hua Nongrui's heart sank slightly. For the first time, she clearly realized that the real variable in this year's Four Great Lineage Grand Competition might not be the competition between the four families themselves, but rather the outsider who appeared out of nowhere and represented the Chi Lineage in the competition— Qin Yu.
After a brief silence in the center of the Myriad Worlds Graveyard, Nangong Xingyun raised his hand again, his deep and resonant voice echoing throughout the heavens and earth, "First round, seventh match. Ju Zhenyue of the Ju Lineage versus Hua Xizhi Hua Lineage. Please come to the stage."
Time flows slowly, ceaselessly through the ages. On the ancient battle platform spanning thousands of miles in the center of the Myriad Worlds Graveyard, one battle after another between geniuses unfolds.
The new generation of powerful figures from the Lineage all revealed their true strength, with their own painstakingly cultivated Dao Origin, Fate Soul Divine Power, and inherited Dao Principles appearing in turn.
In the outer viewing area, hundreds of millions of cultivators remained tense, never letting their guard down for a moment. Every time the great Dao divine powers collided with a thunderous roar, and Dao patterns intertwined, it would stir up waves of exclamations of amazement.
The seventh match: Ju Zhenyue versus Hua Xizhi. The two women stepped onto the arena, but instead of a destructive clash of power, they engaged in an extremely exquisite battle of wits and techniques.
Hua Xizhi, dressed in Qingyi, moved with the lightness of flowing clouds. Her long sword danced gracefully in her hand, its light stretching endlessly. Her swordsmanship was not as profound and mysterious as Hua Jingmeng's, but it was superior in its elegance and agility. Each sword light trajectory was unpredictable, making it difficult to catch the true killing move.
Ju Zhenyue cultivated the path of direct combat, her attacks were steady and powerful, her spear sweeping across, causing the void to tremble continuously. However, under the continuous fierce battle, her Fate Soul essence was constantly being consumed, and she gradually showed signs of fatigue.
In a fleeting moment of sword light, Hua Xizhi seized the brief opening and precisely struck the weak point in her defense with her sword.
Ju Zhenyue retreated dozens of feet, and after some deliberation, she had no choice but to concede defeat. Nangong Xingyun's voice resounded Myriad Worlds Graveyard: "Seventh match, Hua Xizhi wins and advances. Ju Zhenyue is eliminated."
Match 8. Ju Miaoting versus Shangguan Mobai. The two players have very different playing styles.
Ju Miaoting was decisive and swift in her attacks, unleashing a series of deadly moves as soon as the battle began, aiming for a quick victory. Shangguan Mobai, however, Steady as a Mountain, not in a hurry to counterattack, but instead focused on defense and dismantling her attacks, patiently searching for gaps in Ju Miaoting's alternating techniques.
After a prolonged battle, Ju Miaoting continued to unleash her powerful offensive techniques, causing a brief disturbance in the very essence of her Fate Soul. Shangguan Mobai seized the opportunity, and a sealing Dao pattern descended from the sky, locking away all subsequent changes in her life.
Ju Miaoting was unable to continue and had to concede defeat. In the eighth match, Shangguan Mobai and advanced. Ju Miaoting was eliminated.
In the ninth match, Hua Yiyun faced off against Shangguan Anyu. The duel began, and the difference in strength between the two was immediately apparent.
Hua Yiyun cultivates the Hua Lineage's Path of Flexibility, with countless flower shadows layered upon each other, forming a defensive barrier. Shangguan Anyu, on the other hand, walks the Path of Ultimate Power, standing in the void like an ancient, unyielding mountain.
"Thousand Layers of Flower Shadows!" Hua Yiyun shouted softly, and countless flower petals gathered into a huge barrier, protecting herself layer by layer.
Shangguan Anyu simply clenched his fist, gathering all the original power of the Eternal Silence Realm Initial Stage. The next instant, he unleashed a deafening punch! Boom!!!
The barrier of countless flower shadows shattered instantly. Layer upon layer of defense was as fragile as paper in the face of sheer force. Hua Yiyun was jolted back by the shock. After a moment's thought, she chose to concede defeat.
"In the ninth match, Shangguan Anyu won and advanced. Hua Yiyun was eliminated." The final match was also a clash between foreign players.
The duel between Jiang Hanning and Lu Qi'an attracted countless eyes. Neither of them were direct descendants of the Lineage, but rather external cultivators invited by various forces at great expense.
The two were of similar cultivation levels and had comparable foundations. Their supernatural powers clashed constantly, and the Dao patterns in the void rose and fell, resulting in a prolonged stalemate where it was difficult to determine a winner.
In the final moments of the fierce battle, Jiang Hanning caught a barely perceptible opening and activated his Primordial Chaos Secret Technique. A mysterious Dao pattern pierced through Lu Qi'an's defenses, giving him a mere half-move lead and securing victory.
"Jiang Hanning wins the final match of the first round, and Lu Qi'an is eliminated." As the final duel came to an end, the huge battle stage fell into a brief silence.
Nangong Xingyun slowly walked forward through the air, his gaze sweeping across the entire Myriad Worlds Graveyard, his deep voice resounding throughout the universe.
"The first round of competition has concluded. The list of cultivators who have advanced is as follows."
Chi Lineage: Chi Mulin, Qin Yu; Ju Lineage: Ju Gongchen, Ju Mohan; Hua Lineage: Hua Jingmeng, Hua Xizhi, Jiang Hanning.
The Shangguan Lineage: Shangguan Haoqian, Shangguan Mobai, Shangguan Anyu, a total of ten people, successfully advanced to the second round.
As soon as he finished speaking, some cultivators in the outer viewing area Qin Yu, "I've been watching those two for a long time. His advancement is a foregone conclusion!"
"Shangguan Jiayan destined to fall to his sword; his advancement was entirely expected."
"Hua Jingmeng also advanced smoothly. If the two meet in the next round, who knows what kind of drama will unfold? Hahaha, it's said that Hua Jingmeng and Qin Yu have quite a history!"
"Shangguan Haoqian, Ju Gongchen, and other prodigies are still alive; the subsequent battles will only become more brutal." In the viewing area of Lineage, the expressions of the members of each family were different.
The Chi Lineage camp erupted in jubilation, with many disciples beaming with joy. Chi Mulin's ability to survive the first round of battles had already fully demonstrated her talent.
At the Hua Lineage's residence, Hua Jingmeng stood silently, her gaze frequently drifting towards Qin Yu, the fighting spirit surging in her eyes growing stronger day by day.
In the Shangguan Lineage area, Shangguan Haoqian stood silently, his gaze fixed on Qin Yu in the direction of the battle platform. There was no rage in his heart, only a heavy sense of solemnity.
On the Ju Lineage's side, Ju Gongchen smiled faintly. "It seems the competition will become even more interesting from now on."
Nangong Xingyun slowly raised his hand, and a timer display appeared in the void. "All advanced cultivators, rest for half an incense stick's time. After the time limit, the second round of drawing lots will begin."
Boom! The enormous orb of light that had been used for the lottery reappeared in the sky. Ten streams of light, corresponding to the names of the ten advanceees, swirled around the orb.
The eyes of countless cultivators in the Myriad Worlds Graveyard converged on each other. Everyone understood that the first round was merely a warm-up; the real showdown between peerless geniuses would begin in the second round, which would be the most exciting moment.