“Danxia’s Cao Xingzhi, from Eighth Rank. Practicing Bloodfiend Art, please instruct.”
“Qingyun’s Shen Qingmei, Ninth Rank. Practicing Long Breath Song, please instruct.”
The two across had already announced their names.
Shen Qingmei knew this was a duel under the watchful eyes of all the elders and didn’t dare to play tricks by using the name Shen Yuer.
“Qingyun’s Shen Yuer, Ninth Rank. Practicing Water Scripture Supplement… wait, no?”
The young girl cupped her fists, having just finished her salute, suddenly sensing something was off. She turned to Lin Nan, “Xiao Lin, what does ‘from Eighth Rank’ mean?”
“Idiot, ‘from Eighth Rank’ means halfway to Eighth Rank.”
“Oh… isn’t that still Ninth Rank? Why call it from Eighth Rank? We Qingyun Sect don’t have that saying.”
The white-haired girl pondered seriously before answering, “We definitely don’t have it, but maybe Danxia Sect does? Their customs must be different. Here, nine means nine, eight means eight. No need for these fancy titles.”
The girl nodded, just as she cupped her fists to introduce herself, she glanced up and saw Cao Xingzhi’s face flush red—whether from shyness or anger, it was unclear.
Probably… the latter, since his gaze was venomous.
Lin Nan rubbed her temple somewhat embarrassed, speaking sincerely, “My deepest apologies. Perhaps saying it that way hurt your pride. It’s my fault—I’m not good at lying.”
Damn, that hurt even more.
Cao Xingzhi took a deep breath, drew a silver-white dagger from his lower back, his expression cold, “Hmph, all talk. Let’s see whose skill speaks with the blade.”
He didn’t even wait for Lin Nan to introduce herself and slammed a palm over the dagger’s blade, slashing fiercely downwards.
Ssshhh—
Blood splattered on the ground.
The blood instantly turned black upon hitting the floor. Cao Xingzhi showed no sign of pain, staring fixedly at Lin Nan.
The blood-red Qi spread along his palm, clinging to the dagger’s blade, forcibly stretching it into a blade as long as a longsword.
“I heard this fellow here also cultivates water arts?” Cao Xingzhi suddenly stepped forward, his feet wrapped in a faint red light.
“Coincidentally, I also practice water arts.”
Upon hearing this, he forcefully stomped his right foot. Bang! The man shot forward like a blood-colored blade, the elongated dagger thrusting straight toward Lin Nan’s heart.
“Xiao Lin, watch out!”
Shen Yuer’s face was full of anxiety as she quickly formed a hand seal, about to cast a water shield for Lin Nan, when suddenly a blood-eyed Spirit Wolf darted out from nowhere.
Its gaze flickered with a blue Qi tail, saliva dripping from its maw, eyes fierce and vicious.
“Don’t get distracted, little sister! I’m still waiting to spar with you!”
Shen Qingmei stood still, extending both hands. Her index fingertips radiated the same blue light as the wolf’s eyes, manipulating the exotic beasts with Long Breath Song.
The blood-eyed Spirit Wolf pressed the attack head-on, while Shen Qingmei strained her nearly exploding mind to also control a gray Spirit Mouse.
The Spirit Mouse had been hiding in the shadows, waiting for the perfect moment to bite Shen Yuer.
“Yuer, be careful yourself.”
The white-haired girl steadied her hairpin and formed a hand seal. A stream of azure Qi surged along her arm onto the Iron Sword.
She didn’t advance but took a step back. No matter what, she had to deflect Cao Xingzhi’s strike first.
According to Senior Sister Qiao, the Bloodfiend Art from Danxia Sect was a highly explosive cultivation method. The lower the cultivator’s strength, the shorter the duration of the explosive burst.
Moreover, the fatigue period after the burst would be longer.
Coincidentally, the Qingyun Heart Sutra was famous for its enduring Qi.
Its drawback, however, was a long activation time and fatigue before it truly took effect.
At this moment, the battle strategy between the two was obvious. Cao Xingzhi needed a swift victory, while Lin Nan’s task was to evade and fully activate the Qingyun Heart Sutra, then counterattack when Cao Xingzhi grew weak.
The Senior Brother stood outside the traditional martial arena, nodding slightly at Lin Nan’s choice.
“Senior Sister Lin is quite good; her grasp of the Qingyun Heart Sutra is correct, but…”
Senior Sister Qiao added at the perfect moment, “But it’s not enough. Although Cao Xingzhi’s claim of being ‘from Eighth Rank’ may be self-aggrandizing, setting aside his arrogance, his strength truly surpasses Senior Sister Lin’s.”
“By Cao Xingzhi’s own logic, Senior Sister Lin might even be considered ‘from Ninth Rank’.”
Senior Brother nodded, “If relying solely on the Qingyun Heart Sutra, she probably can’t avoid it; at least, she’ll take one cut.”
The girl frowned.
In the flash of movement, Cao Xingzhi’s blood-red dagger grew ever closer.
Perhaps Bloodfiend Art truly shared affinity with water magic, Lin Nan could clearly feel that if she got too close to Cao Xingzhi’s dagger, her blood would begin to boil.
As if the next second, her blood would uncontrollably burst out of her veins, stabbing the dagger itself.
It was as if the dagger wasn’t a weapon but a blood-sucking vessel.
“Is all you can do just dodge? Aren’t you so sharp-tongued?”
Cao Xingzhi laughed sharply, no longer satisfied with playing cat and mouse. He suddenly stopped and decisively switched the dagger to his left hand, immediately slashing his right palm again.
Blood spilled, thick black smoke rising.
His Qi surged violently. The originally Ninth Rank aura erupted with the momentum of a true Eighth Rank.
“Blood-Nourishing Blade,” Lin Nan murmured, gradually realizing what Cao Xingzhi’s ‘from Eighth Rank’ really meant.
His identity in the dynasty must have been an Assassin. In this profession, the Blood-Nourishing Blade technique was used.
The more blood the dagger drank, the longer the red blade it formed.
At the same time, Cao Xingzhi used his own blood as a contract; allowing the dagger to consume his blood rapidly increased his strength.
What a bizarre technique…
Lin Nan’s expression twisted slightly, “How is this not human, more like a demonic art…”
In the blink of an eye, Cao Xingzhi rushed in, hands raised, elbows pushing back to gather strength, ready to unleash his full body power.
Hoo—
It was like colliding head-on with a gale.
The girl’s eyes blurred, white hair whipped up by the wind, the loosely tied hair at the nape barely held by the silver hairpin.
“Lin Nan, what will you use to block me?!”
“Dodge! You think you can dodge this?!”
Cao Xingzhi’s arrogant laughter rang out. He bit his tongue and spat blood, causing the dagger to flare with crimson light.
The blade’s edge shifted from bright red to scarlet. Even before the slash landed, Lin Nan could smell the iron scent of blood.
The girl’s emerald eyes were calm like a still pond. Her feet firmly planted, she answered softly, “Who said I’m dodging.”
Suddenly, those gentle green eyes narrowed, transforming into vertical pupils.
A continuous flow of demonic Qi rapidly converted into true Qi under the operation of this demonic art.
Lin Nan gripped her sword hilt tightly, using her waist and hips to swing it diagonally upward with force.
Ding—
The blades clashed with a piercing shriek.
At the point of impact, a sudden gust of air exploded out. The silver hairpin finally gave way, flying off.
Her white jade-like hair cascaded freely, billowing high.
“If you block this sword, you lose,” Lin Nan’s voice was soft and gentle, as if speaking about something trivial.
The madness in Cao Xingzhi’s eyes faded, clarity returning. He gritted his teeth as blood trickled down his lips.
Still, he could feel the strength in his dagger fading. No matter how much blood he offered, the Bloodfiend Art could not enhance his dagger any further.
This was the limitation of realm.
Lin Nan was right; ‘from Eighth Rank’ was not truly Eighth Rank, just a Ninth Rank. Even if Cao Xingzhi shattered his own heart for the dagger, it wouldn’t grant more power.
But Lin Nan’s Qingyun Heart Sutra was clearly not yet fully activated—how could she block his strike?
Crack.
The iron sword and dagger strained against each other, and a sudden crack resounded sharply in everyone’s hearts.
Cao Xingzhi’s eyes brightened with joy as he laughed, “I can’t cut you, but this broken iron sword seems unable to endure!”
Almost instantly, the iron sword shattered explosively before Cao Xingzhi’s gleeful gaze, breaking into fragments wrapped in blood-red Qi that burst forth like a crimson rose blooming here.
“You lost,”
Cao Xingzhi panted heavily, his true Qi completely exhausted. But Lin Nan’s sword was broken, and the backlash she suffered would be even worse.
She was now like fish on a chopping block.
Cao Xingzhi raised his dagger high, reversed grip, and ruthlessly thrust it toward Lin Nan’s neck.