CH 97

Chapter 97 – Thunderflame Pagoda? Nevermind!

TL: Sponsored chapter (3/4). Last one for today, next sponsored chapter will come out with the regular chapter on Sunday. Enjoy! —Crescent

Every person who went up to the arena would select an opponent who was slightly higher than them in ranking.

The number of people slowly dwindled until there were only several people remaining who were still waiting by the arena for their matches. The disciple currently on stage already had no more options, and could only pick the disciples who were at the very top of the ranking.

Zhuang Haoxuan went up to the arena, turning around with a bitter smile. “Come on up then, Senior Martial Brother He. In this arena, there are only the two of us left.”

There were several thousands of spectating disciples surrounding the 5th arena. Standing off to one side of the arena, there was a handsome youth, which was none other than He Junyu.

“Place your bets, place your bets!”

“Hurry and place your bets, He Junyu is going to take on the 15th place Zhuang Haoxuan!”

There were several people calling out in lively tones for people to place their bets, but almost no one nearby was doing so. The surrounding disciples were all looking at the disciples who were hosting the betting tables with dissatisfied sneers on their faces.

One person jeered out loud, “You filthy bastard, placing a wager of 100 spirit stones on He Junyu will only win us 2 spirit stones? What the hell is up with these bettings odds?”

The disciples who were hosting the betting tables had already made loads and loads of profit. Meeting the cold stares of all the other disciples, their faces became somewhat stiff. But there wasn’t anything that could be done about these betting odds. He Junyu was the 5th place genius who was second only to those top 4 half-step Dao Foundation stage geniuses, so he simply couldn’t lose.

He Junyu went up to the stage and said with a smile, “We haven’t had a go in a long time, Junior Martial Brother Zhuang.”

The flames of Zhuang Haoxuan’s fighting spirit were fanned by this remark. He responded in a low voice, “Don’t hold back, Senior Martial Brother He. Let’s have a good fight.”

After looking outside the arena and seeing the Deacon nod his head, a 1-meter longsword appeared in Zhuang Haoxuan’s hand. The entire blade was a brilliant blood red and had a single crimson feather hanging from the pommel of the sword.

It was the top-grade Magic Treasure, Phoenix Plume!

He Junyu retracted his playful expression. He grabbed the void with his right hand and the Light Cloud Sword appeared in his palm with a burst of countless sky blue motes of light.

The two of them were both sword users. The fighting spirit in Zhuang Haoxuan’s eyes surged as he brandished his sword flashily. He flew forward with his sword and sent out a ray of brilliant crimson sword light while midair.

“Watch out, Senior Martial Brother He!” Several pretty female disciples below the arena squealed. They were screaming fanatically, and were clearly He Junyu’s admirers.

He Junyu’s vision was filled with crimson radiance, so he couldn’t tell where Zhuang Haoxuan was at all. HIs expression as unmoved as ever, the Light Cloud Sword danced lightly, leaving behind countless streaking phantom mirages. Within a short moment, an azure sword light fluttered out in front of him, separating the blood-colored light in two.

Clang!

Zhuang Haoxuan’s figure, holding the Phoenix Plume Sword, reappeared before his eyes. When He Junyu’s azure sword light clashed with the blood-colored sword light of the Phoenix Plume Sword, an ear-splitting metallic screech rang out.

Every swing of their swords was marked by the collision of huge, sweeping sword lights, causing ripples to appear on the barrier surrounding the arena.

As the blood red sword light and azure sword lights filled the entire arena, there would occasionally be sword lights several meters long flying wide and smashing into the barrier, making the disciples who were standing somewhat closer to the edge of the arena break out into cold sweat.

These were sword lights from top-grade Magic Treasures! If one of the sword lights accidentally flew towards one of the disciples, even a high-grade Spirit Tool wouldn’t be able to block it. They would only be able to take the slash and meet a gruesome death.

“Refreshing!” Zhuang Haoxuan exclaimed, quickly taking a step back. He took a Qi Boosting Pill, causing the blood red color of the Phoenix Plume Sword to turn even deeper. “Senior Martial Brother He, if you can block this one last sword attack of mine, I’ll admit defeat.”

He Junyu also casually tossed a Qi Boosting Pill into his mouth. After that series of over a dozen sword lights, his profound qi was a bit depleted, even if he was approaching the half-step Dao Foundation stage. “Fine,” he responded.

The Phoenix Plume Sword in Zhuang Haoxuan’s hand became even more dazzling as the phoenix feather tassel hanging from the pommel of the sword began to emit a faint glow.

“Phoenix Feather, Third Sword Form: Falling Feather.” The tip of Zhuang Haoxuan’s feet left the ground as he levitated slightly into the air and held the Phoenix Plume Sword up high above his head. Suddenly, the magnificence of the blood red light rose sharply!

“Hm? You managed to comprehend the third sword form?” He Junyu said, sounding somewhat surprised.

Every top-grade Magic Treasure was unique, and only almighty existences at the Primordial Spirit stage could refine them.

Not only were the Magic Treasures themselves unparalleled in might, but they also came with extremely powerful cultivation methods which could be used with the Magic Treasure. The Seven Phoenix Feather Sword Forms was the cultivation method that came with the Phoenix Plume Sword. The highest level that could be comprehended at the Sea of Qi stage was the Phoenix Feather Third Sword Form.

He Junyu’s expression became more serious. A small pagoda appeared above his head, clad in scarlet flame, from which the occasional rumbling of thunder could be heard.

“That’s the Psychic Magic Treasure, the Thunderflame Pagoda! Not only is it unmatched in defense, but its attack power is also unrivaled!” A nearby disciple exclaimed.

“He Junyu doesn’t even care about face anymore! Once he brings this out, who could even break its defenses aside from those several half-step Dao Foundation stage geniuses?!” Someone who was rooting for Zhuang Haoxuan cried out resentfully.

“Senior Martial Brother He really is a big shot!” There were even more disciples whose gazes were dyed green with envy. The Thunderflame Pagoda was capable of offense and defense and had the convenient ability to suppress and absorb. Those at the Sea of Qi stage couldn’t even display 10-20% of its full might.

Zhuang Haoxuan, who was still channeling power, happened to spot the Thunderflame Pagoda above He Junyu’s head. His complexion changed quickly as he said, “Senior Martial Brother He, this is going a bit too far with the bullying.”

Looking a bit awkward, He Junyu put the Thunderflame Pagoda away under the gazes of several thousand disciples and took out a silk cloth defensive-type common Magic Treasure. He smiled again and said, “Go ahead then.”

This Third Sword Form really did give him a bit of pressure, which was why he took out his strongest weapon, the Thunderflame Pagoda, before he even noticed it.

By this point, the entire arena was shrouded in blood red splendor. Above He Junyu’s head, there was a silk cloth Magic Treasure, spilling forth profound qi.

“Falling Feather, slaughter!” The crimson light that was filling the area condensed into a long, slender sword light that strongly resembled a feather.

Once the blood colored light finished taking shape, a sonic boom resounded out. The sword light instantly appeared above He Junyu’s head in the next moment, hacking down at his body!

Boom!

The silk cloth Magic Treasure’s profound qi barrier was split open, filling the surroundings with a bright radiance.

Residual waves of power continued to surge out from the impact, shaking the protective barrier surrounding the outside of the arena.

The long, slender blood red sword light had only lost about half of its power. The remaining strength of the sword light was stopped right before He Junyu’s body, unable to proceed any further.

The disciples below all wore expressions of shock, clearly astonished by the power of the Falling Feather technique. After cutting right through a defensive-type Magic Treasure’s barrier, it still had half of its power remaining!

“Look in front of Senior Martial Brother He’s body!” a sharp-eyed disciple called out. In front of He Junyu’s body, there were screens of water constantly taking shape in layers, emitting a pure water element aura.

“It’s the Amassing Water form of Azure Ocean! Look at how quickly he could deploy that technique! Senior Martial Brother He’s profound qi cultivation really is incredibly deep!” Another disciple said, noticing that He Junyu’s hand was continuously forming hand seals, practically leaving behind afterimages.

“Senior Martial Brother He! Let! Me! Have! Your! Babies!!” Several female disciples cried out amorously, seeing He Junyu’s calm and composed demeanor as he averted the crisis. They couldn’t help squealing out affectionately as a hot and heavy desire for him gushed forth inside of them.

The blood red sword light was blocked by the countless water screens. Each time it cut through a water screen, the power of the sword light would diminish by a bit.

As He Junyu continued to form hand seals, the layers of water screens in front of him continued to grow in number until the blood red sword light was completely exhausted. By that point, there were still over 10 water screens remaining.

“Impressive, Senior Martial Brother He! What a tremendous display of profound qi control and cultivation base. I will wholeheartedly accept my defeat,” Zhuang Haoxuan said, panting as he kneeled on the ground with the Phoenix Plume Sword supporting him.

Xu Disheng was also among those several thousand spectators watching the battle. He was extremely moved by the sight of He Junyu using only the Amassing Water form to resolve the Third Sword Form of Zhuang Haoxuan’s Phoenix Plume Sword.

How long hadn’t he used the Amassing Water form? It could actually be used in this manner? Even after cultivating the Azure Ocean for over 10 years, it suddenly felt as unfamiliar to him as it did when he had first entered the sect!

How could the renowned cultivation method of the Celestial Tide Spirit Master be simple?

In his own hands, the first form of the Azure Ocean, the Amassing Water form, seemed pathetically weak. After coming to Morning Dew Peak, he hardly used it. Even though he had been using the full might of the second form, the Summon Rain form, it could only be used to break open the barrier of a high-grade Spirit Tool.

In He Junyu’s hands, even the most fundamental form could be used to block the killing move of a top-grade Magic Treasure!

Although there was a disparity between the two in profound qi cultivation, the difficulty of this feat couldn’t be denied!

Experience with the cultivation method! Control over casting technique! And the comprehension of the form!

Xu Disheng wordlessly retreated into the crowd, walking below the massive arch to the edge of Lotus Lake. He flew off on his black Spirit Cloud and left the Green Lotus Domain.

There were now only 2,500 people left in the Sea of Qi division of the tournament. A little over ten days remained until the next round of the tournament, and it was about time he upgraded himself a little bit.