As a flurry of blade light and sword shadows dissipated, the figures of the two appeared on the arena. Yun Yi was seen kneeling on one knee, looking somewhat disheveled.
On the other side, Linhai had directly passed out, making the outcome self-evident.
"Xiaohai!" Lin Dongtian's figure flashed down at lightning speed. Looking at the unconscious Linhai before him, Lin Dongtian's eyes blazed with fury. However, this was the arena tournament, and blades had no eyes, so there was nothing he could say. He could only have two Lin family disciples carry Linhai away to recuperate and rest.
"Hiss!"
"Linhai actually ended up heavily injured and unconscious! Yun Yi's swordsmanship just now was too terrifying; fighting an opponent at the same realm and knocking them out cold directly!"
"I announce Yun Yi is the winner!"
Yun Yi slowly stood up and walked toward the Yun family group. "Yier, how are you?"
"No problem, just excessive consumption," Yun Yi said, looking slightly fatigued.
"Recover as quickly as possible. The upcoming opponents will be even stronger," Su Qinghe said, looking at Yun Yi.
Yun Yi nodded without speaking.
"Next match, Liu Ruyan versus Xie Yanting."
A young girl dressed in purple slowly walked toward the arena. Her long hair reached her waist, fully displaying her slender figure—she was none other than Liu Ruyan from the Liu family.
Opposite her, Xie Yanting also walked to the center of the arena.
"Beauty Liu, my spear is already parched and restless," Xie Yanting said with a wicked smile.
"Is that so? Then big brother had better go easy on me. This little girl knows she is no match for big brother, so why don't we..." Liu Ruyan's eyes were like flowing silk, her breath as sweet as orchids.
On the arena, Xie Yanting froze for a moment, feeling as though he shouldn't attack the young girl before him at this moment, but should instead cradle her in the palms of his hands and cherish her dearly.
"Bang!" Never would anyone have expected that one second Liu Ruyan was acting all delicate and coy, and the very next second she would launch a ferocious attack! A knee strike directly sent Xie Yanting flying.
Liu Ruyan pressed forward, her body as nimble as a hare, and delivered a horizontal sweeping kick straight into Xie Yanting's chest.
"Ah! Ah! — Ah!"
Following closely, Liu Ruyan unleashed elbow strikes, straight punches, and palm slashes. Xie Yanting's attacks, which had yet to fully coalesce, were directly shattered by the storm-like onslaught.
"Mystic Jade Palm!" Liu Ruyan cried out tenderly, her palm print striking squarely in the middle of Xie Yanting's lower abdomen.
"Puff!" A mouthful of blood spewed forth, and Xie Yanting's aura withered entirely.
With this, the match came to an end.
At this moment, everyone around the spectator stands was completely dumbfounded.
Call this a duel between two people? It was more like beating up a punching bag!
No one had expected that the evenly matched, exciting showdown that should have taken place failed to materialize, replaced instead by such a dramatic scene.
"This match, Liu Ruyan wins!"
"Brother Su, this Liu Ruyan is way too fierce! She seized the initiative right from the start and beat Xie Yanting until he had no room to fight back at all," Yun Che exclaimed in admiration.
"Liu Ruyan's close-combat skills are terrifying, coupled with the fact that Xie Yanting let his guard down right at the beginning. Liu Ruyan seized this exact point and caught Xie Yanting completely off guard. Moreover, the landing points of her attacks hit Xie Yanting's vital acupoints all over his body. Once you get closed in on and fail to break away in a short time, you could say Xie Yanting didn't even get the chance to condense his martial techniques."
Su Qinghe saw it clearly, a trace of admiration flashing in his eyes.
Now that the tournament had progressed to this stage, well over half of it was practically over, and the matches to follow would be the absolute centerpiece of this grand event.
An hour later, the matches resumed.
Stepping up this time was Yun Yi from the Yun family, facing Zhou Wenjing from the City Lord's Mansion.
Everyone had gained a certain understanding of Yun Yi's performance in the previous match, whereas Zhou Wenjing's strength had not been fully unleashed because her cultivation was far superior to Yun Che's.
"Yun Yi of the Yun family, please," Yun Yi said calmly, standing with his sword in hand.
"Zhou Wenjing, please," the young girl said slowly.
A beam of sword light thrust forward directly; feeling Zhou Wenjing's strength, Yun Yi took the initiative to strike first.
Seeing Yun Yi's sword light, Zhou Wenjing likewise thrust out her sword. A duel between two swordsmen was often the most direct of confrontations.
"Zhou Wenjing is actually at the Early-Stage Third Layer of Life Palace Realm!"
This was the highest cultivation level to appear among the competitors so far; it seemed Yun Yi was in danger this match.
Sword shadows intertwined, spiritual energy collided, and wisps of sword light lingered endlessly. The two had already exchanged over a hundred moves in their duel.
"You are quite good," Zhou Wenjing said, scrutinizing the delicate yet cold-looking young man before her.
"Your swordsmanship is quite unique as well, but I will not lose!" Yun Yi's eyes were filled with confidence.
"Is that so? Take another sword from me!"
"Turbid Waters Overwhelming the Skies!"
What Zhou Wenjing practiced was the Biluo Sword Technique, and its first form was "Turbid Waters Overwhelming the Skies." Waves surged all around her, her sword as watery and endless as a torrential river.
"Heavenly Crystal Sword Jue — Sword Traveling Ten Thousand Miles!"
Seeing Zhou Wenjing's formidable sword momentum, Yun Yi directly employed the second form of the Heavenly Crystal Sword Jue, "Sword Traveling Ten Thousand Miles." A single sword strike seemed to come from ten thousand miles away, hacking down with such force that the wind and clouds changed color.
"Slash!"
Both retreated hundreds of steps simultaneously!
"Hiss!" What kind of swordsmanship was this, to actually be able to fight to a standstill with Zhou Wenjing across cultivation realms?
The Yun family was truly defying the heavens!
The crowd was struck with terror! Previously, Yun Yi's performance had already caused astonishment, but now he could actually battle Zhou Wenjing across realms. It seemed that even though Su Qinghe of the Yun family had fallen from grace, Yun Yi could not be overlooked either.
The Liu family, who had originally intended to distance themselves from the Yun family, felt even more wavering in their hearts at this moment.
"Your sword is very sharp, but if you want to defeat me, it is still not enough." Zhou Wenjing narrowed her eyes.
"There's no need to say such things anymore. Come again!"
As the words fell, Yun Yi channeled all his spiritual energy, making his Sword Qi even more intense.
"A Single Gleam of Cold Light Radiates Ten Thousand Zhangs."
Feeling the extraordinaneity of Yun Yi's sword strike, Zhou Wenjing hurriedly urged the Biluo Sword Technique forward.
"Blue Sky Sword Sea"
Once again, it was a brilliant clash of the Dao of the Sword.
As the sword descended, blood trickled from the corner of Zhou Wenjing's mouth, her whole body trembling. Her long sword dropped from her hand, and her body swayed precariously.
"I have lost."
Conversely, Yun Yi had only consumed a massive amount of energy, paying no mind whatsoever to the wounds slashed open on his body by Sword Qi.
"He won! Yun Yi won again! A true chosen child of the heavens!" Liu Dong could not help exclaiming.
Why wasn't such a talented prodigy in their Liu family?
Liu Ruyan's beautiful eyes looked toward Yun Yi, that delicate figure causing one to be delightfully intoxicated.
"Dammit! Little Sister!" Zhou Qing's figure instantly appeared by Zhou Wenjing's side. Looking at Zhou Wenjing's pale complexion and the sword wounds on her body, Zhou Qing was consumed by rage!
"Yun Yi! How dare you injure my little sister!"
Suddenly, waving his hand in fury, he lunged toward Yun Yi. The sonic boom in the air focused everyone's attention once again upon the young man in the center of the arena.
"What! Peak of the Third Layer of Life Palace Realm! Zhou Qing actually..."
"Qing'er, no!" Zhou Xing cried out in alarm.
"Yier, watch out!" Yun Tian and Yun Jinghong leaped down, attempting to rescue Yun Yi.
Only, a figure stepped out even faster than them. Su Qinghe let out a furious roar,
"Stop right there!"
In a flash, he reached the center of the arena, yet he was still a step too late.
Zhou Qing struck Yun Yi's chest with a punch, sending the latter flying backward. "Puff!" Spouting a mouthful of blood, Yun Yi—whose spiritual energy was already depleted—suffered this furious blow from Zhou Qing directly, causing his aura to wither instantly and leaving him on the brink of death.
At this moment, killing intent filled the entire arena around Yun Yi, and his face was chillingly cold.
Immediately following this, Zhou Xing, Yun Tian, and Yun Jinghong all landed upon the arena one after another.
Yun Jinghong and Su Qinghe supported Yun Yi up; plainly, Yun Yi was on the verge of perishing.
"Zhou Qing, are you courting death?" Yun Tian's heart burned with fierce anger. His Spirit Movement Realm aura surged straight toward Zhou Qing; at this moment, he no longer cared whether he would offend the City Lord's Mansion.
"Clan Head Yun, hold on!" Zhou Xing stepped forward, likewise releasing his Spirit Movement Realm aura to stand at a distance opposing Yun Tian.
The situation spun out of control in an instant, leaving everyone rooted to the spot in utter stupefaction.
"What is happening? Is this the Yun family going to go to war with the City Lord's Mansion?"
"Good heavens, how did it ever come to this!"
"All of you, stop right now!"