When Yun Zi'an and Song Lian arrived at the Martial Arts Arena together, they found the surrounding area already bustling with a dense crowd.
Kou Xingwei, Gu Lingbo, and Zhang Jingyun had all arrived. Since Zhang Jingyun was not a sword cultivator, today's sparring matches had nothing to do with him, so he stood back near the rear.
"Senior Sister Gu," Yun Zi'an greeted Gu Lingbo, then stood gracefully beside her.
Zhuo Zhenru was dressed in a long dress as white as snow, her garments fluttering as if she were an immortal descending to the mortal realm.
Clutching tightly in her right hand a super-long sword measuring about one meter and four centimeters—the Mingxia—she stood proudly upon the arena stage. With a clear and ringing voice, she addressed the Tandao Sect cultivators below: "Senior brothers, I am Zhuo Zhenru, the successor of the Zhuo Family of this generation."
"Today, I have come to the Tandao Sect in the hope of finding a strong opponent to test my swordsmanship. I wonder which senior brother is willing to step onto the stage for a bout?"
Because Zhuo Zhenru's reputation was so formidable, the Tandao Sect cultivators all wore troubled expressions upon hearing her challenge.
They looked at each other, not only daring not to step forward first to accept the challenge, but even quietly retreating as if dodging some terrifying entity.
Seeing his junior brothers behaving so wretchedly, Song Lian let out a contemptuous snort, then leaped gracefully onto the stage.
Standing before Zhuo Zhenru with his chest puffed out and high spirits, he said spiritedly, "I am Song Lian, the second disciple of Tandao Sect Sect Master Lu Zhengyi. I have long heard of Miss Zhuo's great name, and today I finally have the opportunity to meet you."
Hearing Song Lian's name, a flash of surprise crossed Zhuo Zhenru's eyes. She carefully sized up the Song Lian before her and asked curiously, "You are the Song Lian who single-handedly wiped out nearly a hundred cultivators of the Shijue Sect in a single night, known as the Sword of Demon Slaying?"
"That's right! It is indeed I!" Seeing that Zhuo Zhenru knew his moniker, Song Lian couldn't help curving the corners of his mouth. "The Shijue Sect forcibly seized commoner women to use as cauldrons, and I happened to run into it that day."
"A wave of irrepressible fury instantly surged within my heart; the sword in my hand would not allow me to stand by and do nothing, so without thinking too much, I went up to the Shijue Sect alone with my sword and slaughtered them."
"Looking back now, I was indeed somewhat reckless at the time. But I do not regret it. Fortunately, I finally managed a hard-fought victory in the end."
A hint of respect added itself to Zhuo Zhenru's gaze as she looked at Song Lian. "We sword cultivators should indeed be like this. Senior Brother Song, your courage and sense of justice are admirable. Please make your move and let me witness your true strength."
Song Lian cupped his fists toward Zhuo Zhenru, and his gaze instantly turned sharp.
With a flash of his figure, he rushed toward Zhuo Zhenru like an arrow released from a bowstring. The sword in his hand spun out a fierce cluster of sword flowers, pressing straight toward Zhuo Zhenru.
The sword momentum was like a violent storm—swift and precise. Although Zhuo Zhenru raised the Mingxia Sword in her hand to neutralize the attacks one by one, Song Lian's onslaught was endless and continuous, each move faster than the last, forcing Zhuo Zhenru into a disadvantageous position not long after the battle began.
Gu Lingbo, down below the stage, cheered happily: "Senior Brother Song truly practices the sword of killing—fierce and domineering, even the renowned Zhuo Zhenru has to avoid his sharp edge."
"Third Senior Brother!" Gu Lingbo was not a sword cultivator, so she turned her head to ask Kou Xingwei, "Is our Second Senior Brother going to win?"
Kou Xingwei pondered for a moment and replied in a relaxed tone: "Second Senior Brother's swordsmanship follows the path of fast attacks and ultimate suppression. Now that Zhuo Zhenru has entered Senior Brother's rhythm, I'm afraid she will be defeated in less than thirty moves."
Hearing Kou Xingwei's analysis, the smile on Gu Lingbo's face grew even broader. She turned her head again to look at Yun Zi'an. "Junior Sister Yun, you are also a sword cultivator, what do you think?"
"Me?" Yun Zi'an was momentarily stunned, then said shyly, "Zhuo Zhenru uses a rare long sword, which has a long attack range, but lacks flexibility."
"Second Senior Brother saw through this and rushed in close to Zhuo Zhenru right from the start. Now that Zhuo Zhenru is suppressed and unable to mount an offense, I really cannot imagine how she can win."
"Professional!" Gu Lingbo gave Yun Zi'an a thumbs-up. Catching sight of Zhang Jingyun standing in the back, she grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him over, asking, "Junior Brother Zhang, what do your eyes tell you?"
Zhang Jingyun intensely disliked Gu Lingbo grabbing his shoulder. After shoving her arm away, he spat out a brief sentence: "Senior Brother Song is going to lose."
Zhang Jingyun did not state his reasons, but his tone was exceptionally firm.
"What?" Gu Lingbo twitched the corners of her mouth and said stiffly, "Junior Brother Zhang, you must be joking with me, right?"
"I've discovered I know nothing about swordsmanship at all—you're even worse off than I am."
"Didn't you see Senior Brother Song holding the absolute advantage?"
Zhang Jingyun replied, "I saw it!"
"Then how can you say Senior Brother Song is going to lose?"
Zhang Jingyun did not bother explaining to Gu Lingbo; it was impossible to make such a novice in swordsmanship understand.
Kou Xingwei glanced sideways at Zhang Jingyun and couldn't help letting out a disdainful sneer. "Seeking attention through sheer pretense."
Among the three, only Yun Zi'an took Zhang Jingyun's words to heart. She stared fixedly at Song Lian, wanting to figure out where she had gone wrong; she had already taken Zhang Jingyun's judgment as the predetermined outcome.
On the arena stage, Song Lian's attacks grew fiercer and fiercer, his sword seeming to possess a life of its own, nimble yet full of lethality. Zhuo Zhenru retreated continuously, yet her footsteps remained entirely unruffled.
The moment Zhuo Zhenru saw the weapon Song Lian was wielding, she knew she couldn't outpace him in a fast-paced assault, and her footwork probably wouldn't win the day for her either.
Thus, she simply yielded the optimal distance to Song Lian. She was gambling—gambling that she could endure Song Lian's storm-like onslaught.
Now it turned out she had won the bet; Song Lian hadn't even brought her any overwhelming pressure.
Feeling that Song Lian's offensive momentum was no longer growing stronger, but instead slowly waning, Zhuo Zhenru immediately shifted from defense to offense. With a loud shout, the Mingxia Sword in her hand burst into dazzling brilliance, and then she lashed out with a strike of unimaginable speed.
Song Lian's expression shifted drastically, and he hurriedly moved to dodge. However, the attack range of Zhuo Zhenru's Mingxia Sword was simply too wide; he failed to clear it in time. Forced to raise his sword in a block, his strength proved inferior to Zhuo Zhenru's, and his sword was instantly knocked flying while his body was sent staggering backward by the formidable sword qi.
Song Lian had maintained the suppression for the entire match, only to be defeated by a single move from Zhuo Zhenru in the end. A dead silence fell over the Martial Arts Arena.
"What just happened?"
"Senior Brother Song actually lost?"
"So that's how it was. Zhuo Zhenru kept wearing down Senior Brother's momentum. Though she looked to be at a disadvantage, the one whose defense couldn't break through was actually the one in the weaker position." Yun Zi'an came to her senses and couldn't resist casting a glance at Zhang Jingyun.
She had to admit that Zhang Jingyun's attainment in swordsmanship was the highest among anyone she knew.
A hundred moves had passed from the moment he declared Song Lian would lose until Zhuo Zhenru completed her counter-kill, meaning he had foreseen who would win right from the middle of the match.
Zhuo Zhenru's strategy had probably been seen through by Zhang Jingyun from the very beginning. If Zhang Jingyun had been the one to fight, who would have won?
Gu Lingbo's eyes were practically popping out of her head in disbelief as she stammered, "How could this be? Senior Brother Song, upon whom I placed such high hopes, has just fallen like this?"
"Wait..." Remembering something suddenly, Gu Lingbo grabbed Zhang Jingyun back over in the exact manner he detested most. "Junior Brother Zhang, how on earth did you see that Senior Brother Song was going to lose?"
"Are you a sword cultivator too?"
"Guessed it!" Zhang Jingyun replied perfunctorily.
On the stage, the victorious Zhuo Zhenru was breathing lightly. She looked toward Song Lian and smiled, "Senior Brother Song, thank you for letting me win."
Song Lian revealed a bitter smile. Though deeply unwilling, he still cupped his fists. "Miss Zhuo possesses extraordinary strength, and this humble individual is thoroughly impressed."