17. A Glimpse of Brilliance
The preliminary rounds of the competition spanned two to three days.
Since Yin Qiushui and Lu Xinyao registered in Yanlie City, they had to win at least three out of five matches in the city’s arena to qualify.
However, this wasn’t a challenge for them.
Qiu Shui, already a Return to Origin cultivator, was among the strongest in the preliminaries.
She only fought three matches, each time conjuring a field of plants and using them to toss her opponents out of the ring.
Simple, painless, and efficient.
Those with a fear of heights might have fainted midway, though.
Lu Xinyao’s approach was more… forceful.
Although she appeared timid on stage, taking small, hesitant steps, as if she might hide at any moment…
Looking like a complete novice…
—She was actually suppressing her Little Heehee persona.
Little Heehee was different from her. She disliked demonic arts, while Little Heehee wasn’t proficient in fire-type techniques.
So, this seemingly shy and timid girl, with a perceived combat power of 5, shocked everyone when she unleashed her fire-type spiritual arts.
In the first match, her opponent was a large, muscular man.
Without exchanging many words, the muscular man almost became a roasted man.
Lu Xinyao nearly cooked him alive.
In the second match, against an “old acquaintance” of the First Prince, Lu Xinyao almost burned the entire arena to ashes.
After being thoroughly lectured by Gong Yiling, Lu Xinyao decided to tone it down in the third match, pretending to be exhausted from her previous displays of power.
However, her earlier performance was too impressive. Her third opponent immediately surrendered before the match even began.
Then, he vanished at the speed of light, not even waiting for Lu Xinyao to speak.
Three consecutive victories, almost as fast as Qiu Shui.
The two quickly became rising stars in the Yanlie City division, their impressive performance the talk of the town.
They even gained nicknames:
Phoenix Flame and Hundred Herbs.
Not bad, quite fitting.
Of course…
These were just the preliminaries, not even the first round.
Many were hiding their true strength, not revealing too much too early.
So, their current fame was temporary. Many were already analyzing their potential opponents in the later rounds.
Among the matches, a few were particularly strange.
Especially this one.
One contestant was petite, with her hair tied in a ponytail, her appearance ordinary and unremarkable.
Her opponent was a muscular man with white bandages wrapped around his hands and a red cloth covering his eyes.
His exposed skin indicated he was a body cultivator specializing in physical combat.
“Fists and feet have no eyes.”
The bald, blind man stood with his hands behind his back, his voice calm. “Young lady, surrender now and avoid unnecessary suffering.”
The girl looked at him, her lips twitching.
—*Dude, can you even do a spinning heel kick?*
But she didn’t retreat, replying calmly, “I will use both hands to fulfill your dream.”
Yes, quoting the opponent’s lines, leaving them speechless.
This actually stunned the man.
Not because she quoted him, but because…
What did she mean?
Fulfill whose dream?
“Since you insist on suffering, then I shall… oblige!”
The battle began. The bald man lowered his stance, a powerful aura erupting from him, cracking the arena floor.
“Boom!”
His fist shot out, displaying his Core Transformation physical cultivation.
His opponent, however, only seemed to be at… Core Formation.
Honestly, his Core Transformation strength wasn’t impressive here. A Core Formation cultivator participating in this competition…
Was just asking to be a punching bag.
However, the girl simply exhaled softly and threw a punch.
In this seemingly one-sided clash, the girl’s punch actually repelled his attack.
And not just that, with this single, simple punch, the body cultivator was sent flying before he could react.
He landed outside the arena, stunned.
The unremarkable girl…
Won!
“You…!?” The man didn’t even understand what happened.
She clearly displayed Core Formation cultivation, and her punch was clearly a Core Formation punch.
Why… why did he lose?
“I’ll accept your concession.”
The outcome wasn’t surprising to the girl. She bowed to her opponent and left the arena, disappearing into the crowd.
In her next two matches, she similarly displayed Core Formation cultivation, ending them with swift punches.
Her efficiency didn’t attract much attention.
After all, many hid their true strength, pretending to be weak. Her approach was even considered clumsy among those who played the “hidden boss” trope.
—If you wanted to act like a newbie, you should at least appear weaker, struggling before winning, to deceive those arrogant disciples from prominent sects and families.
Away from the crowd…
The girl removed the high-quality disguise Yan Chuyue had lent her, put on her veil, and turned to her, smiling. “Thanks.”
“No need for thanks,” Yan Chuyue said, applying her own disguise. “There are many other ways to participate anonymously.”
“But…” After putting on her mask, Yan Chuyue looked up and asked, “Why did you suddenly decide to participate?”
Yes, the person who had just dominated the arena was Gong Yiling.
As for when she signed up—the next morning.
Partly because it allowed her to test her unique power and the true potential of her unusually wide meridians.
And…
The results showed she was invincible at the same cultivation level. However, cultivating the Heavenly Saint Technique was incredibly slow, not even comparable to Qiu Shui’s speed.
To improve quickly, besides proper training, she needed… a so-called secret realm of a powerful being.
Leave a Reply