As match after match concluded, the names on the light screen above the main platform continuously shifted.
The sky had gradually darkened, and the illumination arrays around the Five Domains Platform lit up one after another, bathing the fourteen sparring platforms in light as bright as day.
The spectator stands remained packed with people.
Everyone knew that the three most anticipated contestants had yet to take the stage.
Before long, the matches for groups forty-three through fifty-six also came to an end.
Now, of the fifty-nine groups in the first round, only the final three remained.
In the waiting area, Yun Heng slowly stood up.
Almost at the same time, Ye Zezhi and Bai Chu'an, who were sitting on the other side, stood up as well.
The three of them, along with their respective opponents, walked toward the sparring platforms together.
The spectators, who had been watching matches all day, instantly grew energized once more.
The chatter in the spectator stands suddenly grew much louder.
“It's finally Yun Heng's turn!”
“I've been waiting all day just to watch this match.”
“This is my first time seeing Yun Heng fight. I wonder what her style is like.”
“Five years ago at the Martial Inquiry Arena in Tianque City, she won several matches in a row. I heard she's a sword cultivator.”
“It's a pity I wasn't in Tianque City at the time to see it with my own eyes.”
Watching Yun Heng walk toward the sparring platform, one cultivator remarked with absolute certainty, “I think Young Lord Yun is the type who strikes decisively and cleanly.”
The person next to him immediately countered.
“No, no, no. I think Young Lord Yun might conserve her strength at first, observing her opponent's moves before unleashing a massive strike later on.”
“After all, this is only the first round. If she reveals too many trump cards right away, it will work against her in the upcoming matches.”
Hearing this, the people around them began to speculate as well.
The three of them ascended their respective sparring platforms.
Under the expectant gaze of the crowd, the final three matches of the first round officially began.
The spectator stands gradually fell quiet as everyone waited for them to make their moves.
Standing opposite Yun Heng, Jin Yushan took a deep breath and gripped his longsword tightly.
He knew he couldn't win.
But since he was already standing here, he had no intention of surrendering outright.
Even if he lost, he would do so with dignity!
At the very least, he would show everyone that he, Jin Yushan, did not lack the courage to draw his sword.
With this thought, Jin Yushan's gaze grew resolute. The spiritual energy within his body circulated rapidly, and a layer of sharp sword qi condensed around his longsword.
At the center of the sparring platform, the officiating elder glanced at the two of them.
“Begin!”
The moment the words fell, Jin Yushan lunged forward without the slightest hesitation, charging across the platform.
Sword cultivators excelled most at frontal assaults.
Right from the start, Jin Yushan unleashed his strongest strike.
Pouring all his spiritual energy into the weapon, the blade erupted with a blinding light.
He was incredibly fast, arriving in front of Yun Heng in the blink of an eye.
Yet, Yun Heng remained standing exactly where she was.
Her expression was calm, her hands resting naturally at her sides. Not only did she make no move to draw the Tianheng Sword, but she didn't even show any intention of dodging.
Watching this, the expressions of the crowd in the spectator stands turned peculiar.
“What is Young Lord Yun doing?”
“The attack is right in front of her. Why isn't she dodging?”
Someone stood up from their seat in sheer suspense.
“If she doesn't strike now, it'll be too late!”
The person beside him grabbed his arm.
“Don't panic! Look!”
By then, Jin Yushan's sword was already right before Yun Heng's face.
Seeing his blade about to strike, a trace of doubt flashed in Jin Yushan's eyes.
“Why hasn't Yun Heng made a move? Could she really not have reacted in time?”
The moment this thought arose, an uncontrollable surge of excitement welled up in his heart.
“Do I actually have a chance to wound Yun Heng?”
Yet, when the tip of the blade was less than an inch away from her, Jin Yushan's longsword ground to a halt without warning.
Jin Yushan's face fell instantly.
It felt as if his longsword had struck an incredibly hard object. No matter how much spiritual energy he channeled, he could not advance even a fraction of an inch.
“What is going on?”
In the next instant, a powerful force recoiled from the tip of the blade.
The webbing of Jin Yushan's thumb and index finger tore open instantly. His longsword vibrated violently, nearly slipping from his grasp.
The sheer force of the impact sent him flying backward.
“Boom!”
Jin Yushan crashed heavily onto the sparring platform.
He felt as if his ribs had shattered, and a sharp pain flared in his chest. He opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of blood.
Agonizing pain racked his entire body, making it difficult to even wiggle a finger. He lay collapsed on the ground, his face contorted in agony.
A sudden commotion erupted in the spectator stands.
“What happened?”
“Yun Heng clearly didn't even move. How did Jin Yushan get thrown back?”
“Could it be a protective magic treasure?”
“No, wait! Look in front of Yun Heng!”
Everyone's gaze shifted back to the sparring platform.
In the air before Yun Heng, a massive shadow was gradually taking shape.
First came the thick limbs, followed by a massive torso and a proudly raised head.
Moments later, an enormous spirit tiger fully manifested.
It stood over two people tall, boasting a robust body and powerful limbs. Heavy rock armor covered its back, shoulders, and neck.
The markings on its forehead extended to both sides of its head, and its golden-brown eyes locked onto the collapsed Jin Yushan. Sharp fangs peeked through its lips.
Just by standing there, Canglan exuded an unshakeable, mountain-like pressure.
What shocked everyone even more was the aura radiating from its body.
The mid stage of the Soul Transformation Realm!
“It's a Rock-Armored Spirit Tiger!”
Someone in the spectator stands recognized Canglan's species and couldn't help but cry out.
“That's actually a Rock-Armored Spirit Tiger in the mid stage of the Soul Transformation Realm!”
The entire spectator stands erupted into a frenzy.
Rock-Armored Spirit Tigers were considered highly rare even among the spirit tiger species, born with exceptionally powerful physical bodies and a particular mastery over defense.
Once fully grown, their hide and flesh became as hard as rock, rendering ordinary attacks from opponents of the same level completely useless.
Jin Yushan's strike just now had been stopped dead in its tracks by Canglan.
One spectator's face was filled with utter disbelief.
“Is this Yun Heng's contracted spirit beast?”
“How on earth did she contract a spirit beast in the mid stage of the Soul Transformation Realm?”
The strength of spirit beasts was typically greater than that of human cultivators of the same realm.
In actual combat, a spirit beast in the mid stage of the Soul Transformation Realm was fully capable of contending with a human cultivator at the peak of the Soul Transformation Realm.
If a cultivator wished to contract a spirit beast, they either had to surpass it in strength and beat it into submission first,
or offer enticing enough benefits to make the spirit beast willingly enter into a contract.
But whichever the case, it was enough to leave everyone astounded.
Someone couldn't help but say, “Yun Heng herself is already in the late stage of the Soul Transformation Realm, and now she has a Rock-Armored Spirit Tiger in the mid stage of the Soul Transformation Realm. Doesn't this mean she'll sweep the entire Prodigy Gathering without any rivals?”
“It certainly seems that way.”
“Under normal circumstances, the spirit beasts contracted by cultivators are at least one major realm lower than their own cultivation. This is the first time I've ever seen someone like Yun Heng.”
Rate on N.U.
