He was a tall male cultivator, carrying a long black saber on his back and wearing a suit of dark battle armor, giving off a highly oppressive aura.
The elder presiding as the referee confirmed that both were ready and immediately announced, “Let the match begin!”
As soon as the words left his mouth, the saber cultivator struck first.
He could not give Yan Yi any opportunity to widen the distance and leisurely use her talismans.
Stamping his foot heavily, the saber cultivator lunged forward like a black shadow. The long saber on his back unsheathed at the same time, carrying a fierce saber aura as it slashed straight toward Yan Yi.
Yan Yi's reaction was incredibly swift.
Several Grade Two offensive talismans instantly appeared in her hand, and she flung them forward together.
Bursts of fire and lightning exploded one after another, attempting to block his advance.
The defensive battle armor on the saber cultivator immediately lit up, forming a layer of dark spiritual light.
When the Grade Two talismans struck the armor, they failed to cause him any real damage.
He powered through the talismans' attacks and continued forward, rapidly closing the distance between them.
Yan Yi did not remain where she was.
Slapping a Wind-Walking Talisman onto herself, her movement speed surged. Coordinated with her movement technique, she retreated backward, widening the gap between them once more.
The two moved rapidly across the sparring platform, leaving only a blur of afterimages in their wake.
As Yan Yi moved, she continuously threw talismans backward, but ordinary Grade Two offensive talismans could not pierce her opponent's defensive armor at all.
Swapping the talismans in her hand, Yan Yi threw out three Grade Three Armor-Piercing Talismans simultaneously.
The talismans lit up in midair, turning into three sharp beams of golden light that struck the saber cultivator's breastplate in quick succession.
The dark spiritual light shuddered violently.
Several tiny cracks finally appeared on the once-sturdy defensive armor.
The saber cultivator's movements paused slightly.
Seizing the opportunity, Yan Yi quickly withdrew a Grade Four Shocking Thunder Talisman.
“Go!”
The talisman flew above the saber cultivator, and a thick bolt of lightning crashed down from midair.
Unable to dodge in time, the saber cultivator could only raise his long saber to block.
The lightning surged down the blade, spreading to his arm and chest.
Letting out a muffled groan, the saber cultivator stumbled back a few steps, a trace of blood seeping from the corner of his mouth.
His gaze instantly sharpened. He retrieved a pill from his storage bag and swallowed it.
As the pill entered his stomach, the spiritual energy within the saber cultivator began to surge rapidly.
At the same time, the spiritual energy flowing through his meridians accelerated, more than doubling his previous speed.
Sensing that something was wrong, Yan Yi immediately took out another Wind-Walking Talisman.
But this time, before she could widen the distance, the saber cultivator materialized right in front of her.
The long saber slashed down toward her face.
The defensive magic treasure on Yan Yi's body automatically lit up, forming a spiritual energy barrier that blocked the long saber.
He gave Yan Yi absolutely no room to breathe, his strikes growing faster and heavier with each blow.
A web of cracks rapidly spread across the spiritual energy barrier in front of Yan Yi.
Crack!
The saber aura pierced through the shattered barrier and sliced into Yan Yi's shoulder.
Her clothing ripped instantly, and blood gushed out.
Yan Yi's face paled slightly, but she dared not linger in place.
She immediately activated a Grade Four Void-Escape Talisman.
The talisman glowed, and Yan Yi's figure vanished from before her opponent in an instant. When she reappeared, she was already on the other side of the sparring platform.
Below the platform, Jiang Qian watched Yan Yi get injured, her face filled with worry.
“Her opponent's attacks are too powerful.”
“Senior Sister has no advantage in direct combat. Even with her talismans, it's difficult to stop him from closing in.”
Yun Heng watched the sparring platform, her brow also furrowing slightly.
If Yan Yi continued to be suppressed and battered like this, her defensive magic treasures and Void-Escape Talismans would eventually run out.
To win, she had to change her approach.
On the platform, Yan Yi quickly swallowed a healing pill.
She no longer rushed to engage the saber cultivator head-on, choosing instead to keep expanding the distance.
At the same time, several array talismans silently drifted onto different spots on the sparring platform.
Yan Yi was starting to set up a talisman array.
While using offensive talismans to hinder the saber cultivator's advance, she constantly shifted her position, concealing the array talismans within the fire and smoke generated by the explosions.
The saber cultivator quickly caught onto her intentions.
“Trying to set up an array?”
With a cold sneer, he slashed his long saber to the side.
A wave of saber aura flew out, slicing one of the array talismans that had not yet fully landed clean in half.
Yan Yi's expression remained unchanged as she immediately adjusted the placement of her array talismans.
Having seen through her plan, the saber cultivator naturally would not let her succeed so easily.
He pressed closer to Yan Yi, destroying any array talismans he came across with his saber.
Yan Yi shifted positions several times, yet she remained unable to connect all the array talismans into a cohesive formation.
Gritting her teeth, dozens of offensive talismans appeared in her hands simultaneously.
Blazing Fire Talismans, Shocking Thunder Talismans, and Explosion Talismans flew out in succession, sealing off a large area around the saber cultivator in one breath.
Violent explosions resounded across the sparring platform.
The saber cultivator had no choice but to halt his pursuit temporarily, swinging his saber to block the oncoming onslaught.
Taking advantage of this opening, the last few array talismans in Yan Yi's hand flew out rapidly, landing in pre-selected spots.
All the array talismans lit up at once.
The talisman runes interconnected, and a complete talisman array finally formed.
A vast, intricate pattern of runes instantly materialized beneath the saber cultivator's feet.
His expression changed, and he immediately tried to dash out of the array's range.
It was already too late.
His surroundings shifted rapidly, and Yan Yi's figure split into over a dozen illusions across the sparring platform.
Each illusion held a talisman, launching attacks from various directions.
Unable to distinguish Yan Yi's real body for the moment, the saber cultivator could only swing his saber repeatedly to defend himself.
Offensive talismans rained down from all directions.
Whenever he tried to lock onto one of the figures, it would instantly dissipate, and the next attack would come from a completely different angle.
Utilizing her illusions and talismans, Yan Yi steadily drained her opponent's spiritual energy.
If he remained trapped in the array, his spiritual energy would eventually be completely depleted by her.
A ruthless glint flashed in the saber cultivator's eyes.
Gripping his long saber with both hands, he poured the massive amount of remaining spiritual energy in his body into the blade.
The long saber let out a low hum.
An incredibly powerful saber intent erupted from his body.
As his first slash fell, the entire talisman array shook violently.
With his second slash, several array talismans cracked open simultaneously.
Suffering from the array's backlash, Yan Yi's face went completely pale, and a mouthful of blood welled up in her throat.
The third slash came crashing down once more.
Unable to withstand the force any longer, the talisman array shattered with a loud bang.
Yan Yi's dozen or so illusions vanished at the same time.
Her real body reappeared on the other side of the sparring platform, stumbling slightly as she nearly fell.
The saber cultivator was in no better shape.
Forcibly unleashing his strongest saber technique to break the array had consumed an immense amount of his spiritual energy, causing his aura to fluctuate unstably.
But he could not stop now; he gave Yan Yi no time to recover.
The moment the talisman array shattered, the saber cultivator pressed forward once more.
Having just suffered the array's backlash, Yan Yi's movements were visibly slower. She could only activate her life-saving magic treasure once again.
A white barrier of light instantly enveloped her in protection.
The saber cultivator slashed his weapon heavily against the barrier.
The magic treasure blocked the fatal blow for Yan Yi, but it shattered immediately afterward.
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