Subsequently, she raised her right hand and slowly gripped the hilt at her waist.
“Clang—”
The sword left its sheath, and the murmurs in the viewing area instantly ceased.
“Yun Heng has finally drawn her sword!”
“Today, we finally get to see Young Lord Yun's swordplay!”
“Look at the sword in her hand!”
Everyone craned their necks, their eyes entirely fixed on the Tianheng Sword in Yun Heng's hand.
The blade was silver-blue, translucent and sharp.
Fine, dark star patterns were scattered across the blade. As her spiritual energy flowed, faint points of silver light lit up deep within the sword, looking like scattered stars.
The entire sword did not seem to have overly complex decorations, yet it carried a sharp edge that could not be ignored.
Yun Heng gripped the Tianheng Sword.
The silver-blue blade let out a soft hum.
The dark star patterns on the blade lit up one by one, and the surrounding temperature rapidly plummeted.
A thin layer of white frost spread outward from beneath Yun Heng's feet.
In just a few breaths, the frost covered more than half of the sparring platform.
Tiny ice crystals materialized in the air.
The ice crystals reflected countless fragmented glimmers under the light of the lamps and the arrays, as if the entire space had been frozen in time.
Xie Wujiu gripped his long sword tightly.
A strong sense of crisis welled up from the depths of his heart.
He wanted to channel his sword intent once more, but the toxins in his body had already begun to take effect, making his spiritual energy flow far less smoothly than before.
Yun Heng did not give him any more time to prepare.
The first style of the Tianheng Sword Art.
A Line of Frost.
Yun Heng raised her sword and slashed forward.
The edge of the sword cut through the air, leaving behind a thin, silver-white line of sword qi.
The line of sword qi was initially paper-thin, but it rapidly extended forward after leaving the blade.
Wherever it passed, the air instantly froze.
In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a frosty sword light that spanned the entire sparring platform.
Xie Wujiu's pupils shrank abruptly.
He immediately poured all of his remaining spiritual energy into his long sword, attempting to activate the sword intent he had obtained from the sword casket once more.
Several silver-white strands of sword qi had barely condensed in front of him when the frosty sword light arrived.
The two sword intents collided head-on.
The sword qi Xie Wujiu had condensed only held out for a brief moment before being completely crushed by A Line of Frost.
The frosty sword light continued onward.
The defensive talismans on Xie Wujiu's body automatically lit up.
The first spiritual energy barrier had barely appeared when it was instantly covered in frost.
“Crack!”
The barrier shattered.
The second protective talisman lit up immediately after, but it was still unable to block this strike.
The silver-white sword light struck Xie Wujiu head-on.
“Boom—”
A massive explosion resounded across the Five Domains Platform.
The sparring platform's protective array shook violently, and almost the entire surface was completely blanketed in ice and frost.
Xie Wujiu's body was sent flying directly by the sword light.
He soared over the edge of the sparring platform and crashed heavily onto the ground below.
The ground cracked under the impact.
Xie Wujiu lay on the shattered stone surface, completely unconscious.
The entire Five Domains Platform fell into a dead silence.
Everyone was struck speechless by that single strike just now.
“What kind of sword move was that?”
“That was way too strong!”
“The sword in Yun Heng's hand is definitely no ordinary weapon.”
“A single strike had such power... Just how much of her strength has Yun Heng not shown yet?”
In the waiting area, Ye Zezhi's and Bai Chu'an's expressions also became highly complex.
This was the first time Ye Zezhi had seen Yun Heng draw her sword with her own eyes and use a real sword technique.
She was a sword cultivator herself, so she could see the terrifying nature of that strike far better than ordinary cultivators.
Whether it was the sword intent, the control over spiritual energy, or the timing of the strike, Yun Heng was far superior to ordinary sword cultivators of the same realm.
Looking at the figure standing with her sword on the sparring platform, Ye Zezhi felt a sense of inferiority for the first time.
On the main stage, the referee elder announced, “Fourth group, Yun Heng wins!”
A thunderous cheer erupted from the viewing areas.
Yun Heng stood on the sparring platform, casting a downward glance at Xie Wujiu, who lay at the bottom.
Several medical cultivators had already rushed over and were surrounding Xie Wujiu to check his injuries.
Looking at the unconscious figure, Yun Heng felt a bit annoyed with herself.
She still hadn't held back enough when she attacked just now.
If she had known, she would have controlled her strength better. She shouldn't have blasted Xie Wujiu straight off the sparring platform.
If he had stayed on the platform, she could have delivered another strike.
Yun Heng could only withdraw her gaze with regret and sheathed the Tianheng Sword.
Gong Yiding quickly flew down from the main stage and landed in the center of the sparring platform.
Her voice spread across the entire Five Domains Platform through the voice-amplifying array. “With this, the quarterfinals of the Five Domains Prodigy Gathering have completely concluded! The top four contestants of this Prodigy Gathering have all been decided. Would the four advancing contestants please take the stage!”
Enthusiastic cheers rang out from the viewing areas once more.
The first to step onto the stage were Ye Zezhi and Bai Chu'an.
Their previous injuries were not too severe, and after simple treatment, they had basically recovered.
Xiao Cen also returned to the arena.
Although she had been seriously injured earlier and had fainted due to the complete exhaustion of her spiritual energy and physical strength, her foundation had not been damaged.
Thanks to the treatment from the Eastern Region Imperial Family's elders, she was already out of mortal danger.
However, her face remained pale. She had changed into a clean dress, and her steps were much slower than usual.
Under Gong Yiding's guidance, the four of them stood in a line in the center of the sparring platform.
At the same time, the giant light screen behind the sparring platform lit up.
Their names and cultivation levels appeared on the light screen in sequence.
Ye Zezhi, late stage of the Soul Transformation Realm.
Bai Chu'an, mid stage of the Soul Transformation Realm.
Xiao Cen, mid stage of the Soul Transformation Realm.
Yun Heng, peak of the Soul Transformation Realm.
Yun Heng's cultivation information had already been updated after the match just ended.
The words “peak of the Soul Transformation Realm” were exceptionally eye-catching on the light screen, drawing gasps of admiration from many people once again.
Someone couldn't help but sigh with emotion. “The top four of this tournament are truly a sight to behold.”
The person next to them smiled and said, “A twenty-five-year-old at the peak of the Soul Transformation Realm, a late-stage Soul Transformation sword cultivator nurtured by a top-tier Central State sword sect, and the other two are also at the mid stage of the Soul Transformation Realm. In any of the previous sessions, any one of these four would have been enough to contend for the top spot.”
Gong Yiding waited for the noise in the viewing areas to gradually quiet down before continuing, “Next, we will proceed with the drawing for the semifinals. The semifinals will still use a randomized matchup format. The first drawer, Yun Heng!”
Yun Heng walked forward, reached her hand into the box, and casually pulled out a round light sphere.
In the next instant, the light sphere dispersed on its own, turning into countless tiny points of light that flew into the air.
Those points of light quickly gathered, ultimately forming three clear characters.
Bai Chu'an.
Seeing this name, a wave of discussion immediately erupted in the viewing areas.
On the sparring platform, Yun Heng raised her eyebrows slightly and looked at Bai Chu'an.
Bai Chu'an was looking at her as well.
Seeing Yun Heng look over, he still wore that warm, polite smile on his face, then gave her a gentle nod.
He seemed neither nervous about drawing a powerful opponent nor showed any hostility.
Yun Heng quickly looked away.
Why did this guy always have the face of a smiling tiger?
From their first meeting until now, she had never seen Bai Chu'an truly lose his composure in front of everyone.
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