Li Zhexian led Dugu Yan, Ye Lingling, Yu Tianheng, and the other six onto the stage.
For this match, Osler was sitting out.
On the other side of the arena, the Spirit Hall Second Team walked up slowly.
The two teams spread out their formations, separated by dozens of meters.
The shouts from the audience shook the heavens and earth.
"Spirit Hall is invincible!"
"What bullshit Emperial Battle Team, what bullshit Sword Wine! This is Spirit Hall City—kneel!"
"What's the reputation of Heaven Dou City worth?! Let Sword Wine see what real genius is!"
"Seeking revenge against the Golden Generation? Utter ignorance of heaven and earth!"
The Spirit Masters of Spirit Hall City shouted with the pride unique to the holy City.
The waves of sound rose higher and higher.
Yet—
Yet among the sea of people, there were also Spirit Masters who had come all the way from Heaven Dou just for Sword Wine.
"Lord Sword Wine will surely win!"
"The Spirit Hall Second Team is awesome?! One sword is enough for Lord Sword Wine!"
"I've prepared brush and paper! May Lord Sword Wine seize the crown, so I can deliver the tale eight hundred miles by fast courier to the storytellers!"
…
Under countless fervent gazes, the two teams moved almost simultaneously!
The Emperial Battle Team used the formation they most frequently trained with.
Dugu Yan and Yu Tianheng were positioned on the front left and right, with Yu Feng moving on the flanks.
The Shi brothers protected Ye Lingling in front.
As for Li Zhexian... he stood at the very back, strolling leisurely, with a smile on his lips as he watched the match.
The Spirit Master Tournament, held once every five years, was a stage that countless young Spirit Masters longed for even in their dreams.
Dugu Yan, Ye Lingling, and the others should also have their moment to shine.
Moreover—
The Emperial Battle Team, which had not participated in the preliminaries, needed to clash with strong enemies to accumulate real combat experience.
In contrast, the Spirit Hall Second Team's formation was simple and brutal.
The seven of them stepped forward in unison. Violent Spirit Power swept out like a furious tide.
Awooo—Awooo—
Bone-chilling wolf howls tore through the air.
Their bodies swelled, uniforms ripping apart with a tearing sound.
Ash-black fur spread across faces and arms, eyes burning crimson, white fangs bared past their lips.
The Spirit Hall Second Team—
every one of them had a Wolf Martial Soul, an extreme lineup of brute force!
"Hmph, some trash Sword Wine. Before Spirit Hall, you are nothing!" The Second Team's captain imitated Yan's posture, making a throat-slitting gesture at Li Zhexian.
The other six sneered, echoing the same throat-slitting motion.
"You're courting death!" Yu Tianheng roared low.
Beneath his feet, yellow, yellow, purple, purple — four Spirit Rings rose.
His first Spirit Ring flared.
"First Spirit Ability — Thunder Dragon Claw!"
His dragon-transformed arm crackled with violet lightning as he lunged first at the enemy captain.
"Hmph!" All seven lunged at once.
Their Spirit Rings flared violently in the torrent of Spirit Power.
The Second Team had three Spirit Ancestors and four Spirit Elders—
every one with optimal Spirit Ring configurations.
In terms of Spirit Power level alone, they were not weaker than the Element Academy teams.
"Second Spirit Ability — Bloodburst Crushing Fist!"
A phantom of a Blood Wolf King condensed on the captain's fist, colliding with the Thunder Dragon Claw with a roar and exploding with arcs of lightning filling the sky.
At the same time, Dugu Yan's Jade Phosphor Serpent venom spread into a dazzling toxic domain.
As the highest-ranked member of the Emperial Battle Team, she alone tangled up two opponents.
But from the side—
Another enemy lunged!
"Third Spirit Ability — Wind Blade Split!"
Yu Feng's wings flapped quickly, and seven feather-shaped wind blades shot out rapidly, blocking the enemy charging toward Dugu Yan.
The Shi brothers charged side by side, each locking down an enemy of their own.
In an instant—
The arena became a storm of clashing Spirit Abilities!
Spectators screamed themselves hoarse, faces flushed red.
Other teams looked on with grave expressions at this clash of titans.
And yet, again and again, their eyes flicked toward the white-robed youth who still had not moved.
Too arrogant!
Everyone could see it—
Li Zhexian was holding the line.
And what was "holding the line"?
It meant commanding the entire battle with overwhelming power!
In Spirit Hall's First Team rest area.
Yan crossed his arms and sneered. "That Li Zhexian, what right does he have to sit back? He thinks he can just crush Second Team?"
Xie Yue frowned, a look of confusion also appearing on his face.
Hu Liena's fox-like eyes were deep. She suddenly said softly, "Li Zhexian is about to make his move."
...
As expected from their background in Spirit Hall. In the beginning, the six members of the Emperial Battle Team were still evenly matched with their opponents and even had a small advantage.
But as time passed, the disadvantage of being one person short began to show.
Boom!
Yu Tianheng blocked an enemy, but the Second Team's captain sent a punch to his chest.
"Puuh—!"
Yu Tianheng spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, staggering and sliding backward for more than ten steps before he barely stood firm.
Dugu Yan, Yu Feng, and the Shi brothers immediately retracted their formation, protecting the injured Yu Tianheng in the center.
Ye Lingling raised her delicate hands, Nine-Heart Begonia blossoming, soft healing light spilling over her teammates.
But how could the Second Team give them a chance to catch their breath? Amidst the audience's increasingly frantic shouts, wolf howls sounded one after another.
All seven charged in with bloodthirsty momentum.
"Go!" Dugu Yan bit down on her lip.
But at this moment, a wisp of soft wind rolled past the waists and abdomens of the six of them, lightly and airily carrying them away from the battle.
Then—
Under the expectant, doubtful, scornful gazes of the crowd—
Li Zhexian stepped forward.
He stood before the six of them.
The Second Team captain's Blood Wolf Claw tore the air, crashing down upon him.
Seeing his target had switched to Li Zhexian, his grin only widened, adding even more force.
Zzzhh!
The tip of the sharp blood wolf's claw came to an abrupt stop one inch from Li Zhexian's forehead.
No matter how he urged on his Spirit Power, the tip of the claw was as if embedded in an invisible barrier of refined gold, making it difficult to move even an inch further.
If you focused and looked closely, it seemed as if countless tiny, transparent sword shadows stretched across it!
"You..." The captain was horrified and greatly shocked!
Li Zhexian's hair whipped wildly in the surge of force.
He lifted his head, eyes narrowing.
Between his brows, the Qinglian Sword mark flared. From his gaze burst two razor-sharp beams of Sword Qi.
The captain felt as if pierced by ten thousand swords.
His fur bristled as blood burst from a hundred cuts.
With a scream, he was hurled away like a severed kite, skidding tens of meters before crashing still.
His six teammates paled from shock and hurriedly retracted their momentum, wanting to retreat.
But how could their speed compare to Li Zhexian's?
Li Zhexian's raised his right hand, grasping the hilt that formed from nothing.
Then—
inch by inch, the jade-like blade extended.
Zheng—!
As the Qinglian Sword solidified in his grasp, a clear sword-cry rang through the arena.
Its edge was so sharp it pained the eyes to even look.
Li Zhexian stepped forward.
Wumm—
His first purple Spirit Ring flared beneath him.
A second step.
Wumm—
The second purple Spirit Ring shone.
As he took his third step, he had already instantly flashed to within a few meters of the Spirit Hall Second Team!
Wumm—
A magnificent Spirit Ring flickering with various colors and imprinted with twelve sword feathers rose up.
"Second Spirit Ability — Three Swords of Elegance!"
"Qinglian Sword Song, First Form — Yaoguang!"
On the Qinglian Sword's body, twelve lotus flowers bloomed one after another. A powerful, sharp aura rippled out.
Even though it was daytime, a wisp of starlight swayed and fell, accurately coiling around Li Zhexian's sword tip.
Li Zhexian reversed his grip and swept horizontally.
That sword—
so swift it vanished,
so beautiful it was like a verse of poetry.
The seven of Spirit Hall's Second Team all felt a chill at their throats.
Then a crushing force fiercely struck their throat.
"Pffft—!"
They spat out a mouthful of fresh blood and flew backward, falling off the arena.
On each person's throat, a three-finger wide, blue-purple sword mark was imprinted.
Killing is strictly forbidden in the Spirit Master Tournament. Otherwise—
one tournament could wipe out a whole generation of geniuses.
...
Everything happened too fast! It was so fast that it was hard for people's thoughts to keep up! The arena actually fell into a strange silence!
Dazed and shocked gazes were nailed to the white-robed youth standing with a sword.
However, Li Zhexian did not put away his sword.
He stood, stepping upon purple, purple, and that magnificent multicolored ring.
He held the Qinglian Sword, which seemed to be condensed from starlight.
He looked from afar at Tang San, Dai Mubai, and the three members of the Golden Generation in the preparation area.
The sky-reaching sword qi made his white robe flap. Li Zhexian's gaze was as cold as if it were tempered with ice.
To hide one's true ability? To conceal it? To slowly reveal his strength bit by bit?
No!
He, Li Zhexian, acts as he pleases! All enemies can come and fight!
He goes forward without fear!