Gu Ningyun gasped when she saw Jun Luo’s opponent.
Gold-attribute sword qi—the only one among the new disciples with a natural talent for the Gold Spirit Root Sword Dao, ranked second in 《New Disciple Xiaosheng's Remarks》, Zhu Zijin.
She knew they might face strong opponents in the advancement matches, but she hadn't expected to meet one in the very first round.
Furthermore, it was first versus second, sword cultivator versus sword cultivator.
While these thoughts whirled through her mind, the two on the arena had already exchanged a few probing moves and were now fully engaged in combat.
Jun Luo didn't set up any arrays or use talismans, and Zhu Zijin didn't consume any pills.
The two relied solely on the swords in their hands, engaged in a pure duel between sword cultivators.
Their sword qi coated their blades, clashing and grinding against each other with every strike, sending out blinding sparks of light.
Gu Ningyun funneled spirit energy into her eyes and ears, and the details of the fight on the arena instantly became much clearer.
She saw Jun Luo spin and strike, sending three streaks of ice-attribute sword qi flying toward Zhu Zijin’s forehead, throat, and heart.
Zhu Zijin’s strength was the real deal; he swung his sword three times in rapid succession, his gold-attribute sword qi meeting the three lethal white strikes head-on.
Accompanied by a teeth-gritting screech, the three pairs of sword qi shattered one after another upon impact, turning into white and gold spirit energy fragments that dissolved into the air.
Gu Ningyun watched with wide-eyed amazement.
She wasn't amazed by the magnificent, aesthetic sight of the shattering sword qi, but rather by the fact that she was seeing someone whose sword qi intensity could actually match Jun Luo’s for the first time.
Her own wind-attribute sword qi was extremely fast, hidden, and sharp, capable of easily slicing Jun Luo’s sword qi in half.
However, if it were a head-on collision against his ice-attribute sword qi, it was hard to say who would win.
As she pondered, Jun Luo had already unleashed six more streaks of sword qi. This time, in addition to the forehead, throat, and heart, they were aimed at Zhu Zijin’s right shoulder, right wrist, and dantian.
This time, the chill on the white sword qi was even more intense, seemingly freezing the very air.
The sword qi approached from six directions, sealing off all paths of escape. Zhu Zijin had nowhere to hide.
But he never intended to hide.
Zhu Zijin gripped his sword with both hands, and his aura suddenly shifted. A cold, vast, and grand air of slaughter emanated from him as he swept his sword forward.
With this strike, the hardness and ruthlessness of the gold-attribute sword qi were fully revealed, filled with a spirit of absolute execution that surged forward without hesitation!
The six streaks of frigid sword qi were shaken by this massive gold-attribute strike. They managed to halt the gold sword qi for only a fraction of a second before being blasted aside, flying backward and embedding themselves into the arena’s protective array without harming anyone outside.
The momentum of the gold-attribute sword qi was only interrupted for a moment before it continued its unstoppable charge toward Jun Luo.
If Jun Luo had no way to counter it or failed to dodge in time, he would surely be split in half and die on the spot.
At that moment, the referee martial uncle on the small platform of Arena No. 5 had already pinched a spell gesture, ready to intervene at any moment to save him from the sword qi.
Faced with the murderous gold-attribute sword qi, Jun Luo no longer held back. His spirit energy surged, and a wave of power that sent a chill from one's eyes straight to the heart rapidly spread across his blade, eventually converging into a tiny white dot at the very tip.
Unlike the obvious frost on the blade, the small dot was low-key and quiet, showing none of the typical characteristics of ice-attribute sword qi.
But when Gu Ningyun’s gaze fell on that dot, she felt a sense of extreme danger rising from the soles of her feet, traveling up her spine to the top of her head.
Jun Luo slowly raised his sword until the gold-attribute sword qi was right in front of him, the tip of his sword meeting the edge of the gold strike exactly at that white dot.
At that exact moment, Gu Ningyun clearly saw beautiful six-petaled ice flowers rapidly spreading and growing from the point of contact.
It was as if the chill, which had been restrained and compressed to the absolute limit, was now completely released. Like a wild beast breaking out of its cage or a flood bursting through a dam, it surged forth with overwhelming power.
In just a single breath, the originally murderous and unstoppable gold-attribute sword qi was frozen in place.
Not only that, but the originally pure and bright gold sword qi was now covered in white ice flowers, sparkling with brilliant light under the golden glow of the sword.
If the two on stage weren't still fighting, Gu Ningyun would have wanted to clap and praise how romantic it looked!
Of course, that was only a thought.
She couldn't actually praise it like that, or else the two boys fighting tooth and nail on the arena might just turn their sword qi on her.
Jun Luo flicked his wrist, and the gold sword qi instantly shattered. Under the force of the impact, the white-gold six-petaled ice flowers scattered from in front of Jun Luo, creating a magnificent rain of ice flowers over the arena.
And amidst this rain of ice flowers, Jun Luo’s sword qi didn't stop, piercing straight toward the grim-faced Zhu Zijin.
Right then, Gu Ningyun heard a shout suddenly erupt from the senior disciple spectator seats to her left. “Ice-attribute sword cultivator little brother, this sister loves you!”
Even though Jun Luo was usually calm, his expression nearly cracked at that moment, and his foot almost slipped.
That shout seemed to be a trigger, as the spectator stands erupted in cheers afterward.
“Ice-attribute sword cultivator little brother, come to Sword Peak! This brother loves you too!”
Zhu Zijin’s grim and alert expression faltered, replaced by... a very strange look.
Meanwhile, at the Ruiyu Pavilion seats.
After the initial surprise and stunned silence, Gu Ningyun and the other two were doubled over, clutching their stomachs with laughter.
Wen Xuan clutched her stomach and said with difficulty, “What is with these senior brothers and sisters?”
“Maybe Jun Luo’s sword qi effect was too aesthetic, so he gained a group of sister fans,” Gu Ningyun said while laughing. “As for those senior brothers, they probably want to poach him and are encouraging him to join Sword Peak later.”
Jiang Yao held back his laughter and quickly caught the main point. “What does ‘sister fans’ mean?”
“Uh, it just means people slightly older than him who like his flashy sword qi.”
Mu Chenze asked, “I wonder what Jun Luo is feeling right now?”
Wen Xuan replied, “...I can’t even think about it. The more I think, the more I want to laugh! Hahahahaha!”
While they were laughing uncontrollably, the fight on the arena had to continue.
The peach wood sword carrying ice-attribute sword qi was already in front of him. As a qualified sword cultivator, Zhu Zijin’s reaction was not slow at all, despite the complicated feelings in his heart.
He blocked Jun Luo’s sword tip with a backhand strike, his own blade condensed with the hardest gold-attribute sword qi.
Unfortunately, he was still a hair behind Jun Luo. The bone-chilling cold spread along the blade to his wrist. Zhu Zijin used every ounce of his willpower to keep from dropping his sword under that freezing sensation.
However, his wrist was severely injured by the frost from Jun Luo’s sword qi.
Jun Luo’s sword tip slid down Zhu Zijin’s blade and, maintaining a tiny distance, pointed at the wrist holding the sword.
He didn't actually touch it, which would have completely frozen and ruined his hand.
As the match reached its climax, the four from Ruiyu Pavilion stopped laughing and watched seriously.
Seeing this, Gu Ningyun chuckled. “At a time like this, he really needs Jiang Yao’s sword tassel.”
“You bet,” Jiang Yao said, tilting his head with a hint of pride.
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