"Someone from the Water Moon Sect?" Li Nanzhu and Duan Xianxing both craned their necks forward with curiosity.
It wasn't that they were inexperienced, but rather that female refinery masters were truly rare. Seeing one now felt somewhat novel.
"I didn't expect this match to be a refinery master against a refinery master," Feng Qingping sighed as she supported Feng Weilan, who had insisted on coming to watch the match.
"It seems the Sword Heart Sect doesn't intend to let us gather too many points either." Feng Weilan slightly adjusted his posture, careful not to lean too heavily on Feng Qingping.
"So petty," Duan Xianxing curled his lip. "To bicker over such a small amount of points."
On the arena stage, Lin Yue'er held a pair of water-parting spikes and gave a smiling salute. "Senior Brother Jiang, please advise me!"
Jiang Yifan's expression remained neutral. He merely cupped his hands in return. Seeing this, Lin Yue'er pursed her lips with some displeasure, clearly dissatisfied with his reaction.
"Let the match begin!"
Lin Yue'er moved as swift as a swallow, her water-parting spikes trailing streaks of cold light. Her movement technique was extremely agile; she used her magic tools to conceal her figure, slipping behind Jiang Yifan in the blink of an eye.
'I've got him!' Lin Yue'er felt a surge of secret delight as she aimed her water-parting spikes directly at the center of Jiang Yifan's back.
Jiang Yifan remained cold-faced, his hands forming a seal. "Golden Spirit Shield!"
A layer of pale golden light enveloped his entire body.
Clang!
The water-parting spikes struck the Golden Spirit Shield, sending sparks flying in every direction. Without even turning his head, Jiang Yifan backhanded another spell. "Golden Needle Rain!"
Dozens of fine golden needles shot out. Lin Yue'er dodged in a panic, but her sleeves were still shredded by several of the needles.
"I concede!" Lin Yue'er pursed her lips, finally speaking with a hint of reluctance.
It wasn't that she had surrendered because of his appearance or status. At that moment, she had clearly felt the gap between them.
He had obviously held back. If he had been any more ruthless, she might have been severely injured immediately!
Jiang Yifan withdrew his spell and walked off the arena without looking back.
Li Nanzhu was quite surprised. "Senior Brother Jiang didn't even seem to use a magic tool. This..."
Feng Qingping smiled. "Senior Brother Jiang's metal-attribute spells were personally taught by the Sect Leader. They are more than enough to handle someone at the early Golden Core stage."
In the subsequent matches, the seeded players from other sects also made their appearances.
Pei Ji of the Sword Heart Sect defeated his opponent with a single strike. Rong Yuying of the Hehuan Sect used illusions to make her opponent bind their own hands. Yun Xuanji of the Tianyan Sect used his deduction techniques to anticipate every move of his opponent.
"It seems everyone is keeping a card up their sleeve," Zhu Yinxi said thoughtfully.
Finally, it was Feng Qingping's turn to go up.
Her opponent was Tie Xinlan from the Beast Taming Sect, a sturdily built female cultivator accompanied by an all-black iron-backed azure wolf.
"Fifth Senior Sister, be careful!" Li Nanzhu reminded her. "That wolf looks very fierce!"
Feng Qingping pinched Li Nanzhu's cheek. "Watch your Fifth Senior Sister put on a show for you."
On the arena, Tie Xinlan cupped her fists. "I have long heard of Fellow Daoist Feng's name from the Five Elements Dao Sect. I look forward to learning from you today!"
Feng Qingping returned the gesture. "Please."
"Let the match begin!"
Tie Xinlan gave a sharp whistle, and the iron-backed azure wolf lunged forward with a roar.
At the same time, she formed seals with her hands, launching a barrage of attacks at Feng Qingping. She was clearly far superior to Feng Wuya in terms of coordination with her spirit beast and her own defense.
Feng Qingping, however, remained calm. Five array flags flew from her sleeve. "Five Elements Rotation Array!"
A flash of five-colored light erupted, and the incoming attacks were instantly blocked and deflected back by the array.
The iron-backed azure wolf had already reached Feng Qingping, but she only let out a light chuckle.
"Change formation!"
As soon as the words left her mouth, five streaks of spiritual light formed a cage, trapping the azure wolf. No matter how much it tore and bit, it could not break free.
Tie Xinlan's face changed drastically. She hurriedly formed seals to recall her wolf, only to see Feng Qingping change the formation again. "Lock!"
Five spiritual lights rapidly wound toward Tie Xinlan. She blocked desperately in her panic, but all her attacks were swallowed by the array without even causing a ripple.
Tie Xinlan refused to give up and commanded the wolf to attack again, but Feng Qingping merely watched her with a smile. She didn't move a single step as the array absorbed every attack.
"I... I concede!" After fifteen minutes, Tie Xinlan finally exhausted all her spiritual energy and jumped off the arena with a sigh.
Feng Qingping retracted her array and said with a smile, "Thank you for the match."
The entire audience erupted in an uproar.
"An array cultivator from the Five Elements Dao Sect... is actually this strong?"
"What kind of setting-up speed was that?"
"That's terrifying..."
Returning to her seat, Feng Qingping was immediately surrounded by her fellow disciples.
"Fifth Senior Sister, you were amazing!" Li Nanzhu's eyes were full of admiration.
Duan Xianxing said excitedly, "Fifth Senior Sister, when did you learn to change formations like that?"
Feng Qingping smiled slightly. "Actually, I used a trick." She showed the array disk at her waist. "It's a feature I discovered recently. I didn't expect it to be so useful here."
Zhu Yinxi said softly, "Even so, to be able to manipulate multiple arrays so skillfully proves that Fifth Senior Sister's attainments in the Dao of arrays are truly startling."
Jiang Yifan suddenly spoke. "Look over there."
Everyone followed his gaze and saw Immortal Venerable Ling Xiao at the Sword Heart Sect's seating area, his face dark as he spoke to Pei Ji.
Pei Ji glanced toward the Five Elements Dao Sect from time to time, his eyes flashing with battle intent.
"Let them talk," Feng Qingping shook her head. "We won't encounter them until the matches for this arena end."
"It would be best if they were matched with me," Zhu Yinxi said. "That would save everyone some trouble."
"Not necessarily." Li Nanzhu pulled the wandering Suisui back. "They already took a major loss during the Foundation Establishment stage matches. I suspect Ling Xiao and the others will find every possible way to keep them from crossing paths with us."
And it was exactly as Li Nanzhu had predicted.
In the distance, Pei Ji stood with his hands down, his face full of reluctance.
"Master, I do not understand," Pei Ji said in a low voice. "Why avoid the people from the Five Elements Dao Sect? I am confident I can defeat them."
Immortal Venerable Ling Xiao gave a cold snort and swept his sleeve, deploying a soundproofing barrier. "Do you know why the Five Elements Dao Sect has suddenly risen?"
Pei Ji frowned. "It's just a few disciples with decent talent..."
"Foolish!" Ling Xiao looked toward the Five Elements Dao Sect's station. "Taking the top two spots in the Foundation Establishment stage, and now having three seeded players in the Golden Core stage... They are trying to revitalize the Five Elements Dao Sect and fight for the top position among the Eight Sects!"
Pei Ji clenched his fists. "Then all the more reason to crush their spirit!"
"The view of a reckless man!" Ling Xiao turned, a cold light flashing in his eyes. "Why do you think the Sect Leader suddenly showed favor to that Duan Xianxing?"
Pei Ji was stunned. "The Sect Leader..."
"Even a rare constitution like the Natural Sword Physique was found by Feng Yi," Ling Xiao sneered. "The Five Elements Dao Sect wants to use this competition to make a comeback? It won't be that easy!"
He pulled a jade slip from his sleeve. "This is the latest matchup arrangement. You won't encounter anyone from the Five Elements Dao Sect before the finals."
Pei Ji took the jade slip and scanned it with his divine sense. His expression grew even uglier. "This is... rigging the game?"
"It's called strategy." Ling Xiao narrowed his eyes. "Among those three from the Five Elements Dao Sect, Zhu Yinxi is at the Great Perfection of the Golden Core stage, Feng Qingping's array dao is bizarre, and Jiang Yifan is hiding his depths even further—and he's the Young Master of the Jiang family from the Northern Territory. Clashing with them head-on will only lead to mutual loss."
Pei Ji was silent for a moment before suddenly looking up. "Then the Sword Mound..."
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