Fu Li, ranked fourth, entered the match well-rested and composed.
Shangguan Yan, his opponent, lacked true strength. Her earlier high standing had been sustained entirely by the vast resources of the Shangguan family. She had relied on her Daoist Uncle and spent heavily to hire the infamous Twin Fiends of the Netherworld from Baiyun Immortal City, who allowed her to secure third place in the first round.
However, her luck didn't last. During the second round, Huang Hezi's poor performance dragged her down to fifth place. Even her narrow victory against Du Changfeng of Yuanhua Mountain had resulted more from luck than skill. By the time she faced Fu Li, her spirit power was depleted, and her stamina was fading. She managed fewer than fifty exchanges before suffering defeat.
After this victory, Fu Li advanced to challenge He Yuanqing, who ranked third overall. Although this promised to be his most difficult battle so far, Fu Li appeared calm and untroubled. As he stepped onto the dueling platform, his eyes met Tao Wan's in the distance. The two exchanged a brief nod of mutual understanding. Despite their differing positions, they remained allies, and the cooperation between them was clear.
When He Yuanqing descended from the platform to face him, Fu Li greeted him with a smile.
"Brother Yuanqing, I hope you'll go easy on me," he said lightheartedly.
He Yuanqing frowned and snapped, "Enough with the nonsense!"
As he spoke, a long sword landed in his hand, pulsing intensely with spirit energy. It was an enchanted-treasure flying sword. But Fu Li showed no fear in the face of such power. He calmly pressed a Vajra talisman onto his body, then drew both a shield and a flying sword, preparing himself in full defense.
The choice baffled He Yuanqing. Fu Li's weapons were merely supreme-grade enchanted artifacts. Impressive though they were, they remained a level below enchanted treasures. In a duel of this caliber, did Fu Li truly believe such weapons would suffice? Was he underestimating him so blatantly?
"Please," Fu Li said with calm confidence.
His flying sword darted through the air, circling lightly like a swallow as it probed He Yuanqing's defenses.
"Mere tricks," Yuanqing sneered. "They have no place here!"
With a cold snort, He Yuanqing slashed out with his sword. A surge of spirit power burst forth, slapping away Fu Li's weapon with ease. The difference in grade was clear; the power of an enchanted-treasure weapon was leagues above an enchanted-artifact one, even if it was supreme-grade.
He then formed seals with his fingers, and his sword surged toward Fu Li. The enchanted treasure's power was immense; as it struck, Fu Li's flying sword was nothing more than a minor interference.
Fu Li retreated several steps, and his sleeves billowed. Streaks of cold light suddenly burst forth, colliding with the sword light one after another. Each impact slowed its momentum, wearing it down little by little.
He Yuanqing recognized them instantly: They were the Fu family's exclusive artifacts, the Binding Essence Pearls. They could drain spirit energy and bind enemies in place. A strike at full power would weaken with the first clash, drop drastically after the second, and fail by the third. And indeed, by the time the sword smashed into Fu Li's shield, its force had been nearly extinguished.
Boom!
Fu Li merely drifted back lightly, clearly unharmed.
If I rely solely on this sword, I'll never win, He Yuanqing realized grimly. Time to use a trump card!
He Yuanqing had no intention of dragging this out like previous rounds. A prolonged duel would drain his spirit power and expose his trump cards to Dan Yangzi, who was next in line. A decisive blow was the best strategy!
With a sharp thought, he recalled the flying sword. It circled above his head like a returning swallow while his fingers wove seals in rapid succession. Light flared from the sword as the embedded formation began converting spirit power into a devastating strike.
You chose not to use your enchanted treasure, so don't blame me for being ruthless!
Anticipation filled him at the thought of the strike's destructive might.
Across the platform, Fu Li remained calm. He lifted a finger and sent his sword forward.
Trying to disrupt me? Hmph. How naive, He Yuanqing thought.
As the blade closed in, a jade token shot from his waist, shining with protective light.
Beyond the dueling platform, shouts of surprise rang out.
"An automatic defensive supreme-grade enchanted artifact!"
"Wait—that's the Ruyi[1]Jade Token, isn't it? The signature supreme-grade enchanted artifact used by that He family elder back during his Foundation Establishment years! I can't believe he actually gave it to Senior Brother He!"
"With that, Senior Brother Fu likely won't be able to interrupt his killer move!"
On the dueling platform, He Yuanqing stood with smug confidence. Both sides wielded supreme-grade enchanted artifacts, yet the automatic defense of his Ruyi Jade Token was not something an ordinary opponent could breach. He watched calmly as Fu Li's flying sword split into three shimmering arcs, each weaving toward him at cunning angles.
He snorted dismissively, once more thinking, Naive!
In an instant, the jade token split into three smaller pieces and blocked all three sword arcs at the last possible moment. Yet an uneasy feeling struck He Yuanqing. Something's off... No, something's wrong! The Binding Essence Pearls!
He looked down; multiple cold gleams had surrounded the three jade tokens. At that moment, Fu Li clasped his hands in front of him and made a sealing gesture from afar. The supreme-grade flying sword instantly reformed. A condensed beam of sword light shot straight through the gap between the three jade tokens, aimed at his brow.
Damn it! He Yuanqing cursed inwardly. He abandoned his strike, though he had been just a split second from completing it, and hastily pulled out a shield. It was just in time to catch his opponent's flying sword, but... the consequences were immediate.
The power of an enchanted treasure, once released, could not be retracted just because the user wanted to. A violent surge of spirit energy erupted, and being closest, He Yuanqing suffered the brunt of the backlash.
Boom!
A thunderous explosion rang out!
He Yuanqing was sent flying several zhang backward. Through the hazy smoke, a figure pierced through the sky. Before him, a supreme-grade flying sword darted like a soaring dragon, tearing through layers of lingering spirit energy and going straight for He Yuanqing's throat.
"How could this be?" He Yuanqing's eyes widened, filled with despair.
Swoosh!
At the very last moment, Fu Li appeared and seized the sword hilt. The tip quivered violently, stopping a mere finger's length from He Yuanqing's brow.
"Brother Yuanqing, thank you for letting me win," Fu Li said calmly.
"How could this happen!" He Yuanqing cried out in disbelief. But as he opened his mouth, his words were accompanied by a mouthful of blood. Clearly, he was not doing great.
Fu Li sidestepped the spray of blood and turned his gaze toward the Golden Core elder controlling the defensive formation.
The elder from Longhsou Peak nodded at him with clear admiration. "This round goes to Fu Li. He advances to the next match and may rest for two hours."
A faint smile touched Fu Li's lips. He sheathed his sword and stepped down from the platform.
Only He Yuanqing remained on the dueling platform, his face ashen. He could not comprehend how he had been defeated so quickly. Fu Li had advanced to the ninth stage of Foundation Establishment much later than he had, and he had not even revealed his most powerful trump card.
No explanation came for his doubts on the platform below, but the truth was plain to the Golden Core Adepts in the Celestial Palace above.
"He got played," a voice remarked.