God Emperor

With the Valley-water Sword in hand, Zhang Ruochen mounted the Coliseum and faced Xie Yunfan who stood around 33 meters away from him.

“Lin Yue from Long-living Yard.”

When Xie Yunfan saw that his opponent was Lin Yue, a smile touched the corners of his mouth and a nameless joy struck his heart.

He had long wanted to teach Lin Yue a lesson, but he could not find a good chance as Lin Yue had been hiding in Zixia Sacred Mountain.

Unexpectedly, he met Lin Yue on the stage of the sword contest out of 368 participants.

There was an element of truth in the saying: one cannot avoid an enemy in this small world.

Today, Xie Yunfan wanted to shame Lin Yue while in the limelight so that he would have to keep his head bowed in humiliation inside the Yin and Yang Sect.

How would he even face Junior sister apprentice Qi then?

At the thought of Junior sister apprentice Qi being held in Lin Yue’s arms, Xie Yunfan was barely able to compose himself. He really felt like grinding Lin Yue’s bones to dust.

“What happened? You dared not show up because you were scared?”

Xie Yunfan was finally able to check his emotions and let out a long breath. He held his short sword between his fingers and played with it as if he had already defeated Zhang Ruochen.

Zhang Ruochen kept one hand behind his back and one hand holding the Valley-water Sword. He found Xie Yunfan a little repulsive.

Just because of a woman, Xie Yunfan treated him like his sworn enemy who had killed his parents everytime they met. He either taunted him or looked at him superciliously. He always regarded Zhang Ruochen as inferior to him.

One or two times were alright with Zhang Ruochen. He did not want to be narrow-minded.

He was so pretentious all the time, though, that Zhang Ruochen now found it somewhat disturbing.

The audience burst into peals of laughter. Obviously, the indoor disciples and other participants shared Xie Yunfan’s opinion that Lin Yue was nothing but a coward.

“Elder brother Xie, kick his ass out of the Coliseum. How could Senior sister apprentice Qi be with a man like him?”

An indoor disciple from Long-living Yard looked at Zhang Ruochen in contempt and shouted in a cold voice from the crowd. “If you are scared, you must give in as soon as possible and don’t bring us shame.”

Xie Yunfan was happier as he showed a bigger smile on his face, “Lin Yue, you are lucky that your opponent is me. The worst I will do is to trample on your face. If it were some other bad-tempered guy, you might meet your end on this stage.”

“Are you done yet? You want to fight or what?”

Xie Yunfan drained Zhang Ruochen’s patience even though he was doing his best to be patient.

Seeing Lin Yue acting so imperious in front of him, anger clouded his face. Xie Yunfan snorted. “If you want to die, I’ll make it happen.”

Xie Yunfan flipped the short sword in his hand and then trained it toward Zhang Ruochen.

Before his sword shot out, Xie Yunfan felt a sharp gust of wind whipping toward him—so strong that he almost lost his balance.

“Not good…”

After noticing that there was something wrong, Xie Yunfan’s face turned nasty. He quickly propped up his thick divine body shield.

Xie Yunfan had a cultivation of the Eighth Change in the Fish-Dragon Realm and had already opened five holy meridians.

As a result, the holy Qi inside his body was considerably active and the divine body shield was impregnable like a ball of iron.

Zhang Ruochen suddenly popped up in front of Xie Yunfan and struck a palm against the divine body shield, creating a ripple in the air that sent Xie Yufan flying.

With a “boom”, Xie Yunfan was tossed ten feet away.

When his feet finally touched the ground, he was so unstable that he had to take so many steps backward until he was on the edge of the Coliseum before he finally steadied his steps.

Xie Yunfan gasped for air, scared out of his wits. He was surprised to find that Lin Yue’s cultivation was actually so formidable. If he had reacted slower, he would have fallen off the stage and lost the battle already.

Shortly after he came to his senses, he saw a sword shadow becoming increasingly larger in his eyes—Zhang Ruochen had come nearer while Xie Yunfan was not ready for another attack.

“Swoosh!”

The next moment, Xie Yunfan’s neck had stiffened from the coldness of the sword pressed against it.

Zhang Ruochen kept himself upright and wore a casual look with one hand behind his back. He kept the sword pointed at Xie Yun’s neck. He expressionlessly asked, “Do you give in or not?”

Xie Yunfan had lost the battle before most people even realized what was happening.

The outcome silenced the audience. Everyone gasped and gawked in astonishment.

“How could he be so strong?”

Before this, Xu Changsheng had been lounging on a chair, fully expecting Xie Yunfan to give Lin Yue a lesson.

He clenched his fists and leaped to his feet, looking at Lin Yue on the stage disbelievingly.

How could he, who had just become a Saint’s disciple, defeat Xie Yunfan?

It was impossible that Xie Yunfan had lost the battle on purpose—he regarded Lin Yue as his sworn enemy, after all.

The five Half-Saints sitting above also witnessed the incredible spectacle on the stage.

Even with their Heart State, they were also shocked. They looked at each other speechlessly.

Half-Saint Zixia emotions were tumultuous. When he looked at Lin Yue, his eyes were full of shock, bitterness, and, most of all, heartfelt joy.

“How powerful he turns out to be.”

Half-Saint Zixia was at a loss for words. He had thought that because luck had finally smiled on Lin Yue, it had made him overconfident, spurring him on to take part in the sword contest for Monks of the Eighth Change in the Fish-Dragon Realm.

Half-Saint Zixia never thought that Lin Yue actually had the power to challenge a Monk of the Eighth Change in the Fish-Dragon Realm. As it turned out, Lin Yue was so headstrong because he was very confident in himself.

“This guy has really surprised me.”

Half-Saint Zixia smiled vaguely but could not conceal the pride on his face.

Next to him, a Half-Saint with a red mole between his eyebrows laughed loudly, “The younger generation has excelled the older generation. Half-Saint Zixia, you sometimes make the wrong judgment too. Such a brilliant disciple. I really want to recruit him into Mokong Yard if he is ever denied by your Long-living Yard.”

Half-Saint Zixia glanced at the Half-Saint callously and said, “Try to lift a finger and see if I don’t turn Mokong Yard upside down.”

Half-Saint Jing Lan was also elated and nodded while saying, “This disciple is not mediocre. He is neither too proud nor too snappy. He is prudent but not without the edges that are young people’s signature. Moreover, he has ascended the peak of the Second Level Mountain at such a young age. If he keeps this up, someday he will be a sword saint of the next generation and make a name for himself around the world.”

The fact that such a genius had emerged from the Yin and Yang Sect was really a great comfort to the Half-Saints. It was a safe bet that Lin Yue would shoot to the stars at this contest and become one of the favored figures among the Saint’s disciples.

On the stage.

Xie Yunfan held his breath and refused to accept defeat. He gritted his teeth. “I have not lost the battle. You caught me off guard. In that case, what kind of hero are you even if you win the battle. Put away your sword if you have the guts and we will fight again.”

Zhang Ruochen shook his head and drew back his sword.

Xie Yunfan’s face brightened with joy and his eyes flickered with a murderous intent. His sword swung out quickly like a thunderbolt and rushed toward Zhang Ruochen’s heart.

With a boom, Xie Yufan was kicked down by Zhang Ruochen before he even touched Zhang Ruochen’s body. A shoe print was left on his bloody face as he tumbled off the stage and into the crowd in a dead faint.

Actually, Xie Yunfan had already passed out when Zhang Ruochen had kicked his face. It was not because Xie Yunfan had fallen.

Zhang Ruochen would probably have given his rival a second chance if it were somebody else.

He was Xie Yunfan, though, and Zhang Ruochen really did not want to see him any longer.

With his hands crossed behind back, Zhang Ruochen stepped down from the stage and went back to his seat.

Suddenly, all of the indoor disciples around the Coliseum A went wild with excitement, shouting “Lin Yue” loudly. The noises almost shook the Zhiyu Sacred Mountain.

Those disciples from the Long-living Yard who had once looked down upon Lin Yue now straightened their backs and considered it an honor to be Lin Yue’s junior fellow apprentice.

“Elder brother Lin Yue’s talents are unequaled and his cultivation is peerless. We could do nothing but look at him in admiration.”

“No wonder Senior sister apprentice Qi fell in love with Elder brother Lin Yue—not only is he handsome, but he is also profound in his cultivation. Any woman will definitely love a man like him.” A young female disciple exclaimed in blind infatuation.

Aside from Can Dong, another unequaled conqueror was rising from Long-living Yard.

The next battle was between No. 79 and No. 80.

Zhang Ruochen carefully observed how they fought each other.

Whoever won this fight would be his next opponent.

“Zhao Wuyan, from Tai Qing Palace.”

A young man on the left had spoken in a cold and deep voice.

Across him was an old woman who looked hale and hearty despite her gray hair. She said, “Fan Jing, from Sunv Yard.”

Fan Jing was a Cyan-robed Elder from Sunv Yard. She was over 100 years old, and her cultivation was profound. Her first move was a mid-class Ghost Level sword technique—Snow Mountain Sword Technique.

“Snow Mountain Lingering Shadow.”

The power of a mid-class Ghost Level sword technique was well-established.

She employed a movement and immediately, hundreds of currents of sword Qi flashed on the stage.

Flakes of snow fell down from heaven.

The ground was frozen with a thick layer of ice.

“Swoosh!”

The hundreds of currents of sword Qi gathered together and condensed into a lofty mountain so impressive that the audience could not help looking at it in awe.

The indoor disciples off the stage could feel the heavy cold air whipping their faces as if a mountain of icy snow tumbled down on them.

“You cannot belittle Elder Fan Jing’s sword realm. She has probably cultivated to the second level of Sword One, and she has also acquired the mid-class Ghost Level sword techniques. There are few people who can ward off her one movement.” A Saint’s disciple said.

However, while everyone else marveled at Elder Fan Jing’s sword techniques, Zhang Ruochen had his eyes riveted on Zhao Wuyan.

Facing a strong rival such as Elder Fan Jing, Zhao Wuyan seemed calm and unruffled.