382: Chapter 0382 But

Qin Hengjiang thought for a moment and shook his head. "As far as I know, the members of the Ji Family left Blade Mountain long ago, following Prince Bai's mother."

"Ji Wujiu only holds the title of Supreme Elder, but in reality, he has no connection to Blade Mountain at all."

Looking at the old man's certain gaze, Lin Xiao confirmed one thing—the Blade Emperor, Wuming, had hidden his identity as a member of the Ji Family.

"That's good then. Otherwise... I really wouldn't be at ease. After all, evil must be eradicated completely!"

The members of the Qin family nodded repeatedly, expressing their understanding.

After the brief reception, Lin Xiao led the women to the VIP stands.

Qin He still went over to the Blade Mountain side with his family. For one, he enjoyed it, and for another, there was no seat for him beside Lin Xiao.

"Hengjiang, your grandson has done well for himself."

On the Blade Mountain stands, the Blade Emperor Wuming called out to Qin Hengjiang.

Qin Hengjiang hurriedly smiled and cupped his fists. "Great Grandmaster Uncle is too kind. The children of our Qin family who entered the secular world haven't had military merits for many years. This child has indeed lived up to expectations!"

Wuming nodded. "His name is Qin He, right?"

"Yes! This junior, Qin He, greets the Blade Emperor Ancestor!"

Qin He could hardly hide his excitement. Back then, how could the Blade Emperor have remembered his name?

It was all thanks to the Prince! Everything was given to him by the Prince!

"Draw your blade," the Blade Emperor said.

"Huh?"

Qin He was stunned for a moment until his father, Qin Xiaoyan, poked him in the waist. He suddenly snapped out of it!

*Clang!*

The long blade left its scabbard. Before Qin He could even hold it steady, he saw the blade rise into the air on its own!

The blade spun rapidly in the air, igniting into fierce flames with a *whooshing* sound!

Qin He was enveloped by this blade flame. The scorching temperature and the blade path as fast as firelight made his eyes widen!

After a fire whirlwind, the long blade directly returned to its scabbard, and a burnt smell permeated the air.

Qin He shuddered and fell to his knees. "Thank you for the guidance, Ancestor!"

He discovered that he had fully comprehended the breakthrough point of the Flowing Fire Blade Technique and could now practice the Heaven-Burning Blade Technique!

The disciples of Blade Mountain and the surrounding sects all showed looks of amazement.

This was the Blade Emperor, the Great Grandmaster most skilled with the blade in this era!

With just a little guidance, he could make a bladesman take a huge step forward, even reaching a new level!

"No need to thank me. It was your own Flowing Fire Blade that reached a bottleneck; I merely added some fuel to the fire."

Wuming smiled kindly and said, "I saw you all chatting very congenially with the Prince of Zhenbei just now. What were you talking about?"

The members of the Qin family looked at each other, thinking that the Prince of Zhenbei was truly remarkable—even the Blade Emperor was curious about what the Prince said!

Guiding Qin He seemed to be a way to build a good relationship with the Prince as well.

Naturally, Qin Hengjiang didn't dare to withhold information. He hurriedly said, "Great Grandmaster Uncle, the Prince was asking about the matter regarding Elder Ji Wujiu."

"Oh?" A barely perceptible flicker passed through Wuming's eyes. "Ji Wujiu... I haven't seen him in years."

"Yes, he is likely no longer in this world. But since he is the maternal grandfather of the rebel Prince Bai, the Prince wants to pull out the roots to destroy the weeds."

Wuming nodded. "That is as it should be. Although my Blade Mountain is a sect of the martial world, we absolutely cannot harbor rebels who collude with the enemy and betray the country."

"Hengjiang, did you explain clearly to the Prince?"

Qin Hengjiang hurriedly cupped his hands. "Rest assured, Great Grandmaster Uncle. The Ji Family has long had no connection with our Blade Mountain. The Prince will no longer pursue the matter."

"Good... you have done well," Wuming nodded with a smile.

The bored Child Ghost on the side let out a yawn and sneered, "This Prince of Zhenbei sure sticks his nose in everywhere. Does he think he can just kill anyone from Blade Mountain whenever he wants?"

"Shut up! Go draw your lot!" Wuming urged.

"Master, this blade isn't even sharpened. Can I change it?"

Child Ghost aggrievedly picked up an unsharpened blunt blade, which was specially provided for the tournament.

Seeing Wuming's gaze gradually turn serious, Child Ghost could only dejectedly go to draw his lot.

Before long, the drawing results were announced.

On a large stone slab in the center, the names corresponding to the brass name tags were posted on a match chart.

Some were happy, while others were worried.

One prodigy, seeing that his opponent was Child Ghost, was so scared that he collapsed on the spot, nearly bursting into tears.

Meanwhile, some prodigies immediately locked eyes from a distance, sparks of tension flying between them.

Lin Xiao and the women were naturally uninterested in the others and went straight to look for Leng Bingyan's name.

But when they looked closer, they couldn't help but be amused.

"Dai Yunchuan? Isn't that the guy who was blocked at the mountain gate?" Xie Juner said with a smile.

"Husband killed Wu Zike, which counts as forming a grudge with the Academy. In this battle, I'm afraid that Dai Yunchuan will exert all his effort," Zhao Caiwei laughed.

"With that pretty boy, Yaner will finish him off within ten moves!" Mu Wanying said disdainfully.

"Ranked fourth on the prodigy rankings—is he really that weak? Are we making it sound too simple?" Su Wansha was a little worried.

Lin Xiao and Xiao Qingxuan didn't join the discussion because the gap between their martial arts realms was quite large, so the outcome of the match was already a foregone conclusion for them.

At this time, the Academy Master Yan Xueming walked over with an air of righteousness, leading several disciples.

"Prince, what a coincidence that the first round is against a lady of your household. However, there are no distinctions of status on the arena. I hope that regardless of the outcome, the Prince will not take offense."

Lin Xiao was amused. This old man really had no discernment at all. Your disciple is practically about to pack his bags and leave, yet you're coming here to give a disclaimer?

With this level of behavior, Lin Xiao naturally didn't bother to respond and ignored him directly.

Seeing Lin Xiao treat him like thin air, Yan Xueming felt slighted and snorted coldly before leading his disciples back.

The match between Leng Bingyan and Dai Yunchuan was scheduled for the fourth slot.

The first three matches were back-and-forth, causing constant cheering from the crowd, and the elders of various sects nodded frequently.

"This is what the Tianwu Grand Tournament should be like. What was yesterday's nonsense!"

When Dai Yunchuan, dressed in snow-white robes and holding a folding fan, walked onto the arena looking elegant and handsome, the crowd erupted into screams from many women.

Dai Yunchuan opened his folding fan, showing off the four characters 'Seeking Only One Defeat' written in powerful calligraphy, which drew looks of displeasure from many prodigies.

"This boy... he's good in every way, except he's too arrogant," Yan Xueming grumbled, though his eyes were full of expectation.

Meanwhile, Leng Bingyan was dressed in black, her long hair simply tied up, looking like a young married woman coming to a competition.

Despite her simple attire, her cold, elegant, and sexy face and figure were still hard to hide.

"This female disciple of Sect Leader Bai is truly beautiful..."

"Keep it down! She's the concubine of the Prince of Zhenbei!"

"Ah? No wonder. I was wondering why her hair was tied up like that..."

Dai Yunchuan said with a cold, arrogant expression, "Lady Leng, although you are one of the Prince of Zhenbei's people, blades and swords have no eyes on the stage. This young master will not show mercy."

Whenever he thought of the embarrassing incident at the mountain gate, a fire of anger burned in Dai Yunchuan's heart.

Coupled with the Wu Zike matter, his master Yan Xueming had also given him a strict order: he must go all out.

In this battle, victory was the only option!

Leng Bingyan was very impatient. "So much chatter. Just make your move."

After being with Lin Xiao for so long, she found other men unbearable to look at, and saying even one more word felt like a waste of time.

Dai Yunchuan's eyelids twitched, but he maintained a calm and composed look. "A gentleman does not compete for the first move against a lady. Lady Leng, please go first. Let me experience the ultimate techniques of the Sword Forest."

"Fine!"

Leng Bingyan didn't waste words. With a tap of her foot, she directly drew the Cold Moon Sword. Her figure rose into the air, drawing an elegant lunar bridge of light!

Dai Yunchuan was, after all, fourth on the prodigy rankings. His reaction was not slow. He immediately performed a backward leap, intending to pull away to dodge before counterattacking. Everything was under control...

But plans cannot keep up with changes!

A scene that terrified Dai Yunchuan appeared: Leng Bingyan in front of him seemed to briefly disappear from sight!

It was as if dark clouds had obscured the moon, hiding both the woman and the sword. When her sword light suddenly flashed out from the 'clouds'—

*Vroom!!*

A thousand layers of sword shadows appeared before Dai Yunchuan like a dream!

Dai Yunchuan subconsciously raised the fan in his hand, but his true qi was directly shattered!

*Clang!*

Dai Yunchuan's hand went numb, and his tiger's mouth bled from the pain. He let out a miserable scream, "Ah!"

The fan was shattered to pieces, and the paper scraps drifted down. Of the four large characters, only one remained relatively intact—

"Defeat."