32: Chapter 32 On and Off Stage

He introduced himself, "Qi Peak, Xiong Kui!"

Ye Chen also cupped his fists in return, "Sword Peak, Ye Chen."

Xiong Kui grinned, "I've heard of the people from Sword Peak; you all claim to have superb swordsmanship. Today, I'd like to see just how much skill you, Ye Chen, actually have."

With that, he grabbed the iron hammer with both hands, took it off his back, and slammed it heavily onto the ground, shaking the arena three times over.

Ye Chen remained calm, slowly drawing the long sword from his waist. The blade shimmered with a cold, clear light.

He took his stance, his gaze locked firmly on Xiong Kui.

"Come on!" Xiong Kui roared, swinging the iron hammer like a whirlwind toward Ye Chen.

The wind generated by the hammer seemed capable of tearing through the air.

Ye Chen flashed aside like a ghost, avoiding the blow, and simultaneously swung his long sword, thrusting toward Xiong Kui's arm.

Xiong Kui reacted extremely quickly, swiftly pulling back his iron hammer to block. With a 'clang', sparks flew everywhere.

The two exchanged blows, and for a while, it was hard to tell who would win.

The audience below was fired up, their cheers and shouts rising and falling.

Yun Ming was also getting into the excitement and joined the audience in cheering a few times.

Although the fight was exciting, it ended quickly. Ye Chen defeated Xiong Kui with almost no effort.

Xiong Kui was convinced by Ye Chen's strength and conceded defeat.

Some spectators in the stands praised Ye Chen repeatedly.

"This Senior Brother Ye Chen is truly extraordinary. Senior Brother Xiong Kui is someone who has made a name for himself on the Luoxia Ranking of Winds and Clouds, yet he was defeated so easily," a Qi Peak Disciple exclaimed.

"What rank is Senior Brother Xiong Kui?" another Qi Peak Disciple asked.

"He is ranked thirty-ninth in the Qi Refining Great Circle, and he can make it into the top hundred on the overall ranking."

"Senior Brother Ye Chen is so handsome!!!" Some female cultivators were completely obsessed with Ye Chen's looks.

"I wonder if Senior Brother Ye Chen has a Dao Companion."

Watching Ye Chen, who was the center of attention, Yun Ming thought to himself that his Spirit Stones were secure.

Ye Chen seemed to suddenly notice Yun Ming, and after stepping off the arena, he walked straight toward him.

In truth, Ye Chen hadn't noticed Yun Ming at first; it was Elder Xuan who had spotted Yun Ming and told Ye Chen that it would be best to go over and say hello.

"Brother Ming, you came to watch the match too."

Yun Ming patted his shoulder and praised him generously, "I came specifically to watch your match. Not bad, kid! When the finals come, I'll go and cheer you on."

Ye Chen smiled shyly and then nodded vigorously.

Remembering something, Yun Ming took out a complete set of black flood dragon scale armor from his naxu ring and handed it to Ye Chen.

"I'm lending you this set of black flood dragon scale armor. If you win, it's yours to keep."

Ye Chen was stunned when he saw the black flood dragon scale armor. He had seen with his own eyes how this set of armor had been smashed into fragments, yet now it had appeared before him completely intact.

This complete set of black flood dragon scale armor was High Grade Tier 2; it would be more than enough for him to use until the Foundation Establishment Stage. Putting on this armor to win the Sect Grand Competition would be incredibly simple.

"Thank you, Brother Ming!" Ye Chen thanked him from the bottom of his heart.

"Why are you being so polite with me? Besides, are you short on any Medicinal Pill?"

To ensure everything was foolproof, Yun Ming asked Ye Chen if he needed any pills.

Ye Chen looked embarrassed. He had used everything he owned to trade for cultivation resources. Apart from his own sword and Elder Xuan's ring, he could be said to be penniless.

Seeing Ye Chen's expression, Yun Ming knew that the kid definitely didn't have any healing pills. He immediately pulled out a whole pile of bottles and jars and shoved them all into Ye Chen's hands.

"Don't be polite with your brother. Take these spring return pills, qi gathering pills, qi condensing pills, and the jade marrow body washing paste."

Ye Chen's arms were suddenly filled with so many pills he could barely hold them all. "That's enough, that's enough! I can't consume this many."

"What kind of talk is that? What kind of talk is that? Even if you can't eat them, you have to. What if you get injured? I've bet a large sum of money on you."

"Huh? Bet what?"

"You're just a kid, you wouldn't understand. In any case, if you run out of pills, ask me. If you have any problems, tell me. Winning the match is what matters."

Ye Chen nodded seriously, "Don't worry, Brother Ming, I definitely won't let you down!"

Watching Ye Chen walk away with a huge pile of pills, Yun Ming felt very gratified. He put his hands on his hips, waved his hand, and said, "Alright, go play—ugh, pfft, go compete!"

Watching Ye Chen leave, Yun Ming thought to himself, everything should be fine now, right?

The Sect Grand Competition would last for seven days. The final day would be the battle for the top spot across all Realms. At that time, prizes would be awarded on-site, and the opening of the Luoxia Auction would be announced.

During this period, Yun Ming watched several matches and gained a basic understanding of the leading figures in each Realm.

First was Ye Chen. Ye Chen was even more powerful than he had imagined, especially when wearing the black flood dragon scale armor; he was invincible. Strangely, however, the betting odds kept rising.

Then there was Ye Chen's tough rival, who turned out to be Senior Brother Li Ping. He had defeated several long-established experts of the Qi Refining Great Circle along the way. Although he won narrowly each time, Yun Ming always felt that he was hiding something.

As for the Foundation Establishment Stage, they were almost all Personal Disciples from various peaks; there were very few Inner Sect Disciples.

For example, Xiao Hao. Xiao Hao had also broken through to the Foundation Establishment Stage not long ago, and Ye Chen had even gifted him ten Mid-Grade Spirit Stones as a congratulatory gift. Unfortunately, he lost to Lu Ming during the match.

Lu Ming's strength was extremely formidable. Opponents of the same Realm were almost all killed in one stroke by his sword. Those who could hold out for three rounds were already considered experts.

There were relatively few participants in the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage and Late Stage; most were focused on cultivation.

The few who did participate stopped at the appropriate point; there wasn't the thrill of life-and-death combat found in the matches of other Realms.

To summarize, Yun Ming didn't care about the Qi Refining Middle and Late Stages. The champion of the Qi Refining Great Circle would likely be decided between Ye Chen and Li Ping. The champion of the Foundation Establishment Early Stage would basically be Lu Ming; there wasn't much to see there. The matches of the Foundation Establishment Middle and Late Stages were more like exhibition matches, which weren't very interesting to watch.

These seven days were also very peaceful. However, the hype surrounding the Luoxia Auction grew bigger and bigger. Somehow, rumors started spreading that the Luoxia Auction would be auctioning a Xuan Ying Pill.

Once the news leaked, the Golden Core True Persons from all six major peaks arrived, and even some old fossils from Golden Core Families came out. For a time, the Luoxia Assembly gathered nearly twenty Golden Core True Persons.

Fortunately, no matter how many Golden Core True Persons there were, a single Nascent Soul True Lord could suppress them; no one dared to cause trouble on Sunset Glow Sect territory.

However, what puzzled everyone was why the Sunset Glow Sect, having a Xuan Ying Pill, would choose to auction it instead of giving it to the Golden Core True Persons of the six major peaks.

Some speculated that all six Golden Core True Persons had failed their Breakthroughs, and the Sect Master was too disappointed in them. To support a new Golden Core True Person, a massive amount of resources was needed, so they simply auctioned off the Xuan Ying Pill.

Others speculated that True Lord Luoxia must have better pills for forming the Nascent Soul, such as the nine-turn jade infant pill.

In short, there were various theories and much debate, and everyone was looking forward to the start of the Luoxia Auction.

Yun Ming also received confirmation that the Luoxia Auction would indeed be auctioning a batch of foundation establishment pills, about five of them.

Therefore, he was even more concerned about whether Ye Chen could win.

Because Li Ping's performance always made him feel uneasy.