696: Chapter 696 Lu Xueqi and Biyao (75)

The surrounding stands fell into an eerie silence.

The previous clamor and amazement at Su Han's array-breaking had now turned into complex whispers and gazes. Sympathy, pity, curiosity, schadenfreude... all sorts of emotions circulated through the crowd, eventually converging on the young man in green robes slowly walking toward Arena No. 3.

Venerable Ziyang's fists were tightly clenched, his knuckles turning white, with a faint purple Qi rising around him, showing his inner turmoil. Behind him, Ye Lingxiao, Lin Qingxue, and other Disciples all showed indignation and worry; Lin Qingxue even couldn't help but take a step forward, only to be gently pulled back by her Senior Sister.

"Revered Master..." Ye Lingxiao lowered his voice, a fierce glint flashing in his eyes, "The Heart-Corroding Sword Sect's Move is clearly intended to sever Junior Brother Su's path to the Dao! That Heart-Corroding Demon Seed is incredibly malicious; once it invades, the mind is damaged, the star palace is tarnished, and future cultivation will be fraught with thorns, or he might even become a Puppet who only knows how to kill! We absolutely cannot..."

"I know." Venerable Ziyang's voice was low, interrupting Ye Lingxiao. How could he not understand the danger? But the rules of the Hundred Sects Grand Assembly were there—as long as the identity was correct and forbidden tools or arts weren't used openly, the Sect had no right to interfere. The Heart-Corroding Sword Sect registering a sword Puppet as a "Disciple" was shameless, but it fell right into a gray area of the rules.

He looked toward the high platform. There, several arbitration Elders from different upper Sects with profound auras were talking in low voices, their gazes occasionally sweeping over the Heart-Corroding Sword Sect's direction with calm expressions, showing no intention of intervening.

Venerable Ziyang's heart sank. It seemed these old fellows were either unwilling to offend the Heart-Corroding Sword Sect for a mere Disciple of the Qingyun Sect, or... they also intended to use this to test the depths of Su Han's strength.

"Su Han." Venerable Ziyang transmitted his voice directly into Su Han's ear, "This battle is exceptionally dangerous. That sword Puppet feels no pain or fear and is tireless. Its Physical Body has been tempered by secret methods, making its toughness far exceed that of Cultivators of the same level. Even more terrifying is the 'Heart-Corroding Demon Seed'; it is formless and intangible, specifically attacking the mind and spirit. Once it invades, it is like a maggot on a bone, extremely difficult to remove. If you feel you cannot win, just admit defeat; no one will mock you. There will be other days; there is no need to fight over a momentary impulse."

Below the arena, Su Han's footsteps paused slightly.

He looked up toward his Revered Master, shook his head gently, and didn't reply via voice transmission, but the calm and determination in his eyes said everything.

Admit defeat?

Since he set foot on the path of cultivation, since he obtained the Primal Star Scripture Legacy in that nameless valley, since he established his Sword Intent and vowed to go further and see higher on this path—the words "retreat without a fight" had never existed in his dictionary.

Moreover, the opponent was the Heart-Corroding Sword Sect.

It was the Heart-Corroding Sword Sect that had driven the ghost-masked men to hunt him down in the wilderness, seeking to take his life.

It was the Heart-Corroding Sword Sect where Ruthless Trace's eyes showed unmasked killing intent, viewing him as an enemy that must be eliminated.

Some things, one can retreat from.

Some things, one cannot.

Su Han took a deep breath. Inside his star palace, the Primal Star Power slowly circulated, smoothing out the last ripple in his heart. He stepped onto the bluestone steps of the arena one by one, his footsteps sounding exceptionally clear in the silence.

Opposite him, Yin Kui also stepped onto the arena.

Unlike Su Han's composure, Yin Kui's movements were slightly stiff. Every step he took had a weirdly uniform rhythm, as if measured. He was tall and thin, wearing the standard gray-black sword robes of the Heart-Corroding Sword Sect, but under the robes, his body's silhouette seemed somewhat... uncoordinated, with certain parts bulging slightly as if something were embedded there.

Most striking was his face.

It was a bloodless face, the skin a deathly ashen white, eyes hollow with pupils of a murky gray-white, devoid of any spirit. His lips were tightly shut, with no rise or fall of breath. He just stood there like a human statue, with only the pitch-black long sword in his hand, its blade faintly showing dark red patterns, emitting an unsettling, cold aura.

"Heart-Corroding Sword Sect, Yin Kui."

"Qingyun Sect, Su Han." Su Han replied calmly, the starfire sword slowly leaving its sheath, the blade reflecting the sky's light and flowing with a faint starlight.

The referee was a middle-aged Cultivator from the neutral Sect "Mystic Pavilion," with a cultivation at the Late Stage of the Star Palace Realm. He looked at both sides, lingering an extra moment on Yin Kui in particular, his brow furrowing imperceptibly, but he still announced loudly:

"Sixth round, Arena No. 3, Su Han of Qingyun Sect versus Yin Kui of Heart-Corroding Sword Sect. Let the match begin!"

As the words fell, the referee drifted back, and the light barrier at the edge of the arena instantly rose, isolating the inside from the outside.

Almost the moment the light barrier closed, Yin Kui moved.

No testing, no gathering of momentum; he simply and directly thrust his sword out.

The movement was startlingly fast, completely different from his previous stiff gait! The black long sword turned into a blurred shadow, a speck of dark red light at the tip suddenly brightening like a viper's tongue, aiming straight for Su Han's throat! Before the blade even arrived, a cold, foul, and corrosive aura had already spread, making one's heart feel troubled and even causing the circulation of Star Power to become slightly sluggish.

"Heart-Corroding Sword Intent!" someone below the arena whispered.

The Heart-Corroding Sword Sect used swords to control demons; their Sword Intent was best at corroding the mind and spirit and tainting the star palace, making it malicious and hard to defend against. And what Yin Kui was using was the extremely sinister "Heart-Corroding Demon Sword" among them, with the Sword Intent already containing the characteristics of a demon seed, specifically designed to destroy a person's Dao foundation!

A cold glint flashed in Su Han's eyes. Neither dodging nor evading, he swung the starfire sword upward at an angle, the star and moon light on the blade flaring brilliantly.

"Clang—!"

The two swords collided, erupting in a piercing sound of metal clashing and sparks flying everywhere.

A cold and eerie force traveled up the blade, mixed with wisps of formless, intangible, yet bone-chilling aura that surged toward his Sea of Consciousness, attempting to drill into Su Han's body. Inside Su Han's star palace, the Primal Star Power circulated on its own, and on the foundation, the Sword Intent phantom shook slightly, shedding clear light that completely cleansed and obliterated the invading cold aura.

"Hmm?" In the direction of the Heart-Corroding Sword Sect, Ruthless Trace's brow quirked. The corrosive power of the Heart-Corroding Demon Sword was actually ineffective against Su Han? Was this boy's mind truly so stable?

On the stage, Su Han caught the sword strike, his arm feeling slightly numb. This Yin Kui's strength was unusually great, far exceeding Cultivators of the same level; as expected, his Physical Body had been enhanced by secret methods.

Without waiting for him to catch his breath, Yin Kui's second and third strikes arrived in succession! The sword technique was simple, direct, and ruthless—all life-risking killing Moves without any defense, as if he didn't care about getting injured at all. Pitch-black sword shadows like poisonous Dragons emerging from their cave wove into a net of death, covering all of Su Han's vital points. The dark red patterns flowed with the sword's momentum, emitting an increasingly thick and foul aura, and the light within the arena's range seemed to dim.

Su Han's figure shifted as he deployed the Star-Moon Steps, weaving through the sword net. The starfire sword parried, blocked, thrust, or slashed; starlight and moonlight constantly clashed with the pitch-black sword shadows, with explosions sounding continuously. He tried to find a flaw in Yin Kui's sword technique, but found that the opponent's Moves transitioned seamlessly. Though not sophisticated, by relying on that fearless, wound-for-wound fighting style, it forced him to respond repeatedly. (End of Chapter)