27: Gradually revealing its brilliance

The news of the Minor Competition was like a stone thrown into a calm lake, stirring up huge waves in the Outer Court. All the Disciples were rubbing their hands in anticipation, eager to make a name for themselves in this triennial event, obtain rich rewards, and perhaps even catch the eye of an Inner Court Elder to reach the heavens in a single bound.

Ye Chen's life remained disciplined and fulfilling, his rhythm undisturbed by the approaching Minor Competition. He knew well that cramming at the last minute had limited effect; true confidence came from the bit-by-bit accumulation of daily effort.

His cultivation of the "Qingyuan Sword Foundation" had entered the right track, his spiritual power becoming increasingly pure and robust, steadily advancing toward the Kaiyuan Realm Second Level. The optimized "Wind Shadow Sword Art" became more and more proficient, and combined with the "Flowing Wind Fleeting Shadow" Sword Intent, his speed and unpredictability reached a new height. He even began to try cautiously integrating that faint trace of "Nirvana" Sword Intent into his regular sword moves; although he couldn't easily use its annihilation properties, it could imbue his moves with a soul-shaking Concept.

On this day, he went to the Mission Hall to hand in a mission for hunting a "Golden-Thread Python." The Golden-Thread Python was a Second-Tier Peak Yao Beast with thick skin and flesh, capable of spitting a poisonous mist that could corrode metal, making it extremely difficult to deal with. It took Ye Chen some effort, relying on the extreme speed of "Flowing Wind Fleeting Shadow" and the sharpness of the qingfeng sword, to find its seven-inch weak point and kill it with a single strike.

When he handed over the intact Golden-Thread Python tendon and fangs, the Deacon in charge of verification once again showed a look of surprise. Lately, Ye Chen had been completing more and more high-difficulty missions with staggering efficiency, and his reputation had already spread through the Outer Court, even attracting the attention of some Inner Court Disciples.

"Junior Brother Ye's strength is advancing rapidly; the youth are indeed to be feared," the Deacon remarked while allocating points.

Ye Chen smiled slightly and was about to say a few polite words when a slightly flippant voice came from behind him.

"Oh? So this is the Ye Chen who's been making such a splash lately? Doesn't look like much."

Ye Chen turned around to see three Disciples wearing Inner Court robes walking toward him. The leader had a fair complexion and held a folding fan, acting elegantly while fanning himself, but his eyes held undisguised scrutiny and arrogance. His cultivation was remarkably at the Kaiyuan Realm Fourth Level. The two behind him were both at the Kaiyuan Realm Third Level.

Seeing this, the surrounding Disciples waiting to hand in missions stepped aside, their faces showing awe. To Outer Court Disciples, Inner Court Disciples were lofty existences.

The Deacon's expression changed slightly, and he hurriedly stood up to salute, "Greetings, Senior Brother Zhou."

The youth with the fan was named Zhou Tong. He was somewhat famous in the Inner Court and took pride in the fact that his older brother, Zhou Hao, was a powerhouse ranked in the top twenty of the Inner Court.

Zhou Tong waved his hand, his gaze still fixed on Ye Chen. He snapped his fan shut and pointed it at the Golden-Thread Python Materials just handed in. "A Second-Tier Peak Golden-Thread Python? Good luck. However, you won't get far relying on a bit of luck and clever tricks."

The contempt in his tone was obvious; he clearly took Ye Chen for someone who relied on movement speed and clever tricks.

Ye Chen's expression remained calm, and he did not get angry. This kind of pointless verbal sparring was meaningless. He put away his identity jade token and turned to leave.

"Stop right there!" Seeing that Ye Chen dared to ignore him, Zhou Tong's face darkened. "Didn't you hear me talking to you?"

Ye Chen paused his steps and said without turning back, "I heard you. And then?"

Enraged by his indifferent attitude, Zhou Tong sneered, "I heard your sword techniques are decent, and even that trash Zhao Gan lost to you. It just so happens that Senior Brother here is free today. I'll give you a few pointers so you know what the true Inner Court standard is!"

The two Disciples behind him also laughed in agreement, clearly wanting to see Ye Chen make a fool of himself.

The surrounding Outer Court Disciples all held their breath, sweating for Ye Chen. Although Zhou Tong was arrogant, his strength was genuinely at the Kaiyuan Realm Fourth Level, far beyond what Zhao Gan could compare to.

Ye Chen slowly turned around and looked at Zhou Tong calmly. "Pointers? From you?"

Zhou Tong was stunned, then laughed in extreme anger. "Good! Very good! How arrogant! If I don't teach you a lesson today, I'm afraid you won't know the height of the heavens or the depth of the earth!"

The folding fan in his hand snapped open with a "shua." The ribs of the fan were actually made of refined steel, their edges flashing with a cold light—it was clearly a high-grade spirit weapon!

"Take this!"

Zhou Tong gave a low shout, his figure blurring as the folding fan traced a strange arc, cutting straight for Ye Chen's neck! Before the fan even arrived, a sharp blast of Qi rushed toward him! He had already practiced this "Flowing Cloud Fan Technique" to Major Achievement; it was swift and ruthless, and he had defeated many opponents of the same rank with it.

Facing this sudden attack, Ye Chen's eyes turned slightly cold. He didn't want to cause trouble, but now that it had come to his door, he would never shrink from a fight!

He didn't even reach for the qingfeng sword on his back.

Just as the steel folding fan was about to strike his body, Ye Chen moved! His movements didn't look fast; he simply turned his body and raised his hand.

However, it was this seemingly simple movement that avoided the sharpest part of the fan blade with exquisite precision. At the same time, he pressed his index and middle fingers together, like a spirit snake emerging from its hole, striking later but arriving first, accurately hitting a node on the fan's surface where the force was weakest!

"Ding!"

A crisp ringing sound!

Zhou Tong felt an incredibly sharp yet soft and lingering force transmit through the fan. His entire arm suddenly went numb, his blood surged, and his forward momentum was abruptly halted! The spiritual power he had poured into the fan seemed to hit an invisible wall and instantly dissipated!

"What?!" Zhou Tong's face changed drastically, his eyes filled with disbelief. His certain-kill strike had been effortlessly neutralized by the opponent using only two fingers?

Before he could change his move, Ye Chen's two fingers slid down like a maggot on a bone, following the fan's ribs toward his wrist!

Zhou Tong was horrified and wanted to pull back, but he felt his wrist clamped as if by iron pincers, and a domineering force instantly surged through!

"Crack!"

The faint sound of a bone fracturing rang out!

"Ah!" Zhou Tong let out a cry of pain as the folding fan fell from his hand. He clutched his wrist and staggered back, his face pale, looking at Ye Chen as if he were a ghost!

Quiet!

Inside the Mission Hall, there was a deathly silence!

Everyone watched this scene in stunned silence. Kaiyuan Realm Fourth Level Zhou Tong had his weapon snatched and even... had his wrist snapped by Ye Chen's bare hands in a single exchange?

How was this possible?!

The two Inner Court Disciples behind Zhou Tong were also dumbfounded. Once they regained their senses, they were both shocked and angry, yet they didn't dare to step forward.

Ye Chen bent down, picked up the steel folding fan, weighed it in his hand, and then released spiritual power from his palm.

"Crack... Bang!"

The decent-quality spirit weapon folding fan was actually shattered by him, turning into a pile of scrap metal that scattered on the ground.

"Pointers?" Ye Chen threw the scrap metal at Zhou Tong's feet, his tone still flat. "You're not qualified."

Having said that, he didn't spare another glance at the ashen-faced Zhou Tong and turned to walk straight out of the Mission Hall.

It wasn't until his figure disappeared that a deafening uproar erupted in the Mission Hall!

"My god! Breaking a spirit weapon with bare hands! Is he really at the Kaiyuan Realm First Layer?"

"Zhou Tong was practically like a child in front of him!"

"The Inner Court has really lost face this time!"

Listening to the surrounding discussions, feeling the sharp pain in his wrist and the strange looks from those around him, Zhou Tong was mortified and wished he could find a hole to crawl into. He stared venomously at the direction Ye Chen had left and gritted his teeth, "Ye Chen! You just wait! At the Minor Competition, Senior Brother Lin Hong will never let you off!"

However, his harsh words seemed so hollow and weak in the face of the absolute strength Ye Chen had displayed.

After this incident, Ye Chen's prestige in the Outer Court reached an unprecedented height. No one dared to view him as a mere newcomer Disciple anymore, and many even began to secretly speculate how far he could go in the upcoming Minor Competition.

Could he... challenge those top Outer Court geniuses who had long been famous and even touched the threshold of the Linghai Realm?

As for Ye Chen himself, he had returned to his courtyard to continue his bitter cultivation.

He didn't take a clown like Zhou Tong to heart. His goal was always the high-and-mighty Lin Hong and the lingering Lin Batian behind him.

He sat cross-legged, his consciousness sinking into the System once again.

"sword intent furnace, continue Fusion!"

[Instruction received, inputting Sword Intent fragments... Fusion beginning...]

In his mind, the illusory furnace blazed with fire again, and various attributes of Sword Intent drifted and collided within it.

Ye Chen could feel his understanding of the Dao of the sword constantly deepening and broadening at a startling speed.

The qingfeng sword stood quietly to the side, its blade humming slightly, as if sensing its master's rising sword Realm and undergoing a quiet transformation of its own.

The edge could no longer be hidden.

It only awaited the time of the Minor Competition to shock the entire field!