Regarding Yan Bing’s choice.
Not only Xu Taiping and his group, but even the disciples from various peaks watching from the Cloud Pavilion were not surprised.
“Picking on the weak, isn’t First Peak afraid of being ridiculed for winning without honor?”
“What do you know? The grand competition occurs once every six years; of course, you pick the opponent you’re most confident against. As long as you win in the end, who cares how you won?”
“With this, Seventh Peak will be stopped in the second round again.”
“How could Seventh Peak be a match for First Peak? There’s nothing worth watching in this fight.”
“Seventh Peak is really unlucky. If they hadn’t targeted First Peak so much on normal days, they might have had a chance at second place.”
Aside from a few who felt First Peak’s victory was dishonorable, most reveled in schadenfreude.
Especially those disciples from the peaks that had already lost, seeing the disciples from Seventh Peak, whom they mocked on regular days, advancing to the second round, felt bitter and naturally wished for Seventh Peak’s defeat.
And the more miserable the defeat, the better.
Although separated by some distance, cultivators have excellent eyesight and hearing, so these mocking and ridiculing voices eventually reached the ears of the four disciples from Seventh Peak.
“These people, they just can’t stand to see others do well, can they?”
Zhao Linglong muttered unhappily.
“Don’t get angry with them. Right now, there’s only one thing you should be thinking about: how to win this match.”
Jiang Zhi gently patted Zhao Linglong’s shoulder, speaking to her in a soft and gentle voice.
“Yes, Senior Sister, you’re right.”
Zhao Linglong took Jiang Zhi’s hand.
“Taiping, how’s your recovery?”
Senior Brother Qingxiao asked Xu Taiping at this moment.
“I’ve mostly recovered.”
Xu Taiping did not intend to hide his current condition from Qingxiao.
“Your martial body has really come in handy this time.”
Hearing this, Qingxiao nodded in satisfaction, attributing Xu Taiping’s quick recovery to his physique.
In a sense, Senior Brother Qingxiao wasn’t wrong, Xu Taiping thought to himself.
…
“The second round, the first match, First Peak against Seventh Peak. Since First Peak was the champion of the last competition, they will send a disciple to the stage first.”
After confirming the opponents, Black Dragon Elder announced loudly to everyone once again.
Hearing this, everyone’s gaze fell on First Peak.
Everyone wanted to see who they would send to the stage first.
At that moment, a tall, sword-bearing youth leaped onto the stage.
“First Peak disciple, Ye Xuan, greets the Black Dragon Elder.”
The youth bowed to the Black Dragon Elder.
To this, everyone felt it was within expectations.
“Seventh Peak will probably send Xu Taiping to the stage, right?”
“Although Xu Taiping has beaten Ye Xuan once in the Seventh Peak selection, this match is about sword control, and Ye Xuan’s sword can now bear at least two hundred pounds. Xu Taiping struggled with one hundred and thirty pounds last time; he’s definitely going to lose this match.”
Because of the grudge between Xu Taiping and Ye Xuan, many people started discussing at this point.
Especially some disciples who had missed that sword inquiry, they all wanted to see another match between Xu Taiping and Ye Xuan.
“First Peak’s Ye Xuan, how many pounds of iron weights do you choose?”
At this moment, the Black Dragon Elder asked again.
“I would like…”
Ye Xuan hesitated for a moment, then turned his head and looked at Xu Taiping, saying:
“I choose two hundred and sixty-two pounds of iron weights!”
As soon as these words came out, an uproar arose from the Cloud Pavilion.
Although Ye Xuan was exceptionally talented, he had only been practicing for three years and had been learning the sword for just one year. Two hundred and sixty-two pounds was not a small number.
More importantly, his choice of two hundred and sixty-two pounds was exactly double the weight Xu Taiping had managed in the previous round.
This was clearly a provocation towards Xu Taiping.
Originally just there for the excitement, the crowd of disciples began to jeer loudly.
“Clang!”
At that moment, Ye Xuan’s flying sword unsheathed, and after drawing a smooth arc beside him, it flew steadily towards the Black Dragon Elder.
It was evident that after his previous defeat, Ye Xuan had become much less arrogant.
Without another word, the Black Dragon Elder hung a hundred-pound iron weight on Ye Xuan’s flying sword.
“Hum…”
The humming of the vibrating sword followed.
Ye Xuan’s face also changed from relaxed to strained.
But that was all.
Seeing how easily he managed it, the crowd was surprised and involuntarily turned their sympathetic gazes towards Xu Taiping below the stage.
However, at this moment, Xu Taiping was more interested in whether he could lift the weight of two hundred and sixty-two pounds than in Ye Xuan’s choice.
“I should… barely be able to manage it.”
He murmured to himself.
This wasn’t arrogance, but the confidence given to him by the Yan Emperor’s Furnace Refining Technique.
Having just recovered from the agony of soul-crying, he could clearly feel his connection with the sword becoming clearer. He had secretly tried controlling his iron weights with his sword and found that the symptoms of soul-crying were not as intense as before.
“Clang!” As he was thinking, Ye Xuan’s flying sword, now carrying two hundred and sixty-two pounds of iron weights, soared out.
Although Ye Xuan’s face was as pale as paper, his flying sword was remarkably stable, reaching a cliff a hundred yards high in just a moment.
Then, the sound of the sword “shrieking” as it moved across the cliff face was incessant.
Ye Xuan’s effortless performance left the crowd of disciples tongue-tied.
“Is this what a genius looks like?”
Many disciples showed a look of despair in their eyes.
Ye Xuan’s performance today dealt a heavy blow to many disciples who believed in the power of hard work over talent.
It forced them to face the harsh reality once again—that in the path of cultivation, talent far outweighs effort.