Mountain Venerable and Sea Immortal

As dawn broke and sunlight bathed the sacred mountain, the spiritual light of the ten arenas surged, and the layers of barriers remained as solid as if cast in stone. The battle for the top twenty officially began, and the atmosphere in the arena was extremely tense. Countless eyes were fixed on the arena, not daring to look away for even a moment.

……

Yunxi versus Su Chen.

The highly anticipated battle took place ahead of schedule.

Yunxi, clad in flowing white robes, wielded a long sword imbued with the essence of water. With a light touch of her toes, she gracefully landed in the center of the arena. Her figure was as elegant as a crane, and her aura was as clear as a spring, untouched by the dust of the world.

Su Chen slowly stepped onto the stage, his black robe fluttering in the wind. A fierce aura surged in his eyes, and a faint, dark purple glint flashed by, making him mysterious and unpredictable.

On the high platform, Elder Hailan lightly tapped the armrest with his fingertips, his eyes swirling with hidden schemes; Guanhai Daoist frowned, his divine sense already firmly locked onto the movements of the arena.

"Yunxi, out of consideration for our shared sect, if you admit defeat now, I can still spare you some dignity." Su Chen's tone was arrogant, and dark purple spiritual energy slowly rose around him. "Otherwise, today I will let you know the price of being my enemy."

Yunxi held her sword horizontally in front of her chest, her clear, cold voice echoing in all directions: "Evil and heretical, do you even deserve to talk about dignity? Go ahead and attack."

Before he finished speaking, Su Chen suddenly sprang up, his sharp sword energy aimed straight at her face, unstoppable.

Yunxi remained calm and composed, her water sword blocking in front of her. Her water elemental energy condensed into layers of water curtains, which exploded with a bang as the sword energy struck, splashing water everywhere.

The two instantly engaged in a fierce battle.

The dark purple sword energy was fierce and powerful, while the water shadows were graceful and ethereal. The two, one strong and one gentle, intertwined and crisscrossed on the arena, dazzling the eyes.

Yunxi's swordplay was light and graceful, her defense impenetrable; Su Chen's attacks were fierce and relentless, pressing forward step by step, yet he could never break through her defenses.

After dozens of rounds of fighting, Su Chen was unable to gain the upper hand, and his expression became increasingly gloomy and terrifying.

The audience erupted in discussion; no one had expected that Yunxi could hold out against the rising star Su Chen for so long.

"Prepare to die!"

Su Chen roared, and his dark purple aura suddenly surged, forcibly breaking through the seventh level of Qi Refining and faintly touching the eighth level of Qi Refining.

His inner energy surged wildly in his palm, and a white blade slashed out, its power far exceeding that of cultivators of the same level.

Yunxi's expression changed slightly, and she hurriedly dodged to the side. Her clothes were still hit by the sword energy, and a small tear appeared on them.

"How dare you forcibly accelerate your cultivation!"

Su Chen grinned maliciously, no longer bothering to hide his true feelings, and quickly formed a strange hand seal that had never been seen before in the orthodox sword techniques of Laoshan.

In an instant, evil mist enveloped him, a foul wind swept over him, and the dark purple spiritual energy became chilling and bone-chilling, with extremely strong corrosive power.

"Soul-Eating Forbidden Technique!"

An older disciple exclaimed in shock, "This is a forbidden technique! It diminishes lifespan and corrupts spiritual roots; it's clearly an evil and heretical art!"

The entire audience was stunned.

Within the eerie mist, Su Chen's eyes were bloodshot and his voice was hoarse and eerie: "Yun Xi, prepare to die!"

He unleashed a powerful palm strike, carrying immense evil energy. Wherever it passed, the arena's barrier crackled and hissed, and the surrounding spiritual energy became completely chaotic.

That evil power was exceptionally domineering; it could not only harm the physical body but also directly erode the divine consciousness.

Yunxi's heart tightened, and she activated her water spirit root with all her might, condensing pure spiritual energy into a huge water shield to block in front of her.

"Water Cloud Demon-Slaying Technique!"

The water shield is crystal clear and naturally restrains the power of evil.

But the moment the two forces collided, the water shield turned black and melted at a speed visible to the naked eye, and the evil power seeped wildly through the cracks.

"puff--"

Yunxi groaned, forced back several steps by the shock, a trickle of blood spilling from the corner of her mouth, and her spiritual energy circulation suddenly became sluggish.

Su Chen pressed his advantage, his evil power surging once more as he formed hand seals: "Yin Evil Slash!"

The white blade, imbued with soul-devouring power, slashed towards Yunxi's head with extreme ruthlessness, aiming to decide her life or death in one strike.

Below the stage, Lin Yan's eyes suddenly turned cold, and his spiritual energy tensed, ready to go on stage to save people at any moment.

Yi Azhu's face turned pale, and she clenched her fists in anxiety; Ye Qing and Chen Dagang looked solemn, and the whole place was in an uproar.

On the high platform, Master Qingxuan suddenly stood up and shouted sternly, "Su Chen! How dare you use forbidden and evil techniques during the sect's grand ceremony! How insolent!"

Elder Hailan immediately intervened, saying, "Sect Leader, please calm down. This disciple only acted impulsively in the heat of the moment; I did not practice any evil arts. Let's wait until the competition is over before making a judgment!"

Just as the blade was about to fall, Yunxi suppressed the discomfort in her body, a cold light flashed in her eyes, and she pushed her water spirit root to its limit.

The purest and cleanest water elemental energy is the nemesis of evil forces.

"The sword of the vast sea, purifying evil and cleansing impurities!"

She drew her longsword through the air, and the swirling water droplets condensed into a clear, pristine sword rainbow, directly meeting the sinister slash.

With a single slash, the light intensified dramatically.

"boom--!"

The forces of good and evil clashed violently, the arena trembled, the evil mist was torn apart by the sword light, and the dark aura retreated step by step.

Su Chen cried out in pain as he was attacked by the evil force. His arm quickly turned black and went numb, and he had to retreat repeatedly.

Although Yunxi won by one move, she also exhausted a great deal of strength. Her body swayed slightly, and her face was as pale as paper.

Su Chen was both shocked and furious. Looking at his blackened arm, then at the icy-faced Master Qingxuan on the high platform, a sudden panic gripped his heart, yet he still roared with feigned bravado, "You only won because of the elemental advantage, you didn't truly win!"

Master Qingxuan could no longer contain himself. A surge of spiritual power descended from the sky, and he declared sternly:

"Su Chen used forbidden and evil techniques, violating the sect rules. Yun Xi wins this battle! He is hereby detained by the Enforcement Hall pending trial!"

His words sealed the deal, and the entire audience erupted in cheers.

Su Chen's face was ashen, he glared venomously at Yun Xi, then viciously swept his gaze toward Lin Yan, his eyes filled with boundless hatred.

Elder Hailan sat on the high platform with a livid face, feeling as if he were sitting on pins and needles.

Lin Yan flashed and leaped onto the arena.

The dark robes swept through the air without any extra force, landing steadily beside Yunxi. He raised his hand and channeled a gentle and mellow spiritual energy into her, firmly supporting her swaying figure.

You are injured.

His tone was calm, yet it conveyed an undeniable sense of support.

Yunxi was already exhausted of spiritual energy, but when she was enveloped by this pure spiritual energy, her disordered internal energy calmed down considerably, and her pale cheeks warmed up slightly. She said in a low voice, "It's nothing, just that my spiritual energy was overdrawn."

The crowd below stirred again when they saw Lin Yan take the stage.

Everyone knows that although Lin Yan has always kept a low profile, his cultivation level is unfathomable.

Su Chen was restrained by two disciples on either side of him, his spiritual power sealed, rendering him unable to move. Seeing this, his eyes widened in fury, and he roared, "Lin Yan! You dare protect her? I, Su Chen, will remember this humiliation and repay you a hundredfold!"

Lin Yan raised her eyes and glanced at him indifferently.

One glance was enough to feel as if a cold blade was at his neck.

Su Chen froze, a metallic taste rising in his throat. He was almost forced to kneel down by the invisible pressure, and the rest of his harsh words got stuck in his throat, unable to be uttered.

"Using forbidden techniques to harm fellow disciples, showing no remorse."

Lin Yan's voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly throughout the room, "Whether you hold a grudge or not is irrelevant. But today, you won't have another chance to speak."

As soon as he finished speaking, he slightly raised his fingertips, and a wisp of invisible spiritual energy shot out, directly sealing Su Chen's speech acupoint.

Su Chen's eyes widened, his face contorted in a ferocious grimace, but he could only let out muffled groans and could no longer utter a single shout.

On the high platform, Elder Hailan's face was so gloomy it was almost dripping with water, his knuckles clenched so tightly they turned white, but he dared not make a move because of the presence of True Person Qingxuan.

The Taoist Guanhai stroked his beard and nodded, his gaze towards Lin Yan now filled with admiration.

Master Qingxuan said in a deep voice, "Take him away and hand him over to the Enforcement Hall for rigorous interrogation and a thorough investigation into the source of the forbidden technique!"

Two enforcement disciples responded in unison, lifted the struggling Su Chen, leaped off the arena, and escorted him straight towards the Enforcement Hall. Su Chen was forcibly dragged along, his resentful gaze fixed on Yun Xi and Lin Yan's backs, as if he wanted to pierce through them.

After Su Chen's figure disappeared, Lin Yan withdrew his gaze, turned to look at Yun Xi, and softened his tone: "There are too many people and too much spiritual energy here, which is not conducive to healing. I will take you back."

Yunxi nodded slightly and put away the Water Rhyme Longsword. The spiritual energy in her body was still stagnant. When she fought against the Soul-Eating Forbidden Technique, a trace of evil power had still invaded her meridians. If she did not purify it in time, it might cause future troubles.

Seeing this, Lin Yan said no more, and directly reached out to support her forearm, using his own spiritual energy as a guide to protect her meridians. The two walked off the arena side by side.

From below the stage, Yi Azhu rushed forward, her face full of worry: "Sister Yunxi, are you alright? You scared me to death!"

Ye Qing and Chen Dagang followed closely behind.

Amidst the crowd, several discreet glances swept across, landing on Lin Yan and Yun Xi's clasped hands before quickly withdrawing and disappearing into the shadows, seemingly plotting something.