After being jilted by the saintess at the beginning, why is she crying?

"According to sect rules, sparring among fellow disciples must not result in death. Stop when you've made your move, understand?"

"clear!"

Zhou Hong grinned maliciously, readily agreeing verbally, but his eyes were filled with murderous intent.

Should we stop here?

Ah, once you're on the dueling stage, life and death are left to fate!

If you accidentally kill someone, at most you'll be fined a few months' salary, what else can you do?

Seeing that the two were ready, the gray-robed elder waved his hand and said in a deep voice:

"start!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhou Hong's eyes suddenly erupted with killing intent!

"Boy, back in those mountains, when you almost got us both killed, did you ever imagine this day would come!"

He roared, his voice so loud that the disciples below the stage had their ears ringing.

Lin Fengmian chuckled lightly, his tone casual:

"Aren't you still alive and well? Besides... weren't you the ones who started it?"

"you--!"

Seeing his nonchalant attitude, Zhou Hong's anger intensified.

This bastard almost killed me and my junior brother, and now he still dares to be so arrogant!

"Go to hell!"

He was too lazy to waste any more words, and his hands formed a hand seal, causing his spiritual energy to surge wildly!

"Firebird Technique!"

A fiery red bird materialized in front of him, its wings spread, radiating heat, and it swooped down on Lin Fengmian!

The firebird was incredibly fast; wherever it passed, the air was scorched and distorted!

Upon seeing this, the disciples below the stage all gasped in shock.

"What a powerful Firebird Technique! This attack must be at the full strength of a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator!"

"As expected of a senior brother from the Pill Refining Peak, his mastery of fire-based magic is truly remarkable!"

"Then Lin Fengmian is finished..."

however--

Lin Fengmian remained expressionless, made a sword incantation with his hand, and pointed forward.

"go."

A fierce and unparalleled sword aura shot out from his fingertips, its azure light like a rainbow, tearing through the air!

"boom--!"

The sword energy and the firebird collided violently in mid-air!

Flames exploded, and sword energy shot out in all directions!

A visible shockwave exploded from the point of impact, spreading outwards, but was completely blocked by the array restrictions of the dueling arena.

The smoke and dust cleared.

The firebird and the sword energy vanished into nothingness at the same time.

Tie!

A gasp of surprise erupted from the audience!

"Holy crap! He caught it?!"

"A Foundation Establishment cultivator in the early stage actually withstood an attack from a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator?!"

"This Lin Fengmian... he's got something!"

"No wonder he could captivate both saintesses; he really does have some skills!"

Exclamations rose and fell, and all the gazes directed at Lin Fengmian changed.

Even the gray-robed elder on the stage showed a hint of surprise in his eyes.

This young man... the solidity of his sword energy far surpasses that of an ordinary early Foundation Establishment stage cultivator.

No wonder he dared to accept this duel; he must have some confidence.

However, only Lin Fengmian himself knew the truth—

He only used 50% of his spiritual power in that sword strike.

The opponent's foundation is truly weak.

The Firebird Technique appeared impressive, but in reality, its spiritual energy was weak and its power was mediocre.

Let alone 50%, even if it only uses 30% of its spiritual power, it should be able to withstand it.

Lin Fengmian understood the situation and a slight smile appeared on his lips.

But he wasn't in a hurry.

What he needs to do now is not to chop the other person in half with a single sword strike.

That would be too obvious and too easy to arouse suspicion.

He wanted to see just how long that woman could endure.

The best outcome would be to be forced to use a deadly move by the other party, thus killing them in a logical and natural way.

That way, even if someone investigates, they won't be able to find fault with it.

When Zhou Hong saw that his full-force attack had been easily parried by Lin Fengmian, his face immediately turned extremely ugly.

He thought that even if this attack couldn't seriously injure his opponent, it would at least leave him in a sorry state.

did not expect……

It ended in a draw?

The gasps of surprise from the disciples below the stage sounded like mockery to him.

He, a disciple of the Pill Refining Peak with a late Foundation Establishment cultivation level, actually fought to a draw with a newcomer in the early Foundation Establishment stage.

If this gets out, where will Zhou Hong put his face?

"Great...very good!"

Zhou Hong gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with even more murderous intent.

"Since you want to die, then I'll grant your wish!"

He roared, and his aura suddenly surged!

"Burning in flames!"

Streams of crimson flames surged from his body, instantly covering his entire form!

Flames leaped and heat waves were intense, making his figure appear as if a god of fire had descended to earth!

Upon seeing this, the disciples below the stage gasped in surprise once again.

"This is... a secret technique of the Pill Refining Peak? Using oneself as a furnace, drawing in the fire of the pill, greatly increasing combat power in a short period of time!"

"Senior Brother Zhou is going all out!"

"Can Lin Fengmian... withstand it?"

Zhou Hong pushed off with his feet, transforming into a fiery meteor as he hurtled toward Lin Fengmian!

The speed is astonishing!

Lin Fengmian's expression remained unchanged. He lightly touched the ground with his feet and gracefully retreated.

At the same time, he made another sword gesture, and a thin sword aura shot out, not very powerful, but with an extremely tricky angle.

Zhou Hong casually waved his hand, and a burst of flame dispersed the sword energy.

"Is that all you've got?!"

He roared, and his attacks became increasingly fierce.

Flaming fist shadows, flaming palm prints, flaming leg whips... poured down on Lin Fengmian like a storm!

Lin Fengmian simply kept dodging, occasionally releasing a few sword energies with very little power that barely grazed Zhou Hong's body without causing any real damage.

To outsiders, he appeared to be completely suppressed.

"Sigh... I thought it would be something amazing, but it's just like this?"

"Being completely dominated and unable to even fight back, isn't that incredibly humiliating?"

"As expected, there is still a difference between the early and late stages of Foundation Establishment..."

The disciples below the stage shook their heads, their voices filled with disappointment.

But Lin Fengmian turned a deaf ear to these discussions.

He dodged while carefully observing Zhou Hong's attacks.

The more I look at it, the clearer I understand it.

This person's foundation is truly extremely fragile.

Each strike appeared powerful, but in reality, the spiritual energy was scattered, leaving numerous flaws.

Not to mention that his physique is now comparable to that of a second-level body cultivator, even if it were just a contest of spiritual power, he was confident that he could defeat him within ten moves.

But he wasn't in a hurry.

He has to wait.

Wait until Zhou Hong completely loses his mind, wait until he has no more reservations in his offensive, wait for that most crucial moment...

Then, a single sword strike to the throat.

Seeing that Lin Fengmian only knew how to dodge, Zhou Hong became increasingly irritated.

"All you do is dodge?! If you're so capable, take one of my attacks head-on!"

He roared, his attacks becoming increasingly ferocious, flames shooting out, yet he couldn't even touch the hem of Lin Fengmian's clothes.

This kid... how come he's as slippery as an eel?!

Each time his attack was about to hit, he narrowly dodged it, as if he were being toyed with!

This feeling almost drove Zhou Hong mad.

Just then—

That's enough.

A clear, cold voice suddenly rang out above the dueling platform.

The sound wasn't loud, but it clearly reached everyone's ears.

Immediately afterwards, a white figure descended from the sky and landed steadily in the center of the dueling platform.

She wore a moon-white long dress, her black hair cascaded down her back, and her face was veiled, revealing only a pair of beautiful eyes that were as cold and aloof as frost.