147: Top 10 Showdowns

When the law enforcement Disciple announced Yang Kai's ascent to the first position, the area around the Central Martial Arts Stage fell into an unprecedented silence. The wind swept through the ancient pine trees surrounding the Martial Arts Stage, bringing with it rustling sounds, but it couldn't suppress the heavy breathing of the crowd. Hundreds of Inner Sect Disciples stared wide-eyed, their gazes fixed on the tall, green-robed figure on the Martial Arts Stage, as if trying to see through him from the inside out.

"Foundation Establishment Early Stage... won against Foundation Establishment Peak Wu Feng? And became number one?" In the crowd, a Disciple who had just Broken Through to Foundation Establishment muttered to himself, his voice filled with bewilderment, as if his understanding of Cultivation had been completely overturned. In his perception, there was a chasm between Foundation Establishment Early Stage and Foundation Establishment Peak; let alone winning, being able to last ten Moves against a Foundation Establishment Peak cultivator was already extraordinary talent. But Yang Kai not only won, he won so decisively, and even after continuous successive battles, his combat power remained astonishing.

"What kind of monster is this Yang Kai?" The Disciples who had previously mocked Yang Kai for "overestimating himself" now had pale faces and instinctively shrank their necks, fearing that Yang Kai would notice them. They had initially thought Yang Kai's victory over Lin Hao was a fluke, but then Yang Kai swept through his opponents, from ninth to first, each battle redefining their understanding of "Realm disparity."

On the viewing platform, Real Person Zi Langya's teacup trembled slightly, spilling a few drops of tea onto his robes, but he remained oblivious. This Peak Master, who had seen his share of storms, now had eyes filled with shock and ecstasy. He turned to look at the three Elders beside him, his voice trembling slightly: "Heavenly Foundation Establishment... Is this the true potential of Heavenly Foundation Establishment? To be able to crush Foundation Establishment Peak right after entering Foundation Establishment, such talent, even Immortal Liuyun back then, was probably nothing more!"

The white-haired Elder stroked his beard, his gaze fixed on Yang Kai, his tone grave but barely concealing his excitement: "This child not only possesses extraordinary talent, but his Heart-Nature is also rare. He remained neither arrogant nor impatient during continuous successive battles, always responding calmly to strong enemies. Given time, he will undoubtedly become a pillar of our Flowing Cloud Sect, and may even lead the Flow Cloud Sect through the coming great catastrophe!"

On the other side, Meng Yun clenched his fists, his face flushed with excitement: "I knew Yang Kai could do it! First place! He really took first place!" Zi Ning stood beside him, a brilliant smile on her lips, but tears shimmered in her eyes—she recalled Yang Kai being questioned for his "exceptional promotion" when he first entered the Inner Sect, remembered him standing up for Meng Yun and defeating Zhao Qing, and recalled his diligent Cultivation during his half-month seclusion. Now, all the doubts had turned into admiration, and all the effort had been rewarded.

Just as everyone was immersed in shock, the voice of the Elder group, amplified by spiritual power, spread throughout the venue: "Congratulations to Yang Kai for temporarily ranking first in Qingyun Peak's Inner Sect! According to the competition rules, the rankings have been locked after three days. Next, the top ten special duels will commence! Disciples ranked first to tenth, please gather immediately at the Central Martial Arts Stage to draw your duel order!"

As the Elder group's voice faded, ten Disciples in different attire successively walked onto the Central Martial Arts Stage. Besides Yang Kai, the other nine were all veteran powerhouses of Qingyun Peak's Inner Sect. Among them, Wu Feng, ranked second, had just been defeated by Yang Kai, and his face was still a bit pale; Zhou Yi, ranked third, specialized in "Qingyun Swordplay" and was second only to Chen Tianhao in last year's competition; Zhao Yan, ranked fourth, Cultivated "Poison-type Cultivation Technique," with sinister methods, and few were willing to fight him; and the Disciple ranked tenth was actually a female Disciple named Su Qing. She had a slender figure and held a long, thin "Willow Leaf Sword." Though seemingly delicate, she managed to fight her way into the top ten among numerous male Disciples, her strength not to be underestimated.

The ten Disciples stood in a row. The Elder group took out an ancient wooden box containing ten jade tokens engraved with numbers. "The rules for the top ten duels are as follows: number '1' will fight number '10', '2' will fight '9', '3' will fight '8', '4' will fight '7', and '5' will fight '6'. Winners will enter the winners' bracket, and losers will enter the losers' bracket. The final ranking will be determined based on the number of wins." As soon as the Elder group finished speaking, the ten Disciples stepped forward one by one to draw their jade tokens.

Yang Kai stepped forward and casually took a jade token from the wooden box; it was engraved with "1"—this meant he would fight Su Qing, who drew "10." Su Qing saw the "10" jade token in her hand, and her expression changed slightly. She looked up at Yang Kai, a hint of complexity flashing in her eyes—a mix of reverence for a strong opponent and stubborn unwillingness to admit defeat.

Soon, the duel order was determined: Yang Kai (No. 1) VS Su Qing (No. 10), Wu Feng (No. 2) VS Li Mo (No. 9), Zhou Yi (No. 3) VS Zhang Lan (No. 8), Zhao Yan (No. 4) VS Wang Hao (No. 7), Chen Tao (No. 5) VS Liu Jie (No. 6).

"First duel: Yang Kai VS Su Qing, commencing immediately!" The law enforcement Disciple announced loudly, simultaneously retreating to the edge of the Martial Arts Stage.

Su Qing took a deep breath, tightened her grip on the Willow Leaf Sword, and her figure flickered, darting towards Yang Kai as lightly as a willow catkin. Her movement technique was extremely agile, her footwork unpredictable; it was precisely Qingyun Peak's top-tier movement technique, "Flowing Cloud Steps." The Willow Leaf Sword in her hand seemed to come alive, a faint blue glow emanating from its blade. Her sword Moves unfolded like continuous fine rain, stabbing towards Yang Kai's vital points—this was her most proficient "Fine Rain Swordplay," known for its speed, precision, and subtlety, which even ordinary Foundation Establishment Late Stage Disciples found hard to resist.

Yang Kai stood still, his Divine Sense having already clearly locked onto every one of Su Qing's movements. He could see the trajectory of Su Qing's footwork, predict the landing points of the Willow Leaf Sword, and even sense the subtle changes in the flow of spiritual power within her body. Faced with the incoming sword Moves, Yang Kai did not rush to counterattack; instead, he held the Azure Dragon Sword horizontally in front of him, its blade enveloped by a faint golden and silver dual-colored halo, like an impregnable barrier.

"Clang! Clang! Clang!" Crisp metallic clashes rang out continuously as the Willow Leaf Sword and the Azure Dragon Sword collided repeatedly. With each collision, Su Qing felt a gentle yet irresistible force transmit along the sword blade, making her wrist tingle slightly. Her heart grew increasingly shocked—Yang Kai was clearly just standing still and defending, yet he seemed to see through all her Moves. No matter how she changed her Moves, she couldn't break through Yang Kai's defense.

"Your swordplay is very agile, but it lacks a touch of resilience," Yang Kai's voice slowly sounded. The Azure Dragon Sword lightly flicked, precisely hitting the blade of the Willow Leaf Sword. Su Qing felt her wrist go numb, and the Willow Leaf Sword nearly slipped from her grasp. She staggered back a few steps, looking up at Yang Kai, her eyes full of unwillingness: "I haven't lost yet!"

Su Qing took a deep breath, and the spiritual power within her body surged frantically into the Willow Leaf Sword. The blue glow on the blade suddenly intensified. She formed hand seals, and her sword Moves abruptly changed; the fine rain-like Sword Qi instantly condensed, forming an arm-thick sword pillar that blasted towards Yang Kai—this was the killing Move of "Fine Rain Swordplay," "Torrential Downpour."

Yang Kai nodded slightly, a hint of admiration flashing in his eyes. Su Qing's resilience exceeded his expectations; even at a disadvantage, she was unwilling to give up. He no longer held back. The pure white Dao Foundation in his Dantian spun rapidly, and the golden and silver dual-colored magic power instantly surged throughout his body via the "shortest closed loop," fully injecting into the Azure Dragon Sword.

"Flowing Cloud Swordplay, Second Move: Moonfall."

The Azure Dragon Sword suddenly glowed with a brilliant moonlight. The sword shadow flickered, transforming into three moon shadows, like crescent moons falling from the sky, carrying chilling Sword Qi as they slashed towards the sword pillar. Wherever the moon shadows passed, the sword pillar instantly disintegrated. The three moon shadows continued to sweep towards Su Qing, but then abruptly stopped just before hitting her, the sword edge only an inch from her throat.

Su Qing froze in place, her eyes filled with disbelief. She could feel that the Moonfall Sword Qi contained immense power; if Yang Kai had wished, she would have already lost her combat capability.