On the high platform,
Lin Ya sat quietly, his gaze calm and steady as he watched the battle unfold.
Only the hand tucked inside his sleeve had unconsciously clenched into a tight fist.
He said nothing.
There was no need.
The rules of the arena were clear. As long as no one was killed, he had no grounds to interfere. And he knew full well—Yu Songnian would never want him to. All of his disciples were born with pride in their bones.
Yu Songnian might not speak much, but his pride was no less than anyone else's. Even as his body was riddled with wounds, the thought of surrender never once crossed his mind. Lin Ya could see it. Yu Songnian was still searching for an opening, still waiting for the right moment to strike back.
No matter who won in the end, this fight would mark a turning point for Songnian. A trial he had to face, and a lesson he would carry forward.
"Peak Lord Lin," Zhao Wuji said with a pleasant smile, "I feel a little embarrassed. My disciple's a bit too playful, it seems. And your disciple... even with such a clear gap in strength, he still refuses to yield. If this keeps up, he might really suffer damage to his foundation."
He glanced at Lin Ya, eagerly awaiting an angry outburst.
But Lin Ya's response was... unnervingly calm.
He remained seated like an unmoving glacier. When he spoke, his voice was mild. "Songnian has always had a mind of his own. He will make the right decision."
Zhao Wuji frowned. Lin Ya's composure annoyed him.
His brow twitched. Then he pushed further. "Well, rules are rules. No matter what, Xiao Jun won't take his life. Still... once we reach the stage where there are no more byes, your precious little disciple will have to face him eventually. I wonder... will she still be so lucky then?"
His voice carried a thinly veiled malice.
Yu Songnian would not be killed. There was no need.
But Yun Jin? If she were the one bleeding and battered like this, would Lin Ya still remain so calm?
When that moment came, Ruan Jun would not hold back. He would pour all his suppressed fury into that fight, and little by little, he would tear Yun Jin apart right there on the arena floor.
Just picturing it made Zhao Wuji giddy.
A mere new disciple, daring to challenge the Tianxing Sect's order and his authority? Then let her reap what she sowed.
Yun Jin...
Lin Ya's eyes flicked toward his little disciple.
She was focused on the fight, watching so intently it was as if she meant to carve every detail into her heart. And for the first time, Lin Ya sensed something different.
This time... Yun Jin was truly angry.
She had been targeted before, faced schemes and sabotage. Each time, she had retaliated without hesitation. But those were attacks against her personally, and she had never let them reach her core.
This time was different.
The one suffering was someone close to her.
Her third senior brother, who rarely spoke but always looked out for her in quiet ways.
That anger now burned in her chest, wild and unrelenting. It blazed in her eyes like fire.
Good.
She had wanted to finish Ruan Jun with a clean, decisive strike.
But now?
Now, she would make him taste every moment of the pain Yu Songnian had endured.
On the arena—
Ruan Jun was clearly growing more excited. Yu Songnian had long since lost the ability to fight back. All he could do was dodge, each movement more difficult than the last, while Ruan Jun slashed again and again, adding fresh wounds to his body.
To anyone else, this might have seemed excessive. But this was Yun Jin's senior brother.
And Ruan Jun could feel her glare.
Yes, just like that. Let her get angry. Let her fight with emotions clouding her mind.
Victory was already his, but a little insurance never hurt.
That's right.
Ruan Jun didn't just want to torment Yu Songnian. He wanted to unbalance Yun Jin, to throw her off in her upcoming match, to ensure his win by any means.
But just as Ruan Jun glanced down toward Yun Jin, a flicker of smugness in his eyes—
Yu Songnian's expression changed.
He had endured, dodged, waited—long enough to lull Ruan Jun into lowering his guard. The moment that gaze wandered...
It was time to strike.
From somewhere unknown, a dagger flashed into Yu Songnian's hand.
He took a blow head-on, blood spraying across his shoulder, but in that same instant, he vanished—reappearing behind Ruan Jun like a phantom.
The sword he had hidden for years, the one he had never drawn in any previous match... now burst forth.
This was his true blade.
The Way of Hidden Sword: the longer the blade remains sheathed, the more terrifying its power when it is drawn.
And this one—this blade had been hidden for ten years.
The moment it was unsheathed, even Ruan Jun sensed something was wrong. He tried to retreat, but he was too slow. A blinding arc of sword light slashed out, radiant and ruthless. It enveloped the entire arena in an instant, leaving the spectators unable to see what had happened.
What was that?
Zhao Wuji shot to his feet.
Yu Songnian's strike had been devastating. If Ruan Jun had really lost here, the shame would be immense.
The sword light faded.
Yu Songnian stood in the corner, face pale and body drenched in blood. But his eyes shone with a fierce light.
He had done it.
He had seized the best opportunity and delivered his most perfect blow.
Whatever came next, he had no regrets.
In the center of the stage, Ruan Jun remained standing. But now, there was a massive hole in his chest.
In the final second, he had shifted his body slightly, avoiding a fatal strike to the core. The wound closed rapidly. Moments later, only a faint scar remained.
Yu Songnian couldn't help but feel a pang of regret. The gap in cultivation was simply too wide. Even after ten years of concealment, the best he could manage was this.
But Ruan Jun...
His expression twisted into something manic.
He had come out of seclusion certain of his dominance. He was meant to crush this tournament, to stand above all others.
And yet—
He had been injured.
Injured before the top seven, by someone he had treated like a plaything.
It was a humiliation he could not accept.
Ruan Jun's eyes gleamed with madness.
Originally, he had only wanted to toy with Yu Songnian.
But now? Even if he couldn't kill him, he would destroy his cultivation, cripple him completely.
The curved blade in his hand began to shimmer with a sinister light. This time, he would hold nothing back.
Just as Ruan Jun prepared to strike, Yu Songnian—already standing near the edge—suddenly turned, smiled faintly, and jumped off the platform.
Ruan Jun froze. "What?"
The blow he had prepared launched anyway, but it only struck the barrier around the arena, stirring not even a ripple.
Beneath the platform, Yu Songnian waved his hand. "Senior Brother Ruan is indeed formidable. I admit defeat."
Ruan Jun's mental state collapsed on the spot.
Defeat?
Now? After all that?
"The victor: Ruan Jun," the referee announced.
But Ruan Jun's face was dark as storm clouds. There was no joy in his victory.
Meanwhile, the supposed loser, Yu Songnian, looked perfectly relaxed, chatting away with the other disciples of Tianjian Peak.
Ruan Jun stormed down and snarled, "Coward."
Yu Songnian gave him a small smile and ignored him.
What did he take him for?
He had already used his trump card. Knowing full well he couldn't win, should he really stay and get beaten into a pulp?
He might be quiet, but that didn't mean he was stupid.
If anything, Ruan Jun was the fool here.
Yu Songnian's gaze made that clear.
Ruan Jun choked on his own anger and spun on his heel, stalking off.
Ever since Yun Jin joined the sect, the disciples of Tianjian Peak had become increasingly unbearable.
One after another, each more maddening than the last.