Chapter 933: Chu Jian Makes His Move

The Harmonious Soul Realm, where one first touches the soul, is considered the first step toward becoming a true powerhouse. Under normal circumstances, no matter how much one accumulates, achievements are limited. Yet this person gave a feeling of being as solid as a mountain, making it easy to imagine how formidable he was.

“I’ll go!”

From the crowd, a young man let out a long cry and leaped up.

“It’s Zhao Zhongchuan from Cloud Void Academy, ranked sixth in the academy competition!”

“Being ranked sixth in Cloud Void Academy, his chances of passing are extremely high—basically a sure thing!”

“Yeah, let him go up first and see if he can withstand three moves from this Battle Master Xu. That way, we can prepare in advance!”

“Hmm, going first is clearly a disadvantage since the opponent is unknown. But with his strength, holding out for three moves should be easy, right?”

…

Seeing this young man, the crowd below lowered their voices.

Many first-year students wore solemn expressions.

During the earlier demonstration, this Zhao Zhongchuan had shown astonishing strength. Among the eighty students from the four academies, he could definitely rank in the top fifteen!

In other words, under normal competition, he would surely be selected.

With such strength, going up first would reveal just how powerful this Battle Master Xu was and provide a better reference for everyone.

“Where is your weapon?”

Seeing him come up, Xu Tai’s face showed no expression, nor any hint of contempt. He gently flicked the long sword in his hand and looked over calmly.

“Right here!”

With a flick of his palm, a long blade appeared in his hand. Zhao Zhongchuan made a light slash, and waves of air surged.

“Begin!”

Knowing his opponent was formidable, Zhao Zhongchuan didn’t hesitate. He stamped his foot on the ground, his figure shot straight forward, and his blade wind howled, instantly enveloping the area dozens of meters ahead.

“Not bad!”

Seeing him go up first, Wu Tianqiong had been a bit worried, but upon witnessing this, he couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.

This move was this student’s strongest ultimate technique. Once executed, it formed the most ferocious attack, forcing even Bridge Heaven Realm experts to temporarily avoid its edge and not dare to confront it head-on.

Knowing the importance of the three moves, Zhao Zhongchuan didn’t test the waters but used his strongest power from the start. He didn’t seem like a rigid person.

“Not bad, but… too slow!”

Facing the漫天刀影, Xu Tai didn’t tense up but instead smiled lightly. His body flickered, and in the blink of an eye, he vanished from his spot. The next moment, he appeared right in front of Zhao Zhongchuan, lightly tapping with his long sword.

Ding!

The latter felt a tremendous force surge toward him. He blocked with his large blade but couldn’t help retreating a few steps, his chest churning with blood and energy.

“Damn!”

Seeing his ultimate move broken by a single sword strike, Zhao Zhongchuan’s pupils contracted. Just as he was about to leap back to dodge the attack, he felt a flash of cold light. A sword gleam had already landed on his neck, icy and piercing.

“You lose!”

Xu Tai rested his long sword on the opponent’s neck, looking over calmly.

“I… lost!”

Zhao Zhongchuan’s face alternated between red and white.

The opponent had defeated him in just two moves, leaving him no chance to resist. If this were a life-and-death battle, his head would have already fallen.

“Th-this…”

“Zhao Zhongchuan lost?”

“He only lasted two moves… wouldn’t we be even worse?”

…

The crowd below turned pale.

Zhao Zhongchuan was among the top fifteen of all first-year students. For such a strong person to not even last two moves, others would surely find it even harder to succeed!

“It seems… the difficulty has increased!”

Wu Tianqiong clenched his fists.

He had thought that withstanding three moves would allow them to pass, giving everyone a good chance. Now, it was clear that wasn’t the case.

Battle Masters at the same level were far too powerful; they simply didn’t give any opportunity.

“How are we supposed to fight this?”

Chu Jian trembled.

This Zhao Zhongchuan was far superior to him in both true energy and techniques. Since the former couldn’t even last three moves, he would surely be no match either.

It seemed… his dream of becoming a Battle Master was bound to shatter.

“I’ll try!”

Just as he was feeling dejected, another young man leaped up.

Chu Jian recognized him.

This was a top student from the first year of Luoqing Academy, apparently ranked third. He had also made a move during the demonstration, using a pair of gold and silver rings, each move lethal and immensely powerful. With Chu Jian’s cultivation, even two of him together wouldn’t be a match.

Ding ding ding!

As his heart pounded, the two on the stage had already begun their match. Battle Master Xu Tai took the initiative this time, his long sword flickering with森森 sword light.

His movements were as precise as if measured by a ruler, with no excess or waste. The first move broke through the opponent’s gold and silver ring blockade, the second move brought him close, and the third move pierced a hole in the latter’s chest. Though not deep, blood gushed out.

“I concede!”

The young man from Luoqing Academy turned pale.

If the opponent hadn’t held back just now, he would surely be dead.

He had thought his strength was considerable, yet he too couldn’t even withstand three moves.

As this young man walked down from the stage, the atmosphere around grew oppressive. Everyone looked at each other, their expressions grim.

It was one thing for Zhao Zhongchuan to fail—he was only in the top fifteen. But this young man from Luoqing Academy could definitely rank in the top ten… yet he too couldn’t last three moves. That was truly frightening.

Earlier, many had held hope, thinking that three moves would be easier than a decisive victory. Now, it was clear that the difficulty was enough to make most people despair.

“I’ll go!”

Another student rushed up.

This one specialized in defense and evasion. As soon as the match began, he moved around, trying to last three moves. But this Xu Tai was even stronger than imagined, and faster!

In two moves, he knocked him off the stage, seriously injured.

“This guy… is flawless in every aspect…”

Zhang Xuan nodded solemnly.

This Xu Tai, worthy of being a Battle Master, had no obvious weaknesses in speed, strength, or defense. If he himself were also at the Harmonious Soul Realm and fought him, he would probably need one move to defeat him!

Frightening!

For someone at the same level to require him to use one move was enough to show his strength.

Of course, if he used the Eye of Insight or the Library of Heaven’s Path, he could kill him in half a move.

Soon, one student after another went up on stage, almost all losing without exception. By the tenth person, he barely managed to last three moves.

This one was ranked first among the students of Green Bamboo Academy, practically undefeated among first-years. Even with such strength, he only barely passed. This Xu Tai was terrifyingly strong.

“Anyone else coming up?”

For a moment, the crowd was stifled, no one daring to step forward.

“Cloud Void, Luoqing, and Green Bamboo have all sent someone to fight me. It seems Hongyuan Academy hasn’t… Who’s willing to try? Don’t you even have the courage to attempt? How can you call yourselves Battle Masters?”

Xu Tai sneered coldly, looking toward the students of Hongyuan Academy.

The students from the other three academies had all gone up, but only those from Hongyuan Academy remained motionless.

“This…”

Hearing his call, the first-year students of Hongyuan Academy turned pale, their faces flushed red.

They knew their own strength well; they were far behind Zhao Zhongchuan and the others. Going up would mean certain defeat.

“I’ll go. Lose or lose!”

Seeing no one move, Chu Jian gritted his teeth.

Either way, it was a loss. He might as well admit it. Since the opponent had called them out, if they didn’t step up, Hongyuan Academy would lose face.

With a leap, he jumped onto the stage.

“At least you have courage…” Xu Tai smiled lightly and raised his eyelids. “Take out your weapon!”

“Weapon? No need! Let me meet the expert of the Battle Master Hall with my bare hands!”

Chu Jian shook his head.

No matter how he fought, he would lose. Using a weapon or not made no difference; he might as well save his strength.

“No weapon? Don’t worry, I won’t go easy, and I won’t be polite!”

Seeing him without a weapon, Xu Tai shook his head but didn’t put away his long sword. Instead, he flicked his wrist, producing a whining sound.

Zzzt!

Sword energy cut through the air, stabbing toward him.

Xu Tai didn’t underestimate him for lacking a weapon; he still used his strongest combat power in one move.

The sword edge loomed, piercingly cold. Before it even reached him, Chu Jian’s hair stood on end, and his face turned pale.

He had seen the opponent’s sword strikes earlier; he couldn’t dodge or block them. He was about to concede when he suddenly recalled Dean Zhang’s earlier guidance.

“Since it’s a loss either way, why admit defeat willingly? Maybe if I try harder, I can last a while…”

As this thought emerged, Dean Zhang’s explanations of martial techniques and insights into combat flowed through his mind, word by word.

“His sword is clean and pure, emanating from the heart. According to the Dean, it comes from the heart. To break this sword technique, I need to observe his intent, the purpose of his strike, and the power it can unleash…”

“I’ve already seen the power of the sword technique. The intent is obvious: the sword energy covers all my acupoints. If I counterattack, I’ll surely fall into his trap…”

“According to the Dean’s explanation, this sword move is meant to force me to reveal a flaw. To break it… I just need to force him to reveal a flaw earlier than me!”

These thoughts flowed through his mind continuously. Though it sounds complicated, it all happened in an instant.

When Dean Zhang had explained earlier, he hadn’t understood deeply. Now, he suddenly realized that every word was a golden saying.

Recalling these words, the previously intricate and incomprehensible sword technique now flowed slowly before his eyes, clear and visible. The opponent’s intent in striking, the direction of the thrust—no longer held any secrets.

“The Dean said this move should be countered like this. Let’s do it…”

Gritting his teeth, facing the opponent’s sword light, he didn’t dodge. Instead, he suddenly curled his body and jabbed forward with his index finger.

Pfft!

Then he heard a sound. His fingertip seemed to hit something. Chu Jian stepped back and hurriedly looked forward.

He saw that Xu Tai, the one he was fighting, was lying on the ground, his eyes rolled back, spitting out mouthfuls of blood.

“This…”

Seeing that the person whom so many experts couldn’t defeat was now lying on the ground after a casual finger jab, Chu Jian was completely stunned.

Could this be a scam to extort money…