Chapter 138: Intolerable Bullying

The tournament had begun rather randomly. The initial matches paired up duos, while the next might feature a group of five. Trios and quartets were equally likely.

Beside the arena stood a massive mirror, upon which floated the names of the combatants for the upcoming matches.

Seeing their names drawing closer, Feng Hanxiao was practically bursting with excitement.

"Xuanxuan, leave the other two to us. Don't worry about dealing with Jiyue; we will definitely not hold you back."

With that, she glanced at Qin Yuzhou. "Little Qin, you better pull your weight!"

"Rest assured, if I can't hold my own, we still have Zhan Tianlang! I've been training it quite well lately." Jiyue's team possessed considerable strength. Although he was confident, he still had to prepare for any contingency.

"That's true. Although this grand competition has many restrictions, the use of spiritual beasts is not forbidden." Feng Hanxiao nodded. With spiritual beasts permitted, she wasn't panicking in the slightest.

A spiritual beast! Ji Jiuxuan looked toward Long Xuan's direction, but it was still fast asleep.

There was no counting on it; who knew when it would wake up? If True Dragon Xuan were to step into the ring, the opponents would undoubtedly face instant death.

"Since spiritual beasts are allowed, what about puppets?" If she could use puppets, she wouldn't even have to lift a finger.

Unfortunately, Feng Hanxiao's words shattered that thought. "That won't work. Unless you practice the unorthodox Dao of Puppetry as your primary discipline, puppets are strictly forbidden."

If everyone used puppets, what would be the point of a martial competition? If an army of puppets were unleashed at the Imperial Capital Grand Competition, wouldn't that just be absurd? Future competitions would simply boil down to whose puppets were more formidable.

Though banned from using puppets, Ji Jiuxuan was not afraid in the least.

Soon, it was their turn. This match pitted a group of inner disciples holding black identity tokens against a group of aristocratic scions holding red identity tokens.

The spectators grew excited and buzzed with anticipation.

Ji Jiuxuan looked closely and noticed that Jiyue's teammates were indeed all inner disciples, each having reached the Great Circle of the ninth layer of Qi Condensation.

Apart from having decent innate talent, inner disciples were universally acknowledged for one other major virtue: diligence and hard work.

Aristocratic scions possessed good aptitude, but historically, while many were exceptionally capable, an equally vast number became spoiled and incompetent showpieces.

"I am truly delighted to compete with Junior Sister Jiuxuan!" The moment she stepped onto the arena stage, Jiyue proactively chose to target Ji Jiuxuan.

Her voice carried boundless excitement, yet beneath her practiced smile lay an unconcealed arrogance. She behaved as though victory was already hers before the fight even began.

"Please enlighten me, Senior Sister Jiyue." Ji Jiuxuan broke into an exceptionally radiant smile.

Qin Yuzhou, standing nearby, subconsciously glanced over and couldn't help shivering.

Though that smile was breathtakingly lovely and cute, Qin Yuzhou had a strong feeling that Jiyue was about to have a miserable time.

Feng Hanxiao was consumed by fury. This hypocritical Jiyue actually had the nerve to call Xuanxuan "Junior Sister."

Had Xuanxuan not given her strict instructions before stepping onto the stage—demanding that no matter what Jiyue said, she must treat it with utter indifference—Feng Hanxiao would have already started cursing her out.

She would endure this!

An elder stood at the edge of the platform as the protective barrier flared to life. The match involving Ji Jiuxuan and her companions officially commenced.

Both sides produced their respective weapons.

Although Jiyue was still in the Qi Condensation stage, the sword in her hand was specially crafted for her foundation establishment by Ling Lin. Its grade and sharpness were both extraordinary.

Ji Jiuxuan still wielded her Child Sword, which did not fall short of Jiyue's weapon in the slightest.

Without a word of idle chatter, the two sides clashed directly.

Lurking in Jiyue's eyes was a venomous ruthlessness; if the sect permitted lethal force, she would undoubtedly have killed Ji Jiuxuan without hesitation to vent her hatred.

As their swords collided, Jiyue finally experienced the horrifying terror of Ji Jiuxuan's swift swordplay.

That blinding speed left her completely unable to parry.

She had happened to miss the life-or-death duel between Ji Jiuxuan and Wang Yumiao, having dismissed it with utter disdain, thinking Wang Yumiao deserved to die for losing even to such a lazy opponent.

Yet now, cold sweat covered her entire body, and she found defending herself immensely strenuous. Her darting gaze was laced with pure malice.

Suddenly, a flash of light erupted from Jiyue, and a black panther materialized beside her, lunging fiercely at Ji Jiuxuan.

Having undergone two bouts of field training, Ji Jiuxuan's vigilance was currently razor-sharp.

The moment the Black Abyss Panther appeared, her sword moved with lightning speed to parry, narrowly evading the beast's lethal strike.

"Shall I help you?" Long Xuan's voice sounded in her mind, though its eyes remained closed. *How dare they try to harm A-Jiu? They are courting death!*

Ji Jiuxuan refused. "Only step in if I can't handle it later. I trust you wouldn't let me get severely injured, right?"

"Of course." Knowing she spoke the truth, Long Xuan refrained from making a move. It opened its eyes just enough to cast a glance at the Black Abyss Panther; the sheer dominance in its gaze caused the beast to instinctively shrink back.

"Overestimating your own capabilities!" Jiyue sneered, convinced of her victory now that she had a spiritual beast by her side, her eyes filled with supreme contempt.

Ji Jiuxuan tilted her head slightly, her voice soft and airy. "Is that so?"

As her spiritual energy circulated, the Yin-Yang fish symbols swirling within her dantian accelerated. The crimson flames wrapping around the Child Sword grew even more dazzling and eerie.

A Yin-Yang fish formation materialized behind her, and a resonant sword hum echoed through the air, causing even Jiyue's sword to tremble violently.

Every other sword in the arena was affected to varying degrees. Even through the protective barrier, the ringing of the Child Sword resonated with weapon racks outside the stage, producing crisp, melodious chimes.

Jiyue stared in utter disbelief. "Impossible! You are so lazy, how could you possibly comprehend sword intent! How is this possible!"

Crying out in denial, Jiyue frantically swung her sword and charged at Ji Jiuxuan.

Her moves were vicious and lethal. Watching from the spectators' gallery, Ling Lin felt a sudden surge of foreboding.

Ji Jiuxuan had no intention of wasting breath on her, executing her sword techniques with blinding speed.

Even with the aid of the Black Abyss Panther, Jiyue was utterly outmatched. With a loud bang, Jiyue was blasted backward over a long distance by Ji Jiuxuan's sword qi.

The audience watched as the petite young girl on the stage glared fiercely at the Black Abyss Panther, which was several times her size—a sight that somehow appeared delightfully comical.

"You, do you surrender, or shall I slaughter you?" Ji Jiuxuan raised her sword, pointing it directly at the Black Abyss Panther. Her voice was dripping with menace. "The rules state we cannot take the lives of fellow disciples, but there are no regulations protecting spirit beasts."

She stared at the athletic panther. "Long Xuan, do you think Black Abyss Panther meat tastes good?"

Skewered barbecue or whole roasted panther should both turn out rather nice.

Meeting Long Xuan's equally corrupted gaze—which made the beast feel as though it were already sitting on a dinner plate—the Black Abyss Panther shivered uncontrollably and vanished from the spot, fleeing straight back into its beast space out of sheer terror.

Struggling back to its feet, Jiyue saw her beast frightened back into its spatial dwelling by merely two sentences from Ji Jiuxuan, and the sheer fury caused her to spit out a mouthful of fresh blood.

"Ji Jiuxuan, you push people too far!" Abandoning all pretense, Jiyue glared at Ji Jiuxuan with unrestrained hatred.

"Why! Why can you achieve this level of cultivation while doing nothing every day! You belong in the mud! Someone unmotivated and unambitious like you should be trampled into the dirt and never allowed to rise! Why! Why!"

Hearing Jiyue's hysterical screaming, the audience sat dumbfounded. Speechless, Ji Jiuxuan channeled her spiritual energy once more and struck out at Jiyue.

With a resounding *slap*, Jiyue was sent crashing back to the ground.

Slowly walking toward her, Ji Jiuxuan wore an expression of profound mockery. "People like you only ever see your own supposed hard work while completely invalidating everyone else's."

"You think you're so formidable? I can beat you into the ground without even using my sword." The Child Sword vanished from her hand. With every step she took, an overwhelming, supreme pressure emanated from her, crushing down heavily upon Jiyue's heart.