Chapter 161: The Imperial Capital Grand Tournament

Inside the imperial capital, the gigantic spectator stands were filled with onlookers. Feng Hanxiao watched anxiously as names scrolled ceaselessly across the light curtain formed by shimmering spiritual mist.

As the name Ji Jiuxuan of the Xuantian Sect steadily climbed higher, Feng Hanxiao and the others cast worried glances around, attempting to spot her figure, but the result was the same as before.

She anxiously looked toward the sect master's seating area, yet could discern nothing from it.

Meanwhile, at the imperial capital's royal courier station, the teleportation array flared to life, and Ji Jiuxuan, accompanied by Min Chenjun and members of the Qi family, stepped out from the formation.

Upon recognizing the Prince of Jingbei, the guardian of the array adopted an attitude of utmost respect.

"Your turn is coming up soon. Shall your grand-maternal uncle send you over?" Qi Yanli asked. Since other members of the Qi family were also participating in the tournament arenas, he had previously instructed his kin to keep an eye out for her.

Possessing the highest cultivation among those present, his speed was naturally the fastest.

"I must trouble Great Grand-uncle."

Qi Yanli maintained his signature Qi family smile, his expression full of warmth toward Ji Jiuxuan. "What talk of trouble is there between us?"

With a wave of his hand, spiritual energy enveloped Ji Jiuxuan, and in the blink of an eye, they arrived outside the tournament grounds.

The venue occupied an immense expanse of land, within which a separate domain seemed to have been forged.

Towering gates were wreathed in clouds and mist, their imposing aura a testament to the formidable foundation of the empire.

Guards stood at the gates. Qi Yanli produced a token, and the guards didn't even harbor a thought of making things difficult, letting them pass directly.

Although the Imperial Grand Tournament brought together major factions from all quarters, defense and martial law had been strictly enforced throughout the entire event. This was done to prevent outsiders from sneaking in and causing unnecessary trouble, as well as to deter the major powers, ensuring that even conflicting factions dared not act rashly. Patrols had likewise been heavily reinforced.

Ji Jiuxuan followed Qi Yanli inside at a brisk pace. Her name was already displayed on the platform, and her opponent was standing right there upon it.

With another swift gesture from Qi Yanli, Ji Jiuxuan was transported directly onto the competition stage, while Qi Yanli flew up to the seats prepared in advance for the Qi family.

Given that the Prince of Jingbei had escorted her in person, the onlookers could not help but begin speculating about their relationship.

The sect and family affiliations of the disciples standing on the stages could be told at a glance from the light curtains.

Upon seeing the three characters "Xuantian Sect," some people naturally linked them to the connection between Qi Shuoyuan and the Prince of Jingbei.

"Could this be the maternal granddaughter of Qi Shuoyuan and the daughter of Ji Minghuai?"

Those who happened to recognize disciples from the Xuantian Sect or the Qi family could not resist inquiring about it.

On the stage, under the announcement of the arena guards, the two opponents stated their names to each other.

"Ji Jiuxuan of the Xuantian Sect, please advise me."

"Sui Heng of the Hammer Rock Sect, please advise me."

Ji Jiuxuan raised an eyebrow, genuinely surprised to find her very first opponent hailing from the Hammer Rock Sect.

Years ago, an elder of the Hammer Rock Sect had attempted to capture her and even ambushed her halfway. To think that after all this time, this sect was still around!

It seemed the Gossip Chronicles were not entirely truthful after all.

According to the records in the Gossip Chronicles, anyone who provoked her Second Uncle had better prepare themselves to have their sect annihilated, and precedents of such events were far from nonexistent.

Numerous incidents had even been cited as examples. She had always wondered how her Second Uncle could possibly be that terrifying. While his combat power was off the charts, he was undeniably a reasonable man.

Little did she know that the Hammer Rock Sect had also performed meritorious service in helping capture Elder Chuiyun, and combined with their efforts to redeem themselves through meritorious deeds, they had barely managed to escape destruction by doing a great deal of work.

Following that ordeal, the Hammer Rock Sect—whose ranking among sects was already low—suffered compounded misfortunes, nearly plummeting into the ranks of third-rate sects.

Entering this Grand Tournament with the mindset of trying to alleviate their sect's plight, the participating disciples carried an unmistakable aura of burning their boats behind them.

The match officially commenced. Sui Heng brandished a pair of heavy hammers, the surfaces of which shimmered with an earthy-yellow hue. It was clear at a glance that he possessed the earth-root spiritual attribute, and his cultivation was at the early stage of Foundation Establishment.

Ji Jiuxuan had stepped onto the stage straight after a long journey without taking time to rest and adjust. However, given her massive reserves of spiritual energy and the immense sturdiness of her physical body, she had zero problems even without resting.

The Qingluo Sword materialized in her hand. As they exchanged blows, Sui Heng wielded his hammers with sweeping, unrestrained momentum while the earth elements continuously coalesced into heavy assaults, forcing Ji Jiuxuan to dodge the traps hidden within the attacks as she parried.

After responding calmly for a few rounds, she had completely adjusted her state. At this point, Ji Jiuxuan began to spar in earnest.

Deploying her Shadow-Leaping Steps, her swordsmanship suddenly accelerated to a degree that left the Hammer Rock disciple utterly unable to parry.

Regardless of how immense her opponent's physical strength was, how formidable his earth elements, or how cleverly his traps were laid, she forced him into a continuous retreat using nothing more than the Xuantian Sect's most foundational sword technique—the Xuanqing Sword Arts.

Spectators off the stage gasped in astonishment, while the Xuantian Sect disciples felt a wave of admiration, noting that her swordsmanship had grown even faster than before.

There were numerous combat platforms scattered across the entire tournament grounds, with disciples engaged in grand matches upon every single one of them.

The Imperial Grand Tournament adhered to the established rules of past competitions: each person had to participate in ten matches, and two-thirds of the disciples would be eliminated based on rankings.

The format for the finals dictated that the top one-third-ranking disciples would enter the Imperial Capital Secret Realm directly.

Matches would be held within it, with scores displayed on light curtains to determine the final rankings.

The competing disciples would have no idea what their current rank was, driving them to frantically complete tasks to boost their standing. This dynamic made the situation in the finals far more brutal than most people imagined.

Only after the time limit expired and the rankings were locked would they truly enter the Imperial Capital Secret Realm; only those who managed to locate the Sacred Tree would obtain the mission scrolls.

Sui Heng was desperate to win. Driven by a secret technique, his cultivation surged directly, leaping to the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment, and then to the late stage, causing his overwhelming aura to skyrocket.

At this moment, Sui Heng looked exceptionally ferocious. Every downswing of his massive hammers smashed deep craters into the ground, accompanied by dense, churning streams of spiritual Qi.

Ji Jiuxuan was currently at the early stage of Foundation Establishment, though she showed faint signs of a breakthrough. Even with Sui Heng's drastic surge in cultivation, she handled him with complete ease thanks to her blindingly fast swordsmanship.

This match served as a fine opportunity for tempering herself. Otherwise, if her cultivation progressed too rapidly without sufficient experiential training, her foundation would lack solidity, ultimately hindering her own path forward in the future.

The swordsmanship in her hand grew even more brisk. Ji Jiuxuan did not look down on her opponent; although the Xuanqing Sword Arts was a foundational sword technique, it was also the martial art that contained the most profound and encompassing principles.

She had her sights set on winning first place. Since she could easily handle him, she would drag out certain methods until the very end if she could. Still, lingering on the stage any longer was pointless; she might as well finish the match swiftly to avoid complications.

Executing the Blazing Fire Sword Arts like flowing water, she pushed her speed to the absolute limit. With a resounding boom, the Hammer Rock disciple was sent flying far away. The flames clinging to his body panicked him into hurriedly throwing a layer of dirt over himself to extinguish the fire.

The Hammer Rock disciple had never anticipated that even after elevating his cultivation to the late Foundation Establishment stage and increasing the destructive power of his moves, his opponent—merely at the early Foundation Establishment stage—could render him helpless with just two sets of sword techniques. The momentum of his defeat was now growing increasingly obvious.

Clenching his teeth, a gravitational domain materialized, instantly enveloping the entire arena. Sui Heng hoped against hope to see Ji Jiuxuan crushed flat to the ground by the gravity, but the outcome proved thoroughly unexpected.

Ji Jiuxuan simply stood there, looking completely relaxed.

This sight defied belief, drawing an involuntary cry of disbelief from Sui Heng. "How is this possible?!"

A gravitational domain of this magnitude was something even the strongest body-cultivators within his own sect could only barely employ. It was the absolute limit of what he himself could endure.

Under the influence of this gravity, even his own movements were hindered.

Yet Ji Jiuxuan, standing right before him, showed zero traces of physical body-cultivation training. Facing a gravitational domain of this caliber, it should have been her who was crushed to the ground first.

Ji Jiuxuan shrugged, wearing an expression that seemed to say *you're terribly weak* as she looked at him. "How is this impossible? Besides, doesn't your sect practice body tempering? With just this little bit of weight, several disciples in my sect could lift it with absolute ease."

Seeing that it was about time, Ji Jiuxuan wasted no more time. Propelled by her Shadow-Leaping Steps, her mobility remained completely unaffected.

The sword in her hand thrust swiftly toward him. Sui Heng hurriedly moved to defend himself, but his protective barrier was pierced straight through.

Faced with Ji Jiuxuan's posture, Sui Heng was gripped by an inexplicable premonition that he was about to perish beneath her sword. In a panic, he directly amplified the gravitational domain, attempting to pin Ji Jiuxuan in place.

An earth-element restraint lashed out toward her. However, consumed by his desperation to win, he failed to maintain proper control over the gravitational domain, pushing it directly past his own threshold of endurance. His entire body collapsed face-first onto the ground as a web of cracks split across his skin, blood seeping out from the fissures.