Above the sacred city, the clouds stretched for ten thousand miles.
Tens of thousands of cultivators gazed up at the sky.
The pointer of the Wheel of Fate had played a colossal joke on everyone. It hadn't stopped on the name of Nangong Huaitian, nor on Xuanyuan Shennian, but right between the two.
This meant Xu Mu had a bye.
The one who was supposed to fight was not him.
"What a shame," the ancestor of the Ye family sighed, his expression somber. In his calculations, even if Xu Mu won this round, his state would be greatly depleted, making the Supreme position likely out of his reach. But he never expected Xu Mu to get a bye.
"It seems the heavens are on his side," a multitude of powerful figures from the Jialan clan direction also sighed. The Jialan ancestor shook his head repeatedly.
He turned to his clan members and said sternly, "Everyone, cease your actions now. No matter what happens, do not seek revenge against Mu Xu."
"The Supreme position at this Ten Thousand Races Assembly will undoubtedly be his, barring any unforeseen circumstances. That position offers too many opportunities. Countless families will seek to ally with him. Our Jialan clan has already lost Zhou Jie; do not pursue this further, lest you bring trouble upon yourselves!"
As the Jialan ancestor spoke, a cold wind howled. His words carried a strange tinge of sadness, and many clan members hung their heads in dejection, as if their clan's unique pride had been lost.
On the other side, the elders of the Xuanyuan clan relaxed their tightly furrowed brows and nodded slightly.
Clearly, compared to Mu Xu, whose identity was mysterious and power formidable, they would have preferred to face Nangong Huaitian, whom they knew well, even though she was also very strong.
Furthermore, this was a battle of destiny. Even if they didn't fight now, Nangong Huaitian and Xuanyuan Shennian were bound to clash eventually, for they were both women, and the two most talented women in the history of the Hundred Races land.
As the match results were determined, a battle stage adorned with lotus flowers materialized out of thin air within the Jade Pool Immortal Realm. The immortal pool surged, pouring golden radiance, engulfing it and sinking it into the earth. Just as rainwater nourishes the roots hidden beneath the soil, after receiving the irrigation from the Jade Pool's waters, the lotus flowers surrounding the stage bloomed, each one immense, vast enough to obscure the sky, shimmering with a vitreous radiance.
"This battle stage is named 'Lotus Birth.' It was originally just a meditation cushion used by a monk from my Buddhist sect. But after that monk departed for the Western Paradise, this cushion became the Lotus Birth battle stage you see today."
"This Lotus Birth battle stage will offer absolute fairness to all of you. Any forbidden artifacts, talismans, or special methods will be perceived by the lotuses, and dealt with accordingly. Therefore, not only will your current match be conducted here, but the final battle for the Supreme position will also take place on this Lotus Birth stage."
With that, the old monk from the Western Paradise chanted a Buddhist name and his illusory form swiftly vanished into the Jade Pool.
Xu Mu gazed at the impossibly large lotus flowers, marveling, and then sat himself down on the high wall of the Jade Pool.
Meanwhile, Xuanyuan Shennian and Nangong Huaitian, their faces grave, stepped onto the stage. Facing each other, after three seconds of silence, the battle commenced without a word.
"Look! They've made their move!"
A startled cry erupted as Xuanyuan Shennian and Nangong Huaitian simultaneously attacked.
Xuanyuan Shennian unleashed a killing blow, pulling a phantom star from the void. Under the sacred vitreous glow of the lotuses, it crashed down, leaving a long trail of frost.
Nangong Huaitian extended her hands, and above the phantom Taiyin star, radiant inscriptions and talismans formed. The characters were ancient and obscure, their meaning unfathomable. But the moment her smooth, jade-like hands clenched, the inscriptions took effect, and the brilliant Taiyin celestial star was instantly disintegrated.
The inscriptions surged forward like a tsunami, instantly engulfing all star fragments and reaching Xuanyuan Shennian.
"So strong!"
The crowd gasped repeatedly. Nangong Huaitian's inscriptions this time were more than twice as powerful as before, overwhelming even Xuanyuan's Taiyin celestial star!
"Get back!"
Facing the approaching inscriptions like a tidal wave, Xuanyuan Shennian's brow radiated light. Wielding a dragon-coiling trident, she stepped forward like a goddess of war. A golden dragon phantom roared, shattering all the inscriptions before it like breaking ice, and continued its advance.
In an instant, the roles of attacker and defender between Nangong Huaitian and Xuanyuan Shennian had completely reversed. Everyone, including Xu Mu, held their breath, eager to see how Nangong would respond.
The young lady's response was simple. Facing the golden dragon, Nangong Huaitian, as usual, raised her hands and began forming inscriptions.
—Crack!
With a crisp sound, the ferocious golden dragon exploded. But this time, Nangong's inscribed talismans did not continue to advance. Thus, Xuanyuan Shennian, wielding her long halberd, arrived before Nangong.
The long halberd seemed to carry immense force, instilling dread even from a distance. Even Xu Mu instinctively clenched his fists.
Yet, surprisingly, faced with such a weighty, god-like strike, Nangong Huaitian showed no trace of panic. She simply raised her tender white fist, condensed inscriptions on its tip, and with a soft exclamation, met the halberd head-on.
"Boom!"
With a dull collision, Xuanyuan Shennian's long halberd was stopped mid-air by Nangong's delicate white fist.
At that instant, a flicker of astonishment clearly crossed Xuanyuan Shennian's eyes. She had expected Nangong Huaitian to block the halberd, perhaps with powerful inscriptions or some other unique dao technique cultivated as a Saintess.
But she hadn't anticipated Nangong using her fist. Even though inscriptions appeared on the fist, the pure power flowing through her body beneath them was palpable to everyone.
And the pain brought by that tender white fist was equally clear.
"Thump!"
"Pfft!"
Nangong Huaitian's punch landed on Xuanyuan Shennian's chest. The latter reacted swiftly, using her halberd to block, but to her surprise, she still spat out blood the next second.
This was because Nangong Huaitian's true target was her lower abdomen's dantian; the strike to the chest was a feint.
"Exquisite fistwork," Xu Mu exclaimed, his eyes lighting up. He stared intently at the Lotus Birth stage. Nangong Huaitian, having gained close proximity, was treading on pure lotuses and relentlessly bombarding Xuanyuan Shennian with punches, each move displaying masterful composure, much to Xu Mu's admiration.
"The Saintess of the Nangong clan lives up to her reputation. She has even learned the Carefree Scripture from the Valley Master of the Medicine King Valley," a stern-looking middle-aged man from the Xuanyuan clan stated gravely. He recognized the style of Nangong Huaitian's punches, which originated from the Medicine King Valley.
This set of fist techniques was, in fact, a form of dao technique. Before use, it required a medicinal bath to condense the essence of heaven and earth, which was then absorbed into the meridians and attached to the body. When punching, it could achieve an effect similar to the vital energy of a physical cultivator. However, the difficulty of releasing vital energy and cultivating the Carefree Scripture were on entirely different levels. It was rare for cultivators to refine the essence of medicinal herbs to a non-toxic state and infuse it into their meridians for personal use; even some domain lords of the Medicine King Valley could not do this.
But Nangong Huaitian could.
Therefore, in close combat, she could hammer Xuanyuan Shennian in an almost crushing manner, leaving the latter to passively endure the onslaught.
"Nangong Huaitian is close to victory. Her close-quarters combat is too strong; Xuanyuan Shennian has been forced to the edge of the stage!"
As a cultivator exclaimed, on the Lotus Birth stage, Nangong Huaitian pressed her advantage, her inscriptions sealing off all directions. She tightly gripped Xuanyuan Shennian's long halberd, forcing her to the edge of the stage, seemingly on the verge of victory.
At this moment, everyone was tense. No one had anticipated the battle ending so quickly. When Nangong Huaitian revealed her true strength, Xuanyuan Shennian was actually rendered powerless to retaliate!
"No, her footwork is off!"
Xu Mu stared intently at the stage, his brow furrowed. He observed the subtle movements of their advances and retreats, the trajectories of their attacks and defenses, and even the fluctuations of their meridians when using their powers.
Thus, he knew that Xuanyuan Shennian, while appearing to resist fiercely and on the verge of defeat, was actually not using her full strength.
What was she hiding?
Then, Xu Mu noticed Xuanyuan Shennian's footwork. It seemed chaotic as if she were being pursued and attacked by Nangong, but in reality, the distance and direction of each step were highly methodical.
"If she continues to pursue at this pace, after three more steps, Xuanyuan Shennian will likely lose her halberd and use a sweeping leg to swap positions with Nangong."
"But judging by Nangong's subtle expression, she seems to have a reaction. Perhaps she will leap into the air to meet the attack? However, that would be too large a movement. Xuanyuan Shennian should then grip the halberd with both hands and charge forward. At that point, Nangong will have no choice but to condense inscriptions to block while retreating. But this would also allow Xuanyuan Shennian to break free from the edge of the stage."
Xu Mu frowned, his eyes fixed on the stage, his mind racing. Based on the slightest cues from their bodies, he predicted what would happen next. And indeed, what he imagined began to unfold.
"Bang!"
Following a rapid exchange of blows that blurred into afterimages, Xuanyuan Shennian gripped the halberd with both hands and charged out from the corner of the stage, which had been suppressed by Nangong Huaitian.
"The situation has reversed!"
Another shout of surprise erupted from the crowd outside, the echoes reverberating through space and reaching the Jade Pool Immortal Realm. But Xu Mu seemed not to hear, his focus remaining on his calculations.
"If Xuanyuan Shennian re-condenses the Taiyin starlight in the next three moves, drawing on the residual Yin energy in the space, Nangong Huaitian will immediately fall into a significant disadvantage."
"The only way to break free is for Nangong to use inscriptions to stall for two to five seconds, pour all her mystical energy into an evasive maneuver thirteen and a half steps to the left, and inscribe a rune powerful enough to shatter the weak point of the Taiyin celestial star. Only then can she win."
"But the difficulty of doing so is immense."
As Nangong Huaitian and Xuanyuan Shennian's battle intensified, the complexity of Xu Mu's calculations multiplied. Yet, even so, their every movement, static or dynamic, remained within his predictions, deviating not an inch.
Nangong attacked, was counter-attacked, unleashed her power to attack again, only to find that was a deliberate opening shown by Xuanyuan Shennian… They exchanged blows back and forth several times. Just as everyone believed they were evenly matched and neither could overcome the other, Xuanyuan Shennian was suddenly struck by Nangong's palm and sent flying backward.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, Xu Mu's brow twitched. According to his calculations, Xuanyuan Shennian should have had ample ability to dodge that palm strike. Furthermore, subtle signs indicated that this was not a deliberate opening she had created, but a genuine, unforeseen event.
"In that case, the rest of the battle will be much easier. Nangong simply needs to…" Xu Mu's expression turned pale. He had only half-completed his calculation when he abruptly stopped.
This was because Nangong Huaitian did not follow the path he had calculated. Instead, she retreated three steps, drew a plain white longbow, and fired an arrow that unleashed terrifying killing power.
Logically speaking, this should have been salt in Xuanyuan Shennian's wounds, or the final blow to eliminate her. No one knew that Nangong Huaitian was also skilled with archery, and her archery was as potent as her inscriptions.
That the Saintess could wield a bow and specialize in the longbow was known only to Nangong Mao Guan. Xuanyuan Shennian did not know, and even if she did, it would be useless, for she had no time to react. Even Xu Mu couldn't fathom how to break through such a situation.
However, Xuanyuan Shennian's body suddenly became transparent. The arrows and terrifying inscriptions passed through her without inflicting any harm. She, in turn, pushed aside the dark clouds in the sky, summoning endless moonlight. The Taiyin power enveloped Nangong.
It was at this moment that Xu Mu fell silent, and then, with a complex sigh, he let out a breath.
He had miscalculated again.
Not because of the hidden trump cards they revealed, but because of their intentions.
Both Nangong Huaitian and Xuanyuan Shennian had expertly deceived each other, and him, an outsider, through their expressions and energy fluctuations.
Only then, did it truly resemble the Ten Thousand Races Assembly.
Xu Mu remained silent for a moment, then smiled slightly, ceasing his efforts to predict the outcome of the battle. He would simply enjoy the magnificent display.
For from this moment on, he truly regarded the two on the Lotus Birth stage as his opponents.
…