The two drew their swords and took their battle stances ,Deacon Chao announced, "Final battle, begin!"
Without any delay, they both charged toward each other. Their swords clashed with such force that sparks burst into the air.
They pressed against each other's blades, then retreated back at the same time.
Su Ming dashed toward Zhang Yong again, his mind racing with possibilities:
'From what I've noticed, Zhang Yong focuses heavily on training his body. His swordsmanship isn't at a high level, but he can keep up with me. Then there's that strange move against Shan Yuntian… I need to avoid his hands'
Seeing Su Ming approaching, Zhang Yong smirked coldly and swung his sword.
Su Ming stepped back, dodging the slash.
He pressed down hard on Zhang Yong's sword with his foot, leapt up, and kicked at Zhang Yong's face with his left leg.
Zhang Yong moved quickly and caught Su Ming's leg mid-air.
Su Ming immediately arched his back, planted his hands on the ground, and struck Zhang Yong's jaw with his right foot — since Zhang Yong's right hand was holding his sword and his left was gripping Su Ming's leg.
Then Su Ming flipped and landed back on his feet.
"Very good, Su Ming," Zhang Yong shouted, wiping his chin.
"You haven't seen anything yet," Su Ming replied, charging forward again, his back bent low, aiming for a direct thrust.
Zhang Yong intercepted swiftly, slashing vertically toward Su Ming — who, in that posture, couldn't possibly dodge.
Suddenly, Su Ming raised his sword upward, knocking Zhang Yong's blade aside, and continued the motion until his sword reached Zhang Yong's neck.
Zhang Yong leapt high, aligning with the sword's trajectory so that it passed right before his eyes without touching him.
With that leap and twist, Zhang Yong flipped in midair, locking eyes with Su Ming, who gripped his sword tightly.
Both swung with full strength — and before Zhang Yong's brute force, Su Ming was blasted away as if struck by a cannon, sent flying out of the ring. The pressure from the strike helped Zhang Yong flip and land on his feet inside the arena.
Su Ming's body slammed into the arena's wall with such force that it left a deep crater, dust rising from the impact.
Deacon Chao raised his hand, about to announce, "The winner is—"
Before he could finish, Zhang Yong shouted, "Stop! The fight isn't over. Why are you declaring it finished?"
Deacon Chao looked at him with disdain, eyes hiding anger. "He went outside the ring, which is an automatic loss."
Zhang Yong replied without a hint of care, "The match ends when his body hits the ground outside the ring. Su Ming crashed into the wall and is sitting in that crater — his feet never touched the ground. So this fight is far from decided."
"This…" Deacon Chao hesitated for a moment and looked toward the sect master for guidance.
The sect master nodded his approval.
Zhang Yong shouted toward Su Ming, "Su Ming, you bastard, how long are you going to nap in there? Is this how you plan to surpass all the other talents? Didn't you say you'd return and punch your father in the face for not acknowledging you? Or was all that just hot air?"
Su Ming's body trembled slightly in the crater. His glare hardened, showing his will to fight.
Zhang Yong grinned, deciding to fan the flames further, his tone brimming with excitement:
"Su Ming! You have two choices now — either rise above everyone, or die. If what I did to you is enough to defeat you, then you don't deserve to call yourself my brother!"
Su Ming gripped his sword tightly, breathing heavily, blood trickling down his head. He grinned with fury, slammed his fist into the wall, leapt out, and landed back in the ring.
"Shut up! As if I'd back down!"
Zhang Yong pointed his finger toward the sun. "The Golden Twilight Sword Intent is drawn from the Law of Light — light does not appear within light itself, you fool."
Hearing this, Su Ming's eyes shone with sudden realization. "Light does not appear within light… Plum blossoms will blanket the earth, and one day cover the skies." He closed his eyes, focusing deeply.
The Heavenly Sword Peak elder was stunned at the sight. "I can't believe this is happening."
The other elders turned toward him as he continued, "This boy, Su Ming, is undergoing enlightenment right now… but did the other one just say 'sword intent'?"
Su Ming kept his eyes closed for a while, then opened them with a new radiance.
"Zhang Yong, I'll unleash everything I have," he shouted.
Zhang Yong smiled and raised his sword toward Su Ming. "Come at me."
Su Ming gripped his sword, a powerful golden light enveloping him. Pure spiritual energy erupted through his body to the point the air itself compressed around him.
"Magnificent," Zhang Yong said, "now it's my turn."
He released the dark, ominous Muramasa aura, wrapping both his body and sword in it. It surged forth like a bloodthirsty demon.
Suddenly, the entire crowd looked up to the sky — as if pink plum blossom petals were falling from above, all drawn toward one person: Su Ming.
The petals gathered around him, swirling in pure, beautiful lines. He raised his sword high, the golden light on it covered by the petals, which then fused with the light, turning into radiant golden petals.
Su Ming leapt high into the sky, the plum blossoms dancing around him like an endless, breathtaking storm — as if the ruler of flowers had descended upon the mortal world.
Zhang Yong gripped his sword fiercely, compressing the cursed Muramasa aura into a massive vortex. Lifting his sword overhead, the vortex grew larger, forming a majestic sword aura as if it came to dominate the world.
The Heavenly Sword Peak elder was thrilled, his blood boiling. "Enlightenment… this isn't the Sword Will stage — it's the Will of Technique stage!"
The Will of Technique stage belonged only to Earth-rank techniques and above. Upon mastering a skill to perfection, one could manifest the will of that technique and even evolve it alongside their sword intent.
Su Ming roared with all his might, "Thirteenth Form of the Modified Pure Plum Blossom Sword — Golden Plum Blossom Storm Overwhelms the World!"
At the same time, Zhang Yong shouted, "Muramasa!"
They swung their swords with full force. The two auras collided violently, and in an instant, everything exploded into a white light that shattered everything and blasted fierce winds into the faces of all present.
When it was over, Su Ming and Zhang Yong stood in the middle of a completely destroyed arena. Their clothes were torn, scratches covering both bodies, each with a sword wound on the chest — in exactly the same spot.
Without a word, Su Ming collapsed to the ground. Suddenly, the place erupted in applause, cheers, and whistles. Even Shan Yuntian, who had awoken during the battle, was awed by their abilities and knew there was no chance for revenge.
Deacon Chao stepped forward to announce, "The winner is Zhang Yong."
However, Zhang Yong stood motionless, without any expression. When Deacon Chao approached, he was shocked by what he saw. "He… he's unconscious while standing!"
Zhang Yong had fainted, still on his feet.
The sect master stood with a proud smile, honored that his sect hosted such precious young talents. "The inner disciple ceremony will resume this afternoon."
All the injured and unconscious were taken to the sect's healing wing, where many medical masters were present.
Neither Zhang Yong nor Su Ming was in critical condition — one had fainted from expending all his spiritual energy at once, and the other from using up all his physical endurance.
And so, they ended up sharing the same room.
Zhang Yong slowly opened his eyes, his vision a little blurry. The first thing he saw was a girl beside his bed. "Yuan… Ling?" he murmured unconsciously.
The next moment, he felt a sting on his cheek as the girl pinched him. "Who's Yuan Ling? I'm Liu Yan. Master, he's awake."
Zhang Yong opened his eyes wide and quickly sat up. "What happened?"
"You fainted during the match," said an old but familiar voice.
"Elder Gu! I didn't know you were here," Zhang Yong said, surprised.
"Lower your voice, I'm trying to rest," came an annoyed voice from the back.
Zhang Yong turned to see Su Ming wrapped in bandages and smirked. "Look at you — that state suits you perfectly."
"Yeah right, as if you're in better shape. Look at yourself," Su Ming shot back with a sarcastic grin.
Zhang Yong couldn't help but laugh before lying back down. "We both overdid it, didn't we?"
"Haha, yeah, that was amazing."
"It really was."
The two bumped fists and kept laughing.
Elder Gu looked at them warmly. "It's good to see you both in one piece. The ceremony will continue in the afternoon. Until then, rest."
Elder Gu Zixian turned to leave with Liu Yan while she was waving as she followed him. "I hope one of you becomes our junior brother — maybe both."
Zhang Yong smiled, getting out of bed. "You managed to leave a scar on my chest."
Su Ming stood as well, checking himself. "And you injured me too. Let's call it a draw."
Zhang Yong smirked, his tone confident. "A draw? Don't kid yourself. I didn't even use my full strength. If I'd had my spiritual energy, the match would've been over before it started. You just got lucky to have enlightenment mid-battle."
Su Ming raised his hands helplessly. "Well, maybe you're right. Without enlightenment, I might not have won. Not to mention you can't use spiritual energy, so yeah — it's my loss."
Zhang Yong lightly tapped Su Ming's head with his hand shaped like a blade. "Don't compare yourself to me. I'm not normal in any sense. Honestly, even if I had spiritual energy, winning without using my trump card would still be tough."
Su Ming chuckled. "Yeah, you're not normal — you're crazy." He smiled.
"Oh-ho, sounds like you're getting cocky."
The two walked out together toward the inner arena stands.
Eight people stood before the four elders and the sect master.
According to sect rules, the elders would choose disciples. If more than one elder wanted the same person, the disciple could choose.
The order went according to the results of previous matches.
Zhang Yong stepped forward and bowed to the elders. The Thunder Peak elder smiled. "Hmm, this boy has good talent. I'll take him."
Immediately, the Heavenly Sword Peak elder stood. "Don't you think you're exaggerating, Elder Li Dong? Obviously this disciple trains in the sword, so there's no better place than my peak."
The Lightning Peak elder shouted and moved beside Zhang Yong at the same time as the Sword Peak elder, each grabbing one of his shoulders.
"This is nonsense," the Lightning Peak elder argued. "He has enough strength to train in my peak's lightning techniques, and with his physical ability, he would be—"
Before he could finish, both elders froze and stared at Zhang Yong.
The Sword Peak elder was shocked. "You… you have a broken energy core!"
The Lightning Peak elder added, "And your life force is weak!"
Both immediately let go and stepped back , which left Zhang Yong speechless, it was a clear 'we don't want you anymore' reaction
They flew back to their seats. Zhang Yong stood in disbelief at their hypocrisy. "What's the matter, elders?"
The two gave him indifferent looks — not as if looking at a human, but as if looking at an insect.
The Lightning Peak elder spoke first. "You have no spiritual energy to train with, so giving you any resources would be a waste."
The Sword Peak elder continued, "And your lifespan is short. Even if that were healed, you can't train because there's no way to fix a broken energy core."
Then both said at the same time, "In other words, you're powerless, and all you'd do is waste resources."
The Lightning Peak elder waved his hand dismissively. "We'll be generous and let you remain in the outer sect for what's left of your pitiful life. I pity your parents for bringing you into this world."
Zhang Yong's mood had been good enough to accept rejection — he had already considered this outcome. But instead of simply refusing him, they now insulted him. Rage welled up inside him like a volcano about to erupt.
He began laughing, giving them a measured look. "Oh, I didn't realize the two elders were just a pair of hypocritical scum."
"What?!" The Lightning Peak elder's face turned red with anger. "A disciple like you, given a chance, dares insult the elders?"
Zhang Yong pointed his finger straight at them. "What gives you the right to call yourselves elders? I stand here because of my achievements, not because of resources. This person you call trash is better than every disciple here. I climbed the ranks and surpassed everyone to stand here — but not to be insulted like this! A man can be killed, but not humiliated."
The Sword Peak elder's veins bulged. "Ungrateful wretch — do you dare challenge us?"
Zhang Yong raised his sword and pointed it at them. "I don't mind turning this place into a bloodbath."
The Lightning Peak elder conjured a lightning spear instantly, hurling it at him.
Zhang Yong swung his sword to shatter the incoming spear.
Suddenly, a figure leapt between them, catching Zhang Yong's sword with one hand and blocking the lightning spear with the other. "Stop this now!"
It was the sect master. "Outer disciple Zhang Yong, you have the right to be angry, but fighting here is forbidden. And Lightning Peak Elder Li Dong, Sword Peak Elder Gong Yang — it is forbidden to attack disciples. Aren't you ashamed of yourselves as elders of this sect?"
The Sword Peak elder sheathed his sword, and the Lightning Peak elder withdrew his weapon. The latter shouted, "Sect master, this disciple shows no respect for his seniors and must be punished."
The sect master's glare pierced through them. "Do you think I'm blind? My lack of intervention has clearly made you so arrogant you'd attempt to kill a disciple in front of me. This ends now."
The elders bowed. "Understood, sect master."
The sect master turned to Zhang Yong. "Inner disciple Zhang Yong, even if you were in the right, you must learn when to step back. Your punishment will be decided later. Now, since no elder has accepted you—"
Elder Gu Zixian coughed lightly to draw attention. "I will take this disciple under my wing."