Chapter 417 - 217: Wind Manipulation Technique, Another Win

Chapter 417: Chapter 217: Wind Manipulation Technique, Another Win

Sun Chen lowered his head and glanced at it. After a brief exchange in his Spirit Sea, the little fox retreated to the side. By the time he walked onto the arena stage, Lin Xiyun was already standing there. The wound on his ribs had been completely healed by a Cyan Wood Talisman. He held the Myriad Phenomena Celestial Disc in his palm, its five-colored Crystal Stone shimmering with a gentle luster in the morning light.

"Senior Brother Sun..." he said. "Yesterday, I lost to Junior Brother Yang and Senior Brother Shi. With two defeats, I have nothing left to lose."

Sun Chen watched him.

Lin Xiyun continued, "So for this match, I will give it my all." He raised the Myriad Phenomena Celestial Disc level with his chest, his right hand’s five fingers gently covering its surface.

"I ask for your guidance, Senior Brother Sun."

"Please."

The moment his words fell, Lin Xiyun’s finger lightly touched the five-colored Crystal Stone at the center of the Compass. The Myriad Phenomena Celestial Disc flared to life. Just a breath later, that tiny spark of light, like a lit beacon fire, spread outward like a wildfire.

Immediately, a five-colored light erupted from the disc’s surface. It was the concentrated Yang power of the Five Elements: red as fire, gold as a blade’s edge, jade-green as wood, blue as water, and brown as earth.

They intertwined and spun three feet in front of Lin Xiyun.

Sun Chen calmly cast a Spell, his Six Jia Mystic Gates technique unfolding with maximum speed.

An invisible slowing field spread toward Lin Xiyun, attempting to interfere with the trajectory of the five-colored light strands. However, the hair-thin streams of light were completely unaffected by external forces. They maintained their individual rhythms within the slowing field, like fish swimming unhurriedly upstream.

Sun Chen changed his Spell, and five golden Qi Blades materialized out of thin air, slashing at Lin Xiyun from different angles. This was the purest form of Geng Metal’s sharpness, enough to shatter the protective Spiritual Light of an ordinary Bone Marrow Cleansing cultivator.

However, the five-colored light strands simply curled gently, and the five Qi Blades were swallowed the instant they touched the net of light, like clay oxen entering the sea.

There was no explosion, no impact, not even a sound.

The five fingers of Lin Xiyun’s right hand moved lightly across the Myriad Phenomena Celestial Disc. Each touch landed precisely on a specific runic node, like a zitherist plucking strings. The five-colored strands of light spun faster and faster, weaving ever more densely.

Sun Chen began to feel the pressure.

His Six Jia Mystic Gates were still active, and the slowing field still completely enveloped Lin Xiyun. But the very existence of the five-colored light strands was gradually eroding the foundation of his Magic.

He found his Spiritual Qi depleting at an accelerated rate—not from being attacked, not from being countered, but simply from being drawn in.

Sun Chen decisively withdrew his Six Jia Mystic Gates. His breathing was slightly ragged.

Lin Xiyun’s right hand traced a final trajectory across the Myriad Phenomena Celestial Disc and then stopped. In that instant, the entire Martial Arts Arena seemed to fall silent.

Yang Wenqing’s gaze was locked on the fully formed net of light at the center of the stage.

He recognized the embryonic form of this Magic. It was the unfinished ’Golden Flow, Fiery Rain’ that Lin Xiyun had attempted to use against him yesterday before being interrupted by his sword rain.

But what he was seeing now was far more than just ’Golden Flow, Fiery Rain’.

Within that five-colored net of light, the radiances of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth were nested in layers and interlocked in some profound sequence.

The outermost layer was a heavy, brown light—the power of the Earth Element, indestructible. The next layer in was a flowing blue light—the power of the Water Element, flexible and enduring. Further in was a flourishing jade-green light—the power of the Wood Element, endlessly regenerating.

And at the core of these three protective layers were Metal and Fire.

This Magic shared a similar principle with the Golden Fire Skill he cultivated. The difference was that Yang Wenqing used his own Cultivation to cast the Magic, whereas Lin Xiyun, lacking sufficient Five Yang Qi, had to rely on a Dharma Seal and a Magical Artifact to achieve it.

"This Six Jia Mystic Gates is indeed the best Magic for cultivating Five Yang Qi. Unfortunately, with Nephew Sun’s current Cultivation, he can’t unleash its true power. He can’t even stop his opponent from forming a Dharma Seal. It’s truly a shame. However, he cultivates the orthodox Yuqing Secret Skill, so his future achievements will certainly be far greater than his opponent’s."

Gu You offered a simple assessment.

As his voice faded, within the Dharma Seal before Lin Xiyun, the frost-white sharpness of Geng Metal and the blood-red flames of the blazing sun were rapidly merging in a highly unstable equilibrium.

’I can’t let him finish the Magic,’ Sun Chen thought instinctively. But as various methods flashed through his mind, he could only resort to gathering his Six Jia Mystic Gates once more, concentrating the Five Yang Qi from heaven and earth into a blazing golden beam of light aimed straight at the core of the five-colored net.

Geng Metal Barrier-Breaking Technique.

However, the moment the beam of light pierced the net, the outermost brown halo merely trembled slightly.

The golden light, powerful enough to pierce iron armor, was steadily neutralized by the layers of Earth Element power. It pushed forward less than three feet before its power was exhausted, dissipating into a shower of golden motes that vanished into the air.

Sun Chen didn’t stop.

A second beam, a third, a fourth...

Golden beams rained down on the five-colored net of light like a sudden storm. The net trembled violently, and fine cracks began to appear in the outermost layer of Earth Element power.

Lin Xiyun paid him no mind, however. With a light sweep of his right hand across the Myriad Phenomena Celestial Disc, another brown halo surged from its surface, instantly mending the cracks as if they had never been there.

The color began to drain from Sun Chen’s face.

Just then, Lin Xiyun said softly, "Senior Brother Sun, my apologies." With that, he gave a gentle push with the five fingers of his right hand on the Myriad Phenomena Celestial Disc.

At that moment, the swirling five-colored net of light suddenly collapsed. All the radiance, all the power of the Five Elements, all the Metal and Fire, contracted inward in the same instant.

And then... it blossomed.

A mass of incandescent white flame, over ten yards in diameter, erupted violently with Lin Xiyun at its center.

The surface of the dark cyan stone slabs beneath his feet instantly vaporized, leaving behind a mirror-smooth, scorched-black trace. The air ignited with a grating shriek. Within the flames, countless faint-golden blades of Geng Metal’s sharpness shot out in all directions like hailstones in a gale, moving at speeds imperceptible to the naked eye.

Then, Qin Huaiming appeared at Sun Chen’s side. With a gentle flick of his sleeve, the ’Golden Fire That Burns the Heavens’—an attack powerful enough to turn the entire arena into a crucible—was extinguished as silently as embers doused by a basin of cold water.

Across the stage, Lin Xiyun bent over, his hands on his knees, panting heavily. His Myriad Phenomena Celestial Disc had fallen to the ground, its five-colored Crystal Stone now completely dim, like an old, dust-covered rock.

His forehead, his neck, his hands—every inch of his exposed skin was beaded with sweat.

The single blow had completely drained him.

Qin Huaiming retracted his sleeve and glanced at Lin Xiyun. Then he announced, "Third round, third match. Lin Xiyun of Yunji is the victor."

Sun Chen stood frozen, watching Ge Yunhai help Lin Xiyun back to his chair, watching as the dim Myriad Phenomena Celestial Disc was gently wiped with a soft cloth.

After a long moment, he lowered his gaze and turned back toward the Xuanyue seating area. The little fox ran up to greet him, bringing a hint of softness to his stern eyes. He then returned to his seat.

Gu You merely glanced at him before looking away, resuming his fiddling with the empty silver wine flask in his hand.

Qin Huaiming’s voice then spread steadily over the Martial Arts Arena. "Fourth round, first match: Yang Wenqing of Xuanyue versus Leng Zhi of Yunji."

In that same instant, all eyes fell upon Yang Wenqing and Leng Zhi.

At the edge of the Xuanyue seating area, Yang Wenqing was stroking the feathers on Lan Ying’s back. Hearing the announcement, he didn’t stop, nor did he even look up. Lan Ying, however, jerked its small head up, its sapphire-blue eyes wide.

In the Yunji seating area, Leng Zhi sat with her Sword Box resting across her lap. She didn’t look up either.

Wu Qing, who had been leaning back in her chair, shifted slightly forward. She looked at Leng Zhi, then at Yang Wenqing, and was suddenly reminded of her fight with Yang Wenqing three years ago.

’Back then, I thought I saw him clearly. Now, I realize I saw nothing at all.’

It wasn’t just her. Before yesterday, no one would have imagined Yang Wenqing could make it this far. He simply hadn’t been a disciple for long enough.

Lin Xiyun tucked the Myriad Phenomena Celestial Disc into his sleeve, but his gaze traveled across the arena to rest fixedly on the figure who kept his eyes lowered.

The Five-Colored Sparrow on Shi Zheng’s shoulder suddenly tilted its head and let out a faint chirp that only he could hear, but Shi Zheng did not respond.

Qin Huaiming scanned the crowd, taking in everyone’s expressions. Then, in a tone tinged with pride, he said, "The next round of matches, the fourth round, will begin after one-thirty in the afternoon. Everyone, use this time to recover."