Chapter 731: The Pain of a Severed Arm

When two cultivators have similar talent, the difference between them becomes plain to see.

That was precisely why Elder Zheng was so confident.

Any disciple of the Kongshan Sect was eligible to sign up for its sect competition.

After signing up, however, they first had to go through preliminary selections held by the various Peak Masters. Each lineage would choose twenty-four disciples to take part in the actual sect competition.

Of these, eight would be Body Forging Realm disciples, eight would be Qi Circulation Realm disciples, and eight would be Martial Spring Realm disciples.

The sect competitions for the Body Forging Realm and Qi Circulation Realm disciples had already ended.

In fact, the sparring matches between the Body Forging Realm and Qi Circulation Realm disciples could only be considered appetizers.

Starting today, the true sect competition would be held over the next three days at the Training Grounds on Yibai Peak.

The most outstanding disciples of the Kongshan Sect's younger generation would not take part in the Body Forging Realm or Qi Circulation Realm competitions at all. Instead, they would wait until reaching the Martial Spring Realm before competing directly in that division.

More importantly, this sect competition would serve as a major reference for selecting the Dao Inquirers who would attend the Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquiry three years later.

However, of the Kongshan Sect's three most outstanding disciples, Li Haowen had already lost his chance to participate in the Heavenly Summit Mountain Dao Inquiry three years from now. By then, he would be twenty-one, over the age limit for entry.

......

Everything proceeded smoothly.

Chen Yan had easily won the first three rounds of the sect competition. In fact, throughout those first three rounds, not a single opponent had managed to touch the hem of his daoist robes.

Meanwhile, the other two young disciples currently considered Chen Yan's equals within the Kongshan Sect, Chu Xiyao and Li Haowen, had faced each other ahead of schedule in the third round.

It was a far more grueling battle than anyone had expected.

Only after exchanging more than three hundred moves did Li Haowen finally manage to claim victory.

Although the result was much better than everyone had originally predicted, Chu Xiyao was still deeply dissatisfied. Even Martial Elder Fu Qian of Qingchan Peak, seated on the high platform, looked extremely grim.

That was because Li Haowen had never drawn his sword, from beginning to end.

Li Haowen was a Swordsman, though not a pure Swordsman.

If a pure Swordsman did not use a sword, they could display at most around a third of their full strength.

Although Li Haowen was not a pure Swordsman, without his sword, he could display at most half of his full strength.

That alone was enough to show just how enormous the gap between Chu Xiyao and Li Haowen really was.

Of course, most of that gap came from the difference in their ages.

After the first three rounds, only seven seeded disciples remained in this sect competition.

The seven Martial Elders would vote to decide who received a bye in the fourth round and advanced directly to the next.

Without the slightest surprise, all seven Martial Elders voted to give the bye to Li Haowen.

After another two hard-fought rounds, the two finalists were exactly as everyone had expected.

Chen Yan and Li Haowen.

When it came to this match, the disciples and elders at Yibai Peak's Training Grounds were almost unanimous in believing that Li Haowen would claim the championship of the sect competition.

The gap between them was simply too great.

With a difference of two minor stages between them, and their talents being similar, Chen Yan's chances of winning were practically zero.

Chen Yan himself, however, did not think so.

He knew very well that Li Haowen would be the greatest opponent he had faced since embarking on the path of immortality.

But Chen Yan still believed he had a chance to defeat him.

“Chief Disciple of Kongyuan Mountain, Chen Yan!”

The manager disciple of Yibai Peak's Training Grounds called out loudly from the arena platform:

“Versus Chief Disciple of Yuanhua Mountain, Li Haowen!”

Chen Yan walked onto the arena platform at an unhurried pace. He looked at the young man standing opposite him, whose bearing was upright and dashing, whose Yuanhua Mountain daoist robes were immaculate, and whose sword hung at his waist.

“I've heard so much about you, Chief Disciple Chen.”

Li Haowen laughed heartily as he addressed Chen Yan.

“It's Senior Brother Li whose reputation precedes him. Back when I was still in the outer court, I often heard about your exploits.”

Chen Yan clasped his hands and bowed.

This was the first time the two had spoken, and they were both exceedingly courteous.

As Chen Yan looked at Li Haowen, he noticed something in the other man's eyes, a light that seemed to shine naturally from within.

Li Haowen's gaze was full of hope and youthful vigor.

“Then, please.”

Li Haowen remained where he was and spoke to Chen Yan.

Chen Yan did not stand on ceremony.

When one side was at least a minor realm higher than the other, or when there was a great difference in strength, it was practically an unspoken rule on the arena platform for the stronger side to let the weaker side attack first.

Before this match began, Lu Li had carefully explained how Chen Yan might be able to defeat Li Haowen.

His only chance was to stay close and wear Li Haowen down.

As a late-stage Martial Spring Realm cultivator, Li Haowen could completely overwhelm Chen Yan in both the purity and quantity of his true qi. On top of that, Li Haowen was a Swordsman.

The area where the gap between them was smallest was actually their footwork.

Chen Yan's only path to victory was to close the distance as much as possible, making it difficult for Li Haowen to bring his advantages to bear.

Since Li Haowen was letting him attack first, Chen Yan acted decisively. He swiftly used his footwork to close in on Li Haowen.

In almost the blink of an eye, Chen Yan crossed the several zhang between them and immediately struck toward Li Haowen with a palm.

The moment Chen Yan charged at him, Li Haowen understood his intention.

He also knew this was Chen Yan's only way to win.

Not wanting to suffer an unexpected defeat, Li Haowen retreated, trying to open up the distance between them again.

Chen Yan immediately closed in once more. After this happened several times, Li Haowen clearly realized that his footwork offered little advantage against the Kongyuan Mountain disciple before him, who was three years younger.

At the very least, that advantage was not enough to shake Chen Yan off.

At this close range, it was difficult to use either techniques or the sword at his waist.

Since that was the case, Li Haowen stopped dodging.

If Chen Yan wanted to fight at close quarters, Li Haowen would oblige.

Li Haowen halted and began trading blows with Chen Yan right where he stood.

Chen Yan's expression grew heavier and heavier as he realized that he was already at a disadvantage in their close-quarters exchange.

His opponent's cultivation was a full two minor stages above his own. If this continued, only one outcome awaited him:

Defeat.

With that in mind, Chen Yan decided to make one final gamble. His only hope was to catch Li Haowen off guard and win through an unexpected move.

First, he slowed his attacks, making himself appear weak. Then, just as Li Haowen began pursuing him, he suddenly urged his Martial Spring to full power and drove his left palm straight toward Li Haowen's chest. The true qi gathered in his palm had almost solidified.

Li Haowen's eyes narrowed, and he hurriedly raised his hand to meet the attack!

Their palms collided.

At that moment, the passage of time seemed to slow to a crawl.

Li Haowen, standing before Chen Yan, slowly widened his eyes. His gaze revealed an almost instinctive panic and disbelief.

It had worked!

Seeing Li Haowen's reaction, Chen Yan sent his right palm toward Li Haowen's chest once more.

Li Haowen took the blow head-on and was immediately sent flying backward. He crashed heavily off the arena platform.

“Winner, Chen Yan!”

The manager disciple of Yibai Peak announced the result. But the moment he stepped onto the arena platform, the words died in his throat. He stared at Chen Yan standing there, his face filled with horror.

The disciples watching from around the Training Grounds also cried out in shock, one after another.

Faced with their reactions, Chen Yan looked completely bewildered.

“Chief Disciple Chen...”

Li Haowen sat up on the ground where he had just fallen. He did not seem to be injured, but his gaze remained fixed on Chen Yan's left hand.

“Your left hand...”

Only then did Chen Yan look down at his left hand.

He froze on the spot.

His left hand was twisted outward at a grotesque angle. The broken bone in his forearm had pierced through his skin, its chilling white surface exposed.

It hurt so much.

Looking at his ruined left hand, Chen Yan thought to himself.

But what shocked him most was the pain of the broken bone piercing through his flesh:

He could actually endure it completely.