Paragon of Sin

When Li Xiao took the stage she took everyone's attention as well. A charming, exquisite young woman that seemed roughly in her twenties. A woman in the prime of her beauty and youth. She wore light make-up, almond-shaped eyes, lips that were a striking red, and dainty nose. Her skin was clear and milky, giving a smooth sense like jade. While she wasn't voluptuous or buxom, she had a slim and lithe body that carried a sense of unique delicateness about it. 

In contrast to Qing Qiumu, she was severely lacking. It was like comparing a mortal to an immortal fairy, but amongst mortals she was still exceptional among her gender. Therefore, when she arrived on stage, everyone couldn't help but give her a moment of their attention. But that moment was incredibly fleeting. 

Li Xiao's eyes revealed calm, but they carried a subtle piercing light as she stared at Qing Qiumu. 

"You defeated Junior Brother Yuwei using such underhanded means. How pathetic." The first words out of her mouth were cold, almost mocking. This caused many to realize that her desire for entering the stage was for revenge or face. 

"..." Qing Qiumu looked at Li Xiao with a calm expression, not reacting in the slightest to her provocation. Instead, she waited.

Li Xiao frowned. "Do you truly think you're amazing? That a sneak attack shows that you're powerful?" She asked coldly. When Qing Qiumu seemingly ignored her, the calm facade she was revealing showed faint signs of cracking. It seemed her negative emotions were seeping through relatively quickly. 

Wei Wuyin sighed in her heart, thinking: 'Jealousy is unbecoming. That truly is the case.'

"..." Qing Qiumu kept silent.

Li Xiao clenched her fists, her aura surging. "In my opin-"

"Shut the hell out!" Zuhei barked, his scarlet eyes viciously glaring at Li Xiao. His words were filled with immense power and his intent to slaughter, effusing the area with a bloody and potent smell. 

Li Xiao literally jumped in shock, her aura that was building deflated like a popped balloon. She turned towards Zuhei, wanting to speak out some words, but was met with an insidious pair of eyes that radiated murder and impatience. 

"Challenge or fuck off," Zuhei said with a growl. He didn't have time to deal with her petulant attempts at mocking or to ruin the image of another. He didn't care if she intended to save face for Jiang Yuwei. He didn't care if her jealousy was fueling her desire to monologue. He didn't care about her.

Just fight!

If you don't want to fight, then just simply scram the fuck away! 

Zuhei's words caused the crowd to laugh slightly, some smiling, others frowning, but their thoughts were truly synced. This was a marathon. We didn't come to see a show, but to race to the finish! 

If her words carried some use, such as Qing Qiumu's attempt to rattle and grasp an opportunity to sneak attack her opponent, then Zuhei would've remained silent. But what was this? Just fight! 

Wei Wuyin couldn't help but shake his head. He didn't understand why people loved to use these moments to chatter away. He didn't know what it was about battles and talking, but people loved to do both—before and during. 

He recalled his encounter with a Mortal Godlord on the Myriad Yore Continent. After witnessing his sister's death, he didn't arrive with explosive rage or a direct assault, but with words. Even Wei Wuyin was a little startled by this. 

Your sister was just killed. You're clutching her decapitated head and facing her murderer, but your first decision is to use words? It was quite ridiculous.

You can be calm, but did you have to chatter?

He remembered telling Qing Qiumu about his thoughts on this, and seeing her remain silent was praise-worthy. 

Li Xiao wanted to say something, but Zuhei's eyes had stopped her from doing so out of an innate fear. She felt that if she said anything, Zuhei wouldn't hesitate to kill her after this event was over. In fact, his eyes seemed to beg her to speak. She slightly gulped, and scoffed softly before facing Qing Qiumu.

Looking at that valiant beauty that seemed to have fallen from a war-ridden heaven, she clenched her teeth a little. 

"I, Li Xiao, challenge!" 

When those words were finally uttered, the crystal-like walls once more erected and isolated the participants. 

Qing Qiumu waved her arms, flicking her sleeve as nine objects were conjured in an elegant flourish. Her graceful movements seemed to have become one with nature. The nine objects were nine nine-inch long swords that seemed to be made of various types of wood and grass. They each emanated vast and gentle wood energies, and each individual sword seemed to embody various intents.

"Nine Meadows Astral Swords?" Su Mei muttered. She turned towards Wei Wuyin, frowning slightly. Weapons at the Astral-level were so exceptionally rare and expensive that of the five million Astral Core Realm cultivators that exist on the starfield, barely 1% had them. In fact, successfully refining them required decades or even centuries of refinement. 

The vast majority simply conjure their own weapons. This was even true for Qi Condensation Realm cultivators as high-level weapons were extremely difficult to obtain. Despite reaching the Mortal God-level, Wei Wuyin had still used the saber that he obtained from an old forger all those years ago. It wasn't because of sentimental value, but because a good weapon was extremely difficult to come by.

Whether it be alchemical products, armaments, or formations, none of these things didn't require immense time and extreme effort to perform. Wei Wuyin was merely an exception, not the standard, to alchemy. But the rest of the world still went by the common saying amongst all: "Cultivation is difficult." This included cultivating everything and all things, including one's arts, skills, or cultivation base.

Wei Wuyin smiled with a hint of glee as he saw the nine swords. As for Li Xiao, she was appalled. Her lips twitched as she felt the immense aura from the nine swords, not believing they were legitimately astral weapons. Furthermore, these astral weapons were not low-grade, each brimming with Intent and seemingly inscribed with profound formations.

Even Long Chen was startled by those nine swords. He couldn't help inspect each sword, feeling as if they were all individual yet combined in a set. His eyes glowed as he seemingly discovered something.

Qing Qiumu briefly glanced at Wei Wuyin before turning her attention to Li Xiao. These nine swords were originally independent swords, each had an owner that was spread across the Myriad Monarch Astral Territory. They had undergone hundreds of years of refinement by Astral Core Realm cultivators, imbued with Intent. In fact, some were ancestral items that had been in families or clans for thousands of years. 

Inexplicably, Wei Wuyin had obtained them all and had them reforged into a set by the top forger of the sect. While they were weakened individually as a result, they became linked and extremely easy to utilize. They were extremely effective weapons with their own unique set of abilities.

They were perfect for her. It was definitely made for her. She hadn't been willing to use them unless absolutely necessary, but she had suffered injuries from before and her bodily state wasn't at its peak. So she intended to use her advantage to her fullest. 

Shiiiing!

The nine swords all released faint sword cries as if they were being unsheathed. Their varied auras were perfectly linked as one, seemingly forming a world within the sound. 

Li Xiao's heart throbbed. She immediately erected her astral ward and lifted off the platform, taking flight. She flipped her palm and green-colored staff with golden lines emerged. It was similarly a wood-attributed astral weapon, but its aura was severely lacking when compared to those nine swords. Furthermore, it lacked Intent. 

This was clearly a weapon she had refined herself, and was still in the process of refining through a continuous infusion process. This type of weapon could be considered an 'astral weapon' but it wasn't really. It lacked an inscribed formation within, and it lacked Intent. These two aspects created true astral weapons. Those were rare.

As for this staff? Everyone could see it was forged normally with astral-level materials and then refined personally. 

Qing Qiumu saw Li Xiao's battle readied state and her heart exploded with battle intent. Her emerald eyes that were extremely beautiful became sharp and penetrating, and her aura erupted as she infused her will into the swords.

When this happened, Su Mei's eyes widened slightly. "She's dead!" Those words were exclaimed softly. Others who heard were shocked, unsure of what she was talking about.

The nine swords transformed into swiftly gliding lights that exploded forth with extreme speed towards Li Xiao. They were so fast that the ambient mana was being sliced in two, creating ripples within the world that was visible to everyone beyond the World Sea Phase.

Li Xiao's heart fiercely raced at the incoming light. She reinforced her astral word and brandished her staff, intending to unleash an Astral Art to deflect them.

Unfortunately…

The speed of the swords were truly too fast, their piercing strength simply unfathomable. When combined with Qing Qiumu's powerful wood force, they were at their strongest. In moments, they closed the distance before she could even fully wave her staff. The swords appeared directly before her.

Li Xiao could only widen her eyes in shock as the world seemed to slow down in her perception. Everything was extremely slow, and she saw vividly how her astral ward was penetrated with extreme ease, like a hot knife through butter. 

'So sharp!'

Was her first and last thought. 

Nine swords sliced into her delicate body. One in particular was aimed at her throat, slicing into her flesh with ease and making its way through her spine. The rest penetrated her flesh and her body was carried away like a ragdoll, smashing against the crystal wall in a flash. 

"..."

For several seconds, the world became silent. Li Xiao's body was seemingly nailed to the wall via eight swords. It was only when her neck had a glaring line of blood red and unnaturally slid slightly that people reacted, their eyes widened in shock. Then, it fell.

Thud!

It smashed against the platform amidst the silence in a sickening thud of stone meeting flesh and bone. 

Su Mei looked at Wei Wuyin.

Wei Wuyin was a little surprised too. 

"She did not hold back," Wei Wuyin clicked his tongue. To think that Qing Qiumu would actually start the battle by unleashing the strongest formations on the swords, converting wood force's usually delicate and soft nature into a sharp, piercing force similar to sword force.

It increased the lethality by an extreme degree. Furthermore, the swords were linked and strengthened each other; hence, it was designed as a set. 

A bright white light wrapped around Li Xiao's corpse as everyone stared on, and then it vanished—including the head. 

Qing Qiumu.

Myriad Monarch Participant.

Sky Ruler Cultivation.

Spirit Points: 390.

-

# of Continuous Victories: 2.