Chapter 55 – One sword!

**The First Battle!**

Su Xin versus Situ Yu!

As soon as the purple-haired elder announced the first match, the arena erupted in an uproar.

"Su Xin against Situ Yu?"

"In terms of strength, Su Xin can definitely rank in the top ten of the hunt, with such an abnormal defensive sword technique. Situ Yu, on the other hand, is only qualified to break into the top twenty, without the absolute strength to do so. There's no suspense in this match, right?"

"Does this battle have any special significance? Why did His Majesty appoint them to fight as the opening match?"

Many were curious.

If it were any other match, it wouldn't matter if they faced each other. But this is the first battle, appointed by His Majesty.

In the past, the first battle appointed by His Majesty always had something worth watching.

Although it wouldn't involve the strongest geniuses clashing right away, it had to have some significance.

At this moment, some informed individuals began to speak.

"Everyone, Su Xin comes from the Su Family, which was once a top family in the Heavenflame Dynasty, but has now declined. Over three years ago, Su Xin, the Su Family's top genius, had a duel with Situ Yu, the top genius of the Situ Family, personally hosted by His Majesty. It was said that whoever won would marry the Ninth Princess."

"But who would have thought, on the day of the duel, for some unknown reason, Su Xin fled without a fight? Even His Majesty was furious afterward and ordered Su Xin to be imprisoned in the Magic-Sealing Prison."

"Is that so?"

"Did they really have such a history?"

Everyone suddenly understood.

"Su Xin fled without a fight three years ago?"

"With the strength he's showing now, even three years ago, there was no need to fear Situ Yu, right?"

"Could there be some other secret?"

Everyone was curious.

As the grudge between Su Xin and Situ Yu spread, tens of thousands of spectators in the arena were eagerly anticipating.

No wonder His Majesty chose their duel as the opening match; it turns out this is a duel delayed by three years.

And among the two, the one with obviously greater strength is the one who fled without a fight back then.

This battle is indeed worth watching.

...

In the center of the arena, the other thirty-four geniuses had already retreated, leaving only Su Xin and Situ Yu standing there.

The two faced each other from a distance.

"Situ Yu." Su Xin's eyes were cold, with a hint of excitement.

He had waited a long time for this battle.

Since that absent duel over three years ago...

Everyone thought he fled without a fight, but only he knew how helpless he was back then.

Since then, he had been burdened with the stigma of 'cowardice,' 'incompetence,' and 'fleeing without a fight.'

The world ridiculed him.

His family couldn't understand him.

He could only bury everything in his heart, struggling in the Magic-Sealing Prison for three years.

Although he later rose to prominence, regaining respect and status within his family, the stigma of 'fear of battle' had never been washed away.

Until today, in this final stage of the hunt, encountering Situ Yu again, to resume the duel delayed for over three years...

"For this battle, I ask for nothing else but to let the world know that three years ago, I was not afraid to fight!"

"Situ Yu is not qualified to make me, Su Xin, flee without a fight!"

Su Xin's eyes were filled with fierce determination.

Situ Yu, at this moment, was also coldly staring at Su Xin.

"Su Xin, in the second stage of the hunt, managed to pass the sixteenth round and is recognized as the best in defense in this hunt..."

"Hmph, it's just strong defense."

Situ Yu snorted coldly.

Defense is a form of strength, but it is by no means everything.

"The Crimson Dragon Tower ranked me within the top thirty, with the potential to break into the top twenty. In the first two stages of the hunt, my performance was average, leading everyone to believe I only had that level of strength. Little did they know, I have been hiding my true strength all along." Situ Yu sneered inwardly.

In this hunt, with only thirty-six geniuses left, there are definitely those hiding their true strength.

Situ Yu is one of them.

The outside world generally believes he is only qualified to break into the top twenty, but little do they know, his true strength can challenge the top ten.

And in this battle, most people see it as having no suspense, thinking he is no match for Su Xin.

But Situ Yu believes he still has a good chance of winning.

...

The entire arena had quieted down.

The purple-haired elder presiding over the duel stepped forward and said in a deep voice, "In this final stage of the hunt, there is only one rule: stop when the point is made, and do not deliberately strike to kill. Anyone who dares to violate the rules and intentionally strike to kill during the duel will not only be immediately disqualified from the hunt but will also face punishment afterward."

"Do you both understand?"

"Understood," both Su Xin and Situ Yu nodded.

This one-on-one duel in the arena is not like the previous hunting grounds, covered with special formations that could save the geniuses' lives at critical moments with their identity tokens.

In this arena, a slight mistake could directly lead to a genius's death.

But those who made it through the two stages of the hunt to the end are all remarkable geniuses; losing even one would be a great loss to the Heavenflame Dynasty, which naturally wants to prevent such occurrences.

"Very well, let's begin the first battle."

After the purple-haired elder finished speaking, his figure flickered and he floated to the edge of the open space.

In the vast arena, only Su Xin and Situ Yu remained.

...

"Su Xin, your courage has grown quite a bit since three years ago. Knowing you're up against me, you didn't flee immediately this time?" Situ Yu spoke, a strange smile on his face.

These words caused the previously quiet arena to erupt in noise once again.

Everyone could hear the mockery in Situ Yu's words towards Su Xin.

Su Xin's expression remained indifferent, not engaging in verbal sparring with Situ Yu. Instead, he drew his long sword and pointed it at Situ Yu from a distance.

"One sword!"

Su Xin spoke coldly.

"One sword? What one sword?" Situ Yu frowned.

Su Xin offered no explanation, merely giving Situ Yu a cold glance.

In the next moment, boom!

A surge of powerful and violent spiritual energy erupted.

Su Xin's figure, like a stream of light, instantly traversed the void.

"This is..."

"Peak Sea Transformation!!"

"Wasn't it said that Su Xin only had Sea Transformation level cultivation?"

The audience was in an uproar.

According to the genius information from the Crimson Dragon Tower, Su Xin was only at the Sea Transformation level, right?

But now, with Su Xin's spiritual energy erupting, it was clearly at the peak Sea Transformation level.

"Did his cultivation break through?"

"Previously, with just Sea Transformation level cultivation, the Crimson Dragon Tower ranked him in the top ten of the hunt, and his defensive sword technique was recognized as the best. Now that his cultivation has broken through to peak Sea Transformation, how strong is he?"

The thirty-four geniuses who had retreated outside the arena were also astonished by this scene.

"Now this is interesting."

Xia Mang, with an arrogant face and a hint of dominance, couldn't help but smile at this scene.

As the currently recognized strongest in this hunt, he looked down on everything.

Among the geniuses present, only a few could catch his eye.

Wu Chao barely counted as one, and after the second stage of the hunt, Su Xin's name was firmly remembered by him.

However, Su Xin's cultivation was indeed too low, only at Sea Transformation level.

But now that Su Xin's cultivation had broken through, in many aspects, he was no longer inferior to him and definitely qualified to be his opponent.

...

In the arena, as Su Xin's cultivation erupted, Situ Yu was also taken aback.

"Damn, his cultivation actually broke through?"

Originally, Situ Yu thought that by hiding his strength and suddenly bursting forth, he had a good chance of defeating Su Xin.

But now, with Su Xin's strength erupting, he immediately lost all confidence.

Yet he still quickly drew his weapon and charged forward.

Boom!

A sudden, intense sound of breaking through the air echoed.

Su Xin's long sword slashed out directly, with seventy percent of his bloodline power instantly activated, carrying an overwhelming momentum.

Violent and terrifying!

It slashed down directly.

"He's actually going to clash with me head-on?"

Seeing this, Situ Yu laughed.

It's known that although his weapon is also a sword, it's a broad and heavy sword!

A heavy sword without a sharp edge, but with immense force.

His swordsmanship is inherently fierce, excelling in frontal collisions and power clashes.

Facing him head-on, he naturally welcomed it.

"This is your own death wish."

A hint of excitement flickered in Situ Yu's eyes as he gripped his broad and heavy sword with both hands. With surging spiritual energy, Situ Yu unleashed his full strength without reservation.

"Breaking Army!"

Situ Yu directly used his killing move.

The massive heavy sword, incredibly thick, formed a sword shadow, sweeping down with great momentum.

"This Situ Yu actually hid his strength!!"

Many top experts in the arena had already noticed the extraordinary nature of Situ Yu's sword.

With just this one sword, Situ Yu was definitely not just qualified to break into the top twenty of the hunt; he was at least qualified to challenge the top ten.

"Situ Yu actually had a hidden hand?"

"Situ Yu's heavy sword is inherently powerful; Su Xin colliding with him head-on like this might suffer."

Some experts discussed among themselves.

In the blink of an eye, the two sword shadows collided head-on.

Boom!

A loud explosion, the terrifying collision of power, caused ripples in the void, with the resulting shockwave sweeping indiscriminately around.

The ground beneath both of them shattered on the spot.

Situ Yu initially had full confidence, even a cold smile on his face.

However, the moment his heavy sword collided with Su Xin's sword...

A tremendously powerful and suffocating force transmitted from Su Xin's sword.

This force completely exceeded his expectations and his capacity to withstand it.

The smile on Situ Yu's face froze instantly.

"How, how is this possible?"

A flash of terror and disbelief crossed Situ Yu's eyes.

In the next moment, under the impact of that terrifying force, both of his arms holding the sword twisted, the sword's momentum collapsed, and Su Xin's violent and terrifying sword shadow continued to press down on the heavy sword, crushing it onto Situ Yu's body, completely overwhelming him.

"Ugh!"

A mouthful of blood spurted from Situ Yu's mouth.

His body shot out like a cannonball, crashing heavily onto the ground not far behind, even rolling a few times before coming to a stop.

After stopping, Situ Yu couldn't even lift his head to look at Su Xin again. The intense pain from all over his body, including his internal organs, caused his mind to spin, and he fell unconscious on the spot.

This scene drove the vast arena into a frenzy.