On stage.

Even in such a critical situation, Lu Fuyue remained calm. She quickly scanned her predicament and analyzed how to avoid revealing her cultivation level, and then successfully broke the deadlock.

However, at this moment, streaks of purple-gold lightning fell with Yan Nanfei's broadsword, mercilessly slashing towards Lu Fuyue's head. The sharp blade reflected Yan Nanfei's cold and ruthless gaze.

In an instant, a terrifying atmosphere filled the entire stage, as if it could tear people to pieces in the blink of an eye.

If Elder Jianqing hadn't set up a barrier around each arena for safety reasons, those cultivators standing close to the arena would likely have been caught in the crossfire.

At this moment, their faces turned pale, their bodies trembled and they could not stand steadily. Their eyes were filled with lingering fear. For a moment, they really thought they were going to die under these lightning bolts.

Just as the broadsword was about to fall on Lu Fuyue's head, someone in the audience closed their eyes in despair, and Jiang Li's shrill scream echoed throughout the sky, "Senior sister, no..."

Lu Zhengming could no longer hold back and wanted to get up and stop them, but he was stopped by the sect leader of the Li Huo Sect beside him. "Sect Leader Lu, don't forget the rules of the Cultivation Grand Competition."

Upon hearing this, he froze, no longer moving.

However, at this critical moment, Lu Fuyue's eyes narrowed, she pursed her lips, and with a powerful tremor, the restraints on her body disappeared instantly. She immediately raised her hand, activated her technique, and the five strings of the Weak Water Zither transformed into five beams of spiritual light, fiercely meeting the greatsword.

Originally, she didn't plan to use this trick, but unfortunately someone was courting death!

Five strings of different colors came together from all directions to form a large net, which blocked the broadsword. Then, with a sudden snap, the broadsword returned along its original path and headed towards Yan Nanfei's heart.

Yan Nanfei's pupils contracted slightly, and he quickly turned and flipped over to avoid it.

Lu Fuyue's eyes turned cold, and she formed a hand seal. Countless azure spiritual energies surged into her hands from all directions, forming a water lily.

The water lily exuded a sharp, icy aura. Lu Fuyue slapped the water lily against the body of the Weak Water Zither. The next second, seven light blue strings appeared out of thin air on the Weak Water Zither.

Suddenly, a phoenix cry resounded through the sky, and an ancient and timeless aura spread throughout the entire cultivation competition.

The blood and qi of everyone present surged, and their cultivation was suppressed to the point that they could not circulate. They could only barely open their eyes to look at the white-clad female cultivator on the stage, whose phoenix phantom was faintly visible behind her, and raise her hand to play the zither.

Last time it was a water dragon, this time it's an ice phoenix, Fairy Lu... she...

The moment the piano music began, a sudden gust of wind arose, plunging the world into darkness.

Countless white veils suddenly appeared out of thin air, tightly binding Yan Nanfei and tightening them continuously.

Yan Nanfei's expression changed drastically, and his strength and cultivation disappeared one after another, causing the broadsword in his hand to fall to the ground.

At the same time, under the influence of the zither music, the white gauze tightened more and more, leaving bloody marks. The gauze tightly embedded the bloody flesh, and as the gauze continued to contract, the pain, like being skinned and dismembered bit by bit by a dull knife, slowly spread throughout the body.

In no time, large beads of sweat appeared on Yan Nanfei's forehead, and his face turned deathly pale. He forced down the pain in his body, struggled to look up at Lu Fuyue, opened his mouth as if to speak, but ultimately said nothing.

Lu Fuyue watched this scene with a calm expression. She had sensed Yan Nanfei's murderous intent towards her from the moment she stepped onto the stage.

Since that's the case, there's no need to show mercy. As for whether he lives or dies, that's up to him.

Thinking of this, she raised her hand to play the zither again, and the next second, the white veil on Yan Nanfei's body tightened again.

He gritted his teeth, his face contorted in pain as he groaned. His body collapsed to the ground uncontrollably, and he stopped struggling. The blood flowing from his body stained the ground red, but his gaze remained fixed on Lu Fuyue.

Suddenly, an angry shout came from below the stage, followed by a terrifying pressure from a peak Nascent Soul cultivator pouring down on her.

"How dare you, Lu Fuyue! Do you think the Yan family doesn't exist?"

Everyone was shocked and couldn't help but worry about Lu Fuyue.

That's... the head of the Yan family?

Lu Fuyue sensed something was wrong, her eyes darkened, she put away the Weak Water Zither, stood up and with a flick of her sleeve, she lightly dispersed the pressure from the peak Nascent Soul cultivator.

The scene just now completely stunned the disciples of all the sects.

Fairy Lu is so powerful, then tomorrow's competition between her and Fairy Pear Blossom...

At the same time, on the high platform, the gazes of the Li Huo Sect Master and others towards her changed instantly.

Is this the powerful ability of a sound cultivator to fight beyond their level?

When Yan Changhui saw that Lu Fuyue had easily dispelled his oppressive aura, a dark and unfathomable glint flashed in his eyes. He then sharply looked Lu Fuyue up and down.

Unexpectedly, this woman is truly extraordinary; no wonder she became Fei'er's destined love tribulation.

Unfortunately, the two were destined to be apart, and only one of them could survive!

Thinking of this, Yan Changhui felt a surge of murderous intent, and his face darkened.

Dark clouds covered the sun, and the sky suddenly darkened. A cold wind blew in, making the atmosphere in the air even colder.

Lu Fuyue stared at him calmly, her aura no weaker than Yan Changhui's at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage, and even slightly more imposing.

Those present gained a clearer understanding of her strength once again. While they admired her, they also felt a sense of fear. If they were to face her one day, they would be in deep trouble.

Seeing her like this, Yan Changhui's anger intensified, and he couldn't help but unleash his spiritual energy and imposing aura.

"presumptuous!"

At this moment, Elder Jianqing also reacted. He quickly flew down, raised his hand to block the attack, and then stood between the two.

His gaze fell on Yan Changhui, and he sighed and shook his head, "Patriarch Yan, you shouldn't have done this."

During the Cultivation Grand Competition, no one is allowed to interfere. Anyone who violates this rule will be expelled from the competition along with all members of their clan.

After what just happened, Yan Nanfei's ranking was immediately revoked, and from then on, no one from the Yan family could participate in the cultivation competition.

Moreover, Lu Fuyue and Yan Nanfei were both disciples of the same sect, yet Yan Nanfei attempted to kill him during the competition, which was a major taboo in the sect.

In this matter, I'm afraid even the ancestor couldn't protect Yan Nanfei.

Strangely, according to his understanding, Yan Nanfei was not such a reckless person. Even if he wanted to win the first place in the cultivation competition, he would not have the heart to kill his own sect's disciple in front of the entire cultivation world. Moreover, Lu Fuyue was not an ordinary disciple.

Upon hearing this, Yan Changhui's eyes darkened, he snorted coldly, turned around, flicked his sleeves, and left without saying a word.

As the head of the Yan family, he naturally knew the importance of the cultivation competition, but allowing a junior to kill his only offspring in front of him was definitely a provocation against the prestige of the Yan family!

Lu Fuyue looked thoughtfully in the direction the Yan family had left, then turned and stepped off the stage.

As for Yan Nanfei, he had already been taken away by the Yan family.

After a long while, the crowd below the stage also reacted and began to whisper among themselves, "These cultivation families are nothing special. They only allow themselves to have murderous intent towards others, but they don't allow others to have murderous intent towards them. They are really shameless."

"Shh, are you out of your mind? That's the Yan family, a renowned name in the cultivation world."

"So what? I'm just a rogue cultivator, but my cultivation isn't bad either. Why should I be afraid of him? Besides, anyone with eyes can see who attacked first. We can't just let Fairy Lu get smeared like this."

“That’s true. If you’re not afraid even as a rogue cultivator, then I’m not afraid either, as a disciple of the Li Huo Sect, one of the three major sects.”

...

Lu Fuyue successfully entered the final round of the competition, which was also the final match. Only two people remained in the final round: Lu Fuyue and Pear Blossom Fairy.

Tomorrow will be their final battle.

With everything finished for the day, Lu Fuyue returned to her room to meditate and cultivate.

However, as her cultivation progressed, the Divine Soul Pearl in her chest became burning hot. In a daze, it seemed as if someone was calling out to her, and a mysterious yet familiar force pulled her forward.

"The phoenix soars through the nine heavens, beyond the five elements, atop the sacred parasol tree, the holy maiden returns..."

Meanwhile, on the other side...

Countless cultivators with phoenix patterns on their bodies sat cross-legged around a huge altar, silently chanting incantations, and bursts of golden light emanated from their bodies and disappeared into the very center of the altar.

At the top of the steps leading to the altar, a middle-aged female cultivator dressed in colorful phoenix feathers held a scepter carved with a lifelike phoenix head. Her eyes were closed, and she silently chanted, "The Holy Maiden has returned..."

Meanwhile, below the altar, the Feng family patriarch looked solemnly at the altar, secretly hoping that the Holy Maiden would appear again. Last time, they had only caught a fleeting glimpse of her, and they didn't even know what she looked like.

Lu Fuyue was pulled in by a huge force. Her expression changed and she found herself in an unfamiliar place. She saw many high-level cultivators, as well as a middle-aged female cultivator in colorful clothes and an old man with white hair who seemed to be talking nonsense.

Upon seeing her, these people became extremely excited and instinctively walked towards her, exclaiming, "The Holy Maiden is truly the Holy Maiden..."

Everyone knelt down and shouted, "Greetings, Your Highness the Holy Maiden!"

Lu Fuyue's eyes darkened slightly as she looked down at the clothes she was wearing. She then realized that she was wearing the same red dress she had worn when she regained her phoenix form.

And what does the saintess they're talking about mean?

Before Lu Fuyue could figure it out, her figure swayed, golden light shone brightly, and she felt dizzy and disoriented. She woke up in her room again.

She lowered her eyes and thought back carefully. Her last memory was of the panicked faces of those people and a huge phoenix phantom.