Shi Yan's victory was like a pebble thrown into a lake, creating ripples among the cultivators of the four regions. The Southern Region had always been regarded as a "weak region," but now it had actually defeated the Western Region. Many people stared at the Southern Region team, their eyes shifting from contempt to scrutiny—this Southern Region seemed to be not as insignificant as they had thought.
"Fellow Daoist Shi, shall we continue the challenge?" the presiding elder asked.
Shi Yan stretched his arms; the meridians in his arms were still a little numb from taking Chi Feng's "Wildfire" attack. He shook his head: "No, my spiritual energy is more than half depleted. If I fight again, I'm afraid I'll embarrass the Southern Region." With that, he clasped his hands and withdrew.
"Alright!" The old cultivator nodded, his gaze sweeping over both teams. "Western Region and Southern Region, send more people up on stage!"
In the Southern Region team, a mid-Nascent Soul disciple from the Purple Lightning Sect took a deep breath and leaped onto the arena—his name was Zi Lei, one of the disciples from the Purple Lightning Sect who had advanced this time. He held a Purple Lightning Hammer in his hand and exuded a calm and composed aura.
From the Western Regions, a burly man nearly ten feet tall walked up, his muscles bulging, his upper body bare, his bronze skin covered in scars, wielding two giant axes. Just standing there, he exuded a fierce aura. He was none other than Man Niu, a core disciple of the "Mad Axe Sect" in the Western Regions.
"You little brat from the Southern Region, you got cocky after winning just one game? Watch me chop you in half!" the raging bull roared, slamming his giant axe down so hard that the arena trembled.
"Enough with the nonsense!" Zi Lei swung his Purple Lightning Hammer, its blade crackling with purple lightning. "Zi Lei of the Purple Lightning Sect, I'd like to learn from your superior skills!"
"Well done!" The bull unleashed both axes with tremendous force, capable of splitting mountains and shattering rocks, directly striking the purple lightning. His cultivation method followed a brutal and forceful approach, emphasizing brute strength rather than technique. Ordinary mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivators simply couldn't withstand a single axe strike from him.
Zi Lei dared not take the blow head-on, and used his movement skills to dodge. He occasionally swung his Purple Lightning Hammer with lightning to try to interfere with the bull. However, the bull had thick hide and flesh, and the lightning that hit him only left a few scorch marks, which did not affect his movements at all.
"Hide? How long can you hide!" the bull roared, wielding its double axes like windmills, compressing Zi Lei's dodge space to the extreme.
"Clang!" Zi Lei was forced to take the axe blow head-on. He felt his arms go numb, the Purple Lightning Hammer almost slipped from his hands, and he staggered backward, his chest heaving.
The bull, having gained the upper hand, pressed its advantage, sweeping its giant axe across the ground with a whooshing sound, and slammed it heavily into Zi Lei's abdomen.
"Pfft—" Zi Lei spat out a mouthful of blood, his body flying backward like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily off the stage, curled up on the ground, barely breathing, clearly seriously injured.
"Hahaha! Is this the skill of the Southern Region? It's utterly pathetic!" The bull stood on the arena and laughed wildly, his eyes sweeping contemptuously over the Southern Region team.
"Damn it!" The cultivators from the Southern Region were all furious, and the people from the Purple Lightning Sect were about to rush forward, but were held back by the people around them.
"You lost, so be it. Why keep stubbornly clinging to that spot? You deserve to be beaten like this!" The Western Region cultivator's mocking voice rang out again, filled with undisguised smugness.
Just then, a cold shout rang out: "Mad Axe Sect, bullying a junior, are you feeling smug?"
Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw Zi Feng, the senior disciple of the Purple Lightning Sect, slowly walking onto the arena. He was dressed in a purple robe, his face was cold and stern, and faint purple lightning surrounded him. His aura was as solid as a mountain—he was actually at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage!
When the bull saw him step onto the stage, he not only did not back down, but instead stuck out his neck and said, "What? You want to gang up on me after losing? I'll play along to the end!" In his opinion, he had won two matches in a row and was in high spirits. Even if the opponent was a peak Nascent Soul cultivator, he might not be afraid.
"Accompany you? You're not worthy." Zi Feng's eyes were icy as he raised his hand and summoned a purple longsword, with purple lightning crackling across its blade. "When you injured my junior brother earlier, you should have thought this day would come."
"Arrogant!" The bull unleashed both axes with tremendous force, aiming straight for Zi Feng's face. The axe wind was several times more ferocious than when it had struck Zi Lei before!
Instead of retreating, Zi Feng advanced, his figure as swift as lightning. His purple longsword transformed into a bolt of lightning, dodging the axe blade's edge and thrusting straight at the bull's wrist! The speed far exceeded the bull's expectations!
"Clang!" The bull hastily parried with its axe, but its wrist was struck by the purple lightning on the sword, causing an unbearable numbness and itching. The giant axe almost slipped from its grasp.
"Again!" Zi Feng pressed his advantage, his sword moves becoming increasingly fierce. Purple lightning seemed to come alive, coiling around the sword. Each strike was accompanied by a sharp whistling sound that tore through the air, forcing the bull to retreat repeatedly and only be able to defend passively.
The audience below was shocked—Zi Feng's strength was so much greater than the rumors suggested!
"Roar!" Forced to the edge of the arena, the bull went into a frenzy, burning its essence blood to forcibly increase its power. It merged its two axes, transforming them into a huge axe shadow, and smashed down on Zi Feng, intending to perish together with him!
A cold glint flashed in Zi Feng's eyes. Instead of retreating, he advanced, retracting his longsword and then suddenly unleashing a burst of energy. Purple lightning gathered into a thunderbolt, flowing along the longsword and into the axe shadow!
"Purple Lightning Sword Technique - Thunderclap Strike!"
"boom!"
The purple lightning clashed with the axe shadow, unleashing a blinding light. The bull let out a shrill scream as it was thrown off the stage by the purple lightning, flying like a kite with a broken string. It crashed heavily onto the ground in front of the Western Region team, spitting out black blood and convulsing uncontrollably.
The Western Region cultivator rushed forward to investigate, his expression changing drastically: "His internal organs have all been shattered! His nascent soul is on the verge of disintegration!"
"The Southern Region has gone too far! It's just a competition, why are the injuries so severe!"
"That's right! This is a deadly attack!" The Western Region cultivators were outraged, pointing at Zi Feng and angrily rebuking him.
Zi Feng stood on the arena, coldly sweeping his gaze over them: "When you injured my junior brother just now, did you go easy on him? He was only in the mid-Nascent Soul stage, yet you severely injured him. Why didn't you complain about going too far?"
With just one sentence, the Western Region cultivators were rendered speechless. When the barbarian bull injured Zi Lei earlier, they only felt relieved, but now that their own people were seriously injured, they were shouting "too much," which was a blatant double standard.
"You..." The Western Regions leader was so angry that his face turned ashen, but he couldn't find any words to refute it.
After a moment of silence, a giant standing two zhang tall strode onto the arena from the Western Regions team. He was shirtless, his muscles bulging like rocks, and his eyes were like those of a fierce tiger. Just standing there, he exuded a terrifying sense of oppression—it was none other than the senior brother of the Western Regions, Manxiong.
The "Born with Divine Strength" bear is extremely famous in the Western Regions. It is said that he can tear apart demonic beasts and fight against early and mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivators. He is one of the trump cards of this martial arts tournament in the Western Regions.
As soon as he stepped onto the stage, his eyes were fixed on Zi Feng, and he said in a deep voice, "I'll settle the score with you for what happened earlier."
Zi Feng gripped his longsword tightly, the purple lightning around him growing increasingly violent: "I'm ready anytime."
Their gazes clashed in the center of the arena, and it was as if invisible sparks of electricity exploded in the air.
A fierce battle between Nascent Soul stage cultivators and those born with divine power is about to erupt.
The murmurs below the stage completely ceased, and everyone held their breath, staring at the two on the stage—this battle was not only about victory or defeat, but also about the reputation of both regions, and could not be taken lightly.
The cultivators from the Southern Region clenched their fists, while the people from the Western Region looked on with anticipation.
The wind on the arena, carrying the burning intensity of the purple lightning and the giant's composure, pushed the tense atmosphere of this arena battle to a new climax.
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