I Have a Sword

The mood of the crowd changed dramatically, and everyone was furious.

How dare he show such disrespect to the Sword Master?

In the distance, a woman walked forward. She was wearing a simple robe, and a longsword in its scabbard was in her hand. She was none other than Yue Qi, the Sect Master of the Qingzhou Sword Sect.

The crowd's mood changed drastically upon seeing her.

Ye Guan cast a curious gaze at her.

Yue Qi walked up to Tuoba Xiao, and she stared straight at him. "Do you need me to call out Little Xuan?"

To her, no matter how much that young man grew, he would always be that flashy and hot-headed young man in her heart.

Little Xuan? Ye Guan's expression changed. "Master Pagoda, who is she?"

"Your father's master from back then."

Hearing Yue Qi's words, Tuoba Xiao became clearly displeased. "Sect Master Yue, this is a small matter. Please show some consideration for the Tuoba Clan."

"No!" Yue Qi said sternly. Then, she turned her gaze to an elder of the Sword Sect standing nearby. "Expel all members of the Tuoba Clan from the Sword Sect."

Rules were rules, and no one could break them.

The reason she refused to stay in the Main Guanxuan Academy was that it was rife with corruption and nepotism. She hadn't expected that Qingzhou was suffering from the same malady. The corruption and nepotism were the reason she raised her sword and intimidated those aristocratic families and clans.

They were the source of this world's corruption, and she wanted to sever the source of corruption within the world that Little Xuan had founded.

Even with all her strength and power, however, she couldn't change the Main Guanxuan Academy. In the end, she had no choice but to leave.

Swoosh!

Several Sword Sect cultivators appeared and began kicking out those from the Tuoba Clan!

The Tuoba Clan members were furious, but they dared not resist. Soon, they were all removed from the Sword Sect.

The cultivators looked at Yue Qi with a mix of wariness and admiration. Sect Master Yue had always been known for her decisiveness!

Not far away, Ye Guan had a faint smile on his face. "Senior Yue is quite impressive. If only the academy had more people like her…"

Ye Guan sighed quietly. When corruption was the norm, integrity and justice would become anomalies.

Little Pagoda chimed in, "You have to remain upright so that others beneath you will be upright too. You must set a good example."

Ye Guan nodded thoughtfully.

At this moment, Yue Qi announced, "Let the duels continue."

With that, she turned around and walked to the side.

The next two rounds were particularly intense. Ultimately, Lu Xuanfeng and a female swordsman named Li Xue emerged victorious. Then, the lots for the third round were drawn.

Ye Guan was the first to draw, but he froze—it was blank again.

When everyone saw that Ye Guan had drawn a free pass once again, they became slightly suspicious. Damn it! He's not guaranteed a free pass, is he?

Ye Guan was also puzzled. Could someone have tampered with the results? He looked over at Yue Qi.

Yue QI glanced at him and said, "Go sit over there."

Ye Guan obediently sat on the sidelines.

Meanwhile, Lu Xuanfeng and Fu Ji were going to fight each other.

After stepping onto the platform, Lu Xuanfeng smiled and said, "Brother Fu, your strength has improved by leaps and bounds."

Fu Ji cupped his fist. "Brother Lu, I look forward to learning from you!"

Lu Xuanfeng nodded and replied, "I look forward to learning from you, too!"

Swoosh!

The two disappeared from their spots at the same time, and two streaks of sword light streaked across the air.

Bang!

One of the sword lights shattered in an instant, and everyone fell silent.

A sword was pressed against Lu Xuanfeng's forehead.

An instant defeat?

The swordsmen in the audience, especially the inner sect disciples, stared at Fu Ji in disbelief.

Just a month ago, Fu Ji had been the weakest disciple in the inner sect. He was someone that anyone could easily push around. However, he had become so powerful for some reason.

Yue Qi glanced at Fu Ji before her gaze settled on Ye Guan.

An Mujin was surprised as well. He hadn't expected that Fu Ji's strength would rise so fast and so dramatically.

Lu Xuanfeng was a Sword Exalt, and yet he was defeated with a single strike? Is Fu Ji a Sword Emperor? But even a Sword Emperor will find it incredibly difficult to defeat someone as formidable as Lu Xuanfeng with a single strike. An Mujin looked at Ye Guan as if something had clicked in his head.

Meanwhile, the crowd was curious about Fu Ji. In fact, some members of the aristocratic families and clans began inquiring about his background.

Fu Ji had undoubtedly become a dazzling dark horse in this competition.

Lu Xuanfeng chuckled bitterly. "Brother Fu, that was impressive."

Fu Ji sheathed his sword and cupped his fist. "Thank you for going easy on me."

With that, he turned around and left the platform.

Lu Xuanfeng watched as Fu Ji walked away, and a complex light flashed in his eyes. He had originally thought that he had this match in the bag, but he never thought that Fu Ji's Sword Dao had improved so much in such a short time.

He was defeated in a single strike!

Lu Xuanfeng sighed softly and turned around to leave. Although he was unwilling to accept the result, there was nothing he could do about it. His skills were simply not up to par.

After they stepped down, Li Xue and An Mujin walked onto the stage.

An Mujin easily won the match.

Just then, all eyes turned toward Ye Guan and the remaining two contestants.

The upcoming duel would determine the winner.

The three then proceeded to draw lots.

Ye Guan was the first to draw again, but his expression instantly froze.

Damn it! There's something fishy going on! Even Ye Guan could tell that something was off.

When the crowd saw that Ye Guan had drawn another blank paper, they got suspicious again. How come this guy had just been cruising through the competition?

Everyone turned toward Yue Qi.

However, Yue Qi simply glanced at Ye Guan and said, "Step aside."

Ye Guan hesitated. "Sect Master, this…"

"There's nothing wrong. Go to the sidelines."

"Alright then." Ye Guan shook his head with a smile and moved to the sidelines.

An Mujin and Fu Ji stepped onto the stage. An Mujin sized Fu Ji up and smiled. "You've really surprised everyone.

Fu Ji wordlessly tightened his grip on his sword.

An Mujin smiled. "Let's go!"

"I look forward to learning from you," Fu Ji said.

Swoosh!

Fu Ji transformed into a streak of sword light, vanishing from his position.

Not far away, An Mujin's eyes narrowed slightly. At the same time, his sword, which had been resting by his side, unsheathed itself with a sharp noise.

Schwing!

Two streaks of sword light collided and shattered. The two were forced to retreat rapidly. However, An Mujin's sword suddenly flew out of his hand.

Sword Manipulation!

Fu Ji's expression remained unchanged. With a quick step backward, he stabilized his posture and swung his sword down fiercely.

Bam!

An Mujin's sword was sent flying away.

Fu Ji's figure suddenly became illusory, and several sword lights attacked An Mujin from all directions. Each sword light was astonishingly fast and precise.

An Mujin's expression shifted slightly, and a hint of shock flickered in his eyes, but he had no time to think. He used his fingers as a sword and slashed out at the oncoming sword lights.

However, Fu Ji vanished again, leaving only a blur in his wake.

Moments later, a sword shot toward An Mujin with incredible force.

Bam!

A radiant sword light shattered, and An Mujin was blasted away.

When he reached the edge of the platform, Fu Ji disappeared once again.

An Mujin looked up and pressed his hands together. A blinding sword light erupted between his brows, and it created a curtain of sword light in front of him.

A sword technique!

Boom!

The powerful sword technique forced Fu Ji to retreat.

After gaining some distance, An Mujin took a deep breath. Then, he stomped and took to the skies. He spread his arms wide, and a powerful surge of sword intent exploded from within him.

Buzz!

A sword cry echoed throughout the heavens and the earth. He transformed into a streak of sword light that flew toward Fu Ji like a meteor.

It was another sword technique—a Sky-grade Sword Technique!

After exchanging a few moves, An Mujin no longer underestimated Fu Ji. In fact, he felt so threatened by Fu Ji that he immediately unleashed his ultimate move.

Meanwhile, Fu Ji's gaze focused upon seeing An Mujin's ultimate move. The next moment, his focus turned into killing intent as he spun around in place and transformed into a beam of sword light that flew toward An Mujin.

A direct clash!

Boom!

Two sword lights collided with a deafening explosion, and the two were blasted away upon impact. When they struck the ground, the earth shattered beneath them, and they spat mouthfuls of blood.

However, Fu Ji got up to his feet first and charged at An Mujin with his sword.

An Mujin scrambled to his feet. Seeing Fu Ji rushing at him, a fierce light flashed in his eyes. He stomped forward and took to the sky before thrusting his sword toward Fu Ji.

Bang!

The two sword lights shattered at the same time, and they were sent flying once again. This time, neither Fu Ji nor An Mujin could get back up. They were covered in wounds and blood.

Everyone fell into complete silence.

No one expected that Fu Ji was strong enough to actually fight back against An Mujin.

It was simply outrageous!

The onlookers from the aristocratic families and clans looked on in confusion. Who exactly is this guy?

Just then, Yue Qi appeared on the stage. She glanced at them and announced, "Draw."

A draw!

The crowd erupted in an uproar. How could it be a draw? This is ridiculous!

Just then, the crowd realized something and turned toward Ye Guan.

Was he going to reach the finals without fighting even once?

Under the intense gaze of the crowd, Ye Guan couldn't help but feel a little helpless.

"Take them to the infirmary," said Yue Qi before walking away.

The crowd began to disperse.

Ye Guan shook his head and smiled. He walked over to Yang Yian and said, "I won without doing anything."

"They're no match for you, right?"

Ye Guan patted her head and laughed, "Let's go. We'll check on Fu Ji, then get something good to eat."

Yang Yian's eyes lit up at the mention of food.

After a while, Ye Guan and Yang Yian arrived at Fu Ji's room. He looked weak, but he had regained consciousness.

Fu Ji tried to sit up, but Ye Guan smiled and said, "You're injured. Just stay down for now."

Fu Ji hesitated and then laid back down.

He looked at Ye Guan with a smile. "Brother Ye."

Ye Guan laughed.

Just as he was about to say something, an elderly man entered the room.

Ye Guan turned to look at the elderly man.

The elderly man glanced at Ye Guan before staring at Fu Ji.

"Young Master Fu, I'm from the An Clan."

The An Clan!

"Young Master Fu, we hope that you will voluntarily withdraw from the competition."

Ye Guan's brows immediately furrowed upon hearing that.

Coca and Corlumbus's Thoughts

Oh no, its happening again. I am conflicted here as I both like An Mujin and Fu Ji. It would be such a waste if something bad happens and these two are overshadowed by their higher ups' arrangements.