Chapter 23: The First Battle with the Old Enemy

On the stage, Yu Mu's face showed no expression.

Unbeknownst to others, the tiny sprout of the heavenly path deep within his sea of consciousness was clawing and dancing! The terrifying killing intent came from this, and such killing intent could even unknowingly affect Yu Mu's mind!

"Clang!"

The crimson sword light shattered, and a spear filled with a strong aura of slaughter appeared in Yu Mu's hand. With a sound like a dragon's roar, the spear echoed! Yu Mu's profound cultivation burst forth explosively! Under this powerful spiritual pressure, the entire secret realm even howled with a cold wind!

A chilling voice resonated in his heart: "If you are at your peak, I cannot resist, but if you wish to influence my mind with a broken spirit, do not blame me for turning ruthless."

"Crash."

The tiny sprout of the heavenly path ceased its movements, quietly wilting there, its leaves not even swaying.

"Senior Brother, you truly are formidable!"

Ye Tian's buried combative instincts were ignited; he had been well protected by Fairy Zi Li. Almost all the battles he had experienced were aided by the soul of a great demon, that kind of illusory deduction.

Now, encountering Yu Mu completely stirred his fighting spirit! This is good; such an opponent brings the greatest sense of achievement when defeated. Standing atop such an opponent to become a leader is what truly wins the hearts of beauties!

"Then take this move from me!!"

Ye Tian raised his long sword high, and a strong blood-red light erupted! Beneath that grand aura of righteousness lay an unmistakable presence that did not belong to humans—this was... demonic energy!

"Boom!!"

In an instant, the sword aura surged over ten zhang (about 33 feet), violently cleaving down towards Yu Mu's head! Then, Ye Tian did not dare to be careless; he plunged his long sword into the solid battle platform like tofu and twisted it fiercely.

Another sword light surged from below, sealing off all of Yu Mu's retreat paths and forcing him to take one of the swords head-on! Meanwhile, he himself charged towards Yu Mu with his sword.

Many spectators on the viewing platform felt their scalps tingle! Facing such an assault... they found themselves utterly without a way to break through. Even some Nascent Soul experts frowned deeply.

At such a young age, he had remarkably seasoned combat experience! This seemingly unknown youth turned out to be another dark horse from Yunhe Sect!

Elder Yun had a gloomy expression as he looked at Fairy Zi Li not far away, who wore a look of surprise. Did this woman have no heart?! Yu Mu was raised by him since childhood! Could it be that he was inferior to a rookie who had only entered for a few years?

He had already decided that if Yu Mu were to be at a disadvantage, he would disregard his status and intervene in the duel! Surrendering would suffice; after all, it was just a competition—what was there to gain?

On the battle platform, the fierce sword energy brushed against Yu Mu's clothes and long hair. He and Ye Tian were indeed mortal enemies; he looked down on Ye Tian but had to admit Ye Tian's strength.

But... is this all there is now?

A cold arc formed at the corner of Yu Mu's mouth as he slid his long spear forward and forcefully pulled it back with one hand!

"Bang!"

A deafening sound accompanied by rolling dust clouds erupted from the battle platform!

With one thrust of the spear, he didn't even use any spiritual power; it was merely in the most primitive and domineering way that he crushed those two sword lights capable of heavily injuring an ordinary mid-stage Golden Core cultivator!

"Clang!"

Next came the clash between spear and sword! Ye Tian showed no surprise on his face; amidst the dust and smoke, he revealed his own arrogance towards Yu Mu.

"Senior Brother, this win is mine!"

Ye Tian's eyes transformed into vertical pupils, with a hint of demonic green within them.

"And... you are in the wrong!"

He pressed down hard on the sword body, veins bulging in his arms! He tried to force Yu Mu down, but Yu Mu's hand holding the spear remained unmoved.

At this moment, the fortune of the heavenly path had already been bestowed upon Ye Tian. It seemed that the remaining power of that broken spirit was insufficient; otherwise, it could have directly traced back to an earlier time, wouldn't that be better?

Given the situation, he... could not kill Ye Tian. Once he truly made a move, he would fall into an inescapable cycle. The more this heavenly fortune pressed down, the faster Ye Tian would grow and awaken, bringing him endless trouble. That would be truly repeating past mistakes! Elder Yun would also be implicated.

Suppressing the killing intent that was rising again in his heart, the sprout of the heavenly path began to sway once more, as if some voice echoed deep within Yu Mu's sea of consciousness.

But in that moment of realization, Yu Mu had no time to seize it. He raised his hand and slapped! In Ye Tian's eyes filled with disbelief, he directly struck Ye Tian away with great force! This slap nearly exhausted all of Yu Mu's physical strength! It could completely kill a mid-stage third-tier beast, equivalent to a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator. Yet Ye Tian only spat blood and retreated, seemingly with just a few broken ribs.

"Your demonic transformation is still not perfected."

When Ye Tian finally reacted, the cold tip of the spear was already pressed against his ear! If this spear stabbed down, even the spirit of an ancient cat demon might be forced to appear!

That was its dwelling place.

A wave of uncontrollable panic surged in Ye Tian's eyes. Once the secret was exposed, colluding with demons... would be a grave crime!

"If I don't come, the win is yours. If I come, then it is mine."

Yu Mu's voice held no trace of human warmth, but Fairy Zi Li became anxious.

She stood up, her terrifying spiritual pressure at the peak Nascent Soul level instantly enveloping the battle platform: "Mu'er! Do not kill him!"

"Elder Fairy Zi Li, the duel on the battle platform has not yet ended; interference is not allowed!" Ma Shaji said coldly. He had traversed the northwest; who would dare disrespect him?

Was Fairy Zi Li slapping him in the face? Yu Mu had participated in competitions before; did he not understand the rules?

"Senior Brother, look! Master cares about me very much."

Ye Tian did not dare to move, but his eyes that originally radiated fighting spirit became wet again. Deep within them lay a hint of pride.

"Does she really care about you this much?"

Ye Tian's words aimed to stab at Yu Mu's heart, but he did not know that Yu Mu currently had no feelings for Fairy Zi Li at all...

"Do you admit defeat?"

"I do! Of course I do!" Ye Tian turned his gaze towards the battle platform, where Fairy Zi Li's beautiful eyes were filled with anxious concern for him and Xiao Yu's eyes revealed hatred towards Yu Mu.

Then he became even more smug and lowered his voice further.

"But Senior Brother, who exactly lost?"

"Crack!"

Ye Tian's calf was directly stomped by Yu Mu! Amidst the crisp sound of breaking bones, Ye Tian gasped but did not cry out in pain; instead, he coldly stared at Yu Mu. That gaze, although still moist, now resembled a cold venomous snake.

"I said before..."

Yu Mu leaned closer and whispered in his ear.

"I will not hinder you. I will leave Yunhe Sect later. But if you continue to harbor these little thoughts about me, I truly do not mind fighting you again. After all... from start to finish, I have never lost. Why don't you guess—ten lives? Is that enough for me to kill?"

Cold sweat trickled down Ye Tian's forehead, Once the words "I admit defeat" left Ye Tian's mouth, Yu Mu did not make a move against him.

Yu Mu simply informed Ye Tian that this was a warning...