Chapter 312 – The Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge
“Cough cough, I think there’s no point for the competition, right?” Fang Jian let out a cough.
“Why is that?” The envoy of the Feiyang Sacred Area turned cocky after seeing Fang Jian had the intention to back off, “It’s just a friendly competition; are you scared of losing?”
Scared of losing?
Fang Jian’s expression turned cold as he said, “I’m afraid there’s a misunderstanding here. In my eyes, Leng Aotian is a great talent with a bright future ahead of him. Thus, I would not want him to suffer again after being defeated, which would be a greater shock to him compared to last year!”
After hearing the words, both Jianghuang and the envoy of the Qinglong Sacred Area were stunned.
Suffering a greater shock?
Did Fang Jian seriously think that Leng Aotian would surely lose in the competition?
The envoy of the Feiyang Sacred Area could feel his heart being ignited with flames of fury as he said, “Fang Jian, don’t be so cocky; Leng Aotian would definitely win in the third round! If he ends up losing, I will pay you fifty thousand Arcane Realm Stones! If we win, you will pay me fifty thousand Arcane Realm Stones, sound good?”
The authorities close to them were astonished. That’s fifty thousand Arcane Realm Stones right there, an incredible fortune.
“Whatever.”
Fang Jian glanced at Qin Nan beside him, and was aware that his aura had now stabilized, before he had spoken in a calm tone.
What the hell is wrong with this guy; I tried to convince him for his sake, and he ended up stirring more trouble instead of being grateful!
That being said, Qin Nan was not aware of the conflict taking place, as he was fully focused on stabilizing his Inner Core.
A golden glow suddenly appeared from the inside of the Inner Core, which became alive and encapsulated the entire Core. After a while, three golden lines could be seen on the greyish-white Inner Core, resulting in a mysterious aura.
“What’s going on? Where did these three golden lines come from all of a sudden?”
Qin Nan could not help but frown his eyebrows.
……
……
Meanwhile, at the square-shaped dojo, the first round soon came to an end.
There were a total of one thousand one hundred and twenty three disciples participating in the selection. Just over three hundred disciples were disqualified in the first round, leaving more than eight hundred disciples remaining, resulting in a spectacular sight.
“Let’s move onto the second round.” Jianghuang rose from his seat and declared in a loud tone, “According to the standards set by the two Sacred Areas, only those with a Martial Spirit greater than the ninth-grade Huang rank are allowed to advance to the next round!”
Upon hearing this, the crowd of disciples was startled.
The standard of the selection was different each year—sometimes it would be eighth-grade Huang ranked, or even seventh-grade Huang ranked. However, to their surprise, the standard was relatively higher this year, which turned out to be ninth-grade Huang ranked.
In other words, even with a ninth-grade Huang ranked or tenth-grade Huang ranked Martial Spirit, one would find himself to be at the bottom of the ladder, with no chance to capture the attention of the experts of the two Sacred Areas.
“The round begins now!”
After being organized by the twenty assessing officers, each genius took turns to unleash their Martial Spirits.
At that instant, Qin Nan had finally recovered.
After a prolonged ponder, he had still failed to discover the significance of the three golden lines on his Inner Core. He was going to ask the copper mirror about it, but gave up after remembering the price of five streams of Chaos Qi for each question. Either way, it seemed like the three golden lines would not pose any threat to him.
“Hmm? These Martial Spirits are quite interesting!”
Qin Nan’s eyes flickered after glancing at the dojo.
He could see various types of Martial Spirits, including a scroll, a brush, a helmet, a demonic beast, etc. Despite the difference between their ranks, each Martial Spirit also possessed different abilities, which could not be overlooked.
The second round of the trial ended swiftly, with just over three hundred disciples remaining, and the rest were disqualified.
These three hundred plus disciples could be considered to be super geniuses, as most of them possessed a tenth-grade Huang ranked Martial Spirit, granting them powerful auras.
“Congratulations on passing the second round.” A smile appeared on Jianghuang’s face as he spoke, “Let’s move on to the third round of the trial. I believe most of you already know what the last round is about, but just in case, I’ll explain it again. The third round of the trial is known as ‘sword drawing’! What sword will it be? It’s a broadsword, known as the ‘Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge’!”
“The Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge?”
Qin Nan was startled.
He had heard of the ‘Heavy Sword with no Sharp Edge’, but it was his first time hearing the name ‘Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge’.
“You may ask, why is it named the Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge? As a matter of fact, it does not actually have a sharp edge, but within it lies a powerful presence. Although it’s not classified as a magical weapon, if the presence were to be awakened, its real strength could then be unleashed!” As soon as Jianghuang finished his speech, with a flick, a twelve-foot-long and six-foot-wide broadsword descended from above and crushed firmly into the dojo, attracting the attention of the crowd.
“As for now, the presence inside the broadsword is deep asleep. Your task is to try and wake it up; any method is allowed. The more awakened it is, the higher the distance you can draw the sword out from the ground. If it is not awakened, even a Martial Ancestor Realm expert would not be able to draw the sword out!”
A sense of pride could be detected in Jianghuang’s tone.
This Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge was an extremely unique treasure that he had found coincidentally, which was also one of his proudest discoveries. After all, no one below the Martial Dominator Realm had managed to draw it out completely from the ground!
“This sword drawing thing is quite interesting!” Qin Nan’s eyes flickered.
“Let’s begin, shall we!”
Jianghuang uttered a roar.
“I’ll be the first contestant!”
Among the crowd of disciples, a muscular disciple with a stocky and imposing build stepped forward and leapt onto the hilt of the broadsword, with a confident look on his face.
The disciple possessed a tenth-grade Huang ranked Martial Spirit and a cultivation of the third-layer of the Martial Emperor Realm. Besides that, he also appeared to have practiced some sort of body-technique, which caused his flesh’s strength to be somehow terrifying.
He had no doubt that with his strength, drawing the broadsword out from the ground would be a simple task for him!
“Rise!”
The genius uttered a roar as he grabbed the hilt of the broadsword with both hands. His muscles emitted a dull groan as he exhorted a huge force while pulling the sword upward.
The broadsword stood firmly on the ground. It did not even sway despite being pulled with a great force.
“How is this possible!’
The expression on the disciple’s face utterly changed as he uttered another roar and exhorted all his strength to draw the sword out from the ground. However, the sword remained calm as always, causing his face to turn pale at that instant.
“Fail! Next one!”
The assessing officer declared in a cold tone. While dealing with the Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge, which was extremely well-known among the cultivators of Jianghuang City, trying to draw it out with mere flesh was an absolute joke.
Many among the geniuses were astonished; although they had heard of the broadsword before, they never believed it to be this difficult. It was their first time witnessing it in person too.
Drawing out this Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge was nothing simple!
“Allow me to have a go!”
Following a roar, a young man wearing armored plates walked out from the crowd.
The person was none other than Leng Jianxiong!
Translator: XephiZ
Editor: DOCuinn
TL Note: This is a reference to the term ‘Heavy Sword with no sharp edge’ (重剑无锋)which is referring to a famous quote from Dugu Qiubai (). Basically, it means that his mastery of the Sword Art had reached a stage where even using a sword with blunt edges, he’s able to outmatch his opponents with ease using his skills alone.
Chapter 313 – The One-Armed Martial Spirit
Leng Jianxiong was one of the most anticipated disciples among the participants, who possessed a fourth-grade Xuan ranked Martial Spirit. Before his brother Leng Aotian had shown himself, he was no doubt the first ranked disciple in the Primary Candidates Ranking.
“How many inches do you guys think Leng Jianxiong can achieve?”
“I guess it will be more than ten inches!”
“……”
Some geniuses began to chat among themselves with glistening eyes.
They had no doubt witnessed the difficulty of drawing out the Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge before, and were quite familiar with it.
“Green Vine Martial Spirit!”
Leng Jianxiong uttered a yell while unleashing his Martial Spirit, which appeared to be a green vine. Following his thought, the green vine sprang forward like a poisonous snake, and coiled around the hilt of the broadsword. In just less than a breath’s time, the vine had completely coiled itself around the broadsword.
“My green vine, at my will!”
Leng Jianxiong uttered a roar, as a brilliant green glow suddenly burst out from the green vine. The green vine tightened its grip, before it vigorously pulled the broadsword upward.
Clash!
Clash!
Clash!
Following a series of clashes, under the crowd’s attention, the hefty broadsword was lifted upward from the ground. One inch, two inches, three inches… Its movement came to a stop after being raised a total of fourteen inches from the ground. However, it did not matter how hard the green vine was trying to pull it upward, the broadsword remained motionless.
“A result of fourteen inches, you’ve passed the trial!”
The assessing officer declared.
The eyes of Jianghuang and the other authorities were filled with surprise, as he had managed to pull the broadsword fourteen inches out from the ground with his Martial Spirit. This result alone was on par with the top geniuses in previous years!
“My turn!”
A pleasant voice was heard, as the second-ranked participant of the Primary Candidates Ranking, Hong Fu, sprang forward like a fireball, and landed on top of the broadsword. Following this, without unleashing her Martial Spirit, she executed some sort of powerful secret technique, causing her hands to be engulfed in flames, and pulled the sword upward!
Clash clash clash clash… A result of thirteen inches!
The surrounding crowd let out a cheer after seeing this, even Leng Jianxiong himself was quite impressed, as Hong Fu was able to achieve such result without unleashing her Martial Spirit. That being said, some Martial Spirits might not be useful in trials like this. For example, an Armor Plate Martial Spirit or a Brush Martial Spirit would not be able to draw the sword out from the ground; it’s possible that Hong Fu’s Martial Spirit belonged to this category.
“Hehe, interesting. I’ll show you how to pull it twenty inches out from the ground!”
“HAHA! I shall make you feel ashamed!”
“……”
Following the entries of the two geniuses, the atmosphere of the entire square-shaped dojo was lightened up. After all, the remaining participants were all super geniuses, who would not easily surrender or admit defeat.
Upon seeing this, a smile blossomed on Jianghuang’s face.
As expected, as the trial continued, the geniuses no longer wore confident looks on their faces.
Apart from Leng Jianxiong and Hong Fu, the best result that was acquired was only nine inches!
This Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge is indeed as difficult as the rumors described!
At that instant, the envoy of the Feiyang Sacred Area let out a smirk and said, “It’s about time. I should notify Leng Aotian to take part in the trial soon. Envoy Fang Jian, I hope that Qin Nan will not run away from the competition!”
After saying this, he transmitted a message into Jianghuang City.
Qin Nan slightly frowned after hearing the words. He had no idea when he had offended this envoy, but was soon relieved after hearing the explanation from Fang Jian. Following this, his eyes were ignited with battle intent.
Leng Aotian?
It sounds like he is quite talented?
The stronger you are the better, it’s more interesting that way!
Qin Nan continued to spectate from the platform, and unknowingly, his back had straightened as he wore an expressionless face. The authorities were amazed by his calmness, which further proved him to be extraordinary. As a matter of fact, the blood within Qin Nan’s body was gradually boiling, like flames awaiting the chance to burst out!
Almost half of the three hundred disciples were now disqualified. Most of them wore depressed expressions while letting out sighs after failing the trial, but a few of them showed no sign of losing their confidence. Instead, a firm determination could be seen in their eyes.
At that instant, a white beam of light could be seen emerging into the sky, which landed on the square-shaped dojo, as a burst of laughter was heard.
“HAHAHA, I’ve finally returned after a year. This time, I shall come first in the trial!”
The stranger appeared to be a young man wearing a white shirt, with a pair of sharp eyebrows. His face was filled with utter confidence, whose aura had reached the peak of the Martial Emperor Realm.
“Leng Aotian! It’s really him!”
One of the disciples let out a scream with a surprised look.
After hearing the words, many of the participants were startled.
“Leng Aotian, so this guy is Leng Aotian? Such a powerful aura!”
“Gasp, when I saw him last year, his cultivation was only at the third-layer Martial Emperor Realm, which means that he managed to reach the peak of Martial Emperor Realm in just a year!”
“Tsk tsk, I’m curious to see how far he can drag the sword out from the ground, and if he’s stronger than his brother.”
“……”
Leng Aotian ignored the chatter as he glanced toward the assessing officer and yelled, “What’s the result of the first rank for now?”
The officer immediately replied, “Leng Jianxiong, fourteen inches!”
“Leng Jianxiong, fourteen inches?” Leng Aotian’s gaze landed onto Leng Jianxiong’s figure in the midst of the crowd as he started laughing, “My brother, it’s a surprise to see you here participating in the trial. Didn’t I already mention that I would be taking part too? And I will surely acquire the top spot! Why didn’t you listen? Or should I say, are you trying to challenge me?”
“Leng Aotian, stop wasting time; hurry up and draw the sword. I’ll be convinced after you beat me in the trial!”
Leng Jianxiong said with a stiff expression.
“That’s what you said; today, I shall show you the difference our strengths!”
As soon as Leng Aotian finished his speech, his figure leapt up to the sword, as five green rays were emitted from his body. An ancient-looking arm appeared, with countless atavistic runes glowing on its surface, similar to the glow of a star.
“I’ve been communicating with my Martial Spirit for the past year in order to discover its secrets, and my effort was not in vain! Since the Heavens and Earth have no bounds, the Arm shall show itself; the hand has five fingers, and the fingers shall shroud the Heavens!”
Leng Aotian uttered a roar, as his One-Armed Martial Spirit radiated brilliantly, which began to expand into a giant arm, with five fingers as thick as iron bars grabbing the hilt of the broadsword, before pulling it upward.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
A series of heaven-shaking explosions occurred, causing the square-shaped dojo to vibrate vigorously, as if there was an earthquake taking place.
At that instant, the crowd was utterly astonished!
Translator: XephiZ
Editor: DOCuinn
Chapter 314 – There’s No Need to Draw the Sword Out—It Has a Spirit
Clash Clash Clash!
The broadsword was drawn thirty inches out from the ground by the One-Armed Martial Spirit!
“The Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge, the huge sword with a Spirit, I’ve managed to pull you twenty eight inches out from the ground last year, and after spending a year cultivating in seclusion in order to discover the secrets of my Martial Spirit, you can now reveal your true appearance to the world and become the sharp edge in my hand, keeping me company in the upcoming battles!”
Leng Aotian uttered a roar once again, as his will burst out from his body and penetrated the broadsword.
BANG!
Another explosion was heard.
It was as if the broadsword was being summoned, allowing it to be pulled another ten inches out from the ground, resulting in a total of forty inches!
The place fall into silence, as everyone stared in disbelief. After a period of ten breaths’ time, a shocking cheer took place among the crowd.
“Forty inches!”
“My god, he managed to pull the sword forty inches out from the ground!”
“Is there anyone who managed to pull the sword forty inches out from the ground in the past? I don’t think so!”
“……”
The geniuses, the rogue cultivators of Jianghuang City, and the authorities were utterly astounded.
The famous Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge; countless geniuses had competed with each other judged on the distance one could draw the sword out from the ground. One who managed to achieve thirty inches was worthy to be considered peerless, while forty inches right here was enough to conquer all those in history!
“Nice!”
JIanghuang rose from his seats as his face turned red due to excitement.
“HAHAHA.” The envoy of the Feiyang Sacred Area burst out laughing, “Leng Aotian, an impressive performance. As expected, you did not let me down. However, don’t be too excited for now, as the envoy of the Qinglong Sacred Area has also selected a genius with the name Qin Nan. He will be your opponent this time, and shall compete with you in the trial!”
The crowd wore a blank expression after hearing the words.
“Qin Nan? Isn’t this guy the one who passed the first two rounds by abusing his relationship?”
“Is he going to compete with Leng Aotian?”
“Hehe, Leng Aotian possesses the real strength, but Qin Nan only possesses a formidable background; it’s not me looking down on him, but he would surely lose!”
“……”
The geniuses uttered harsh words against Qin Nan, as they were never fond of him since the start of the trial.
“Oh?”
Leng Aotian stared at Qin Nan while placing his hands on his back, before he said with a prideful smile, “Qin Nan is it? Feel free to compete with me; I will still come first in this round of sword drawing!”
He was not being disdainful toward Qin Nan; instead, the fact that Qin Nan dared to challenge him resulted in excitement growing in his heart.
The reason being that he was completely smashed last year while competing against the genius, causing him to greatly lose his reputation, filling his heart with shame. Therefore, he ended up spending a year cultivating in seclusion so he could shine brightly in the selection this year, shocking the entire crowd.
As a result, he hoped that there would be more people challenging him, and if he ended up defeating them all, he would be able to cleanse his shame with the winning streak.
Fang Jian’s lips twitched even more vigorously after seeing Leng Aotian’s expression, as he uttered a few sighs in his heart.
On the other hand, Jianghuang frowned his eyebrows. He was quite joyful after seeing Leng Aotian’s performance, and he assumed that it would be a difficult task to surpass his achievement. Thus, he immediately transmitted his voice to Qin Nan, “Qin Nan, the trial this time is quite difficult for you. If you choose not to participate, I’ll try my best to resolve the conflict.”
Jianghuang sincerely admired Qin Nan, thus he did not wish to see him suffering a great shock if he were to be defeated here.
Every genius would be somewhat confident in their capabilities. Once defeated, some geniuses might not be able to accept the truth easily. For example, after Leng Aotian lost, he immediately forfeited the selection and went into seclusion for a year, just to regain the glory he seeked for.
Qin Nan gave Jianghuang a glance without saying anything, before he glanced at Leng Aotian and let out a laugh, “Brother Aotian, pleased to meet you!”
After saying this, his figure landed at the broadsword with a flicker.
At that instant, the crowd gathered their attention onto his figure while holding their breaths.
After all, Qin Nan was specifically appointed by Fang Jian, thus his talent should at least reach a certain level. Therefore, the crowd was eager to see what result Qin Nan would be able to achieve.
Jianghuang let out a sigh in his heart and shook his head, but he had no intention of saying anything further.
The envoy of the Feiyang Sacred Area wore a grin on his face. In his eyes, Qin Nan would definitely lose the competition.
“Rise at once!”
With a roar, a scorching flame was ignited within his body, resulting in waves of heat being emitted from his body. He then leapt onto the hilt of the sword and grabbed it with his hands, causing a series of explosions to take place in the air, astonishing the spectators.
“Such powerful flesh!”
“His flesh alone is able to match the strength of a first-layer Martial Emperor opponent!”
“……”
A surprised look could be seen in Leng Aotian’s eyes, but he immediately shook his head and let out a mocking laugh, while saying in a loud tone, “Qin Nan, I agree that your flesh is powerful, but the Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge possesses some sort of conscience; even if your flesh is able to fight a Martial Ancestor Realm, you won’t be able to draw the sword out still!”
The authorities nodded their heads in agreement. Only those whose flesh possessed a strength on par with Martial Dominator Realm experts were able to move the sword with brute force.
“Oh?”
Qin Nan raised his eyebrows and said, “I shall thank Brother Aotian for the reminder!”
Following the words, Qin Nan showed no sign of changing his actions, who reached out his hands and grabbed the hilt.
Leng Aotian was startled.
Many among the crowd were startled.
Even after being reminded that brute force alone would not be able to drag the sword out from the ground, this Qin Nan still insisted on following his own will?
Jianghuang let out a sigh; he was the most familiar with the Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge, hence in his eyes, there was no doubt that Qin Nan would lose the competition.
The grin on the envoy of the Feiyang Sacred Area’s face grew thicker. This Qin Nan is absolutely overestimating his own strength.
“Rise!”
Qin Nan uttered a roar as his arms exhorted a great force while pulling the sword upward.
Clash!
Clash!
The entire broadsword immediately emitted a buzz, as it was pulled two inches out form the ground, before coming to a stop.
Upon seeing this, Leng Aotian immediately burst out laughing, “Qin Nan, I’ve already told you that the sword possesses some sort of conscience. Your flesh alone is not enough to draw it out from the ground! However, you insisted on following your own way. A person like you does not have the right to be my oppo…”
Leng Aotian’s eyes were fully filled with disappointment.
Initially, he had assumed this Qin Nan to be a worthy opponent. However, it seemed like the words of the crowd was the truth; this Qin Nan was only being appointed by Fang Jian due to his background.
The outcome had no doubt crushed Leng Aotian’s thoughts of using the corpses of geniuses as stepping stones to acquire the first spot of the selection.
However, before he could finish his words.
A rare phenomenon took place all of a sudden.
A terrifying aura was emitted from Qin Nan’s body, causing his hair to dance wildly. At the same time, his left eye emitted a brilliant glow, together with an indescribable pressure.
It was as if he had transformed into a superior emperor, staring down at the crowd and the Heavy Sword with a Sharp Edge.
“Follow my lead, and I shall reveal your true appearance to the world.”
Qin Nan uttered the words, not to the crowd, but to the broadsword.
Buzz!
At that instant, the broadsword had been drawn two inches out from the ground began to vibrate vigorously, as a copper-colored Sword Intent was emitted from its body. Deep inside the broadsword, the sleeping Weapon Spirit was awakened all of a sudden, which wore great shock on its face.
Translator: XephiZ
Editor: DOCuinn