Three scarlet phoenixes wove through the stormy skies above the arena, dancing through sheets of rain and bolts of purple lightning in a chaotic display of fire, storm, and defiance.

The stone floor quickly became slick with water, thin rivulets of electricity snaking across its surface.

Splash!

Biyu charged across the puddled arena, lightning licking at her feet but failing to slow her. Her phoenixes dove, two flanking her like crimson sentinels while the third hovered protectively above.

A wild gale whipped at her skin as rain pelted down and lightning clawed at the earth around her.

Crackle!

She spun, intercepting the palm strike aimed at her back. The impact sent her skidding across the watery stone.

Liu Hua vanished in a blink, faster than lightning—but not unscathed. Her palm smoked, scorched by Biyu’s phoenix fire.

She reappeared again behind Biyu, only to be intercepted by one of the flaming constructs. She couldn’t engage them directly—not when their bodies were made of undying flame.

With a growl, Liu Hua abandoned close combat. A blinding flash of purple split the air, and lightning struck her. In the next heartbeat, she vanished into the clouds.

“You're tougher than you look, little sister,” her voice boomed overhead, carried on thunder. “But this ends now!”

The dark skies churned. Thunder cracked. Lightning raged in a cacophony of fury.

The roar of the storm nearly drowned out the crowd’s wild cheers.

“My god! If I didn’t know better, I’d say two Master Realm cultivators were fighting up there!”

“That’s not just a technique—it’s a real thunderstorm, summoned from nature itself!”

“Yet Senior Sister Fan is still standing! She’s facing down a force of nature!”

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Thick bolts of lightning slammed into the stage. Biyu dodged the worst of them, but her phoenixes shielded her from those she couldn’t avoid—each strike dimming their glow, shrinking their form.

Gritting her teeth, Biyu gave a silent command. The constructs left her side, streaking upward into the storm to find Liu Hua.

The phoenixes spiraled through the air, ducking and weaving between the relentless bolts. But the storm was too dense. By the time they pierced the lower clouds, one phoenix had already dissolved into scattered sparks.

Caw!

With a final, haunting cry, the last two phoenixes plunged into the clouds. Their fiery light dimmed... then burst.

Boom! Boom!

Twin explosions rocked the storm as they detonated, their phoenix fire tearing holes through the clouds.

For a moment, the heavens parted.

Then the clouds swelled back, reforming—smaller now, but more intense. Rain poured harder. Bolts fell faster.

Biyu stood drenched, battered, and still defiant. Lightning rained down on her, seizing her limbs in paralysis. Yet she remained upright, raising her head toward the sky, eyes searching.

A pulse of light flickered within the clouds—just long enough for her to spot a shadow.

“Ah!” With a cry that summoned every last shred of her will, she hurled a small, flickering fireball into the storm.

The flame weaved between falling lightning, sizzling beneath the rain but refusing to die. It soared into the clouds—just as a cascade of bolts struck Biyu head-on.

Then—

Flash!

The clouds blazed scarlet as the fireball exploded, flooding the heavens with sweltering phoenix fire.

A figure fell from the storm—Liu Hua, skin blistered, flames clinging to her body.

Orange fire surged around her, extinguishing the phoenix flames. Raising her hand, she called down a final bolt of lightning. It crackled into a glowing sphere of power in her palm.

She prepared to strike.

Biyu raised two trembling hands.

“I… I surrender,” she said, her voice weak but serene. “That was the last of my qi… I can barely stand.”

“Winner, Liu Hua!”

The duel was over. As the qi barriers fell away, water rushed from the arena, washing across the stadium floor.

Healers moved through the flood on stage, checking the combatants’ wounds while the crowd whispered and cheered in equal measure.

“Another surrender. At least this one was more exciting.”

“Not just exciting—it was exhilarating!”

“Even when I watched two elders duel, it wasn’t as amazing as that!”

“I’ve been a sect member longer than Liu Hua, and this is only the third time I’ve seen her get wounded. Fan Biyu is incredible!”

“That’s right! She’s four minor stages below Senior Sister Liu, and she still managed to put on such a fight!”

A few minutes passed while a group of outer elders dried and cleared the drenched stage. Then Di Ti stepped up again, voice brimming with energy.

“What a heart-pounding duel that was! I haven’t seen a fight that nerve-wracking since… well, ever!” The crowd laughed, carried by her enthusiasm. “Let’s see if the next match can live up to the last—it's Ling Shi versus Jin Shu!”

A storm of voices erupted in the stands.

“Senior Sister Ling’s at the Second Stage Spirit Realm, Jin Shu doesn’t stand a chance.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure. Jin Shu controls the Wind element, and did you see that strange movement technique? And those weapons—what were they called…?”

“Guns!”

“Right! Guns!”

“Still… can Wind and two weird weapons really bridge a six-stage gap in cultivation?”

“...I don’t know…”

“We’ll just have to watch and find out!”

Up on the elders' platform, Jin Shu shivered as a sharp instinct prickled down his spine. He glanced to both sides—then saw Ling Shi glaring at him like a hawk sighting prey.

He frowned. What did I do to earn that look? He hadn’t even hinted at being interested in Tian Li when they’d met before. But even then, with two new faces present, Ling Shi had zeroed in on him, ignoring Li Xue entirely. Woman’s intuition? he wondered grimly.

Whatever the cause, he knew one thing for certain—this fight was going to be dangerous.

As he stood to head for the stage, he made a decision: he’d use a special weapon he’d been saving. One he hadn’t planned to reveal just yet, or really, at all.

As he passed Tian Li, she reached out and grabbed his hand, grounding him.

He looked down at her soft hand gripping his, then met her gaze.

“Be careful,” she said softly. “She’s much more dangerous than she looks.”

Jin Shu watched as Ling Shi dropped to the stage below—no technique, just raw physical power absorbing the impact.

“Uh… she looks plenty dangerous to me,” he quipped, then added more seriously, “But you’re right. I’ll be careful.”

He gave Tian Li’s hand a reassuring pat and stepped forward, vanishing into a ripple. An instant later, he emerged from a second portal on stage.

Jin Shu studied Ling Shi carefully. Her robes were still stained with the blood she’d coughed up after his mother destroyed her spirit—the Naked Ape—when she’d attempted to seriously injure, maybe even kill, Biyu.

What surprised him was how unaffected she looked. No sign of weakness. Either the healers had worked miracles, or she was so resilient the injury had only seemed grave. Maybe both. He couldn’t be sure, but one thing was clear: this would be his toughest fight yet.

“Both combatants ready?” the judge’s voice cut into his thoughts.

“Uh… no,” Jin Shu said, before reaching into his spatial earring and summoning a new weapon.

A matte black and silver shotgun materialized in midair. He grabbed it with one hand, loading a magazine of non-lethal rounds with the other.

“Another strange weapon?” the judge asked. “Is it the same as the others?”

“Not quite,” he said. “It’s non-lethal—but much more powerful.”

“Hmm. I’ll need to test it again.”

“I wouldn’t use your hand this time,” Jin Shu warned. “You’d be lucky to walk away with just a broken wrist.”

She conjured a translucent wall of qi. “Use it on this.”

He glanced toward Ling Shi, still silent and watching them. Scratching the back of his neck, he said, “Um… could we do this privately? I’d rather not give her an advantage.”

The judge raised an eyebrow but nodded, summoning opaque barriers around them that blocked both sight and sound. “Alright. Fire at any of the walls.”

Jin Shu racked a shell and aimed at the farthest wall.

Bang!

Pow!

The blast echoed within the enclosed space, the shot leaving a shallow crater in the qi wall.

The judge studied the damage with a wary expression. “Definitely non-lethal—for someone like Ling Shi. But I wouldn’t use that on anyone weaker.”

Jin Shu nodded. He’d suspected he overtuned the weapon, which was why he hadn’t planned on using it—until now.

She raised her hand to dispel the barriers.

“Wait!” Jin Shu called out.

“What now?”

“Well, two things. First, I have two other shell types. And second… I keep calling you ‘judge’ in my head. What’s your name?”

She gave him a look—somewhere between amused and exasperated. “You can call me Elder Li. Now, let’s see these other… shells, was it?”

“Yes, but you might want to shield your face for this next one.”

“Why?”

“This one releases a powder that numbs and blinds—temporarily.”

“I’ll experience it,” she said flatly.

“You’re sure?”

“Yes. Just get on with it.”

“If you say so.”

He loaded the second round—a "pepper spray" shell, cobbled together with Long Jinshu’s knowledge, Nano’s analysis, and the herbs from Chen Ai Yun’s peak. It wasn’t true pepper spray, but a combination of numbing pollen and a blindness-inducing plant had proven effective.

Boom!

Pshhh!

The round burst against the wall, releasing a cloud of yellow powder.

Cough! Cough! Elder Li hacked, eyes watering, wiping furiously at her face.

A moment later, she was glaring at him through red, puffy eyes.

He shrugged. “I did warn you.”

“Hmph. What’s the last one? If it’s anything like that, I don’t need a demonstration.”

“It’s different.”

“Fine. Show me.”

He racked the final shell.

Boom!

Bzzzt!

A flash of blue electricity crackled against the wall.

“A taser round,” he explained. “Uses a lightning rune to stun.”

Elder Li gave a nod. “Effective. Alright. Weapon approved.”

The barriers dropped, and the stadium came back into view. Confused murmurs spread across the crowd.

“Why is Elder Li crying?”

“What did Jin Shu do to her in there?”

“Did… did she take advantage of her?”

“No way. Right? I mean, she’s in the Fifth Stage of the Spirit Realm, and an inner elder!”

Jin Shu felt multiple killing intents lock onto him. Ling Shi’s glare intensified. Off-stage, Biyu scowled. Tian Li glared from above. Even Chen Ai Yun gave him a displeased frown.

Only his mother… and for some reason, Li Xue, were smirking.

He sighed inwardly, clearly they misunderstood. There’s no way to explain this right now.

“Begin!” Elder Li’s voice rang out, eyes still red and watering.