Chapter 991: Chapter 991 I Surrender

    After more than a hundred rounds, Gao Linglong had already fallen into a disadvantage.

    Her cultivation technique and divine skills held no advantage. Although Gao Yuan was a master of the Heavenly Human Realm, his foundation was shallow and he lacked good cultivation techniques and divine skills.

    The two resumed their battle, and after dozens of rounds, Gao Linglong was forced to retreat, a trace of blood appearing at the corner of her mouth.

    Luo Yunshan was secretly pleased. As long as he pushed a bit harder, Gao Linglong would be defeated, allowing him to enter the top five.

    At this point, Gao Linglong took out the bell given to her by Qin Hao. If she didn’t use it now, she would lose.

    Luo Yunshan was about to rush forward, but when he saw the bell in Gao Linglong’s hand, his eyebrows twitched, and a bad premonition arose in his heart.

    “Ding”

    The bell in Gao Linglong’s hand rang, crisp and melodious, exquisitely pleasing.

    A Sword Qi over ten feet long appeared suddenly, its power formidable and terrifying, accompanied by a piercing sound as it slashed toward Luo Yunshan.

    Luo Yunshan sensed the power of that Sword Qi, his face slightly changed. What kind of treasure was this?

    “Bang”

    The Sword Qi clashed with the sword light emitted by Luo Yunshan, scattering the sword light on the spot, while the Sword Qi continued toward Luo Yunshan.

    Luo Yunshan formed a fist seal, instantly launching over a dozen fist seals, barely neutralizing the Sword Qi.

    “Is this a low-grade Spiritual Artifact?” The elders on the judging panel, all seasoned experts, instantly recognized the bell in Gao Linglong’s hand as a Spiritual Artifact.

    Many in the surrounding audience heard the voices from the judging panel and were in an uproar: “Another Spiritual Artifact? When did our Skyfire Dynasty have so many Spiritual Artifacts?”

    “She actually has a Spiritual Artifact too? Mr. Gao only uses a high-grade treasure artifact, right?”

    The nobles in the VIP seats were stunned, all looking toward Gao Yuanhua. When did the Gao Family have a Spiritual Artifact, and how did we not know?

    These nobles were very clear about their backgrounds. It’s impossible for the Wei Country’s Duke’s Mansion to have a Spiritual Artifact. It must have been acquired by Gao Yuan in Yuxing County and given to his daughter, right?

    Using a Spiritual Artifact, although it consumes quite a bit, the opponent must expend even more Spiritual Energy to nullify the attack, and may even be injured or killed.

    “Clang”

    The bell’s sound suddenly changed, becoming dull and suffocating, an invisible sound wave spreading.

    Luo Yunshan, being the closest, had his face change instantly, feeling intense pain from the depths of his mind.

    “Ding Ding”

    The bell’s sound became crisp and pleasant again, as two Sword Qi condensed in the air, autonomously absorbing the Spiritual Energy, making the Sword Qi even more powerful.

    The Sword Qi sliced through the air. At this moment, Luo Yunshan had not yet recovered from the previous sound of the bell, utterly incapable of resisting.

    “I concede.”

    He hurriedly admitted defeat, for if he delayed a few more seconds, he would have met his end.

    “Gao Linglong wins.”

    Upon hearing this, Gao Yuan exhaled a long breath, a smile unconsciously appearing at the corners of his mouth.

    This time it’s all thanks to the Spiritual Artifact given by Qin Hao to Gao Linglong; otherwise, her situation would have been much grimmer.

    This was already the third match, with two more remaining. In Yuxing County, there were still Qin Hao and Dong Mengqi.

    Whether one or both of them advanced, the name of Yuxing County would spread throughout the entire dynasty, similarly attracting the emperor’s attention and many supportive resources from the dynasty.

    “Fourth match, Ma Bufan versus Chen Ding.”

    Upon hearing the lineup, many people’s faces showed slight surprise, especially those from Yuxing County, who were a bit dumbfounded.

    The fourth match was these two, so wouldn’t the fifth match be Qin Hao versus Dong Mengqi???

    Xian Yin, Gao Linglong, Gao Yuan, and others all glanced at Qin Hao and Dong Mengqi.

    Qin Hao was also taken aback, not expecting to face Dong Mengqi; it was a bit amusing to him.

    A trace of gloom flashed in Dong Mengqi’s eyes, a bitter smile forming at the corner of her mouth, as the thing she feared most still happened.

    Among these people, she had a few chances of winning against anyone, though the odds weren’t high, at least two to three out of ten. But against Qin Hao, she had absolutely no confidence. He was a mysterious man, impossible to see through.

    ...

    On the martial stage, the two had already begun fighting. Ma Bufan and Chen Ding were of equal strength, both in the Late Stage Grandmaster Realm, battling fiercely from the start.

    After nearly a hundred rounds, Ma Bufan released several hidden weapons during the fight, which would have been disastrous if not for Chen Ding’s timely response.

    Separated, Chen Ding glanced at the wound on his arm, his face slightly darkened.

    A black pill appeared in his hand, which he swallowed instantly, causing his aura to soar, and his body’s bones emitted cracking sounds. The intense pain twisted his face.

    “Kill”

    He charged out, his speed several times faster than before, his power greatly increased, doubling his combat effectiveness.

    Ma Bufan sensed the change in Chen Ding, his face drastically changed. What did he eat? How did his power become so terrifyingly enhanced?

    The audience also witnessed Chen Ding’s change in combat power, many speculating: “He must have taken some pill that instantly boosts power; otherwise, his combat power wouldn’t change so drastically.”

    “A pill that boosts power, what kind of pill is that?”

    “If you visit those dynasties, you’ll see. There are many alchemists there, with a vast variety of pills. I’ve seen many kinds of strength-boosting pills before, though some have severe side effects, while others are mild.”

    “Pills like these? How is it different from cheating?”

    “Such pills are very expensive, costing at least hundreds of thousands of Spirit Stones.”

    “So expensive?”

    “Hundreds of thousands of low-grade Spirit Stones, too expensive? Go to those dynasties and see, where trades generally use mid-grade or high-grade Spirit Stones.”

    ...

    On the martial stage, Ma Bufan was already in retreat, and after Chen Ding took the pill, his combat power almost reached the Peak of Late Stage Grandmaster Realm, totally overwhelming Ma Bufan.

    Dozens of rounds later, Ma Bufan was beaten to the point of vomiting blood repeatedly by Chen Ding, ultimately hit squarely in the chest and sent flying, severely injured and in critical condition.

    If the judges hadn’t administered the pill in time, he would have been dead.

    “Chen Ding wins.”

    “Fifth match, Qin Hao versus Dong Mengqi.”

    Many people looked at Qin Hao and Dong Mengqi, as the last match unexpectedly turned out to be an internal battle among Yuxing County.

    Gao Yuan and the others didn’t know what to say, it could only be attributed to Dong Mengqi’s bad luck in encountering Qin Hao.

    Qin Hao was universally acknowledged as the most formidable among them, even though his Realm was only at the Early Stage Grandmaster Realm, his combat power was terrifying.

    The two flew onto the martial stage, Dong Mengqi looked at him and said with a bitter smile: “Please advise me, Mr. Qin.”

    Qin Hao glanced at her and then said to the judges: “I concede.”