UGB Chapter 526 I concede! Early stage of Core Formation!
Chapter 526 I concede! Early stage of Core Formation!
"Good timing," Chen Fan thought to himself. He shifted his feet and moved three feet to the side like a ghost, barely avoiding the sword's edge.
At the same time, the iron sword in his hand thrust out at a tricky angle, and the tip of the sword lightly touched Sun Buxiu's wrist.
Sun Buxiu felt a numbness in his wrist, and the green steel longsword flew out of his hand and landed on the stone platform with a clatter.
He looked down and saw a faint bloodstain on his wrist, but it had not damaged any bones or tendons.
Chen Fan had already sheathed his sword and stood with his hands behind his back.
Sun Buxiu was stunned for a moment, then smiled wryly and cupped his hands in a gesture of respect: "Fellow Daoist Chen's swordsmanship is exquisite, I am convinced."
Chen Fan nodded: "Thank you for your kind offer."
Master Feihe's voice came from above: "Number three arena, Chen Musheng."
Chen Fan stepped off the stage, returned to Li Changhe's side, sat down cross-legged, and closed his eyes to regulate his breathing.
Li Changhe glanced at him, hesitated, and ultimately said nothing.
Chen Fan didn't explain, he just silently adjusted his breathing.
Thinking about it, the reason he fought Sun Buxiu for dozens of rounds was not because Sun Buxiu was so strong, but because he deliberately suppressed his cultivation to the same level as his opponent, and did not use any methods beyond the Foundation Establishment stage, but purely used sword moves against sword moves.
This would both prevent the competition from being exposed too early and make it seem reasonable.
His methods of suppressing Lu Xiong a month ago were indeed excessive. Although Li Changhe covered it up for him, the Core Formation elders present may have heard about it.
If he were to defeat Sun Buxiu in a crushing victory today, it would undoubtedly attract even more attention.
Instead of doing that, he should have put on a few more moves on stage, making people think that he only won against Lu Xiong by sheer luck.
The competition continued.
On the other three arenas, Foundation Establishment cultivators fought one-on-one, each displaying their unique abilities. For a time, the Heavenly Questioning Platform was filled with spiritual light, and the roar of magical treasures resounded endlessly.
The subordinates of the four Core Formation Elders had their share of victories and defeats.
The black-robed elder, Mo Hanshan, had the most men under his command, and they were also the most powerful.
Among the rogue cultivators he recruited were two at the Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment and one at the Peak of the Late Foundation Establishment stage. All three were ruthless characters who had been in the rogue cultivator circle for many years and were ruthless and decisive in their actions.
In the first round, only three of his twelve men were eliminated, while the remaining nine all advanced.
Of Liu Qiuhe's eight men, four were killed, and of the seven men with little money, three were killed.
Of the five people under Li Changhe, besides Chen Fan, Lu Xiong and another late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator also successfully advanced, while the white-haired old man Sun Buxiu, who was at the Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment, and another person were eliminated.
After the first round, the number of people decreased from thirty-two to sixteen.
Master Feihe did not allow everyone to rest and immediately began the second round of drawing lots.
Chen Fan stepped forward, drew a jade slip, and opened it to find the character "two" engraved on it.
He raised his head and glanced across the opposite side of the ring.
On the second arena, someone was already standing.
He was a middle-aged cultivator dressed in a dark red robe, with a thin face, high cheekbones, and a pair of triangular eyes that revealed a hint of malice.
He stood on the platform with his hands behind his back, his aura radiating outwards, clearly indicating that he was at the early stage of Core Formation.
Chen Fan's pupils contracted almost imperceptibly.
A low murmur arose from the audience.
"It's Hong Jiu! Hong Jiu in the early stage of Core Formation!"
"Why is he participating in the internal selection process?"
"I heard that Elder Liu personally recruited him. He was originally a rogue cultivator who spent his early years in the Great Yu Cultivation Kingdom, but somehow ended up in the Desolate State."
"A Core Formation cultivator versus a Foundation Establishment Grand Perfection cultivator, what's the point of fighting? That Chen guy's luck is just too bad."
……
Li Changhe's expression changed when he saw this.
Of the five men under his command, Chen Fan was the one with the highest cultivation level and the one on whom he placed the most hope.
But now, in the second round, he has run into Hong Jiu, a Core Formation cultivator. His luck is just too bad.
He quickly walked to Chen Fan's side and lowered his voice, saying, "Chen Mu, this Hong Jiu is Liu Qiuhe's man. He used to be a disciple of a small sect in the Great Yu Cultivation Kingdom, but after the sect was destroyed, he wandered to the desolate state and became a rogue cultivator. He cultivates fire-attribute techniques, and his Fire Serpent Technique is quite troublesome. If you are not a match for him, don't force yourself."
When he said the last sentence, Li Changhe's voice carried a hint of resentment.
Chen Fan nodded without saying a word and stepped onto the arena.
Hong Jiu was getting impatient.
He glanced sideways at Chen Fan, who was walking up, and seeing that the other was just a cultivator at the Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment, a disdainful smile appeared on his lips.
"Foundation Establishment Great Perfection?" Hong Jiu scoffed, his voice neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for everyone below to hear. "You're the Chen Mu that Li Changhe mentioned? The one who suppressed Lu Xiong with a single finger? That piece of trash Lu Xiong, you dare to bring him up?"
He raised his chin and said in a condescending tone, "You are no match for me. If you know what's good for you, you should leave now, lest you damage your foundation and lose the chance to break through to the Core Formation stage in the future."
Chen Fan stood on the stage, looking at him calmly.
This scene bears a striking resemblance to the one a month ago when Lu Xiong blocked the door.
However, Lu Xiong at that time was in the late Foundation Establishment stage, while Hong Jiu in front of him was in the early Core Formation stage.
His cultivation level increased by a whole major realm.
But in Chen Fan's eyes, there was not much difference between the early stage of Core Formation and the late stage of Foundation Establishment.
He didn't speak, but simply placed his hand on the hilt of the sword at his waist.
Seeing that he didn't move, a hint of anger flashed in Hong Jiu's eyes:
"You won't listen to reason, so here comes the punishment. Fine, I'll show you what the power of a Core Formation cultivator is all about!"
Before he finished speaking, he rubbed his hands together, and his spiritual energy surged. A crimson fire snake shot out from his palm, growing longer in the wind. In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a giant fire python more than ten feet long, baring its fangs and claws as it pounced on Chen Fan.
The Fire Serpent Technique used during the Core Formation stage is completely different in power from that used during the Foundation Establishment stage.
The fire serpent was entirely crimson, with fine scales faintly visible on its body. Its fiery fangs, revealed when it opened its mouth, were so lifelike that it seemed to be a fiery python that had crawled out of a volcano.
Wherever the fire snake passed, the air was burned and distorted, and the stone platform emitted a hissing sound.
The Foundation Establishment cultivators below the stage all changed color and involuntarily took a few steps back.
Lu Xiong's face turned pale. He knew that even if he summoned his Blood Armor, he wouldn't last long against this fire serpent.
Chen Fan stood still, motionless.
Only when the fire serpent was within three feet of him did he raise his iron sword and gently tap it forward.
That gesture was extremely casual, as if it weren't resisting a Core Formation cultivator's spell, but rather popping a soap bubble.
However, at this seemingly random point, the menacing fire serpent seemed to have run into an invisible wall.
The snake's head suddenly paused, then shattered into countless sparks from head to tail.
Hong Jiu's disdain froze.
His full-force Fire Serpent Technique was actually shattered by a single sword strike from a Foundation Establishment cultivator at the Great Perfection stage.
How is that possible?
Before he could figure it out, Chen Fan made a move.
His figure vanished from the spot and reappeared in front of Hong Jiu the next moment, his iron sword thrusting out diagonally, a faint gray light shining on the tip of the sword, which was a trace of the causal sword intent.
Although suppressed to the level of Foundation Establishment Great Perfection, the sword aura that locked onto cause and effect and was unavoidable was still incomparably sharp.