"Wen Qingye!"

Jiangg Tian supported Jiangg Feng’s body and couldn’t help but roar in fury.

"You’re next!" Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, Wen Qingye charged toward Jiangg Tian, seemingly oblivious to the pain wracking his body.

Seeing Wen Qingye charge, Jiangg Tian hastily raised his Soft Sword to parry.

"CLANG CLANG CLANG CLANG CLANG CLANG!"

Their Step Techniques were blindingly fast. The sounds of their swords clashing echoed through the stone cavern, accompanied by Jiangg Tian’s heavy gasps for air.

The onlookers watched the intense battle, utterly dumbfounded. Jiangg Tian was no match for Wen Qingye at all!

"Zhangg Jing, what are you still gawking at?" Jiangg Tian’s arm was trembling violently. Finally finding a moment to breathe, he yelled at Zhangg Jing.

Zhangg Jing’s expression was impassive. The longer Wen Qingye fought, the more severe his injuries would become. The longer Jiangg Tian fought Wen Qingye, the happier she was.

Jiangg Tian slowly realized Zhangg Jing’s plan and couldn’t help but curse her internally. ’Vicious bitch.’

Before long, several bloody gashes appeared on Jiangg Tian’s body, and he was soaked through with sweat.

"CLANG!"

Jiangg Tian met Wen Qingye’s strike head-on, then took a step back and hurriedly said, "Brother Wen, I don’t want the Snow Lotus anymore. How about we call it a truce?"

Jiangg Tian was even willing to drop the matter of his own brother, Jiangg Feng, dying at Wen Qingye’s hands, acting as if it never even happened.

His cold-blooded ruthlessness was on full display.

"Too late!"

A cold sneer tugged at Wen Qingye’s lips. His One Thought Sword sliced through the air in a red arc, radiating scorching heat.

"Four Symbols Sword Technique, Second Form! Heaven Burning Fire!"

The arc of light erupted into a blazing inferno. The frigid currents of air vanished without a trace, as if fleeing from something terrifying. The arc carried the power to set the very heavens ablaze.

Jiangg Tian gritted his teeth, not daring to be careless. With a flick of the Soft Sword in his hand, he conjured a sky full of sword shadows that chopped down toward Wen Qingye’s fiery arc.

"Jiangg Swordsmanship, Ninth Form!"

The countless sword shadows in the air simplified, converging into one, and a single sword strike stabbed toward Wen Qingye’s blade.

"HISSS!"

"CRACK!"

First came the sound of searing flames, followed by the sight of Jiangg Tian’s Soft Sword shattering. Wen Qingye’s blade sliced into Jiangg Tian’s abdomen, and blood began to slowly trickle down.

Jiangg Tian’s face turned deathly pale. After stumbling back a few steps, he collapsed to his knees.

Wen Qingye’s eyes narrowed. He swung his sword again, its cicada-wing-thin body carving a perfect arc through the air.

When Zhangg Jing saw the One Thought Sword, still traced with fresh blood, coming for her, she was scared out of her wits. She pulled back her fist and quickly retreated.

Wen Qingye watched her with cold eyes and sneered, "Trying the same old trick again? It doesn’t seem to be working."

Zhangg Jing offered a faint smile. "It doesn’t matter. You’re already a spent force. Even if I don’t ambush you, you’re still no match for me, are you?"

Zhangg Jing had keenly sensed that Wen Qingye’s last sword strike had been much slower than before. Thus, she was brimming with confidence.

Guann Xuan shook his head and chuckled. "How disappointing. A whole group of you, ganging up on him, launching sneak attacks... and you call yourselves the geniuses of your respective countries?"

Zhangg Jing paid Guann Xuan’s veiled criticism no mind. "Natural selection. Survival of the fittest."

"You’re right. Natural selection, survival of the fittest," Wen Qingye nodded.

"So don’t blame me." With a sharp cry, Zhangg Jing unleashed a torrent of Primordial Qi from her palms. It reflected a pure white light; who knew how many had died at these delicate hands.

Wen Qingye’s body trembled, then shot into the air. He raised his sword and charged directly at Zhangg Jing, the image of man and sword deeply engraved upon the very stone cavern.

"HUMMM!"

The One Thought Sword seemed to release a trembling hum, the entire blade suffused with a clear, spiritual aura.

Guann Xuan was slightly startled. "This sword strike..."

A cyan light erupted from the One Thought Sword. The moment Wen Qingye raised his sword, Zhangg Jing’s heart trembled violently. She couldn’t see the trajectory of the blade at all; it was as if it were Formless and Shadowless.

"Four Symbols Sword Technique, Third Form! Feng Buliu!"

The Sword Qi slashed out horizontally, and the entire stone cavern seemed to tremble.

"Not good!"

"Fall back! Quickly, fall back!"

For some unknown reason, as Wen Qingye executed this sword strike, an even greater frigid current erupted from the Cold Pool. For a moment, a suffocating pressure filled the entire stone cavern.

Zhangg Jing’s face turned deathly pale as she looked at the incomparably sharp Sword Qi.

’Run!’

That was Zhangg Jing’s first instinct.

Zhangg Jing spun around and dashed toward the Snow Lotus.

"Facing death, and you still want the Snow Lotus?" Wen Qingye sneered.

Zhangg Jing had clearly underestimated the Third Form of the Four Symbols Sword Technique. The cyan Sword Qi was impossibly fast, reaching her back in the blink of an eye.

"SHHHK!"

"SPLASH!"

Bathed in her own blood, Zhangg Jing fell directly into the Cold Pool.

Wen Qingye walked at a measured, unhurried pace toward the Snow Lotus in the Cold Pool.

At this moment, no one present dared to take a single step forward. They were filled with both fear and awe. Jiangg Tian had already been turned into an ice sculpture, dead beyond a doubt, and with Zhangg Jing falling into the Cold Pool, it was almost certain she would suffer the same fate.

Guann Xuan nodded, the fighting spirit in his eyes unconcealed. "Your Swordsmanship is impressive. My hands are getting itchy. If you weren’t injured right now, I’d really love to have a match with you."

Wen Qingye didn’t speak. In an instant, he stepped across the ripples of the Cold Pool and arrived beside the Snow Lotus. He grabbed it and placed it directly into his Sumeru Mustard Seed.

Just then, a layer of crimson blood floated to the surface of the Cold Pool.

The people from Heng Country exchanged glances. One of the men gritted his teeth and glared at Wen Qingye. "Wen Qingye, you actually killed Sister Zhangg Jing! The Zhangg Family of Heng Country will not let you go!"

Wen Qingye sneered. "If they want to kill me, let them come!"

Wen Qingye was completely unbothered by the threats from the Heng Country people.

"CLAP! CLAP!"

Guann Xuan walked up with a smile, clapping in applause.

"Excellent. Truly excellent." Guann Xuan turned to the people from Heng Country, a strange light glinting in his eyes. "This is a trial ground for the Celestial Profound Sect. So what if someone gets killed? What’s more, Zhangg Jing and Jiangg Tian ganged up on him. If they died, they died."

Seeing Guann Xuan actually speak up for Wen Qingye, the faces of the Heng Country people turned ugly, their hearts burning with rage.

The onlookers saw that Wen Qingye had taken the Snow Lotus. They exchanged glances, looked at the frigid water of the pool, and then shot another wary glance at Wen Qingye. The few from Heng Country slowly began to walk out of the stone cavern.

When Guann Xuan saw the people from Heng Country leaving, he turned to Wen Qingye and laughed. "Your Excellency has some magnificent skills. I, Guann Xuan, enjoy making friends with men of character like you, Brother Wen."

Wen Qingye listened to Guann Xuan’s bold voice, nodded, and smiled. "A pity there’s no wine at the moment."

Guann Xuan laughed heartily. "Hahaha, indeed! If there were wine, I would definitely share a drink and a good conversation with Brother Wen. What a shame."

Guann Xuan looked at Wen Qingye’s tattered, blood-stained clothes. Despite his appearance, he exuded a tough, unyielding aura that commanded silent admiration. "Brother Wen, if we both make it out of this Thousand Rivers Secret Realm, I will definitely become sworn brothers with you."

"If we have the chance, we definitely can," Wen Qingye said with a smile.