Suddenly, it was as if time had frozen.
At this moment, Tang Ruoxue’s face was deathly pale, her colorless lips trembling.
Her eyes filled with deep shame and indignation. She followed the line of the blood-red longsword at her neck and stared at Yi Xiaoyao in disbelief.
"The gap between you and me is as vast as the heavens and the earth. We are not people of the same world."
"Since you insist on humiliating yourself, I will grant your wish."
These words Tang Ruoxue had once spoken to Yi Xiaoyao now sounded so ironic!
Talent, strength—in neither could she compare to Yi Xiaoyao!
Only now understanding everything, Tang Ruoxue asked herself, ’What right did I ever have to say such things?’
Perhaps those words were what Yi Xiaoyao should have said to her instead.
But when she saw the indifference in Yi Xiaoyao’s eyes, she knew he couldn’t even be bothered to say such things to her.
"You... you don’t dare kill me!" Tang Ruoxue said, her expression complicated.
Yi Xiaoyao glanced at the lock of severed hair on the ground, then sheathed his sword.
"A lock of hair for a head. In my eyes, you are already a dead woman!"
Tang Ruoxue’s body trembled at his words. She gave a self-mocking laugh, her eyes hollow.
At this moment, everyone on the training ground was plunged into a state of shock, rendering the scene utterly silent.
They all stared wide-eyed, their faces filled with disbelief as they tried to process the scene before them.
Tang Ruoxue... had lost!
The next instant, the silence shattered, erupting into the most intense uproar imaginable.
"Tang Ruoxue lost even after taking an Elixir to boost her Spiritual Power! This Yi Xiaoyao is a monster!"
"Yi Xiaoyao actually won? A seventh-level Qi Condensation cultivator defeated an eighth-level one who had even taken an Elixir?"
"It’s unbelievable!"
The entire training ground was in an uproar, the cries of astonishment endless.
The person everyone had once seen as trash had defeated the highly anticipated heaven’s-blessed maiden, and he had done so in such a clean and decisive manner.
It was too spectacular, too mind-boggling!
"Haha! Good! This is great!"
Tang Feng couldn’t help but laugh out loud. His nephew had made him so proud, sweeping away all his previous frustrations. It felt incredible!
"Hmph! Who said Xiaoyao isn’t worthy of Tang Ruoxue? Is she even the least bit worthy of him?"
Tang Feng suddenly shouted at Tang Long, feeling immensely satisfied.
Tang Long, however, no longer had any of his previous arrogance to confront Tang Feng. He was utterly crestfallen, his expression dazed.
"How is this possible? How could Ruoxue lose to that piece of trash?"
He couldn’t believe what had just become reality.
"The genius maiden, Tang Ruoxue, has been defeated!"
The important figures on the high platform all had twitching faces. Just moments ago, they had all been certain of Yi Xiaoyao’s defeat, but the result was something they could never have imagined.
Mei Han, in particular, furrowed her brow, seemingly making a difficult decision.
"This Yi Xiaoyao... that final Swordsmanship technique he used actually broke through its limits!" Mei Han murmured, her eyes narrowed.
The two elders beside her were then reminded of Yi Xiaoyao’s Nine Swords Unite into One Sword, and a strange light flickered in their eyes as well.
"Indeed! For the Seven-layered Sword Technique, Yi Xiaoyao executed Nine Swords. That’s equivalent to improving a Swordsmanship technique!"
"Although the Seven-layered Sword Technique is only a low-grade, Yellow-rank Swordsmanship technique, for someone as young as Yi Xiaoyao to be able to break through and improve it... what astonishing talent in the Sword Dao that requires!"
How could they know that Yi Xiaoyao possessed the Sword God Bloodline, and his talent in the Sword Dao was already at a heaven-defying level!
What they did know, however, was that they had to fight to recruit such a heaven-sent talent into their sects!
Xu Jin’s face was flushed with excitement as he shouted, "Yi Xiaoyao! Come to my Jinhan Sect! If you’re willing to become my, Xu Jin’s, disciple, I’ll give you a high-grade, Yellow-rank Swordsmanship technique right now!"
An uproar instantly swept through the crowd at his words.
Even the Tang Family Castle only possessed a few high-grade, Yellow-rank Spiritual Skills, and only a handful of qualified individuals were allowed to cultivate them. Yet Xu Jin was offering a high-grade, Yellow-rank Swordsmanship technique right off the bat!
It wasn’t just about how precious a high-grade, Yellow-rank Swordsmanship technique was; when they were fighting to recruit Tang Ruoxue just moments ago, no one had offered such terms.
Seeing this, Elder Ge of the Wind Mist Sect immediately grew anxious.
"Yi Xiaoyao, if you are willing to take me as your master, I will also gift you a high-grade, Yellow-rank Swordsmanship technique!" Elder Ge quickly chimed in.
In an instant, everyone looked at Yi Xiaoyao with immense envy.
How they wished they could have Yi Xiaoyao’s talent and receive such treatment!
A faint smile appeared on Yi Xiaoyao’s lips.
’Gold will always shine eventually; a genius will never stay buried.’
However, Yi Xiaoyao didn’t rush to agree. Instead, he looked at Mei Han with a sense of anticipation.
The Cloud Transformation Sect was the number one sect in the Great Shang Dynasty. Who wouldn’t want to join? Yi Xiaoyao was no exception.
Xu Jin and Elder Ge instantly saw through Yi Xiaoyao’s intentions, and their expressions changed.
"Yi Xiaoyao, you may not know this, but Elder Mei Han only accepts female disciples, never male ones. You should just go ahead and pick one of us!" the two of them said.
Hearing this, Yi Xiaoyao glanced at the three beautiful female disciples standing behind Mei Han and knew that Xu Jin and the other elder were telling the truth. He could only sigh in regret.
For some reason, the three female disciples behind Mei Han were all casting flirtatious glances at Yi Xiaoyao. When they heard Xu Jin and the other elder say that Mei Han didn’t accept male disciples, they all showed a hint of disappointment.
Just as Yi Xiaoyao was hesitating between Xu Jin and Elder Ge, Mei Han, who had been frowning this whole time, finally spoke.
"Who says I only accept female disciples? Today, I, Mei Han, will break my own rule for Yi Xiaoyao!"
With that, Mei Han looked at Yi Xiaoyao and asked, "Yi Xiaoyao, are you willing to follow me into the Cloud Transformation Sect?"
At this, Yi Xiaoyao’s eyes instantly lit up, and he snapped his head up.
Meanwhile, it wasn’t just the crowd that was stunned by Mei Han’s words; even Xu Jin and Elder Ge were caught completely off guard, their expressions changing drastically.
’This Mei Han is too much! She’s even trying to steal a male disciple!’ both of them thought.
But there was nothing they could do. When the Cloud Transformation Sect wanted to recruit someone, their advantage was simply too great.
Thus, the two of them had no choice but to raise their offers.
"Yi Xiaoyao, if you become my disciple, in addition to the high-grade, Yellow-rank Swordsmanship technique, I will also give you a Foundation Establishment Elixir to help you easily advance to the Foundation Establishment Realm!" Xu Jin said, gritting his teeth.
Not to be outdone, Elder Ge’s brows shot up as he declared, "Yi Xiaoyao, I am willing to give you two high-grade, Yellow-rank Spiritual Skills! And I will devote all my resources to cultivating you alone!"
The sound of sharp, hurried breaths came from all around Yi Xiaoyao. He was truly the envy of everyone present.
As for Tang Ruoxue, how could she not be filled with intense jealousy? But then a thought occurred to her: ’I’ve already been accepted by the Cloud Transformation Sect. I’m not that far behind Yi Xiaoyao.’
But just then, Mei Han’s next words instantly plunged the smug Tang Ruoxue into an icy cellar of despair.
"Yi Xiaoyao, I can also give you two high-grade, Yellow-rank Swordsmanship techniques. Furthermore, I know that you and Tang Ruoxue do not get along, therefore..."
Saying this, Mei Han hardened her heart and declared, "Therefore, for your sake, I refuse to accept Tang Ruoxue as my disciple!"