The battle between Guo Bohai and Zhen Yu had barely ended when the stage trembled once again, being rapidly repaired by the array masters below. The noise of the crowd, still murmuring about the unexpected outcome, was suddenly cut short.
Then came a sound ofThroat-clearing.
That single sharp sound echoed through the arena like a bell. All eyes turned toward the stage.
Steward Yan stood tall, his sleeves flowing, eyes scanning the thousands of cultivators and mortal merchants seated around. "With the previous round concluded, the score now stands with Dragonwood Valley securing one point." His voice rang clear and solem. "Next up, Tang Jiyan of the Twin Soul Sect versus Jin Bo of Dragonwood Valley!"
A ripple of excitement burst through the crowd, not of cheers, but of sheer anticipation. Both names were well-known, especially Tang Jiyan as he was rumored to be a member of one of Fengyue Country's illustrious Five Great Families, the Tang Clan. Whispers and speculation filled the air.
"Is that really him from the Tang Clan?"
"I heard he's stronger than even most elders in the outer sect of the Twin Soul Sect!"
"And why's he helping Shen Yuan? What's the relationship there?"
Meanwhile, seated quietly within the Twin Soul Sect's area, Tang Jiyan had his eyes closed. The bustle of the crowd didn't reach him. Then, slowly, he opened his eyes and smirked.
Shen Yuna grinned and glanced at him. "Looks like your turn is finally here."
Tang Jiyan stretched lazily. "Finally. I was getting bored just sitting around. Plus…" His smirk deepened, "I'm curious about what you said earlier."
He tilted his chin toward Shen Yuan, who remained silent, merely returning the smirk with one of his own. The others of the team seemed more reserved. Xiang Xiaoli frowned slightly.
"Be careful," she said. "Jin Bo isn't like Zhen Yu. He can create up to thirty layers of solid blood skin. It's like fighting an armored beast."
Tang Jiyan waved off her concern. "Relax. I'll be fine."
He stepped away, heading for the stage.
Shen Yuan's gaze lingered on Xiang Xiaoli. There was more than simple concern in her voice, but he didn't dwell on it. His attention shifted toward the field.
Tang Jiyan slowly walked up the stage and stood ready, arms behind his back. Opposite to him, Jin Bo was still conversing with his team.
"Be careful," one of the Dragonwood Valley disciples urged. "They're clearly learning our weaknesses."
Jin Bo scoffed. "Tch, do you think I am like junior Zhen Yu? Hey, boss," he said, turning to the man beside him.
The man wore green robes, eyes like emeralds with a reptilian hue, clearly no ordinary cultivator. His presence was calm, yet dangerous.
"Worried about them? That Shen Yuan guy?" Jin Bo asked.
The green-robed man didn't even blink. "What's the point of finding a weakness if you can't exploit it? If they lack the power to corrode our defenses, it's all meaningless."
Laughter erupted around them. Jin Bo cupped his fists respectfully. "The boss is truly wise. I'll return with a flawless win."
The green-robed man gave him a lazy nod.
BOOM
Jin Bo leapt and landed heavily on the stage, rubbing the tip of his nose. "You better not cry when you lose, Tang Jiyan!"
Tang Jiyan chuckled. "We'll see. Also… I can assure you that none of us will cry… because you won't get that chance"
Jin Bo scoffed. "You can talk big, but let's see how good you are in a duel!"
Steward Yan gave a short nod, and the defensive array shimmered into life. "Begin!"
"Solid Blood Body Art!"
Jin Bo's roar was like thunder. His body glowed crimson as layer after layer of dense, red blood skin formed over his body like organic armor. If one saw closely they could see thirty layers of blood like skin formed the armor. Tang Jiyan's eyes narrowed. "Time to test it." Tang Jiyan thought inside.
He dashed forward, fist flying straight at Jin Bo's chest. The punch landed cleanly.
But to his surprise… there were no damages, no, not even a small crack.
Jin Bo's armor didn't even flinch a bit. He laughed and threw his own fist in response, but Tang Jiyan dodged and retreated a few steps, quickly summoning a sword from his storage bag. He covered the blade with his Qi.
Their clash resumed, sword against fists. Jin Bo's onslaught was relentless. Tang Jiyan blocked, parried, spun, and deflected, but the pressure built rapidly. His sword showed signs of strain. If he were to take any more attacks, the blade would shatter.
With a forceful shove, he pushed Jin Bo away. They faced off again, a blur to most, visible only to Nirvana and higher realm cultivators. Mortals and low-level disciples saw only flashes and felt the shockwaves. The Shock waves were so strong that it made them feel as if it was making their heartbeat faster.
When they stopped, the arena was deathly still.
Not a scratch on Jin Bo yet again.
Tang Jiyan smirked bitterly. "Impressive. Even with Qi heating my blade, it's not enough."
He exhaled and slowly raised his sword, mist beginning to form around him. "Looks like I'll have to use something new."
Gasps spread as the mist thickened, swirling into a humanoid shape. And then—
Another Tang Jiyan stood beside him.
Identicall.
Even Jin Bo stumbled slightly. "What…? A clone?"
In the Twin Soul Sect's seating area, Dong Chen gawked. "He can clone too?!"
Xiang Xiaoli glanced at Shen Yuan. "Did you give him your clone art?"
Shen Yuan shook his head calmly. "No. Mine is different, it is like a Second Self, fully independent while sharing the same consciousness as me. However, the one Tang Jiyan is using is known as an illusory clone technique. Not independent. It follows preset movements thought by the original before making the clone, and vanishes with enough damage. But it's still effective."
The others nodded in understanding.
Xiang Xiaoli looked back to the stage. "So… who wins?"
Shen Yuan replied, "Tang Jiyan will win. He'll even kill Jin Bo."
The others exhaled in half-relief, though their eyes remained fixed.
On stage, Jin Bo growled. "Two of you? So what?!"
Both Tang Jiyans smirked.
And then they vanished into motion.
What followed was a symphony of blinding speed. Even Nirvana cultivators could barely track the movements. Elysian and above cultivators saw the steps in full, but to most lower cultivators and mortals, it was only the streaking flashes of mist racing around the stage.
Jin Bo spun, fists ready, but all he saw were shadows. Then, from his left, a figure lunged.
"Found you!"
He struck with all his might, only to punch through dense mist.
"A fake..?!"
Suddenly, real blades danced through the air and mist, slashing across his armor. The first cut left a hairline crack. The next widened it. More and more mist slashes rained down. Then, three powerful strikes struck at his chest.
CRACK!
The blood armor split and shattered.
Blood ran from his ears and nose.
As the mist dispersed slowly, three Tang Jiyans stood on stage.
The crowd erupted.
"Three clones?" Dong Chen rubbed his head.
"No, two are clones," Shen Yuan murmured, "but it was well-timed."
Jin Bo screamed in rage, leaping at the real one. The two clones intercepted him, taking his Qi-infused fist.
BOOM!
They exploded into mist.
The mist didn't vanish, however, it twisted into needles and rained toward Jin Bo.
He roared, "Solid Blood Body Armor, Fifty Layers!!"
A deeper crimson hue engulfed him. His body ballooned with dense, Qi and the smell of blood. The new armor shimmered like iron.
Others gasped, as they only knew that Jin Bo could do thirty layers, but fifty was beyond what they thought, it had the endurance of someone who was at the limit of the 9th layer of Nirvana realm.
The mist needles however, pierced the first few layers before vanishing, but many still struck true, embedding in his shoulders and abdomen. He coughed blood and staggered.
"This isn't over!" Jin Bo shrieked, balancing himself.
He charged again, monstrous fists swinging. Tang Jiyan now struggled to dodge. One misstep would spell disaster for him.
For a few minutes the relentless barrage of rampaging fists continued, the stage was in a devastating state at the moment. Tang Jiyan continued to barely dodge, however there were bruises showing that some fists did hit him.
As Jin Bo's fist closed in this time with a more devastating force, Tang Jiyan quickly pulled a glowing white jade bottle from his storage bag. It released an aura of absolute cold.
CRACK!
He hurled it at the oncoming fist.
The bottle shattered.
WOOOOOOSH!
A burst of icy wind swept the arena. Azure light radiated across the stage.
Mist turned to frost.
When the light dispersed, everyone saw Jin Bo half frozen, he screamed in pain as if his insides too were being frozen by the second.
After a few more seconds, Jin Bo's painful screams died in his throat. His body now completely frozen, encased in glimmering ice. Time seemed to have paused as most fell silent.
Then—
CRACK!
The ice shattered.
Not into shards.
But into dust.
Jin Bo's body crumbled, frozen solid and shattered cleanly.
The audience stared in stunned silence.
The only sound there was now the ice dust scattering away.