With a smile, the golden figure stroked his beard and chuckled, "What? Still worried this Saint can't defeat you?"
Ye Yun nodded. "Yes, if we follow the rules, it's a bit unfair to you..."
It wasn't that he disliked an easier path, but rather that this was a rare opportunity to spar with an ancient Saint. A fierce battle would undoubtedly benefit him immensely. However, if they fought according to the Saint's rules, it would likely be a one-sided affair...
His words, however, displeased the golden figure. He immediately bristled and declared,
"You good lad, you are truly the most arrogant fellow I've ever seen!"
"Reaching the Life-Death Realm at your age is indeed impressive, but do you know who I am?"
"In my entire life, I have never been defeated in combat within the same realm!"
As an ancient Saint, even in his era, he was a peerless genius, his combat prowess inherently superior to others of his level. Furthermore, he was now engaging a Life-Death Realm cultivator with the battle experience of a Saint. Even if Ye Yun were formidable, achieving a draw would be incredible, let alone defeating him, which was frankly laughable.
"Since that is the case, this junior will not hold back."
Seeing his insistence, Ye Yun sighed in resignation and agreed, feeling that if he didn't, the Saint might simply throw him out.
At this, the golden figure's Xuan Qi fluctuated, rapidly ascending beyond Transcendent, King, Emperor, and Venerable, reaching the sixth level of the Life-Death Realm. Simultaneously, a golden sword projection formed in his hand, and he lightly snorted at Ye Yun.
"Lad, judging by your appearance, you seem to be a sword cultivator. Show me your blade!"
With his Saintly insight, he could sense the distinct aura of a sword cultivator emanating from Ye Yun. Coincidentally, he himself was also a sword cultivator.
Hearing this, Ye Yun nodded and drew his Fenglan Sword. The golden figure's brow twitched.
"Hmm? Interesting. At such a cultivation level, you possess a spiritual weapon. No wonder you dare to be so boastful. However, the quality of a weapon doesn't solely determine strength!"
Ye Yun remained silent. Facing a Saint, he dared not be complacent and unleashed all his abilities one after another. Just as the golden figure was about to make a move, a deafening roar echoed, and a vast expanse of sword intent surged from Ye Yun, instantly filling the void.
"This is... Supreme-tier Sword Intent?!"
Sensing the familiar Supreme-tier Sword Intent, the golden figure's eyelids involuntarily twitched.
Good heavens, how many years had he been dead? In this era, could Life-Death Realm cultivators already comprehend Supreme-tier Sword Intent? He recalled that in his prime, hailed as the continent's foremost sword genius, he had only grasped Supreme-tier Sword Intent when he was at the Half-Step Dao Foundation stage. Yet, this young man before him was merely at the sixth level of the Life-Death Realm!
"Lad, I underestimated you. With Supreme-tier Sword Intent, you indeed have a chance to fight me. Shall we begin?"
"Senior, please wait a moment."
Ye Yun interrupted him, causing the golden figure to look puzzled.
"Hmm? What, do you have more tricks up your sleeve?"
"You could say that. When facing a senior like yourself, one must naturally go all out!"
Ye Yun smiled faintly. The next instant, his eyes blazed with golden light, and his aura began to ascend steadily. Originally, with his sixth-level Life-Death Realm cultivation, he shouldn't have been able to unleash his full power within the Saint's tomb. However, this space was clearly different from elsewhere, as stable as the outside world, so he had no fear of it exploding due to his own power. In a flash, a divine aura enveloped Ye Yun, making his presence akin to a living sword immortal, or perhaps a god of war, continuously radiating a terrifying pressure outwards! His comprehended Slaughter Sword Dao, as its name suggested, focused on combat. Its aura was more oppressive than that of ordinary Great Dao power, capable of making the timid unable to stand firm. At this moment, Ye Yun harnessed the Great Dao power within this space, becoming like the controller of this world, commanding all under heaven! Ye Yun was now at his peak state. He extended his hand towards the golden figure, smiling and saying,
"Senior, please!"
"..."
Witnessing Ye Yun's current awe-inspiring might, the golden figure's expression was quite extraordinary.
"This is... Great Dao power?"
Ye Yun nodded. "Senior has sharp eyes. That's right, this is the Great Dao this junior recently comprehended! The Slaughter Sword Dao!"
"Hmm... not bad."
The golden figure nodded silently, inwardly cursing.
This guy has no integrity! He tricked me, he ambushed me, this old Saint of thousands of years! How can someone at the Life-Death Realm comprehend Supreme-tier Sword Intent and Great Dao power! Is this fellow here to cause trouble? Consequently, he looked at his own golden sword projection, which resembled a fire poker, and muttered,
"Ah... lad, your strength is truly impressive. This Saint is quite pleased. The path of the sword on Xuan Tian Continent has successors."
"And with the strength you've displayed, you've certainly passed the combat assessment. I'll send you directly to the next round."
The golden figure sheathed his sword projection and, adopting an air of superiority, looked at Ye Yun with great benevolence.
But Ye Yun was unwilling. He quickly said, "Wait! Please spar with me, or perhaps I can go easy on you? I can use only Supreme-tier Sword Intent, or just Great Dao power?"
After all this effort to unleash his full power, he had scared the Saint away? His words made the golden figure's mouth twitch. Let him go easy? Why did it sound increasingly wrong, as if *he* were the one being assessed? If he were not an energy body, his expression would surely be priceless.
"No, no. You see, our time is precious. This Saint has some urgent matters. We'll meet again after you pass the next round!"
With that, his form vanished instantly, not giving Ye Yun a chance to speak. Everything around them began to disappear as well. It seemed he would indeed be teleported to the next round. Ye Yun was momentarily dejected. He should have held back, using only Supreme-tier Sword Intent would have been enough. Using Great Dao power was indeed a bit too much.
"What a pity. The chance to fight a Saint..."
What was an excruciating assessment for others was, for him, merely a trivial matter.
Meanwhile, in the void, the golden figure reformed and, watching Ye Yun being teleported away, let out a long sigh of relief.
"Glad I ran fast. This kid is a monster..."
No matter how confident he was, facing an opponent with Supreme-tier Sword Intent and even Great Dao power at the Life-Death Realm offered almost no chance of victory. Moreover, with the young man's monstrous talent, his combat skills were likely no less impressive. As a Saint and chief examiner, he had no desire to be utterly defeated by a junior.
However, through the assessments of others, he had observed that it wasn't the era that had changed, but simply that this fellow's talent was too heaven-defying. So extraordinary that even he, an ancient Saint, couldn't help but feel a profound sense of awe, acknowledging the future's potential. Amidst his shock, he couldn't help but ponder another matter, sighing inwardly.
"If it were him, perhaps he could truly ascend to the Celestial Domain and alter the current rules..."
At any point in time, the end of an era required the emergence of geniuses like Ye Yun. The only regret was that he wouldn't live to witness the day the Celestial Domain was overthrown...
...
When Ye Yun's vision cleared again, he found himself teleported to another platform. In the center of the vast platform stood two objects: a massive stone tablet inscribed with mysterious runes, and a colossal ancient bell. Without a doubt, this was the location of the second round of assessment. Near the stone tablet and bell, a large crowd of onlookers had gathered.
"Brother Ye! Over here! You're finally here!"
Hearing that annoying voice, Ye Yun knew who it was. Looking up, he saw Lan Zhaoye. Besides him were Yu Wenya, Lan Zhaoyue, and even a few Life-Death Realm cultivators from the Immortal Palace.
"Not bad, you all passed the first round?"
Ye Yun walked over with a smile. Frankly, he wasn't surprised Yu Wenya and Lan Zhaoyue had passed. But for the scoundrel Lan Zhaoye to pass, he must have some hidden talent.
Upon seeing him, Yu Wenya smiled faintly. "Yes, I never expected to have the chance to spar with an ancient Saint in this life. Unfortunately, I was defeated after only a few moves."
Lan Zhaoyue nodded. "That Saint Senior was indeed formidable. Even using all my techniques, I was only able to last seven or eight moves before being defeated."
Compared to the Saint's requirements, their performances were quite good. At this point, Lan Zhaoye grinned and sidled up, asking, "So, Brother Ye, how many moves did you last?"