In the martial arts arena, Qin Erlang had paid a thousand yuan deposit to temporarily rent a square stage for use, complete with a dedicated referee, though these were all extra charges.
Gu Yuan frowned, watching more and more spectators gather in the viewing area.
He looked at Qin Erlang, who also wore a confused frown.
Then, Gu Yuan shook his head. None of this mattered. He didn't care about such things. He craved to spar with the strong, and Qin Erlang undoubtedly qualified as one.
With a thought, the Dao 운 Tian Tu projected Qin Erlang's fate.
The Dao 운 Tian Tu vibrated within his mind, revealing information piece by piece.
[Name]: [Qin Erlang]
[Destiny God]: [Grand Marshal Tai Sui]
[Destiny Pattern]: [Sixty Grand Marshals Tai Sui]
[Realm]: [True Qi Realm (Minor Accomplishment)]
[Destiny]: [Ruler of the Year (Red)], [Demon Lord (Red)], [Grand Marshal Tai Sui Body (Red)], [Strength of Bearing Mountains (Purple)], [Halberd Mastery (Purple)], [Innate True Qi (Green)], [Unceasing Battle Intent (Green)]
Tsk, tsk, tsk, Gu Yuan marveled inwardly, his eyes wide with wonder. Others invited gods into their fate, just one god. But Qin Erlang had invited the most special of divine lords, the Grand Marshal Tai Sui.
Grand Marshal Tai Sui, also known as Sui Xing, Shun Xing, or Tai Sui, operated on a cycle of sixty years based on the Heavenly Stem and Earthly Branches. There were sixty of them, with one Tai Sui god presiding each year. The Tai Sui on duty that year was called the "Yearly Tai Sui," the ruler of the year, responsible for the fortunes and misfortunes of the human world.
Gu Yuan gazed at the faint effigy of a star lord manifesting behind Qin Erlang's back.
If he counted carefully, there were indeed fifty to sixty of them.
The "Demon Lord" destiny also corresponded to the saying, "Descends like a demon lord from heaven, the Tai Sui god of this world."
This was also a heroic figure from a novel in Gu Yuan's past life.
And with the "Halberd Mastery" destiny, Qin Erlang's overall strength was not much different from Gu Yuan's. He just didn't know where the mystery of this Grand Marshal Tai Sui lay.
As more and more spectators entered, the two men stopped paying attention. They couldn't stop others from watching the match. They stood opposite each other on the stage, beginning to adjust their states.
Qin Erlang directly thrust the large black halberd on his back into the stage, forged from Xuan Stone, using sheer brute force. It was clear his strength was among the best for his level.
Seeing this, Gu Yuan's hand flashed. A metal sphere from his storage space appeared in his hand, slowly forming the shape of Qiushui.
Qin Erlang's heart stirred, seeing Gu Yuan's weapon. He murmured inwardly, "Blood Refined Gold?"
The preciousness of Blood Refined Gold was self-evident. Many in the surrounding spectator seats cast greedy glances at the weapon in Gu Yuan's hand.
But then they remembered Gu Yuan's identity and abandoned such dangerous thoughts.
"Blood Refined Gold. Gu Yuan, you truly have good fortune to obtain such a precious material," Qin Erlang chuckled. He had no other intentions, merely praising Gu Yuan's luck.
Gu Yuan, not to be outdone, immediately recognized the great halberd on Qin Erlang's back as being forged from Black Iron Xuan Jin. "Your Black Iron Xuan Jin is no less. Why envy my Blood Refined Gold?"
Black Iron Xuan Jin was a rare and hard substance in the world, possessing some elasticity, making it most suitable for crafting polearms like spears, halberds, and lances.
"Enough with the nonsense, let's begin," Qin Erlang said, kicking the halberd lightly. The halberd spun in the air and landed in his palm. Its tip pointed at Gu Yuan, and he declared with imposing presence.
"Then let's begin." Gu Yuan's saber also pointed at Qin Erlang, and the True Qi within him began to erupt.
The magnificent lightning-attribute True Qi from the 《Nine Heavens Purple Cloud Divine Thunder Art》 roared and surged within his body.
Faint electrical currents began to appear on Gu Yuan's surface. His entire Qiushui began to vibrate at high frequency, imbued with ferocious lightning-attribute True Qi.
"Lightning arts? Is it?" Qin Erlang's eyes gleamed. He inwardly became vigilant. Those who cultivated lightning arts since ancient times were all prodigies, possessing immense power, extreme speed, and were incredibly troublesome, with potent single-target destructive force.
Black True Qi began to manifest on Qin Erlang's surface, radiating an untamable demonic aura.
Spectators with discerning eyes in the stands immediately recognized this as the genuine technique of Qin Shan of Qin Chuan Prefecture, known as 《Great Demon Heaven Freedom Art》.
Those who cultivated this technique possessed exceptionally high combat power and were immune to pain, possessing the effect of blocking pain sensation. Once combat began, their True Qi would not cease to flow until the battle ended.
Furthermore, it possessed the ability to erode other attribute True Qi.
Gu Yuan's ears twitched. He heard the murmurs from the audience, and immediately formulated a plan.
He was not afraid of the opponent's ability to erode True Qi, because his cultivation was of the lightning attribute, which suppressed all dark attributes.
The disadvantage would be Qin Erlang's.
Lightning Cut: Flash!
Gu Yuan didn't unleash his ultimate move right away, but chose to use some basic martial skills to gauge Qin Erlang's precise strength.
On the stage, most people only saw Gu Yuan transform into a streak of lightning. A blue light flashed, and in the blink of an eye, Gu Yuan appeared before the seemingly unreactive Qin Erlang.
Qin Erlang remained unfazed. He could even see his own reflection in the white blade of Gu Yuan's saber. He shifted his halberd slightly, and six spiraling currents of True Qi erupted from his body.
Halberd Art: Spiral Qi!
Gu Yuan's expression was calm. His saber continued its motion, slashing towards Qin Erlang's neck. Brilliant lightning erupted from his body.
Lightning Armor!
Brilliant lightning rapidly formed a handsome blue armor around his body.
It directly blocked the six spiraling qi currents that Qin Erlang had unleashed.
This time, he didn't use any other methods, relying entirely on his newly learned lightning arts to fight.
Seeing his Spiral Qi blocked, Qin Erlang did not panic. He could even feel the high-frequency vibration of Gu Yuan's Qiushui, and the extreme cutting power it brought. He had no doubt that if it touched him, his head might be severed.
Everyone present watched Qin Erlang's reaction in silence.
The referee stood by, ready to intervene at any moment to save someone, as he could clearly sense the lethality of the saber in Gu Yuan's hand. He hadn't expected these two young men to go straight for killing blows.
He spun the great halberd in his hand, the shaft of the halberd against his waist. As it rotated, he directly slashed towards Gu Yuan's waist.
It appeared to be a move that would result in mutual destruction, but at the last moment, both of them stopped abruptly, neither harming the other in the slightest.
"Your saber is fast!" Qin Erlang sincerely praised Gu Yuan's swordsmanship.
"Yours is not bad either!" Gu Yuan responded similarly. At this moment, both had acknowledged each other's strength. If the fight continued, it would not be with such killing moves, but a different kind of spar.
Both men lightly retreated simultaneously, sheathing their weapons. They clasped their hands in greeting towards each other.
"Please enlighten me!"
"Please!"
The audience had yet to process this dramatic reversal. The two men on the stage clashed again.
Bang!
A loud sound echoed across the stage.