"Awooo—"
At this moment, accompanied by a loud wolf's howl, Sam's energy suddenly strengthened. The energy then took form, transforming into the shape of a giant wolf, which opened its maw and swallowed the white light.
"Mr. Ye, let's call this round a draw. They're fighting too fiercely, and we can't make out what's happening yet," Noda hesitated. As the cultivator from Sakura Country most familiar with the Kyushu region, Noda was designated as the representative for this exchange.
Ye Bufan nodded, remaining silent, his gaze still fixed on Yan Yuzhu and Sam.
"Thousand Wolf Transformation!" Sam roared, and the phantom wolf completely devoured the white light.
Sam panted heavily, and seeing the white light entirely consumed by his phantom wolf, he couldn't help but laugh, "I admit I underestimated you. That white light certainly made me work for it. But now, I'm going to get serious."
Yan Yuzhu smiled in response, "Oh? What a coincidence, I'm about to get serious too."
Sam formed hand seals, and the giant wolf instantly grew to human size, lunging towards Yan Yuzhu.
Yan Yuzhu's white light transformed into a white spear, thrusting towards the giant wolf. As they collided, both Sam and Yan Yuzhu's expressions shifted slightly. They were locked in a stalemate for three seconds.
"Bang—"
The giant wolf exploded, the white light dissipated, and both figures were sent flying backward.
"What?" Noda rubbed his eyes vigorously. He recalled that the previous match was between a peak Foundation Establishment late stage cultivator and a half-step Core Formation cultivator, meaning the opponent was still in the Foundation Establishment stage. Therefore, the difference in cultivation was not significant.
However, the gap between Yan Yuzhu and Sam now was a tangible difference between early and mid-Core Formation stages.
The difference in their true qi alone was immense. Theoretically, Sam could exhaust Yan Yuzhu to death just by expending true qi. Yet, Yan Yuzhu was fighting Sam blow for blow, and at several moments, Sam was even at a disadvantage.
Sam's eyelids twitched, his mouth contorted, and his heart filled with rage.
"Impossible, this is absolutely impossible!"
Sam retracted his hand, and the meteor hammer returned to his grip. He let out a roar, his aura completely changing. The meteor hammer spun rapidly in his hand, transforming into a vortex.
"Meteor Cyclone!"
Sparks flew from Sam's body, gradually increasing until they formed a tornado that swept towards Yan Yuzhu.
Yan Yuzhu grunted, and the Guangming Pearl appeared in his hand. The white light also gathered into a tornado, spinning in the opposite direction to Sam's Meteor Cyclone.
Without any external wind, two "tornadoes" merged, shaking the very floor of the arena.
Seeing this, Bai Zizhen formed hand seals, creating an invisible barrier before the cultivators of the Kyushu region. Rupa, Noda, and others also jointly erected a barrier.
When the wind finally subsided, Yan Yuzhu and Sam stood motionless, staring at each other.
"It's over," Ye Bufan said, observing the two, knowing that a victor had been decided.
Yan Yuzhu couldn't help but spit out a mouthful of blood. Sam, thinking he had won, felt a sharp pain in his throat and then also spat out a mouthful of blood.
"Sam!" The members of the Ao Alliance rushed onto the stage. They looked towards Ye Bufan and said grimly, "Ye Bufan, how about we call this round a draw?"
Ye Bufan nodded, then leaped forward, supporting Yan Yuzhu and placing a Yangxin Pill from his spatial jade pendant into Yan Yuzhu's mouth.
"Rest well," Ye Bufan instructed as Yan Yuzhu sat down on the side and began to heal.
Under Ye Qingcheng's orders, people from the underground city came out to perform simple repairs on the arena floor. The scene fell silent.
"Third round," Ye Bufan announced.
Ying Yao, the sect leader of the Overlord Blade Sect, walked up to Ye Bufan and said, "This time, let me go."
Ye Bufan nodded. Ying Yao's cultivation had also improved recently, reaching the half-step Core Formation stage, just like Song Xinghai. He was only a step away from entering the Core Formation stage.
"I'll go."
From Yin Fan's side, a young man leaped up and landed on the stage.
"Yin Fan—Sha She Sect—Das." The opponent cupped his fists in a salute to Ying Yao.
"Kyushu Region—Overlord Blade Sect—Ying Yao." Ying Yao returned the salute.
"I am skilled with the blade," Das said, extending his right hand, and a blade appeared in his grasp.
"What a coincidence, I am also skilled with the blade," Ying Yao summoned his blade as well.
Qu Fei watched Ying Yao and nodded with satisfaction, saying to Song Mingqin beside him, "Ying Yao's swordsmanship is very solid, in my opinion. After all, he's someone who can rival my talent in swordsmanship within our Overlord Blade Sect for a long time."
"Oh, come on. Look at Das from Yin Fan's side. Once he holds his blade, his entire demeanor changes, as if he's a different person. I think Ying Yao is in some danger," Song Mingqin remarked.
Qu Fei looked at Das, frowning. Song Mingqin's words held a lot of truth.
"Clang—"
They both swung their long blades simultaneously, producing a metallic clang. They then retreated a step each before charging forward again.
Every movement was precise, without any superfluous actions. Each move, each action, lacked ostentatious techniques; they were all the simplest fundamental movements.
In the air, their true qi and blade qi collided, creating a distinct resonance.
"Hah!" Das roared. Ying Yao parried and initiated the Overlord Blade Sect's technique—One-Blade Style.
As the blade descended, blade qi like a celestial river poured down, striking Das heavily. Das took a deep breath, a blade aura forming before him. He swung his blade, splitting Ying Yao's blade qi, the "celestial river," in two, and instantly closed the distance to Ying Yao.
Ying Yao rotated the back of his blade, releasing blade qi. Das smiled slightly and used his long blade to shatter Ying Yao's blade qi.
"Buzz—"
Das’s long blade leveled, emitting a peculiar vibration. Immediately, blade qi from the surroundings converged towards Ying Yao.
"Drawing Blade Instant!" Das unleashed his blade technique. Thousands of blade qi materialized behind Ying Yao, appearing eerily around him.
Ying Yao was greatly alarmed. The opponent's technique seemed exceptionally cunning, and the pressure on him instantly increased.
"Retreat!" Ying Yao roared. His long blade drew an arc in mid-air, slicing through the blade qi. However, the trajectory of this blade qi was too bizarre, and Ying Yao still suffered a blow from his opponent.
"Chi!" Das roared, and his long blade vanished from his hand, reappearing above Ying Yao's head.