Chapter 70: Ling Fei Takes the Stage
As Ling Fei walked toward the competition grounds, an uproar immediately erupted.
"Brother Fei is here!" Upon seeing the youth slowly approaching, Wu Dapang couldn't help but stand up and exclaim.
"He's finally here!" Chen Feng's face lit up.
"That guy, he finally showed up!" Seeing Ling Fei approach, Huang Xiaoman also breathed a sigh of relief.
"Xiaoman, is that your little sweetheart? He's quite handsome!"
"Hey, Xiaoman, why is your little sweetheart walking with a beauty? It looks like your position is in jeopardy!"
As Ling Fei drew near, the chattering voices of the girls around Huang Xiaoman immediately rang out.
Hearing this, Huang Xiaoman was speechless and rolled her eyes repeatedly.
'Wasn't this bad boy in seclusion? Why is he walking with the beauty from the Task Hall?' However, after noticing Zhou Xiaoyu by Ling Fei's side, a hint of jealousy surfaced in Huang Xiaoman's eyes. It seemed that girls just couldn't stand seeing another beauty next to the person they liked.
Still, she was very happy that Ling Fei had come.
'I wonder what his Realm is now?' Huang Xiaoman muttered to herself, sending out her Heart Spirit Sensing to probe Ling Fei's Cultivation.
After all, for Ling Fei to show up at this moment was extremely risky.
'His aura seems stronger than before!' After a brief scan, Huang Xiaoman's heart stirred.
"Look at how confident he is. I can't wait to see him on stage!" Mu Xue narrowed her eyes, her face full of anticipation.
"Wouldn't it be great if he could overwhelm everyone!"
...
"Ling Fei has appeared!" At this moment, on the instructors' platform, gazes converged on Ling Fei.
Even the instructors were filled with curiosity about this young man.
"So he's here." A smile touched the corners of Shangguan Hong's mouth as he looked at Ling Fei. Then, he carefully sensed the fluctuations of the young man's aura.
"This kid seems to have gained another layer of momentum!" Instructor Ruo Huan's eyes gleamed with anticipation.
SWISH! SWISH!
Countless gazes converged upon him.
Ling Fei had become the center of everyone's attention.
"Coward? Scared to fight?" Those words naturally fell upon Ling Fei's ears.
He was speechless upon hearing these comments.
Heaven and earth could bear witness; he had truly been so absorbed in his cultivation that he'd forgotten everything else!
How had that turned into him being scared to fight, a coward?
He felt deeply wronged.
"Let's go, you coward!" Zhou Xiaoyu had also heard the comments. She let out a light laugh and couldn't help but tease him.
"Tch, I'm a real man, you know!" Ling Fei rolled his eyes at Zhou Xiaoyu's teasing.
However, Ling Fei paid no mind to the gossip. He started walking, following Zhou Xiaoyu toward the instructors' platform ahead.
"Come, Ling Fei, let me make some introductions!" Just as Ling Fei stepped onto the instructors' Observation Platform, Shangguan Hong waved him over.
Up on the platform, numerous elders were smiling as they looked at Ling Fei.
"Greetings, Lord Shangguan, Instructor Ruo Huan!" Ling Fei walked up and bowed to the two of them.
Instructor Ruo Huan nodded in acknowledgment.
Then, Shangguan Hong began introducing the elders beside him to Ling Fei.
"This is Dean Han, this is Vice Dean Zhou..." Shangguan Hong introduced them to Ling Fei one by one.
Ling Fei, in turn, offered a junior's salute to each of the elders.
"Not bad. A young genius indeed." Dean Han, a slightly plump, kind-faced old man, said with a smile as he stroked his beard.
The Vice Dean Zhou beside him also nodded repeatedly.
"Have you broken through to the Innate Realm?" After introducing the academy's elders, Shangguan Hong looked at Ling Fei and asked.
The other elders all looked on with anticipation.
Even Instructor Ruo Huan was waiting for Ling Fei's answer.
In truth, they had all sensed the change in Ling Fei's aura.
However, it was best to hear the answer from the man himself.
"I have indeed broken through to the Innate Realm." Seeing so many people looking at him, Ling Fei spread his hands and said.
"Haha, excellent, excellent! By reaching the Innate Realm, you've crossed the threshold of the path of Martial Arts. Your future will be limitless!" Shangguan Hong said "excellent" twice, clearly in high spirits. He had been optimistic about Ling Fei from the very beginning, even when others in the academy thought otherwise.
After all, Ling Fei's starting point had been too low.
But now, it seemed this young man was in no way inferior to his peers.
"Since you've reached the Innate Realm, you can now compete with the likes of Liu Ming and Pang Fei!" Instructor Ruo Huan nodded repeatedly, then said, "The academy assessment is underway. Are you willing to have a match with them? If you can best the rest, there are rewards, you know."
The other elders all looked at Ling Fei, their faces full of anticipation.
"I suppose, given the current situation, if I don't go out there, I'll be known as a coward from now on!" Ling Fei said with a self-deprecating smile.
"Haha, that's for the best!" The elders all shared a knowing smile.
At this point, Ling Fei truly had no choice but to compete.
Then, everyone's gazes shifted, falling upon the competition stage in front of them.
Now, all they had to do was wait for the match between Pang Fei and Zhou Feng to conclude.
...
"So, Ling Fei actually showed up." As the crowd watched the match, Qin Rong stared coldly at Ling Fei from a distance, his eyes dark and gloomy.
He had been looking forward to Ling Fei's appearance, but now that he was here, his feelings were somewhat complicated.
First, Ling Fei had clearly broken through to the Innate Realm.
If that was the case, it was highly likely that Qin Hui had fallen at Ling Fei's hands.
A genius who was about to enter the Mid Stage of Innate had perished at the hands of a junior who had only just entered the Innate Realm.
One could only imagine how terrifying the latter was.
Second, judging by the way Shangguan Hong had introduced Ling Fei to Dean Han and the others, he would be unable to make a move against the young man within the academy.
If he acted rashly, it would even bring him immense trouble.
'It seems I'll have to plan carefully before making a move in the future.' This caused Qin Rong's brows to furrow tightly as he muttered to himself.
"Qin Hui made his move, then vanished without a trace. It now seems he fell at Ling Fei's hands," Liu Yuan said from the side, his expression also grim.
"I wonder what the kid's combat power is like now?" Liu He said in a low voice.
"We'll see when he takes the stage," Liu Yuan said.
"Mmm!" Liu He nodded, and his gaze also fell upon the competition stage ahead.
At this moment, the match between Zhou Feng and Pang Fei was nearing its end.
Celestial River Fury!
Zhou Feng's eyes flashed, as sharp as a sword. With a flick of his Long Sword, Sword Qi erupted, sweeping forward like a raging river.
WHOOSH!
The rolling Sword Qi was incredibly fierce, and a wave of energy locked onto Pang Fei.
The whistling Sword Qi was like a rampaging flood, threatening to submerge everything with unstoppable momentum.
As the Sword Qi howled, it tore through the Void with a ripping sound.
Sword Pressing Mountains and Rivers!
Faced with this fierce strike, not a single ripple of emotion showed on Pang Fei's face. He leaped into the air, his Long Sword dancing in tandem.
SWISH, SWISH!
He slashed out with his Long Sword seven times in quick succession. The seven strikes overlapped, seeming to form a Sword Mountain, and a mountain-like pressure instantly bore down.
His strike had not yet fully descended, but Zhou Feng's river-like Sword Qi was already trembling, its annihilating momentum instantly obstructed.
With its momentum gone, the power of Zhou Feng's attack weakened accordingly.
The next moment, Pang Fei's Long Sword came down. His Sword Momentum directly shattered the long river of qi, revealing Zhou Feng, who was still in his striking posture.
A mountain-like Sword Momentum immediately crashed down upon Zhou Feng.
Under this pressure, Zhou Feng felt as if he were being crushed by a Sword Mountain. The Sword Qi around him dissipated, and his airborne body was immediately blasted away.
Pang Fei's Sword Momentum shifted as he pressed his advantage, giving chase.
THUD! THUD!
Zhou Feng stumbled as he landed.
PFFT!
A trickle of blood spilled from the corner of Zhou Feng's mouth.
He had just steadied himself when Pang Fei's Long Sword was already thrusting toward him.
"I have lost!" Seeing this, Zhou Feng let out a light sigh.
Pang Fei landed, retracted his Long Sword, and clasped his fist with a smile. "Thank you for the match!"
"Brother Pang, you're too kind. To be able to merge your Sword Momentum to such a degree with your Earth Spirit Body and grasp the Mystical meaning of Sword Momentum like a mountain... you truly are a talent."
Zhou Feng said with a smile.
"The sword has no forms, but the user has intent. All things can be a sword. Haha, in the Sword Dao, what does it matter if one has an Earth Spirit Body or a Water Spirit Body?" Pang Fei said with a laugh.
"Indeed. I was being short-sighted." Zhou Feng nodded, then smiled, clasped his fist in salute, and departed.
Instantly, only Pang Fei remained on the competition stage.
'This Pang Fei is a genius!' On the platform, Ling Fei's gaze sharpened, and he couldn't help but see Pang Fei in a new, higher light.
He had clearly overheard the conversation between Pang Fei and Zhou Feng.
This young man had obviously comprehended the True Sword Dao Intent, putting him a notch above Zhou Feng.
"Ling Fei!" Just as Ling Fei was pondering this, on the competition stage, Pang Fei's gaze shifted and locked onto him.
Ling Fei's appearance had surprised Pang Fei.
He had also been curious before why Ling Fei hadn't appeared. Was he afraid to fight?
But based on his feeling, Ling Fei didn't seem like that kind of person.
Now that Ling Fei had shown up, he was even more curious.
'Has he reached the Innate Realm?' Pang Fei carefully sensed Ling Fei's aura.
"Haha, Young Master Ling, why don't you take this opportunity to have a match with him?" Zhou Xiaoyu said with a smile.
"If I fight him now, wouldn't it be an unfair victory?" Ling Fei hesitated slightly before speaking.
"An unfair victory?" Not far away, Tang Hai and the others rolled their eyes.
'The match hasn't even started, and this guy is already talking about an unfair victory?'
'Does he really think he can sweep away all competition just because he was number one on the Mortal List?'
Many of the senior students in the Innate Realm were speechless.
The perception of those in the Innate Realm was extraordinary; even from two hundred meters away, they could hear the conversation between Ling Fei and Zhou Xiaoyu.
Thus, one after another, people rolled their eyes at Ling Fei.
"Those in the Innate Realm have vast True Qi, so the bit he just used up is nothing. Besides, what matters in a match is momentum. Pang Fei's momentum is at its peak right now, so he's in his best condition. It will only be a spectacular fight if you go now." Zhou Xiaoyu blinked her bright eyes and smiled at Ling Fei. "I'm really looking forward to seeing you in action, you know."
Ling Fei's gaze shifted, and he looked toward Instructor Ruo Huan.
"Go on," Instructor Ruo Huan said.
At this point, the instructors were also eagerly awaiting Ling Fei's match.
Seeing this, Ling Fei's gaze shifted to the competition stage. He clasped his fist and said, "Brother Pang, your Sword Dao is outstanding. I am not so talented, but I would like to ask for a pointer or two."
"Haha, Brother Ling, you are too polite. The path of Martial Arts is vast. We should indeed spar more often to test our skills and improve together." Pang Fei returned the salute with a smile.
Then, with a swift and nimble movement, Ling Fei appeared on the competition stage in an instant.
On the stage, the two stood opposite each other, clasping their fists in salute.
Then, the very air seemed to freeze.
On both Ling Fei and Pang Fei, a powerful momentum began to build.
At that moment, the entire competition grounds fell silent.
Everyone's gaze was fixed on the competition stage before them.
