Primordial Divine Emperor-Chapter 43: What? He Only Dares to Face One Sword?
Upon hearing that Jian Zhu was going to spar with Ye Xiaofan, many of the favored children of heaven glanced over.
Even the senior brothers of the Divine Sword Sect and the strong individuals assigned to guard duty could not help but look at Ye Xiaofan, eager to see what extraordinary qualities this young man, accepted by the Sword Saint, possessed.
"What’s wrong? Could it be that you are unwilling to accept? Or are you afraid to fight me?" Seeing Ye Xiaofan not respond, Jian Zhu fixed a blazing gaze on him, challenging.
As soon as these words were spoken, there was a buzz of discussion all around.
"After all, he is the heir of the Sword Saint, surely he won’t lack the courage to spar?"
"If he shies away, that would be humiliating."
"It’s not just his reputation at stake; it’s the honor of the Sword Saint, and even their Star Moon City would lose face."
"Being unwilling to face the challenge can be understood; Jian Zhu is Silver Moon City’s foremost genius, with a talent in Sword Dao rarely seen in a thousand years. It’s said his attainments in Sword Dao have already surpassed many senior brothers, a true genius in the way of the sword."
"That said, but Ye Xiaofan is now the sole heir of the Sword Saint, carrying this title. If he doesn’t come forth to fight, he might become a target of criticism in the future."
"As I see it, this title is the only reason he stands on the same level as Jian Zhu and others. Honestly, not that I look down on him, but if he didn’t have the Sword Saint heir status, Jian Zhu wouldn’t even spare him a glance."
Many people whispered among themselves, all eyes focused on Ye Xiaofan.
Jian Zhu’s strength was undeniable, among the Ten Cities, those who could match him were few and far between. They found hope only in Star Moon City’s Nangong Jianchen, and another two unparalleled prodigies at the tenth-layer peak of Profound Spirit.
These few individuals were the true unparalleled prodigies in the Ten Cities. These sons and daughters of heaven, admired by others, would ultimately become mere foils to these few.
As for Ye Xiaofan, many secretly shook their heads, luck did not equate to strength after all.
Ye Xiaofan furrowed his brow.
On the flying boat of Star Moon City, Ye Xiaotian and another youth of the Ye Race quietly watched the scene.
"Do they really think acquiring this title settles everything? What a joke, I want to see how he handles this next," the youth beside Ye Xiaotian sneered coldly, seeming to find Ye Xiaofan’s potential embarrassment a great joy in life.
On another ark, Mu Yan and Ning Canghai watched the scene, saying nothing.
Clearly, the two did not wish to intervene in this matter. Ye Xiaofan was indeed in need of establishing some authority to solidify his position as the Sword Saint’s heir.
On the Silver Moon City ark, Jian Zhu saw Ye Xiaofan hesitant to respond, and immediately laughed coldly.
"Do you not even have the desire to spar a little, sir? If you lack even this courage, might as well leave the Divine Sword Sect voluntarily and relinquish the Sword Saint heir title to someone capable."
Upon hearing Jian Zhu’s words, Ye Xiaofan sighed helplessly and shook his head slightly, "It’s not that I’m afraid to fight, just unwilling. The gap between us now is too large; sparring would be meaningless."
As soon as Ye Xiaofan spoke, there was a wave of jeers.
He looked at the disdainful gazes around him and sighed softly, seemingly needing to silence the crowd to become Dugu Nan’s disciple.
Having thought about it, Ye Xiaofan slowly stood up, fixing Jian Zhu with his eyes, "Since Brother Jian insists on sparring, I won’t decline. But if that’s the case, how about a point-scoring match?"
Listening to Ye Xiaofan’s words, the youth beside Ye Xiaotian scoffed even more, "Ha, a point-scoring match, isn’t that just a fancy way of saying you’re afraid of getting hurt? Saying it so grandly, really shameless."
The thought was not limited to the youth beside Ye Xiaotian; almost everyone thought the same.
However, Jian Zhu did not mind; his goal was to make the opponent engage, not to injure or maim. Seeing Ye Xiaofan agree, he was naturally pleased.
"Please."
Jian Zhu immediately made a gesture of invitation, signaling Ye Xiaofan to come to the Silver Moon City ark to compete.
Ye Xiaofan raised an eyebrow, "Since Brother Jian wants to spar, naturally, we should go to the Star Moon City ark. Why should Ye go over there?"
Ye Xiaofan finished speaking and smiled silently.
Upon hearing this, Jian Zhu pondered for a moment and didn’t hesitate, leaping securely onto the Star Moon City ark.
Seeing this, Ye Xiaofan stood up but was slightly pulled by Nangong Jianchen, "Brother Ye, this man is at the tenth-layer peak of Profound Spirit, Sword Dao is outstanding. In my opinion..." Nangong Jianchen looked at Ye Xiaofan, shook his head slightly, signaling him not to accept the match.
Nangong Jianchen did it for Ye Xiaofan’s benefit; in his view, Ye Xiaofan was sure to lose. If he were to lose to Jian Zhu here, his status as the Sword Saint heir would likely be questioned, possibly losing more than what’s gained and missing the chance to be with the Sword Saint.
Ye Xiaofan patted Nangong Jianchen’s hand, smiled confidently, whispered ’it’s okay,’ and slowly walked toward Jian Zhu.
Instantly, everyone naturally made space, creating a temporary duel area.
Fortunately, the Divine Sword Sect’s arks were extremely large, setting up a dueling platform was effortless.
Though in everyone’s mind the duel’s outcome seemed decided, nonetheless, one being the Sword Saint heir and the other the foremost genius of Silver Moon City drew nearly unanimous attention.
"Since it’s a point-scoring match, ten strikes should suffice; both our Sword Dao skills are prominent, ten strikes are enough to determine the rank," Jian Zhu raised his sword, speaking softly.
He was confident in defeating Ye Xiaofan within ten strikes; although the opponent’s realm might be much lower, having already grasped the Sword Intent of "Sword Break," he couldn’t be underestimated.
Not to mention, the opponent was the Sword Saint’s heir, even if he intended to publicly defeat him, he couldn’t afford to embarrass the Sword Saint excessively.
Yet before Jian Zhu finished, Ye Xiaofan shook his head slightly, "Ten strikes are too many; to decide a victory, one strike is enough. Let’s end the duel with one strike."
"One strike?" Hearing this, Jian Zhu paused, then laughed derisively.
Clearly, he misunderstood, thinking Ye Xiaofan realized he wasn’t his match and therefore wanted only to receive one strike without engaging further in the duel.
Not only Jian Zhu thought this way, but the Ten Cities’ prodigies similarly believed so, shaking their heads at the remark, igniting the scene. Those with slightly aggressive personalities spoke directly.
"I thought he’d be formidable, but he only dares to receive Jian Zhu brother’s one strike!"
"Kid, you’ve disgraced the Sword Saint."
"Haven’t you already understood the Sword Intent from ’Sword Break’? You’ve practiced ’Grass Cutting Sword Technique’ well too, why do you only dare to receive one strike? Ye Xiaofan, are you not afraid of tarnishing the Sword Saint’s name?"
"The Sword Saint has shaken the Eight Desolations and Four Seas all his life, and now he’s got this waste as an heir?"
Many either spoke loudly or muttered silently, shaking their heads involuntarily.
Ye Xiaofan saw this but didn’t bother to explain further. His notion of one strike wasn’t as the crowd interpreted — merely receiving Jian Zhu’s strike. Instead, he planned to defeat his opponent effortlessly, yet for the sake of being from the same sect, he’d allow the opponent to strike once.
In other words, Jian Zhu only had one chance to strike.
