The sword light pierced through the broken rock. Shi Chongyue raised his battleaxe, but before it could leave the ground, the beam was already at his chest. Earth-yellow spiritual power suddenly flared around him, covering his body like thick armor.
The sword light descended.
Crack.
His protective spiritual light fractured.
A long tear opened across the robes on Shi Chongyue’s chest, forcing him back a step.
Yun Heng gave him no time to recover. Stepping over the shattered earth spikes, her second strike arrived instantly. Shi Chongyue raised the shaft of his battleaxe horizontally to block, but as her blade struck the center of the shaft, the heavy axe let out a dull hum.
The spiritual power within Yun Heng was draining rapidly, and she could feel her meridians tightening.
However, she could absolutely not retreat now. Yun Heng raised her hand, the frosted gleam on her broken sword tightening once more.
The sword light brushed past the edge of the axe blade and struck his shoulder. The earth-yellow spiritual power split open, and Shi Chongyue let out a muffled groan as his posture faltered.
Yun Heng stepped forward, pressing down hard with her hilt.
Shi Chongyue lost his footing, stepping straight off the edge of the Martial Inquiry Platform. Array lines lit up, catching him.
The referee glanced at the edge of the stage, then turned to look at Yun Heng.
“Shi Chongyue has fallen off the stage.”
The judgment fell.
“Match winner, Yun Heng!”
The spectators watching from below froze, the expressions on their faces stiffening. Some subconsciously looked at the Martial Inquiry Leaderboard before turning their eyes back to Yun Heng on stage, seemingly unable to reconcile the scene before them with the rankings on the wall.
Rank forty on the Nascent Soul Leaderboard had lost.
He had lost to a female cultivator at the mid-stage Nascent Soul Realm who had only just arrived at the Martial Inquiry Arena.
A moment later, clamorous chatter exploded through the crowd.
“She actually won?”
“Isn’t she only at the mid-stage Nascent Soul Realm?”
“She directly challenged rank forty on the Nascent Soul Leaderboard the moment she arrived, and she really won?”
“Where did this cultivator come from? How come I’ve never heard of her before?”
“Yun Heng... Does anyone know which family or sect she belongs to?”
Naturally, no one could answer.
Challenges occurred daily in the Martial Inquiry Arena, with people entering and falling off the leaderboard every single day. However, someone like Yun Heng—who challenged the top forty on the Nascent Soul Leaderboard upon arrival and defeated a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator while only being at the mid-stage—was truly rare.
The gazes landing upon her multiplied, a tangle of shock, wariness, scrutiny, and curiosity.
Yun Heng could feel subtle ripples deep within the broken jade.
System notifications surfaced one after another.
【Awe Points +100.】
【Awe Points +200.】
She breathed a quiet sigh of relief. Coming to the Martial Inquiry Arena was indeed the right choice.
Compared to inspiring awe in Wanbao Tower through pill recipes and old relics, victory on the Martial Inquiry Platform was much more direct. As long as she won quickly enough and decisively enough, Tianque City would soon remember her name.
While the crowd was still discussing her origins, Yun Heng had already turned and walked toward the Martial Inquiry registration desk.
The deacon behind the stone counter had just logged the result of the match when he looked up and saw her return.
“Fellow Cultivator Yun, are you here to update your Martial Inquiry Token?”
Yun Heng handed over her Martial Inquiry Token.
The deacon took the token and was just about to lower his head to log it when he heard her speak.
“I want to issue another challenge.”
The deacon looked up, and several nearby cultivators who had gathered to watch the commotion instantly stopped talking.
Yun Heng said calmly, “Rank thirty on the Nascent Soul Leaderboard.”
This time, the surroundings completely erupted.
“She’s fighting again?”
“She just finished fighting rank forty. Isn’t she going to rest?”
“Rank thirty and rank forty on the Nascent Soul Leaderboard aren’t even on the same level. Did winning one match get to her head?”
“Get to her head? Does she look like it got to her head?”
The crowd looked at Yun Heng.
She stood before the registration desk with little expression on her face, her breathing completely steady. If everyone hadn’t personally seen her step off the Martial Inquiry Platform just moments ago, they might have genuinely thought she was registering for an ordinary spar.
The deacon observed her for a moment before reminding her, “The Martial Inquiry Arena does not forbid consecutive battles, but you’ve just won a match and drained a considerable amount of spiritual power. If you continue challenging and something goes wrong, you bear the consequences yourself.”
Yun Heng nodded. “I know.”
The deacon did not persuade her further. He lowered his head and wrote on the array plate.
“Yun Heng, mid-stage Nascent Soul, challenging rank thirty on the Nascent Soul Leaderboard.”
Word spread rapidly.
The rogue cultivators on the outer edges of the Martial Inquiry Arena were the first to hear.
“Something big happened in the Nascent Soul area! A female cultivator just defeated rank forty!”
“Rank forty? On the Nascent Soul Leaderboard?”
“Yeah, and it was a mid-stage Nascent Soul who won!”
“Are you serious?”
“Now she’s challenging rank thirty! Hurry and take a look!”
As the news spread, people outside the Martial Inquiry Arena began surging inside.
The west side of the city had the highest concentration of rogue cultivators to begin with, and the Martial Inquiry Arena was one of the liveliest places in Tianque City. Such news could not be contained; in less than the time it took for an incense stick to burn, people in nearby restaurants, inns, and shops had all heard about it.
Some initially disbelieved it and rushed over to check the leaderboard themselves, while others came purely to watch the spectacle.
By the time rank thirty arrived, the area around the Martial Inquiry Platform was packed with onlookers.
Yun Heng sat to the side, regulating her breath.
Her previous battle had not been easy, and she had indeed consumed a great deal of spiritual power. However, after closing her eyes and circulating the Tianheng Guiyuan Art, the spiritual power within her meridians gradually calmed down.
At that moment, Bai Yi pushed his way through the crowd and walked over.
The way he looked at Yun Heng was completely different from before, carrying a touch of admiration mixed with unhidable curiosity.
“Fellow Cultivator Yun.”
Yun Heng opened her eyes.
Bai Yi offered a slight smile, his tone even more polite than before. “How are you feeling right now?”
Yun Heng replied, “I’m fine.”
Bai Yi glanced at the Martial Inquiry Platform before lowering his voice. “If you continue challenging, can your spiritual power hold out? The thirty-ranked contender won’t be easy to beat.”
As soon as he said it, he felt his words were a bit redundant—she had already registered, so why ask now?
Yet he truly couldn’t hold it in; this female cultivator was simply relentless.
Arriving at the Martial Inquiry Arena, taking on rank forty right off the bat, and then turning around to challenge rank thirty immediately after winning. What’s more, she wasn’t arrogant or boastful; the calmer she appeared, the more intriguing she became.
“Rest assured, I know what I’m doing.”
Hearing her say this, Bai Yi said no more.
He took half a step back, with only one thought in his mind.
She’s ruthless, truly relentless.
Rank thirty arrived.
The noise of the crowd gradually hushed as everyone’s eyes locked onto the stage. This battle attracted far more attention than the previous one.
Earlier, some still felt Yun Heng was merely lucky or that her skills happened to counter rank forty. But if she could win against rank thirty as well, no one would be able to claim it was mere luck.
The referee raised his hand.
“Begin!”
Half an hour later, the referee’s voice rang out once again.
“Match winner, Yun Heng!”
After a brief silence, the entire Nascent Soul area erupted into utter pandemonium.
“She won again!”
“She actually won two matches in a row!”
“A mid-stage Nascent Soul beat rank forty, and then beat rank thirty! Just what kind of monster is she?”
“Look at the leaderboard!”
Everyone looked up in unison. The Nascent Soul Leaderboard on the wall lit up, and fresh characters surfaced on a previously blank spot.
【Yun Heng: Rank 21】
Yun Heng’s battle had been far from easy. Enduring the intense pain racked across her body, she stood up and looked at her name on the leaderboard, finally letting out a satisfied smile—for inside her sea of consciousness, System notifications were flashing incessantly.
【Awe Points +300.】
【Awe Points +500.】
Rate on N.U.
