Da Xuan Martial Saint

The battles taking place all over were short-lived.

They generally consisted of each side testing each other with dozens of moves, and once they had a rough idea of the other's strength, they each backed away.

After all, there was not much of a gap between the competitors, and there were still a few days before the turbulence in the Cloud Sea. A full-force fight might lead to victory, but injury was almost inevitable. No one wanted to sustain injuries before they ascended the Yunni Sky Steps.

Chen Mu gave no more than a glance at the sparring and probing around him before he silently left, once again disappearing without a trace.

"Where is Chen Mu?"

But soon after Chen Mu left, someone came looking for him.

Accompanied by a surging Sword Intent, a figure appeared on the wall of the courtyard, dressed in the attire of the Heavenly Sword Sect disciple—it was none other than Gu Hong, who had been defeated by Chen Mu!

He was clad in a simple green outfit, holding no sword, but standing there, he emanated a sharpness as if swords were everywhere. It seemed as though a mere step could lead to being torn apart by invisible Sword Qi, intimidating everyone in the courtyard.

At that moment, gazes from all directions were drawn to the commotion.

"It's the Heavenly Sword's Gu Hong."

"They say he was defeated by Chen Mu, but then made a breakthrough and reformed his Heart Sword. Within two years, he'd directly defeated the twenty-third ranked true disciple of the Green Lotus Sect and is said to now possess the strength to rank among the top twenty."

Instantly,

many eyes sparkled with intrigue.

Gu Hong challenging Chen Mu again was a matter of great interest. Setting Gu Hong aside, Chen Mu had indeed been a rising talent in recent years; after joining Seven Profound Sect, he had cultivated in obscurity for less than two years. Yet, upon his first appearance, he managed to grasp the Qian Heaven Artistic Conception, his strength at least close to that of Zhou Hao, solidly placing him in the top twenty with prospects for the top ten.

Moreover, up until now, no one had crossed hands with Chen Mu, and his true strength was unclear. The Qian Heaven Artistic Conception was powerful, but the extent to which he could use it was key.

With Gu Hong's current strength being considerable, the outcome of a rematch with Chen Mu was evocative.

However,

Under the oppressive Sword Intent of Gu Hong's rising Heart Sword, the Seven Profound Sect disciples' courtyard remained silent without response until after a while someone said, "Senior Brother Chen isn't here."
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"Oh?"

Gu Hong's Sword Intent retracted as he spoke indifferently, "But I heard that he had arrived."

There was no reply from the courtyard.

Gu Hong extended his sense of Sword Intent, confirming he couldn't detect the familiar presence. He then continued indifferently, "Indeed, not here... In recent days, all the heroes have been sparring to verify their Martial Arts. He comes and goes without engaging. Why is that?"

"Perhaps he's afraid of defeat."

From a distance, someone unknown replied, chuckling, "Not everyone can make a comeback after a severe loss like you. Some might find it difficult to break through the Mysterious Pass after one big defeat."

Since the news from Yunlu Pass spread, there was significant interest in Chen Mu from all quarters, especially as various groups gathered in Bi Prefecture to gather at the Yunni Sky Steps for martial discussions. Chen Mu, the talented newcomer, had barely made an appearance. Had this been before the Yunlu Pass incident, Chen Mu might have been forgotten, but obviously not now.

"Nonsense!"

Finally, someone from the courtyard couldn't help but retort. Shen Lin spoke gravely, "Senior Brother Chen simply has no interest in engaging before the opening of the Yunni Sky Steps. If you want to face Senior Brother Chen, go find him yourself. You didn't come over when he was here just a moment ago, and now you're here spouting nonsense."

Although there had been no news of Chen Mu engaging others these past few days, Shen Lin knew very well that Chen Mu was certainly not avoiding combat. The impression Chen Mu gave was that of disinterest in such sparring.

And who was Chen Mu, after all?

Grasping Qian Heaven in just a year and a half after joining the sect, how could he fear facing someone like Gu Hong, who had been defeated by him? If it were Zuo Qianqiu or Yuan Yingsong saying these things, it might be another matter, but in her view, even if Gu Hong had made a breakthrough, he still didn't have the standing.

"Humph!"

Gu Hong gave a cold snort.

Shen Lin felt an invisible Sword Intent cut towards her. Her body wanted to move, but she was entirely unable to lift a finger. In that instant, the invisible Sword Intent seemed to split her in two right down the middle, and she suddenly broke out in a cold sweat that soaked through her clothes.

But at that moment, Zhou Hao's voice came from the inner courtyard.

"If you want a rematch with Junior Brother Chen, then go look for him. Intimidating our Seven Profound Sect's Inner Sect juniors and juniors, is that all the magnanimity you possess, Gu Hong? It seems to me that you are probably still no match for Junior Brother Chen."

"Is that so?"

Gu Hong looked away from Shen Lin towards the inner courtyard as the Sword Intent around him surged once again, then settled in the next breath. He spoke evenly, "You were injured fighting Jiang Yifei, I have no interest in taking advantage of the wounded. You could only handle four strikes from Elder Brother Zuo before, I wonder how many you can take now?"

As his words trailed off, he turned and vanished from the top of the wall.

In the inner courtyard,

Zhou Hao sat under a tall mountain willow, holding a teacup, sipping and managing his Inner Breath with a calm demeanor while Liu Chan, a true disciple of Shao Profound Peak, looked on with a somewhat gloomy expression, saying, "Gu Hong is getting too arrogant. If you, Senior Brother Zhou, were not injured, suppressing him would be but flipping a hand."

"To break and then to stand anew, there must be something unique about him. It's not just the Heart Sword's intent that must be reformed, but also the Martial Arts will. To do it as cleanly as he has is rare even over decades."

Zhou Hao was still calm as if Gu Hong's last few words hadn't incited anger. "It won't be easy for this man to break into the top ten, but he has indeed gained some ability, which makes him a formidable opponent for Junior Brother Chen."