The Eternal Heart - Chapter 54

Chapter 54: Number One in The Outer Sect
Cloud Sky Summit.

The rain was gradually easing and was falling sporadically in a sparse manner. A hint of gentle sunlight appeared in the border of the clouds in the distance. There was a bit of a hazy tint that resembled an ink painting.

There was a hint of shininess to the rain as afterglow passed through it.

After the howling wind and torrential rain, the two figures on the martial arts stage seemed to be standing tall and straight, yet fresh and clean as well.

Everyone below the stage held their breaths.

“You…won.”

Duan Xiaolong’s choked up words broke the silence at the scene.

On the other hand, numerous disciples had bewildered looks on their faces and had a kind of feeling that they wished for it to continue.

That was until Duan Xiaolong spat out a mouthful of blood and swayed. When he did so, numerous disciples involuntarily cried out in astonishment.

“He lost!”

“Duan Xiaolong actually lost?!”

A few disciples were in a sort of daze as they found it difficult to accept this reality.

Indeed, Duan Xiaolong was legendary in the outer sect.

He could already scale to the top of the outer sect two years ago and it could even be said that he was the uncrowned king of the outer sect.

It was said that Duan Xiaolong had a very ordinary aptitude. He was only a Half Soul Physique. Nevertheless, he had astonishing comprehension abilities and chose the [Rolling Thunder Blade] that was extremely difficult to cultivate successfully. Using the ostensible purpose of undertaking missions, he was out of the sect all year round to comprehend storms, thunder, and lightning.

There were many disciples present who revered and worshipped Duan Xiaolong.

“That blade from Duan Xiaolong was formidably powerful beyond compare. How could he lose to him?”

“That blade brought out a few hints of the true meaning behind the Rolling Thunder Blade. Its might was even strong under the wind and rain too.”

A few disciples off the stage couldn’t understand it at all.

Why would Duan Xiaolong lose?

If this was based on momentum and might, Duan Xiaolong’s blade seemed to even triumph over Chen Yu’s fist slightly.

“You truly proved yourself to be Duan Xiaolong. You have a Half Soul Physique like me, but you can reach such a level. The might of that blade from a moment ago even slightly surpassed my ‘Mighty Congealed Fiend Fist’.”

Chen Yu took a deep breath.

This was the first time someone directly injured him ever since he accomplished the Bronze Muscle level of the [Bronze Statue Technique].

Duan Xiaolong was the first person.

A few Sect Elders present, including the Sect Master of Yunyue Sect, felt fearful in light of the breathtaking confrontation between the two a moment ago.

“Mighty Congealed Fiend Fist! It is difficult even for ordinary martial artists at the Visceral Tempering stage to accomplish this kind of martial arts level, unless their [Fiendish Cloud Fist] is at the level of perfection and they comprehended its true meaning somewhat.”

“Duan Xiaolong actually comprehended a hint of a superficial concept behind thunder. There were a few hints of the might of thunder and lightning in that blade just now.”

A few Elders and higher-ups exclaimed in surprise as they were deeply moved.

The people who could accomplish the “might of a fiend congealed in a fist” and superficially comprehend the “concept of thunder” were extremely rare, even in the inner sect.

Yet both parties simultaneously appeared during the peak battle in the outer sect.

“Duan Xiaolong actually suffered a defeat with such a breathtaking blade?” murmured Elder Nangong.

From what he could see, Duan Xiaolong’s blade drew support from nature and the atmosphere, so he was even more magnificent in terms of might.

“You and I should both understand that in a true fight to the death, there are times when it isn’t whose attack is stronger that will determine who can survive. I can only say that we underestimated the might of the [Bronze Statue Technique].”

Elder Mao chuckled.

That’s right.

Elder Nangong nodded. He naturally understood this reasoning.

Due to his superior cultivation and Inner Breath, in addition to the wind and rain, the might of the [Rolling Thunder Blade] was amplified so he slightly triumphed over Chen Yu.

But he merely triumphed by just a slight bit in terms of his attack.

However, Duan Xiaolong fell far too short of Chen Yu in terms of his defense.

The two of them exhibited power beyond their ranks and they were more than well-matched in terms of their might.

And the outcome was…Duan Xiaolong was severely injured and spat out blood while Chen Yu only sustained a hint of external wounds. To his body with tyrannical self-healing abilities, it didn’t count for much.

There was still one point that wasn’t known to anyone though.

At most, Duan Xiaolong could only unleash an attack like the one from before that exceeded his rank once or twice. If he sustained heavy injuries the first time, then it would be difficult for him to unleash it the second time.

Chen Yu was different though.

The feeling Chen Yu gave him was that it wouldn’t be a huge problem if he unleashed the “might of a fiend congealed in a fist” attack several times in a row. At most, it would be a little weaker in hindsight.

The effect of a cask similar to this was that the amount of water that could be contained within the bucket depended on its shortest plank.

“Number 99, Chen Yu, is temporarily ranked first.”

That old man in black robes took a deep look at Chen Yu before he briefly touched the Array Board.

Whoosh!

Chen Yu’s name jumped to first place immediately and became the sole individual in first place.

Even though he was “temporarily ranked first”, everyone clearly understood that Chen Yu was already number one amongst the outer sect disciples after triumphing over Nangong Li and Duan Xiaolong in succession.

So much so that he could already be considered to be an inner sect disciple.

The founding rule of the sect dictated that one could automatically become an inner sect disciple as long as they emerged first in the Great Tournament.

“Chen Yu actually succeeded…”

Le Feng, Tong Yuling, Hu Yiba, and the rest had complex expressions on their faces offstage. They were either gratified or rueful.

Le Feng, in particular, bore the most complex emotions.

Since the beginning of the battle with the Metal Brown Bears, he witnessed Chen Yu’s miraculous growth from a tart rookie to number one in the outer sect.

Powerhouses started out as rookies.

Thinking back to the time when Chen Yu first faced the Metal Brown Bear, he was so battered and exhausted.

“How is it possible…he actually ascended to first place…”

Wang Lingyun was almost somewhat unsteady on his feet. There was a wave of panic rising in his heart as he felt fear and trepidation in the face of disaster for a moment.

He actually treated an opponent like this as his enemy?

Watching that battle from a moment ago, it was very easy for Chen Yu to kill him in an instant if he wanted to.

Wang Lingyun’s heart went cold. How could he establish himself in the sect after Chen Yu became an inner sect disciple?

“Could it be that I lost in such a way?! No! I’m not willing to accept this!”

Wang Lingyun took a deep breath in.

A hint of malice and ruthlessness flashed in his eyes. “Chen Yu, you must have some great secret on you. I will surely find out what it is!”

At this moment, Wang Lingyun, who thoroughly suffered a crushing defeat, found a shred of opportunity to pull the rug from under Chen Yu.

…

The Great Outer Sect Tournament had yet to come to an end.

Chen Yu defeated Nangong Li and Duan Xiaolong in succession, which only established his position as number one.

Following that, the rankings for the top three, top 10, and top 20 still had to be established. Above all that, there were still intense fights to be held for the top three and top 10.

“Elder Brother Yu, you really succeeded.”

Faint tears started to well up in Mu Xueqing’s eyes. Her face was brimming with happiness and joy. There was even a surge of fresh and pure beauty that could move a person.

Chen Yu defeated Nangong Li and Duan Xiaolong in succession, creating miracles one after the other with unstoppable strength.

Her hopes turned into reality when she witnessed every one of these scenes. It was as if she was in a dream all of a sudden.

“I’ll help you bind up your wound.”

Mu Xueqing couldn’t bear to see the scorch marks and bloodstains on Chen Yu’s shoulder.

Slap!

But just as her white hand reached out to his shoulder, Chen Yu subconsciously slapped it away.

There was a wave of painful heat on Mu Xueqing’s lily-white hand from that powerful strength as her delicate figure swayed.

Even though it was only a subconscious movement from Chen Yu and he didn’t deliberately use that much force, the strength he used wasn’t small either.

“Elder Brother Yu, you…”

Mu Xueqing’s pretty figure went still as she looked at Chen Yu in disbelief.

Could it be that Chen Yu’s view of the world was higher now that he became famous from the Great Tournament? Did he already fall in love with someone else? Or did he still bear grudges about that matter in the past?

“Xueqing, don’t misunderstand—”

A wave of helplessness washed over Chen Yu.

He only didn’t want to expose his constitution’s abnormal self-healing abilities in public.

At this moment, the bloodstains and scorch scars on Chen Yu’s shoulder was only a cover-up. The wound within had already healed and the scars were even fading away.

“Humph! The boy who is surnamed Chen, if you humiliate Xueqing, don’t blame me for bullying the weak.”

A man with an icy cold temperament interrupted Chen Yu.

It was unknown when the Seventh Prince dressed in gorgeous robes arrived behind both of them.

Whoosh!

An aura that was shaped liked a storm surged and oppressed Chen Yu’s body. His expression changed as a result of that, with his breathing, qi, and blood becoming obstructed.

“Visceral Tempering stage! The late Visceral Tempering stage at the very least!”

Chen Yu’s mind trembled with fear as he couldn’t help but face the man beside Mu Xueqing squarely.

The low cries of “Seventh Prince” and “Huangfu Lin” from the surrounding disciples rang beside his ear.

The Seventh Prince, Huangfu Lin!

The identity of this man in a gorgeous robe shocked everyone present.

“Isn’t Huangfu Lin one of the True Disciples of our sect?”

“With an identity like his, he would actually come and watch the ‘Great Outer Sect Tournament’. It looks like he is sticking out for Mu Xueqing.”

The flames of gossip burned amongst a group of disciples.

Chen Yu, Mu Xueqing, the Seventh Prince.

Just what kind of entanglement was there between the three of them?

“Seventh Prince? I am very sorry. This is a personal matter between Younger Martial Mu and I. You’re just an outsider, so don’t interfere in this.”

Chen Yu didn’t back down.

“You actually dare to…”

The Seventh Prince, who always possessed an elegant demeanor, looked indignant as he said in a low voice, “Your Chen Clan is nothing more than a small influential power the size of a pill on the land in the state of Chu.”

Threaten?

Chen Yu was afraid of the consequences, but he wasn’t an idiot.

No matter how strong the imperial household in the state of Chu was, no matter how much influential power they had, that was only limited to the secular world.

Only sects were the masters in Kunlun Continent!

Now, Chen Yu was already an inner sect disciple of Yunyue Sect. It was a great taboo for the Seventh Prince to make reprisals against his clan without cause or reason under the same sect.

After all, numerous members of the sect, including the Elder and the Sect Master, had secular clans backing them.

“Also, we already parted ways a long time ago, Younger Martial Sister Mu. I hope that you won’t cause trouble for me in the future. I will return those two Qi Returning Pills to you,” Chen Yu properly said.

Chen Yu was really irritated by the various inconveniences Mu Xueqing brought about.

Before he ascended to the peak, he was wearing the hat of “living off a woman” for a very long time, which resulted in him attracting various ineffable enemies. Yet again, a Seventh Prince was drawn out now.

Perhaps, this might bring about the danger of the extermination of the entire Chen Clan!

“You…”

Mu Xueqing’s delicate body swayed in response. There was a dull look on her gorgeous face as an expression of disbelief appeared on her face.

This wasn’t the Elder Brother Chen Yu who was docile and obedient to her in the past.

Mu Xueqing fell like an icehouse, especially with the strange appellation of “Younger Martial Sister Mu”. There were thousands of words she wanted to say, but none could leave her mouth.

At this moment, her eyes were red as she wanted to lament very much.

We parted in the past as I was under pressure from my clan. My clan constantly pressured me in the one to two years when I had just entered the outer sect. Xueqing painstakingly braced herself, so I could only keep my distance from your pursuit.

After that, how could Xueqing bear to see you suffer suppression and humiliation in the sect?

If I was determined and persevered, not only would that interfere with my prospects, but you, my beloved, would also suffer and be tormented even more.

It would have been better if I persuaded you to return to the secular world and for us to part ways.

Now, you and I have already entered the inner sect and can advance on the path of martial arts together. There’s hope for us to break the shackles of the secular world.

Why?

Why won’t you even give me a single chance right now then?

In the end, Mu Xueqing swiftly left without saying a word.

“Xueqing!”

The Seventh Prince viciously turned around and glared at Chen Yu before chasing after her.

Chen Yu gazed at Mu Xueqing as she left. After a good while, he heaved a long sigh while there was a kind of feeling as though he had freed himself of a heavy burden.

This brief interlude didn’t affect the ultimate coda of the “Great Outer Sect Tournament.” The next challenge folded out intensely.

Finally, a heavy curtain fell over the ranking competition.

Nangong Li lost to Duan Xiaolong by a hair’s breadth in the final match, determining who was in second and third place.

Whoosh!

The ranking of multitudinous disciples was obvious at a glance on the Array Board:

First place, Chen Yu.

Second place, Duan Xiaolong.

Third place, Nangong Li.

Fourth place, Tong Yuling.

Fifth place, Le Feng.

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Sixth place, Hu Yiba.

Seventh place, Yuan Beitong.

Eighth place, Cheng Yun.

Ninth place, Huang Yuan.

Tenth place, Cao Lei.