Du Fanzhi had not yet reached the half-step Core Formation stage after all. Relying on the power of his Mirror of Law, after defeating the forty-second ranked cultivator, he was ultimately defeated by the hands of the cultivator ranked thirty-ninth, solidifying his placement in this Sect War.
Although it was not as good as Huo Zixun securing the thirtieth rank back in the day, it still made Li Su very gratified. Jiang Yun, ranked nineteenth, had his longsword by his side. Others knew he was a sword cultivator and did not dare to challenge him lightly.
Only a female cultivator who wielded a long silk ribbon rose to issue a challenge, but she too was defeated by his sword after more than a hundred moves. The female cultivator was a disciple from a minor great sect, and she was the foremost among her sect's ten Foundation Establishment cultivators, ranked twenty-fifth.
Though she lost with regret, she gave a carefree smile and said, "I have long heard that sword cultivators are the best at subduing their enemies. Only now, after fighting one personally, do I understand the gap. It has put to rest a long-held thought in my heart!"
The sect she belonged to emphasized the path of spell cultivation, so sword cultivators were rare within the sect. Even if there were any, they were merely low-rank cultivators or had only recently entered the realm. This was the first time her sect had been listed in the Hundred Sects Assembly.
As the senior martial sister of her sect, she had naturally come. Being able to face a Foundation Establishment cultivator at the Sword Radiance Realm was also a first for her. She thought to herself that the rumors had not deceived her; sword cultivators were truly unparalleled among their peers.
Seeing her nonchalance, Jiang Yun also cupped his hands in a salute. For a minor great sect to attend the grand assembly for the first time and secure such a high rank in the Fate Seizing Battle showed that her talent was extraordinary!
After that, Jiang Yun fought three consecutive people, finally sweeping aside a top-tier expert among the half-step Core Formation cultivators to rise to thirteenth place, just one spot away from Liu Xuan! The power of a sword cultivator was just that formidable.
Only a half-step Core Formation cultivator from Windsea Tower, who was also at the Sword Radiance Realm, managed to halt his advance. After Jiang Yun's rank was set, the gazes of the True Spirit Sect members shifted to Liu Xuan. However, compared to when they looked at Jiang Yun, these gazes held a bit more worry.
Since ancient times, alchemists have been known to possess little combat strength. This rather biased saying existed in the Drifting Clouds World because alchemists focused on the Dao of alchemy, and their cultivation base was merely a supplement to their progress in pill refining. Using pills as incentives, they could rally cultivators from all over the world to serve them.
There were even high-rank alchemists who could attract countless geniuses to bow and follow them. However, alchemists themselves rarely cultivated spell techniques and were more fragile than ordinary cultivators. For this reason, although the Alchemical Terrace Sect attended the assembly, its disciples never participated in the duels.
When assessing Liu Xuan's ranking, she was originally supposed to be placed below Jiang Yun, all because she was an alchemy cultivator with limited strength. Although her performance during the Threefold Trial was brilliant, it was feared she would have difficulty defeating even cultivators from minor sects in the subsequent Fate Seizing Battle.
It was an elder from the Alchemical Terrace Sect who argued based on reason, stating that for her to obtain the title of a Yellow Grade Tier-2 Alchemist with a Late Foundation Establishment cultivation base was a sign of astonishing talent. If she were not given a high rank, it would surely be difficult to convince the masses.
Only then was she ranked twelfth. Among the cultivators present, none were unaware of Liu Xuan's identity as an alchemist. They repeatedly sized her up, viewing her as a stepping stone, a clay doll that could be easily defeated.
As soon as the adjudicating disciple's sonorous voice rang out, a cultivator immediately spoke up to issue a challenge: "The twenty-first ranked, Qiao Pingshan of the Everglow Sect, challenges the twelfth rank!" There were quite a few people who wanted to challenge Liu Xuan, yet he had managed to be the first. For a moment, several people felt annoyed.
Then again, seeing that this person was ranked twenty-first, after he won, their ranks would be exchanged. Cultivators ranked below the twentieth position could then continue to challenge Liu Xuan to gain a higher rank. Thinking of it this way, it was not so bad.
Liu Xuan still wore a beaming smile. She stood up calmly, nodded, and said, "Liu Xuan of the True Spirit Sect accepts the challenge." Then she drifted up, rode a leaf down into the arena, and stood with her sleeves gathered, like a divine consort immortal.
It was just that the look in her eyes was faint and not as gentle as her facial expression. Zhao Chun considered herself to be quite familiar with this senior sister, and could tell with a single glance that she must be angry.
Anyone who was looked down upon and treated as a stepping stone would probably fly into a rage. Liu Xuan was already exercising considerable restraint.
Then, seeing the Yellow Jade Ring at Qiao Pingshan's waist and recalling that he had mentioned the name of the Everglow Sect when he issued the challenge, she looked towards his sect's delegation and indeed saw the face of Qi Yunrong!
Her long hair was gathered into a single ponytail, bound by a jade crown like a man's, giving her a heroic air. A heavy ruler stood beside her, and even from such a great distance, Zhao Chun could feel that violent aura!
Looking at the people around her, it was not difficult to deduce that she was actually sitting in the Core Formation section, which meant she had already condensed her True Essence and broken through to this realm! When they first met, she heard Meng Han say that she was merely twenty years of age.
How much time had passed since then? Qi Yunrong might just be able to contend with Song Yikun and Xue Yun! However, at present, the battle between Liu Xuan and Qiao Pingshan was more important to Zhao Chun, so she withdrew her gaze and refocused on the arena.
The Everglow Sect was quite similar to the Alchemical Terrace Sect. The disciples in the sect were obsessed with a single path. For the Alchemical Terrace Sect, it was alchemy; for the Everglow Sect, it was talismans.
However, the Everglow Sect's use of talismans was not superficially limited to paper, wooden tablets, or jade plaques. Instead, they extracted the talisman script and inscribed it onto different artifacts, extending the original function of the talisman to the artifact itself.
This ranged from small things like the bowls, chopsticks, and lamps used in a cultivator's daily life, to large things like palaces and flying boats. The only exception was Qi Yunrong. She was obsessed with the martial way.
After learning talisman script, she inscribed various offensive spell techniques onto her heavy ruler, causing her combat strength to soar, thereby integrating talismans into the martial way. Qiao Pingshan, on the other hand, was more conventional. His use of talisman script was not as peculiar as Qi Yunrong's. This did not mean his strength was average.
On the contrary, to be able to enter the top twenty of the Fate Seizing Battle with the Dao of talisman script meant that this Qiao Pingshan was certainly no ordinary person.
"I accept your concession!"
He actually took the initiative, convinced of his own victory. He threw out several pellets while simultaneously provoking her with his words! Zhao Chun immediately recognized those pellets as the Flame Detonation Pellets she had seen at the Hong Family back then!
It was just that the crude imitations made by Yue Zuan after his cultivation base had plummeted were merely toys that produced a few sparks compared to this.
"Victory and defeat have not yet been decided. Fellow Daoist, your words are a bit premature!"
Liu Xuan raised her chin slightly and waved her hands. Between two of her fingers, she held a knuckle-sized yellow pill. The pills that cultivators usually consumed were only the size of a soybean.
The pill in her hand was much larger, leaving everyone momentarily clueless as to its function. But then they saw Liu Xuan toss the pill out, colliding precisely with the Flame Detonation Pellet. With a deafening boom, a great flare of fire erupted, exploding right between the two of them!
"The way of strange pills, it's that person..."
The expression of the Alchemical Terrace Sect elder changed several times, but in the end, amidst the questioning looks from several Core Formation cultivators beside him, he quietly fell silent. Qiao Pingshan's Flame Detonation Pellets could definitely defeat a Late Foundation Establishment cultivator without issue. Even a half-step Core Formation cultivator would be injured if hit by several of them!
Talisman cultivators were similar to alchemy cultivators; they cultivated external objects while their own bodies were not the focus. As for those who dual-cultivated talismans and spells, they actually prioritized spells with talismans as secondary, and could not be considered true practitioners of the Dao of talismans. Qiao Pingshan had cultivated talismans since childhood.
For his attack to be blocked by an alchemy cultivator was a first for him. He exclaimed in shock, "How is this possible?" But Liu Xuan gave him no chance to react, continuously throwing out pills that blasted Qiao Pingshan until he was in a wretched state.
With his talismanic objects rendered useless and having no offensive spells to use, Qiao Pingshan had no choice but to admit defeat. The adjudicating disciple was dumbfounded, and announced, "Liu Xuan of the True Spirit Sect is victorious!" The spectators had never seen such a violent alchemy cultivator.
They repeatedly sized up Liu Xuan, who had returned to her lotus seat. The disciples seated with the Alchemical Terrace Sect, however, furrowed their brows in deep thought, a faint sense of familiarity washing over them.
(End of this chapter)