This elven maiden was sunny, fresh, and natural, like a mountain spring reflecting the morning glow, as though stepping out of a lush, dew-drenched forest.
"Liguang, give him a brutal lesson!" Behind her, a group of alien youths called out in the elven tongue, united in shared hostility.
The sun elven maiden looked back and broke into a captivating smile brimming with endless charm. Shifting from pure and lively to breathtakingly alluring, her waist-length hair fluttered, flowing with radiant golden glow.
"Tch, one punch and she'll be crying!" Wu Yaozu commented.
"Her figure might be slender and delicate, but she's likely mastered the immortal path's Immortal Willow Golden Body Art. She might be able to take quite a beating," Xiang Yiwu countered, shaking his head in disagreement.
A group of sun elves harbored deep hostility toward them, casting frigid glares in their direction.
Xiang Yiwu even cited examples on the spot, saying Jiang Ran and Li Qingyue had probably practiced this wondrous technique as well.
The nearby nobles were rendered speechless.
Both maidens from the immortal path shot side-glances right at him.
Liguang was tall and curvilinear, with an exquisitely beautiful face, deep purple eyes, and long, thick eyelashes. Her entire being seemed to glow.
As she stepped forward, her aura shifted, turning somewhat overbearing. How could someone aspiring to vie for the title of Elven Queen be truly innocent or naive?
Around her body, it was as if a divine corona blessed her; she looked as though she stood within the solar disc. Her golden robes fluttered, her entire figure bathed in dazzling radiance.
"Liguang is getting serious. She can break through to the third realm at any time. If she goes all out against this human youth, she should be able to rout him quickly, right?"
The aliens placed high hopes on this youth of extraordinary bearing, regarding her with great esteem.
"Liguang, burn away all his threads of earthly vexation with a single flame!" some shouted.
Other sun elves chimed in immediately: "That's right! Shave them all off for him and make him pay back his wicked debt!"
They were brooding over their grievances. Prideful in their belief that they were a superior race, they had suffered humiliation after humiliation today. If they didn't strike back hard against their opponent, they would never get past this hurdle in their hearts.
"Now this puts me in a tough spot," Qin Ming murmured as he stood up, rubbed his hands together, and stepped forward.
"Little Qin, give it your all! Your uncle's resources for the next realm depend entirely on you," Meng Xinghai cheered him on.
Qin Ming stiffened slightly, finally realizing what Old Meng had done. No wonder he had ditched them overnight and run off—he had organized a gambling pool right here on the moon!
Wu Yaozu turned back, his face filled with resentment. "Uncle Hai, it was bad enough that you went to Tianque by yourself, but how could you place bets solo without taking us along?!"
"You mustn't possess a gambler's mindset, or you'll suffer a massive loss sooner or later!" Meng Xinghai declared with righteous indignation.
Before the South Heavenly Gate, within the arena.
With a lithe, graceful figure and golden hair billowing around her, Liguang walked forward with slow, elegant steps.
Qin Ming did not underestimate his opponent. In her flawless, pretty face he saw pure confidence; this sun elven maiden was far from simple.
Rumble! Like a muffled roll of thunder bursting atop the moon, Liguang moved. Her slender body resembled drifting golden light as she charged toward Qin Ming.
In the Dayu imperial capital, many people looked up in startled surprise, for the bright moon was not exceedingly far from the ground, and they had all heard the peal of thunder.
All at once, the streets emptied as people poured out of their homes, gazing up at the full moon in the night mist, all eager to know how this sparring match was unfolding.
In fact, throughout the night mist world, people across many cities were paying close attention. Countless factions watched intently, all awaiting the outcome of the contest between the two races.
Qin Ming had not expected her to dare fight him in close combat.
Liguang had a slender and supple build, yet she threw a punch like a beam of floating light, flashing to his flank at extreme speed. Her fair fist brimmed with astonishing power, breaking the sound barrier and kicking up surging white mist with a deafening roar.
Qin Ming met it with his palm. In that mere instant, they clashed dozens, even hundreds of times. Every collision between the two erupted like detonating lightning, making a thunderous racket.
This was truly startling. For someone of the immortal path to dare clash face-to-face with someone who had fused and refined sacred baleful aura demonstrated staggering confidence, as well as an exceptionally formidable physique.
For a time, Liguang swayed like a golden weeping willow, her body undulating in ways that seemed to warp space with every movement. Her fist strikes cracked like thunder, and when she swung her legs, they whipped through the void like divine flails.
Qin Ming remained calm and steady. Meeting fists with fists and answering kicks with chopping palms, he moved like lightning, seemingly capable of shattering the void as billowing white mist churned around him.
Both were as fast as lightning, tangled in combat like dragons and serpents rising in fierce contention.
Among the aliens, many sun elves grew excited. Having guessed their opponent was a "drudge," Liguang still dared to trade blows with him in close quarters, showcasing utter dominance and expressing her conviction of certain victory through action.
With a whoosh, Liguang planted her left foot on the ground while her round, straight right leg whipped toward Qin Ming's head like lightning, trailing gorgeous golden haze.
Yet Qin Ming merely blocked with his left arm before surging forward, cleaving forward with a knife-hand carrying heavenly light force like a blazing sun, blasting the maiden's golden hair backward into wild disarray.
Liguang had not expected his flesh to be as hard as jade iron; her kick had failed to budge him in the slightest. In such a posture, allowing him to close in was both undignified and extraordinarily dangerous.
With a swish, her left leg also left the ground to coordinate with her right. Golden patterns spread between them, intertwining as they locked onto Qin Ming's body.
In the close-quarters combat of the immortal path, every move and strike contained spells.
Now, Liguang's long legs acted like immortal shears, wrapped in dense runes, seeking to sever Qin Ming at the waist—a terrifying waist-cleaving art.
"Indeed, she has mastered the Immortal Willow Golden Body Art and is unleashing its lethal killing stance! Even those adept in top-tier body-protecting arts can't defend against it—it's as effortless as tearing paper!" someone remarked.
Evidently, Xiang Yiwu's earlier guess had proven true.
Many disciples of the immortal path were inwardly shaken. This art was extraordinarily difficult to cultivate, requiring one to comprehend many abstruse Dao patterns and project them into the flesh and blood.
At the scene, white mist boiled and thunder clapped again and again. Their physical clash was excessively ferocious; with each collision, both channeled secret techniques dozens, even hundreds of times, casting off waves of runes.
In the arena, no blood splashed. Liguang's legs struck Qin Ming's torso, yet they failed to sever him at the waist. Instead, her long legs swayed like slender willows several times from the impact.
Qin Ming pressed forward, left fist and right palm striking ahead. He aimed at her perfect face as well as her chest and abdomen; if they landed, they would surely punch right through.
Liguang's fist prints were as white as translucent ivory, undulating with immortal mana and blasting blinding glow to parry his assault.
Midway through the violent collision, a pair of light wings appeared behind her, and using the recoil, she flew backward at an angle.
Her golden robes flapped loudly and her hair whipped wildly. In such an exchange, she had failed to gain the slightest advantage.
Qin Ming soared into the air, pursuing her like a bolt of lightning as he rode the five elements qi. He clashed and collided with her several times in midair before they both landed one after the other.
"Good! Liguang truly has the potential to become the Elven Queen, trading blows in her opponent's greatest area of expertise without falling behind." On the aliens' side, someone looked pleased.
However, an elderly sun elf shook his head and said, "Not necessarily. Throughout the ages, drudges have never held high status. Perhaps this youth has not used his full strength, not wanting to draw too much attention by overpowering the immortal path's wondrous technique, the Immortal Willow Golden Body Art. To my eyes, he seems quite at ease."
In truth, Qin Ming was at peace. He was merely testing out techniques and probing arts, wanting to see what remarkable qualities the immortal path arts from deep within the night mist world possessed.
Liguang's wings of light could not sustain flight for long and vanished once she touched down.
She no longer drew close to him. With a solemn and sacred countenance, standing within the solar disc, she held her hands as though gripping a sword, then slowly mimed drawing a blade from the void. At first, there was clearly nothing there, but as she moved, clear metallic sword chimes resonated, and piercing sword radiance expanded outward.
Like a shooting star streaking across the sky, Qin Ming shot forward, pouncing toward his opponent.
Liguang drew the sword with great speed. Within her fair, clasped hands, a hilt truly materialized, followed by a dazzling golden longsword that she violently unsheathed.
In that instant, endless sword radiance shone, accompanied by voluminous golden characters that instantly blanketed the entire arena, even tinting the deep jade-green, towering South Heavenly Gate with a faint golden sheen.
Not only that, as Liguang raised the golden longsword, a vast heavenly wind seemed to surge. The entire arena rumbled, engulfed by a terrifying golden hurricane.
And those vast swathes of sword dao patterns expanded with astonishing speed.
Qin Ming stopped abruptly, choosing not to force his way through. Intense heavenly light surged over his body, and his expression turned solemn.
The expressions of many onlookers changed. For someone in the second realm to unleash such an overpowering sword strike was terrifying—some even doubted whether she was actually in the third realm.
Many young disciples, even while standing outside the ring, felt the biting sword intent. The horrifying sword light seemed to pierce straight into their hearts, making them stumble backward uncontrollably.
"She can already command the Solar Immortal Sword Art! To achieve this at her age is truly remarkable. Splendid!" Even an elderly sun elf was somewhat stirred, feeling deeply gratified.
Of course, he only transmitted his voice among his kin; he would never tell those on the opposite side.
Instantly, a crowd of sun elves grew wildly exhilarated. Many youths clenched their fists, though this time none dared shout of guaranteed victory.
For they remembered Guang Yu—seemingly on the verge of total triumph, claiming to be invincible within ten feet, only to be beaten down onto his knees by that human youth.
They did not wish to experience once again that jarring plummet from the clouds into an abyss; thus, despite their surging blood, they held back.
"Wonderful! Such an immortal sword art is truly wondrous!" Some celebrated masters of the immortal path praised in delight, because this further confirmed that the sun elven race had indeed excavated precious treasures from immortal tombs and divine graves—extraordinarily formidable heritages.
They became all the more eager to explore that secret realm.
The process of Liguang raising her sword was also a buildup of momentum. Centered on her, a storm of golden sword qi expanded outward like waves of a surging sea crashing forth. The spectacle was truly frightening.
Qin Ming naturally would not wait for her ultimate eruption. He struck like thunder!
His entire body was enveloped in rain of light, pouring forth immortal radiance to become incomparably sacred. In an instant, ten thousand streaks of blazing haze and auspicious glow radiated from him. Both the arena and midair brimmed with sacred brilliance, densely covered with runes of the immortal path.
His aura skyrocketed as he charged toward the sun elf Liguang.
"This... is our immortal path's illustrious supreme art—the Rosy Cloud Ascension Art?! Could he actually be one of us?" several masters of the immortal path exclaimed in shock.
Several celebrated elders immediately turned to look at Chu Yuan. He had even taught him this, and the youth had actually managed to master it?
Chapter 283