When Earth Awakened, I Became a Sword Saintess

Chapter 125 : Xia Yuyin and Lan Lianyue

125: Xia Yuyin and Lan Lianyue

The stands were packed for this match.

Moreover, not just anyone could get in to watch it live.

A first-year genius campus belle had fought her way into the finals, and she was also the top scorer of the 2018 Source Martial College Entrance Exam. This was unprecedented in the Lingdu Source Martial Academy, and indeed throughout Huaxia, and had already been heavily publicized by the media.

Even Yuyin's identity had been exposed this week.

"The new generation genius campus belle of the Lingdu Source Martial Academy, daughter of Xia Youxue who once dominated the Lingdu Beach business world. Is this fight to clear the name of her runaway mother?"

Stories like these were flying all over the headlines and on search engines, with heat and attention skyrocketing.

Some even finally began to compare Yuyin and Lan Lingfeng.

"The sister of the super-genius Lan Lingfeng, and the daughter of the former business legend Xia Youxue. Who will continue the miracle?"

The Academy had not expected such media attention. For a time, tickets were scalped to incredibly high prices, with one ticket being hard to find. People from all walks of life in Lingdu wanted to buy a ticket to witness this battle, which could represent the future of Huaxia, including many foreign nationals in Lingdu.

Even the worst seats were scalped for 20,000 each.

Lingdu Satellite TV and others entered the venue to broadcast live to all of Huaxia.

From the school, aside from the Dean who was in the Prison Abyss and could not attend, Chen Qian'ning, the heads of the various departments, and all the teachers were naturally present.

After all, this was the Academy's competition. All Academy students, as long as they made a reservation, had the right to enter and watch.

Of course, Yingluo and Hua Qianyuan had also booked their tickets early, when there was none of this hype.

In the VIP seats, Mr. Du, Zhang Henglong, and other big shots from Lingdu Beach were naturally present. The two sat in the front row. Zhang Henglong wore a gray Zhongshan suit with a black armband on his sleeve; his brother, the former real estate mogul Zhang Henghu, had died in battle in the Prison Abyss a few months ago.

Although the media suggested inviting celebrities to commentate on this battle of century geniuses, the Academy refused. No matter how the media hyped it outside, that was their freedom, but this was a competition for Academy students. The Academy insisted on proceeding with the original procedures and traditional arrangements, not allowing any excessive packaging within the Academy venue, nor allowing it to be packaged as an entertainment match.

The Tournament was for resource allocation and talent selection, concerning the future of humanity; this was the most serious matter, needing no explanation. Many media outlets who did not fully understand the world's situation might not grasp this point.

"Thank you to all the teachers, students, and guests for attending. Today is the final match of our 2019 Academy Source Martial Tournament." Teacher Jiang Xue, dressed in a red qipao with a strong Huaxia style, walked onto the stage. "One of the contenders is classmate Xia Yuyin, who reached the finals in her first year, which is unprecedented in our Academy's history. Regardless of today's outcome, she will make history."

"The other is our Academy's Student Council President, classmate Lan Lianyue. As we all know, at this very moment, classmate Lan Lingfeng is leading the fourth-year students in a place far from our motherland, executing an important mission for Huaxia and for humanity. He was also the champion of two consecutive Source Martial Tournaments. Today, his sister, Lan Lianyue, has also lived up to expectations and fought her way into the finals."

"Both are the most dazzling new stars of our Academy, both are treasures of our Academy. For today's match, for me personally, and for all of us teachers at the Academy, there is no difference between victory and defeat. Let us look forward to them staging a match that makes us feel hope and gives us all the courage to face the future!"

Not everyone present could fully understand the meaning of Teacher Jiang's words, and most of those watching the live broadcast online or on TV probably did not grasp its deeper meaning, but it still won everyone's applause.

"First to enter the stage, classmate Xia Yuyin."

Thunderous applause!

Perhaps when she first enrolled, some still doubted her, thinking she just got lucky on the exam, or that top scorers often faded into obscurity, or that she was just a flower vase who was pretty but not skilled in actual combat.

But now, with her performance and her demeanor, Yuyin had conquered almost everyone. The majority of people in the school had become her fans, her admirers, and those who secretly loved her were countless, regardless of gender. This was perhaps, under such heavy pressure, everyone's yearning and attachment to truly beautiful things that existed.

No one knew if the goddesses in the paintings were truly that beautiful, but that was people's hope. And today, what everyone saw was a goddess who, right before their eyes, created miracles time and time again.

"Xia Yuyin!"

"Xia Yuyin!"

"Goddess Yuyin!!"

The cheers echoed throughout the Grand Martial Arts Dojo.

In an unknown corner, a youth who had rushed over from another school to watch sat silently. "Xia Yuyin... you probably don't remember me anymore. I used to be able to look up at your figure, but in less than a year, I feel like I'm looking up at the starry sky... Yuyin, the current me is not qualified to appear before you. You just wait..."

"I, Long Xiaotian, will one day ascend to the heavens!"

Yuyin entered, dressed in a fairy-like, semi-transparent white robe, a sight that was bewitching to all yet something one could only admire from afar.

Next, Lan Lianyue entered.

Lan Lianyue was also very popular. Besides the Student Council, there were also people in society who admired Lan Lingfeng's name, all wanting to see the sister of this unparalleled genius.

Lan Lianyue was dressed in black, a Tang-style ancient costume with dark blue patterns, but this costume was not purely traditional; it incorporated modern design, making it more fashionable and mysterious, yet within it, there was a sense of tragic beauty.

"Yuyin, we've finally reached this step." Lan Lianyue's voice was ethereal and sorrowful.

"Senior Sister Lian, just as Teacher Jiang said, this match is not about victory or defeat. I just want to give it my all." Yuyin looked at Lan Lianyue with ice-cold eyes, her heart incredibly firm.

"Hehehe, don't forget what I told you." Lan Lianyue said with a delicate smile.

"Are you two ready?" Teacher Jiang looked at them. Both Yuyin and Lan Lianyue showed affirmative gazes.

"The match. Begin!"

A tremor of cheers swept through the entire venue.

Clang!

Yuyin's eyes focused. A silver longsword, gleaming with a faint light, appeared in her hand. Her Primordial Energy surged violently, causing her cloud-like, rain-like white robe to flutter. She took a long, slender step and charged swiftly toward Lan Lianyue.

Hmmm...

The silver Moon Blade in Lan Lianyue's hand vibrated under her Primordial Energy control, emitting a hum that trembled the air, a sound that made one's heart palpitate.

Swish!

The Moon Blade, trailing a stream of silver light, flew swiftly toward Yuyin.

Yuyin suddenly leaned her body back, dropping to her knees in a slide. The Moon Blade, spinning slowly but flying at great speed, passed just over Yuyin's body.

Having dodged the Moon Blade, Yuyin used her perfect core strength to spring up, thrusting her sword toward Lan Lianyue, who stood at a corner of the stage.

Lan Lianyue's eyes were like illusions. The Primordial Energy she released carried a kind of bewitching, special fluctuation. In this fluctuation, meeting Lan Lianyue's gaze seemed to draw in one's soul, and one's will would be led into an illusion by this inexplicable, secret art.

That ace from the Artisan Department during the quarterfinals had been drawn into Lan Lianyue's illusion just like this, defeated without even a chance to make a move.

To face Lan Lianyue, if one could not pass the trial of her illusion, even with strength, one could not deploy it.

However, Yuyin's mind was extremely firm. She had been able to break through Lan Lianyue's illusionary confusion long before. But in actual combat, she didn't need to be completely trapped in the illusion like the Artisan Department student. Combat itself involved thousands of changes in an instant; as long as one was slightly confused or interfered with by the illusion, it would bring immense danger upon oneself.

"Heart Method, Jade Clarity Thought."

Between the illusion and reality, amidst the faint, lingering orchid-hued, bewitching fluctuations that still tried to interfere with Yuyin, the image of an ancient female immortal emerged within Yuyin's soul and mind. This immortal, knowing desire yet remaining pure, was supremely noble, somewhat free-spirited, and somewhat enchantingly feminine. This image of the female immortal guarded Yuyin's soul and will, immune to the temptations of external desires and undisturbed by the ethereal, illusory realm.

Swish!

"What!?"

Yuyin broke through Lan Lianyue's Illusory Pupil Secret Art with almost no hesitation, a flash of silver light as her sword thrust forward.

Whoosh! Lan Lianyue waved her wide sleeve, performing an elegant, ethereal mid-air turn, using her long sleeve to strike the body of Yuyin's sword, deflecting it away from her.

The force of this sleeve strike seemed small, but it carried a Primordial Energy fluctuation, enough to divert Yuyin's sword to one side.

But Yuyin scraped one foot on the ground, even leaving a scorch mark on the wooden floor. Her physical strength was immense. With a sudden stop, she counter-attacked with a backhanded slash.

At this moment, the Moon Blade returned to Lan Lianyue's hand. She caught it with the fluid grace of flowing water and spun it to block.

Clang!

The metallic clang, accompanied by a powerful force that made Lan Lianyue's delicate body tremble, was transmitted through her, sending her light figure sliding back several meters in a sudden retreat.

Probably no one present had ever seen it. Lan Lianyue, in full view of everyone, was actually swaying unsteadily on her feet.

Lan Lianyue, pushed back to the edge of the stage, felt the Moon Blade in her hand still trembling. Her tiger's mouth stung, her arm was numb, and her chest felt a heavy thud from the impact.

"This Xia Yuyin, just a backhanded slash, how can she have such immense power?" Lan Lianyue's eyes were frozen, somewhat in disbelief.

For a moment, the entire crowd was stunned, especially the section where the Student Council sat; it was deathly silent.

"Senior Sister Lian..." Liu Xing, whose thigh was still wrapped in bandages, looked at the stage with disbelief and worry.

Lan Lianyue, at the Early-Stage of Purple Domain Realm, not only had strength considered strong even for the Early-Stage of Purple Domain Realm, but also possessed the Illusory Pupil Secret Art. Cultivating illusion arts depended entirely on talent; an average Source Martial Practitioner without such talent couldn't even begin to learn it. She also had the mastery of controlling objects, using the extremely strange and unpredictable special weapon, the Moon Blade, which could be used at both close and long range. She had few rivals within the same realm. Moreover, she was the only Purple Domain Realm student in the entire Academy, so she was naturally and rightfully invincible.

And even in terms of absolute strength, Lan Lianyue was not considered weak among her peers.

However, Yuyin already had immense slashing power, having previously clearly surpassed Jiang Da, the ace of the Strongman Department. And now that the first level of the Mysterious Female Sword Art was preliminarily mastered, the power of her swordplay had increased by another several tens of percent. This slash, which looked like a simple horizontal sweep, already possessed power exceeding the defensive capability of an early-stage Purple Domain Realm expert.

Furthermore, Yuyin had cultivated the Heart Method, Jade Clarity Thought, making her immune to the effects of Lan Lianyue's illusions.

With this exchange, the comparison of their strength had produced a change beyond Lan Lianyue's expectations.