"Young Miss Biyue, are you excited for today's duel?" An ancient voice called out to Biyue.

The owner of that voice was a kindly-looking old woman with gray hair, her body comically small for the chair she used.

She was the leader of the Ice Flower Sect, one of the nine great sects of the Nine Peaks Basin.

They were now in the arena of the Orthodox Alliance, in a luxurious cabin reserved for only the most distinguished guests: The leaders and guardians of the 9 great sects and 7 great families, the council elders and the battalion leaders.

Their eyes filtered the arena below them, surrounded by stands where the voices of over a hundred thousand cultivators exploded in animated conversation.

The duel between Qingyi and Tianyu, a rookie of incomparable talent and the commander of the most powerful battalion in the orthodox alliance.

How could they not be excited?

"Yes," Biyue nodded at the old woman's question, settling into her chair.

"That Qingyi boy is truly exceptional, a pity he had to face our Tianyu in a duel to the death."

A man with a dignified face and golden eyes spoke, turning his face towards a huge flaming tiger while stroking his short goatee.

"It will be a great loss for the Eternal River Sect..."

Yanxiao merely grunted angrily in response, ignoring those words.

That man was the leader of the Ancestral Dragon Sect, one of the most mysterious of the nine great sects, said by many to be the most powerful, but which kept much of its power hidden.

It wasn't long before a loud bell sounded.

On the horizon, a figure in wide robes appeared, flying into the center of the arena.

The moment this figure raised a hand, the entire arena fell silent.

"Long Tianyu" The figure called out and in the distance, a tall, handsome man appeared, the powerful muscles of his body almost bursting through his robes.

His face bore an arrogant smile, his huge sword glowing with a golden Qi, similar to his eyes.

Turning his face away, the figure called out again. "Long Qingyi."

Responding to this call, a young man appeared; long black hair, piercing eyes and a face of such profound beauty that it didn't even look human.

Soon, the two of them arrived at the center of that arena's large stone platform, stretching for almost two kilometers from one end to the other, surrounded by spiritual arrays powerful enough to hold off the attacks of Rebirth realm cultivators.

"This is a duel to the death, initiated by Long Tianyu and accepted by Long Qingyi, the battle will last until death or surrender followed by mercy.

The use of any forbidden technique or external artifact will result in the immediate interruption of the duel. Do you both understand?"

"Yes, elder." They declared in unison.

"Good." The figure smiled as he flew into the sky. "Fight with honor and glory."

The moment the figure's voice ceased, they both advanced at the same time.

The heaven-defying thunder sword hissed as it slid out of its sheath, surrounded by a thunderous lightning aura, meeting Tianyu's weapon.

A bang took over the entire arena, the flags of the orthodox alliance fluttering as the shockwave spread.

"You arrogant son of a bitch!" Tianyu roared, being forced backwards.

That had only been an exploratory exchange of blows, to find out each other's power, but it still caused great shock to all the spectators.

Tianyu, from the peak of the Rebirth realm, had been forced to take three steps backwards while Qingyi, from the second stage of the Rebirth realm, had only taken a single step backwards.

Even though Qingyi's talent and lineage was one of the most powerful in the history of the nine peaks basin, he still shouldn't have overcome all that difference in cultivation.

Especially against Tianyu, who also had a powerful draconic lineage.

"Watch your tongue, senior, I don't want to have to rip it out." Qingyi replied, his voice tinged with a few drops of poison.

"You don't have the power to." Tianyu readied his weapon, glancing at Biyue out of the corner of his eye.

She was watching the battle with far more interest than anyone else there, but her eyes were only focused on Qingyi, as if he was everything to her.

Tianyu's face sank into jealousy and he gritted his teeth hard enough for his gums to bleed.

"You'll regret setting your eyes on a phoenix while you're just a toad, but don't worry, a worthy heir will take that phoenix, over your dead body!" Tianyu roared, his body changing.

Ethereal, golden horns appeared above his head, accompanied by the enormous figure of a white dragon that seemed to follow the swing of his sword, tearing up everything in front of it as it flowed towards Qingyi.

Qingyi had to treat that attack more seriously, his eyes filled with a purple glow as he used the third form of the Storm Monarch's sword art.

The heaven-defying thunder sword struck Tianyu's, the power of this attack powerful enough for the spiritual arrays protecting the arena to fail briefly, the ground beneath their feet sinking into a crater.

Tianyu tried to push even harder, struggling to push Qingyi back, even by a single step.

But it didn't happen, Qingyi stood firm like a wall of steel.

Even when the white dragon behind Tianyu roared, even when all the Qi of his bloodline was forced into just that one projection, Qingyi's power simply wasn't affected.

It didn't diminish in the slightest.

Of course, the spectators noticed all this, the impressed murmurs about Qingyi's power reaching Tianyu's ears.

They were despising him, even with all his strength, unable to break through the power of a junior of much lower cultivation than him and who was clearly holding back.

The leader of the dragon battalion, the strongest of the battalions in the orthodox alliance; what a joke.

"DISGRACEFUL BASTARD!"

Tianyu roared, finally gathering enough strength to throw Qingyi backwards, overcome by rage.

"USE ALL YOUR POWER, CALL ON YOUR LINEAGE! FACE ME LIKE A MAN!"

Qingyi remained silent for long seconds, a gentle smile spreading across his handsome face.

"My lineage is not to please the ego of any arrogant insect." He declared.

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