Bai Kun's eyes displayed a touch of sinister sharpness.

This kind of tone when speaking to him?

In the Wanzhe Waters, let alone Early-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivators, even Late-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivators would speak to him courteously.

"Fellow Daoist Xu, please wait, I indeed have important matters to discuss with you."

But considering that if the other party had already signed the Spirit Contract, and if things turned sour now, it would be a waste of effort, Bai Kun suppressed his inner anger.

"I wonder if Fellow Daoist has signed the Spirit Contract? To be honest, I actually wish to rent Thousand Leaves Mountain as well. If you have signed it, could you sublease it to me?"

'Isn't it possible to speak properly? What took you so long?' Xu Ping mused inwardly, while still lazily replying, "I wasn't able to sign the Spirit Contract before you arrived."

"You haven't signed the Spirit Contract?"

Upon hearing this, Bai Kun's eyes gradually turned cold, and Xu Ping's value in his mind instantly disappeared, his tone turning icy:

"If that's the case, then Fellow Daoist Xu should go home. This Thousand Leaves Mountain is not something you can touch."

"And what if I do touch it?" Xu Ping retorted sharply.

"Do you want to drink the penalty wine instead of the offered wine? This Purple Bamboo Mountain cannot protect you!" Bai Kun's tone revealed a hint of hostility.

Regarding someone who could be killed with a few sword strikes, Xu Ping was disinclined to waste words.

"Since you are so confident in your strength, how about we have a duel?"

"If you win, I'll leave immediately and compensate you with five thousand pieces. If I win, you compensate me with five thousand Spirit Stones. How about that?" Xu Ping proposed an enticing offer to Bai Kun.

Five thousand Spirit Stones, for him, was no small sum.

Though Bai Kun was tempted, he didn't immediately agree, instead pondering whether Xu Ping had some hidden means or reliance, given his confidence.

But after careful consideration, he didn't think the other had any extraordinary means to defeat him, especially since he wasn't without his own ace, so he agreed:

"Alright, since Fellow Daoist Xu is so confident, I accept."

...

To prevent Bai Kun from defaulting, Xu Ping found Duan Shuang and Gong Yang to witness, and both parties also signed a contract.

"What! Fellow Daoist Xu wants to duel Bai Kun? This is absolutely unacceptable." Duan Shuang was astonished upon hearing and urged persistently.

"I know Fellow Daoist Xu is a Sword Cultivator genius who comprehended Sword Qi Thunder Sound, surpassing tiers is no issue, but Bai Kun is not your average Mid-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator."

"He cultivates a top-grade technique and is a peak Mid-Stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, his Mana far stronger than average mid-stage, plus I've heard he seems to have other cards up his sleeve, you must not act recklessly."

Even Gong Yang, who didn't seem like a good person, began to counsel Xu Ping: "Fellow Daoist Xu should not duel with the opponent, if you accidentally get hurt, it wouldn't be worth it."

He knew Sword Cultivators usually had such straightforward, direct, and intense personalities.

However, he didn't expect this Sword Cultivator Xu to be so fierce, how come he hadn't talked things through with Bai Kun and already wanted to duel!

"No need to persuade me, my mind is made up!" Xu Ping's tone was resolute.

If the matter wasn't handled well this time, it would become a constant issue in the future.

Duan Shuang and Gong Yang glanced at each other and saw helplessness in each other's eyes.

Knowing they couldn't sway him, they decided to find a good dueling location, so if anything unexpected happened, they could intervene.

Thus, the final duel location for Xu Ping and Bai Kun was set at Gong Yang's dojo on Little Hui Mountain.

This mountain had abundant Spiritual Qi and was guarded by a Second-stage Upper Grade array. If anything unexpected occurred, they could leverage the array to intervene.

...

Little Hui Mountain, a flat terrain.

Bai Kun stood in mid-air, clad in a cyan long robe, elegant: "Please, Fellow Daoist, make the first move..."

Seeing the other party so arrogant, Xu Ping couldn't help but find it amusing, opting to hold the Purple Sun Sword and, without wasting words, decisively struck out.

Boom!

With a deafening thunderclap, several meters of Sword Qi erupted like lightning, tearing through the air. Where the Sword Qi passed, even the air seemed to be ripped apart, carrying an incomparable sharpness.

Even Duan Shuang and Gong Yang outside the battlefield felt their skin tingling slightly and exchanged amazed glances: "This Sword Qi Thunder Sound is truly formidable!"

"Sword Qi Thunder Sound!!" Bai Kun's expression changed drastically as he was locked on by the Sword Qi.

He dared not act arrogantly, with both hands pushing, a golden circle from a ring-like magical artifact erupted, forming a golden defense shield around him.

Heavenly Gold Ring!

This was the name of the artifact he wielded, a top-grade magical artifact combining offense and defense, considered high quality even among top-grade items.

The defensive shield from this artifact was far more resilient than the Mana shields of ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators and had a quality of continuous regeneration, even if broken temporarily, it would quickly recover.

Boom!

At the instant he erected the glowing shield, the several-meter Sword Qi collided with the defense, producing a thunderous crash.

In the next moment, both the Sword Qi and the protective shield shattered simultaneously.

"You are actually Qiu Xuan Mountain's Guest Minister—Xu Ping!" Bai Kun fixed his gaze intensely on Xu Ping.

When he first heard the name Xu Ping, he felt it was familiar, but couldn't recall immediately. Now upon witnessing the Sword Qi Thunder Sound in action, he suddenly realized.

"What, you want to concede?" Xu Ping asked nonchalantly, holding the sword single-handed.

"Hmph! Concede?"

Bai Kun sneered coldly, a flicker of murderous intent appearing in his eyes.

Considering the other party's talent, if Xu Ping were to move into Thousand Leaves Mountain, Duan Shuang would drift even further away from him.

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