"I, Da Shan, Challenge!"

Da Shan.

Myriad Monarch Participant.

Soul Idol Cultivation.

Spirit Points: 53.

-

# of Continuous Victories: 0.

Those words resounded throughout the platform, entering the ears and hearts of everyone present. The owner of this voice stood upright, her golden eyes radiating unfathomable calm. This calm was like the still ocean before a seaquake. It was a prelude to events to come.

However, Han Yunxi was still reeling from Wei Wuyin's words. He had just been marked for some ungodly reason by the most prominent youthful figure in this generation, and likely this very era. It was entirely possible that this individual, this Prince of Everlore, would create an era of his own and defined generations of cultivators.

Like most, he had high-hopes in ingratiating himself within this unfathomable presence. He even had thoughts of becoming a servant at worst. If Wei Wuyin were to reach even a tenth of the King of Everlore's previous heights, he would still be able to usher him into a realm of cultivation that he couldn't reach in today's era.

So, while Da Shan had taken the stage and stolen the limelight with her extraordinary presence, his mind had nearly collapsed already. It was almost as if he had been given a death sentence, his will to live had diminished as he felt trapped.

As for killing Wei Wuyin? Struggling against his fate? Everyone here and those above would love for him to try. Even if he had a slight chance of survival, wouldn't he be killed by the Grand Imperial Sages after anyhow?

When Wei Wuyin saw the blank look of despair and hopelessness on Han Yunxi's expression, his eyes widened a little. It was as if Han Yunxi had accepted his life's end. This…

He looked at Da Shan. When he observed her expression that lacked any trace of disturbed by Han Yunxi's bleak mindset nor showed any displeasure at his words, he relaxed. In truth, he originally intended for Han Yunxi to simply not give up, not literally give up on life. But he had severely and catastrophically underestimated his own reputation and reverence in the hearts of other cultivators.

Those spectating, both in the surroundings and within the starfield, all exploded in quiet shock, pitying looks emerging on their faces as they saw Han Yunxi. Most of the cultivators present wished to avoid getting on his bad side, not offending him by any means. They wanted to fight and win in an above board manner, but not offend.

Prince of Everlore.

King of Everlore.

These names held significant meanings. They were the key to a higher status, a greater legacy, a longer lifespan, and a grander life. While these youths were all talents, geniuses of this era, they knew that their limitations weren't far-off from their masters, their sect or pavilion masters. In fact, the decline of the era was still in full swing, and they might never enter the Fifth Stage of the Astral Core Realm even if they had Grand Imperial Sage-level mentors.

If it wasn't for the neutral Alchemist Association having the Princess of Everlore, a figure rumored to be equal if not better than Wei Wuyin, perhaps this entire contest would be merely an attempt at bettering relations with the Myriad Monarch Sect. But, there was this neutral figure.

Of course, if they knew Wei Wuyin's level of alchemy had already touched the King of Everlore level, likely even exceeding him in terms of concoction time by a considerably mind-boggling degree, they might just ally themselves with him without hesitation.

That aside, the battle between Han Yunxi and Da Shan was starting.

The crystal walls were conjured from the diamond-shaped crystals. The two were now locked within the platform where one had to either kill the other, force a surrender, or knock the enemy unconscious and spare their lives.

Han Yunxi slowly regained himself. As a Soul Idol Cultivator, he felt the killing intent aimed at him, causing his senses to clear up. He saw Da Shan. This tall, violet-skinned woman with an ample figure, who wore tight-fitting battle armor alongside a pair of golden-colored gauntlet gloves. She also sported a pair of golden metallic greaves that touched the bottom of her kneecaps.

She looked like a valiant warrior of beauty often described in epic tales.

Da Shan did not take advantage of Han Yunxi's lapse. Instead, she waited, but her aura was clearly building up causing a violet tempest to form beneath her feet. Her demonic force was on display, eroding the platform slightly.

Han Yunxi's gentle and kind smile vanished, revealing a narrowed and frustrated gaze. His facade from earlier, one where he seemed to originate from nobility had been torn away. It was merely because he felt it was pointless.

"Just a filthy demon, tch." He commented with a sneer. Ignoring Da Shan, he turned and wanted to see Wei Wuyin with the intention of asking why, wanting to demand an explanation. Why did he have to die?

"Just an idiot," Da Shan similarly said with a sneer.

Yun Hanxi's movements immediately froze. He eerily turned his head to glance at Da Shan. His eyes slowly became bloodshot, seemingly losing all patience.

"He said if you surrender this match, you'll have a bounty. So as long as you claim victory, what worries do you have?" Da Shan said with contempt, knowing that Wei Wuyin was giving her this opportunity. Therefore, she decided to take full advantage of it.

"...!" Han Yunxi's eyes widened for a moment. Realization immediately dawned on him and his heart seemed to have found hope. It seemed that wanting to challenge that Princess of the Forest woman had touched a button, but he wasn't given a dead-end. This was a ray of hope that caused his tension to dissipate away like smoke.

Han Yunxi smiled wide. It was dazzling, and coupled with his handsome face, it was extremely attractive. But to Da Shan, it provoked nothing but disgust.

"I see. Thank you," Han Yunxi sincerely said. Then, he fiddled with the air with his fingers as if tweaking an instrument. "As a thanks, I'll ensure your pathetic demon life ends swiftly." His smile was filled with joy, and his astral force within his body started to build up, producing a stirring aura that caused the air to tremble.

Da Shan didn't respond. She merely clenched her glove-covered fists.

A battle between two Soul Idol Cultivators!

Su Mei quietly said, "Her cultivation base seems impressive, but…" She had voiced her doubts. While Yun Hanxi was a cultivator without an origin, he still had a master or backing to reach this point. Furthermore, his innate talent wasn't little. To reach the Soul Idol Phase, entering the realm of five million experts amongst tens of trillions, at his age was indicative of his ability.

She was slightly worried about Da Shan. But when she saw Wei Wuyin's slight smile, she let her words trail off and went silent. She knew Da Shan was one of Wei Wuyin's lovers, and someone who received his support. Therefore, she decided to enjoy the show.

"Her fate is her own. Whether she lives or dies, it'll depend solely on her." Wei Wuyin responded, his eyes focused on Da Shan. He knew her backstory, and he knew of Han Yunxi. When he recalled his own life experiences, he knew that she needed to do this herself.

Su Mei nodded.

-----

Han Yunxi's fingers twirled in the air, slowly forming dots of silver lights that gave off a metallic sheen. Before long, these numerous dots shaped into five-inch needles that swarmed around him like bees. There were hundreds of them. To be exact, three hundred and three needles. These weren't manifestations of astral force but actual astral weapons forged. They had similarities to Li Xiao's staff, being personally refined and nurtured while lacking inscribed formations.

Despite that, they seemed to be under Han Yunxi's complete control.

Da Shan clenched her fists, her body wreathed in violet-colored astral force. She pressed her foot on the ground, leaned forward, and BOOM! Her figure shot forth like an accelerating tank. In a fraction of a second, she broke the sound barrier causing a torrent of wind to explode.

She appeared before Han Yunxi, amidst his numerous needles. Her clenched fist lanced forward with mountainous momentum at his head. It seemed to carry immense strength as another exploding sound of air erupting resounded.

Han Yunxi was inwardly shocked by her speed. Her size and aura was heavy, so he hadn't expected such extraordinary speed. Usually cultivators relied on their astral force to move, but Da Shan's astral force lacked the normally noticeable qualities of swiftness. Instead, she had relied on her powerful physical body to generate such ridiculous speed.

While shocked, he was still a Soul Idol cultivator. His spiritual sense connected into each needle, and they converged before him, forming a cluster that formed a makeshift shield. Their movements were equally swift, forming directly before Da Shan's fist.

He simultaneously shot upwards, using his needles to cover his escape. His movements were equally fast, arriving in the sky in a flickering flash.

BOOM!

Da Shan's fist clashed with the needle shield and caused all the needles to scatter, but they were undamaged.

Han Yunxi twirled his fingers and the needles halted where they were and a hundred of them focused on Da Shan's figure. With a low grunt, the needles sped towards her like piercing arrows. The surrounding air released whistling sounds.

Da Shan remained calm as she lifted her head. With a slight bending of her knees, she used her strength to explode upwards with tremendous force. She became a speeding rocket, the resulting wind buffeted the needles into disorderly scattering once more.

°Such strength!° Han Yunxi was startled.

Da Shan appeared before him and didn't hesitate to smash her fist towards his chest. Her golden eyes radiated a calm yet frightening killing intent.

Han Yunxi's silver astral ward was conjured in a hasty defense. Despite being hasty, the conjuring of one's astral ward was the fastest means of a cultivator.

BAM!

Her fist smashed into his astral ward, causing his figure to explode backwards and his astral ward to burst. But he was still protected, relatively unharmed as he was blown back a few dozen meters. With a wave of his hand, the three hundred and three needles all came to his call, surging towards him.

They interconnected into a silver river-like snake and slithered towards Da Shan's back.

Da Shan was shocked for a moment that her attack hadn't fully penetrated his astral ward. She realized his metal force had astonishing defensive potential. With a soft breath, she didn't look back and merely unleashed a fist towards the river-like snake. Her fist caused the surrounding air to collapse once more as a violet-colored demonic force met the river-like snake.

BOOM!

An explosively loud collision occurred, and the needles scattered once more.

Da Shan didn't hesitate to use the surrounding mana as footing to launch herself towards Han Yunxi. When she once more appeared before him, she launched another fist. And another. And another. Each one carried tremendous demonic force and explosive power.

Han Yunxi could barely handle her speed, and even her power was incredible. But he wasn't shaken, merely giving a smile as he reinforced his astral ward. With simply this defensive measure, he was continuously blown backwards yet remained unharmed.

While doing so, he quietly twirled his fingers and caused the needles to move about below and above them. They followed like quiet servants, clearly up to no good.

Da Shan kept up the pressure, crushing him with her speed and strength with every ounce of her strength. Despite her powerful offensive, she couldn't fully penetrate his astral ward. This caused her to be slightly frustrated, but he continued.

Han Yunxi couldn't help but reveal a smug expression after the twelfth attack from Da Shan showed little success, merely pushing him a little. He decided to end this.

With a series of waves from his hands, he moved his fingers about in an exaggerated manner, and his body erupted with an astonishing aura. His astral force flowed out endlessly.

「Myriad Needle Art: Hundred-Thousand End」

Shiing!

Those needles that quietly followed them started to release a metallic keening noise. In a split second, seemingly endless astral force radiated from them as they multiplied numerous times.

"...!" Da Shan's eyes constricted as she noticed her surroundings become filled with silver.

Seeing the hint of fear on Da Shan's face as they became surrounded by a hundred thousand needles, three hundred and three real while the rest were conjured from pure metal force, Han Yunxi felt extremely satisfied.

Da Shan looked around. The aura of each needle awas astonishing, and they pressed against her demonic astral ward, preventing her from moving without using up a huge amount of astral force. But what Han Yunxi saw as fear wasn't fear. Instead, it was a hint of sadness and seething, ferocious rage.

"Is this what you used to kill my father?" Her calm voice was extremely incisive as she asked, her golden eyes fixating on Han Yunxi. From within her body, a power seemingly stirred.