Shā Ying Yue was originally a member of the Crimson Sand mercenary company. She used a blood cultivation method that allowed her to utilize her own blood as a weapon. She infused her blood with chi and sent it out as attacks that were very powerful, hard to predict, and even harder to block. He remembered when they fought during the tournament to receive a ticket to enter the White Tiger Sect ruins. She had used blood bullets, blood blades, and even control the blood after it left her body. She had managed to get her blood inside of him, which would have spelled the end for anyone else.

Wu Jian didn’t know anything about her four companions. However, he could infer what kind of techniques they used based on their respective entrances.

“Mei! Hamper their movements and obscure their vision!”

“Very well.”

[Ice Phoenix Domain]

The air around them shifted as a cold wind swept through the arena. An ice blue dome formed around them and, immediately after, an immensely powerful cold aura engulfed the arena floor. Ice formed along the ground and quickly spread across the entire arena floor. Four of their five opponents were unable to stop themselves from shivering as the coldness seeped into their very bones.

“What is this?!”

“Don’t tell me… is this a domain?!”

“What? Th-that’s impossible! She’s not at the Deva Realm!”

The four with Shā Ying Yue panicked as they realized they were trapped within a domain. He had known this would happen if they used one right off the bat. It was common practice to keep an ability like this hidden as a trump card, but Wu Jian thought it would be better to display it now. His idea also worked. Their opponents were too surprised to respond, and their movement had now been restricted.

Wu Jian didn’t hesitate.

[Spatial Folding]

He threw out five punches, one for each opponent, in rapid succession. The sound of his fist hitting flesh echoed out four times so quickly it sounded like he had only thrown a single punch. His strikes were precise too. The two men and women who accompanied Shā Ying Yue were struck in the chest and launched clear out of the arena floor before they knew what hit them.

The only one who managed to avoid his attack was Shā Ying Yue. She had known better than to remain stationary, but since she couldn’t move without slipping, she had simply ducked. Wu Jian would have attacked again. However, she bit her thumb to draw some blood and sent it in an attack.

[Bloody Spiral]

The woman threw out her blood, which had taken a drill shape. Such an attack would have normally reached him. That didn’t happen this time. The blood quickly froze over, fell to the ground, and shattered.

“Mei, you can release the domain now.”

“… Okay.”

There was only a little bit of strain in Mei’s voice as she released the domain. Utilizing a Domain was normally something only someone who had reached the Deva Realm could do. Mei Xilan was an anomaly thanks to the ice phoenix’s blessing and her cultivation method, but even though she could use a Domain, it was not something she could maintain for long. The amount of chi required to maintain a Domain for longer than sixty seconds was beyond her.

“I didn’t expect one of you to be able to use a domain,” Shā Ying Yue murmured, eying Mei Xilan warily. “You really caught me by surprise with that one.”

“It wouldn’t have been a very good plan if it didn’t catch you by surprise.” Wu Jian shrugged, then tilted his head. “You’re a lot more talkative now than you were before. Did something good happen?”

Shā Ying Yue smiled. “You could say that.”

“Hmm. I’m glad.”

Wu Jian had never harbored any ill-will toward this mysterious young woman. She had shown up in his life several times. The first time had been as a traveling mercenary hired to cripple him, the second time had been a member of the Crimson Sand, and now it looked like she had a new employer. He didn’t know her story, but he knew she had been in a bad place when the Crimson Sand picked her up.

“You know, we never really got to finish our fight last time,” Wu Jian said.

Shā Ying Yue laughed. “Let me guess, you want to settle the score? I’m down for that.”

She glanced at Mei Xilan, but Wu Jian waved her off.

“She won’t get involved. This fight is between you and me.”

“So it’s a one-on-one duel then? Quite honorable of you.”

“I just don’t like the fact that a victor was never determined between us.”

Their first battle had taken place in Zahn City, and while he had technically won, he did so through trickery. He’d manuvered himself until he was right next to the arena ledge and tossed her out. It hadn’t been a true contest of strength and skill. Their second battle had taken place during the tournament, and Wu Jian had been forced to forfeit because he had a breakthrough mid-fight. Even their battle in the White Tiger Sect ruins had been left without a victory.

Wu Jian wanted to overcome this woman, and since the opportunity presented itself, he would make sure not to waste it.

“Well, all right then. But I warn you now, I’m not the same person I was back then.”

[Blood Scythe]

So saying this, Shā Ying Yue activated her storage ring and released a lot of blood. It quickly congealed in front of her, elongating to form a handle that was taller than her, which she grasped with her right hand. The tip soon curved into a sharp blade and the end became pointed like a stake. Shā Ying Yue twirled the blood scythe around in her hands, proving her talent in its use.

She stopped with the scythe held loosely behind her back and grinned.

“I’m not gonna say something stupid like ‘you’re courting death by challenging me,’ but, well, try your best not to die, okay?”

***

Wu Meiying had not stopped watching Wu Jian from the moment the battle started. She was captivated by the strength he displayed and the skills he used. It was like everything around her save him had blurred out of focus. She could have eyes for no one else.

The people around her were also interested in the battle. Zhe Dāozhe leaned back and stroked his chin, a small smile alighting his face.

“Well now… this is turning out to be an interesting match,” he said. “A young woman at the Human Limit Realm who can access a Domain and a young man capable of using the Dao of Space. Who would have thought I’d get to see two impossible feats side-by-side like this?”

“They are both very skilled,” Shui Meili crossed her right leg over her left, the hem of her dress parting slightly to reveal her leg as she leaned back. “I am particularly interested in that young woman. It is unheard of for someone with her cultivation to use a Domain. That she is capable of it means she is quite special.”

Huǒ Huangdi chimed in. “The only way for someone with a low cultivation like hers can use a Domain is if they were granted a special blessing by a god. Hmm. I can tell just by being in her presence that she has received the blessings of an ice phoenix.”

Ice phoenixes were majestic birds born of icy flames. They lived similarly to the Phoenix the Xia Dynasty worshipped as immortal birds that became consumed by flames upon their death and were reincarnated as a hatchling, but they were not the same species. The ice phoenix and phoenix were polar opposites that didn’t get along. Ice phoenixes were also not as powerful as the Phoenix, which his clan worshipped.

“An ice phoenix, is it? Oh my. No wonder she’s so special,” Shui Meili hummed.

“You seem to know something about this young woman,” said Zhe Dāozhe.

“Indeed I do.” Shui Meili seemed happy someone had asked her, for she immediately launched into her spiel. “I’m sure you know about the war that took place in the Shang Kingdom, yes? During that dreadful war, a young woman appeared before Zé Měilì of the Water-Moon Pavilion with a request for help. That woman displayed incredible prowess and impressed the Water-Moon Pavilion’s sect mistress so much that she decided to lend a hand.”

“And that woman is the one down below?” asked Zhe Dāozhe for clarification.

“Yes, indeed. I didn’t recognize her at first, but Zé Měilì said that she was a young woman who could use a Domain even though she was only at the Human Limit Realm.”

Water-Moon Pavilion was a branch of the Supreme Ocean Palace. Quite a few sects owned a branch or subsidy sect. They could also be considered an umbrella sect. The larger sect acted as protection against incursion, while the umbrella sect gave donations in exchange for said protection. These donations often came in the form of alchemy ingredients. It could sometimes be money too, but ingredients were worth far more.

“While the girl is impressive, I am more interested in the boy who can use the Dao of Space. That is not something just anyone can use,” said Zhou Xie’e.

Wu Meiying cast the young man a glare that, thankfully, went unnoticed. She clenched her hands to keep from acting out. No one knew who she was, and she aimed to keep it that way.

“The Dao of Space is a mysterious power. I myself have dabbled in it a little, but it has no practical uses. Certainly, I would never dream of using it in combat like he does,” Zhe Dāozhe said with a slight smile.

Wu Meiying smiled behind her veil. She was very happy to hear someone acknowledge Wu Jian’s strength. The warmth that blossomed in her chest at his words made her feel indescribably pleasant. She wanted to bask in this feeling.

The battle between Wu Jian and Yue was heating up. The two had begun trading martial arts techniques. Yue was using a massive blood scythe. She recognized the technique. Blood manipulation was much more common in the Nine Heavens. She had personally fought and slew a large number blood manipulating cultivators. The cultivation method this girl was using was a lesser version of the cultivation methods used in the Nine Heavensw, but it was still far above what could be found here.

“The Dao of Space…” Huǒ Yulie murmured. She glanced at Wu Meiying. “Dost thou knoweth about the Dao of Space?”

Wu Meiying smiled slightly. “I do, though it is not something I know a lot about.”

As the goddess of time, Wu Meiying knew everything there was to know about the Dao of Time, but the Dao of Space was something that eluded her. She could not manipulate it, feel it, or hear it. All of her knowledge about the Dao of Space came from the young man currently fighting in the arena.

“I know a little bit,” Wu Meiying confessed. Before Huǒ Yulie could ask another question, she turned to glance Zhe Dāozhe under the watchful eyes of everyone present. She could especially feel Zhe Fengli’s eyes digging into her back as she leaned forward. “Sect Master, that young man is someone you will want to keep your eyes on.”

“Ho? Is that so? Have you seen something?” asked Zhe Dāozhe, a gleam in his eyes.

Zhe Fengli did not look too enthusiastic. Tch. Eavesdropper. She had noticed him leaning in to catch her whispered words. Did he think he was being subtle? She almost sighed, but in the end, it didn’t matter if he overheard her or not.

“I did,” Wu Meiying said softly. “That young man will prove to be a deciding factor in determining which sect will stand at the top in this world.”

“If you’re the one saying that, then I really should pay more attention,” stated Zhe Dāozhe. He turned to his son. “You know this young man, too, do you not?”

“… Yes.” Zhe Fengli dragged his gaze away from Wu Meiying to look at his father. “He appeared during the last battle of the war against the Zhou Kingdom and Ming Province. His strength was abnormal. Not only did he have a flood dragon by his side when he arrived, but he was able to defeat a Deva Realm cultivator like it was nothing.”

“Well, now I’m really interested,” confessed Zhe Dāozhe, who immediately went back to watching.

Wu Meiying also kept her eyes glued to the fight. You can do it, Jian. Show everyone your strength.