Face? We Ditched That Ages Ago
The identity of the black shadow was none other than Dean Ji Yuan Zhang.
The moment Gomak sneered at him, Ji Yuan Zhang vanished from his sight.
Thud!
With a dull thud, Gomak's body tumbled back over a hundred zhang, rolling across the ground.
'Impossible! To so easily overwhelm me, a Divine Fusion Realm expert!?'
"H-how... How could this..."
Unbelief filled Gomak's face as he lay sprawled on the ground.
He was a Divine Fusion Realm powerhouse, one of the few elite experts countable on one hand across the entire Jiang Kingdom!
Just then, Ji Yuan Zhang took a single step toward his foe. In an instant, his figure appeared right in front of Gomak!
A hundred zhang in a single stride!?
Shrinking Earth into an Inch!
"Y-you're not Divine Fusion Realm... Urk!"
Before Gomak could finish his words, he was sent flying once more.
Ji Yuan Zhang pulled a flask from his waist, took a swig, then threw a casual punch at empty air.
Boom!
Gomak's complexion twisted in midair. He began mustering his energy from within, but it dissipated in an instant like mist before the sun. Instead, a massive hole tore open in his chest, blood gushing forth as he crashed into the mountainside.
The Changmok Academy students wore expressions of utter disbelief.
Gomak, barely clinging to life, lifted his head with great effort.
"That bastard... He was hiding his true power..."
Ji Yuan Zhang gazed coldly at the dying man.
At that moment, two shadows appeared beside Yeop Hyeon.
It was Mu Yun Qi and Bai Ze!
Seeing Yeop Hyeon's state, their faces darkened.
Yeop Hyeon's body was torn and mangled everywhere, no patch of skin left intact. Crimson blood poured endlessly from his mouth.
He suffered not just severe external wounds, but grave internal injuries as well!
Then, Mu Yun Qi pointed furiously at Gomak and bellowed.
"You dog worse than a mutt! Shamelessly butting into a duel between cadets! We knew Changmok Academy was trash, but I didn't realize you'd thrown away even your face!"
Bai Ze nodded curtly.
"Face? We ditched that ages ago."
At this, Ji Yuan Zhang shouted at them.
"Enough. Let's go."
"Go? Where to!?"
Yeop Hyeon struggled to his feet and declared.
"We can't leave like this!"
Gripping his sword with trembling hands, he aimed it at the Changmok Academy students.
"Dean! Even if we're outnumbered, what does it matter? Today, we settle this with them! Kill one, we break even. Kill two, we profit!"
Mu Yun Qi nodded in agreement.
"Leave this to us this time. They dragged Yeop Hyeon here with their filthy tricks and then ganged up on him one against many. We can't swallow this humiliation and just leave. No, we're not going! Dean, you handle the old fogey. We'll take care of the rest!"
Bai Ze clenched his fists tightly.
"Let's crush 'em!"
Ji Yuan Zhang scrutinized the three young faces before speaking.
"You confident?"
Without answering, Yeop Hyeon charged straight at the Changmok Academy group.
"W-wait... You really mean it?"
Mu Yun Qi sighed and leaped after him, Bai Ze close behind.
By then, Ji An Zhi had already dashed in ahead of them.
The four Canglan Academy students plunged into the midst of the countless Changmok Academy foes.
Ji Yuan Zhang fixed a chilling gaze on Ye Su and the others.
"No one at Soaring Realm or above interferes. Anyone who does dies by my hand."
Ye Su's face paled at his words. He whipped his head toward an elderly man beside him.
"Did you report to the dean!?"
"He's already rushing back. He'll arrive in about an incense stick's time."
Ye Su nodded. To suppress the man before them, they absolutely needed their dean.
If we can just tie him down!
The rest were small fry he could sweep away himself.
"Attack! Take them all down together!"
At Ye Su's command, the Changmok Academy students drew their weapons toward Yeop Hyeon and the others.
There were over a hundred of them. Even the weakest was at least Control Qi Realm.
As the hundred warriors blotted out the sky and surged forward, Mu Yun Qi wore a troubled look.
"Hey, friends! Isn't this a bit too many?"
"Scared?"
"Hell no! I'm a man who doesn't know the meaning of fear..."
Just then, Yeop Hyeon swung his longsword, severing someone's head. A Changmok Academy student barreled into him bodily.
The arena instantly transformed into a brutal battlefield. Yeop Hyeon and the other three were soon surrounded by Changmok Academy students.
These were the kingdom's top prodigies, over a hundred strong. Facing them with just four was absurd.
Moreover, the characters "Changmok Academy" carved from corpses had pushed their killing intent to the extreme.
The Canglan Academy students were forced to backpedal furiously.
"Into the mountain path!"
At Yeop Hyeon's shout, they hurriedly retreated up the narrow trail into the peaks.
The path up Chang Mountain was extremely cramped. Not many could attack at once.
The Changmok Academy assault weakened somewhat compared to before.
Then, Yeop Hyeon slammed his right foot deep into the earth. The power of the land gathered into his body.
As the immense earthly energy condensed within him, he gripped the Spirit Water Sword with both hands and slashed ferociously ahead.
One Sword Determines Life and Death!
The already devastating technique was amplified by the earth's might and the famed sword's edge. Its power was pure terror.
Suddenly, a streak of sword light erupted from the Spirit Water Sword like a volcano's fury.
Boom!
In one stroke, five or six Changmok Academy students were shredded to rags. The explosive energy wave gravely wounded dozens more nearby.
Ye Su's pupils quaked. He never imagined Yeop Hyeon was this strong.
A Control Qi Realm user wielding such a sword? He couldn't believe it.
The charging Changmok students halted, staring at Yeop Hyeon with awe.
Killing intent still burned in their eyes, but now mingled with fear from that single strike.
Yeop Hyeon's sword defied description beyond terror.
Even Dean Ji Yuan Zhang couldn't hide his shock. This surpassed any destruction a Control Qi Realm sword cultivator should produce!
Mu Yun Qi wiped blood from his mouth and approached Yeop Hyeon, nudging his arm with an elbow.
"That thing just now... Do it again."
Yeop Hyeon drew a deep breath and stepped forward. Endless earthly power surged into him once more. The Spirit Water Sword in his hand began trembling wildly.
The warriors paled in horror and scrambled back.
At that moment!
"We pay respects to the Dean!"
The Changmok Academy students bowed in unison to an elderly man who had appeared in the arena. It was none other than Changmok Academy's dean, I Hyeon-chang!
I Hyeon-chang silently surveyed the strewn corpses. His gaze lingered on Fen Jue's body, twisting in rage. Seeing the "Changmok Academy" spelled out in corpses, he turned to Yeop Hyeon.
"Your doing?"
Instead of answering, Yeop Hyeon hurled the Spirit Water Sword.
Slash!
One Changmok Academy student collapsed pierced through.
I Hyeon-chang narrowed his eyes. A colossal force materialized above Yeop Hyeon's head. Then, another energy blasted in from elsewhere.
Boom!
The two forces clashed with a mountain-shaking roar and scattered.
"You want war?"
As I Hyeon-chang questioned, Ji Yuan Zhang brought his flask to his lips.
The entire Chang Mountain trembled as if in an earthquake. The wind stilled, and the light around Ji Yuan Zhang warped slowly.
I Hyeon-chang's eyes darkened.
"Myriad Phenomena Distortion... Myriad Laws Realm, peak stage... I thought you were just a drunken wreck in your twilight years, but you've reached this height..."
"In Jiang Kingdom, there are only four peak Myriad Laws Realm experts, including you and me. If you want war, I have nothing to lose either. Why not let both Changmok and Canglan Academies vanish from the world today?"
I Hyeon-chang couldn't respond rashly to Ji Yuan Zhang's words.
Of course, if the academies clashed here, Changmok's numerical superiority would prevail. But they'd suffer at least eighty percent casualties. No guarantee the survivors would emerge unscathed.
Canglan? Barely five in total. Trading eighty percent of Changmok lives for those five was a massive loss!
I Hyeon-chang pondered amid the corpses, then lifted his head toward Ji Yuan Zhang.
"We'll end it here for today. However..."
Pointing at Yeop Hyeon, he continued.
"Hand over that one's head. No one leaves without it!"
Six figures encircled Ji Yuan Zhang. All Divine Fusion Realm experts!
Hand over Yeop Hyeon's head!
I Hyeon-chang's words voiced the entire Changmok Academy's will.
Yeop Hyeon had taken the life of their top prodigy, Fen Jue. Given his strength, in the life-or-death matches between academies coming in a year or so, Canglan might surpass them.
Worse, if Yeop Hyeon kept growing, Changmok Academy's very existence could be threatened.
Plus, countless students had fallen to him moments ago. Bystanders would spread this across the Imperial City. If Yeop Hyeon lived and left, Changmok's reputation would plummet further!
Thus, they desperately demanded his head.
Mu Yun Qi, Bai Ze, and Ji An Zhi's gazes turned to Ji Yuan Zhang's mouth. After a swig, he asked I Hyeon-chang.
"He must die?"
"If he does, we'll talk. Refuse, and it's over here!"
"Hahaha... Yeop Hyeon, what do you think?"
Yeop Hyeon replied to the dean's question.
"If the Dean desires peace, the answer is set. Buy it with my life."
"Then you'll accept death willingly?"
"I don't want to die. I don't think the Dean is that foolish. Sacrificing me brings immediate peace. But you know Canglan would forever kneel before Changmok."
Yeop Hyeon raised his voice.
"They struck first with their treachery. Why should we beg them for peace? Our numbers are fewer—what of it!?"
He pointed his sword at the Changmok group.
"Don't you know why all of Imperial City looks down on Canglan Academy? Because we always bow our heads! That's why they trample and scorn us. We've endured enough. I will never kneel to them!"