This scoundrel is a bit of a swordsman.

Chapter 166 Echoes of Sword Qi

The Fourth Prince naturally heard Ruoxue's instructions clearly. Ruoxue did not say much, only stating that she was sent by Xiao Xingchen and possessed the power of a fifth-level sword immortal.

With this guarantee, the Fourth Prince felt reassured. He looked around at the sword immortals, his confidence soaring, and he no longer even took Wu Xie, who was at the Fourth Heaven, seriously.

Sword immortals are already extremely rare, and high-level sword immortals are even rarer, like priceless treasures. Now that our side has an additional fifth-level sword immortal, what is there to fear?

"Alright, then you all better listen up. My rule is best two out of three."

The Second Saint arrived too late. By the time he arrived, the Fourth Prince had already set the rules in front of everyone.

This made him feel both regretful and surprised. He regretted that his interests could not be maximized, and he was surprised that so many sword immortals had actually submitted.

However, he also had concerns. In his perception, there were still many sword immortals on their way outside Yong'an City, and the number of sword immortals who would eventually gather here would certainly be quite large.

"Fourth Prince, may I have a word to say?"

The sage finally revealed himself, an act that caused an uproar among the scholars.

"A sage?" The fourth prince looked at the drunkard with curiosity. This was the first time he had seen this person who was revered as a sage.

"Greetings to the Second Saint,"

After all, he was a sage of the Confucian Temple, and immediately, shouts of reverence rang out from the viewing platform.

"Gentlemen, there is no need for formalities. The appearance of the Heavenly Sword today has attracted many sword immortals, which is truly an honor for the Great Qian Dynasty. At the invitation of Emperor Wu, I have come here to preside over this competition for the Heavenly Sword."

"Sage, this is a contest between sword immortals. You scholars should not get involved, should you?"

Jian Wuhen scoffed, disdainfully saying...

"Although this is a contest of sword immortals, it is a talent selection event held by my Confucian Temple on the Talent Platform of the Great Qian Dynasty. Since you all have spoiled our fun, shouldn't you give us an explanation?"

"Besides, this is a literary competition. What can you do if I don't allow you to participate?"

The words of the sage were like a sharp sword, piercing the hearts of everyone on the stage, causing them to turn their heads and then reveal their disdain.

Especially Wu Xie, whose unrestrained and flamboyant personality is like a wild horse, coupled with the fact that Manghuang has always harbored resentment towards the Great Qian Dynasty.

So he retorted without hesitation: "Second Sage, speaking of which, I have to say a few words to you. The Confucian Temple is renowned throughout the land, and the Poetry Immortal Gathering has been held many times, but look at yourselves, so poor and pathetic! You've been vying for nothing but empty fame, unable to even offer a decent prize, and you still have the nerve to talk! Look at the Great Yan, they can even offer the Heavenly Sword as a prize. I think you should just give up your so-called Poetry Immortal Gathering and change it to the Sword Immortal Gathering, wouldn't that be better? Sword Immortals, Heavenly Swords, that's far more exciting than your so-called gathering!"

"Although I look down on this barbarian, what he said isn't entirely unreasonable. The Confucian Temple has been getting something for nothing for so many years, and now that they see the benefits, they can't wait to jump out. Isn't your behavior a bit too ugly!"

Jian Wuhen immediately echoed, as both of them were quite disgusted with the Confucian Temple and were naturally not afraid of offending anyone.

These words struck the hearts of the people present like a heavy hammer, leaving them feeling as if they had been struck by lightning.

"They actually dared to say that! This is probably the first time someone has publicly criticized the Confucian Temple in such a setting."

Someone asked incredulously.

On the viewing platform, some people wore bitter smiles. The etiquette and education of the Confucian Temple might have some effect on those scholars, but when faced with a barbaric Wu Xie and a sword immortal who was not bound by worldly conventions, it was like talking to a brick wall.

"Hmph, utter nonsense! The Confucian Temple has always been peaceful and unassuming; how could it be as despicable as you claim?"

The old drunkard snorted coldly, but when it came to witty banter, the rogue was clearly superior.

Wu Xie, showing no sign of backing down, launched into a tirade in front of everyone: "Bah! You Confucian Temple are nothing but a bunch of hypocritical scoundrels! You keep saying you don't fight or compete, and you don't get involved in worldly affairs, but did you think my desolate Dingcang Mountain was tricked away by ghosts? And who controls the ancient tomb complex of Daqian? And what about Luohua Forest of Dali, and Zhenyao Abyss of Dayan? You can count them yourselves. The territory controlled by the Confucian Temple is no less than that of any of the other kingdoms!"

"I'll call you a literary sage if I give you some face, but if I don't, who the hell do you think you are?"

"Amazing!" Jian Wuhen blurted out, and even the Water and Fire Sword Immortals belonging to the Great Qian secretly gave him a thumbs up.

The Confucian Temple has always been a high and mighty place, and the sages are even more revered by the world. To so brazenly curse the sages, it has to be said that Wu Xie really has a unique personality.

"Uh..." The Fourth Prince was speechless, choked by Wu Xie's words.

This was supposed to be his home turf, and he was the one who proposed the bet, but Tianjian stole the spotlight. He had finally managed to turn the tide, but then the Quasi-Saint came out and stirred things up again, making his situation incredibly difficult.

What on earth is going on? Everything's in chaos! Weren't we supposed to be here to fight for the Heavenly Sword? How did we end up fighting with a Quasi-Saint?

He was speechless and could only look at the Crown Prince and the Eldest Princess as if pleading for help, his eyes seeming to say: Please save me, I really can't hold on any longer.

But as soon as these words were spoken, the sage's face turned extremely ugly, and his saintly aura suddenly erupted like a volcano, instantly sweeping across the entire area.

"Damn it, this old bastard's gone mad! I haven't even finished cursing him yet! You bunch of hypocrites, you pounce on any goodies like hungry wolves! What does the Heavenly Sword have to do with you? Can you even practice swordsmanship? All you do is read books, and they've all gone to waste! You think you can bully the weak? If you dare bully me, I'll let the Wildlands raze Mount Cangshan to the ground! Before my Wildlands army, what kind of saints are you? They're all trash!"

As Wu Xie unleashed his powerful sword energy to resist the pressure of the saint, it was as if a fire had suddenly been lit on a tinderbox. The sword immortals on the stage also released their own sword energy. In an instant, the stage was filled with flashing sword shadows and the sound of wind and cranes.

The young monk Miaowu clasped his hands together, and a swastika flew lightly to the top of his head like a bird, fiercely resisting the saint's pressure. Surprisingly, he was not at a disadvantage at all, which made those who were paying attention take a deep look.

The scholar's sword was drawn for the first time, emitting a clear sword cry, like the cry of a phoenix. The sharp sword energy quickly formed a circle around him, tightly surrounding everyone like an impregnable wall.

The proud sword transformed into streams of water, surging endlessly, while the fire sword turned into flames, burning fiercely, intertwining and entwining with the scholar's sword. The water, fire, and sword energies swept over the Talent Platform like a raging storm.

Furthermore, a malevolent sword aura belonging to Wu Xie emerged like a venomous snake, charging at the forefront and directly colliding with the saint's oppressive aura.

Jian Wuhen wielded a heavy sword, which he drew from behind as easily as Mount Tai crushing an egg, drawing a dazzling arc from bottom to top.

Four sword immortals and a young monk worked together to fight against a sub-saint. This scene was like a raging storm, beyond everyone's comprehension.

It is extremely rare for someone to curse the Temple of Literature, and it is unprecedented for someone to draw their sword against the Second Sage. Moreover, it was four sword immortals who drew their swords together. What is even more surprising is that these four sword immortals belong to different camps and have deep hatred for each other.

In particular, the Water and Fire Sword Immortals, who were originally from the Great Qian Dynasty, were now simultaneously drawing their swords to fight against the Quasi-Saint who represented the Great Qian Dynasty. This made the onlookers sigh, regardless of their stance, all the sword immortals under heaven are one family.

I've always heard that the circle of sword immortals is incredibly cohesive, and that one cannot enter without becoming a sword immortal. But if you are a sword immortal, when one sword is in trouble, ten thousand swords will surely come to your aid. These rumors are now being presented to the world in such a direct way for the first time.

Even if you are a saint, you cannot bully a sword immortal at will. Otherwise, the sword immortal will surely draw his sword against you, no matter who you are. Huangfu Lingxue sighed helplessly. As the sword energy of the four sword immortals thundered, all the swords in Yong'an City that possessed the power of a sword immortal were mobilized.

Yan Yi's sword was the first to be drawn. She had been sitting there quietly, but the long sword beside her was like a wild horse that had broken free. With a clang, it ignored her wishes and flew out of its sheath like an arrow, passing the viewing platform and joining the battle.

Yan Yi shrugged helplessly, as if to say that this had nothing to do with her.

However, it is quite different in the eyes of others.

This seemingly harmless girl is actually a sword immortal?

That wasn't all. Flying swords rained down like locusts all over Yong'an—wind swords, fire swords, spirit swords—and one sword was even whistling out of the imperial palace.

These swords all exude a youthful sharpness, clearly belonging to the younger generation.

As for the true veteran sword immortals, it's not their place to intervene in the battles of the younger generation.

Huangfu Lingxue's gaze swept across the room like lightning, finally settling on Yan Yi.

Yan Yi seemed to sense something, following her gaze and even giving her a sly smile, a smile like that of a triumphant fox.

Ghost Sword could no longer contain itself; with so many sword energies echoing, how could it be absent?

It condensed silently in the void, like a ghost.

The Ghost Sword, appearing and disappearing without a trace, is its most distinctive feature.

All ghost sword immortals are like fierce ghosts in the dark night, and some people also call ghost swords the swords of assassination.

Ruoxue's heart stirred. The sword energy echoing in the arena was all at the second or third level. Clearly, this time the sword energy was not only for fighting against the Quasi-Saint, but they were also secretly competing with each other.

After a moment's thought, she gently pressed the sword back in her hand. If she were to draw her sword in a contest between young people, it would be a bit like bullying the younger one.

Although the Five-fold Sword Immortal is not outstanding in the world, she is still worthy of a place in the Great Qian Dynasty.

The continuous barrage of sword energy caused the Sub-Saint to furrow his brow; the very thing he and the Martial Emperor had feared most had come to pass.

The sword immortals are unruly and only high-ranking sword immortals can win their hearts and minds. Clearly, he, a sage of the Confucian Temple, cannot subdue them.

However, this is before the grand occasion of the Confucian Temple. How can he let a group of junior sword immortals lose face? How can he face the world after that?

"Hmph, the echoing sword energy is wonderful, but you all still need to hone your skills. Go back and cultivate for a few more years!"

His body rose into the air, soaring down like a bird, reaching above everyone's heads, and he stretched out his right hand, pressing down hard.

Originally, the saint's pressure was only directed at sword immortals. However, as the pressure was released, it spread out like ripples. In an instant, some people felt as if a thousand-pound burden was pressing on their shoulders, and they involuntarily wanted to kneel down, as if they were carrying a towering mountain on their backs.

"Is this the might of a sage? How incredibly powerful!"

Lan Beitang stood solemnly in the arena like a pine tree, his clothes fluttering in the wind. The Scholar Sword was his main sword, and the sword energy of wind, fire and water continuously gathered on its blade. Apart from Wu Xie, who was fearless and fought alone, all the echoing sword energy converged on him like rivers flowing into the sea.

At this moment, the scholar's sword seemed to have condensed the essence of the sword energy of numerous young sword immortals, allowing Lan Beitang to reveal for the first time the vibrant fighting spirit unique to a sword immortal. With this surge of fighting spirit, Xiao Xingchen, who was feigning death in the prison, was startled; his sword energy surged out uncontrollably like a wild horse.

"What on earth happened? Why is the sword energy outside surging like a raging torrent? Could it be that sword immortals are engaged in a fierce battle?"

He could no longer contain himself. The Supreme One had not yet arrived; how could he so easily give up this golden opportunity to lure the enemy out? However, it seemed that something earth-shattering had happened outside. This was the second time his battle sword had reacted in this way; the sword seemed eager to be drawn.

However, the sword he possessed was prepared for the Black Robe and the Supreme Being. Once this sword was drawn, it must have been with the determination to severely injure the Supreme Being. How could it be released so carelessly?

"It's really bizarre, there are so many strange things, especially this year. Who on earth is so reckless as to dare to cause trouble and fight in Yong'an? Aren't they afraid of dying?"

Xiao Xingchen forcefully suppressed the intent of the battle sword and continued to feign death. He was determined not to show himself until the Supreme One arrived. As for the commotion outside, he assumed that some ignorant people were fighting and brawling, and what did it have to do with him?