Read Novel Full Chapter 203: Cloud Empire (23)
Chapter 203: Cloud Empire (23)
The silence was already broken immediately.
After the fight, Yun Hao remained at the center of the arena for a few moments, breathing in a regulated manner.
His Qi had already stabilized, and the light-blue marks had completely disappeared. Even so, the memory of the pressure remained in everyone’s mind.
Then, he turned.
His gaze slowly swept across the hall, without haste. It passed by the Gray Blade Sect, the Earth Forge, and the Southern Wind Dynasty. Some averted their eyes, while others held his gaze firmly.
Finally, he stopped.
At the table of the Blood Court.
Yun Hao’s eyes locked onto Kyrian’s crimson eyes.
"You." He said, in a clear tone.
A murmur spread through the hall.
Bai Zhu leaned his body slightly forward. Yan Ling frowned. Kai remained motionless, arms crossed. But everyone was unconcerned, after all, they knew Kyrian’s strength.
"I challenge you." Yun Hao completed it.
The entire hall turned its attention to Kyrian.
For an instant, no one said anything.
Then, Kyrian stood up.
His movement was simple. There was no haste, no hesitation. He merely pushed the chair back and took the first step.
"So he accepted..." murmured someone from the Celestial River Alliance, surprised.
"But... his cultivation..." whispered a noble at a distant table.
Kyrian walked toward the arena with absolute calm. Each step was steady. His Qi was neither concealed nor exaggerated. It was simply there, clear for all to feel.
Sixth stage of the Qi Liberation Realm.
The lowest among all the young people present.
Even so, no one laughed. No one mocked. Not even Yun Hao.
On the contrary.
As Kyrian approached, Yun Hao felt something strange when looking at him. It did not come from the Qi nor from the body. It came from his gaze.
The same feeling of being superior to others now affected him, but in the opposite way, somehow, he felt a slight pressure coming from Kyrian’s eyes, as if he were superior.
He knew those crimson eyes were not normal.
They observed him as if this were just another confrontation, as if he felt nothing at that moment.
Kyrian climbed the steps of the arena and stopped a few meters away. His gaze swept over Yun Hao for a moment, evaluating, without hostility.
"I accept your challenge." Kyrian said, his voice low and without emotion.
Yun Hao nodded.
"We will fight without restrictions." Yun Hao said.
"As you prefer." Kyrian replied.
Yun Hao brought his hand to the spatial ring.
A soft glow appeared, and a sword appeared in his hand. Unlike Qian Luo’s blade, that sword was long, light silver-blue in color, with discreet runes engraved along the edge.
"A high-level spiritual weapon." Someone from the Earth Forge commented.
Kyrian raised his right hand. He did not call anything from his spatial ring.
Instead, something from within his body.
From his fingers, blood began to emerge.
First in small droplets. Then, as if pulled by an invisible force, the blood expanded, condensing in the air. In a few moments, it took shape.
A long, massive red spear.
The surface looked solid like metal but pulsed lightly, as if it were alive.
Ancient runes formed along the shaft, engraved directly into the darkened blood.
"That... is the essential blood of an ancient beast..." murmured Shi Kang, his eyes narrowed.
"That is truly rare." Lin Qiao said, serious.
Kyrian gripped the spear firmly.
Dark red Qi flowed through it naturally, as if it were part of his body.
"Begin whenever you wish." Kyrian said.
Yun Hao did not reply. He simply advanced.
His body exploded into motion, the sword tracing a fast, precise diagonal cut, loaded with blue Qi.
It was a clean, direct strike at the exact point to force a defense.
Kyrian moved at the same instant but did not retreat.
He took a minimal lateral step, rotated his body, and the spear rose in an arc, intercepting the strike at the perfect angle.
Metal and blood collided.
The impact echoed.
"He blocked it perfectly..." someone murmured.
Yun Hao did not stop. He rotated his wrist and turned the block into a second cut, lower, aiming at the leg.
But Kyrian was already there.
The spear came down in a short thrust, forcing Yun Hao to retreat half a step.
Kyrian’s crimson eyes glowed faintly.
He saw. Every movement. Every muscular contraction. Every blood flow even before it manifested into motion.
Soon, they began to realize. Yun Hao was not an opponent for Kyrian. Not when it came to battle technique.
"He’s reading everything..." whispered one of the nobles in the hall, in contained shock. He knew how Yun Hao was a genius in battle, but against Kyrian none of his strikes worked.
Yun Hao increased his speed.
Successive cuts. Rapid charges. Precise movements, without waste.
But Kyrian responded at the same pace.
The spear spun, blocked, and thrust, always at the exact instant. There were no excess strikes. Nor any hesitation.
"This makes no sense... the difference in cultivation is enormous." Murmured Nan Feng Yu, in a low tone.
It was then that everyone realized Yun Hao had, in fact, not lowered his cultivation further to match Kyrian, and even so, he was still losing ground.
Yun Hao felt it. He felt that he was being anticipated.
Every time he tried to change the rhythm, Kyrian was already prepared. Every feint was ignored. Every real strike met resistance.
’Those damn eyes...’ Yun Hao thought, clenching his teeth.
He retreated one step and released more Qi. Returning to his original cultivation. The pressure of the Core Formation Realm emerged.
The air around his body began to vibrate.
"He’s going to use his physique." Bai Zhu said, attentive.
The light-blue marks began to appear again on Yun Hao’s body, spreading across his chest and arms. The pressure returned to the hall, heavy and dominant.
Some spectators felt difficulty breathing.
But Kyrian did not move. It did not affect him in any way. But his eyes narrowed as he realized that Yun Hao was finally taking the fight seriously.
Yun Hao advanced with everything.
The strike came loaded with physical strength and condensed Qi, enhanced by the special physique. There was no technique, only pure power.