Sword Sect Outer Sect

Chapter 176 The Day of Victory
Song Yan originally estimated that it would take about six hours to completely absorb the demon blood and medicinal liquid.

But I don't know if it's because my original physique was really too poor, or some other reason.

Eighteen hours later.

Song Yan slowly opened his eyes...

A sharp glint flashed in his pupils, then quickly disappeared.

"call--"

He let out a long breath.

Inside the bronze cauldron, the pool of medicinal liquid had changed from its original clear golden-red color to a turbid grayish-brown.

The essence of its demonic power and medicinal properties has been completely absorbed.

He stood up, raising a cloud of steam.

At this moment, his skin was as smooth as jade, his muscles were well-defined but not bulky, and he exuded the sharpness of a cheetah.

"This feeling..."

He clenched his fist, and his knuckles cracked with a crisp sound.

He threw a powerful punch, which surprisingly produced a faint sound as it cut through the air.

What he was most concerned about was, of course, the changes in the meridians.

"It's amazing..."

Beneath the Sword Palace of the Dao, sword energy surged wildly, condensing at the fingertips.

The flow of sword energy that was previously unbearable now operates normally.

A hint of surprise flashed in Song Yan's eyes.

"Can you achieve this level of physical strength in just one body refinement session...?"

This unnamed body-strengthening mantra seems to be quite extraordinary.

Unfortunately, according to Senior Nie Chao's memory, this incantation is most effective the first time it is used.

Subsequent use will significantly reduce the effectiveness until it becomes ineffective.

Perhaps this nameless mantra is incomplete.

"hiss--"

Xiao He peeked in from outside the training room, jumped onto Song Yan's neck, and curiously poked his chest with her tail.

"Wow……"

"It's gotten much harder."

Song Yan smiled and used the Water Curtain Technique to wash away the remaining medicinal residue on his body.

He then took out a prepared Taoist robe from his Qiankun bag and changed into it.

As the robes rubbed against his skin, he keenly noticed that the sensation seemed to have changed.

It's not that my skin has become rougher, but rather that my senses have become more acute, allowing me to clearly perceive even the finest fabric textures.

"Let's see how it goes..."

With a thought, sword energy surged around him.

This time, he did not deliberately control the intensity of the sword energy, allowing the Zhendao Sword Mansion to unleash its full power.

In the past, such full-force sword control would cause my meridians to swell and ache after only a short while.

But at this moment, Song Yan felt warm all over, and the sword energy was flowing endlessly in his strengthened meridians, giving him a kind of exhilarating pleasure.

"At this level, perhaps we can try the sword control method recorded in the Essentials of Swordsmanship."

Upon internal inspection, I discovered that even my internal organs were shrouded in a faint golden-red glow.

To his great surprise, the space of the Zhendao Sword Mansion seemed to be larger than before, and the storage capacity of sword energy naturally increased accordingly.

"call……"

He put away the medicine cauldron and then carefully buried the remaining dregs in a corner of the courtyard.

These medicinal dregs are tainted with the aura of the Qilin demon's blood. If they are discovered by someone with ulterior motives, it will inevitably cause unforeseen complications.

After tidying everything up, Song Yan continued practicing swordsmanship in the courtyard for a while, allowing himself to fully familiarize himself with the limits of wielding sword energy.

He then withdrew his sword energy and sat alone in the courtyard, slowly adjusting his breathing.

There is only one day left until the decisive day begins.

……

On this day, on Sword Wiping Peak.

The viewing area around the arena was packed with people.

The final stage of the competition is not only open to disciples of sects.

Some family disciples affiliated with the Dongyuan Sect, as well as representatives from some shops in Lingyuanze Market, and even some independent cultivators who are on good terms with the Dongyuan Sect, will come to watch the competition. Some shops will contact outstanding disciples in advance and provide them with some spiritual resources.

Or they could discuss it in advance with their close disciples, suggesting that if they won a good ranking, they would promote the shop.

The influence of famous figures is always present, no matter where you are.

In addition, there will be gambling dens that will set up betting pools where all cultivators can participate in guessing the ranking of the final disciples. If they guess correctly, they can earn a considerable amount of spirit stones.

West spectator area.

These are mostly spectator seats for non-disciples of the sect.

Although the view isn't great, this is the closest entrance and exit passage for the disciples in the final ranking matches.

At the edge, Ju Luyi sat in a corner, clutching a piece of silk ribbon in her hand.

She looked around blankly.

In truth, Ju Luyi was merely a seamless handyman and was not qualified to participate in such a grand event.

Fortunately, one of the sisters who was originally scheduled to accompany us was unable to come due to family matters, and the other sisters all had their own jobs to do.

That's how she got the chance to come here.

The final stage of the competition had not yet officially begun. People around were walking back and forth in a hurry, and some were shouting at the distant cultivators.

"Old Yu, where's our signboard?"

"The plaque? It's with me!"

"Hang it up, quickly! We can still adjust the position now. The sect disciples will be entering soon, so don't block their way."

She turned her head and looked at the distance, where her sisters had already begun to set up the perfect venue.

The leading female cultivator in purple robes turned around and looked at Ju Luyi, frowning as she said, "Little Ju! Stop fiddling with those things."

"Today is the decisive day. The cultivators who will be on the field are all the pride of their respective peaks. Don't bring out those low-quality embroidery pieces to embarrass yourselves."

"Come quickly and help."

"..."

Xiao Ju didn't say anything, but simply stood up from her seat and silently went forward to help.

The area around the arena was now bustling with noise.

Just then, someone nearby suddenly exclaimed, "Hey, look! The disciples who are participating in today's final battle are entering the arena!"

All eyes were turned toward the entrance to the west viewing area.

Ju Luyi also turned around; this place was very close to the entrance.

Then, twenty-two disciples slowly walked into the arena in groups.

Leading the way was Li Yi.

"Um, is that Senior Brother Song Yan?"

A young female cultivator beside him suddenly asked in surprise, drawing the attention of the surrounding cultivators.

Song Yan walked among the crowd, wearing a white Taoist robe and carrying a dark blue sword box.

With his exquisite features and a captivating yet understated aura, he drew the attention of many female cultivators.

At this moment, he was talking to Sun Zhengfu beside him, and to his left was Xiang Zhaoling, the genius girl from Lianyou Peak.

"I heard that Senior Brother Song defeated Senior Brother Kong You, who was at the eighth level of Qi Refining, in the previous selection."

"I've seen it, I've seen it. I saw it when I was in Changping. Its sword control technique was exquisite."

"Not only is he exceptionally talented, but he's also incredibly handsome..."

The female cultivators whispered among themselves as they watched Song Yan, occasionally covering their mouths and giggling, perhaps because they were discussing something indecent.

A cold snort came from the west side of the viewing area: "Hmph, all show and no substance."

A disciple of Taiping Peak stood with his arms crossed, displaying the demeanor of a master.

He sneered, "A mere seventh-level Qi Refining cultivator dares to claim exceptional talent? Senior Brother Li Yi is at the ninth level of Qi Refining. If they were to face him, they could probably knock him off the dueling platform with just one strike of their halberds!"

A few whispers reached Song Yan's ears, but he seemed not to hear them.

His gaze, however, swept over the seats in the western viewing area not far away, as if sensing something.

Ju Luyi was standing next to a group of female cultivators. When she saw him looking at her, she looked around somewhat embarrassedly.

Song Yan nodded slightly, which was considered a greeting.

People should be polite.

Speaking of which, the Taoist robe I'm wearing was sewn by Miss Ju herself.

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(End of this chapter)