Desolate Devouring Art

Two heavy thuds struck the arena as the Celestial Moon Dao Hall students collapsed in unison, white foam pouring from their mouths. Their bodies convulsed several times before all movement ceased.

Hu Chou had forged the poisonous needles with his own hands and personally coated them in poison. Liu Wuxie's only contribution had been instructing him beforehand to prepare a Supreme Lodestone.

The Azure Flame Dao Hall had seized victory in the opening match. Since poison art belonged to the minor paths, neither Dao Hall had wagered anything on the category.

Hu Chou threw his head back and let out a triumphant roar, raising a clenched fist toward the sky.

Exhilaration swept through every student on the Azure Flame Dao Hall's side, sending their blood surging with excitement. At that moment, they longed to charge onto the arena themselves and slaughter the Celestial Moon Dao Hall students.

Hu Chou leaped from the arena after securing the early initiative for the Azure Flame Dao Hall. He walked straight to Liu Wuxie and offered him a deep, respectful bow.

Doubts about Liu Wuxie's guidance had troubled Hu Chou before, especially because Liu Wuxie had taught them so little during the previous three days. Only now did he understand that without Liu Wuxie's arrangements, the Celestial Moon Dao Hall students would have killed him.

"Go get some rest," Liu Wuxie said, dismissing Hu Chou with a casual wave.

Hu Chou's victory instantly raised the morale of every student who had once doubted Liu Wuxie. Confidence also surged through Qi Wen as he leaped into the arena where the previous match had ended.

The Celestial Moon Dao Hall still had two more students left to compete in the poison art category. After exchanging a glance, both jumped into the arena.

"Whatever happens, don't use the Thousand Venom Blossom," the poison art mentor warned. The previous round had proven deadly after all.

Both students nodded. Even without the warning, neither would have dared bring out the Thousand Venom Blossom again.

The three competitors assumed their positions, but the two Celestial Moon Dao Hall students had lost every trace of their earlier arrogance.

"I request a deathmatch," Qi Wen declared.

His decision caught the audience by surprise. The Azure Flame Dao Hall might have claimed the opening victory, but nothing guaranteed that fortune would continue favoring them.

"We accept your deathmatch," the two Celestial Moon Dao Hall students answered without hesitation.

Murderous intent slowly saturated the arena. None of the three moved recklessly, each waiting for an opponent to expose the first weakness.

The two Celestial Moon Dao Hall students broke the silence first, circling Qi Wen from opposite directions while searching for an opening.

Qi Wen blurred into motion with the agility of a hunting cat and lunged toward the student on his left. With a flick of his hand, he released a cluster of poisonous needles, which spread across the air like a flower bursting into bloom.

"You're courting death," the student on the left roared, erupting in fury and retaliating with a handful of his own poisonous needles.

Only then did the true contest of poison arts begin.

As the pair clashed, the student on the right abruptly attacked. Dozens of poisonous darts ripped through the air toward Qi Wen.

The battle gave Qi Wen no discernible advantage. Having learned from the previous match, the Celestial Moon Dao Hall students remained alert and were unlikely to fall into the same trap.

Poisonous needles collided in mid-air, scattering sparks with every impact. Before long, all three competitors found themselves trapped in a stalemate.

"Mentor Liu, Qi Wen doesn't appear to have much hope of winning," one of the mentors beside Liu Wuxie said, anxiety breaking through his composure. Everyone understood that Hu Chou had triumphed only because of an ingenious countermeasure.

The Celestial Moon Dao Hall had already suffered from that strategy once. There was no way its students would fall for the same trick again.

Li Wuxie merely smiled in response. Since arriving at the venue, he had hardly spoken, aside from publicly humiliating Li Baoshu.

"Kill him now," the Celestial Moon Dao Hall students roared, demanding that their two companions slaughter Qi Wen and avenge the pair who had died in the previous match.

The stalemate continued without resolution. All three competitors maintained extreme caution and refused to reveal their strongest methods prematurely. At that pace, the incense would likely burn out before anyone secured victory.

Gradually, the situation turned increasingly hostile toward the Azure Flame Dao Hall. Qi Wen's cultivation fell short of his opponents', so a prolonged battle would inevitably exhaust his immortal energy first. His supply of poisonous needles also dwindled rapidly, forcing him into a defensive stance.

"This is over. We're definitely losing this match," several Azure Flame Dao Hall students who hadn't been chosen for the competition murmured. Resentment toward Liu Wuxie smoldered within them because he had excluded them, though none possessed the courage to express it openly. Those at the higher levels of the True Immortal Realm felt especially bitter about not being selected.

Mocking remarks drifted through the crowd, particularly from the Shen and Zhu Clan students, whose hatred for Liu Wuxie ran especially deep. "Maybe losing would be better. At least it would prove that competing here requires actual qualifications," they taunted.

Liu Wuxie had expelled every mentor affiliated with the Shen and Zhu Clans, causing their students' status to plummet within the Azure Flame Dao Hall.

Just when everyone became convinced that Qi Wen's defeat was imminent, a needle cylinder appeared abruptly in his hand.

The spectators erupted in alarm the instant Qi Wen revealed the bamboo cylinder. "That's another Thousand Venom Blossom!" Unease spread especially quickly through the Celestial Moon Dao Hall's contingent.

The Celestial Moon Dao Hall had wielded the Thousand Venom Blossom earlier, only to watch Hu Chou neutralize it. Now the situation had reversed completely. Qi Wen held the weapon, while neither of his opponents had prepared a lodestone.

"That's fucking shameless," the Celestial Moon Dao Hall students cursed.

The Celestial Moon Dao Hall had invented the Thousand Venom Blossom, so no one understood how the Azure Flame Dao Hall could possess one. In truth, the weapon had been recovered from Tian Zijin's belongings and was finally being put to use.

The sudden reversal blindsided the entire Celestial Moon Dao Hall.

A dense storm of poisonous needles erupted from the bamboo cylinder, engulfing both students. They couldn't evade the attack, and the needles reached them in the blink of an eye.

In less than a split second, poisonous needles riddled both students from head to toe, turning them into human porcupines. Despair twisted their faces, for suffering defeat in such a manner felt especially infuriating.

"Oh, right. I forgot to tell you that I'm not carrying a lodestone," Qi Wen said. He casually tossed the Thousand Venom Blossom to the ground with a shrug.

His remark left everyone from the Celestial Moon Dao Hall feeling as though something had lodged painfully inside their chests. The poison art mentor appeared particularly aggrieved after repeatedly warning his students against using the Thousand Venom Blossom.

Only now did the mentor realize the gravity of his mistake. Had those two students unleashed the Thousand Venom Blossom immediately, Qi Wen would have been the one lying dead.

Laughter rolled throughout the venue as the surrounding spectators reveled in Qi Wen's remark.

Many spectators had begun sympathizing with the Celestial Moon Dao Hall. "The Azure Flame Dao Hall has gone too far with its shamelessness. They laid trap after trap, and the Celestial Moon Dao Hall lost far too unjustly." Its students hadn't lost because of inferior poison art, but because Liu Wuxie had outmaneuvered them strategically.

"There was nothing unjust about it. Liu Wuxie simply outsmarted them. Poison art differs from martial cultivation because ingenuity matters far more," someone commented.

Many spectators considered Liu Wuxie's victory magnificent. Qi Wen and Hu Chou might have fought inside the arena, but everyone recognized Liu Wuxie as the architect directing everything from behind the scenes.

The poison art category concluded with the victory of the Azure Flame Dao Hall, but the Celestial Moon Dao Hall paid a devastating price, losing four of its most gifted poison arts prodigies.

The Azure Flame Dao Hall's morale soared to new heights, and its students erupted into thunderous celebration.

"Mentor Liu! Mentor Liu!"

"Mentor Liu! Mentor Liu!"

"Mentor Liu! Mentor Liu!"

The students chanted Liu Wuxie's name with one voice, driving his prestige inside the Azure Flame Dao Hall to an unprecedented peak. No other mentor in the Dao Hall could rival his influence now.

A terrifying gloom covered the Celestial Moon Dao Hall's hall master. Losing two matches didn't frighten him, but suffering defeat through such public humiliation was something he couldn't accept.

They had openly announced that the Celestial Moon Dao Hall had devoted six months to preparing for this competition. Yet, after all that effort, Liu Wuxie had defeated them with only three days of preparation.

"It was merely a poison art competition. The true contest hasn't even started. Petty tricks may succeed once, but the Celestial Moon Dao Hall won't fall for them again," an elder from the Stormcloud Sect said, sneering.

"Exactly. The Celestial Moon Dao Hall will undoubtedly adjust its strategy from this point onward," several clan patriarchs agreed, nodding among themselves.

With magic art as the next category, the audience was eager to see if Liu Wuxie would produce another miracle. As with poison art, the Azure Flame Dao Hall had selected Du Zuo and Ye Chen as their representatives for this round.

The Celestial Moon Dao Hall, by comparison, had dispatched six students and divided them into two teams of three. Securing another victory would therefore prove extremely difficult for the Azure Flame Dao Hall.

Du Zuo and Ye Chen rose and walked toward the arena assigned to magic arts, where the Celestial Moon Dao Hall's representatives awaited them.

"Stay alert and don't fall into any of their traps. The instant you enter the arena, attack," the Celestial Moon Dao Hall's magic arts mentor ordered sternly.

The six students nodded in acknowledgment. After the earlier defeats, they knew that they couldn't offer the Azure Flame Dao Hall even the smallest opening.

Three students sprang forward with powerful leaps and landed in the arena.

Du Zuo gave Ye Chen a slight nod. Ye Chen stepped out and landed in one corner of the stage.

"If we win this match, Liu Wuxie, the Azure Flame Dao Hall must withdraw three hundred miles," an elder declared as he emerged from the Celestial Moon Dao Hall's ranks.

The territories belonging to the two Dao Halls met near Moonveil City. Losing this round would therefore force the Azure Flame Dao Hall to surrender Moonveil City in practice. The stakes had already transcended an ordinary competition, evolving into a territorial struggle between the two Dao Halls.

"Agreed. But if the Celestial Moon Dao Hall loses, the Azure Flame Dao Hall advances three hundred miles instead," Liu Wuxie replied, accepting the wager without hesitation.

Advancing the Azure Flame Dao Hall's territory by three hundred miles would place all of Moonveil City within its sphere of influence, greatly simplifying future student recruitment there.

Once both parties accepted the wager, this match represented far more than a simple victory or defeat.

Che Xiao, one of the three Celestial Moon Dao Hall students, asked, his sharpened gaze fixed upon Ye Chen, "Do you dare to accept a deathmatch?" Che Xiao was renowned for being a descendant of a saintess of the Magus Clan.

He had inherited most of his magical abilities from her, placing his mastery of magic arts unquestionably among the finest in the Celestial Moon Dao Hall. They had sent him out first to reclaim their lost momentum with a decisive victory.

"I accept your deathmatch," Ye Chen replied without the slightest hesitation.

"He's lost his mind! How could one man possibly defeat all three of them?" The surrounding spectators wondered whether Ye Chen had gone insane. Some even suspected that two consecutive victories had made the Azure Flame Dao Hall dangerously overconfident.

Discussions broke out through the surrounding crowd as countless gazes converged upon the arena. "Let's see whether Liu Wuxie prepared another trump card capable of overturning the situation."

A magic staff materialized in Che Xiao's hand, and he swept it through the air. Powerful waves of magical force rumbled from his body, stirring a fierce gale that whipped the clothing of countless spectators wildly around them.

"What incredibly pure magical force," spectators exclaimed in astonishment throughout the venue, sensing the purity of Che Xiao's magical force.

Even Ye Chen's expression grew solemn.

The other two students possessed magical force less pure than Che Xiao's, but no one could afford to underestimate them. Both released their magical force at once and joined Che Xiao in surrounding Ye Chen, trapping him within their encirclement.

Ye Chen reached into the air. Rather than producing a magic staff, he drew out a longbow.

After the dark and light factions of the Elven Race reconciled, Andaru had presented his longbow to Liu Wuxie.

"Siren's Perish Song!" Ye Chen intoned, beginning the spell he had spent the previous three days cultivating.