Chapter 370 - 369: Cloud Sea Sword Array
Cold. An endless cold!
It was a bone-chilling cold, like the very aura of death drifting up from the Nine Netherworld Hell.
The crowd had never imagined that a Sky-Controlling Martial Artist could possess such a terrifyingly immense killing intent—one that plunged the surrounding space into what felt like the depths of winter.
"What is your name."
Qin Ya spoke with indifference, his eyes devoid of sorrow or joy, like two pieces of ice that had never thawed, radiating an ultimate chill.
Stared at by those eyes, the Blood-Robed Youth felt a chill run through him. He too was a man long accustomed to slaughter, with a mental fortitude far exceeding others in his realm, yet at this moment, he still felt a sliver of terror!
Seeing this, the pupils of the old man behind the youth contracted. With a flicker of movement, he instantly shielded the youth, his expression wary as he stared intently at Qin Ya.
The old man had spent years teetering on the edge of life and death, and he possessed an incredibly sharp intuition for danger. Right now, that intuition was screaming at him: Qin Ya was extremely dangerous!
Like a suppressed volcano, ready to erupt at any moment!
He had never felt such a presence, not even from some Half-Step Kings, yet today he was seeing it from someone whose cultivation had not even reached the Celestial Human Realm!
It was unbelievable, but he did not doubt his own intuition!
"Young friend, may I ask what business you have with my young master?"
Qin Ya didn’t answer. He held Jing’er tightly, who was no longer screaming but was trembling ceaselessly, and cast his gaze upon the old man and the Blood-Robed Youth. "I’ll ask you one thing," he said. "About two months ago, did you slaughter a town?"
At these words, the faces of the youth and the old man changed slightly before quickly returning to normal.
The old man immediately said, "No. Why would we do such a thing!"
He now understood. That was why the little girl had screamed, and why Qin Ya was unleashing such terrifying killing intent toward the youth. It was all because of this matter.
But how could the change in their expressions escape Qin Ya’s notice? He gave a soft chuckle, but the killing intent hidden within his smile was enough to make one’s blood run cold. Beside him, Muh Qing shivered and couldn’t help but pull her clothes tighter.
’Kid, do you suspect those two are related to that incident?’
’Yes. Otherwise, Jing’er wouldn’t have had such a strong reaction to seeing that youth. Those two are inextricably linked to the slaughter of those towns.’
’But that incident... it didn’t seem like the work of humans.’
’I know. I’ll get to the bottom of it.’
’Kid, this is Kunyun Palace. You can’t act recklessly.’
’I know what I’m doing.’
After this exchange with Ting Xiao via Divine Thought, Qin Ya gradually reined in his murderous aura and barked coldly at the two, "Stay away from my sister!"
Qin Ya took out an elixir meant to calm the mind and had Jing’er swallow it, which slowly helped her return to normal. But the killing intent in Qin Ya’s heart had not diminished in the slightest.
If this weren’t Kunyun Palace, he would have already moved to capture them!
"You brat..."
The Blood-Robed Youth wanted to say more, but the old man stopped him.
At that moment, up on the Golden Summit, Xu Zhenhong’s expression darkened. He spoke in a deep voice, "Silence! Anyone who makes another sound will have their eligibility for the convention revoked!"
The Blood-Robed Youth shot Qin Ya a cold, sinister glare before finally letting the matter drop.
"The first trial of the convention will now begin."
Xu Zhenhong snorted coldly and waved his hand. Immediately, innumerable golden runes rained down from the light screen in the sky. The golden runes flowed, glowing with a mysterious light, and gradually formed a Grand Array that radiated an endless sharpness!
"Those who can last for one hour inside the Sword Array may pass."
"The Sword Array’s power will automatically adjust to the cultivation of the one who enters. You need not worry that someone might pass easily simply because their cultivation is higher."
"Now, who will be the first to enter the array!"
The brocade-robed old man with the highest cultivation among the crowd slowly stepped forward and said, "What a fine Sword Array. Allow this old man to be the first to experience your esteemed sect’s Grand Array."
The brocade-robed old man smiled and stepped into the Grand Array.
Seeing this, Xu Zhenhong nodded and instantly activated the Grand Array.
In an instant, the golden Array Patterns radiated endless light. Then, plumes of white, cloud-like qi began to spread, transforming the thousand-zhang area within the Grand Array into what looked like a Cloud Sea. The brocade-robed old man dared not relax in the slightest, and just as he expected, terrifying streams of Sword Qi suddenly shot out from the clouds. They converged on him from all directions like a torrential downpour!
The Sword Qi was immensely powerful. Any single stream was enough to cleave mountains and sunder rivers. The crowd far outside the Grand Array could even feel its sharp aura, a stinging sensation on their skin. For a moment, everyone was left in awe.
’A Pseudo-Spiritual Level Array, the Cloud Sea Sword Array!’
The Ting Xiao Sword at Qin Ya’s waist trembled slightly as its Divine Thought transmitted: ’The Cloud Sea Sword Array is incredibly powerful. At full capacity, it could even slay a King! To think they would use such a terrifying Grand Array for the very first trial.’
The Sword Qi crisscrossed within the Grand Array without any discernible pattern. The brocade-robed old man had no choice but to face it with his full strength, erupting with True Essence and using every trick in his arsenal to defend himself.
After more than half an hour, the power of the Sword Qi had not diminished in the slightest. Having been on high alert and running his Divine Thought at full capacity for so long, the brocade-robed old man was beginning to feel a trace of fatigue. In a moment of distraction, a stream of Sword Qi shot past!
The brocade-robed old man was startled and hastily defended himself, but he still suffered a minor injury.
He forced himself to focus, concentrating his spirit to deal with the assault.
After an hour, the Sword Qi finally, slowly dissipated. The brocade-robed old man let out a breath of relief and walked out of the Grand Array, a hint of joy appearing on his face.
"Your control of Divine Thought is clumsy, your alertness is lacking, your combat reactions are sluggish, and your grasp of the Mysteries is pathetic. Barely qualified!"
Xu Zhenhong spoke coldly. The joy on the brocade-robed old man’s face vanished instantly, replaced by shame and anger. But he didn’t dare lash out, standing silently to the side.
"Next."
A sword-wielding youth stepped forward and entered the Grand Array in a flash.
The Cloud Sea Sword Array activated. The clouds rose, and Sword Qi crisscrossed the air!
The sword-wielding youth’s cultivation was only at Sky-Controlling Perfection, so the Grand Array’s power was much lower than before. Each stream of Sword Qi was at most equivalent to the Sky-Controlling Realm.
But even so, the sword-wielding youth was struggling.
In the end, after half an hour, the sword-wielding youth made a careless mistake and was struck by the Sword Qi, suffering heavy injuries. Xu Zhenhong instantly shut down the Grand Array and released him, then announced coldly, "Trial failed. Your eligibility for the convention is revoked."
The sword-wielding youth’s face flushed with shame and anger. He unwillingly handed over his Cyan Cloud Order, swallowed an Elixir, and turned to leave. The strictness of the trial made the expressions of the crowd turn solemn.
"A bunch of trash."
Just then, the Blood-Robed Youth snorted coldly and stepped into the Cloud Sea Sword Array. His figure flickered and shifted, shrouded in a blood mist, and the countless streams of Sword Qi were actually unable to harm him in the slightest. But as the Sword Qi grew denser, he gradually found himself unable to dodge. He showed no sign of panic, however. Standing his ground, he erupted with True Essence, and the endless blood mist condensed into a massive Blood-Colored Dharma Aspect, which shattered the incoming Sword Qi to pieces!
"A Dharma Aspect!"
"That youth has actually reached the Celestial Human Realm!"
"Such incredible talent."
"He probably has the best talent in this Kunn Mountain Convention."
"Not necessarily. Did you all forget that other young man from before? That terrifying killing intent... even now, just thinking about it makes my heart run cold."
"So what? He’s merely in the Sky-Controlling Realm."