The three proud youths stilled.

“You are lesser, but you are so assured and bold when you use Ding Ning. You are really good,” Nangong Caishu glared at Xie Changsheng and spoke challengingly by his ear.

However, Xie Changsheng was not ashamed. He was slightly proud and said, “One must be assured and bold when fighting verbally. We have to first suppress the other through presence.”

“Your name?” The tall youth among the three proud youths bowed and directed this question to Ding Ning. He was Luo Duofeng, ranking eighty first on the Book of Talents.

Ding Ning said calmly, “Green Vine Sword School White Goat Cave, Ding Ning.”

“So you are Ding Ning? Green Vine Sword School’s Ding Ning. Ranked seventy second on the talent ranking?”

The eyes proud trio unconsciously landed on Xue Wangxu who was wearing a fur hat and dressed warmly. One look at the attitudes towards Xue Wangxu, and they immediately realized this person’s identity.

But their gazes immediately became strange.

“For the Guanzhong Xie Family, you use gold like it is dirt. I think you must have seen the Hongyan Academy’s Book of Talents.” Luo Duofeng’s lips curved upward. He pointed at the two youths next to him dressed in yellow robes, and said, “I cultivate at An Mountain Sword Tower. These two cultivate at Yellow Cloud Grotto-Heaven, and are Zhou Xieyi, ranking eighty six, and Xin Jianli, ranked ninety first, on the Book of Talents. Perhaps you know them?”

Zhang Yi, based on their uniforms, had originally suspected but was sure now. He could not help but show surprise.

Yellow Cloud Grotto-Heaven was a cultivation place on the same level as Shadow Mountain Sword Cave . They were much larger than White Goat Cave and Green Vine Sword School. Zhou Xieyi and Xin Jianli were famous in Changling. The two of them had reached realm three second class last year, and then left their schools to go to the border of the Qin Dynasty and Yuzhi Country. Supposedly, they had killed many horse bandits over there.

In reality, Zhang Yi did not know why the two of them were ranked so low. After reading the little book so intensely yesterday, he thought that Ding Ning would have some memory. But unexpectedly, when Ding Ning heard Luo Duofeng’s introduction, his gaze swept the two youths dressed in yellow robes and responded cleanly and calmly. “No memory.”

Zhang Yi was shocked. “Junior Sect Brother?”

Ding Ning looked coolly at him and said, “Why should I remember people who rank behind me?”

At these words, Xie Changsheng laughed out loud and felt that this “brother-in-law” was to his tastes.

At his words, Luo Duofeng, Zhou Xieyi, and Xin Jianli were furious. Xin Jianli, who had not spoken before this, sneered and said, “In reality, we do not understand why Hongyang Academy ranked you ahead of us.”

Xie Changsheng said smugly, “Now you understand the difference?”

Xin Jianli said expressionlessly, “No. I just understand that he ranks ahead of us because he has such a rich friend like you. If Hongyang Academy did not lack for money, why would they produce such a book. However, I am curious. Why didn’t you also put yourself on the ranking? Do you feel you are not strong enough, and will only embarrass yourself if you attend the Min Mountain Sword Trials?”

Xie Changsheng’s face underwent an immediate change. Furiously, he said, “You say that I bribed Hongyang Academy?”

Xin Jianli smiled coldly. “How would I know?”

Xie Changsheng still wanted to speak in his rage but Ding Ning glanced at him and said calmly, “There is nothing to argue about. While Hongyang Academy is not a cultivation place, they have many people worthy of respect. If these words spread, the ones being punished would not be us.”

“No one would believe the words of children.” Xin Jianli was not scared and laughed coldly. “In the end, verbal arguments are useless. It all depends on how strong someone’s sword is. Ding Ning, since you rank above us, if you dare accept, I will challenge you today.”

Ding Ning glanced at him and turned around without answering.

The trio immediately stilled. Xin Jianli scorned loudly, “What, you do not dare?”

“Since we have come so early this morning to watch the fight between these people, and we have spent so much money to buy this space, even if there is something, it will wait until we watch this fight.”

Ding Ning’s calm voice came from above the trio.

The three stilled again and looked. They saw that Chen Liufeng and Fang Wuque were preparing to start their fight on the stone platform opposite them.

“So they were waiting for people to send over unsharpened iron swords.” Nangong Caishu narrowed her eyes. When she saw the two swords being delivered to the platform were three feet long and their points were blunted while the edges were unsharpened like black rulers, she immediately realized.

With the pair’s cultivation and spirits, they naturally did not fear being wounded in their fight. The two of them used swords like this in order to pursue absolute fairness. These unsharpened iron swords that had several straight seal lines and could absorb vital energy to release sword energy had no tricks. They were the swords used in the Min Mountain Sword Trials.

In the preliminary rounds of Min Mountain Sword Trials, there would be elimination. All the fights would be fought using this kind of unsharpened iron sword. This could avoid large numbers of injuries and deaths of the participating youths, and people would not only rely on their swords, but also their comprehension of their sword manuals.

After understanding why Chen Liufeng and Fang Wuque were waiting, Nangong Caishu turned to look at Ding Ning and whispered in puzzlement. “You are purposefully infuriating them?”

Nangong Caishu’s eyes lit up. “You will fight them?”

Ding Ning nodded and said softly, “I should change Zhou Xieyi.”

Nangong Caishu stilled. Just now, the one who had been the most disdainful was Xie Changsheng, and the one ranking highest was Luo Duofeng. Zhou Xieyi was ranked in the middle. Why would Ding Ning choose this person?

“Look at the fight first.” Ding Ning knew she did not understand but he only looked at the other side of the river and spoke softly, with his eyebrows raised.

Nangong Caishu instinctively looked over. The fight they had been awaiting had started.

Gasps sounded.

“That person in black robes who looks as though people owe him money is Chen Liufeng, he’s attacking first.”

Xie Changsheng added as he finally recalled that he hadn’t answered Ding Ning who Chen Liufeng and Fang Wuque were before being interrupted by Luo Duofeng and the others.

At this time, there was no need for him to explain.

As Chen Liufeng moved, the black sword in his hand suddenly gave off sprays of blue sword energy. Many sword shadows spread in front of him. The clusters of blue sword energy connected together and seemed to form a great wave. His body was completely shrouded in a blue wave.

This clearly was the sword essence of Moon Sea Sword School.

Facing such an astounding opening move, Fang Wuque’s unsharpened iron sword only stabbed forward in a straight line. However, when the blunted tip reached its limit, his body and his wrist shook at the same time. In a flash, this sword created a dozen sword energies in an extremely small area.

Bam!

The straightforward sword energy in the air exploded. Once it did, a straight, conical shaped path formed. This straight path and the dozen sword energies coming off the sword looked like a spindle with a dozen chaotic threads flying through the air.

But in this moment, those threads all faded and disappeared. They were replaced by the gathering of primal energies of the universe that then exploded.

Boom!

Two spheres of light appeared suddenly on the stone platform. Gusts of air sprayed outwards with the two spheres in the center. The stone floor underneath the two spheres of light could not endure the attack from the gusts of air. They gave off dense and terrifying cracking sounds. Many cracks appeared on the stone platform and sprayed out large amounts of dust and shattered stone.

Another wave of gasps.

These exclamations were not out of fear the stone platform would collapse.

This kind of stone platform was old and appeared to have many cracks. However, they were made from thousands of pounds of stone that were layered and compressed together. Cultivators more powerful than these two had fought here before and the stone platform had been steady. The battle between this pair, naturally, could not destroy the stone platform.

The shocked exclamations were because Fang Wuque’s straight sword strike had formed a sword seal. This seemingly straight sword move carried such terrifying presence … Among the many proud young geniuses present, some were ranked lower in the Book of Talents while some had not made it to the rankings. Even so, they had all been defiant. But in this moment, they understood the reason.

The two opening moves were ones that the majority of people could not survive.

“So strong!”

“Amazing!”

Shen Yi’s face was pale. It took him two exclamations to express his present emotions.

As the sword lights faded slightly Chen Liufeng and Fang Wuque were just separated by three meters, surrounded by chaotic wind. The two appeared to have been evenly matched in the last contact, no one had been worse off.

Chen Liufeng gave a harsh scream. Pure vital energy sprayed out of his hands. He took a step towards the left, but the sword in his right hand struck towards his right side.

The black sword blade swelled with sword energy that tore apart the air. Then many deep blue droplets of water, that seemed to create a true wave of water in the air, formed!

Chen Liufeng’s iron sword carried this blue water wave that was multiple times larger than its body to slam towards Fang Wuque.

“Sea Clasping Slash!”

Some among the audience on the opposite shore recognized this sword move and shouted in shock.

Translator Ramblings: Does having the title of the chapter only come up at the end count as false advertising?