After the fight settled, the blond haired judge gave everyone half an hour to rest, allowing the disciples to socialize and discuss the matches.

  They spoke about the intetle between Savage and Krieger, the hard fought draw between Emilia and Amalia, Alex's ruthlessness, and many hts,even how Daoist Water Lake lost to Yuan.

  However, not everyone participated in the cheerful discussions. Alex and his oppo remained silent, o of shame, the other too indifferent to care. Meanwhile, Emilia and Amalia spoke as if they had been friends for years, their previous battle f an ued bond.

  Siheir match had ended in a draw, the blond haired judge had decred both of them eliminated, leaving only nine disciples from the inal twenty.

  But as the rest period came to an end

  BANG!

  A loud cp echoed across the cave, instantly grabbing everyone's attention.

  "Attention, please! Juniors, the tour will now resume!"

  The blond haired judge smiled with his usual easygoing expression.

  A few disciples winced, nearly deafened by the thunderous g, but the judge paid them no mind and tinued speaking.

  "Since we have nine juniors left, and och resulted in a draw, one disciple will automatically advao the round without having to fight in this round!"

  At this annou, several disciples who khey stood little ce of winning perked up iement.

  They prayed silently, hoping that luck would favor them,because if they could skip this round, they would automatically reach the round. And ohere, they could simply forfeit and still walk away with an impressive tour score.

  A rare ce. A golden opportunity.

  But as

  The heavens clearly did not favor them.

  "The one who will advahout fighting in the sed round is,Krieger!"

  "gratutions, Junior, on your free win!"

  The moment Krieger's name was called, some disciples ched their fists in frustration. Others scowled in jealousy, sending him ugly gres.

  But Krieger, ever the noble knight, simply bowed gracefully and thahe judge for the opportunity.

  The blond haired judge nodded approvingly at Krieger's calm demeanor before moving on.

  "Now, for the first fight of the sed round Junior Zi Mo and Junior Li !"

  At the mention of their he two disciples stepped forward, fag each other.

  And so

  The crowd waited with curiosity.

  Would this fight prove to be a real battle?

  Or another disappoi?

  The answer became clear the moment they cshed.

  Because this

  Wasn't a fight at all.

  As soon as their names were called, Zi Mo and Li stepped forward, standing opposite each other in the middle of the storaining ground.

  Zi Mo's dark blue robe swayed slightly as he took his stance, gripping his sword firmly. His bck hair was tied back, revealing sharp yet focused features. Though not a top-tier genius, his ability to bles, swordpy, and kicks made him a petent fighter.

  Li , oher hand, wore a violet robe embroidered with flower patterns. Her bright green eyes were calm, her stance rexed but firm, exuding fidence.

  Despite being one of Emilia's new friends, many disciples knew little about her strength. In her previous match, her victory had beeo luck rather than skill, so no one expected much from her.

  The blond haired judge raised his hand and smiled.

  "Begin!"

  The moment the words fell

  Zi Mo moved first.

  His feet slid across the stone ground with practiced ease, and in the blink of an eye, he closed the distance, sshing diagonally at Li 's shoulder.

  Fast.

  But not fast enough.

  Li tilted her head slightly, allowing the sword to pass mere inches away before stepping back effortlessly.

  Zi Mo, however, was already expeg this.

  The moment his first attack missed, he adjusted his stand swiftly executed a horizontal feint, pulling back his sword at the st moment before spinning into a low sweeping kick aimed directly at her legs.

  A fake out into a real attack.

  Yet

  Li 's body barely moved, her gaze focused, her breath steady.

  She lifted her foot at the exaent his leg swept past, avoiding the kick with graceful precision.

  Zi Mo frowned.

  She dodged… again?

  He didn't hesitate.

  Pushing off the ground, he lunged forward and unleashed a quick series of sword thrusts, aiming at her chest, stomach, and shoulder, testing her rea speed.

  But every single one of them missed.

  Li 's movements were fluid and trolled, her footwork light and effortless, as if she weren't even trying.

  At first, the watg disciples were impressed by Zi Mo's teiques,his footwork was sharp, his feints were clever, and his kicks were uable.

  But soon, they began to notiething strange.

  Li wasn't attag.

  She was only dodging.

  And she wasn't even struggling.

  It was like she ying with him.

  A flicker of amusement appeared in her green eyes as she finally spoke, her voice light but clear.

  "You're fast," she said, dodgi atack with a subtle step to the side.

  Zi Mo gritted his teeth, feeling his frustration grow.

  Why 't I hit her?!

  He ched his sword tighter and unched atack

  This time with more speed, more strength, more uability.

  A diagonal ssh,she stepped back.

  A sudden reverse thrust,she tilted her body.

  A spinning kick,she ducked.

  No matter what he tried,it was useless.

  Because Li wasn't fighting him.

  She was studying him.

  Every dodge, every step, every slight movement

  She was analyzing his patterns, his habits, his instincts.

  And then

  After only a few exges

  Her gaze sharpened.

  A sed ter

  She moved.

  Faster than before.

  And this time

  She didn't dodge.

  She attacked.

  Zi Mo barely saw her step forward, her rapier flickering in the dim light as she suddenly thrust toward his exposed side.

  His instincts screamed at him to block, but his rea was a fra of a sed too te.

  CRACK!

  The wooden bde of her spear smmed into his ribs,not enough to break anything, but enough to send a sharp jolt of pain through his body.

  Zi Mo stumbled.

  But before he could recover

  THWACK!

  A sed strike nded ly on his wrist, nearly making him drop his sword.

  And then

  A third hit,a stab to his chest,f him to stagger back several steps, his banpletely broken.

  Gasps filled the cave as the watg disciples finally realized what was happening.

  Li had been waiting the eime.

  She had only observed and analyzed,until she found an opening.

  And once she did

  She struck like lightning.

  Zi Mo was reeling now, his breathing heavy, his footing unsteady.

  But Li ?

  She hadn't even broken a sweat.

  She lowered her rapier slightly, looking at him with a ral expression.

  "You're not bad," she admitted, tilting her head. "But you should stop relying os so much."

  Zi Mo ched his jaw.

  She saw through me pletely…

  Before he could regain his posture, Li moved again.

  Oep.

  Two steps.

  A precise, effortless strike aimed directly at his dominant hand.

  And with that

  Zi Mo's sword flew from his grip, cttering onto the stone ground.

  Silence filled the cave.

  Zi Mo froze, his defeat undeniable.

  Li took a step bad lowered her on.

  "I win" she said simply.

  The blond haired judge let out a chuckle.

  "Winner,Junior Li !"

  The moment her victory was announced, murmurs erupted among the disciples.

  "That was too fast!"

  "Zi Mo couldn't do anything… Did she read his every move?"

  "She barely attacked until the end…"

  Meanwhile, Zi Mo sighed, rubbing his sore wrist before bending down to pick up his sword.

  He wasn't angry.

  He was humbled.

  Turning to Li , he bowed slightly.

  "…I lost."

  Li simply smiled and nodded.

  "Maybe ime, you'll try something other thas."

  Hearing this, Zi Mo let out a tired chuckle.

  "Maybe."

  As he walked away, Li turned her gaze toward the other disciples, her expression calm but unshaken.

  She hadn't beeo prove herself.

  She was simply to for this fight.

  standing among the remaining disciples, Yuan observed the fight with an indifferent gaze, his posture rexed, yet his mind fully engaged.

  From the very first exge, he could tell

  Zi Mo had already lost.

  It wasn't because he cked talent.Nor was it because his attacks were slow.

  It was because of Li .

  She wasn't fighting like the others.

  She was .

  Analyzing.

  Waiting.

  Yuan's lips curled slightly in amusement.

  Iing.

  Uhe reckless and impatient fights he had seen before, this one carried a level of intelligehat was rare among low level cultivators.

  It was subtle.It was methodical.It was effit.

  But the problem wasn't Li .

  The real problem was Zi Mo.

  His swordpy was det.His feints were .His footwork wasn't bad.

  But there was oal fw

  He's predictable.

  Every move he made folloattern.Every feint had an iion that was easy to read.Every strike was a textbook execution,and that was the issue.

  He fought like someone who had never faced a real oppo before.

  He had trained in teiques but had no true instincts.

  Teiques without adaptability are nothing more than a dance.

  Yuan sighed slightly, already knowing how this would end.

  And, just as expected

  Li found her opening.

  She read him like a book, dodged everything with ease, and wheime was right,she struly once.

  And it was over.

  Zi Mo ood a ce.

  As the blond haired judge decred Li as the winner, Yuan closed his eyes, his mind shifting through what he had just witnessed.

  'She has trol. Patience. A sharp mind.'

  But she was still too soft.

  Her strikes were precise, but not lethal.Her analysis was sharp, but not ruthless.

  She dominated Zi Mo, yet never once went for the kill.

  Yuan leaned back, exhaling lightly.

  A good fight.A good spar between children.

  Still, he found himself mildly eained.

  Li had potential.

  But whether she would survive long enough to refi

  That was airely different matter.

  And so, anht ended.

  Although the result was a bit ued, the disciples quickly moved on, their cheers filling the training grounds as the tour tinued.

  One fight after another.

  Alex faced a stronger oppohan before, but at the end of the day, it was just another warm-up for him. His victory wasn't iion,only the time it would take.

  Schor Felix also fought, and unlike Alex, his match was a close one.

  Both fighters were evenly matched, g repeatedly in a battle of teique and endurance. But in the end, Felix mao secure the win.

  And now, only one fight remained.

  The final match of the sed round.

  A fight that many disciples were looking forward to.

  The blond haired judge stepped forward, his usual bright smile on his face as he called out the petitors.

  "Junior Yuan and Junior Ming Tao, step forward!"

  At his and, both fighters ehe battleground.

  Yuan, with his usual casual expression, walked calmly into position.

  Opposite him stood Ming Tao, a handsome young man dark robes, his bck hair ly tied back, his sharp eyes filled with quiet fidence.

  Ming Tao had put on a det performan his previous matot extraordinary, but solid for his level. He wasn't the stro petitor here, but he wasn't someoo be uimated, either.

  As both fighters faced each other, the blond haired judge raised an eyebrow and asked,

  "What on do you choose?"

  Yuan barely hesitated before answering.

  "A sword."

  The judge nodded and tossed a training sword to him. Yuan caught it effortlessly, giving it a few quick swings to test its weight before nodding in approval.

  Then, the judge turo Ming Tao.

  "And you?"

  Ming Tao's lips curled into a fident smirk.

  "An axe."

  A moment ter, a heavy wooden axe was thrown his way, which he caught with one hand, spinning it once before resting it on his shoulder.

  The trast was clear.

  The tension in the air grew thick.

  The crowd watched in silence.

  And then

  "Begin!"

  The match had officially started.