Chapter 73: A Shocking Battle in the City (Nine)

"Haha, good!" Tie Hengjun let out a loud laugh, his eyes instantly regaining their cold intensity. "To be honest, I suddenly found myself hoping to be defeated by Brother Yun. Nevertheless, I certainly won't hold back!" He swept his silver spear and bellowed, "Take this spear attack... Rising Sun Dragon!"

A massive surge of power condensed on the spear. As the Cloud Piercing Spear danced, people in the hall faintly heard the roar of a dragon, and expressions of astonishment appeared on their faces. At that moment, the Cloud Piercing Spear swept towards Yun Che. This move could either thrust or sweep; a thrust was unstoppable, while a sweep could decimate an army. Tie Hengjun chose to sweep, clearly because he understood the spear's power too well. If he had thrust, he would have feared Yun Che might not evade in time under the pressure and suffer severe injury. A sweep, however, made it easier to strike Yun Che without causing irreparable harm.

The silver spear descended, carrying an astonishing momentum, like a collapsing mountain, a surging tsunami, and gathering storm clouds. The force of this spear strike was undoubtedly superior to any of Tie Hengjun's previous attacks.

However, what surprised Tie Hengjun and shocked everyone else was that, facing such terrifying power, Yun Che didn't choose to evade with his mysterious and profound movement technique. Instead, he stood still, raised his right arm horizontally, and directly met the sweeping Cloud Piercing Spear.

"Holy cow! Is he crazy?!" numerous disciples in the hall shouted out.

"Dodge it, quickly!" the four elders of the New Moon Profound Palace all bellowed. As powerful experts far surpassing the younger generation, they naturally saw the astonishing might contained in Tie Hengjun's spear strike.

Yun Che, however, ignored them. His arm instead accelerated, powerfully striking the Cloud Piercing Spear, which contained immense might.

Clang!!A harsh metallic clang echoed through the hall. When Yun Che's arm collided with the Cloud Piercing Spear, Tie Hengjun had expected this single strike to sweep him dozens of meters away. But in that instant, his pupils suddenly constricted to the size of a needlepoint, because he felt his Cloud Piercing Spear had struck an indestructible, incredibly thick steel plate. A massive counter-force abruptly surged back.

Tie Hengjun's chest tightened. His body flipped backward, and after landing, he staggered back five or six steps before barely regaining his balance. His arms, clutching the spear, felt faintly numb. If his mastery over the spear hadn't been ingrained so deeply, the sudden counter-force would have been enough to make him drop his silver spear.

In contrast, Yun Che only retreated two or three steps before standing firm. He shook his right arm, which also felt somewhat numb, and smiled faintly.

"Wh-what?!" Tie Hengjun's father, Tie Zhancang, the Sect Master of the Iron Spear Sect, abruptly stood up. This man, who commanded respect in New Moon City and was one of the seven great sect masters, was so shocked by this scene that he lost his composure on the spot! As the Sect Master of the Iron Spear Sect, he knew better than anyone the terrifying power of Tie Hengjun's "Rising Sun Dragon" move. Even an opponent with profound strength three levels higher than Tie Hengjun might not be able to withstand it head-on.

Yet Yun Che, with only first-level Nascent Profound Realm profound strength, actually... actually!!!!

If Tie Zhancang was like this, there was no need to mention others. The disciples of the Iron Spear Sect were so astonished their jaws nearly dropped to the floor, and the four elders of the New Moon Profound Palace almost had their eyeballs pop out of their sockets. In this short span, Yun Che had shocked them repeatedly; this time, they were so startled they nearly lost their composure and cried out on the spot.

After directly withstanding this spear strike, Yun Che's gaze became even calmer, because he knew he would still win this fight. Although "Evil Soul" was only the weakest first realm of the Evil God Arts, its terrifying power still far exceeded his expectations. He looked at the dazed Tie Hengjun and smiled faintly, "Brother Tie, it's my turn to attack!"

Yun Che stepped forward. Then, like a swimming dragon, he instantly closed in on Tie Hengjun. Tie Hengjun's mental fortitude was indeed incomparable to his peers; he quickly recovered from his shock. His Cloud Piercing Spear flashed up like lightning, sweeping towards Yun Che, who was already close.

The Cloud Piercing Spear collided with Yun Che's right fist, and another deafening metallic clang resounded. Tie Hengjun's body leaned back, his arm went numb, and he almost lost his grip on the spear. His heart was filled with inexplicable horror. Profound strength at the fourth level of the Nascent Profound Realm, combined with his spear's momentum, was actually blocked so easily by a fist. How could this be the power of someone in the first level of the Nascent Profound Realm!

In his shock, Tie Hengjun took a deep breath, releasing all his profound strength without reservation. His mastery over the spear was pushed to its absolute limit, as the Cloud Piercing Spear conjured countless spear shadows, enveloping Yun Che's entire body.

Clang...The Cloud Piercing Spear and Yun Che's fists collided over a dozen times in quick succession, creating an incredibly dense metallic hum. In the final collision, Yun Che's gaze sharpened, and both fists struck the Cloud Piercing Spear squarely.

Clang!!!!"Ugh!" Tie Hengjun grunted. As if struck by an irresistible storm, he staggered backward, retreating over a dozen steps before stopping. His hands, holding the Cloud Piercing Spear, trembled uncontrollably.

Yun Che lowered his hands. He looked at Tie Hengjun with a calm gaze, but did not press his attack further.

Tie Hengjun let out a long breath. He retracted the Cloud Piercing Spear into his spatial ring, stood straight, and gave Yun Che a grateful smile, saying, "Brother Yun, I've lost. I'm completely convinced."

Others couldn't know, but Tie Hengjun was keenly aware that the final collision had completely exceeded his endurance, enough to make his Cloud Piercing Spear fly from his grasp. Yet, just as his Cloud Piercing Spear was about to slip, that powerful profound energy was suddenly withdrawn. The Iron Spear Sect was named after the spear, showing its reverence for the weapon. Before the fight, Tie Hengjun had also told Yun Che that the Cloud Piercing Spear was his fated companion, never leaving his side. For such a person, having one's weapon struck from their hand was a tremendous humiliation, almost harder to accept than death itself.

"If possible, I sincerely wish to be friends with Brother Yun," Tie Hengjun said.

"With those words, we are already friends," Yun Che smiled faintly.

Tie Hengjun was momentarily stunned. Then, he clasped his fist towards Yun Che, gave a sincere smile, and gracefully walked away.

"Father, I've lost. I'm completely convinced of my defeat, and I'm quite happy about it," Tie Hengjun said calmly as he walked beside his father, Tie Zhancang.

"That was truly an excellent sparring match." Tie Zhancang praised him sincerely, "Your progress both surprises and pleases me. Although you lost, it's certainly not because you are weak; rather, your improvement has exceeded my expectations. It's this child named Yun Che..." He gazed deeply at Yun Che. "This child will surely become a true dragon among the clouds in the future. However, this time he has offended almost all the major sects in New Moon City at once. You should know what he might face next. Even so, do you still want to be friends with him?"

Tie Hengjun nodded without hesitation.

"Good! That's a true man, that's my son, Tie Zhancang's son," Tie Zhancang let out a hearty laugh.

The hall was already in an uproar.

"He actually defeated Tie Hengjun! My god! Am I dreaming?!""Is he really only at the first level of the Nascent Profound Realm? *Hiss*, how is that possible! It's terrifying... truly terrifying!"

Tie Hengjun was an undisputed genius, but this Yun Che was simply a monster!

The various sect masters and elders of the Seven Sects couldn't help but focus their attention on Yun Che. The New Moon Profound Palace, which they had always looked down upon, had actually produced such a figure. He had defeated Xuan Yu of the Profound Heart Sect, Yan Ming of the Cloud Yang Sect, Feng Guangyi of the Wind Cloud Profound Palace, and Tie Hengjun, the Young Sect Master of the Iron Spear Sect – all with only first-level Nascent Profound Realm profound strength. This was something absolutely unbelievable without witnessing it firsthand!

Their original plan to give the new Palace Master a hard time, as they usually did, was completely disrupted by Yun Che alone. Instead, it became his personal performance. Moreover, it allowed the New Moon Profound Palace to thoroughly assert its dominance in front of them, repeatedly humiliating them.

"Brother-in-law... Is that really my brother-in-law?" Xia Yuanba stared wide-eyed, gazing at the imposing figure in the center of the hall, who was drawing everyone's attention. He simply couldn't connect this person with the crippled profound practitioner, Yun Che, who had been subjected to endless mockery and contempt, and whom he had always needed to protect.

The male disciples of the New Moon Profound Palace clenched their fists, their eyes blazing with excitement, unable to express their current emotions. Meanwhile, the female disciples looked at Yun Che with starry eyes. Especially Ye Hongling, who had spoken to Yun Che earlier, couldn't help but blush at the thought of having told him, "Your big sister will protect you." How incredibly presumptuous that must have sounded.

Of course, there were also those filled with envy, jealousy, and hatred, such as Murong Ye.

As the surrounding disciples cheered for Yun Che under their breath, Murong Ye continually sneered. He felt bitter inside because Yun Che had stolen too much of the limelight, and on this occasion, he had allowed all the New Moon Profound Palace disciples to puff out their chests with pride. It was conceivable how popular Yun Che would become in the New Moon Profound Palace from now on; he might even far surpass Murong Ye, who had always been the most prominent figure in the New Moon Profound Palace.

When he looked at Lan Xueruo and saw her gazing at Yun Che without blinking, with an unusual brilliance in her beautiful eyes that she had never shown him, his jealousy erupted wildly within him. He clenched his teeth tightly. "He's just a wild kid from a remote small town, only at the first level of the Nascent Profound Realm! Go ahead and enjoy your moment in the spotlight today. After today, I'll let you know who the real boss of the New Moon Profound Palace is!"

"Including Brother Tie, that's four... Who's next?"

Yun Che stood in the center of the hall, looking at the Seven Sects and issuing another challenge.

Defeating Feng Guangyi had already deterred anyone in the sixteen-year-old age group from daring to challenge. Now, having also defeated Tie Hengjun, naturally no one in the sixteen-year-old age group dared to respond. After waiting for nearly half a minute, none of the Seven Sects responded. At that moment, a voice full of disdain rang out, "For the sixteen-year-old age group, the disciples we brought are lacking in both quantity and quality. In the sixteen-year-old age group, we admit defeat. Heh heh, dare you let your Profound Palace's seventeen and eighteen-year-old disciples come up and spar with us?"

As soon as these words were spoken, they immediately drew responses from the Seven Sects. Yun Che, however, let out a cold laugh. "You want to challenge disciples of our New Moon Profound Palace who are older than sixteen? You can, but you should at least defeat me, a sixteen-year-old, first, right? Otherwise, what right do you have to challenge my senior brothers and sisters? Heh, this elder brother who just spoke, you look like you're about ten years old, don't you? Why don't you challenge me, a sixteen-year-old New Moon Profound Palace disciple? If you defeat me, you can challenge any senior brother or sister you wish. But if you can't even defeat a sixteen-year-old like me, heh..."

People looked at the speaker. When he raised his head, everyone's gaze suddenly fixated. The New Moon Profound Palace disciples who were about to shout instantly fell silent, and the elders of the New Moon Profound Palace also showed expressions of shock.

This person... this person is...

The ten-year-old with a slightly pale face cast an indifferent glance, like stagnant water, at Yun Che. He then gave a supremely disdainful smile, as if he had heard some low-brow and boring joke. "Your meaning... you want to challenge me?"