10 Tan Yanyan
"Winner: Tan Yanyan!"
Tan Yanyan obviously won the fight but Song Yang noticed that Xia Zilin had made a lot of progress compared to the first time they fought together, he was proud of her.
Tan Yanyan and Xia Zilin left the stage and walked back towards Song Yang who smiled at them.
"It was a good fight!" Exclaimed Song Yang.
"Yes, it was. With a little more training, Sister Zilin can become very strong!" Praised Tan Yanyan.
"Thanks, you two." Said Xia Zilin, smiling.
"Seventh fight: Zhao Tang against Su Lin." Announced the elder
"I surrender." Immediately exclaimed Su Lin. He knew that he couldn't win against one of the Twin Stars.
"Alright. Winner: Zhao Tang!"
"Eighth fight: Hu Xia against Xiao Yu." Announced the elder
Song Yang heard that Hu Xia was from a famous family so he was interested in seeing his fight.
The boy was fourteen years old but he was tall and had strong facial features with a scar under his left eye that gave him a fierce look. The thing that drew the most attention about him was the two crossed swords he carried behind his back.
'So, he is a swordsman.' Thought Song Yang.
Hu Xia walked on the stage, took out his swords, and put himself in position waiting for Xiao Yu to face him.
His body was slightly bent, he was holding the sword in his right hand in front of him and the sword in his left hand behind him.
"Begin!"
Slash! Slash!
In a second, Hu Xia was already in front of Xiao Yu and cut off his torso forming a cross. Xiao Yu didn't even understand what happened. When he saw blood leaking from his chest, he fell to the ground, unconscious.
'So fast!' Thought Song Yang, amazed by the boy's skill.
"Winner: Hu Xia!"
"So, this is the famous Hu family's sword skill? Really amazing!"
"Young Master Hu Xia is so skilled despite his young age, no wonder he is the heir of his family!"
Some people commented about the match before the elder announced the last match of this round.
"Ninth fight: Long Bin against Liu Jin." Announced the elder
The two boys weren't exactly skilled, so their fight lasted a long time. After a few minutes, Long Bin started to have the advantage and ended up winning after knocking out his opponent with a powerful punch.
"Winner: Long Bin!"
"We will take half an hour of break before starting the second round." Announced the elder.
The break allowed the disciples to recover their stamina and also to replenish their QI.
Song Yang really needed this break as he used a lot of Qi during his fight against Zhao Jian. He was only at the second level of the Eight Meridians Opening realm so his Qi reserve was still low.
Just as the elder finished his announcement, a young man wearing a blue Taoist robe and flying on a big sword suddenly landed among the disciples.
The young man seemed to be in his early twenties, he had mid-long black hair, deep black eyes, thick eyebrows, and a small nose. His fair face exuded maturity and refinement despite his young age. He was undoubtedly handsome.
"This is an inner disciple!"
"Why is there an inner disciple here?"
"So cool!"
The outer disciples were all looking at him with awe and respect.
"Big Brother!" Suddenly exclaimed Tan Yanyan.
The young man turned to the person who called him and smiled widely.
"Little Sister Yanyan, long time no see! I miss you." He said.
"I miss you too. Why didn't you come to see me earlier?" She asked, pouting.
"Well, I was on a long mission for the sect and just came back."
"I understand."
"So, how were your first days in the sect? How are your two roommates? They don't bully you, right?" He asked.
"Of course, not. They are really cool and nice. Let me introduce them to you. This is Sister Yu Qi and Sister Zilin." She answered.
"Nice to meet you." Said Xia Zilin.
"So, you are the famous big brother of Sister Yanyan? She often talks about you." Said Song Yang, smiling.
"Really? In good terms, I hope." He said, laughing.
"Of course!" Immediately said Tan Yanyan, blushing.
"Since you two are close to my dear sister, you can call me Big Brother Feng." He said.
The four of them talked until the end of the break.
Song Yang really enjoyed talking with him. He was a nice and funny guy who was not arrogant and didn't abuse his position as an inner disciple.
While talking with him, he learned that some missions for the sect could last several months and make them travel across the whole continent! That excited him as he really wanted to explore the world.
He also learned that Tan Yanyan and her brother were from a martial family living in the Sun Empire. That explained why she was so skilled.
Xia Zilin was also from the Sun Empire but she was not living in the same city as Tan Yanyan's family. Since her father was a famous 1-star Alchemist, she enjoyed a high status despite not being a noble or from a martial family.
"I'm sorry I can't stay longer than that. I have to go and make a report to an elder." Said Tan Feng.
"I understand. Take care of you, Big Brother." Said Tan Yanyan.
"You too. And good luck for the tournament, I believe in you." He said before summoning his Flying Sword and flying away.
'So cool!' Thought Song Yang. He really wanted to fly too! He learned from Tan Feng that it was only after reaching the Qi Condensation realm that he would be able to use a Flying Sword.
...
"Alright, the break is over! We will now start the second round!" Announced the elder.
The second round was the Eighth-finals of the tournament.
"First fight: Huo Si Yan against Yu Zhe!"
Yu Zhe was one of the seven disciples who directly reached the second round without having to fight.
The two of them fought for a few minutes but finally, it was Huo Si Yan who won the fight.
"Second fight: Li Qiang against Du Zhao!"
Li Qiang once again won his fight in one move.
"Third fight: Song Yu Qi against Yang Li Xin!"
Song Yang was facing his opponent on the stage.
Now that everyone knew about his Martial Arts, he had no reason to not use them anymore.
He used his Rushing Frost Steps and rushed to Yang Li Xin before punching him without him being able to react. The punch ejected him backward and instantly made him lose consciousness.
"Fourth fight: Lin Qiunan against Ji Yan."
This fight was easily won by Ji Yan despite his short stature.
"Fifth fight: Tan Yanyan against Meng Jia."
The two girls fought for a few minutes but Tan Yanyan won thanks to her superior skills.
The sixth and seventh fights were won by Zhao Tang and Hu Xia whose opponents surrendered without fighting.
Finally, for the eighth and last fight of this round, Long Bin won with some difficulty.
After that, the elder once again announced a break of half an hour.
...
Once the break was finally over, the third round started: the Quarterfinals of the tournament.
The first two fights ended in a flash.
Li Qiang won in one move against his opponent Huo Si Yan and Song Yang won in one move against his opponent Xi Tianyi.
"Third fight: Zhao Tang against Tan Yanyan!" Announced the elder.
The two girls walked on the stage and faced each other.
"Aren't you one of the friends of that bitch Song Yu Qi? I will make you suffer to vent my anger!" Said Zhao Tang, smirking.
"Don't insult Sister Yu Qi and don't underestimate me!" Retorted Tan Yanyan.
She dashed to Zhao Tang and struck her with many palm attacks. Her attacks were extremely fast, much more than when she was sparring against Song Yang.
Zhao Tang was fast too, but not enough to dodge all the strikes and was forced to block most of them.
In only a few seconds, Tan Yanyan took control of the battle and was forcing Zhao Tang to stay in a defensive position.
"Enough!" Yelled Zhao Tang before moving away.
She took out four thin needles from her pocket and threw them at Tan Yanyan.
Seeing this, Tan Yanyan dodged them with a side step. However, by the time she had dodged them, new needles were already flying towards her.
"Hahaha, these needles are poisoned. One scratch and you won't be able to continue the fight!" Laughed Zhao Tang as she continued to throw needles at her opponent.
Using lethal poison was forbidden by the sect but the one used by Zhao Tang was only a paralyzing poison.
"I told you to not underestimate me."
Using all her speed, Tan Yanyan dodged all the needles thrown at her while closing the distance between her and Zhao Tang.
Once in front of her, she bent her body and used her special technique: the Martial Art from her family.
"Yin Yang Art: One-Hundred Successive Palms!" She said.
Two palms. Eight palms. Fifteen palms. Thirty palms. Seventy palms, One Hundred Palms! Tan Yanyan destroyed her opponent with brutal and lightning fast strikes.
"Ahhhh!" Zhao Tang screamed in pain and was ejected backward after being struck by the last palm attack.
Tan Yanyan gave her no respite. Before Zhao Tang could try to stand up, she rushed to her and kicked her face, knocking her out.
"Winner: Tan Yanyan!"
