At this moment, all eyes were focused on the scene.
The Ten Sects Swordfight champion, and the ultimate victor of this competition.
The process was so fierce that even the disciples of the Three Great Sects lost two-thirds of their numbers!
The merit was so significant that it was almost equivalent to winning a throne for the sect!
Such a brutal and monumental swordfight would be remembered far more vividly than the one during the Dao Demon War a hundred years ago.
Noticing the demon soul behind Zhou Yun, the disciples of various sects cast looks of amazement, envy, and awe, wishing they could take his place.
The disciples of Demon Sky Palace were even more ecstatic, their faces burning with excitement as they gazed at Qin Lianyun’s back.
As for the King Level warriors from various sects, they observed the demon soul while contemplating.
Ge Qiu’s eyes were filled with clear energy as he stared tightly at the demon soul. Strangely, he could not detect any aura of Jiang Heng on this "Qin Lianyun."
Ge Qiu’s expression was as calm as water. Regardless, judging by the current outcome, Taishang Sect really came in last!
"Lord Ge...?" A Burning Sun Level elder beside him reminded with some hesitation.
Ge Qiu adjusted his forehead, waved his hand slightly, and said, "Elder Yang, go ahead."
As the main initiator of the swordfight, Taishang Sect had to announce the results, no matter what.
Elder Yang’s face looked a bit awkward, but since Ge Qiu had spoken, he had no choice but to comply, taking the newly recorded results and stepping forward.
"The swordfight is over. The rankings for this swordfight are as follows..."
"First place, Demon Sky Palace, 20 drops of Moon Milk!"
"Second place, Ten Thousand Sword Divine Sect, 16 drops of Moon Milk."
"Third place, Limitless Demon Sect, 12 drops of Moon Milk."
"Fourth place, Beast Taming Heavenly Sect, 10 drops of Moon Milk."
"Tenth place... Taishang Sect, 3 drops of Moon Milk."
As he pronounced the last place, Elder Yang’s voice noticeably lowered.
The mighty Taishang Sect actually ranked last in the swordfight. This had never happened since the first Ten Sects Swordfight.
Not to mention being last; they had never even dropped out of the top four!
Zhou Yun said "good" twice, almost unable to contain his laughter!
Seeing Old Ge’s scheming expression initially led him to believe this swordfight would end badly.
Unexpectedly, although the process was quite alarming, the result was favorable. This outsider, Qin Lianyun, actually triumphed over the core members of various sects to take first place.
On the other hand, Taishang Sect ranked last!
Zhou Yun looked at the demon soul with a broad smile: "Qin Lianyun, as expected, we have won... In this swordfight, you have made outstanding contributions!"
The demon soul respectfully replied, "This is what a disciple should do."
Zhou Yun patted the demon soul’s shoulder and merely said, "Return to the sect. We’ll discuss the rewards then!"
Apart from Zhou Yun, Linghu Yao and the old woman from Limitless Demon Sect were also quite satisfied.
However, Linghu Yao recalled something and sighed.
"Shichuan, I couldn’t take good care of your daughter..."
In reality, Zhong Xiu’s father, Zhong Shichuan, was once the most talented and powerful disciple under Linghu Yao but died young and unexpectedly.
Later, Zhong Xiu also joined the Ten Thousand Sword Divine Sect, which Linghu Yao did not know initially.
It wasn’t until Zhong Xiu used her talent and strength to step into the core and became Linghu Yao’s registered disciple that he learned she was Zhong Shichuan’s daughter.
Linghu Yao sighed again and then looked at the King Level from Blood Killing Sect, his eyes showing a hint of coldness.
Just then, the demon soul walked over from the direction of Demon Sky Palace to Linghu Yao.
"Qin Lianyun from Demon Sky Palace, greeting Linghu Sword Venerate."
"Qin Lianyun?" Linghu Yao was quite surprised, sizing up this new star of the Demon Sect who had just won first place in the swordfight. "What do you want?"
The demon soul bowed: "I was entrusted by someone to deliver two items to the Sword Venerate."
Speaking, the demon soul flipped his hand and took out two longswords, one white and one green.
Linghu Yao’s eyes narrowed, and with a flick of his finger, he grabbed the two longswords out of thin air, his gaze immediately falling on the green sword.
"Indeed, it is the Iris Sword I gave to Zhong Xiu!" Linghu Yao’s eyes turned cold as he stared at the demon soul. "How did it end up in your hands!"
Even though Linghu Yao had deliberately restrained his pressure, his icy gaze still exerted immense pressure on the demon soul, making him feel like he would be shredded by sword light at any moment!
At this time, Zhou Yun followed up and stood in front of the demon soul, greatly reducing the pressure he felt.
Zhou Yun smiled: "Linghu Sword Venerate, please don’t be angry. According to Lianyun, these two swords were entrusted to him by your two disciples for return."
The demon soul exhaled deeply and quickly produced a jade pendant for Linghu Yao: "This jade pendant was agreed upon by Zhong Xiu and me. She said you would recognize it."
Feeling the pressure from Linghu Yao firsthand, the demon soul couldn’t help feeling a bit uneasy.
This token should be fine, right?
If it turned out that Zhong Xiu was a maniac who wanted to cause trouble even after death and made a fake token, he would be in deep trouble!
"The Green Bird Pendant..."
Seeing the jade pendant, Linghu Yao’s expression changed and he took it to examine closely, sighing as his expression softened.
This jade pendant was the one he had given to Zhong Shichuan back then. Although not a Heavenly Treasure, it had the effect of calming the mind.
Linghu Yao asked: "Was Zhong Xiu killed by a disciple of Blood Killing Sect?"
"Yes, it was Blood Killing Sect’s Tong Ming. I have already killed him."
Linghu Yao nodded and, after a brief thought, produced a token.
"I understand the meaning of returning the swords. In the future, come to the Divine Sect with this token, and you will be rewarded."
Zhou Yun smiled: "Lianyun, hurry and thank Linghu Sword Venerate."
The demon soul was overjoyed and bowed: "Thank you, Linghu Sword Venerate!"
After that, the demon soul followed Zhou Yun back to the team.
Next, the King Levels from various sects had to discuss the division of the Tiger Vein and matters regarding the Earth Tribulation. Thus, the disciples followed their elders back to Frost Sky City to rest and wait...
Two days passed in the blink of an eye. On this day, the demon soul came out from Frost Sky City to the icy plains.
After waiting for a while, someone approached from a distance; it was Wang Hao.
"Friend Qin!" Wang Hao greeted.
The demon soul smiled: "It seems Friend Wang did not break his promise."
"You saved my life, and I, Wang Hao, am not an ungrateful person. How could I leave and never return!" Wang Hao laughed, then grew serious. "What do you want to ask?"
The demon soul looked around to make sure there was no one nearby before raising a Star Power Barrier.
The demon soul got straight to the point: "Beast Taming Heavenly Sect is located in the Eastern Domain. Besides the sect’s transmission array, does Friend Wang know of any other ways to reach the East Continent?"
"The East Continent?" Wang Hao looked at Qin Lianyun with great surprise, "Does Friend Qin want to...?"
The demon soul’s expression remained unchanged: "Not me... It’s a friend of mine who needs to go to the East Continent."
Wang Hao was skeptical but quickly suppressed his thoughts and didn’t ask further.
Not only because the other party had saved him but also because knowing too much might not be good.
Wang Hao only thought briefly before nodding, "There is a way!"
"Oh?" The demon soul’s eyes lit up. There really was a way.
Wang Hao continued: "In the past, many sect geniuses would go to the East Continent to seek rare and exotic beasts, relying on a sea power near the East Continent..."
The demon soul’s heart stirred. He had heard of the Dragon Palace when he was in the East Continent.
Even Qin Lianyun’s father, Qin Xiangyang, had the aid of a Dragon Palace expert when he ascended to King Level.
The demon soul quickly thought and then asked, "Does Friend Wang have a way to go to the East Continent through the Dragon Palace?"
Wang Hao smiled: "We do have cooperative relations with the Dragon Palace, such as providing sect spirit plants and forming Guardian Beast Contracts with some sea spirit beasts and even dragons!
True Dragons like luxury. If Friend Qin’s friend can offer some Star Stones or rare treasures, I can try to contact the Dragon Palace to send them to the East Continent through an underwater route."
While contemplating, the demon soul communicated with Su Yuan in the Qingming Realm.
Traveling through the Dragon Palace and returning to the East Continent from the seabed, the risks were indeed significant!
First, the sea was different from land or sky; only ice and water element cultivators could perform at full strength.
Second, the sea’s Star Sand storms, although thinner since the rise of the Earth Tribulation, still posed a great threat to Burning Sun.
If an accident occurred during the journey, he would be left alone.
Therefore, he would likely have to stay submerged to avoid the constant Star Sand storms on the sea surface.
This would reduce his combat power and considerably slow his progress...
Su Yuan had not originally considered traveling through the sea, as it almost meant placing his fate in the hands of strangers.
Su Yuan suddenly thought of Ruan Ruan.
Ruan Ruan was a water element Star Beast reborn from a Demon Emperor. Even if something went wrong, he could rely on Ruan Ruan.
Maybe it was feasible...
"Friend Qin, what do you think?"
After brief contemplation, the demon soul said, "I need to inform my friend and let him decide."
Wang Hao nodded: "No problem. I won’t be leaving soon. If Friend Qin’s friend decides, just let me know, and I will contact the Dragon Palace expert."
"Thank you." The demon soul nodded and then narrowed his eyes at Wang Hao. "This matter is quite sensitive. Please keep it confidential."
"Rest assured, Brother Qin, I understand." Wang Hao immediately raised his hand. "I promise on my honor as a Beast Tamer; I will not reveal this."
The demon soul nodded and smiled: "Friend Wang, you are gracious."
While it was uncertain if such a promise had any causal effect, Wang Hao showed his sincerity.
The demon soul had no other choice. If he hadn’t found another way back to the East Continent, he wouldn’t have mentioned it to Wang Hao.