Chapter 227 | The Sovereign of the Colosseum

Chapter 227: 227 | The Sovereign of the Colosseum

Silence gripped the thousands of spectators before a deafening wave of astonishment rolled down.

"Twenty-five exchanges head-on against an Early Core Formation sword genius... and he hasn’t been pushed back to his limit?!"

Down on the joint supervision bench, Instructor Qing watched the dark-robed figure standing calmly amid the drifting stone dust of Stage One, her heart swelling with a fierce, unspoken pride.

Up in the Crimson Nimbus Sect Pavilion, Elder Liu’s lips curved upward in a radiant smile, while Gao Chen and Zhou Kai stared at the ring as if watching a living legend.

On the western side of Stage One, Jian Wuchen lowered his Sky-Splitting Silver Sword.

His right palm tingled faintly from the twenty-five consecutive impacts against the heavy Profound Void-Yang Blade.

Even with a condensed Golden Core circulating inside his Dantian, he could feel that the spiritual ocean inside the youth across from him was bottomless—so dense, ancient, and scorching that his own Core Qi had been burned away by nearly forty percent just trying to maintain the sword lattice!

"No wonder Mo Yan and Zhao Lie couldn’t last round against you," Jian Wuchen said, taking a deep, steadying breath as his white robes billowed around him. "In terms of raw foundation and control over your weapon, I have never met an equal opponent."

Jian Wuchen raised his silver longsword vertically in front of his brow, gripping the hilt with both hands.

"Junior Brother Lin, my Golden Core was condensed only a few days ago, and I cannot sustain a prolonged war of attrition against you for a long time," Jian Wuchen said clearly across the ring. "Receive my strongest sword. If you break it, this championship is yours!"

Jian Wuchen’s newly formed Golden Core pushed at maximum limit, pouring nearly every remaining drop of his spiritual Qi into the blade of the Sky-Splitting Silver Sword!

WUUUUUUM—CLANG!!

A thirty-foot phantom sword of solid Qi hovered directly above Jian Wuchen’s head like one of the nine ancient dragon pillars of the city!

The terrifying pressure of the condensed Qi strike pressed down so hard that the stone across the entire stage groaned and sank into the earth.

"Sky-Pillar Supreme Art—Falling Heaven Sword!"

With a shout that shook the colosseum rafters, Jian Wuchen stepped forward and swung his silver sword straight down with both hands!

ROOOOOAAAR—!

The thirty-foot phantom Pillar of sword intent tore through the air like a falling star, howling straight down toward Lin Tian with enough cutting power to cleave a small mountain peak in half!

Up in the Black-Sun Sect’s terrace, Elder Mo’s sunken eyes lit up with manic excitement as his fingers tightened around the blood-jade talisman in his sleeve.

Yes! Pour out every last drop of your Core Qi, Jian Wuchen! Break the floor and fill the spike!

In the center of Stage One, beneath the descending shadow of the sword, Lin Tian’s robes whipped tightly against his body.

Looking up at the blinding silver blade filling the sky above him, Lin Tian did not dodge toward the edges of the ring.

To answer the genuine martial pride of a worthy opponent, dodging would be an insult.

Deep within Lin Tian’s Dantian, the thirteen concentric golden rings of his 13th-Layer Ancient Foundation roared to life all at once!

At the same time, the golden blood inside his Primordial Yang-Tyrant Body surged through his meridians like a waking dragon.

Lin Tian poured a torrent of pure, molten-gold Primordial Yang into the hilt of the Profound Void-Yang Blade, crimson-gold flame.

HUMMMMMM—!!

Through his Insight Eye, Lin Tian locked onto the exact weak point of the descending thirty-foot silver sword pillar—three feet above its tip.

Planting his right boot so deeply into the floor that the stone shattered to his ankle, Lin Tian gripped the dark-gold hilt with both hands and swung the Profound Void-Yang Blade upward from the ground to the sky in a volcanic, heaven-rending arc!

"Break!"

A ten-foot crescent of condensed, dark-gold Primordial Yang Fire roared off the edge of the Void Blade and crashed head-on into the tip of the falling thirty-foot silver sword pillar!

BOOOOOOOOOOM—!!

The collision was blinding.

For two full heartbeats, a miniature sun of clashing gold and silver light swallowed the center of Stage, drowning out every sound in Sky-Pillar City!

Down beneath the cracked floor of Stage One, the terrifying downward shockwave of an Early Core Formation ultimate strike colliding with Lin Tian’s Primordial Yang hammered straight into the subterranean spirit-iron conduit.

Ding!

The central Demonic Blood-Sacrifice Spike beneath Stage One drank the violent spiritual tremor and flashed a deep, saturated blood-red—officially hitting one hundred percent on its surface gauge!

Above the floor, inside the blinding sphere of light, the contest of power reached its verdict.

Pure Primordial Yang forged upon an ancient 13th-Layer Foundation, channeled through a flawless Tier-3 Peak-Grade Profound Void-Yang blade, was simply an immovable mountain against a newly condensed Early Core!

CRACK—KCHHHHHK—SHATTER!!

A crisp sound of fracturing crystal echoed across the silent colosseum.

Right before thousands of pairs of wide, unblinking eyes, the dark-gold edge of the Profound Void-Yang Blade sheared straight through the central knot of the thirty-foot silver sword pillar!

The massive phantom greatsword split cleanly down the middle and exploded into a breathtaking rain of harmless silver starlight that drifted across the arena.

"Ugh—!"

On the western side of the stage, the spiritual backlash struck Jian Wuchen’s chest like a battering ram.

His feet skidded ten paces backward across the shattered floor until he hit the white boundary stone. A trace of crimson blood spilled from the corner of his mouth as his Sky-Splitting Silver Sword drooped toward the floor, his arms trembling and less than ten percent of his Core Qi left in his Dantian.

Before the falling rain of silver sparks had even touched the ground, a dark shadow blurred through the dispersing light.

Lin Tian appeared directly in front of Jian Wuchen.

Moving with effortless grace,, Lin Tian brought the Profound Void-Yang Blade to a dead, motionless halt—its scorching dark-gold edge hovering half an inch from the side of Jian Wuchen’s throat!

Not a single hair on Jian Wuchen’s neck was cut, though the radiant heat of the blade made the skin over his pulse turn red.

Across the entire Heavenly Colosseum, thousands of cultivators stood frozen to their seats.

In the Frost-Moon Valley terrace, Su Ling’s lips parted slightly, her cold, clear eyes fixed entirely on the tall, dark-robed youth standing unscathed beneath the falling silver sparks.

Down on Stage One, Jian Wuchen looked at the blade beside his neck, then up into Lin Tian’s calm, golden eyes.

After three seconds of silence, the tension in Jian Wuchen’s shoulders vanished. He let out a long breath, wiped the trace of blood from his lip with his sleeve, and smiled with genuine, ungrudging admiration.

"To shatter my Falling Heaven Sword Pillar head-on while still in the Foundation Establishment Realm..." Jian Wuchen lowered his silver sword completely and bowed his head in a formal salute. "I am convinced. In this tournament, Junior Brother Lin’s blade stands first. I concede!"

Lin Tian smoothly withdrew the Profound Void-Yang Blade and strapped it back across his shoulders.

"Senior Brother Jian thank you for letting me win," Lin Tian replied calmly.

For a single heartbeat, the colosseum remained dead silent—and then the thousands of spectators erupted into a volcano of deafening cheers and applause that shook the very clouds above Sky-Pillar City!

"He won! A Foundation Establishment disciple defeated an Early Core Formation genius head-on!"

"Crimson Nimbus Sect took the championship!"

In the Crimson Nimbus terrace, Fang Yu, Chen Hao, Gao Chen, and Zhou Kai roared until their throats went hoarse, while Elder Liu’s eyes shone with deep, unhidden emotion.

In the central host terrace, Grand Elder Jin stroked his white beard and stood up to announce the champion’s decree:

"The Grand Final is concluded! The first-place champion of this year’s Northern Regional Tournament is—Lin Tian of the Crimson Nimbus Sect!"

Yet at that exact instant, just as the cheers reached their peak and Jian Wuchen stood on Stage One with ninety percent of his Core Qi depleted—

"Hahahaha... HAHAHAHAHAHA!!"

A shrill, manic laugh tore across the arena from the Black-Sun Sect’s elevated terrace, cutting through the celebration like a rusted blade!.

Elder Mo stood atop the stone balustrade of the Black-Sun terrace, his old face twisted with fanatical glee as he looked down at the cracked floor of Stage One and raised a glowing, blood-red jade talisman high in his right hand!

Behind him, the eight cloaked figures tore off their black hoods simultaneously—revealing pale, tattooed faces and the thick, nauseating stench of three Core Formation commanders and five Peak Foundation executioners of the Blood-Bone Demonic Cult!

"First place?! Border spirit veins?!" Elder Mo howled with laughter as his Middle Stage Core Formation aura erupted in a wave of corrupted scarlet flame. "What use are mining veins to a pit full of corpses?! Thank you for spending your Core Qi and filling my Blood-Sacrifice Spikes to the brim, Jian Wuchen, Lin Tian!"

Before a single spectator in the public tiers could scream in panic, Elder Mo crushed the blood-jade talisman in his palm!

CRACK—BOOOOOOM!!

From the four corners of the central arena pit, four pillars of foul, dark-crimson light shot upward toward the colosseum’s main dome as dozens of disguised Blood-Bone Cult killers drew curved blood-blades from beneath their cloaks across the lower walkways.?