Turns Out, I’m In A Villain Clan! - Chapter 253: A Caged Princess?
Chapter 253: A Caged Princess?
Zhao Chen cracked a wide grin as he stepped closer to Bai Xueqing, the energy around him crackling with confidence.
“Finally, I get to face a member of the Bai Clan,” he called out loudly, his voice carrying across the arena.
“It’s a pity it isn’t Bai Zihan himself! Otherwise, I could have humiliated him properly in front of everyone!”
The crowd murmured at the boldness of his words. Zhao Chen wasn’t just cocky—he seemed reckless.
After all, no matter how strong he had become, who he was facing was probably the strongest in the competition.
Zhao Chen’s grin widened as his voice grew sharper, every word designed to make the Bai Clan look bad.
“What’s the matter? Why isn’t he competing here? Could it be… that he’s hiding? Is the so-called ’Number One Prodigy’ too scared to face true competition? Perhaps he knows he’ll lose and chooses to cower in the shadows instead!”
He chuckled coldly, his eyes flashing toward Bai Xueqing with deliberate provocation.
The words struck the crowd like a whip. Gasps, mutters, and sharp intakes of breath swept across the arena.
“Bai Xueqing, you should know what kind of scumbag your brother is. It was Bai Xinyue previously, it could be you next. You know that he doesn’t care about you or anyone else.”
This wasn’t just trash talk—Zhao Chen was trying to stir up strife within the Bai Clan, to pit brother against sister under the eyes of the empire.
But Bai Xueqing was no fool. She saw through him instantly. A faint smirk curved her lips, her eyes gleaming with disdain.
“Finished?”
She asked coolly, her voice carrying the sharpness of a sword’s edge.
“Spare me the useless talk. Let’s get started!”
Zhao Chen’s grin sharpened, his act dropping in an instant.
“Hmph! Indeed, I will spare the useless talk… because it’s already served its purpose.”
As his voice fell, a ripple of spiritual light surged across the stage.
The ground beneath Bai Xueqing shimmered faintly, glowing lines of power spreading outward in complex interlocking patterns.
In the blink of an eye, a vast array had unfolded, sealing the arena space around her in an intricate web.
The spectators shot to their feet, their astonishment erupting in shocked exclamations.
“A formation!?”
“He’s a Formation Master!?”
“Impossible! No one ever mentioned Zhao Chen being skilled in formations!”
…
Indeed, Zhao Chen was a Formation Master, and all that useless talk earlier was apparently to buy time to set the formation.
“Grade-4 Formation…! Zhao Chen is a Grade-4 Formation Master!”
Other Formation Masters and those familiar with formations were able to see that the formation he had set up was a Grade-4 Formation—which meant Zhao Chen was at least a Grade-4 Formation Master.
The arena roared in disbelief.
To be a cultivator of Zhao Chen’s level was already rare—but to also be a Grade-4 Formation Master at his age was beyond extraordinary.
No wonder he was valued by the Zhao Clan to the point of even giving him the Celestial Feather Fan previously.
“Even Bai Xueqing will have trouble with this!”
“Exactly. Grade-4 formations are nearly impossible to break by a Soul Formation Realm cultivator through just brute force.”
Excitement and tension coiled in the air.
This was exactly the kind of spectacle the crowd craved.
Once dismissed as the underdog, Zhao Chen had suddenly revealed a shocking trump card—one that now had many whispering that he might actually have a chance to win.
Zhao Chen stood tall at the center of his glowing web, confidence surging like a tidal wave.
“Now,” he sneered, his voice echoing across the arena, “let’s see if the so-called genius princess of the Bai Clan can crawl her way out of this cage!”
The arena fell silent as the golden runes of the formation pulsed brighter, spreading outward like a radiant net designed to ensnare Bai Xueqing.
Gasps erupted from the audience as they recognized the complexity and danger of what Zhao Chen had set up.
The formation wasn’t just a simple barrier to trap Bai Xueqing—it was slowly chipping away at Bai Xueqing’s Qi, while strengthening itself with her Qi.
That meant, with time, Bai Xueqing would become weaker as the formation became stronger, leaving no way for her to get out of it.
Formation Masters watching the match couldn’t help but praise Zhao Chen, not only for being able to set up such a complex formation but for choosing this particular one, which was perfect for dealing with a powerhouse like Bai Xueqing.
Bai Xueqing’s expression hardened as the golden runes of the array pulsed, leeching her Qi with every passing moment.
Her sharp gaze swept over the glowing lattice, analyzing its structure.
Without hesitation, she raised her sword. With a flick of her wrist, she swung toward the shimmering barrier.
CLANG!
The impact rang out like a bell across the arena—but the barrier only rippled faintly, runes flaring brighter as it absorbed the strike. Not a single scratch appeared.
On the stage, Zhao Chen threw his head back and laughed, his Celestial Feather Fan opening with a flourish.
His eyes gleamed with smug triumph.
“Useless!” he declared, his voice dripping with mockery.
“Your strength means nothing inside my array. The harder you struggle, the faster this formation will drain you dry! Accept it, Bai Xueqing—your fate is already sealed!”
For a moment, it seemed as if his words might hold true. But then—
A dangerous glint flashed across Bai Xueqing’s eyes.
She exhaled slowly, her hands forming intricate seals as her Qi surged violently, like a frozen tide threatening to break its dam.
Frost bloomed beneath her feet, spreading outward in a circle as the air grew deathly cold.
Bai Xueqing’s voice rang clear, sharp and cold.
“Glacial Heaven Seal—Absolute Frost Domain!”
WHOOM!
In an instant, a blizzard exploded outward, crashing against the glowing runes from every direction.
Sheets of ice coiled around the barrier, freezing it from within. Golden runes flickered and dimmed, cracks forming across the shimmering walls.
The once-steadfast array trembled violently.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
Before Zhao Chen could even react, every side of the formation was engulfed in frost, the interlocking web of runes freezing solid before shattering like brittle glass.
BOOOOM!
The entire formation collapsed in a storm of glittering ice shards.
The arena erupted.
“She broke it!?”
“Impossible! She shattered a Grade-4 Formation head-on!?”
“No… not just shattered—she completely overwhelmed it with sheer power!”
Standing amidst the falling frost, Bai Xueqing’s figure was like that of a cold goddess descended to the mortal realm, her aura sharp and merciless.
Her gaze cut toward Zhao Chen, who stood pale and stiff, disbelief plastered across his face.
The audience roared with excitement, the tide of momentum swinging violently back toward the Bai Clan princess.
“This is…”
His formation should have been invincible, but of course, it had a flaw.
It was highly effective against powerful opponents when their strength was concentrated on a single point, allowing the formation to reinforce that spot and endure the assault.
However, Bai Xueqing seemed to have seen through this weakness.
Instead of focusing her strike on a single point, she shifted her approach—attacking from every direction at once, battering the formation from all sides.
What’s more, the technique she used was a Heaven-Grade art, overwhelmingly powerful.
Against such might, Zhao Chen’s formation stood no chance.
Zhao Chen stammered, staring at the empty air where his formation should have trapped her.
Bai Xueqing’s voice was cold, steady, and utterly lethal.
The last shards of the shattered formation scattered like snow.
“Your tricks won’t work on me,” Bai Xueqing said simply, her tone cold and unyielding.
Her palm shot forward in a single, blinding strike, a surge of icy force cutting through the last remnants of Zhao Chen’s defenses.
Zhao Chen roared and tried to resist, summoning every ounce of strength he had.
But without his formation, his power was nothing before Bai Xueqing’s overwhelming might.
BOOOOM!
Before anyone could react, Zhao Chen’s body was flung across the arena like a broken kite. He crashed into the ground with a resounding thud, dust and debris scattering into the air.
The crowd erupted—some in shock, others in exhilaration.
In that instant, the arrogance Zhao Chen had displayed just moments ago was reduced to silence, buried beneath the weight of Bai Xueqing’s crushing victory.
Dust and debris exploded into the air, and when it settled, he lay sprawled, utterly defeated, his energy spent.
The crowd could hardly believe their eyes.
What had been anticipated as a titanic clash—the first true test of Round Four—was over in less than a heartbeat.
Bai Xueqing’s calm expression remained unchanged as she stood at the center of the arena.
The audience erupted in a mixture of cheers and stunned whispers.
“This… this can’t be!”
“She didn’t even break a sweat!”
“Grade-4 Formation, and he didn’t even land a blow… How is that possible?”
Even with Zhao Chen’s cunning and his dangerous formation, the fight had been one-sided.
The clash everyone had anticipated as a legendary showdown ended in mere moments, a stark testament to Bai Xueqing’s unmatched talent.
And so, the first match of Round Four concluded not with the thrill of a hard-fought battle, but with the silent, overwhelming power of a true prodigy.
The announcer’s voice rang out once more, tinged with awe:
“Victory goes to Bai Xueqing!”
The crowd roared, some in celebration, others in disbelief, as the princess of the Bai Clan remained unshaken, her victory indisputable.
Source: Webnovel.com, updated by novlove.com
