"Tsk...that son of yours is too impatient," Zimo clicked his tongue as he watched the unfolding scene in the alternate reality. "He has successfully turned such an amazing Artefact into a useless ornament!"
"He is...a little bit too young to think rationally," Tang Xin countered.
"No. He underestimates people too much. That is what you have to pay if you are arrogant."
Daoists sought the highest comprehension of Dao as they cultivated. They incorporated Dao as much as they could into their lives--to the point that they were heavily reliant on Dao. To cripple a Daoist, one could suppress his Dao. Because of that, Mirror of The Inverted Sky was fearsome.
Ye Xiu was being rational by thinking no one should be able to utilise their Dao as good as he did in the alternate reality. What he had failed to understand, however, was the fact that not everyone was reliant on their Dao.
Putting Basil, who wasn't even bound to the concept of Dao, aside, Chang Yu was amongst those who didn't need their Dao to excel. She fought with her skills and that allowed her to land a lot of blows on Mo Gan who had a higher Cultivation Realm and was reliant on his Dao.
Shatter!
As the alternate reality that the Mirror of The Inverted Sky disappeared, Ye Xiu extended his hand to store the mirror in his Spatial Ring. One could see the scenery behind him distorted; it amplified the aggression that his ominous gaze was conveying.
"You will pay for permanently damaging my property," he hissed coldly.
Gulping her saliva nervously, Chang Yu suggested. "Sister Hou...I think it is better to run away now."
Basil didn't even turn around as she gently pushed Chang Yu back, telling her to stay away. She twirled Durendal and Caliburn graciously before kicking the ground and charging at Ye Xiu.
Ye Xiu remained in his spot. He merely curled three of his right hand's fingers and then pushed his palm outwards. As soon as Basil arrived before him, Basil swung her swords. All of them just passed through him like he was just a screen of smoke resembling a human.
Smirking lightly to herself, while swinging her swords in the opposite direction from the first swing, she concentrated her Mana on the edge of her blades. Ye Xiu immediately lost his calm as he frantically moved out of the swords' course.
Swish!
Two black lines appeared in the air after Durendal and Caliburn were swung--the space had been cut. Ye Xiu looked at the scene incredulously. There was a heavy resemblance between it and Space Dao but he could tell it wasn't. He couldn't help but wonder what kind of Dao Basil was practising.
Distancing himself even further, the gears in his head spun madly as he devised a plan to defeat Basil. He had figured out that Basil could utilise some degree of Space Dao, so he could no longer feel safe doing what he just did.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtThe reason why he could make Durendal and Caliburn pass through his body was that he had covered his body with a layer of space fabric that separated his existence temporarily from the dimension where everyone existed.
To make it easier to understand, one could imagine putting a layer of white paper on top of the paper that had one's writings while shining a light through it. One could still see one's writings; however, what one would write next wouldn't be written on the original paper.
"Tearing through space...it's not an easy task to do but the most basic thing one can do after learning Space Dao," Ye Xiu muttered as he observed Basil from afar. "Let's see if she also knows how to fold the space."
Swinging his hand to the side, the space bent for a millisecond before he reappeared right before Basil. The tips of Basil's swords were right before his eyes as soon as he reappeared and he was forced to dodge them because they tore through the space fabric.
Missing their target didn't mean anything to Basil's swords. They quickly found their way to Ye Xiu, forcing him to frantically move through the space.
"Flip!"
Durendal and Caliburn hit the air as Ye Xiu appeared on the opposite side of where he had been half a second ago. He immediately thrust his longsword at Basil's side but she managed to graciously dodge as she spun on her heel.
Knowing how splendid Basil's Sword Style was, Ye Xiu forewent engaging her in battle and folded the space to make a distance. He rose his longsword above his head as Basil charged at him and then swung it down to cut the space.
Swish!
"Absurd! What is this heavenly prowess!?"
Whenever a tear formed in the fabric of space, anything nearby would be sucked into the tear. It was hard for Ye Xiu to not be incredulous seeing Basil pass one like it was nothing.
He was getting nervous at this point but he couldn't accept the fact that there was someone his age who was more talented than him. Following his impulse, he took Basil's swing head-on while coating his longsword with space fabric.
Warp!
As their swords clashed, the scenery between them distorted; one could barely make anything from it. The space was bent in two different directions, making some of the audience wonder if the alternate reality would be able to withstand the violation.
"We live in a three-dimensional world. Have you ever wondered how it feels to live in a two-dimensional world?" Ye Xiu smirked. "My expertise is not that high yet...but I can still let you experience how it feels two be a two-dimensional existence."
Spreading his Qi to the surroundings, Ye Xiu used his highest level of Dao Art. "[Two-Way Screen]!"
As Basil felt the tension in the air and the rigidity of the space surrounding her, she widened her eyes. Ye Xiu smirked gleefully at the scene and waited as she was absorbed into the two-dimensional space he had created.
Bloop!
As the space was compressed into a two-dimensional state, Basil disappeared from his view. Stepping aside, he turned to his right so he could see the now two-dimensional existence called Xiao Hou Xin.
He could see her like a painting of her side profile. His smirk failed to creep up his face, however, the moment he saw the disdainful sneer on her face.
"[Derailing Charm]!" He heard a whisper before cold steel passed through his chest.
Schluk!
Widening his eyes in disbelief, he coughed out a mouthful of blood as he watched the two-dimensional existence in front of him disappear. He couldn't understand what happened.
"H-How are you here?"
"Why should I tell you?"
Ye Xiu shivered as Basil whispered in his ear. The melodious voice was extremely contradictory to the feeling she was conveying.
[Derailing Charm] was a mental-type Art. Amplifying one's charm, anyone who was caught in it would do and see anything that the user wanted them to see. It wouldn't easily work if the target had a strong mind. Ye Xiu and many of the audience, however, didn't have strong minds, so they had been played by Basil all along.
Wei Zimo and the top six Daoists present there had noticed the illusion since the beginning, which was why they couldn't take their eyes away from Basil. They wondered where she had been hiding for all this time and what Dao she practised.
"Now, what is she going to do...?" Zimo muttered as he looked at the jittery Tang Xin from the corner of his eyes.
"Woah..."
"Hm...what is she doing?"
"Hoh...?"
Zimo caressed his beard as he looked at what Basil was doing. She was facing Ye Xiu toward him and Tang Xin as if she knew their exact location, which should have been impossible.
"Impudent!"
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmTang Xin smashed the handrest of his chair indignantly. He was half standing from his seat when he realized that he was making himself look like a sore loser.
Calming himself down, he sat back down and stared at Basil coldly. The said Pacifer, as if knowing what had happened, was smiling softly in glee.
She pulled Durendal out of Ye Xiu's chest and then hit the back of his head with its hilt. He fell limply as he lost consciousness, meanwhile, Basil walked away with grace. What she was conveying was clear. She had a chance to end Ye Xiu's life but she didn't; therefore, the Wei Family owed her.
Tang Xiu gulped down his anger and exhaled heavily. As he watched Basil and Chang Yu fly away to the tower, he was hoping Ye Xiu would regain consciousness before ten participants reached the tower.
....
The tournament ended in the victory of an enigma called Xiao Hou Xin. Only Tian Long and company cheered for her when she received her prize. The audience remained silent since they didn't know her. It was clear, though, they admired her.
Everything about her was obscure. No one could tell her background, her origin and the Dao she practised. What they all knew about her was that she was good at whatever Dao she adopted. Had they known a little bit more about her, they would cheer loudly for her.
Ye Xiu managed to seize the chance to enter the Tower of Legacy in the end. He took the ninth place and it was only possible because the participants who encountered his motionless body thought he was already dead; they didn't bother to finish him off.
"Humiliating...this is humiliating," the Wei Family's Young Master muttered to himself as he looked at the person who had defeated him.
"You won. Now, tell us your secret. How could you know there would be a delay?"
"Well...Big Sister Hou's eyes always gleam whenever she is interested in something. She tends to spend some time understanding the thing that interests her. I saw that gleam as soon as she turned around, so..."
"Ah...now that I think about it, you are right. How could I not consider it as her sister!?"
"My money!"
"You better treat us something with your prize money!"
Standing on the side, Basil was smiling softly as she watched the interaction between the lasses and Xiu Li. She wanted to smack their heads for betting but that desire was beaten by her mirth of knowing how observant all of them had become.
[To all of the winners, please return to the arena!]
At the announcement, Basil said her farewell to her family and the rest of her entourage. She returned entered the arena and then stood before Zimo, who soon told the winners they were going to the Tower of Legacy.
A short speech was delivered and blinding light covered them in the next moment. When they regained their vision, they were already before the Tower of Legacy, the only Obelisk that was utilised by humankind.