Sorry

On a bright sunny day, a tournament was held within the Whitecloud city located in the Great Solar Empire. Currently, a young girl of sixteen, dressed in a blue hanfu stood on the stage and held a thin blue sword in her hand.

The sword was exquisite and incredibly thin, being half the size of a human arm. The tip of the sword wasn't very sharp and appeared slightly blunt, but those that underestimated it would be cut down by its sharp edges.

The beautiful sword matched the young girl's hanfu, as well as her demeanor when she stood on the stage and faced her opponent. Her opponent was a young man no older than nineteen, who had reached the pinnacle of the Awakening Realm.

In his hand was a turquoise sword that was giving off a strong aura of Wind. The young girl who had already surpassed the Awakening Realm, and into the Noble Realm lowered her own cultivation down to the Seventh stage of the Awakening Realm.

Around the young man, a fearsome wind howled, as his body slowly levitated in the air. Obviously, the young man had comprehended the Concept of Wind, following the Way of Wind.

This allowed him to take flight by controlling his Wind Qi, which was an advantage that no other Concepts had during the early stages. His hair danced along with the wind, as he pointed his sword forward.

A terrible storm kicked up and formed a large tornado around his sword. The tornado grew increasingly fearsome, as the young girl's pupils constricted. She felt as though she stood inside the eye of the storm of a horrifying hurricane that could rip apart boulders like tofu.

The tornado made up of Wind Qi formed a green serpent that hissed as it made its appearance on the stage. The wind serpent was completed howled as it soared through the air, coming for the young girl across the stage.

On the other side of the stage, the young girl in blue wasn't frightened at the sight of the serpent. She was extremely calm as though nothing in this world could faze her. A brilliant light surrounded her in an instant, as he body floated in the air, just a few dozen inches off the ground.

A thin bubble of Water Qi surrounded her body and acted like a barrier that shielded her from harm.

Bang!

As the serpent crashed into her barrier and swallowed her, a pale blue light was seen glowing brightly within the serpent. The blue light got brighter by the minute, as the serpent stopped moving and exploded after a few moments.

From within, the young girl in blue emerged unscathed with the barrier of Water Qi protecting her. Her thin sword pointed forward, as a thin torrent of water shot out from the tip of her blade.

The water was incredibly sharp and ferocious, being more destructive than even the huge serpent. It tore through the air with incredible speed and slammed into the opponent's chest that was blocked by his sword at the last moment.

Bang!

The young man spat out a mouthful of blood before wiping it with his sleeves. His turquoise sword returned to his Spatial Ring, as he paid his respects and leaped off the stage.

The crowd was silent. Only a single move was required to cross stages and defeat an opponent at a higher cultivation base. Even though Ning Lianqi regressed her cultivation temporarily, her battle prowess and experiences were still there.

For a Noble Realm cultivator, even against a thousand pinnacle Awakening Realm cultivators would still be child's play, for a Noble. On the stage, Ning Lianqi didn't get off the stage. Instead, she turned to face Yan Lenglei's trio, bringing the crowd's attention over to them.

"This esteemed guest from afar, would you do me the honour of having a bout with me?" her voice was gentle and tranquil, but the heavy Fighting Will deep within her was not hidden, but instead displayed.

Silence filled the entire City Lord mansion. The City Lord didn't voice his opinion, whether it was because he had anticipated this, or had absolute trust in his daughter. Either way, this Second Misses of the City Lord mansion brought great trouble towards Yan Lenglei's group.

"I will have to decline, my talents are only subpar and not worthy of the Second Misses attention." Yan Lenglei replied, his expression unchanging and extremely cold.

"Please." Ning Lianqi only said one word in response to his denial. Any normal person would've had dark lines on their forehead, but Yan Lenglei was no normal person. His expression remained unchanged, making it impossible for anyone to guess his inner thoughts.

Since the other party had insisted, he might as well come up for a quick stretch to loosen up his body. Quietly, Yan Lenglei walked up the stage, in which the final winner of the tournament should've been declared earlier.

His slow footsteps resounded throughout the City Lord's mansion, as he reached the stage after several moments. On the stage, Ning Lianqi bowed respectfully, as she pointed her sword at Yan Lenglei.

Immediately, an extremely formidable aura erupted from Ning Lianqi. A powerful Water Qi could be felt by everyone that clearly surpassed what those of the Awakening Realm were capable of.

Her thin cicada wing-like sword was held diagonally in her hand as she swung her sword. Yan Lenglei stood frozen on the stage as he saw this. It wasn't because he was afraid and couldn't avoid her attack, it was simply because he had no reason to.

When the combined might of Sword Qi, as well as Water Qi was close, Yan Lenglei stepped forward, as a thin golden layer of Spiritual Qi covered his palm. Taking a step forward, he moved his right palm, while his left arm was behind his back.

Bang!

When Ning Lianqi's sword light streaked across the air and reached Yan Lenglei, his palm grabbed the air and lightly pinched her attack. The multiple sword lights all combined and exploded in his hands, which were protected by his Spiritual Qi.

In a short moment, Yan Lenglei clenched his palm and crushed the sword light to pieces, as the Spiritual Qi returned to the atmosphere. Yan Lenglei took a step forward, as the ground beneath his feet cracked.

He was incredibly heavy during this moment, as he moved over one meter with each step he took. Large spider web-like cracks appeared on the stage from his sheer weight, as his right arm was surrounded by Spiritual Qi.

"A Body Refiner." this thought ran through the minds of everyone watching the fight. With just his palm, he had crushed an incredibly powerful sword light from the Second Miss, that was enough to defeat her previous opponent.

Ning Lianqi floated in the air, as a barrier of Water Qi surrounded her body. Not only that, a sharp aura was also sensed around it. Obviously, she had used even her Sword Qi to protect herself.

This required excellent control over her Sword Qi, which many her age would find impossible to do. It was no wonder she was praised as an unparalleled talent within the Great Solar Empire.

Sharp torrents of Water Qi and Sword Qi shot out from the barrier surrounding her, allowing her to attack and defend herself at the same time. Yan Lenglei easily avoided the attacks so that his clothes wouldn't get wet, as he came closer and closer to her.

All she saw was an incredibly handsome young man in white that was coming towards her with incredible momentum, as if it was a Spiritual Beast, rather than a human. His left arm was raised and clenched into a golden fist that slammed heavily into her shield.

Bang!

Yan Lenglei's golden fist collided with Ning Lianqi's barrier. A sharp Sword Qi shredded his Spiritual Qi, but couldn't damage him or weaken his fist at all. Instead, his fist was slowly tearing a hole through the barrier and reaching Ning Lianqi who was defenseless within.

Swinging his arm all the way, Yan Lenglei's fist turned blurry, as he quickly stepped back and had both arms behind his back. Suddenly, Ning Lianqi's barrier dispersed, as she flew dozens of meters across the air.

Nobody had seen how he had done it, but whatever he did was very effective. He simply looked forward, with his face unchanging, as Ning Lianqi rotated her body in the air and used her sword to stop herself from flying out by stabbing it into the ground.

When she had nearly fallen off the stage, Ning Lianqi lifted her sword and wiped the sweat off her forehead. It was clear that she had lost in this exchange against Yan Lenglei. Once again, the audience was silent. Only one move was used.

The difference was that an unknown young man who wasn't part of the Whitecloud city had defeated the Great Solar Empire's unparalleled talent. Of course, only one move didn't move them so much. After all, in duels between true experts, a single move was all that was needed to decide a victor. Hence many battles would be over very quickly.

Nobody had expected Ning Lianqi to lose. Who was she? What identity did she have? An unparalleled talent within the entire Realm, who was bestowed an official position through an Imperial Decree by the Emperor himself on the day of her birth.

Not only that, she was a Core disciple within the Celestial Lotus Sect, a Grade Four sect, a true pillar of the Great Solar Empire in the future, as well as the Whitecloud City Lord's Daughter. A talent who was said to be born with a Heaven Grade Divine Rune, nobody but herself knew of her Piece, in which she kept a secret only from her family.

Each of these identities were respectable and renowned throughout the entire Realm.

Upon her return a year later, she had suffered defeat in the hands of an unknown young man. Everybody was waiting to see her future exploits and future feats in which they could brag about for generations to come.

Now, she had suffered a crushing defeat during her debut battle. "Sorry." Yan Lenglei said, as he turned around to hop off the stage after defeating his opponent. His expression remained unchanged, as though he had done something extremely insignificant.

One couldn't blame him, he was born this way. Unless something extremely major such as his parents or brother's dying, it was very unlikely for him to show any expressions, besides his icy paralyzed face.

Many would say it was a pity considering how handsome he was, but even so, he was very handsome, only his personality was too cold so many didn't try to get close to him.

Shortly afterward, Ning Lianqi leaped off the stage and joined the City Lord by his side. After giving a short speech, he dismissed everyone, but asked for Yan Lenglei's group to stay and join him inside his house.

After everyone left, did the City Lord, as well as his two daughters and son-in-law enter the mansion along with him. Yan Lenglei's group made sure to maintain a distance of five meters as they entered the front door.