End of the Duel.

Four matches, four clashes between two distinct paths.

Han Zhuang had secured the first victory, but the next three duels were different. Each battle ended with two wins and two losses, resulting in a draw.

Neither the White Owl Sect nor the Jìng Fēng Gé guild had managed to gain a clear advantage.

The tension grew.

Wei Lan's disciples did not hide their displeasure.

—How annoying.

One of them clicked his tongue, looking at the group of mercenaries with disdain.

—It's not surprising that a bunch of mercenaries fight so chaotically.

—It's not that they're strong— murmured another— They simply don't know when to lose.

The words reached the guild's ears.

—Hmph. Who says we don't know how to lose? —One of Xia Ruyen's men smirked—. You're the ones who don't know how to win.

—What did you say?

The atmosphere became more tense.

Wei Lan, however, remained calm. To him, these small disputes were mere distractions. The only thing that mattered was the next battle.

The decisive one.

—There's no point in arguing further —Wei Lan said calmly, interrupting the growing hostility—. One match remains.

The disciples of the White Owl Sect nodded immediately, stepping back without losing their arrogant demeanor.

—Elder brother, you will handle it.

One of the disciples stepped forward.

He was taller and of robust build, his dark hair tied in a ponytail, exuding a natural confidence.

—Leave it to me.

His voice was steady, but his gaze held a sharp glint.

Wei Lan smiled with satisfaction.

—Very well.

This disciple's name was Jiang Chen.

His presence commanded respect among his peers. Not only was he Wei Lan's most talented disciple, but also the one who had received the most resources. His star, Iron Pillar, granted him an unbreakable body and immense strength when wielding weapons of this material.

—So, who will be his opponent?

Wei Lan looked at Xia Ruyen with an expression that seemed indifferent but actually hid a clear intent.

The vice leader of the guild, Ren Jihao, stepped forward with a confident smile.

—Me.

Wei Lan shook his head before he could say more.

—No. Jiang Chen is in the second stage of the third realm. To make the battle fair, his opponent must be at the same level.

Ren Jihao frowned.

—Tch. Then...

Everyone turned at the same time.

To the side, reclining against a rock, Bai Xuebing lay with his eyes closed, completely disinterested in what was happening.

A disciple of the White Owl Sect scoffed with disdain.

—Him?

Another disciple chuckled quietly.

—If he prefers to surrender now, it would save us time.

Bai Xuebing ignored their words.

—Bai. —Xia Ruyen called him.

The young man opened one eye, visibly tired.

—I'm not interested.

Bai Xuebing had grown bored of the entire battle and lost interest in this duel.

Jiang Chen looked at him with a neutral expression.

—Are you afraid?

—No —Bai Xuebing replied calmly— I just find it tedious.

His response was so direct that the sect's disciples fell silent for a moment.

One of the mercenaries burst into laughter.

—Hahaha, this kid...

Xia Ruyen rubbed her temples.

—Bai, we can't forfeit this last battle.

—That's not my problem.

—But if they win, they'll ask for something humiliating, just look at their faces.

—That's true, Brother Bai, you have to fight and win...

The whole group encouraged Bai to fight, but he still refused. Until Xia Ruyen had an idea.

—There will be money.

Silence.

Bai Xuebing opened his eyes completely.

—How much?

Liang Cheng narrowed his eyes.

—I can't believe it...

Xia Ruyen smiled.

—Enough for you to care.

Bai Xuebing sighed. He stretched slowly before standing up.

—Fine, fine.

He dusted off his clothes and walked slowly to the center of the battlefield.

Wei Lan observed the scene with sharp eyes.

—Interesting.

From the start, this battle had been set up for Bai Xuebing to fight.

Wei Lan was not an impulsive man. He did not waste resources without reason. Jiang Chen was his greatest investment, his most promising disciple, shaped through years of training and with all the resources he could gather.

But Bai Xuebing...

He was an enigma.

Wei Lan had seen his potential, sensed his blood attribute, and witnessed his ability to survive. But he had yet to see him fight seriously.

—Let's see. —Wei Lan narrowed his eyes— Between my disciple and this boy... who will prove more valuable?

Jiang Chen rotated his wrist, loosening his muscles.

—I won't hold back.

Bai Xuebing tilted his neck, a faint crack sounding.

—Do as you please.

Xia Ruyen sighed.

—This idiot... but that doesn't make him any less adorable, hehehe.

—The final battle has been decided. —Wei Lan raised his voice— Bai Xuebing versus Jiang Chen.

The air immediately grew denser.

Everyone knew this would not be just any fight.

It was the battle that would decide everything.

Bai Xuebing exhaled slowly.

In front of him, Jiang Chen smiled confidently, gripping his double-edged weapon tightly.

The battle was about to begin.

And in Wei Lan's eyes, this confrontation would determine far more than just the outcome.

"Cunning old man, I can see that everything was set up by you. My rejection must have provoked you. Until last night, your disciples seemed cordial, but now they show their true colors... or maybe they were always like this. What does it matter? At the end of the day, I'll have more money."

Wei Lan's disciple was the first to move.

His white silhouette blurred with the speed of his advance, his sword gleaming with a sharp silver light.

But Bai Xuebing remained unfazed.

His body leaned with natural precision, dodging the slash as if he had seen the trajectory before it was even launched.

—Hmph.

Wei Lan's disciple did not stop. He twisted his wrist and executed a series of fluid attacks, each aimed at Bai's vital points.

The difference between an experienced cultivator and a novice was evident in the details.

Wei Lan's disciple attacked with surgical precision, with no unnecessary movements, maintaining an aggressive yet efficient rhythm.

Bai Xuebing, on the other hand, seemed to move effortlessly, without even unsheathing his spear.

Each strike was dodged with the least amount of movement possible.

—Is that all?

Bai Xuebing's voice was calm, devoid of mockery, but laden with an indifference that irritated his opponent.

The disciples of the White Owl Sect shouted from the battle line:

—Senior brother, finish him!

—Show the difference between us and those third-rate mercenaries!

On the other side, Xia Ruyen's mercenaries responded with the same intensity.

—Bai, stop playing and crush him already!

—Kill him, brat!

Wei Lan's disciple clenched his teeth.

—Fragment of the Cutting Edge.

A silver flash.

A blade of energy was launched directly at Bai Xuebing.

But before it could strike, Bai simply raised his arm.

—Blood Form: Crimson Shield.

His blood vibrated in his forearm and solidified into a crimson shield.

Clang!

The impact echoed in the air, but Bai did not even step back.

—Tsk…

His opponent leaped backward, gathering energy in his sword.

—Moonlight Sword Technique: Four Sequential Slashes.

Silver light shone as four slashes were launched in quick succession, each stronger than the last.

Bai Xuebing finally decided to move.

—Blood Form: Spiral Fang.

The blood flowing from his core gathered in his palm, extending to form a crimson spear that spun like an infernal drill.

After his training and battles with the demonic beast, Bai had started to understand his attribute better, along with his martial arts, creating a new form.

With a single movement, he spun the spear and shattered the incoming attacks into a shower of sparks.

Wei Lan watched from his position with sharp eyes.

"He is more versatile than I imagined... But I still don't see his limit."

Without moving his lips, he transmitted his voice to his disciple.

"Provoke him."

Wei Lan's disciple, without lowering his combat stance, smirked.

—Well, I never thought mercenaries were so weak. But I guess it's normal… they're just dogs fighting for money.

The veins in the mercenaries' foreheads bulged.

—Bai, crush that idiot!

But Bai Xuebing did not react.

Jiang Chen continued with his provocations, his tone laced with contempt. His words were poisoned daggers, aimed at piercing his opponent's resolve, but Bai Xuebing remained unmoved.

His insults were ignored, his arrogance trampled by absolute silence.

It was like speaking to a flawless wall, an abyss without echo.

Jiang Chen frowned.

"Master, nothing is working. What else should I do to provoke him?"

Wei Lan, with his serene expression, observed Bai Xuebing like a scholar analyzing a rare specimen.

"Then, I suppose I have no choice."

Even for him, what he was about to do was repulsive.

The night before, when I spoke with Bai, I noticed his gaze when his family was mentioned. Upon noticing it, he dropped the subject; it was not polite to continue talking about it. There was a limit to that, but it no longer mattered now.

"Talk about his parents."

Jiang Chen froze.

"Are you sure, Master?"

"Do it."

A simple command, given without emotion.

But Jiang Chen felt nauseated as he grasped the weight of those words.

He could not question it. He must not.

He took a breath, swallowing his own disgust.

Jiang Chen continued his provocations, each word laced with venom, each phrase designed to bury itself in Bai Xuebing's skin.

—It's funny, you know? —he said with a twisted smile— I've seen many talented cultivators… but most of them have something in common.

Bai Xuebing did not react.

—They come from great clans, powerful sects, lineages with glorious histories. Talent without backing is like gold buried in mud: insignificant.

Jiang Chen let his words float in the air, watching Bai Xuebing expectantly.

But Bai remained silent, his spear resting against the ground, his posture relaxed.

—You have power, yes. But in the end… you're still a nobody. No resources, no connections, no backing.

Jiang Chen took a step forward.

—It must have been hard growing up like that. No guidance, no name to command respect.

The audience watched in tense silence.

—But the saddest part… —his tone became slower— is that you don't even have a worthy surname. Bai Xuebing? No one has ever heard that name before.

Bai Xuebing slightly closed his eyes, letting out a soft sigh.

Jiang Chen felt something was wrong.

But he had already started.

And he could not stop now.

—It must be hard to live without family… no one waiting for you, no one calling you son.

The air seemed to grow colder.

—Tell me, Bai Xuebing, what kind of people were your parents?

No one moved.

—Were they great cultivators? Or just useless peasants who died without leaving a mark on this world?

Bai Xuebing's knuckles tensed.

Jiang Chen noticed the first tremor in the blood spear.

—Don't tell me...

He smiled.

—Don't tell me they died like frightened rats, begging for their lives.

The world stopped.

It wasn't a sudden change. It was subtle, like the calm before a devastating storm.

Bai Xuebing lowered his gaze.

What was happening? Why was this idiot speaking about his family? What right did he have to insult them, to claim they had begged for their lives, that they had died pathetically?

Memories of that night resurfaced—the sacrifice of his father, his helplessness in saving his siblings, the laughter of those demons alongside the spilled blood.

His family was a delicate subject for Bai Xuebing, a weight from his past, present, and future. The hatred, the helplessness, the sorrow, the rage, the desire to kill those who took everything he loved.

And right now, a complete stranger was speaking freely about his family with disdain, tainting their names and their deaths.

His spear trembled.

Wei Lan's disciple felt his skin crawl.

—What…?

Bai Xuebing slowly lifted his head.

His eyes.

They were no longer the same.

A deep, burning crimson, like a sea of boiling blood.

They were the same eyes he had when he absorbed the demonic beast's blood, and within his inner domain, his second star began to resonate.

The air grew heavy.

The stones beneath his feet cracked.

Jiang Chen felt his heart pound.

Bai Xuebing advanced.

The world exploded.

BOOM!

A crimson flash erupted.

Before Jiang Chen could react, a fist wrapped in blood struck his stomach.

BAM!

His body folded.

His mouth opened in a spasm of pain, but no sound came out.

He was sent flying, his body soaring through the air like a stone thrown into the void.

CRASH!

The impact raised a cloud of dust.

Wei Lan stood up.

"Now we're truly seeing it," Wei Lan thought as he watched Bai Xuebing go all out.

Wei Lan's disciple had no time to react before Bai Xuebing was on him again. The blood spear spun through the air, tracing lethal arcs as the disciple dodged in pure desperation. Brutal blows rained down on him like an unstoppable storm.

CLANG! CLANG! BAM!

Each clash of their weapons made the ground tremble. But Bai did not stop. He moved with monstrous ferocity, his presence like that of a beast unleashed on the battlefield.

Jiang Chen tried to counterattack, but every strike was intercepted effortlessly, as if Bai Xuebing was always a step ahead. His movements were precise, ruthless, as if he were enjoying the hunt.

SLASH!

A gash opened on his side. Jiang Chen screamed, staggering, but Bai gave him no respite. The spear descended again, forcing him to retreat.

The disciple panted, his vision blurred, his body covered in blood. He knew this wouldn't last much longer.

Bai Xuebing spun the spear in his hands and disappeared from sight. An instant later, a monstrous kick struck his chest, sending him crashing into the ground with a deafening impact.

CRACK!

Something broke inside him.

Wei Lan watched with a mix of horror and excitement. His disciple, the one in whom he had invested so much, the one he considered an exceptional talent, was being crushed mercilessly. This only heightened his desire to bring Bai Xuebing into his sect and take him as his disciple.

Bai Xuebing raised his spear. His expression showed no anger or hatred, only a chilling determination.

Grabbing him by the neck, he prepared to finish him.

—It's over.

The spear descended, a flash of blood and death.

But before the final blow could land…

—BAI, STOP!

Xia Ruyen's voice pierced through the red haze of his mind.

Wei Lan appeared in an instant, placing his hand on Bai's shoulder.

—Enough.

Xia Ruyen grabbed his arm.

—Let him go!

The pressure in the air shattered.

Bai Xuebing blinked.

The red in his eyes faded.

For a moment, his color returned to normal.

Then, he released Jiang Chen, who collapsed to the ground, coughing violently.

The disciple curled up, gasping, his face pale with terror.

Silence reigned.

Everyone watched in tense anticipation.

Xia Ruyen looked at Bai Xuebing, her expression grave.

—What the hell was that…?

Wei Lan, on the other hand, smiled to himself.

—Interesting.

Without a word, Bai Xuebing turned on his heels and walked away.

The duel had ended.

But everyone knew that what they had just witnessed…

Was something far more dangerous than a mere fight.