For a moment, the air in the room was thick with tension. Gui Yiyi's gaze met Peng Zu's, her eyes as cold and serene as a frozen lake. Her voice, when it came, was laced with an icy certainty.
"You are no match for me."
The room fell into stunned silence.
The Gui family disciples, though taken aback, didn't find anything particularly alarming in her words. But for Peng Zu and his companions, the situation was different. They were taken aback, their brows knitting in confusion.
Gui Yiyi—a girl who appeared to be calm and composed—had just boldly declared that a peak seventh stage Qi Condensation cultivator was no match for her. This was not something they expected from someone who, despite her beauty, had only recently reached the early fifth stage of Qi Condensation.
Peng Zu, in particular, couldn't fathom where her confidence came from. His eyes narrowed as he scrutinized her, disbelief seeping into his thoughts. How could a seemingly quiet, unassuming girl claim such an outrageous thing?
"Junior Sister Yiyi, surely you're joking, right?" one of the senior disciples asked, trying to mask his discomfort with forced politeness.
Gui Yiyi's response was swift and unyielding. She stood up, her movements fluid and precise, as if every gesture was born from the poise of someone who had long since mastered restraint. She pulled the silver sword from her back with a swift motion, the blade gleaming in the dim light.
She didn't bother to face them as she prepared to leave. "Who is joking with you?" she muttered under her breath, her words cold as the winter wind.
Without further hesitation, she raised her sword high, and with a single, effortless slash, the air around her seemed to hum with a terrifying power.
"Buzz!"
A pulse of sword energy shot toward the sky, splitting the air with a violent force. The shockwave rattled the floor beneath their feet, and a palpable pressure surged throughout the courtyard.
Peng Zu, who had been so full of bravado just moments ago, froze in place, his eyes wide in disbelief. The sword strike that Gui Yiyi had unleashed—it was no longer a simple demonstration of skill. It was a tangible force that made his chest tighten and his heart pound.
The sword strike had not been aimed at him, but the raw intensity of it made him feel small, insignificant. His mind reeled at the thought of what might have happened had that strike been directed toward him.
Even his senior brothers and sisters, both formidable Qi Foundation realm experts, were visibly shaken. They felt a dense, oppressive pressure in the air, one that made their skin crawl with a deep, primal sense of danger. It was a level of threat they had never encountered before.
"Impossible," one of them muttered, barely able to contain the disbelief in their voice. "At the fifth level of Qi Condensation... How could she wield sword energy capable of threatening a Qi Foundation expert?"
They could hardly believe it. Gui Yiyi, so young and seemingly innocent, was not just a prodigy—she was something far beyond that. Her talent was terrifying, and this strike had made that abundantly clear.
Kong Miao, who had been conversing with Gui Tiancheng in the manor, suddenly paused mid-sentence. Her attention snapped toward the courtyard as the unmistakable energy of a sword strike vibrated in the air. Her heart raced as she immediately recognized what it was.
She couldn't help herself. Her excitement bubbled to the surface, and she rushed toward the source of the energy with a speed that belied her usually composed demeanor.
As she arrived, her eyes locked onto Gui Yiyi, whose sword was still poised in the air, the echo of her powerful strike lingering. Kong Miao's eyes widened in awe, and she couldn't suppress her exclamation.
"It's the embryonic form of sword intent!" she cried, her voice filled with both disbelief and joy. Her excitement was palpable as she surged toward Gui Yiyi. "Genius! Absolute genius! Who would have thought that in this tiny Half Moon City, I would encounter such a prodigy? Hahaha!"
Her laughter rang out, echoing in the courtyard, her face glowing with enthusiasm. She reached out, placing a hand on Gui Yiyi's shoulder, her voice softer now, almost coaxing. "Little girl, let me ask you this—will you take me as your master? I am willing to accept you as my personal disciple. With your talent, you shouldn't remain in this small city. Your place is in the Heavenly Wind Kingdom, and beyond that, in the entire Azure Province!"
The words hung in the air, heavy with the promise of an extraordinary future. Kong Miao's eyes gleamed with a mixture of greed and admiration, her gaze fixed on Gui Yiyi as though she were a rare jewel.
The offer was too tempting for any disciple to refuse. Kong Miao, a Nascent Soul cultivator, would bestow upon Gui Yiyi the entirety of her knowledge, her vast reservoir of wisdom, and years of experience. She was offering the world at her feet, and the life teachings of a Nascent Soul expert were worth their weight in gold.
Gui Yiyi, however, did not flinch. She stood there, unwavering, her face serene as she simply shook her head.
"Sorry, Senior," Gui Yiyi said, her voice soft yet resolute. "This junior already has a master. I cannot take you as my master."
Kong Miao's face flickered with surprise, her eyes narrowing in slight disbelief. "So what if you have a master?" she persisted. "Is there a rule that you can only have one master for your entire life? Besides…"
Before Kong Miao could finish her sentence, a new presence made itself known. A chilling, unspoken tension filled the air, and Xuan Yi appeared at the edge of the courtyard, his figure as calm and imposing as ever.
Xuan Yi had just entered his seclusion, only to feel the unmistakable ripple of energy in the air. He had not anticipated that, during his absence, someone would dare to steal his disciple.
His gaze landed on Kong Miao, and the air seemed to freeze. "You?" Kong Miao raised her gaze slowly, taking in the man who had just entered. "You are Gui Yiyi's master?" Her voice was tinged with both surprise and disdain.
Xuan Yi's smile was a quiet, dangerous thing. It was brief, but it carried an edge of coldness, a hint of menace that sent a shiver down Kong Miao's spine.
"What? You want to steal my disciple?" he asked, his tone deceptively calm. But there was a weight in his words that made the very air hum with anticipation.
Before anyone could react, Xuan Yi's presence intensified, and a vast, invisible sword intent enveloped the entire Gui family mansion. It was as if the very air had been charged with an oppressive, suffocating power.
"Buzz!"
A sharp sword shadow manifested in the air, pointing directly at Kong Miao with an overwhelming force. The pressure was immense, like an invisible hand squeezing the life out of the space around them.
"Bang!"
Kong Miao's knees buckled, and she was forced to kneel, the ground cracking beneath her as the sword intent crushed her will. Her body trembled violently as she struggled to resist the suffocating pressure.
"Sword intent!" Kong Miao gasped, her voice trembling as she looked up in stunned realization. Shock and awe filled her face as she finally understood. This man—Xuan Yi—had comprehended Sword Intent.
She knew just how rare and difficult it was to reach this level. The legendary sword intent—something that few, if any, sword cultivators could ever hope to understand. Kong Miao, herself a sword cultivator, had never even come close to comprehending the embryonic form, let alone the full intent.
The realization hit her like a tidal wave.
No wonder. No wonder Gui Yiyi had been able to tap into the embryonic form of sword intent. It was because her master—Xuan Yi—had already comprehended it in its purest form!
Kong Miao's pride faltered, her mouth dry as the weight of her mistake settled in.
What was she thinking? Trying to take a disciple from a Nascent Soul sword cultivator who had mastered sword intent?
It was laughable.
The pressure from Xuan Yi's sword intent alone was enough to make even a Nascent Soul expert kneel.