Five Elemental Methods

Ding Ling’s Spirit Poisons were all annihilated, leaving her momentarily flustered. Her primary method of attack relied entirely on these creatures. While her faction possessed other techniques, she had yet to master them. With her only weapons gone, she knew she stood no chance against her opponent.

“This? Ah! I never expected you to possess such a technique. I concede.”

Ding Ling immediately admitted defeat. There was no point in continuing the fight.

Chen Yan chuckled softly, quickly moving to staunch her bleeding. Her recent technique was one that inflicted heavy damage on the enemy but came at a significant cost to herself. It involved channeling her own blood to unleash its power.

The battle concluded swiftly, though this was hardly surprising. Junior disciples possessed a limited repertoire of skills, and it was rare for their duels to even last a full minute.

Attention then turned to the other arenas, particularly the combat stage reserved for senior disciples.

A dense, sinister aura surged from that direction. Within the dark energy, two figures collided with astonishing speed, their combat aura immense. The intermediate and junior battlefields were similar in scale, but the sole distinction lay in the greater variety of techniques employed by intermediate disciples.

The veteran disciples were all intently observing the senior combat stage. Ye Qingyun, too, longed to witness those battles. ‘That’s what true combat looks like,’ he thought, ‘while our matches are nothing more than child’s play.’

After more than ten successive rounds, it was finally Ye Qingyun’s turn.

“Round eighteen: Ye Qingyun of Serpent Spirit Pavilion versus Jiang Yue of Spider Spirit Pavilion.”

Upon hearing his name, Ye Qingyun offered a slight smile. He then swiftly ascended the combat stage, and the moment he appeared, the disciples below erupted in cheers.

“Senior Sister Ye, it’s all up to you!” some disciples who knew him well shouted enthusiastically. “You absolutely cannot lose! First place among the junior disciples is definitely yours!”

Their boisterous shouts naturally drew Li Qing’s attention. Having previously shown no interest, Li Qing slowly opened her eyes and directed her gaze towards Ye Qingyun.

‘Hmm? Is there something different about this woman compared to the other disciples?’ Li Qing wondered inwardly, a hint of curiosity in her thoughts.

Meanwhile, Jiang Yue’s expression immediately darkened upon drawing Ye Qingyun as an opponent. Even if she had never personally fought Ye Qingyun, she was certainly familiar with his formidable reputation.

“Damn it, how can I be so unlucky as to encounter this demoness?” Jiang Yue muttered, a bitter expression on her face as she ascended the stage.

The disciples weren’t afraid of battle itself, but they dreaded losing in such an inexplicable manner. Ye Qingyun’s methods were simply too unpredictable for them to grasp.

“Oh? Senior Sister Ye, it’s you,” Jiang Yue said, looking at Ye Qingyun with an awkward smile. “My luck truly is terrible. Could you please not use those strange techniques this time? I really can’t deal with them.”

Ye Qingyun paused for a moment, slightly taken aback by the request. ‘This person is quite amusing,’ he secretly chuckled to himself. Yet, he had to admit, fighting him was indeed a rather painful experience for most.

“Alright then,” Ye Qingyun nodded. “I’ll try a different approach.”

He possessed a considerable array of other techniques, and this seemed like an opportune moment to experiment with them.

“You said it yourself, Senior Sister!” Jiang Yue responded. “In that case, I’m going to make my move. I’m eager to see what other impressive tricks you have up your sleeve, beyond those bizarre methods.”

“Ghost Wind, emerge!” Jiang Yue shouted, simultaneously forming a hand seal. The next moment, a Spirit Poison, with a ghostly face and a spider’s body, materialized from her. It appeared as a spectral, eerie shadow, its form utterly chilling.

Disciples of the Spider Spirit Pavilion were renowned for their control techniques. The moment the spirit appeared, an ominous chill swept across the entire stage, unsettling everyone present. The practitioners of the Spider Spirit Pavilion were truly a headache to deal with.

It wasn’t that they were overwhelmingly powerful; it was simply their unnerving nature.

“Come on then,” Ye Qingyun said, his expression entirely unconcerned.

Jiang Yue nodded, then commanded her Spider Spirit Fiend to lunge towards Ye Qingyun. Ye Qingyun made no attempt to dodge. Just as the fiend was about to make contact, a hazy purple light emanated from Ye Qingyun’s eyes.

“Soul Absorption.”

This was the power of his eyes, designed to control people’s minds and, by extension, their souls. As a ghostly entity, the fiend itself was a manifestation of a soul.

As a flash of purple light swept forth, the once ferocious fiend suddenly became rigid. It hovered motionless before Ye Qingyun, completely still.

This sight utterly bewildered Jiang Yue.

“Ghost Wind, what’s wrong? Why aren’t you attacking? Attack!” Jiang Yue cried out, frantically forming hand seals.

However, there was still no response from the fiend.

“Stop shouting, it can’t hear you,” Ye Qingyun said, waving his hand dismissively. Immediately, the Spider Spirit Fiend floated behind Ye Qingyun. He had completely enchanted the Spirit Poison.

No matter how Jiang Yue attempted to employ her ghost-controlling techniques, the fiend remained unresponsive to her commands. The Spirit Poison was currently trapped within an illusion; how could it possibly heed Jiang Yue?

“You… what kind of technique is this now? Take this, my Ghost Claw!” Jiang Yue exclaimed, growing desperate. She raised her hand, condensing sinister energy into a spectral claw, and lunged towards Ye Qingyun.

Yet, instead of seizing Ye Qingyun, her attack struck her own Spirit Poison. To her shock, the fiend instantly tore apart her spectral claw.

This scene once again left the spectators below utterly dumbfounded. Even Li Qing appeared somewhat bewildered. To have one’s own Spirit Poison controlled by an opponent was a situation she had rarely witnessed.

What was truly astonishing was that her own spirit was now being used against her. It left one speechless.

After tearing through Jiang Yue’s attack, the fiend immediately lunged back towards her. By its aggressive demeanor, it seemed intent on tearing Jiang Yue apart.

“Ghost Wind, what are you doing?! I am your master, stop!” Jiang Yue roared in a panic.

However, the Spider Spirit Fiend showed no signs of stopping, its speed towards Jiang Yue undiminished. This time, Jiang Yue was truly terrified. She frantically fled, finding herself chased all over the stage by her own Spirit Poison. Meanwhile, Ye Qingyun stood like a mere spectator, calmly observing the farce unfolding before him.

Soon enough, Jiang Yue conceded defeat. While this loss wasn’t as utterly inexplicable as some of Ye Qingyun’s previous victories, it was still quite close, perhaps only marginally better.

“Senior Sister Ziling, that was the Soul Absorption technique, wasn’t it?” Yuemei asked, having closely followed Ye Qingyun’s battle. “Where did that girl learn these techniques? More importantly, she actually used it on a ghostly entity and even managed to control it! Isn’t that a bit unreasonable?”

This particular match left her somewhat speechless, feeling entirely like a farce.

“Heh heh, a toad ghost is also a soul, so the Soul Absorption technique would naturally be effective,” Ziling chuckled softly. “Furthermore, that girl’s spiritual power must be incredibly strong; otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to control a ghostly entity. Quite interesting.”

For them, rather than focusing on the senior disciples of the sect, they preferred to pay attention to the junior disciples. They were already well-acquainted with the capabilities of the senior disciples, but the new, entry-level disciples remained an unknown.

After his match concluded, Ye Qingyun stepped down from the stage. The moment he did, numerous disciples immediately gathered around him.

“Senior Sister Ye, what was that technique you just used?” a female disciple asked with a laugh. “How did you manage to reverse-control Jiang Yue’s Spider Spirit Fiend? Do tell us!”

However, Ye Qingyun could hardly reveal his secrets. These were his personal methods; if he disclosed them all, how would he maintain his edge in the future? Thus, he merely offered a smile in response.

After his own match, he immediately went to look for Mo Qinyin. He quickly found her, but Mo Qinyin had not yet stepped onto the stage.

“Qinyin, you haven’t gone up yet?” Ye Qingyun asked with a smile.

Mo Qinyin, who had been intently watching the battles on stage, suddenly heard Ye Qingyun’s voice beside her. She immediately turned her head to glance at Ye Qingyun.

“Oh, Senior Sister Qingrou,” Mo Qinyin inquired, “is your match over?”

In truth, she didn’t even need to ask; she already knew Ye Qingyun would have certainly won.

“Yes, I won,” Ye Qingyun replied. “Do you have any concerns about your match here?” he asked, observing the ongoing battle on the stage.

The combatants on stage were two disciples from the Centipede Spirit Pavilion. Their Spirit Poisons clashed like savage beasts, tearing and attacking each other. The fight was exceedingly brutal and bloody.