Chapter 1025: The Offensive-and-Defensive Battle (Thank you to Black Eyes for the Alliance Master tip~)

The next day, the Earth-rank Sword Debate between Grand Void Gate and Heavenly Sword Sect began.

Outside the Sword-Discussion Mountain arena, it was still a sea of people, but the watching cultivators were noticeably fewer than before.

They had grown bored.

Grand Void Gate's strongest team had suffered consecutive defeats in the Earth-rank bracket, performing terribly, with hardly a single moment worth noting.

Many people had stopped holding out hope.

Moreover, this Sword Debate was an offensive-and-defensive battle, and their opponents were a top-tier sword cultivation sect — Heavenly Sword Sect.

Heavenly Sword Sect inherited the ancient Heavenly Sword Art.

This Heavenly Sword Art was also one of the finest sword Dao techniques in the entire Qianxue State boundary, and its power was terrifyingly formidable.

Letting Heavenly Sword Sect take the offensive, allowing their sword Qi to run rampant — across the entire Qianxue State boundary, even the Sida Sect's Dragon Cauldron Sect and the Eight Gates' Vajra Gate, these two body-tempering sects famed for their horizontal training of muscles and bones and their defense, might not be able to withstand it.

Let alone a mere Grand Void Gate.

Grand Void Gate simply didn't have any truly top-tier body cultivators.

On top of that, there was also Mo Hua, who would "shatter at a single touch."

In most cultivators' minds, this was a Sword Debate with almost no chance of winning and nothing worth watching.

Grand Void Gate was at a disadvantage to begin with, and now it was disadvantage piled upon disadvantage — certain defeat.

Of course, among the spectators, there was still a portion who held expectations.

But what they hoped for was that Heavenly Sword Sect would catch a flaw in Mo Hua and, in this Sword Debate, cleave him dead with a single sword.

This was a simple, plain wish.

"I want to see Mo Hua die with my own eyes."

Since the Xuan-rank bracket — no, since the very beginning of the Huang-rank preliminary rounds — this had already become an obsession in the hearts of many watching cultivators.

They asked for nothing else; it was purely for the sake of this obsession, kept dangling by that single breath, that they pushed aside all other matters and came to watch Mo Hua's Sword Debate.

There was no helping it — this brat Mo Hua had committed countless outrages, far too infuriating.

Unless he died once, it was hard to set one's mind at ease.

……

On the Shangguan family's high platform.

Yu'er also drooped his head, occasionally raising it unwillingly to steal a glance at the Fangtian painting-shadow.

He didn't quite dare to look.

In the Xuan-rank Sword Debate, Ink Brother had led a bunch of "big fools" around by the nose, and he had watched very happily.

But in the Earth-rank Sword Debate, Ink Brother had been losing the whole time.

Every match he watched made him miserable; he really didn't want to keep watching.

But this was Ink Brother's match, and he couldn't bear not to watch.

What if he won?

If he didn't watch, wouldn't that be a pity?

So Yu'er knit his brows, clutched his hem, tightened his little face, and forced himself to watch the Fangtian painting-shadow.

Apart from Yu'er, Wenren Wan, Gu Changhuai, Zhang Lan, Elder Murong, Hua Qianqian, and other "friends and relatives" of Mo Hua were somewhat calmer in their mindset.

Losing at the start was a bit heart-tugging, but after losing enough, one got used to it.

Victory and defeat are a soldier's lot.

Although they hoped Mo Hua would win, they also knew that human effort had its limits, and some things were simply impossible.

After all, this was the Qianxue Sword Debate Grand Meeting, with countless prodigies.

The fact that Mo Hua had made it this far was already very impressive.

Therefore, they came to watch simply to support Mo Hua.

Moreover, they could all see the situation of this Sword Debate more or less clearly in their hearts, so they were mentally prepared and did not hold too high expectations.

And the situation quickly confirmed most people's guesses.

Grand Void Gate, right from the start, was retreating step by step once again.

This was an offensive-and-defensive battle, modeled on the "siege battle" and "city defense battle" of cultivation warfare.

Heavenly Sword Sect attacked the city, Grand Void Gate defended it.

Of course, the format had been "simplified."

After all, a Sword Debate only had five people, unlike true cultivation warfare where easily a thousand, ten thousand, or even hundreds of thousands of cultivators might take part in grand offensive and defensive battles — this was merely a simple "rudimentary form," letting disciples compete and drill through the Sword Debate.

There was no real "city" either.

They simply built a "camp" within the Sword Debate arena, separated by walls into an outer city and an inner city, and within the inner city erected a "City Lord" statue.

The attacking side had to breach the outer city, enter the inner city, and ultimately destroy the City Lord statue.

The defending side had to protect the statue.

The siege battle had a time limit.

Within two hours, breach the city and the attackers win; hold the city and the defenders win.

And Grand Void Gate had to hold out for a full two hours under Heavenly Sword Sect's slaughtering sword Qi.

It wasn't even that simple.

The so-called defense of the outer city, put simply, meant defending the "city gates."

The outer city had two gates, requiring people to be split off to defend them.

The inner city had one gate, requiring someone to be left to garrison it.

With this arrangement, manpower was scattered, and for a Grand Void Gate team with a "crippled" roster, it was all the more fatal.

The key still lay with Mo Hua.

This situation further exposed Mo Hua's weaknesses as a Spirit Cultivator.

Before the Sword Debate began, some had already noticed this:

"In this setup, this Mo Hua is completely useless."

"I can't imagine how he could be of any use…"

"In a siege battle, there's no room for trickery or shortcuts…"

"No matter how good his concealment technique is, no one pays him any attention."

"No matter how nimble his movement is, he can only run—but this is a city defense; where can he run to?"

"Low-level Five Element spells can't block the Sword Qi of the Heavenly Sword Sect."

"That frail little body of his? Even if he tries to block it, it's still just one sword strike…"

"Either way, he's useless. I say he should just crouch inside the inner city as soon as the battle starts and let his teammates buy time…"

"Either way, victory or defeat has nothing to do with him…"

Someone joked.

When the Sword Debate began, the images appeared on the Sky-Reflecting Screen.

Everyone discovered that Mo Hua had truly done exactly as they said: he ignored everything, crouched behind the inner city wall, his back turned to everyone, sneaking around, doing something secretive—and even looked somewhat "sleazy"…

This only enraged the crowd further.

"Wait… I was just joking, and he actually crouched inside the inner city?"

"While his teammates are fighting for their lives, he's hiding for his?"

"At least throw a few fireballs out! What's he doing hiding there, sneaking around?"

"Cowardly and afraid of death?"

…

Amid the murmurs, a few sharp-eyed and meticulous cultivators said:

"That Mo Hua is setting up an array, isn't he?"

Someone sneered: "How much effort could setting up an array possibly take?"

"They're all pre-made."

"The arrays for the Sword Debate are drawn in advance, reviewed by the elders, then brought in—during battle, you just place them down. Why does he need to crouch there and fiddle for so long…"

Arrays are powerful, but require long preparation time.

In past cultivator battles, arrays were always prepared and set up in advance.

Otherwise, setting up an array during battle? By then, the soup would be cold.

The Sword Debate was no exception.

Mo Hua crouched there, "fiddling" for a long time—claiming to be setting up an array—but to others, it looked like deliberate slacking, pure and simple laziness.

"Is the Grand Void Gate really not going to discipline him for this passive combat?"

"Can the Grand Void Gate really tolerate this?"

"I think he's not the sect master's illegitimate son—the sect master is his illegitimate son; otherwise, how could they pamper him like this…"

…

The Sword Debate continued.

The Grand Void Gate was already at a disadvantage in strength.

The match format was also against them.

Under this compounded disadvantage, there was this "Crown Prince" slacking off.

The outcome was obvious.

The Heavenly Sword Sect's Sword Qi surged like a rainbow, smashing through defenses, breaking two city gates in succession, passing through the outer city, and advancing toward the inner city.

This process was simple, effortless, and natural.

Linghu Xiao and the others fought with all their strength, desperately resisting.

But their efforts, beyond delaying time slightly, caused not the slightest ripple.

Soon, they were pushed back step by step, forced into the inner city.

The five disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect gathered outside the inner city gate.

This was the final defense.

Once they broke through the gate, stormed the inner city, slaughtered every Grand Void Gate disciple blocking their path, and severed the statue of the city lord, they would win the Sword Debate.

The Heavenly Sword Sect would claim another victory, taking another step toward becoming one of the Sida Sects and the Sword Debate champion.

It was another crushing victory.

"The Grand Void Gate is going to lose again…"

This thought surfaced in the minds of nearly all cultivators outside the arena.

And the loss felt increasingly inevitable.

There was no drama, no tension.

Some cultivators outside sighed, beginning to find it utterly boring.

"Watching this Sword Debate is such a waste of time…"

"I can guess what happens next with my eyes closed…"

"It'll just be the Heavenly Sword Sect disciples breaking the gate, charging in, fighting fiercely, and killing Linghu Xiao and the others…"

"Then Mo Hua will squeeze his Dao Discourse Jade once more and flee."

"Then the Heavenly Sword Sect will smash the city lord statue, and it's over…"

"The gap between the Sida Sects and the Grand Void Gate is still too great—the Grand Void Gate has no chance of winning…"

Shangguan family's viewing platform.

Yu'er hung his head, his small face filled with disappointment.

Wenren Wan gently patted Yu'er's head, whispering words of comfort to him.

Zhang Lan and the others also looked gloomy.

The atmosphere grew heavy.

Inside the Sword Debate Arena, the Tianjian Sect disciples had activated the Tianxing Sword, and pure white sword qi, carrying astonishing force, slashed repeatedly toward the city gate.

Cheng Mo, Situ Jian, and Ouyang Xuan all moved to block them.

Linghu Xiao also unleashed Chongxu Sword Qi, countering the Tianjian Sect disciples' sword qi.

But the Tianjian Sect's sword qi was too lethal; the five of them combined, channeling the qi of heaven, their assault surged forward with overwhelming force—direct frontal resistance was impossible.

Cheng Mo and the others were forced to retreat.

Linghu Xiao stood alone, unable to hold back the tide.

One after another, the pure white Tianxing Sword Qi struck the city gate, as if striking straight at the hearts of the Grand Void Gate cultivators.

Each strike sent a shiver through their hearts.

Once the gate broke, the match would be over.

Everything after that would be meaningless.

Many did not wish for the gate to break, did not wish for the Grand Void Gate to lose.

But more people were waiting for the gate to break.

Waiting for the Grand Void Gate disciples to be cut down one by one.

Time slipped away slowly amid this tense tension.

The Tianjian Sect disciples continued slashing the gate with their sword qi.

The gate still "struggled" to hold.

Yet after long hours of slashing, the gate still had not broken…

On the viewing platforms, the crowd began exchanging glances, sensing something was off.

After a while longer, the Tianjian Sect disciples still slashed at the gate.

The gate, bearing all the Tianxing Sword Qi, looked as if it would shatter in the next instant—but after a long time, not a single crack appeared.

This gate was as if forged from iron.

Everyone's expression changed.

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"What the hell…"

"Is something wrong with this gate?"

"It's not the gate that's wrong—it's the array on it… seems off?"

Some external cultivators skilled in arrays, or array elders from various sects, carefully examined the faint, flickering array glow hidden beneath the dense storm of sword qi on the gate.

As soon as they did, someone's face turned pale with shock, and he leapt to his feet:

"High-rank array!!"

"Is the Grand Void Gate using a high-rank array in the Sword Debate?!"

The arena fell silent for an instant, then erupted into chaos.

Like a stone thrown into a thousand waves.

The crowd exploded into uproar.

"A Rank-Two High-Rank Array?!"

"Are you kidding?"

"Aren't arrays in the Sword Debate limited to Rank-Two Mid-Rank?"

"This violates the rules…"

"Cheating?"

"Is the Grand Void Gate cheating?"

"Insane…"

One after another, people questioned: "When did he bring that array in?"

"The Sword Debate rules are strict—everything brought into the arena is personally inspected by elders; no favoritism or fraud is allowed."

"Did the Grand Void Gate bribe the Dao Debate Mountain elders?"

"Does the Grand Void Gate have this kind of power?"

…

Even more unsettled than the external cultivators watching were the Dao Debate Mountain elders.

Those who served as elders on Dao Debate Mountain were usually elderly, seasoned, respected, and known for their fairness.

The position was prestigious and leisurely.

They had been sitting calmly, sipping tea, watching the Sword Debate.

But when the high-rank array appeared, several elders were genuinely startled—their teacups shattered in their hands.

"This is bad!"

"Oh no, how did this child get a high-rank array inside?"

"The ancestral rules are broken…"

"Who checked him?"

"What a foolish old fool…"

An elder stuck out his neck and said, "Don't talk nonsense—I searched him thoroughly when he entered, and there was no high-level array."

"Then where did his array come from?"

"Quick, check it out…"

So someone began reversing the Fangtian Projection, playing back the footage from the start of the Sword Debate, frame by frame, to see exactly what Mo Hua had done.

To avoid suspicion and ensure absolute fairness, no covert manipulation.

The reversed footage was also visible to the spectators outside the arena.

On the Fangtian Projection, a small screen popped up, replaying every movement Mo Hua made since entering the arena.

Everyone, including the Sword Debate participants, stopped watching and stared wide-eyed, utterly focused on Mo Hua's "replay."

The images scrolled rapidly, then froze on the most "suspicious" moment.

Mo Hua crouched in the corner, his back to everyone, furtively tinkering with something.

"Quick, change the angle," ordered the elder of Lundao Mountain.

The view shifted, revealing Mo Hua's face directly.

What he was doing in his hands became perfectly clear.

Everyone at Lundao Mountain fell silent.

Then the entire crowd erupted in uproar.

At this very moment, they finally saw clearly what Mo Hua had been furtively doing in the corner…

He was indeed "tinkering" with an array.

But not setting one up.

He was drawing an array!

During the Sword Debate, while the two prodigies were clashing, he had personally drawn a high-level array on the spot!

The Sword Debate forbade bringing in second-rank high-level arrays.

So he did it himself—drew a high-level array right there on the spot!

The crowd fell speechless, unsure what to say.

After a moment of silence, someone wondered, "Wait… if he drew a second-rank high-level array, where did he get the array medium?"

Someone spotted it: "He took it apart from other arrays he brought in."

"…"

"Then where's his array brush?"

"The Sword Debate allows carrying spiritual instruments—he brought no weapon, only an array brush."

"An array brush is an array master's weapon…"

"Then the spiritual ink? Where did he get the ink?"

"No one knows…"

Some shook their heads; most cultivators looked equally baffled.

But one cultivator who had participated in past Sword Debates and studied the rules closely explained:

"Sword Debate disciples may bring certain 'miscellaneous items'—spiritual ink is one of them."

"What?" someone protested, confused. "Why would miscellaneous items include spiritual ink? How is spiritual ink even considered a miscellaneous item? Who the hell set this rule? Do they have any common sense?"

"The founder of Lundao Mountain set it…"

The previous cultivator slapped his own mouth: "Sorry, I spoke out of turn—the founder was right… spiritual ink should be classified as a miscellaneous item."

Someone summarized: "So… this kid Mo Hua took apart array media, brought his own array brush, used spiritual ink from the miscellaneous items, and drew a second-rank high-level array right on the city gate?"

"You can actually do that?"

"Is this even reasonable?"

"What kind of brain does this kid have? To exploit a loophole this thoroughly?"

"This isn't a loophole—it's outright cheating!"

"Using a high-level array in the Sword Debate—how can anyone compete? Isn't this cheating?"

"But we don't get to decide."

"At least on paper, it's technically compliant."

"We'll deal with it later—for now, just watch the Sword Debate… Even if the high-level array is powerful, he's facing five prodigies from Tianjian Sect. One high-level array against five prodigies—who wins isn't certain yet."

"Don't get too clever using a high-level array only to lose—that'll be embarrassing," someone sneered.

Someone objected, "You're underestimating high-level arrays. That's a high-level array, drawn by Mo Hua—it's surely a top-tier nineteen-stroke array. Do you think that's some joke?"

…

Amid the crowd's heated discussion,

inside the Sword Debate arena, the Tianjian Sect disciples sensed something was off.

"A high-level array?"

The tallest of the Tianjian Sect prodigies frowned, then said grimly, "So what if it's a high-level array? Today, I'll see whether your array holds firm or my Tianjian Sect's sword qi cuts sharper!"

"Kill!"

The other four echoed in unison: "Kill!!"

The five no longer held back; their spiritual power surged as they pushed their sword qi to its absolute limit.

Sharper and sharper beams of Tianjian sword qi slashed against the city gate.

Even with the high-level array's reinforcement, the gate began to crack faintly, trembling as dust and sand rained down.

But Mo Hua was not in a hurry.

Linghu Xiao and the others merely followed Mo Hua's orders, occasionally stepping out to harass.

Previously, they had to defend against Tianjian Sect disciples and protect the city gate.

But now, with the city gate reinforced by a high-grade Jin Shi Array, it could fend off Tianjian Sect disciples on its own—they only needed to occasionally harass them and ease the pressure on the gate.

This was much easier.

Amid the back-and-forth struggle, streams of Tianxing Sword Qi continued to strike the city gate, only to be absorbed by the high-grade Jin Shi Array.

Though the high-grade Jin Shi Array had strong defense, it could not hold long under relentless assault by the prodigies of the Sida Sect.

Under the unceasing sword qi strikes of the Tianjian Sect disciples,

cracks on the array gradually multiplied.

The city gate also began to feel as if it might collapse at any moment.

Seeing the array on the verge of rupture, the Tianjian Sect disciples surged with excitement: "Quick! Press forward with one final push—shatter the array and breach the gate!"

"Yes!"

United in effort, they unleashed their sword qi and continued smashing the gate.

And heaven did not forsake the diligent.

After a barrage of sword qi assaults, the glow on the gate dimmed, and the array runes snapped.

The high-grade Jin Shi Array was indeed shattered by the Tianjian Sect disciples.

The Tianjian Sect disciples rejoiced.

The watching cultivators nodded in approval and praised:

"No wonder they're Tianjian Sect prodigies—even a high-grade array couldn't stop them…"

But just as the array on the gate dimmed and was about to vanish, Mo Hua calmly reached out and slapped the wall.

In an instant, light blazed forth.

Another brand-new high-grade Jin Shi Array was activated.

The wavering city gate, bolstered by the array, instantly became "impregnable" once more.

The spectators who had just praised the Tianjian Sect prodigies felt a sudden lump rise in their throats.

The joy that had just blossomed in the hearts of the Tianjian Sect prodigies was utterly extinguished.

Gazing at the glowing, golden-light-woven "city gate," their faces paled and their mouths turned bitter.

One high-grade array had indeed failed to stop them.

What about the other two?

Were there truly only two?

Who knew how many more high-grade arrays Mo Hua still held in reserve?

And just how many layers of high-grade Jin Shi Array had he stacked upon this city gate?

At that moment, the Tianjian Sect disciples all simultaneously felt a whisper of despair rise in their hearts.

At this very instant, they finally recalled clearly Mo Hua's original identity:

Qian Xue… the Array Dao Grandmaster.