Chapter 1766: Chapter 1863: The Frustrated Fang Changlong

Cao Xuesheng returned to the group from the Sky Swallowing Palace, his eyes carrying a hint of helplessness, as if he hadn’t had enough fun yet.

Meanwhile, many from other forces were secretly observing Cao Xuesheng, each inwardly sighing that the Sky Swallowing Palace truly is a place of hidden talents.

“What’s the matter? Do you feel like you haven’t had enough fun?” Fang Lin laughed and asked.

Cao Xuesheng nodded in deep agreement, “If I had known it would be like this, I should have used the Cold Cicada Sword earlier, so I wouldn’t have been without a chance to draw my sword now.”

Upon hearing Cao Xuesheng’s words, the few were amused and speechless. This guy is really something; he clearly defeated all the young swordsmen, yet didn’t show a bit of joy. If it were others, they probably wouldn’t have been able to contain their happiness long ago.

“It’s just a Talent Sword Head List, there will be the real Sword Head List later. You’ll still have a chance to showcase your skills,” Dugu Nian said.

Nangong Shoujian said, “The Hall Master is right, just a mere Talent Sword Head List, with your capability, it would be outrageous if you couldn’t secure it.”

Cao Xuesheng shook his head, “Without the Cold Cicada Sword, it would be difficult for me to outshine the others.”

This is indeed Cao Xuesheng’s truth. On the Ask Sword Platform, all swordsmen were suppressed to the same cultivation level, unable to crush the opponents through sheer strength, having to rely on their own Sword Tao attainment to decide the victor.

The only thing that could be relied on was the sword in the swordsman’s hand. If one held a famous sword, naturally, they would have an advantage over other swordsmen.

Cao Xuesheng is just such; his own Sword Tao attainment was already profound, and coupled with the Ancient Sword Cold Cicada in hand, although some among the young swordsmen held good swords, they were still lacking compared to the Cold Cicada.

“The Cold Cicada Sword is your advantage. Those young swordsmen with distinguished backgrounds also have good swords in hand. It’s nothing much,” Fang Lin said casually, never believing that relying on external aids was shameful.

On the contrary, not having treasures at hand is indeed shameful.

Since Cao Xuesheng had firmly secured the first place title on the Talent Sword Head List, he no longer needed to participate in the ensuing competition. Those young swordsmen, who had been knocked off the Ask Sword Platform by Cao Xuesheng, returned to the Ask Sword Platform once their injuries had healed.

However, these young swordsmen seemed not very enthusiastic, likely feeling uncomfortable since Cao Xuesheng had already seized the first place spot on the Talent Sword Head List.

But even though they felt uncomfortable, these young swordsmen could only accept it. After all, Cao Xuesheng’s displayed Sword Tao attainment was indeed above theirs.

Since they couldn’t have the top spot, these young swordsmen could only swallow their pride and compete for other ranks on the Talent Sword Head List.

This process was naturally quite interesting. After an intense large-scale melee, five hundred young swordsmen were left on the Ask Sword Platform to proceed to the next stage of competition tomorrow.

However, for the group from the Sky Swallowing Palace, the competition of the Talent Sword Head List no longer held much interest. In the following days, only Nangong Shoujian showed some interest, appearing for a glance or two, while the others did not show up, clearly not planning to continue watching, focusing solely on the forthcoming real Sword Head List competition.

For five straight days, the competitions for the Talent Sword Head List continued. The number of swordsmen dwindled from the initial five hundred to just over twenty, who would then compete for the last time on the sixth day.

Whoever could defeat more opponents would achieve higher ranks on the Talent Sword Head List, and the one holding out till the end would traditionally be the first on the Talent Sword Head List.

Of course, since this time Cao Xuesheng had already claimed the top spot, even if someone became the final winner on the sixth day, they would still have to come under Cao Xuesheng.

Nevertheless, the fighting on the sixth day was still quite splendid. Those young swordsmen who endured to this day indeed had genuine skills. For better ranks and defeating more opponents, none would hold back this day, showcasing their deepest-hidden techniques.

But still, only Nangong Shoujian from the Sky Swallowing Palace appeared, standing high up, watching the intensely fierce exchanges on the Ask Sword Platform, but not feeling much spirited about it.

After all, he, Nangong Shoujian, was also someone who had participated in a Sword Head evaluation before, winning first place on the Talent Sword Head List, so naturally, he didn’t think much of these young swordsmen now.

After watching for a short while, Nangong Shoujian left, having no interest in watching further. After all, once today’s competition ended, it would be the true battle of strong ones. He, Nangong Shoujian, needed to prepare well for it, as there were so many experts this time, he was not too confident about securing the top spot again.

Finally, the competition for the Talent Sword Head List was entirely over, and the announcement of all ranks would occur after the Sword Head evaluation.

Of course, the position of individuals on the Talent Sword Head List was practically clear to all parties.

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At the residence of the Haoran Sword Sect group, Sect Master Fang Changlong stared at the three young disciples, feeling exceedingly angry.

This time, Haoran Sword Sect sent three young swordsmen to compete in the Talent Sword Head List, but among the three disciples, only one persevered to the sixth day’s final battle, though the result was intolerably poor. The other over twenty young talents managed to defeat their opponents to varying degrees, yet the leftover young swordsman from Haoran Sword Sect didn’t win against a single opponent. Among the over twenty swordsmen, his performance was the worst, completely reduced to serve as a contrast to the other swordsmen.

This left Fang Changlong, who held great expectations for his disciples, utterly dumbfounded. Haoran Sword Sect, being proclaimed as the foremost Sword Tao sect in the Tang Country, had always produced an abundance of talents among their disciples. Logically, even if the number of talented swordsmen appearing at this Sword Head evaluation exceeded previous years, such bleak results from Haoran Sword Sect were hard to accept.

“How could you lose so miserably? You couldn’t win a single match?” Fang Changlong repeated this exclamation several times, feeling increasingly agitated.

The young man, defeated by over twenty young swordsmen once, lowered his head, also feeling aggrieved. He had indeed tried his best. There was one match he certainly had an opportunity to win but still lost due to not only a lack of strength but also unfortunately poor luck.

After thoroughly reprimanding the three, Fang Changlong didn’t say much more. The Talent Sword Head List was lost, and Haoran Sword Sect must sweep away their slump in the upcoming Sword Head List competition. Otherwise, once this Sword Head evaluation finishes, the reputation of Haoran Sword Sect in the Tang Country would be significantly affected.

“Sect Master, someone from the Literary Sect has come, saying they want to visit the Sect Master,” reported a disciple at this moment.

Fang Changlong furrowed his brows, someone from the Literary Sect? He had no entanglement with the three sects, so why would someone from the Literary Sect come to visit?

ps: First update here, continuing to write. Today, I have to go to the old Chinese doctor for a massage. After one or two more visits, I probably won’t need to continue going.