At a Disadvantage

Mo Tianxiao had planned to leave early, but was stopped by a voice.

"Fellow Daoist Mo! Why don't you come down and exchange some pointers?"

Su Muxue had jumped onto the Dao Discussion Arena at some point. Dressed in a plain white dress, she held the hilt of her sword with one hand, the blade resting against her arm, her gaze locked onto the guy in the crowd who was still cracking melon seeds.

Hearing Su Muxue challenge their Eldest Senior Brother, the surrounding disciples instantly stepped aside, exposing Mo Tianxiao's figure.

"Eldest Senior Brother! The fairy called you out by name to spar!"

"Eldest Senior Brother, could it be that the fairy has taken a fancy to you?"

"I heard that this Miss Su is the younger sister of the Palace Master of the Jade Pool Heavenly Palace. If Senior Brother Mo becomes Dao companions with her, our two factions will truly become in-laws."

"Eldest Senior Brother! Eldest Senior Brother! Eldest Senior Brother!"

The surrounding disciples began to cheer, instantly elevating the prestige of the Demon Sect's Eldest Senior Brother.

Even the many elders and the people from the Jade Pool Heavenly Palace were somewhat surprised. This Eldest Senior Brother of the Demon Sect actually had such great prestige in the hearts of the disciples.

"Hahahahaha, why does it feel like Tianxiao has more face than us elders?"

The First Elder looked at Mo Tianxiao, who was highly revered by the disciples, his face full of gratification.

"Big Brother, just look at whose disciple Tianxiao is. He is our Sect Master's first personal disciple, how could he be ordinary?"

The Second Elder beside him quickly chimed in with praise.

"Master, Senior Brother is really amazing."

Nangong Wan, who was beside Yue Liuli, looked at her Senior Brother in the crowd, her eyes full of admiration.

The Demon Sect disciples respected her mostly because of her high talent and her status as the Sect Master's disciple, but everyone's respect for the Eldest Senior Brother came from genuine admiration and affection.

Hearing this, the corners of Yue Liuli's mouth curled up slightly, revealing a beautiful smile.

"Hmph."

However, Su Muyao, who was not far away, snorted coldly in displeasure.

On what basis could this guy make Sister Liuli smile? He was just an ordinary and unremarkable guy.

Yes, in Su Muyao's eyes, Mo Tianxiao was truly unremarkable. He didn't have heaven-defying bone structure, nor did he have a special physique. His talent was only slightly better than an ordinary person's.

Even if he possessed the Great Emperor's inheritance of the Demon Sect, the hope of him becoming a Great Emperor in the future was extremely slim.

Why would Liuli accept such a guy as her personal disciple?

"But his character seems alright, barely worthy of Little Xue."

After guessing that Mo Tianxiao might become her love rival, she had already made up her mind. She had to tie him together with Little Xue, so that he wouldn't be able to interfere with the relationship between her and Sister Liuli.

Meanwhile.

Looking at Su Muxue's provocative gaze on the Dao Discussion Arena, Mo Tianxiao felt a wave of helplessness in his heart.

This woman still hadn't let go of what happened back then. Wasn't it just a slap? Did she really have to hold such a grudge?

"Since Fellow Daoist Su has issued a challenge, I will naturally oblige."

Mo Tianxiao put away the remaining melon seeds in his hand and walked through the air towards the arena, his peak Soul Formation stage aura fully revealed.

Seeing as she hadn't complained to his Master, he might as well play along with her.

"Fellow Daoist Mo, do you need me to suppress my cultivation base to the same realm as yours?"

Su Muxue's eyebrows raised slightly, seemingly provoking Mo Tianxiao, asking if he dared to fight her across cultivation levels.

She was well aware of his strength. If they were at the same realm, she most likely wouldn't be his match; this had already been proven back in the secret realm.

But now, she was at the peak of the first level of the Profound Connection realm, while he was only at the Soul Formation stage.

Fighting across minor realms was nothing for geniuses, but now there was a whole major realm gap between them. She wasn't just some ordinary person either; she didn't believe he could still defeat her.

She was, after all, the Young Palace Master of the Jade Pool Heavenly Palace. She wouldn't possibly be defeated by someone a whole major realm below her, right?

"No need."

Mo Tianxiao stood with his hands behind his back, his face calm.

Her petty thoughts were written all over her face. He wouldn't lack the courage to fight across realms, anyway, it wasn't a life-and-death duel.

"Eldest Senior Brother is awesome!"

"Eldest Senior Brother is going to fight above his realm? The opponent is the younger sister of the Jade Pool Heavenly Palace Master. I heard her sword Dao is unparalleled and she rarely meets her match. Can Eldest Senior Brother defeat her?"

"What do you know? Eldest Senior Brother is the future head of our Demon Sect. Fighting across realms is as easy as drinking water for him."

"You can do it, Eldest Senior Brother! It doesn't matter if you lose, you are still our most beloved Eldest Senior Brother!"

Seeing their Eldest Senior Brother about to fight across realms, the Demon Sect disciples immediately maxed out their emotional support.

"Good! Fellow Daoist Mo, then I shall begin."

Su Muxue gripped her longsword, casually flourished a sword flower, and attacked Mo Tianxiao.

Seeing this, Mo Tianxiao smoothly drew an ordinary longsword and engaged her in battle.

Since it was just a sparring match, it wouldn't be appropriate for him to bully others using a Saint weapon.

Soon, sword qi began to crisscross the Dao Discussion Arena as their contest erupted.

Compared to her swordplay, Mo Tianxiao's attainments in the sword Dao were far inferior to Su Muxue's. This caused him to fall into a disadvantage right from the start, only barely managing to exchange blows with her.

"Little friend Su's talent in the sword Dao is very strong. Her sword arts are exquisitely profound, and her sword moves are extremely proficient and unpredictable. I'm afraid ordinary mid-stage Profound Connection cultivators wouldn't be her match."

The many elders of the Demon Sect looked at the battle on the arena and began to comment.

"Every stance of Tianxiao's sword moves is extremely solid, and every strike is just right. Unsurprisingly, he must have cultivated most basic sword arts to the perfection stage."

"It's just... why is Tianxiao only using basic sword stances? I remember there are a few decent sword art scrolls in the Library Pavilion, right?"

"Perhaps Tianxiao doesn't want to become a sword cultivator and just practiced a few moves casually."

Some elders guessed that Mo Tianxiao hadn't learned any profound sword arts at all. After all, their Demon Sect's Great Emperor inheritance focused more on close-quarters combat, making their fighting style relatively more violent and bloody.

Besides, almost none of the Demon Sect disciples majored in the sword Dao, except for the Sect Master.

"For Tianxiao to be able to tangle with her in swordplay for so long, he can already be considered exceptionally gifted."

For a beginner to hold his own for so long against a sword Dao expert who had been immersed in the sword for years, it was entirely supported by his spiritual energy, which was far more vigorous than an ordinary person's.

"Mo Tianxiao, why aren't you using that move from back then?"

Su Muxue frowned slightly. Although she could firmly suppress him in swordplay, she knew very well that he wasn't using his full strength at all.

She remembered that set of fiercely imposing armor from back then exceptionally clearly.

"It's just a spar, there's no need for that."

Mo Tianxiao glanced at the notches on his longsword and said in a calm tone.

In this battle, he was indeed being suppressed the whole time. Her cultivation was higher than his, and her sword Dao attainments far exceeded his.

Using the Demon Emperor Armor would definitely allow him to defeat her, but using the Great Emperor's inheritance to win would be somewhat unfair. She might not accept the loss and would keep pestering him in the future.

"Then I'll beat you until you use it!"

Su Muxue felt that she was being looked down upon. His sword Dao attainments and cultivation were clearly inferior to hers, so what right did he have to be so confident? Wasn't he just looking down on her?

Holding her longsword vertically in front of her chest, a soaring sword intent erupted from Su Muxue's body. The sharp aura pierced into the clouds, whipping up a sword wind that scraped against the surrounding audience, causing everyone to feel a slight sting on their skin.

"Thousand Sword Net!"