Cultivation Online

Chapter 2042: Sword Emperor Qualifications’ Third Trial

Hearing that Yuan wanted to proceed to the next trial immediately after completing his second left the other participants feeling weak and inadequate, as they themselves still needed time to recover.

The Holy Sword King could only grit his teeth in frustration as he glared at Yuan, still reeling from the shock of learning that Yuan was ranked first, above even the Heavenly Son, a figure he could only dream of surpassing.

‘There’s no way he’s completed two trials while I’d just finished my first! He must be cheating somehow!’ The Holy Sword King scowled inwardly, racking his brain for an explanation, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t think of a single way Yuan might have cheated.

In the end, he decided to let the others investigate instead, confident that he wasn’t the only one harboring such suspicions.

Naturally, some of the spectators did question Yuan’s astonishing pace and progress. However, having witnessed his performance firsthand, they found nothing that hinted at foul play, so they could only continue to look for anything suspicious.

“Honestly, I didn’t think you’d finish the second trial so quickly.” Senior Bai spoke as he approached the sealed door that led to the third trial.

After removing the seal on the door and opening it for Yuan, he continued, “Good luck.”

Yuan nodded and entered the third trial—but not before saying to Senior Bai, “See you soon.”

After Yuan left, the Holy Sword King asked out loud, “Senior, pardon me for asking, but are we all really taking the same trial?”

The other participants turned to look at Senior Bai. Though they all knew the answer in their hearts, they still hoped for a different answer.

“The trials are the same for everyone. There is no exception,” said Senior Bai. “If you’re worried that might not be the case, you may watch the recordings afterward.”

The Holy Sword King became silent and, without saying another word, returned to cultivating.

Meanwhile, within the second trial, Tian Yuexing steadily made his way forward. Though his pace couldn’t compare to Yuan’s, and he occasionally paused to recover between encounters, his progress was still remarkably swift. Had it not been for Yuan’s overwhelming presence, he would have undoubtedly claimed the spotlight in the Sword Emperor Qualifications.

‘Fuck… which bastard created this year’s Sword Emperor Qualifications? I’d like to have a word with them after this!’ Tian Yuexing cursed the creator inwardly as he continued to advance.

At the same time, Yuan began his third trial. Shortly after stepping through the door, Yuan found himself standing in the middle of a vast, barren field, surrounded by nothing but dirt and scattered pebbles.

He looked around but sensed nothing until the ground suddenly began to tremble, as if an earthquake had erupted beneath his feet.

Soon, the source of the tremor revealed itself—a horde of magical beasts surged over the horizon, thundering toward Yuan like a relentless stampede.

Yuan immediately shifted into a battle stance. But just as he was about to strike, a sharp and powerful ripple swept across the field. Before he could even react, the entire horde of magical beasts was slain in the blink of an eye, their bodies cleanly severed in half.

The next moment, Yuan watched as a figure descended from the sky, landing just a few meters away.

He was a handsome man clad in green robes, with short silver hair and a black sword gripped firmly in his hand. Though Yuan didn’t recognize him, many among the spectators did, especially the swordmasters, whose expressions filled with awe the moment they saw him.

“The Jade Sword Emperor!” Kelan remarked after seeing this handsome man.

“Who?” Wang Ming asked.

Li Jinxi answered instead, “The first swordmaster to claim the title of Sword Emperor. He’s basically the first officially recognized Sword Emperor in history.”

Moments after his arrival, the Jade Sword Emperor raised his black sword and, without the slightest warning, unleashed a relentless barrage of sword techniques at Yuan.

Thousands of green swords materialized around Yuan, swirling rapidly to form a powerful, sword-laced tornado that howled with destructive force.

However, despite its impressive display, the technique lacked the strength to truly threaten Yuan, as the Jade Sword Emperor’s cultivation was only at the Bronze Immortal level.

Realizing that his opponent possessed only the strength of a Bronze Immortal, Yuan paid no heed to the raging tornado around him and flew straight through it. In a flash, he closed the distance to the Jade Sword Emperor and, with a single decisive strike, cut down the handsome swordsman where he stood.

“…”

The spectators were left stunned by the outcome, not because of Yuan’s overwhelming prowess but because his opponent appeared too weak.

“What just happened? Why was his opponent so weak?” someone in the crowd exclaimed, their voice echoing through the area.

“Is there something wrong with the trial? He didn’t even do anything special to defeat the Jade Sword Emperor.”

“That’s…”

Senior Bai pondered a proper response.

The third trial was meant to test a participant’s talents and limits by pitting them against an opponent with superior cultivation, hence why Yuan, who was only at the peak of Immortal Ascension, had to fight against a Bronze Immortal.

However, Yuan was powerful enough to slay even True Immortals at his current level, making a mere Bronze Immortal hardly worth his attention.

Naturally, the spectators were unaware of the truth. In fact, most were convinced that Yuan was suppressing his cultivation to the Immortal Ascension realm, firmly believing that his true strength lay within the God Ascension Realm, hence why they were confused when the trial gave Yuan such an easy opponent.

But before Senior Bai could clear the misunderstanding, Yuan’s next opponent appeared—another Sword Emperor from the past, this one possessing the cultivation of a Silver Immortal.

In Yuan’s eyes, the third trial felt a little too easy. Still, he assumed it was merely the warm-up phase and that the real challenge had yet to begin. So, without giving it much thought, he effortlessly defeated the Silver Immortal.