Sima Tianhai was infuriated by Ye Tian's words. He had seen arrogance before, but never to this degree. 'If I don't kill this guy today,' he thought, 'I'll never be able to live with myself.'
"Ye Tian, don't get ahead of yourself! Today, I'll show you what real power looks like. Since you're so eager to die, I'll oblige!" Sima Tianhai shouted.
A silver Longsword instantly materialized in Sima Tianhai's hand. With a glance at Ye Tian, he slashed out, aiming to kill without a hint of mercy.
Seeing Sima Tianhai's Longsword slash toward him, Ye Tian didn't dodge. Instead, he swung his Black Glaze Sword to meet it. He only wanted to test the Attack Power of his opponent's strike, so he held back, using just seventy percent of his strength.
The two streams of Sword Qi collided in mid-air with a deafening CRASH. The very space around them trembled, and the spectating students quickly fell back, not wanting to get caught in the crossfire.
The blow forced Ye Tian back five or six steps before he regained his footing. Sima Tianhai, however, only retreated three. Sima Tianhai clearly had the upper hand in that exchange, but it had little real effect on Ye Tian.
"So that's all you've got! And to think you wanted to kill me. I really overestimated you. Ye Tian, today you die!" Sima Tianhai declared arrogantly.
"You're nothing special yourself," Ye Tian retorted with a laugh. "I only used seventy percent of my strength, and you couldn't even knock me off my feet. Looks like you're all bark and no bite. You want to avenge your brother? The only thing you'll be doing is joining him."
"You! You! Go to hell!" Sima Tianhai sputtered, practically incoherent with rage.
"It won't be that easy to kill me!" Ye Tian roared. This time, he was prepared to deal his opponent a crushing psychological blow. He was going to take the next attack head-on.
At that moment, Zhang Xinlan was rushing over at top speed. She arrived just in time to see Sima Tianhai's Sword Qi bearing down on Ye Tian. But Ye Tian was standing completely still, as if frozen, making no move to resist and simply letting the attack come at him.
Zhang Xinlan was stunned. 'What is Ye Tian doing? He can't be foolish enough to be committing suicide, can he?'
She wanted to intervene, but it was too late. All she could do was watch helplessly as Sima Tianhai's Longsword thrust toward Ye Tian. Her heart leaped into her throat, and she was sick with worry.
Sima Tianhai was also startled to see Ye Tian not dodging. 'Has the kid been scared stiff? Or does he know he's going to die today and has given up on any futile struggles?'
Despite his thoughts, the Attack Power of the Longsword in his hand didn't diminish in the slightest. In fact, he increased his output to one hundred percent, intending to end Ye Tian's life with this single strike.
The other onlookers held their breath, their eyes glued to the spectacular scene. They all wondered why Ye Tian would do such a thing, but they were convinced he wasn't just throwing his life away. Perhaps it was a trap.
A moment later, something happened that stunned everyone present. Even Zhang Xinlan was taken aback, though she quickly understood.
'That damned Ye Tian! Making me worry for nothing. He almost scared me to death!' Zhang Xinlan grumbled to herself.
Sima Tianhai's Longsword did indeed strike Ye Tian. However, it was as if a protective barrier surrounded him; the blade couldn't pierce his flesh. No matter how much force Sima Tianhai exerted, his efforts were useless.
Ye Tian was only forced back step-by-step by the force of the blow. 'This is too bizarre,' Sima Tianhai thought. He refused to believe this was Ye Tian's own Defense Power. How could a mere Second Vein Power Realm Martial Artist possess such formidable defense?
'Even an expert at the Three Veins Realm wouldn't dare to take that strike head-on and unarmed. Ye Tian must have some incredible defensive treasure on him; otherwise, he would never have done that.'
"Sima Tianhai, is this the extent of your Attack Power?" Ye Tian taunted. "You can't even break through my defense, yet you want to kill me? Are you still dreaming?"
"Ye Tian, what kind of item are you using? How does it have such incredible Defense Power?" Sima Tianhai demanded in astonishment.
"It's a treasure, of course," Ye Tian said with a grin. "Otherwise, do you think I'd be so confident as to let you try to kill me? Do you want to get your hands on my treasure? Kill me and it's all yours. But I don't think you're going to get that chance!"
"You're right about that. After I kill you, everything you own will naturally be mine. You have only yourself to blame for being stupid enough to reveal such a vital secret!" Sima Tianhai laughed as if he had just struck gold.
Just then, Zhang Xinlan appeared before Ye Tian in a flash. "Ye Tian, are you all right? Why don't you just kill this pest already? What are you wasting time for?" she asked.
"You're here?" Ye Tian said with a smile. "I was just toying with him. It would be easy to kill him, but he's so arrogant. I don't want to let him die that quickly!"
Sima Tianhai was startled when Zhang Xinlan appeared in front of Ye Tian. First, he was shocked by her incredible speed—a feat even he couldn't replicate.
Then, he was stunned by her beauty. It was rare to see such a gorgeous woman in the academy. 'This must be Zhang Xinlan,' he realized, 'the top beauty of the Basic Level's advanced class.'
But the fact that this Zhang Xinlan seemed so familiar with Ye Tian irritated him even more, and his desire to kill Ye Tian grew stronger.
Zhang Xinlan glanced from Sima Tianhai to Ye Tian. "Ye Tian, how about I kill him for you? Just looking at this guy is irritating!"
"No, I'll do it myself," Ye Tian said. "You can't reveal your true strength in front of everyone yet. There will be trouble if the academy instructors find out."
"It's fine. I've already thought it through," said Zhang Xinlan. "I want the academy instructors to know my current strength. That way, I can enter the Royal Academy with you and save myself a lot of hassle!"
"Are you two done talking?" Sima Tianhai interrupted. "Do you really think I'm some kind of pushover that either of you can just kill at will? Since you're both so eager to die, I'll grant you your wish!"
As he spoke, however, he waved to the two students who had come with him, signaling for them to attack together.
"Xinlan, stay out of this," Ye Tian said, his expression turning serious. "This time, I'll kill all of them. I'll let them see what real power is!"
Tightening his grip on the Black Glaze Sword, Ye Tian rapidly circulated the Dragon Spiritual Power within his body. At the same time, he drew upon the Gold Elemental Energy from the Golden Element Ball. He planned to use Gold Slash to kill all three of these annoying pests in a single strike.