Yin Yuan was someone who did not underestimate her opponents and would look into them. She had prepared quite a bit after learning that she was fighting Lin Mu who had defeated his previous opponent in record time.
She was wary of Lin Mu's powerful attack and knew that it could happen with her too. Thus, she prepared a defensive high grade Immortal tool that would be able to protect against it immediately if she didn't react in time.
But much to her shock, the barrier didn't last and yielded against the very first attack. Not just that, but it seemed to be different than the one Lin Mu had used in his previous fight.
The subsequent attack of Lin Mu also caught her off guard and if not for the fact that it was weaker, the Hexapole Repulsion Pill technique might not have been able to slow it down.
In the first place, the Hexapole Reputation Pill technique wasn't actually a combat skill. It was used in alchemical pill refinement and was used to harmonize materials of opposing elements.
But Yin Yuan adapted it for combat and used its repulsive properties as an attack. Of course, it came with its own advantages and disadvantages. The advantage was that it could be deployed rapidly and wasn't dependent on Yin Yuan's own Immortal Qi stores.
The disadvantages were that once it was deployed, it couldn't be controlled much and its area of effect was also fixed. This was why Yin Yuan had thrown the toxic black pills to prevent Lin Mu from getting close and also poisoning him.
But this disadvantage was what Lin Mu grasped and overcame the Hexapole Repulsion Pill technique by simply going around. He didn't care about the black toxic cloud as his body was able to handle it without much problem.
If his body could handle Baleful Energies to a certain level, this toxic black cloud was still tolerable as long as he didn't breathe it in. At his current condition, it only made his skin itch.
As such, Lin Mu simply rushed through the cloud and circled to the back of Yin Yuan. Even though he didn't use his spatial skills, his own speed was fast enough to catch the woman off guard.
And once he was behind her, Lin Mu just slashed out with Afternoon Pine.
The sword's skill was also activated, creating a pine tree made out of Metal elemental immortal Qi.
"AAAAAAAAAAAA!" Yin Yuan let out a loud cry as she was struck by the pine tree.
The Metal immortal Qi turned the pine tree sharp, with each of its leave feeling like a razor on her body. Her defenses were pierced and long cuts were left all over her body.
But that wasn't all, as the tree continued to grow and struck her with its trunk!
That was the end for Yin Yuan, as her body simply turned into a flash of light and disappeared.
~huu~
"And there we go…" Lin Mu let out a breath of relief.
The defeat of Yin Yuan had been quick but not as quick as the previous one.
'Guess people are starting to catch on.' Lin Mu didn't miss the fact that Yin Yuan had better protection than his previous opponent.
And while Lin Mu had managed to overcome it, he still needed to put more effort. Though he also had some luck on his side, as the poison that Yin Yuan used didn't work on Lin Mu as long as he didn't breathe it in.
For others though, the black cloud of poison would directly enter their body through the skin. And at the same time, it would also have a corrosive effect, causing great pain and damage to the cultivator.
~WHOOSH~
A few moments later the teleportation process started for Lin Mu as well, sending him back to the platform.
"Daoist Mu Lin is the winner!" the elder overseeing the match finally announced.
~WOOOO~
Lin Mu was met with a cacophony of cheers as the audience cried out.
He didn't pay much attention to them though, instead looking around him first. Yin Yuan was being carried out already while three fights were still ongoing.
'Dugu Shanhe hasn't finished his fight yet either… surprising.' Lin Mu thought as he watched the formation screen.
Lin Mu also saw that Lu Xu was busy in his own match, though he wasn't exactly fighting right now. Instead, he and his opponent were observing each other while keeping some distance.
They seemed to be wary about attacking first and were very careful.
'This works in our favor… Just draw it out Lu Xu…' Lin Mu silently thought.
He started to make his way to the Spring Valley restaurant while extending his Immortal sense towards the arrays in the sky. He couldn't afford to lose even a second of time and knew he needed to enter the Spatial Plane as soon as possible.
Glancing at the other screen, Lin Mu saw that Dugu Shanhe was in a similar situation. He was standing still, while staring at his opponent who wasn't moving at all.
The two were locked in some sort of staring contest, though Lin Mu knew that the man was using his hypnotic skill.
'Considering how long his opponent has lasted, it's clear that they are resisting it…' Lin Mu realized.
Dugu Shanhe's opponent was at the Fifth Tribulation Stage of the Immortal realm as well, though not exactly on the same level as him.
But even then, Dugu Shanhe's technique didn't manage to knock his foe out immediately. He had to stare at his opponent for two minutes before he finally knocked him out.
By this time, Lin Mu's Immortal sense had already entered a quarter of the way through the nodes.
Lu Xu had also exchanged a couple of blows with his opponent, and was holding on just fine.
"Dugu Shanhe is the winner!" The second announcement caused the crowd to cheer again, while Lin Mu continued to infiltrate the arrays.
