“The number of duels we have decided on is ten, and the victor of six rounds will be given the priority of distribution,” Hong shi said. “Han Ling is currently fighting the tenth round…”
“Since it has reached the tenth round, it means that the wins and losses are equal on both sides…” Hearing that it was the tenth round, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.
After all, there would be no point continuing the competition after the sixth round as the victor had already been decided. Given that they had reached the tenth round, it could only mean that both sides were equal.
“That isn’t the case…”
Hong shi’s face reddened in embarrassment. “We have fought ten rounds, but we have lost in every single one of them… and to the same person at that!”
“Lost to the same person? You mean that the person on stage has already fought ten rounds, but he hasn’t been defeated yet?”
Zhang Xuan’s eyes widened in shock.
“That’s right…”
Hong shi covered his face in embarrassment, and the others were too ashamed to raise their heads.
They had gone up one by one to challenge the man on the stage, and yet all of them suffered tragic defeats. And more importantly… the man on the stage wasn’t their strongest fighter!
Speechless, Zhang Xuan was just about to speak when a dull thud sounded from the stage.
Peng!
Han Ling was sent flying out of the ring and crashed into the courtyard.
‘All ten matches have concluded… How in the world do I salvage this situation?’
Looking at the fellow moaning in pain on the ground, Zhang Xuan’s eyelids twitched.
He thought that he might still be able to reverse the situation, but with all ten matches finished, what else could he do at this point?
Was he supposed to challenge the master teachers from Jinhai Empire once more? But the other party had no reason to accept!
“Alright, the ten matches have already concluded, and you didn’t win a single match at all. What else do you have to say?”
After sending Han Ling flying, the man on the stage gazed down at the group below with a smirk on his face.
“We…”
The faces of Hong shi and the others turned red.
If they had at least won two to three matches, they wouldn’t be so ashamed. They could have explained it as due to their strongest fighter being absent. But all of them actually lost to the same person! How were they supposed to explain this?
Furthermore, if Zhang shi wasn’t an opponent for the other party as well, wouldn’t they be embarrassed further?
Zhang shi might possess incredible talent, but in the end, his cultivation realm was only at Clarifying Turbidity realm pinnacle. Winning against this fellow who was able to singlehandedly win against ten of them without the slightest loss of breath seemed unlikely to them. Not to mention, this fellow wasn’t their strongest fighter.
(Zhang Xuan’s breakthrough to Consonant Spirit realm only occurred after the ‘corpse’ incident, so none of them are aware of it.)
“You don’t have anything else to say, right? Since that’s the case, then as per our agreement, we will be going by Senior Feng’s arrangements!” The gray-robed young man chuckled before turning around and clasping his fist. “Senior Feng!”
A white-robed young man then walked forward.
His aura felt significantly stronger than the gray-robed young man. At closer examination, Zhang Xuan realized that the white-robed man had already reached Half-Cosmos Bridge realm, and he could possibly make the full breakthrough at any moment.
The gray-robed young man who defeated ten of them was already extremely powerful in the eyes of Ruohuan gongzi and the others, but even so, he was still far from matching up to this white-robed young man.
In a sense, Huanyu Empire’s loss was inevitable. Even if they had been able to defeat the gray-robed young man, they would have never been able to win against the white-robed young man.
“Since we are allies, let’s clarify the terms of our agreement first!”
Standing on the stage, Senior Feng gazed at the Huanyu Empire group and declared forcefully, “Three days from now, at the start of the hunt, all of you will listen to my arrangements, and priority will be given to our Jinhai Empire regarding the hunted beasts! However, you need not worry. As long as we stand united as one, it is not a problem for all of us to pass the entrance examination!”
“They will be given priority over all of the hunted beasts?”
“What if we don’t hunt sufficient spirit beasts? Wouldn’t all of us be disqualified then?”
…
Even though they understood that the leader of the alliance would be given additional privileges, they still couldn’t help but feel frustrated upon hearing those words.
The benefit of an alliance was that they would be able to steer clear of danger before formidable spirit beasts, as well as vie for prey against other alliances. However, there was also a clear disadvantage to it as well. Take this case for example, the group from Huanyu Empire had no say in the distribution of the hunted beasts at all. Should the number of beasts hunted within the duration prove to be insufficient, they would all stand to be eliminated.
“Why? Are you reluctant to accept this arrangement? Given the strength of our Senior Feng, it’s your blessing to be able to ally with us!” Seeing the indignant looks of the group below, the gray-robed young man harrumphed coldly.
In truth, given their strength, they could easily pass the examination even without allying with Huanyu Empire. However, what they were aiming for was beyond that.
The teachers and elders of the academy would be paying attention to this entrance examination, and if they were to show an outstanding performance in this examination, they could win their favor and possibly become their disciples. This would make their lives in the academy smooth-sailing.
“You…”
Hearing the other party’s words, everyone’s faces flushed in anger. They wanted to retort, but there wasn’t a single word they could say.
After all, it was the truth that they were weaker than the other party!
“I am indeed reluctant to accept this agreement…”
Just as everyone was placed in a difficult position, Zhang Xuan’s nonchalant voice suddenly resonated through the air.
“Huh? What do you mean by that? Does Huanyu Empire intend to renege on its promise?” Seeing someone speaking up at this moment, the gray-robed young man frowned.
They were all master teachers, respectable figures of society. Given that they had agreed on everything beforehand, it would be shameful for the group from Huanyu Empire to back out just because it had lost.
If that were to really happen, they would become a huge laughingstock.
“We won’t renege on our promise, but I do have a suggestion…” Zhang Xuan said.
“A suggestion?”
Zhang Xuan replied, “That’s right. I am also a master teacher from Huanyu Empire, and I am unaware of your previous duel. However, since the results are already out, there’s nothing much that I can say. However, I would like an equal distribution of spirit beasts!”
“Equal distribution? We have won the position of the alliance leader fair and square, why should we agree to an equal distribution!” the gray-robed young man sneered.
“I understand. Since we have lost the duel, it is indeed difficult for you to accept an equal distribution. How about this then?”
Zhang Xuan placed his hands behind his back and smiled. “If your Senior Feng can withstand three strikes from me, I won’t speak about the matter regarding fair distribution anymore. You will have free reign over the distribution. In fact, we won’t even ask for you to give a single spirit beast to us!”
“What did you say?”
The gray-robed young man narrowed his eyes.
This fellow actually challenged Senior Feng to a fight?
He had seen plenty of arrogant people, but never had he seen such blind arrogance before!
‘Do you know how strong our Senior Feng is? Do you think that you are qualified to challenge him?
‘Three moves? I doubt you could defeat him in a million moves!’
“Why? You don’t have the confidence to accept the challenge? I understand. Since that’s the case, what about one move? If your Senior Feng can withstand a single blow from me, our group will not take a single hunted spirit beast from you!”
Noticing the other party’s hesitation, Zhang Xuan thought that the other party found his terms unfair, so he changed his offer.
“The heck!”
Upon seeing the fellow’s earnest expression, the gray-robed young man nearly exploded in rage!
Senior Feng’s vision also darkened, and he nearly fainted on the spot.
His cultivation had already reached Half-Cosmos Bridge, allowing him to fight on par with even some of the Grade 2 students. And yet, this fellow from Huanyu Empire was actually claiming that he could defeat him in a single blow?
What kind of a joke was this?
Just as the duo was about to die from anger, Ruohuan gongzi, Luo Xuan, and the others nearly spurted blood.
They knew that Zhang shi would surely stir some trouble here, but who could have known that he would actually utter such words?
They couldn’t even defeat the gray-robed young man, and Zhang shi was actually betting that he would defeat Senior Feng in a single strike… How could that be possible?
If they were to lose, wouldn’t they be working for nothing for Jinhai Empire in the entrance examination?
All of them would be disqualified then…
“Is a single blow still too much for you all? Sigh, since that’s the case, I’ll just use a single finger then… Surely that should be fine with you! I don’t think I can go any further than that. If you still don’t dare to accept the challenge with this, there’s nothing more I can do…”
‘After all, I couldn’t possibly defeat you without moving, right?
‘Alright, actually that’s not impossible, but it’ll reveal my means as a soul oracle or poison master. Un, I should maintain a low profile.’
Since it was his first time being in Hongyuan Empire, Zhang Xuan thought that it would be best for him to proceed warily and not reveal too many trump cards. Thus, if the other party were to reject this offer as well, he would be really put at a spot.
Pu!
The gray-robed young man and Senior Feng nearly puked blood.
‘Too much your head!
‘Besides, what is with that troubled expression on your face?
‘Am I that weak in your eyes that you will feel troubled over it?’
“Fine! I would like to see how you can defeat me with a single finger…” Senior Feng roared in anger, unable to hold back his rage anymore.
“Senior… Allow me to teach this arrogant fellow a lesson…” Seeing his senior flying into a rage, the gray-robed man hurriedly stepped forward.
“There’s no need for that. I want to see how strong the person who dares to utter such arrogant words is!” Senior Feng spoke coldly as his sharp gaze fell on the arrogant young man before him.
Perhaps, the arrogant young man might have something up his sleeves that allowed him to speak such arrogant words. Thus, Senior Feng was interested to see whether the other party was simply uttering rubbish or really possessed the capability to do so.
With narrowed eyes, Senior Feng flung his sleeves furiously and said, “This friend over here, come up onto the stage! If you can win against me, we’ll drop the matter regarding the alliance. However, if you lose, you’d better remember your words. Every single hunted beast in the entrance examination shall go to us!”
“Fine!”
Hearing the other party agree to his challenge, Zhang Xuan walked up onto the stage.
“This…”
“Can Zhang shi win?”
“I don’t know either…”
Seeing Zhang shi settling on such a disadvantageous bet with the other party, everyone glanced at one another doubtfully.
Defeating Senior Feng with a single finger?
Was Zhang shi serious?
Their loss might have sent him into a panic, but even so… this bet was way too extreme!
“Senior Feng, allow me to teach this fellow a lesson in your stead…”
Seeing Senior Feng flying into such a huge rage, the gray-robed young man quickly stepped forward and said, “It won’t be too late for senior to face him after my loss!”
Given the arrogant words that the other party had uttered, there was a possibility that he might really possess the strength to back up his words. To be safe, the gray-robed young man thought that he should test the waters first. If the other party turned out to be weak, he would simply pummel the other party to get even for his provocations. On the other hand, if the other party turned out to be strong, Senior Feng could at least prepare himself.
“This…” Senior Feng hesitated upon hearing those words. However, at that moment, the young man impatiently declared, “If you are still scared, why don’t the both of you face me together? I’ll just use two fingers!”
Hearing those words, Senior Feng and the gray-robed young man nearly fainted.
“There’s no need for that. Let me see how strong you are!”
With a cold harrumph, Senior Feng charged forward.
The other party’s words were simply too infuriating. He was afraid that he might just die from fury if he were to allow the other party to talk any more.
Stepping forcefully against the ground, he dashed forward as though a charging ferocious beast.
Releasing his full might as a Half-Cosmos Bridge realm expert, the wind raged furiously, and in that instant, his charge felt reminiscent of a massive stampede, inducing helplessness in those facing it.
“How powerful!”
The eyebrows of Hong shi and the others twitched.
Even they would find it hard to withstand such a powerful attack with their cultivation of Cosmos Bridge realm primary stage.
They hurriedly turned their gazes to the young man, curious to see how he would deal with it. Before their astonished gazes, the young man shook his head before raising a single finger and pointing it forward leisurely.
