Chapter 99 Unbendable
As soon as Xiao Chuqing finished saying her words, the situation escalated quickly as if someone had just kicked a hornet’s nest. In a split second, Zhong Yue felt that there were at least thousands of people on the Ganoderma Stage staring at him!
The stage became steeped in a noisy din as people talked about him, “So he is Zhong Yue from the Zhong Shan Clan? According to rumors of the Lawless Battles, his fight with the girl from the Shui Tu Clan was interrupted by the elders in the end. He was stopped by the elders just before he was going to decapitate Shui Qingyan!”
“They said that he is a man of cruelty, ruthlessness and unapologetic viciousness. He was summoned by the elders to the Sword Valley when they suspected that he was possessed by the Tian Myriad Mother. They tried to seize him by using the suppression from the Ten Malefic Weapons. However, Elder Pu told the elders that this man had managed to learn the【Great Boundless Sword Qi】from the sword token that was given to the Qiu Tan Clan by the headmaster!”
“Not long ago, there were some disciples that tried to make trouble with him. They intercepted him at his cave dwelling but ended up receiving a thorough beating from this Zhong Yue. Despite there being dozens of them, they were still completely outmatched and beaten up with extreme prejudice. Now, with them getting beaten up, the elders of their clan will definitely try to avenge them. Besides, these guys are from those renowned clans. Something interesting is going to happen next!”
“But rumors purported this disciple from the Zhong Shan Clan is extremely talented and he has three heads, six arms and is at least eight feet tall. They also said that his eyes were big and his hands are as big as a fan! Well, I guess rumors are called rumors for a reason. This man does indeed appear muscular and solid but not to the extent as was described from the rumors.”
Suddenly, Ta Wulue walked out while he held the hands of Ta Wuyou and he said, “Junior martial brother Zhong, you owe my clan an apologize for hurting my brother!”
Huang Luoshi held his sister’s hand and walked out as well before he shouted, “Zhong Shan Clan’s member, my sister was just having a friendly match with you but you dislocated all her joints! Is such cruel action a necessity when having a friendly match with your junior martial sister?”
Tan Zhen then calmly said, “My younger cousin, Tan Xiao, was beaten so badly that he had to lie on the bed for ten days. My clan leader ordered me to seek an explanation from you. Please don’t blame me.”
“My cousin knew he is no match for you and he surrendered and backed off. Why did you chase after him and beat him up mercilessly! Zhong Shan Clan’s member, have you no honor?”
“You hurt my junior martial brother by piercing him with your sword energy. There are at least hundreds of wounds on my junior martial brother’s body! Are you looking down at our Fenglin Clan?”
A dozen elders from the clans of the beaten disciples approached and voiced out complaints about Zhong Yue, bringing up the incident where Zhong Yue injured the disciples again and demanding an explanation from him. When Xin Huo heard all this, he felt curious and confused so he asked Zhong Yue, “Brat Yue, what have you done to make them want to eat you alive when I was asleep? How dare you do something so evil without me!”
“Xin Huo, did I not bring you along this time?”
Zhong Yue casually replied him and looked at Xiao Chuqing, she smiled and a complacent look could be seen in her eyes.
This Xiao Mang Celestial Race girl is really asking for it, stirring up the situation and inciting such a troublesome matter as soon she took the stage. However, she is still very reckless as compared to Tian Myriad Mother; although Tian Myriad Mother harbors an extreme hatred of me, she is still able to maintain a facade of politeness and amicability. After all, she is a demon that has been around for god knows how many years, cunning and sly.
He then shifted his sights away from her. He completely failed to realize the strangeness of his dismissal of Xiao Chuqing as still young and inexperienced, despite he himself being only a few years older than her.
However, he had the experience and the ordeals he had gone through did indeed put him on the same level as those wizened veterans of the world. After all, he had been fighting against the likes of Tian Myriad Mother ever since he met Xin Huo, thus, lending him a unique temperament and mentality as compared to others his age.
He then looked at the Qi Practitioners whose bodies were littered with bruises and scars and he said expressionlessly, “Senior Martial Brother Ta, didn’t you all say that our friendship wouldn’t be put affected even after we fought?”
Ta Wuyou face turned red and he argued back, “I meant that only if I hurt you, then it will not affect our friendship. But if you hurt me, then that will affect our friendship.”
The Huang Zhang Clan girl said cowardly, “We didn’t know we will be defeated previously….”
“So is this how the Taba Clan’s logic works?”
Zhong Yue was momentarily put at a loss at their undisguised shamelessness. He laughed and insulted, “What great and wonderful logic you have there! You thought you would be able to bend my will if you were to beat me up? Too bad though … you picked the wrong target!”
“What a wanton rascal! Ta Wulue from Ta Ba Clan, now challenge you for a duel!”
“Such arrogance! I, Huang Luoshi from Huo Zhang Clan, challenge you for a duel!”
“Han Tan Clan’s Tan Xiao, challenging you for a duel!”
“Huang Yang Clan’s Yang Zhan, challenging you for a duel!”
….
Shouts could be heard as they eventually filled the space of the inner hall, drawing the attention of the hall masters of the inner hall. They stood at a distance from the Ganoderma Stage and looked over towards Zhong Yue and the others in curiosity.
“The inner hall has not been so lively for a very long time!”
The hall master of the Hall of Heart of Swords said with mixed emotions, “The last time the inner hall was this lively was the year when the brat, Fang Jiange, challenged everyone daily. However, he was a candidate on the list of the Dragon and Tiger Challenger Board. Anyone have any idea as to what the little one over there had done that made him the target of so many challenges?”
“That little one over there is a tough nut, his name is Zhong Yue.”
The Slithering Dragon hall master laughed and replied, “He has been a tough nut to crack ever since he entered the upper house. He intruded in the female house at night and beat up disciples of the Tian Feng Clan and the Shui Tu Clan, thus, simultaneously offending two behemoths of the Swords Gate. He also almost beheaded the pearl of the Shui Tu Clan, Shui Qingyan, during the Lawless Battles. The situation continued to escalate even after he entered the inner hall. I thought that he would have reined in his recklessness once he entered the inner hall but who knew that he would cause such a ruckus after only three months! He had severely beaten up thirteen Qi Practitioners and the elders of their respective clans are now openly seeking to redress their grievances against him. This time, he might not end well with the presence of Tan Zhen, Ta Wuyou and the others!”
The Array Carving hall master nodded and said, “Ta Wuyou was the champion during the Lawless Battles last year and he even obtained the Feng Clan’s totem carving heritage in the Ethereal Palace. Tan Zhen was the champion for the year before Ta Wuyou and he received the heritage of Yu Clan’s fish dragon totem spirit. These two heritages may not be as great as the sword spirit and god spirit heritage but they are still among the best of the Swords Gate!”
“The number of Qi Practitioners that challenges the little one from the Zhong Shan Clan member seems to be more than expected.”
The shield wall hall master frowned and said, “Thirteen clans, which means there should only be thirteen Qi Practitioners that would challenge him but there seems to be more than thirty of them! What happened?”
The other hall masters immediately looked at Zhong Yue and this was when a voice could suddenly be heard saying, “Seems like it was because of Zhong Yue having almost beheaded Shui Qingyan. Others seem to be using this as a way to please her. Hmmm, perhaps this is the vaunted femme fatale.”
The eight hall masters looked at the direction of the voice and saw a skinny old man standing behind them quietly. As soon as they saw the old man, they quickly bowed and greeted him, “Elder Feng!”
Borned in the Feng Clan, this old man’s name is Feng Shouzhu, he is the man delegated as the warden of the inner hall and the man who called the headmaster of Swords Gate, 'Brother'. Feng Shouzhu was the immediate brother of the headmaster. The Feng Clan had always been sparsely populated but each and everyone of them was incredibly talented. Although Feng Shouzhu held no official post in the Elder Councils, he still had a major role in the Swords Gate as he was in charge of the eight halls.
There had always been a consensus that Feng Shouzhu was the strongest in the Swords Gate after the headmaster. However, there were some saying that Shui Zian was stronger and rumors said that they once fought together but the outcome of that battle remained a mystery.
Feng Shouzhu was an adventurous man and so had a propensity for long absences away from the Swords Gate, only returning once every eight or ten years. Therefore, the eight hall masters were a little out of sorts at the sudden sight of him.
“Elder, what made you come back to the Swords Gate?”
The shield wall hall master laughed and said, “The last time I saw elder was about five years ago I presume?”
Feng Shouzhu replied laughingly, “Fallen leaves will always return to their roots. I am old now so it’s only normal for me to return to Swords Gate. Hmmm … The young generation nowadays is really energetic, it truly does light a fire of envy within me. If I were only a few years younger, I may have fought with someone for the hand of a beautiful lady!”
“Elder Feng, they are starting to make a ruckus, should we stop them?”
Feng Shouzhu shook and replied, “The Swords Gate has been very peaceful under the protection of the headmaster and this has made the Qi Practitioners here negligent to danger. Each of them is of the mind that they stand at the top of the world. But they have no idea about the dangers that lurk outside of the Swords Gate. Let them fight, there will only be improvements if they have a real battle instead of only pure training. I set up the Dragon and Tiger Challenger List for a reason back then, which was to stimulate their battle will, challenging each other and fighting each other, learning from their battles and improving themselves! Little brat, give the orders, let them fight and prohibit any Awakening level and Spirit Nurturing level disciples from interfering!
The ‘brat’ that Feng Shouzhu was referring to was the Sword Energy Hall Master. The hall master smiled bitterly and replied, “Elder, I understand prohibiting the Awakening level disciples from interfering, but why the Spirit Nurturing level disciples?”
The Awakening level was one of the crucial levels for the Qi Practitioners, the level where their strength would see a crazy improvement. The Awakening level was a watershed that elevated them to a league far above that of Rebirth Qi Practitioners. The reason why Feng Shouzhu prohibited the Awakening level Qi Practitioners from interfering was to protect Zhong Yue.
However, it was odd for him to bar Spirit Nurturing level disciples from participating.
“I’m trying to protect the little guys at the Spirit Nurturing level from getting accidentally killed by Zhong Yue.”
Feng Shouzhu looked at Zhong Yue and said while shaking his head, “The Spirit level little kids’ bodies are too fragile for this dragon in a human’s body.”
The hall master’s heart pumped slightly faster and he immediately descended onto the Ganoderma Stage from the sky and announced the order.
It was out of the expectations of the challengers that the inner hall hall masters also supported the battle. The support of the elders also relieved some of those who were about to inform the elders to stop the fight as they were worried about the situation. At the same time, a few Awakening level Qi Practitioners immediately backed off and a few Spirit level Qi Practitioners also retreated after a few moments of hesitation, leaving only twenty-six people behind on the stage.
Zhong Yue looked at the twenty plus Qi Practitioners surrounding him and he said fearlessly, “Dear senior martial brothers, since there are no more objections, shall we begin? Who will be my first opponent?”
“I shall be your first opponent!”
A young Qi Practitioner walked out and his spirit transformed into a cyclops that was incredibly huge and heavy as he said with righteous awe, “Junior Martial Brother Zhong, I hold no grudges against you, but I can’t overlook the matter that you bullied your friends, not to mention you bullying a girl. You almost beheaded Junior Martial Sister Shui….”
Booom——
Zhong Yue stomped on the ground and his figure left afterimages as he crossed over twenty feet in a single step. He delivered a punch and his fist was already a few inches away of the young Qi Practitioner before he could even finish talking.
However, he also reached the level of subconsciously visualizing so he did not need to intentionally visualize his arts during any crisis. Before Zhong Yue’s fist could hit him, huge mountain rocks stacked up in front of him to block the attack of Zhong Yue.
At the next moment, however, the rocks in front of him exploded and Zhong Yue’s fist landed on his lower abdomen with unstoppable strength, sending the young Qi Practitioner flying away with a crooked body, crashing into the palace like a meteor! He then flew right through the walls, shattering a few pillars standing in the palace.
Boom Boom Boom——
Then, as the crashing noises continuously echoed throughout the palace, the young Qi Practitioner was knocked and sent flying through a few more walls.
“Too much bluster and such hubris … it is time for you to sleep and reflect on your own mistakes.”
Zhong Yue then changed his stance and he said calmly, “Next?”