Chapter 24 - Ruthless (1/2)

For these few tens of days, Zhong Yue had been dwelling in his cultivation. As such, he was cut off from the affairs of the upper house. He only returned to the upper house the day that the Knowledge Teaching Pavilion was to reopen and the upper house disciples he encountered were all conversing about the annual Lawless Battles held at years end.

I've only entered the upper house for a short period time. I didn't know that they actually placed such importance on the battles!

As he walked toward the Knowledge Teaching Pavilion, he could feel the solemn atmosphere that permeated all around the upper house disciples. He inwardly thought, But it is natural for them as it's irrelevant whether they are from the poor, rich or the noble families. They would still be kicked out if they couldn't manifest their own spirit by sixteen years old. Therefore, this battle must be the hope of all upper house disciples! Of course, if I could reach the requirement stipulated by Xin Huo, I wouldn't even need to get into Ethereal Palace. But his condition is so exorbitant that it could be considered impossible. With my standard now, I am still far from fitting his requirements.

Outside of the Knowledge Teaching Pavilion, there were already some disciples who decided to compete with each other. The aspects they competed in were not only limited to themselves but also their totem pillars, soul weapons, and other precious items.

Hundreds upon hundreds of upper house disciples would form a makeshift stage as they surrounded two disciples competing with each other in a circle as they employed various methods and means to defeat their foes.

Zhong Yue even saw some forming feathery wings with their psyche and bringing the battle to the air. Soul weapons were flying everywhere, and their owners were also using all sorts of skills to best their opponents.

"What is this? Why are there so many new faces in the upper house suddenly?"

Zhong Yue looked carefully, and he realized that the two sides that were competing were the upper house disciples and some new faces. Suddenly, one upper house disciple fighting in the air was struck down and fell very hard onto the ground. Luckily, he only suffered injuries instead of losing his life.

This was not just pure competition at all, as those from the upper house disciples wouldn't be so cruel to injure each other severely. These new faces didn't even show any sign of holding back at all!

Pu——

Suddenly, Zhong Yue saw one familiar figure being hurled away from the competition, falling onto the ground helplessly.

Zhong Yue materialized the lightning dragon with his psyche and prevented that person from falling to the ground. He walked toward him and asked, "Senior Martial Brother He, what happened? Who are these people?"

The person who was hurled away was He Chengchuan! He wiped away the blood trickling out from his mouth and barked, "These guys are those outer disciples who were training in the inner hall, they are here to ask for a fight!"

"The outer disciples who trained in the inner hall?"

Zhong Yue was confused for a moment, but he immediately understood the meaning of what He Chengchuan said. In order to become an inner hall disciple and to train under the hall masters or elders, one would have had to cultivate out a spirit, thereby becoming a Qi Practitioner. The more prominent clans, however, reserve the privilege of being able to send some of its core disciples from the clan to train under these Qi Practitioners.

For example, Yu Feiyan from the You Yu Clan is one of them. She could seek advice from the Qi Practitioners of the You Yu Clan to aid her in her cultivation at her leisure. However, she didn't like to stay in the inner hall as opposed to the core disciples that hailed from the other clans and so in turn they had little to no contact with the upper house disciples.

Although these people trained in the inner hall, they are still considered as outer disciples. Many of these people would usually rush here to participate in the annual Lawless Battles at the end of every year.

As for why they challenged the upper house disciples, it was because they wanted to understand the strength of the hidden aces among the upper house disciples as they knew nothing about them.

There has always been a saying that said, "Only by knowing yourself and your enemy, would you need not fear the result of a hundred battles."

"These people are the core disciples from the Shui Tu Clan and Li Shan Clan of the top ten clans. Not only was I beaten up, but Senior Martial Sister Ting was also beaten!"

He Chengchuan spat out the blood in his mouth, and he seethed, "They have crossed the line! We agreed not to injure anyone, but they severely injured Senior Martial Sister Ting!"

"Shui Tu Clan?"

Zhong Yue could feel the anger threatening to overwhelm him from the inside, but he continued to maintain his veneer of tranquility, Shui Tu Clan! Qi Practitioners from Shui Tu Clan fraternized with the demons, and they helped Tian Myriad Mother to escape. The higher-ups from the Shui Tu Clan summoned Shui Qingyan and cost her her life and soul as Tian Myriad Mother possessed her! Hahaha….

"You seem to be very skillful. Interested in dueling with me?"

The disciple who injured He Chengchuan looked at Zhong Yue as he laughed and said, "Judging from the realistic Jiao Dragon and the roaring thunder totem with traces of [Spring Thunderbolt Sword Skill] hidden it, I assume you must be a disciple under Elder Pu? I've sought instruction from the disciples under Elder Pu, and so far they failed to live up to expectations. I can see that you are quite different from them, seeing that you are able to combine the Jiao Dragon totem and thunder totem patterns together. You must be one who has understood its true quintessence … you must have some capability."

As an experienced disciple who trained under a Qi Practitioner, it could be said that he could see things that the others could not.

Zhong Yue remained expressionless, and he said softly, "Which are you? Shui Tu Clan or Li Shan Clan?"

That disciple laughed and said, "Shui Tu Clan's Shui Lingshan."

Zhong Yue nodded and walked forward. He Chengchuan endured his pain and quickly grabbed his hand and said, "Junior Martial Brother Zhong, don't be too serious. The Shui Tu Clan is one of the top ten clans in the Great Wilderness. You've already offended the Tian Feng Clan, try not to pile on another enmity with another major clan…"

Zhong Yue gently shook off his hands and smiled at him, "Senior Martial Brother He, don't worry, I know what to do."

"Don't be too serious?"

That Shui Lingshan from Shui Tu Clan could not hold back his laughter and said, "Perhaps you should ask me to go softer on him? To be honest, while I dueled with him, I only used about seventy percent of my strength. My junior martial brother, you could just use your full strength without holding back. I hope you could live up to my expectations."