I Can See Your Combat Power

Chapter 733: Chapter Twenty-Seven: Choice

“As far as I know, all disciples from Martial Saint Mountain start their cultivation from the outside. It doesn’t matter if they are the rightful children of the Saint Lord or the daughters of mountain peak masters. If they want to cultivate, they must initiate their journey from Mount Bifang as ordinary disciples. Thus, these challengers you see before you are the most outstanding disciples of this generation. A hundred years from now, they might become the elders of Martial Saint Mountain, the masters of a certain peak, or even, the next Martial Saint.”

The team members suddenly looked up, as if frightened.

“Surprised?” Tang Luo laughed, continuing, “You should understand, even if I didn’t tell you. The Longxi Alliance and Martial Saint Mountain are not on the same level. So, the opportunity to compete with such characters will most likely happen only once in your lifetime. After this, you will return to train in the western part of Longzhou, while they will go into deeper cultivation within Martial Saint Mountain. In the future, you’ll become the pillars of the Longxi Alliance, while they will become chosen disciples of some sacred mountain. Your adversaries will be families with conflicts of interest against the Longxi Alliance. Meanwhile, their adversaries will be disciples of sacred territories or inheritors of the greatest sects. Perhaps in the eyes of the disciples of Martial Saint Mountain, you are no different from ordinary wandering warriors.”

The four men could only keep silent. Even though they felt aggrieved, having genuinely witnessed the prosperity of Kunwu County, they could understand the gap between themselves and the sacred territory.

The Longxi Alliance was overjoyed when a Grandmaster emerged from their ranks, but the Arbitration Office, which boasts eight Grandmasters, is merely a peripheral force of Martial Saint Mountain.

Seeing his teammates feeling down, Tang Luo’s smile deepened: “So, do you want to obtain the most number of challenge seals, or do you want to seize this rare opportunity to test your martial arts against Martial Saint Mountain’s finest outer disciples? Ask your hearts.”Nôv(el)B\\jnn

He left the choice to his teammates and calmly anticipated the young men’s response.

Life is often like this. Two paths lay before you, and by choosing one, you implicitly bid farewell to the other. This dilemma isn’t related to whether you’re powerful or wise. It’s because gaining something invariably means giving something else up.

There are always young men who have ambitions that reach beyond the heavens. Compared to the other three, who were still wrestling with their decision, Xiao Ziyu made a quick resolution.

“Why can’t I have both?”

This answer caught the attentions of the other team members.

“How can you have both?” Tang Luo asked, smiling.

“Fight and defeat the top-ranked outer disciples from Martial Saint Mountain, and I could collect more challenge seals. There’s no conflict!” Xiao Ziyu boldly declared, “As long as I can win, that should suffice!”

Seeing the confused looks on their faces, Xiao Ziyu explained: “With a full three days, discounting the hours when challengers rest, there is at least eighteen hours, or 144 quarter-hours. In other words, as long as I can control my each fighting time within a quarter-hour, I could defeat everyone on the hundred platforms. Doesn’t this mean that I would become the one who battled with each outer disciple and obtained the most challenge seals?”

Li Xuanba and the little boy’s eyes sparkled, seeing through the fog. However, just as they were about to agree, Cui Haoran retorted: “You make it sound easy. Just look over there!”

Following the direction of Cui Haoran’s finger, the three saw the nearest platform. A challenger in the Martial Saint uniform knocked down an opponent with a single punch. The challenger spat out a mouthful of blood when he hit the ground, clearly having suffered internal injuries.

“The Luo Family from the Inner River are known for their body cultivation, every martial artist in their clan is famous for their tough training. That one wearing the Qi Zen Kasaya is known for remarkable defense mechanisms on par with top-tier spiritual armors. From the time he mounted the platform to when he was knocked down, only twenty breaths of time passed. That young platform master’s final punch combined the hard with the soft. It’s clear he has begun to comprehend the stage of transforming hardness into softness. Who can guarantee they can win without sustaining injuries against such an opponent?”

Aside from Xiao Ziyu, who sneered in disdain, the other two fell silent. Cui Haoran turned to Li Xuanba and asked, “Could you take such a punch with your Xuanhuang Body?”

“Only if he isn’t very strong!”

Body cultivators are most afraid of being asked if they’ll be able to withstand a hit. Concerned for his dignity, Li Xuanba said stiffly, “Surely, it depends on who’s performing the movement. Perhaps the opponent was not strong enough, so he could only rely on technique to win.”

“The Luo Family from the Inner River is known for their strength! That punch was powerful enough to send him flying off the platform!” Having built a deep friendship over the days, Cui Haoran didn’t show any hesitation and straightforwardly said, “Xiao, you have the advantage with your unique fire and Monument Dragon Diagram if you go against anyone except those skilled in water arts. Against those adept in metal and wood arts, you could even achieve an instakill. You carry our greatest hopes of earning the most points for the Longxi Alliance. You can’t make a stupid mistake because of greed!”

“So, what should I do?” Xiao Ziyu crossed his arms and defiantly said, “Should I act like those so-called elites who only pick on weaker opponents?”

“Doing so will help you earn the most challenge seals, help you become renowned, and secure a better position for the Longxi Alliance in the next martial arts tournament. We could then enter the city by car and have an inn to stay in, with an arbitrator to pick us up and drop us off. But if you foolishly rush into combat, you’ll end up with nothing!” Cui Haoran coldly said, “If I had your talent, I would certainly earn the most challenge seals for Longxi!”

Just as the two were about to argue, Tang Luo interjected calmly, “Enough arguing.”

Tang Luo said placidly to Cui Haoran, “Morality is a means to restrain oneself, not to demand from others. I understand your desire to gain honor for Longxi, but that’s not a reason to criticize Xiao Ziyu. If you want to earn more challenge seals, I’ll be marking all the information about the platform masters and marking platforms that are most suitable for you. Although we are a team, I give you permission to keep your own thoughts at this stage. Disband now, each of you finds your own way.”

He took out a pen and paper from his Void Stomach, dropped his team members, and headed towards the platforms.

As compared to his teammates, he, however, didn’t visit the Martial Saint Mountain to battle these young disciples. As a martial arts researcher, he wanted to explore how far the development of martial arts has progressed after a thousand years in Martial Saint Mountain.

As the saying goes, seeing a part can help one understand the whole. A seasoned martial arts researcher only needs to observe the cultivation level of these outer disciples to imagine the prosperity of the inner sect.

About him personally, there really isn’t any need to expose too much. After all, the emerging Fire God will put the Longxi Alliance on the map. If he shows too much of his edge, it will only make these wealthy families wary.

Perhaps Martial Saint Mountain, in its high esteem, may not care about the influence with two outstanding young talents, but these rich families will definitely scheme behind the scenes.

Did not the once superior Chaochang Yun Clan of Longzhou fall overnight? If Tang Luo were to say that he didn’t believe other rich clans of Longzhou contributed to their downfall, he would be lying.