I Can See Your Combat Power

Chapter 731: Chapter Twenty-five: Martial Arts Tournament – Four-sided Duel

With a delighted look on his face, Master Xu followed Bu Xiao and left. However, the curiosity of the Saint Child of Martial Saint Mountain was not interrupted by this.

On the way back to Bifang Mountain, Bu Xiao asked again, “Is Tang Luo truly your cousin?”

“Huh?” Master Xu was bewildered. “What’s wrong?”

“Are you aware that Tang Luo was born incomplete, he can’t store spiritual power inside his body. Isn’t it strange that he was able to break through to the Mortal Realm with this kind of physique?”

“What’s strange about that.” Master Xu gave Bu Xiao a sidelong glance. “You have two energy centers in your Sea of Qi which is fine, why can’t my cousin cultivate in his current state?”

“Hmm.” Not in the mood for further conversation, Bu Xiao coldly snorted and held out his hand.

“What are you doing?” Seeing Bu Xiao’s move, Master Xu pulled back cautiously, covering his chest defensively. “What do you mean by reaching out to me? You want to divide the money with me?”

Even with Bu Xiao’s level of patience, seeing Master Xu’s miserly demeanor, he couldn’t help but frown in annoyance. He growled in a low voice, “Give me back the token, you scoundrel!”

“Oh, oh, oh…” Suddenly realizing what was happening, Master Xu hurriedly began rummaging through the pile of gold bars he had stashed in his shirt and found the Dao Child token to return to Bu Xiao. He was profusely apologetic, “Ah, you should have said it was the token. I thought you wanted to split the money with me.”

Bu Xiao was both amused and annoyed as he took back the token., He decided to ignore him. Yet, Master Xu seemed to recall something and abruptly grabbed Bu Xiao’s wrist, “For this martial arts tournament, is there a house runner?”

In the past, the Wang Clan of the southern kingdom, those who love to gamble, would always open the gambling plate during martial arts competitions. But since Wang Chan has confirmed he won’t be coming this time, Master Xu wanted to know if there was anyone hosting bets in Bifang Mountain.

Bu Xiao finally understood why Master Xu carried so much gold. Turns out, he wanted to participate in the gambling for the martial arts tournament and based on the situation when they met, this guy was intending to bet everything on his cousin.

“I advise you to calm down.” Bu Xiao spoke in a calm tone. “This tournament is different from the previous ones. Representatives from various sects within the Longzhou Territory have come to participate in the competition. The prominent families of Longzhou have sent their most talented members. Even I am not confident of winning. If you bet everything on Tang Luo, losing money would be a minor issue, but losing face would be a major one. It’s best to think twice.”

“Is that so?” Master Xu pondered for a while, then raised his head excitedly, “That means my cousin’s odds must be high, right?”

Using his elbow to nudge Bu Xiao’s arm, Master Xu showed a smug look, “We’re friends, right? Don’t say I don’t share my luck with you. Whatever gold or silver you have, bet it all on my cousin. Guaranteed you’ll win a fortune!”

Bu Xiao had no idea where Master Xu’s blind trust came from, but he still stood by his own judgment: “I hope you can still be this optimistic after you see the list of invitees for this tournament.”

…

Longzhou Calendar, year 1784, August 28th

Storm clouds gathered over Kunwu County as the families invited by Martial Saint Mountain arrived in the city one after the other. Unlike when Longxi and his group arrived to find themselves unrecognized, many of these families were immediately surrounded by a curious crowd as soon as they entered the city, jamming the streets with onlookers.

This was the 20th year of the Longzhou Youth Martial Arts Tournament. Initially, it was a method for Martial Saint Mountain to select inner sect disciples. Today, it has become a stage for the competition of Longzhou’s influential families.

At the very center of this stage are the seven major influential families of Longzhou. Each powerful family boasts enough strength to dominate one region. The young members of these families are on par with prodigies from various sects.

They were like top-tier celebrities of Kunwu County. When the carriage of an influential family entered Kunwu, the roads were full of excited onlookers and loud cheering.

The clamor made Longxi and his group, who were having their meal, frown. Xiao Ziyu casually called a waiter over and asked, “Who is causing such a fuss outside?”

“The Liu Family caravan from Chuanyuan has entered the city.”

“The Liu Family of Chuanyuan?” Xiao Ziyu thought for a moment, asking: “Is it that Liu Family?”

“Exactly, that Liu family!”

“I understand.” Xiao Ziyu waved for the waiter to leave. He looked out the window at the luxurious caravan, chuckling, “Liu Tianwang of Chuanyuan, owning six masters in his family. The Liu Clan of Chuanyuan sure puts on a grand presence.”

“After this tournament, the name Longxi will echo through Kunwu. By the next tournament, martial artists of the Longxi alliance will be able to stay in the guest house and have an arbitrator for transportation!”

When Longxi’s group arrived in the city late at night, they needed to first store their official vehicles at the Beast Taming Sect and then either rent a vehicle or walk to the city. The Liu Family of Chuanyuan, however, marched in with an entire caravan, an arbitrator even acting as their guide. Martial Saint Mountain even arranged for them to stay at the guesthouse. Although both parties were invited to participate in the tournament, their treatment was worlds apart, which was why the faces of the young people were filled with resentment.

…

Early morning on the first day of September, the main peak trail of Bifang Mountain.

The Arbitrators led the registered participants up the mountain, forming a group of about three to four hundred people.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

At the square on the main peak of Bifang Mountain, Bu Xiao was giving his last instructions to the first round defenders of the martial arts tournament: “This year’s martial arts tournament is the same as before. Only if you hold the stage, do you have the chance to enter the inner sect. The top three with the highest failure rate will be expelled from the sect’s outer circle. Get it?”

This tournament held by the sacred place was never just a simple comparison of strength. Especially for a sacred place like Martial Saint Mountain, if a martial arts competition did not bring them any benefits, they would not put in any efforts at all.

For the outer circle disciples of Bifang Mountain, the Longzhou youth martial arts tournament held every three years was their chance to enter the inner circle. For the invited sects, it was a competition between their disciples and the outer circle disciples of Martial Saint Mountain.

All the families in Longzhou took great pride in being invited by Martial Saint Mountain, but no one told them that the main purpose of this competition was to help Bifang Mountain select the inner circle disciples of Martial Saint Mountain.

Perhaps to Martial Saint Mountain, being a touchstone for their outer circle disciples was an honor for the families of the province.

So, when Longxi’s group climbed the last step of the mountain trail, they saw a large open terrace with hundreds of arenas placed all around. Standing on the arenas were already disciples of Martial Saint Mountain.

For families who frequently participate in the Longzhou Youth Martial Arts Tournament, this scene was nothing surprising. However, for Longxi’s group, they had no idea what Martial Saint Mountain was playing at.

“This is the first trial of the martial arts tournament, the Four-sided Arena. You have three days. If you can defeat any of the arena masters, you will get an arena seal and qualify for the second round. The martial artist with the most seals will have a great advantage in the second round. But if you can’t get a single seal in three days, you will be sent out of Bifang Mountain. Have you got it?”