Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97
Division Head Zhou cried.
As the head of the Weapon Division, he had dedicated his entire life to studying spearmanship—a whole eight hundred years! Even if the other party only had decades of experience with the spear, he still could have accepted the outcome. After all, everyone had a differing aptitude for spearmanship. There were simply some geniuses in the world who could easily achieve what others spent their entire lives pursuing within just several years.
However, what the young man before him truly specialized in was fist arts! As for spearmanship, the other party had only practiced it for four hours, and yet, he was still defeated that easily.
Seeing the twitching face of the old man before him, as if he was about to faint at any moment, Liu Yang couldn't help but feel a little guilty for traumatizing him. Thus, in hopes of lessening the blow, he quickly added, "This… Actually, I don't remember it clearly anymore. It could have been more than four hours."
Back then, in order to face the Dragon Gate Formation of the Combat Master Hall, he, Wang Ying, and Zheng Yang had imparted their skills to one another unreservedly so that they would have more options to choose from.
Due to the limited time they had, they could only quickly grasp as much as they could. Therefore, Liu Yang had allocated four hours to comprehending the essence of spearmanship.
No… Thinking back, it seemed like it should have been less than four hours… Was it three hours? Or perhaps two?
He had been too engrossed in his training back then, so he could not quite remember it anymore.
Liu Yang frowned.
"Alright…" Seeing how the young man before him was consoling him with a troubled expression on his face, Division Head Zhou could not help but feel deeply stifled in his chest. Blood seemed to well up at the back of his throat, just a little push away from spurting from his mouth.
Seeing that the head of the Weapon Division had been defeated, another elder stepped forward to challenge them. "I am the head of the Palm Division, Yan Qinghai. I would like to challenge you to a duel."
"Palm Division?" Liu Yang frowned. With a nod, he stepped forward and said, "Alright, I'll be your opponent then…"
Wang Ying stepped forward and interjected. "You just had a match, so you should take a rest for now. I'll face him."
Not expecting Wang Ying to vie with him, Liu Yang shook his head. "But Senior, he specializes in palm arts. My fist art is a more compatible match for him compared to your leg art, so it will be better for me to fight him instead!"
"I learned a palm art from Teacher recently, and I haven't found an opponent to practice it with yet. I think this would be a good opportunity for me to give it a try," Wang Ying admitted.
"Teacher also taught me that move too. I want to give it a try as well," Liu Yang replied.
Wang Ying frowned in displeasure. "Well, you just had a match, so you must be exhausted by now. I think it would be good for you to take a rest first. It wouldn't do for you to lose and soil our teacher's reputation."
Liu Yang harrumphed in response. "It's not like you weren't watching the previous round; it was no challenge at all! I didn't even use a thousandth of my zhenqi; that kind of depletion can be recovered within just two breaths! I would have to face a thousand of such opponents to actually be exhausted."
"…" Division Head Zhou.
"…" Division Head Yan.
"…" The crowd from the Combat Master Hall.
The heck!
Can't you all show some respect for your opponents?
We can hear every word you say over here, you know…
No matter what, we are still top-notch experts from the Combat Master Hall. Don't you think it's inappropriate for you to view us with such disdain?
At the very least, you should spare some consideration for our pride and honor.
"Fine fine, you are the senior, so your words count…" After a long argument, Wang Ying finally managed to suppress Liu Yang via her seniority and successfully snatched the right to face the head of the Palm Division, Yan Qinghai.
"Let's start!" With an excited look on her face, Wang Ying stepped up to Division Head Yan Qinghai and said, "I only learned my palm art recently, and I haven't had the chance to try it on anyone yet. I'm not too sure how it'll turn out, so I ask of you to go easy on me."
Hearing the argument between Liu Yang and Wang Ying had left Division Head Yan Qinghai on the verge of erupting. Thus, upon hearing her say such humble words at this moment, he could not help but think that Wang Ying was making fun of him.
"It's too late for you to beg for mercy now!"
With a furious roar, he raised his palm and executed his strongest trump card without any hesitation.
Hong long long!
The palm strike harnessed such incredible force that loud explosions sounded from the compressed air, causing the surrounding temperature to rise to a fearsome level.
Saint low-tier battle technique, Palm of the Crimson Dragon!
The Palm of the Crimson Dragon was named after the legendary Crimson Dragons, which were known to live within searing lava. It harnessed the energy of pure yang, granting the palm strike the power to melt even steel.
It was due to this technique that Division Head Yan Qinghai had become one of the top experts in the Combat Master Hall.
Hu!
Facing Division Head Yan Qinghai's relentless assault, Wang Ying's first instinct was to dodge with her movement technique, as per her usual strategy. However, recalling that her initial intention, she gritted her teeth and forced herself to remain rooted to the spot. Driving her zhenqi furiously, she executed the palm art that her teacher had imparted to her.
Heavenly Demon Great Sorrow Palm!
According to her teacher's account, it seemed like her teacher had also learned the palm technique not too long ago, and he had not had a chance to use it in battle, either. Nevertheless, based on her understanding of the technique, it seemed like it wielded strength beyond measure.
The two palms collided.
Sou!
" Ahh… " With a cry of agony, Division Head Yan Qinghai's figure was sent retreating into the distance. He swiftly broke the seal on his cultivation and recovered his strength back to its peak, thus allowing him to steady his figure midair. Nevertheless, his face still paled from the previous impact.
"Did you really just learn this palm art? You have never used it in battle before?" Division Head Yan Qinghai asked with a look of disbelief.
"Indeed. On our way to Qingyuan City, my teacher said that he had recently learned a new palm art, so he imparted it to us and instructed us to practice it well. However, the cultivation of the palm art turned out to be more troublesome than I thought. The practitioner has to build up their emotions in order to draw out the true prowess of the technique, but that can be difficult to pull off in the midst of a battle. So, after cultivating it for a while, I thought that it was rather meaningless, so I never really used it afterwards!" Wang Ying replied.
The greatest flaw in the Heavenly Demon Great Sorrow Palm lay in the necessity to build up one's emotions in order to enter the ideal state of mind to draw forth the strength of the technique. However, despite Wang Ying's strength, she was only a teenager, and limited by her experiences, she was unable to comprehend true sorrow. Thus, after cultivating it for a while, she felt that it was too troublesome and decided to shove it away altogether.
"Meaningless? You decided to seal away such a powerful palm art just like that?" Division Head Yan Qinghai widened his mouth in shock. There was an indescribably stifling sensation in his heart that left him feeling choked up within.
He had only traded one blow with the young lady before him, but with his eye of discernment, he could tell that the palm art she had executed was far stronger than every single battle technique he knew of!
Such a powerful technique, and yet, the young lady said that its cultivation was troublesome and meaningless.
Unable to hold it any longer, Division Head Yan Qinghai took in a deep breath and, with a reddened face, asked hesitantly, "Can you… impart this palm art to me?"
"Of course! Our teacher is a magnanimous person, and he would never hesitate to teach those who are willing to learn. If you truly wish to learn the palm art, I can impart it to you right now…"
Wang Ying had never learned such a troublesome battle technique ever since she started cultivating. Not only did it require her to align her mind, spirit, and psyche, she even had to build up her emotions and immerse herself within it during its execution. That was too troublesome!
In her view, such a troublesome technique probably wouldn't be too powerful or practical in combat. Thus, there was no harm imparting it to the other party.
"Y-you are really… willing to impart it to me?" Division Head Yan Qinghai widened his eyes in shock. A moment later, he took in a deep breath, assumed a grave expression, and declared, "From now on, I am a member of the Xuanxuan Faction as well. Anyone who tries to advise me to leave here shall be my sworn enemy!"
"…" Hall Master Xing.
"…" The other division heads.
There was a long silence drifting in the air before another elder finally stepped forward.
"I am Division Head Wu of the Footwork Division. Is there anyone who is willing to face…"
However, before Division Head Wu could finish his words, Hall Master Xing stepped forward and said, "Enough. I see that our two friends over here are already exhausted from all the fighting they have done, so let's call it a day."
"Hall Master Xing…" There was a hint of anxiety in Division Head Wu's words.
Aren't we here to cause trouble?
How can we give up right now?
"Cough cough. Division Head Wu, let's just call it a day. In any case, those from the Xuanxuan Faction will stay here for a couple of days, so we have more than sufficient time to exchange insights with them," Hall Master Xing replied.
At this rate, he might very well find all of his division heads becoming members of the Xuanxuan Faction! How humiliating it would be for him if that happened!
After a long moment of silence, Division Head Wu could only sigh deeply and reluctantly give up on the idea. "Alright then…"
The battle techniques that the two youths had utilized were simply too astounding. Even he could not help but feel tempted to learn them as well. However, the look on Hall Master Xing's face clearly showed that he would go into a frenzy if another division head jumped ship to the Xuanxuan Faction. It seemed like he would just have to sneak back here later in the night.
After holding back the tempted division heads for the time being, Hall Master Xing turned to Liu Yang and Wang Ying and asked with a smile, "These two friends over here, may I know where Principal Zhang currently is?"
"Our teacher went out early in the morning, and he hasn't come back yet," Wang Ying replied.
"He hasn't come back yet?" Hall Master Xing nodded. "I see. Tell him that I'll be paying a visit soon to discuss the details of the exchange."
"Alright, I'll relay your words to him." Wang Ying nodded.
"Un. We'll be taking our leave now."
After saying those words, Hall Master Xing left with the manor with the few remaining division heads and elders without any hesitation.
He rushed all the way back to the Combat Master Hall, and it did not take long for him to return to the Elder Conference Hall.
Everyone took their seat, and a queer silence permeated the air.
In this trip, not only had they failed to bring back their combat masters from the Xuanxuan Faction, they had even lost two more division heads. With this, only six was left of the initial Ten Division Heads. To make matters worse, there was an excited gleam within the eyes of several division heads, which hinted that they might defect very soon.
To think that his initial thought was to draw in fresh talents from the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy into the Combat Master Hall during the exchange. Yet, before he could draw in a single person, the other organization had already taken in so many of their men.
The more Hall Master Xing thought about the matter, the more stifled he felt.
After the silence lingered long enough, Hall Master Xing took a look at the faces before him and asked, "What are your views on the matter today?"
"This… The Xuanxuan Faction is indeed extraordinary in its own way. If I'm not mistaken, those two youths who faced Division Head Yan and Division Head Zhou should be Principal Zhang's direct disciples. The battle techniques that they executed were truly impressive!"
"Indeed, indeed! This is my first time seeing someone overcoming Division Head Chen's fist art with sheer force! That young man's spear art is also very impressive as well, I never could have imagined that Division Head would be defeated in a single move!"
"To be honest, the palm art executed by the young lady is the most profound and powerful battle technique I have seen. That palm strike that she executed wasn't just powerful, it gave me a feeling that I was sinking deep into the crevices of space, preventing me from dodging the attack…"
…
The several division heads and elders in the room discussed excitedly.
"Cough cough!" Hall Master Xing clutched his aching chest in despair.
He was asking them to offer suggestions to resolve the current quandary they were in, but… those faces filled with admiration and excitement… What the heck?
Was the heritage of their Combat Master Hall really beneath that of a mere Master Teacher Academy?
"Enough! This meeting is adjourned!" Knowing that the division heads and elders were still overwhelmed by the battle techniques they had witnessed at the Xuanxuan Faction, he realized that they were in no state to be discussing the matter, so he waved his hand and sighed deeply.
"Yes!"
The division heads and elders rose from their seats and bowed deeply to him before backing out of the room.
Soon, silence returned to the room. At this moment, only Hall Master Xing and an elder were left.
The elder was the head of the mysterious Heart Division of the Combat Master Hall, Liao Bujin.
"What is your view of the matter?" Hall Master Xing asked.
"Hall Master Xing, I don't think that this is necessarily bad news for our Combat Master Hall!" Division Head Liao replied.
"You think that this matter could be beneficial for us?" Hall Master Xing frowned.
Why did he feel so skeptical at those words?
"Undeniably, the members of the Xuanxuan Faction possess a terrifying comprehension of combat. It is inevitable that our combat masters, who seek to advance their fighting prowess, have been seduced by their strength. However, as much as it is a threat, this is also a good opportunity for us as well. If we could absorb the Xuanxuan Faction into our Combat Master Hall, it will only be a matter of time before we are able to surpass the Combat Master Halls of other Conferred Empires!" Division Head Liao said.
"This… I also get the logic, but judging from the current circumstances surrounding the Xuanxuan Faction, will they be willing to join the Combat Master Hall?" Hall Master Xing shook his head dejectedly.
"Actually, that isn't a difficult problem to resolve. From what I can see, they are deeply loyal to Principal Zhang. Thus, if we can convince Principal Zhang to join the Combat Master Hall, I don't think that we will have any trouble absorbing the Xuanxuan Faction as well!" Division Head Liao said with a smile.
"This…" Hall Master Xing was stunned for a moment before slowly nodding.
What Division Head Liao said was indeed true. If they could convince Zhang Xuan to join the Combat Master Hall, they would be able to turn the threat of the Xuanxuan Faction into a blessing instead, and their forces would become stronger than ever!
But…
Bringing Principal Zhang into the Combat Master Hall did not seem like an easy feat!
"Hall Master Xing, with your current Half-Leaving Aperture realm cultivation, if you could just find a powerful spirit awakener to nourish your soul and make it even more wholesome, you might just be able to clear the Trial of Inner Demons of the Heart Division and obtain that secret art," Division Head Liao said with a sharp glint in his eyes.
"By then, no one at the same cultivation realm will be a match for you! With that, you can challenge Principal Zhang to a duel with him joining the Combat Master Hall as the stake… If it works out, it will just be a matter of time before our Combat Master Hall rises to glory!"