Chapter 19

Zhou Jingyuan's face changed when he saw the opponent arranged by Chai Rong for Chen Hai. He hurriedly pulled Chen Hai, who was about to step onto the stage, and urged him to concede directly, without engaging in the match.

Everyone had long known that Chai Rong would tamper with the match list. Chen Hai, Zhou Jingyuan, and Ge Tong had planned for this disciple competition for a long time. However, upon seeing the young man with a large wooden box on his back, Zhou Jingyuan insisted that Chen Hai concede.

Chen Hai knew that Zhou Jingyuan was an extremely meticulous person. If it were just an ordinary strong opponent, he would not have been so alarmed. Chen Hai narrowed his eyes and carefully examined the young man again, sensing that although he seemed calm, he was like a sharp sword out of its sheath, exuding a keen and sharp aura.

At this moment, Chen Hai noticed Zhou Jun appearing at a corner of the square, looking over through the gaps in the crowd.

Seeing the situation, Zhou Jun's face also turned gloomy. Chen Hai knew that this young man was not an ordinary opponent.

However, Zhou Jun had no intention of stepping forward. Chen Hai gave a cold laugh in his heart, knowing that Zhou Jun and the mastermind behind him, Zhao Ruhui, were more concerned with using him to catch Chai Rong and other Chai clan disciples in a trap. Once they were done using him, they wouldn't care about his wins or losses, or even his life and death.

Chen Hai no longer paid attention to Zhou Jun's attitude and instead asked Zhou Jingyuan in a low voice, "Who is this Kong Tong?"

Chen Hai did not want to be trampled on and would never concede easily. However, he was not rash. There was a reason Zhou Jingyuan advised him to concede. Even if he insisted on stepping onto the stage, he needed to first understand his opponent's situation.

Before Zhou Jingyuan could answer, Chai Rong looked over with a contemptuous expression, a cold smile on his lips. He said, "What, are you going to concede in the first match? If you concede in the first match, won't you also retreat without a fight in the next two? A disciple who is so cowardly and lacks courage, the Dao Academy has no need to waste resources on you. You might as well retreat back to your Splash Cloud Cliff..."

Chen Hai sensed that Chai Rong's intense reaction was indeed related to the delicate relationship between the Chen and Chai clans within the sect. However, if he could return to Splash Cloud Cliff, would he still be clinging to Iron Stream Ridge?

"Kong Tong with the twin halberds! It's actually Kong Tong with the twin halberds from Flowing Gold Mountain Dao Academy. Why is he here at Iron Stream Ridge?"

Chen Hai's match had already attracted the attention of many disciples. After all, the commotion a month ago was significant, and few had seen Chai Rong in a difficult position. Everyone was looking forward to seeing how Chai Rong would handle this situation.

The outer sect of Taowei Sect had over thirty Dao Academies scattered across the western river counties, with more than fifty thousand junior Dao soldiers. At this level within the sect, even if some outstanding new talents emerged, it was impossible for them to gain the attention of the entire sect. It was only at this moment that someone recognized who the young man was.

However, many more people did not know the background of this young man.

"Who is Kong Tong, and is he very strong? If he is a Dao soldier disciple of Flowing Gold Mountain, why is he here at Iron Stream Ridge for the disciple competition?"

"Kong Tong is a junior Dao soldier disciple of Flowing Gold Mountain, having practiced there for just over a year. It is said that he has already half-entered the Profound Realm and has the opportunity to directly enter the Flowing Gold Mountain Transmission Hall for practice. Some even predict that he will enter the Inner Gate of the Upper Seven Peaks before the age of twenty. Yes, why is he here at Iron Stream Ridge?"

"The famous Young Master Xing, who moved from Splash Cloud Cliff to Iron Stream Ridge for practice, is just a poor household. Why should it be a big deal for Kong Tong to transfer from Flowing Gold Mountain to Iron Stream Ridge? Do you think the famous Young Master Xing will be scared like a dog and run away from Kong Tong?"

The skinny young man who had accompanied Chai Rong to break in at the time stepped forward with a mocking sneer.

Seeing Chen Hai looking at him, the skinny young man smirked, "If Junior Brother Yao concedes in this match, according to the disciple rankings, he will likely face me in the afternoon match!"

Chen Hai did not expect Chai Rong to go to such lengths to target him. The skinny young man was also at the half-Proficient Realm. It seemed that the Chai family would not allow the Chen clan to insert even a needle into Iron Stream Ridge.

Even if Chen Hai conceded to avoid Kong Tong, he would face strong opponents arranged by Chai Rong in the next three matches.

If he conceded in all three matches, Chai Rong could openly kick him out of the Iron Stream Ridge Dao Academy, and no one would have an excuse to keep him.

"Then let's fight!" Chen Hai did not wear the standard Dao soldier armor issued by the Dao Academy, as it would hinder the use of his Wind Cloud Leg. He took off his outer robe, revealing the Qingyun inner armor he wore underneath. Holding the twin halberds, he stepped onto the stage, unwilling to be looked down upon by these people.

After learning Kong Tong's identity, several hundred people quickly gathered around their stage.

According to the rules, disciples could only attack the trunk of the body covered by armor, but most would still bring weapons to the stage. Each match would not last long, so everyone temporarily stopped what they were doing and watched, knowing that this match would likely be the most exciting of the disciple competition.

Chen Hai stood on the wooden stage and saw the young man take out a pair of short halberds from the long wooden box on his back. The black halberd bodies were dull, but the sharp blades were covered in a layer of white frost. From a distance of several meters, Chen Hai could feel a chill emanating from the sharp blades.

Frost Halberds.

Chen Hai had intended to practice the twin halberds as his close-combat weapon and had studied the Profound Halberd Techniques and mystic weapons available to disciples within the sect. He did not expect the young man's short halberds to be the Frost Halberds, which required 300 sect merit points and were made of cold iron.

This meant that the Profound Halberd Technique practiced by the young Kong Tong was likely not an ordinary one.

"What benefits did Chai Rong offer you to make you give up the opportunity to directly enter the Flowing Gold Mountain Transmission Hall for practice?" Chen Hai asked, puzzled. Although the young man was from a poor household, his conditions and talents should not make him easily manipulated by Chai Rong.

"Once on the stage, life and death are in the hands of fate. Don't talk so much." The young Kong Tong's voice was as cold as the frosty blades in his hands.

"Yao Xing, if you continue to speak nonsense and tarnish my reputation, be careful, I will invoke the sect rules to punish you!" Chai Rong's eyes were icy cold. No matter how arrogant and domineering he was, he would not allow Chen Hai to expose his dirty deeds. He signaled the servant disciples to strike the match bell.

"Whoosh!"

As the bell sounded, the young man's body slightly sank, and he brought the twin halberds together in front of him. In the next moment, an extremely strong aura erupted from his thin body, as if all his pure yang essence was boiling and about to burst out of his body. The next moment, the pair of cold iron halberds, now a black meteor, shot straight at Chen Hai's chest.

The piercing sound of the air being torn apart almost burst the eardrums of the nearby Dao soldier disciples. Everyone was shocked, not expecting the 15-16-year-old Kong Tong to have such a powerful and overwhelming aura, as if even a stone cliff in front of him would be pierced by his halberd.

"That's the Spirit Shock Halberd! It's the first move of the Spirit Shock Halberd, the God-Piercing Kill! I didn't expect Kong Tong, at such a young age, to have already perfected the first move of the Spirit Shock Halberd, the God-Piercing Kill, and to use it as his first strike!" Many of the disciples who had reached the Profound Realm in the crowd immediately recognized the essence of Kong Tong's halberd strike.

At this moment, everyone was shocked. Generally speaking, to perfect a profound technique to a level higher than mastery, one must be able to fully mobilize the essence and true energy within the body with every movement, fully unleashing the martial technique!

To reach the level of mastery, one could only mobilize the essence and energy within the body with a certain probability.

If Kong Tong's first strike was not a lucky hit, it meant that he had already perfected the first move of the Spirit Shock Halberd, the God-Piercing Kill.

What a martial genius! No wonder some predicted that Kong Tong would enter the Inner Gate of the Upper Seven Peaks before the age of twenty!

It was truly astonishing!

A disciple of such caliber was rare, appearing only once in a hundred years. How could he be content to be a pawn used by Chai Rong?

Zhou Jingyuan was horrified. He had been feeding moves to Chen Hai for a month and knew that Chen Hai would find it extremely difficult to withstand Kong Tong's first strike.

Chen Hai had practiced the Wind Cloud Leg, and after kicking about forty times (actually a combination of basic steps and footwork), he could successfully mobilize his entire body's essence and perform the first move of the Wind Cloud Leg, the Ten Thousand Pound Hammer Kick. This had already shocked Zhou Jingyuan and Ge Tong, but they did not expect Chai Rong to arrange such a strong opponent for Chen Hai's first match.

Only Ge Tong, who had reached the late Profound Realm, had the confidence to defeat the young man. How could Chen Hai possibly stand a chance?

Unless Chen Hai could also mobilize his entire body's essence in his first move, he would not be able to withstand Kong Tong's first strike, the God-Piercing Kill.

Zhou Jingyuan would rather Chen Hai concede in the first match. Chai Rong would not be able to arrange such strong opponents for the next three matches—Chai Rong was not a core member of the Chai clan and did not have that many resources.

Chai Rong was using a psychological tactic, aiming to crush Chen Hai in the first match!

Just as Zhou Jingyuan was about to speak, two people approached from either side, and Chai Rong, standing by the stage, looked over with a sinister expression. He said coldly, "Junior Brother Zhou, the match is ongoing. If you make a commotion, I will punish you according to the sect rules!"

Kong Tong had already made his move, and the twin halberds shot out like thunder. Zhou Jingyuan did not have time to warn Chen Hai. The Frost Halberds were already like black meteors piercing Chen Hai's chest.

Kong Tong's speed was too fast. Chen Hai did not even have time to raise his hands to block, and the twin halberds pierced his chest.

Although protected by the Qingyun inner armor, Chen Hai was not directly pierced by Kong Tong's halberds, but his chest felt as if it had been hit by a massive boulder. His breath was cut off, and he felt several ribs break. He flew backward like a leaf in the wind.

In mid-air, Chen Hai could not hold back a mouthful of blood, which spewed out.

Chai Rong, the scoundrel, had arranged such a strong opponent for him. Chen Hai's breath was stifled in his chest, and his blood and qi were in chaos. He could not adjust his posture in mid-air and could only watch himself fly off the stage...

However, it was better this way. Chen Hai thought that being knocked off the stage and suffering serious injuries that prevented him from participating in the next two rounds of the disciple competition would mean that Chai Rong could not find any more excuses to expel him from Iron Stream Ridge at this time.

Being knocked off the stage in one strike was not a pleasant experience. Just as Chen Hai was about to concede, a gust of wind seemed to swirl behind him. He felt a gentle but irresistible force from the surrounding void, which forcibly stopped his backward flight, and he landed on the edge of the stage without falling off.

He did not fall off?

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