Chapter 59

"Indeed, a martial artist at the middle stage of the Profound Extreme Realm is not to be underestimated. Moreover, among martial artists at the middle stage of the Profound Extreme Realm, the Third Prince is still considered one of the weaker ones." Zhang Ruochen thought to himself.

Every time Zhang Ruochen received a punch from the Third Prince, he would channel part of the force through his bones and meridians into the ground.

Therefore, even if the Third Prince could exert a force of one hundred newtons, he would not be able to injure Zhang Ruochen.

Fortunately, it was Zhang Ruochen. If it were any other martial artist at the Great Perfection stage of the Yellow Extreme Realm, the Third Prince could kill them with just one punch.

"The Third Prince may be a fool, but his cultivation is still very strong. It looks like Zhang Ruochen is going to lose," Lin Nishan said.

Lin Chenyu shook his head, holding a completely different view. "Zhang Ruochen's cultivation is much stronger than I imagined. The Third Prince can't do anything to him."

"How can that be? Zhang Ruochen is clearly being pushed back and can't even fight back," Lin Nishan was puzzled.

Lin Chenyu pointed to the ground with his index finger. "Look closely at the ground where Zhang Ruochen stepped."

Lin Nishan looked over and saw that with every step Zhang Ruochen took, the stone slabs on the ground would slightly sink, forming shallow footprints. If not observed carefully, they would go unnoticed.

"He is redirecting the Third Prince's force into the ground," Lin Nishan was slightly surprised. "How does he do that?"

Lin Chenyu said, "His control over force has reached a level of exquisite refinement. Even if the Third Prince is stronger, he can't hurt him. It's truly remarkable! If it weren't for the Third Prince's foolishness, we wouldn't have known Zhang Ruochen's true strength."

"If we want to hire a hitman from the black market, we'll need to offer twice the reward to ensure absolute success."

A faint smile appeared at the corner of Lin Chenyu's mouth.

In the arena, only Lin Chenyu and General Hoss, who had reached the Earth Extreme Realm, could see through Zhang Ruochen's true strength. General Hoss nodded involuntarily, thinking, "No wonder he is a martial genius; heroes emerge from the young."

The Ninth Princess was very worried about Zhang Ruochen. "Ninth Brother, your cultivation is not as high as Third Brother's. Don't compete in brute strength. Catch the sword!"

The Ninth Princess threw the sword to Zhang Ruochen.

Zhang Ruochen originally wanted to continue fighting the Third Prince to hone his palm technique.

Since the Ninth Princess threw the sword over, he naturally caught it and said, "In that case, let's end this early!"

"Whoosh!"

Zhang Ruochen gripped the sword hilt, drawing a brilliant arc of sword light in the air.

With one slash, the sharp tip of the sword pointed at the Third Prince's neck.

With just one move, the Third Prince was subdued.

The Third Prince's fist froze in mid-air, and he didn't dare to move a muscle, fearing that any slight movement would cause the sword to cut his neck.

Everyone in the arena was stunned, shocked beyond measure.

The Third Prince had always been in the lead, pushing the Ninth Prince back. Why did he suddenly lose?

"Ninth Brother must have been letting Third Brother win. Otherwise, with Ninth Brother's strength, he would have defeated Third Brother long ago." The Little Princess, with her hands behind her back, stared wide-eyed, looking admiringly.

The other princes and princesses also realized that it wasn't that the Ninth Prince couldn't win the Third Prince; he had been letting the Third Prince win.

"The Ninth Prince truly is a martial genius. At the Great Perfection stage of the Yellow Extreme Realm, he can defeat a martial artist at the middle stage of the Profound Extreme Realm. If he breaks through to the Profound Extreme Realm, how powerful would he be?"

"According to legend, the ultimate strength of the Yellow Extreme Realm is one hundred newtons. I wonder if the Ninth Prince has reached that legendary strength?"

"Even if he hasn't, it must be very close."

...

Hearing the crowd's discussion, the Third Prince became even more furious.

He originally wanted to defeat the Ninth Prince to gain a sense of achievement. Instead, he was subdued by a single sword strike.

This time, he lost even more face!

"I won't accept this. Ninth Brother, let's fight again," the Third Prince felt that he had been careless and that's why he lost to Zhang Ruochen's sword.

"There's no need to fight again. Does it really matter who wins or loses?"

After saying this, Zhang Ruochen left the stunned Third Prince and walked over to the Ninth Princess, returning the sword to her.

"Ninth Brother, why didn't you tell me you could definitely win Third Brother? You made me worry for so long," the Ninth Princess gave Zhang Ruochen a disapproving look.

"Definitely win? There's no such thing as a guaranteed victory in the world," Zhang Ruochen smiled and shook his head.

Seeing Zhang Ruochen and the Ninth Princess being intimate, Lin Nishan felt very displeased. She held the Starlight Ancient Sword and walked over, saying calmly, "Ninth Princess, I've heard you've reached the stage where your sword follows your heart. I'm itchy to test my skills. How about we spar? What do you think?"

The Ninth Princess glanced at Lin Nishan, feeling a surge of fighting spirit. "Sure! I've wanted to fight you again. Since we're at the royal martial arena, let's see who's better now."

The Ninth Princess and Lin Nishan were known as the twin beauties of the capital. During the year-end assessment, the Ninth Princess had lost to Lin Nishan's sword, feeling very不服气 (unwilling to accept defeat) and wanting to regain her pride.

"Green Water Listening to the Sea."

The Ninth Princess took the initiative to attack. As soon as she drew her sword, a large wave of sword energy surged, wave after wave, sweeping towards Lin Nishan.

"Whoosh!"

The sword waves produced the sound of waves crashing against the shore, with rocks piercing the sky and waves pounding the shore, just like real sea waves.

After reaching the initial stage of the sword following the heart, the Ninth Princess's sword technique had reached a new level. Compared to the year-end assessment, the subtlety of her sword technique had improved by more than double.

Lin Nishan stood still, her lips crystal clear, a hint of disdain on her face.

"Whoosh!"

She thrust her sword, and a powerful icy sword aura emanated from the blade, breaking all of the Ninth Princess's sword techniques.

"Let go!"

Lin Nishan lightly shouted and struck the Ninth Princess's wrist with her sword.

A blood mark appeared on the Ninth Princess's wrist, and her fingers lost their strength. Her sword flew out of her hand and clattered to the ground.

The Ninth Princess's wrist was left with a bloody mark, and she retreated more than ten steps, pain spreading through her body. She gritted her teeth, feeling angry. "You..."

Lin Nishan calmly sheathed the Starlight Sword, looking elegant and composed. She sighed, "The Ninth Princess is known as a heavenly pride, yet she can't even hold her sword steady? The gap between us is getting bigger. Sigh!"

"Lin Nishan, are you deliberately humiliating me?" The Ninth Princess's face turned red, feeling humiliated.

Originally, she was a heavenly pride on par with Lin Nishan, but being defeated by her was a huge blow.

"I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare to humiliate the Princess. I just didn't expect the Princess's sword technique to be so poor," Lin Nishan smiled.

Zhang Ruochen picked up the sword from the ground and walked to the Ninth Princess's side. "Lin Nishan, your cultivation has reached the Great Position of the Yellow Extreme Realm, one level higher than the Ninth Princess. Even if you defeat her, does that prove you are better? You are too immature!"

Hearing this, Lin Nishan's eyes darkened. "You dare to call me immature? Everyone saw clearly that I defeated the Ninth Princess with one strike. With her strength, she doesn't deserve to be mentioned alongside me."

Lin Nishan raised her chin, like a proud swan.

The Ninth Princess found Lin Nishan's attitude unbearable, but she was indeed no match for her, feeling very frustrated and her eyes turning red with anger.

Zhang Ruochen stared at Lin Nishan. "If that's the case, let's have another match in a month. If you can still defeat the Ninth Princess in a month, I will apologize for my earlier words."

Hearing Zhang Ruochen's words, the Ninth Princess suddenly lifted her head and shook it at him.

What if she lost to Lin Nishan again in a month? Would she really have to have her Ninth Brother apologize to that little wretch?

Lin Nishan was delighted by Zhang Ruochen's words and immediately agreed. "Fine! Zhang Ruochen, those are your words. I'm looking forward to a martial genius apologizing to me."

Zhang Ruochen said, "If you lose, you must apologize to the Ninth Princess in front of everyone."

"I agree." Lin Nishan, confident in herself, agreed without hesitation.

During the year-end assessment, Lin Nishan had been humiliated by Zhang Ruochen, and she hated him deeply.

If she defeated the Ninth Princess in a month, she wouldn't let Zhang Ruochen off easily.

Apologize?

Zhang Ruochen, you're thinking too simply!

She suddenly realized that humiliating Zhang Ruochen was more exciting than killing him.

Afterward, Lin Nishan and Lin Chenyu left the royal martial arena.

As they walked, Lin Chenyu said, "Zhang Ruochen is not a simple character. Since he dared to make such a statement, he must have some confidence. Nishan, you'd better be careful."

"Brother, you're overthinking it. With the Qi-nourishing elixir you brought back from the YunTai Sect, my cultivation has advanced rapidly. In a month, I will definitely reach the peak of the Great Position. At that time, the gap between the Ninth Princess and me will only grow larger," Lin Nishan said.

Lin Chenyu nodded. "With the help of the Qi-nourishing elixir, your cultivation can indeed improve rapidly in a short time. Work hard and strive to reach the Great Perfection stage of the Yellow Extreme Realm. When that happens, I will give you a Profound Blood Pill to help you break through to the Profound Extreme Realm."

"The Profound Extreme Realm." Lin Nishan's face showed a hint of joy.

Lin Chenyu said, "Once you reach the Profound Extreme Realm, with your talent, entering the YunTai Sect will not be difficult. The Ninth Princess is just a stepping stone on your path to growth. As for Zhang Ruochen, daring to oppose the Empress, he is destined to die a violent death. Ha ha!"

Lin Nishan's eyes sparkled, looking forward to the match in a month even more.

She imagined Zhang Ruochen humbly apologizing to her, and a charming smile appeared on her lips.