Chapter 50

"Disciple Li Tianming, has seen the Hall Master."

Li Tianming, of course, recognized this person, and hurriedly bowed.

This person was none other than one of the five Hall Masters of the Yanhuang Academy, the legendary Phoenix Hall Master, named Wei Zikun.

In the Yanhuang Academy, apart from the Academy Master and a few figures from Tianfu, the five Hall Masters were the ones with the highest status and position.

The person before him was the controller of the entire Phoenix Hall.

To be in charge of the Phoenix Hall indicated that he was absolutely young and talented, his age clearly younger than Li Yanfeng, but he was likely already one of the top experts in the Vermilion Bird Kingdom.

Four years ago, during the year Li Tianming spent training at the academy, he hardly ever saw this Hall Master. He didn't expect that this time, as soon as he arrived, the Hall Master would appear before him.

Of course, he wasn't there for Li Tianming.

"Mu Wan, is this your new disciple?" The Phoenix Hall Master glanced at Li Tianming.

"Yes, Hall Master." Mu Wan was respectful and serious, quite different from her usual personality.

"In three days, the ranking battle will begin. Although you are a bit older, your strength is still good. Try to achieve a good ranking and bring glory to the Phoenix Hall."

"After all, the ranking battle doesn't consider age," the Phoenix Hall Master said.

The qualifying battle would take age into account, with appropriate deductions.

However, for the ranking battle, to ensure uniform management and because the age difference among junior disciples was not significant, the final ranking would not consider age.

Although Li Tianming was the oldest in the junior class, this would not be a disadvantage; in fact, it might even be an advantage.

"What are you standing there for?" Mu Wan glanced at Li Tianming.

"Reporting to the Hall Master, I will do my best," Li Tianming said earnestly.

"The five Hall Masters will all be present at the ranking battle. I'll see how you perform."

After saying this, the Phoenix Hall Master smiled at Mu Wan and said, "Are you ready? The lantern festival is about to start."

"Yes, Hall Master," Mu Wan nodded.

"Go out and relax. Just call me Kun. No need to be formal," the Phoenix Hall Master said.

"Yes, Kun."

"Please."

They seemed to have planned to go to the lantern festival together.

The Hall Master had waited for Mu Wan for some time, and then they heard the sound of a fight, so they came over on their way.

After driving away Fang Zhao and his group, they naturally set off.

When they left, Mu Wan turned back and gave Li Tianming a secret glare, signaling him not to cause trouble.

Once they were gone, only Li Tianming and Little Yellow Chicken were left.

"Sad, isn't it? This old man is courting your Master Mu Wan," Little Yellow Chicken said with a gloating tone.

"You can't see it, but Master Mu Wan is clearly not interested in him. She is so respectful," Li Tianming replied.

"I've heard that the Hall Master has had feelings for the Master, but she has always refused," Li Tianming said calmly.

In fact, Mu Wan probably had some background, otherwise, how could she resist the advances of a Hall Master like Wei Zikun?

In the Phoenix Hall, everything was decided by Wei Zikun, and the Phoenix Hall was almost one-fifth of the Yanhuang Academy.

These matters didn't really concern him much. What truly mattered was the ranking battle in three days!

At that time, all five Hall Masters would be present.

Many top figures from Yan would also watch the battle at the Yanhuang Arena.

The scene at that time would be at least ten times more lively than the qualifying battle!

Even the high-ranking figures from the Vermilion Bird Royal Family, Thunder Venerable Mansion, Tianji Palace, and Starlight Chamber would descend upon the Yanhuang Arena.

After all, their young ones were engaged in a battle that would determine their future and reputation.

The ranking battle of the junior class, and who would become the top disciple, was the most watched event in the entire Vermilion Bird Kingdom every year.

After all, the young are the future, the guarantee of the family's legacy.

These prestigious families need to produce geniuses to ensure their long-term survival.

How to determine if geniuses are emerging? Very simple, the Yanhuang Academy ranking battle!

Even the geniuses from Tianfu, like Lin Xiaoting and Mu Qingqing, would likely be in a private room, watching the battle.

To prepare for this ranking battle, Li Tianming trained again.

He was particularly diligent. Although he could have let Little Yellow Chicken take the lead in training while he enjoyed the process, he didn't do so.

Every step of his growth over these days was solid, all for the sake of having a stronger foundation in battle.

Time passed, and in the blink of an eye, two and a half days were over. Tomorrow was the ranking battle that would shake the entire city.

Li Tianming naturally didn't forget his promise to his mother.

Tomorrow, he wouldn't have time, so he planned to bring his mother over tonight.

Tomorrow, she could watch him fight for her.

This was very important to Li Tianming.

He might only have this one chance to enter Tianfu, and his first goal in Tianfu was to cure his mother. He wanted her to see it.

With her there, he might be able to unleash 200% of his combat power!

He had been busy training and hadn't gone back to see Wei Jing for several days.

"I wonder if she has been comfortable in Yan these past few days."

Li Tianming had hired a caretaker to take care of her daily needs. If not for her illness, Wei Jing should have been quite comfortable.

At night, Li Tianming walked through a dark alley.

His new house was not far from the Yanhuang Academy, and it would take him about fifteen minutes to get back.

These days were the lantern festival in Yan, so the streets were lively, with music and dancing everywhere, presenting a scene of prosperity and happiness.

Yan's prosperity was something that Li Fire City couldn't compare to.

As he was lost in thought, Li Tianming returned home. From a distance, he saw that the lights in the house were completely off, and it was pitch black.

"Did my mother go to bed so early?"

To avoid waking her, Li Tianming quietly opened the door and entered the courtyard. The largest room in the east wing was Wei Jing's bedroom.

However, Li Tianming didn't hear the steady breathing he expected, but rather some distressed murmurs!

Wei Jing was definitely inside, but she was definitely in trouble!

Whether it was due to her illness or some other reason, Li Tianming would only know once he went inside.

In the dim night, although his eyes couldn't see clearly, the eye on the palm of his left hand had the same vision as in daylight.

Without hesitation, Li Tianming pushed the door open.

"Please, don't let anything happen."

To be honest, Wei Jing was now very fragile, and his heart was pounding.

When he pushed the door, Li Tianming saw Wei Jing lying on the bed.

She was covered with a blanket, seemingly asleep, but now she seemed to be struggling, her voice weak and painful.

"What's going on!" Li Tianming's head throbbed.

He couldn't bear to see Wei Jing in pain. Hearing her weak, painful voice, he knew she was suffering terribly.

His heart became agitated.

He quickly moved to his mother's side and lifted the blanket.

The next moment, Li Tianming's eyes widened, and they turned red with bloodshot veins.

What he saw was Wei Jing's body, now crawling with dozens of blood-red, thumb-thick worms.

These worms were extremely disgusting, with a ring of teeth at one end. They were tearing through Wei Jing's skin, drinking her blood!

This sight tore Li Tianming's heart in two!

"Blood Shadow Worms!"

Li Tianming immediately recognized them, as these dangerous and disgusting creatures were truly terrifying.

Blood Shadow Worms were a type of leech, feeding on human blood.

Who had placed the Blood Shadow Worms on Wei Jing's body!

Wei Jing had no strength to resist. Her companion beast was also suffering from a life-threatening condition and was lying in the corner.

Its body was also crawling with Blood Shadow Worms, even more than Wei Jing's.

Who had placed such a cruel thing on a defenseless sick person!

This scene made Li Tianming almost explode with rage. His beast energy began to surge, and in an instant, his aura was overwhelming.

If he had returned any later, he would have seen Wei Jing die from being drained of her blood.

If that happened, he would feel guilty for the rest of his life and become a madman.

He knew there was another person in the room.

This person had done something that made Li Tianming's killing intent surge.

"Yanhuang Academy disciple Li Tianming, you finally showed up. I've been waiting for you."

A sinister voice came from behind.

When Li Tianming turned around, he saw a man in a black cloak and tight black clothes standing in the darkness.

Only his eyes were visible, and the most noticeable part of his clothing was a blood-red, sinister flower on his chest.

"Blood Flower Hall."

Such a clear mark, Li Tianming could easily recognize it.

This was the most feared assassin organization in the Vermilion Bird Kingdom, hidden underground, specializing in accepting assassination contracts.

They charged very high prices, but their success rate was also very high, and they had a very good reputation in the assassin world.

However, Li Tianming never expected that the legendary Blood Flower Hall would target him!

From the current situation, it was clear that the target was him, not Wei Jing, otherwise, she would have been dead already.

But to kill Li Tianming, placing Blood Shadow Worms on Wei Jing was already intolerable.

Li Tianming wouldn't ask who had put out the contract on him, as the assassin's code of ethics was to never reveal the client.

Even the client was unknown to the assassins, as they were only assigned tasks.

These assassins never met their clients.

The person who came to kill him clearly knew his strength and had sent a killer who was confident in their success.

Now, he and Wei Jing were in grave danger. This life-or-death crisis could result in their deaths.

Assassination contracts were the most ruthless and merciless, and no one would pity the target.

This time, the opponent was completely different from the previous ones.

Previously, Li Tianming could remain calm, but now, death was like a knife, directly pressing against his throat.

As the man spoke, Li Tianming saw a large worm lying on the ground.

The worm was as thick as a thigh, wriggling on the ground, with a mouth at both ends.

The mouth at the head end had a ring of sharp teeth, and the mouth at the tail end was continuously spewing out thumb-thick Blood Shadow Worms.

These Blood Shadow Worms numbered in the thousands, now covering the entire room, the eaves, the floor, and the doorposts, all filled with the disgusting creatures.

That large worm was definitely the "Blood Shadow Mother Queen"!

This was a vicious companion beast, not a fierce beast.

The Blood Shadow Mother Queen, in terms of species and attributes, belonged to the special category, a typical dual-special companion beast.

Its species was a leech, a segmented companion beast.

Its attribute was the Mother Queen type, a species capable of producing a large number of offspring for offensive purposes.

Some queen ants and queen bees were of the Mother Queen type.

So, the Blood Shadow Mother Queen was a "Mother Queen-type segmented companion beast"!

...

[Important] At midnight, there will be another chapter!