Shi Xiaobai felt that his trip was worth it. This fruit seemed to be the most delicious item he had ever eaten. It was probably addictive if he ate more of it.
The coolness shot straight to his brain, while the warmth filled his blood. The complex blend of the four flavors felt like a microcosm of life.
Shi Xiaobai enjoyed every mouthful of the fruit. He did not even spare the fruit's core. When the entire fruit was finished, he could not help but lick the juice off his fingers.
"Burp..."
Shi Xiaobai could not help but burp after finishing the fruit.
Shi Xiaobai suddenly widened his eyes.
He was finally satiated?
Despite eating countless rocks, gigantic black scorpions and steel rhinoceroses that filled the desert, he had never been satiated.
But just eating a single fruit made his stomach feel bloated. It appeared as though he did not need to eat for a long period of time.
Shi Xiaobai immediately realized that the fruit...contained unimaginable power!
As he felt his body digesting this inexhaustible energy, his physique was being enhanced at an exaggerated speed, so much so that Shi Xiaobai nearly laughed out loud.
However, Shi Xiaobai quickly noticed that the fragrance that permeated the holy tree was vanishing. With the fruit eaten, the fragrance left behind on the leaves was dissipating. Soon, the fragrance would vanish completely.
"Time to run!"
Shi Xiaobai did not dare to stay in the holy tree for long. The fruit was clearly extraordinary. If the fragrance were to disappear, someone would likely discover that the fruit had been eaten.
Since the tree leaves were unpalatable, there was no more reason to stay in the tree!
Shi Xiaobai quickly left.
...
When Leonis was done with his tussling, with two of the Transcendent 'beauties' no longer looking normal, Shi Xiaobai was already sitting in the audience stands of the arena.
Some fruits no longer exist if you miss them.
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Chapter345 Wrong way of posturing
The Braveheart Martial Arts Tournament officially began at nine in the morning. There were about five hundred Bravehearts from various races participating in the tournament. The Braveheart Martial Arts Tournament lasted for two days; therefore the system could not be one that had continuous stops in between, or else it would take too long.
The highlights of the tournament were the qualifying match in the afternoon and the challenge against the defending champion the next day.
Therefore, the morning competition could be said to be unusually cruel. About five hundred people were split into thirty-two groups, with each ground having approximately ten people. They fought in a free-for-all, with two people from each group qualifying, resulting in sixty-four people.
As for the sixty-four people that qualified, they would duel each other in pairs, with the final victor being able to obtain the eligibility to challenge the defending champion, King Leonis.
Hence, it was a long day for the participating Bravehearts. To be able to win the right to challenge the champion, they needed to win the ten-person battle royale, as well as the 64 to 32, 32 to 16, 16 to 8, 8 to 4, 4 to 2, 2 to 1, a total of seven matches.
With the battles in the tournament so packed, the outcomes of the matches were decided rather simply. It was made in order to prevent the participants from expending too much of their stamina due to anxiety, which would affect their next match.
Other than the final battle between two Bravehearts to determine the final challenger, with rules requiring the opponent to lose all ability to carry on fighting, the other matches had a rule that deemed having all four limbs touch the ground or falling out of the arena as defeat.
The host of the tournament fluently described the rules once before announcing the beginning of the tournament.
The participants had already drawn lots and split into groups. The first group with nine participants was first to take the stage.
The arena for the free-for-all was very expansive, about the size of ten soccer fields. The nine participants were dispersed on each corner of the arena.
The free-for-all could only have two contestants left standing; therefore, other than using overwhelming strength to crush the other contestants, playing safe was another method to persist on till they were one of the remaining two.
If one did not have the absolute confidence, no one wanted to be the focus of a free-for-all.
...
When Shi Xiaobai left the Transcendence Holy Tree, the fragrance that permeated the air had nearly dissipated.
As for the power that the fruit had given him, it was constantly being converted by him, like a steady stream of spring water.
Shi Xiaobai felt his body turn warm, as though he had drunk a mouthful of hard liquor. His muscles were filled with energy and his blood was boiling, but not burning. It was as though his blood vessels were undergoing a transformation.
Shi Xiaobai was overjoyed that his body was evolving and transforming.
After he left the holy tree, he quickly headed to the tournament's venue.
At this moment, the seats were packed with people, but thankfully there were a few empty spots. Shi Xiaobai randomly found a spot to sit down, but his surroundings were all green-skinned dwarves or strange people from other races.
Of course, in the eyes of the other races, Shi Xiaobai as a human was the true freak of nature. This was because they had never seen or even heard of such a race in their impressions or memory.
Shi Xiaobai ignored the probing eyes of the others. He watched the intense battle in the arena while he experienced his body's absorption of the energy.
When Shi Xiaobai came to the arena, the tightly-packed free-for-all battles had already begun. It was unknown which group it was, but Shi Xiaobai immediately lost interest in it when he noticed that Pulp Farmer and company or the eight Transcendent Bravehearts were not participating in this round. He focused on experiencing the growth of his strength.
This form of focus could also speed up the absorption to a certain extent.
Time quickly passed as there was no stalemate that lasted very long in the free-for-all. After all, having four limbs touch the ground or falling out of the arena resulted in elimination. Therefore, there were only two participants left after about five minutes.
After this free-for-all ended, the next round of contestants was already ready along the sidelines. Thirty-six free-for-all rounds had to be completed in the morning, therefore time was rather tight.
Shi Xiaobai found it rather boring, but the audience was enthusiastic. Although the scrimmage was not gory or even considered violent, as long as the confrontation during a scrimmage was complicated enough, be it the overwhelming might or psychological intrigue, the brainless spectators would find it awesome despite not understanding a thing.
At this moment, Shi Xiaobai's eyes lit up slightly. He noticed that Pulp Farmer and Liu Yu were in the next group of participants!
The two human trial-takers had been chosen to be in the same group!
Thankfully, there were two spots for each group, preventing the need for the two to engage in an internecine struggle. They could even cooperate.
Before the battle began, Shi Xiaobai heard an unbridled discussion.
"Look, what race is that? They look so weird. Have you seen it before?"
"I've never seen it before, but I heard that they are called 'humans'. Previously, there was some conflict with the gate watcher giant when they entered the city. Apparently the giant felt that humans were a race even lowlier than ants, so they were barred from entry."
"So that's the case. No wonder they look so frail and weak. How were they chosen to be Bravehearts?"
"Who knows, but it doesn't matter. Such weaklings would not even last a single round, so they are nothing of concern. Sigh, this group doesn't have any of the eight Tr
anscendent Bravehearts. I'm so looking forward to Lord Moya's appearance!"
"..."
Two green-skinned dwarves behind Shi Xiaobai discussed without considering their words. The contempt in their words caused Shi Xiaobai to frown slightly.
Shi Xiaobai was somewhat angry, but he did not speak, nor did he turn his head.
Engaging in a war of words did not lend credence to the matter. Using facts to smack someone in the face was most practical. Shi Xiaobai believed in Pulp Farmer and Liu Yu's strength. None of the eight Transcendent Bravehearts were in this group, so they were likely able to quickly end the match. When that happened, the two green-skinned dwarves would know to shut their mouths.
...
The free-for-all began.
Just as Shi Xiaobai expected, without the eight Transcendent Bravehearts in the group, the Bravehearts from other races did not apply any pressure on Pulp Farmer and Liu Yu.
However, the quick end to the battle rendered Shi Xiaobai speechless, because it ended too quickly.
At the instant the free-for-all began, Pulp Farmer thrust out his spear, and with his domineering strength, he pushed down five participants in front of him. With a wave of Liu Yu's whisk, the remaining three participants were pushed out of the arena by an unknown force.
Immediately, only Pulp Farmer and Liu Yu were left standing in the arena. Pent-up anger had welled in the two of them; therefore, they used a domineering strength immediately.
The free-for-all lasted only a few seconds before it ended.
The scene should have been shocking, but the ordinary Transcendent civilians did not understand what had happened.
"What happened?"
"Why did all the participants except the humans fall down by themselves or fly out of the arena? Was this match fixed?"
"Despicable. They probably bribed the participants. It seems that the humans are very rich."
"..."
Shi Xiaobai felt somewhat helpless hearing these ignorant conversations. Sometimes, posturing too much would end up being overdone. It required the audience to understand what sort of posturing you were doing.
Shi Xiaobai sighed, but he was not too anxious either. The tournament still had a long way ahead. With the opponents overly weak, there was no way to reflect the might of Pulp Farmer and Liu Yu.
When they battled with the eight Transcendent Bravehearts, these snobbish idiots who looked down on humans would realize how ignorant they were.
Maybe the heavens had heard the inner voice in Shi Xiaobai's heart.
In the next free-for-all, Shi Xiaobai was surprised to see Feng Yuanlin as well as the second strongest Transcendent, Moya!
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Chapter346 The importance of a posturing technique
Pulp Farmer and Liu Yu had won too fast, resulting in the ignorant audience to mistake it for match fixing. Immediately, there was public outrage, but at this moment, the third human Braveheart had come on stage. He was also in the same group as the second strongest Transcendent, Moya!
The audience went into a frenzy!
"Lord Moya, wipe out those despicable humans that engaged in match fixing!"
"Despicable humans, get the fuck out of the tournament!"
"..."
The denouncement and cursing went back and forth, and of course, there were some voices of reason in them, but they were quickly drowned out.
At this moment, Moya had walked to the middle of the arena. Other than Feng Yuanlin, the other seven contestants knew their worth and walked to the edges of the arena in a bid to get as far away from Moya as possible.
Feng Yuanlin stood closest to Moya at a corner of the arena. His usual cheeky grin was replaced with something more serious.
Just like Shi Xiaobai, even if they were maligned, they would not waste their breaths in an argument. They would use facts to speak for themselves and smack faces. This was because they possessed the power to do so.
Even though his opponent was the second strongest warrior, Moya, who had only been defeated by five trial-takers throughout history, Feng Yuanlin would not cower. After all, the reputation of his partners, as well as the dignity of humanity, was at stake.
What he wanted to defend and prove was a hundred times more important than being defeated!
Therefore, he had to face it straight on!
"Go to one side and let me fight Moya alone!"
Feng Yuanlin bellowed angrily at the other participants. He was extremely high-handed and arrogant!
Moya's eyes were filled with an ill-humored look.
The other Bravehearts showed disdain for him as they scoffed, "Who the hell do you think you are? Wouldn't it be humiliating if we followed whatever you said?"
Feng Yuanlin's eyes turned cold. He did not mind demolishing the bunch of idiots!
Shi Xiaobai's impression of Feng Yuanlin increased by several times upon seeing his domineering attitude. He was extremely eager to see Feng Yuanlin fight a wonderful match so as to vent the anger that had welled up.
At the same time, he was somewhat curious how strong this green-skinned dwarf, Moya, was.
At this moment, the referee announced the commencement of the battle!
At that instant, the one-meter-tall Moya suddenly swelled up, as though he was a shriveled balloon that was suddenly injected with a large amount of gas.
In an instant, the green-skinned dwarf turned into a three-meter tall green-skinned giant!
His muscles bulged, making him look as hard as a rock. His massive limbs contained terrifying power!
What was going on?
The audience immediately answered Shi Xiaobai.
"Wow, Lord Moya has activated his first form!"
"It looks like Lord Moya does not plan on going easy!"
"Heh heh, it's just the first form. It's said that Lord Moya is a monster that can reach the third form. Other than King Leonis, no one can match him!"
"..."
Shi Xiaobai was slightly surprised.
So this was the reason why the Transcendents were so powerful?
They even had transformations. Moya, who had activated the first form, was now like an elephant compared to its previous state. Moya went from a harmless looking dwarf to a three-meter-tall giant that obviously appeared to be filled with explosive power!
The free-for-all had already begun, but no one moved. Feng Yuanlin was given quite a fright by Moya's perverse change.
At this moment, Moya suddenly lifted his right foot and stamped on the ground!
"Boom!"
An explosion sounded as the foot that trampled towards the ground possessed terrifying power. Instantly, the ground cracked as a shockwave emanated!
Feng Yuanlin snapped out of his daze as he quickly concentrated. He bent his legs and stood firmly as though he was rooted to the ground.
As the ground quaked, he could sense the vibrating energies surge through his body from his foot.
Feng Yuanlin wobbled gently a few times, abating the energies.
This stamp naturally could not knock him down.
Two shields appeared out of thin air into Feng Yuanlin's hands!
"Moya! Eat this!" Feng Yuanlin bellowed angrily as he raised his shields and charged at Moya!
Your contempt!
Your slandering!
I'll destroy them all!
The match has only just begun!
"The match is over!"
The referee's resounded voice suddenly splashed a basin of cold water, dousing Feng Yuanlin's burning rage. He stopped in surprise as he surveyed his surroundings.
He realized that the remaining seven participants had fallen to the ground, with some of them even unconscious!
Moya's stamp was something Feng Yuanlin could withstand, but the other Bravehearts could not resist it at all. They instantly lost their ability to continue doing battle.
"Fuck, aren't they just too weak!?"
Fe
ng Yuanlin could not help but curse.
Moya transformed back to a dwarf state and nonchalantly glanced at Feng Yuanlin before leaving.
The free-for-all had ended in an instant, and Moya had no interest in staying even though the human that spoke recklessly had managed to withstand his most ordinary stamp. Feng Yuanlin was unable to give him the slightest desire of fighting.
This was because the opponent was too weak!
The scene Moya left behind while departing was like it was an invincible powerhouse seeking defeat. It looked somewhat lonely, but it was also excellent posturing!
It was a successful act of posturing because the audience had clearly seen Moya's stamp. They had also seen the resulting cracks on the ground, as well as the shocking scene of how the powerful stamp had ended the battle!
"Moya! Moya! Moya!"
The Transcendents went wild as they screamed Moya's name at the top of their lungs!
At this moment, Moya was the center of attention!
As for why the human did not fall down despite the stamping attack, it did not matter. He was just an irrelevant side character!
There was no end to the deafening cheers because the audience could no longer extricate themselves from the magnificence and thrill of that single stamp.
Only after a long time did the cheers fade away, allowing the next free-for-all to continue as per normal.
In the following matches, the eight Transcendent Bravehearts took the stage one after another. For some odd reason, the eight Bravehearts were experts at posturing. They used a variety of methods of posturing, attracting the wild screams of the audience till they turned hoarse.
A silent Shi Xiaobai had no interest to continue watching the matches any further. Pulp Farmer and company had already taken the stage and they had successfully reached the second round's sixty-four people knockouts. Yet, Shi Xiaobai was not happy at all.
Strength aside, they had lost when it came to posturing. It was an abject defeat!
"Sigh, if it were This King..."
Shi Xiaobai imagined what kinds of posturing he would do if he took the stage.
Absolute Choice 7 Page 29
