"High level of a high-rank martial art! No wonder! Congratulations Zhao Tianjian, for having such a talented son," the main judge smiled towards Zhao Yijian's father.
"Thank you, elder!" Zhao Tianjian was shocked as the main judge was an elder, whose status was far higher than his own.
On the stage...
"Ice Cold Flash!"
Zhao Yijian pushed his sword to an even faster speed.
Fssssh!
Zhao Yue's shirt was ripped into pieces as his body was cut multiple times.
"Zhao Yijian wins!" the judge immediately said.
"High level of a high-rank martial art. I did not lose unjustly," Zhao Yue said as he sighed.
After defeating Zhao Yue, Zhao Yijian's momentum couldn't be stopped.
"Zhao Yijian! Zhao Yijian!"
The crowd below cheered. Many youths looked up in awe to him. Zhao Yijian was now the king of the outer disciples.
Zhao Yijian surveyed the area, and his eyes landed on Zhao Feng. His lips curled into a cold smile as he looked disdainfully at Zhao Feng.
"Brother Jian!" Zhao Xue who's face was fully red ran up to him. She believed that his strength was unbeatable. At the same time, she glanced towards Zhao Feng.
Zhao Feng was expressionless.
Now there were only three people left with a perfect record, Zhao Yijian, Zhao Feng and Zhao Yufei. However, now there was not much anticipation left.
In the crowd's opinion, Zhao Yijian would not lose to anyone from the outer disciples. He would even be ranked highly amongst the inner disciples!
"High level of a high-rank martial art?" Zhao Feng murmured.
His perfect record kept on escalating and soon reached 60 wins, and then 61 wins.
However, the fight between Zhao Yijian and Zhao Feng could not be avoided.
Finally, at his sixty-ninth match, Zhao Feng saw the purple-clothed youth stand on stage.
It was Zhao Yijian!
The crowd turned silent as the two faced each other. After all, Zhao Feng also had a perfect record.
"Zhao Feng! You won't admit defeat, will you?" Zhao Yijian mockingly said.
In his opinion, the only one who was his opponent was Zhao Yue; all the others were rubbish.
Chapter 24 – Top Outer Disciple, Part One
Facing Zhao Yijian's disdain, Zhao Feng only faintly smiled. Although Zhao Yijian was strong, he had an arrogant attitude. This meant that it was useless to talk to him. Only with actions could you prove what you wanted to say.
Although Zhao Feng did not respond, his attitude was like needles in Zhao Yijian's eyes.
The crowd was slightly taken aback. Zhao Yijian was already very arrogant, but Zhao Feng's silence did more than what words could say.
"Kid, if you don't speak now, you won't be able to speak later," Zhao Yijian said deeply.
Jiang!
His sword flashed in front of Zhao Feng.
Zhao Yijian started with Cold Flowing Sword. Although he was very arrogant, he knew that Zhao Feng had the strength of a quasi Martial Artist, so he had to go full out.
Zhao Feng felt a chill coming from the sword.
Ssssss!
The sword missed Zhao Feng's shoulder by half an inch.
"What a high technique! I can only see the after-image!"
If he only had the strength of a quasi Martial Artist, then he definitely wouldn't be able to face the high level of Cold Flowing Sword.
Zhao Feng knew that his defense was not equal to Zhao Yue's.
Ceng!
As light as a leaf, Zhao Feng pulled away from Zhao Yijian.
In terms of defense, Zhao Feng was not Zhao Yijian's match, not unless he learned a high-rank body strengthening technique like Zhao Yue.
"Where are you running!" Zhao Yijian swiftly jumped and used Cold Flowing Sword in mid-air.
No matter how hard Zhao Feng tried to dodge, the chill continued to follow him.
"No wonder it is the high level of a high ranked martial art!" Zhao Feng thought He knew that although his Angry Dragon Fists had reached the peak level, it was not a match for Zhao Yijian's Cold Flowing Sword.
"Ice Cold Flying Explosion!"
Zhao Yijian's move suddenly changed. The sword turned towards Zhao Feng's landing spot.
Not good! Zhao Feng was in midair, and once he landed, he would not be able to dodge Zhao Yijian's area attack.
"What a Cold Flowing Sword! He can already use area attacks while still below the fourth rank!"
"Looks like the battle has been decided!" the older generation who were watching praised.
"Come down!" Zhao Yijian's Ice Cold Flying Explosion sent a frenzied blast towards the lower part of Zhao Feng's body.
"Lightly Floating Wave!" Zhao Feng took a deep breath as he compacted all of his blood, allowing him to jump in midair.
Teng!
His body left the pull of gravity as he jumped over Zhao Yijian's killing move.
How…is this possible? Zhao Yijian stood dazed as he saw Zhao Feng ‘jump' over his killing move.
"What! Zhao Feng has trained Lightly Floating Ferry to such a high degree!" the main judge praised as he stroked his beard.
"Lightly Floating Wave! That is the ultimate move of Lightly Floating Ferry, how did he manage to do this?" the martial artist who had once trained in Lightly Floating Ferry exclaimed as he stood up from shock.
On the stage...
Zhao Feng was running while Zhao Yijian tried to catch up. Soon, Zhao Yijian's Cold Flowing Sword was approaching high level, its damage and speed rapidly increasing.
Zhao Feng wasn't bad either. His Lightly Floating Ferry made him as light as a feather and although it seemed like he could only barely dodge the sword, the sword did not even touch him once.
Time flew by. While Zhao Feng was running, he tried to find any flaws in Zhao Yijian's skill so that he could retaliate.
However, he suddenly realized that he could not even get close to Zhao Yijian, or else he would face a killing move. His Angry Dragon Fists could not block even one of Zhao Yijian's sword blows. If he tried to block one, he would get injured.
"Do I have to use…" Zhao Feng sucked in a breath as the inner strength in his body awakened, then disappeared.
Relying on the Hiding Air Technique, he concealed his inner strength.
While in midair, Zhao Feng suddenly put his energy into his left eye.
Peh! Peh!
The moment the left eye was activated, Zhao Feng went into super-vision mode.
Although Zhao Yijian's sword was fast, it slowed down in his eyes.
He could even see where the strength in Zhao Yijian's body gathered, and through that, Zhao Feng could predict where Zhao Yijian was going to attack next.
Teng! Teng!…
Zhao Feng dodged all the attacks easily.
"Angry Dragon Fist!" At a certain point, Zhao Feng retaliated.
"Ice Cold Wind!" Zhao Yijian neither dodged nor defended. Instead, his sword went for Zhao Feng's throat.
Zhao Feng felt helpless. He could find gaps in Zhao Yijian's moves; he could not attack since he would be unable to dodge Zhao Yijian's sword.
Cold Flowing Sword focuses on sharpness and offense. It does not have any defense at all! However he has trained it to the high level so his flaws are small and I only have a fifty percent chance to win, Zhao Feng analyzed and predicted inside his mind.
The biggest difference between him and Zhao Yijian was the martial art skill level. To beat Zhao Yijian, he only had two options.
The first way was to stall, stall until the opponent got tired. Zhao Feng had complete confidence that, with his left eye and inner strength, he could outlast Zhao Yijian.
The second way was to use his inner strength and win by force!
Just as Zhao Feng was thinking this...
"Judge, I think that the two of them are both geniuses and if it drags on and one of them gets injured o
r dies, we will be punished by the sect."
Usually, even if they stalled, Zhao Yijian had a fifty to sixty percent chance of winning, but he had an unknown feeling that stalling wasn't a good idea.
"But…they have not finished yet." The fight's judge was a bit hesitant since Zhao Tianjian's cultivation had reached the sixth rank, and his status wasn't low.
"Although they have not finished yet, can you not see who has got the upper hand?" Zhao Tianjian gave a ‘knowing' look towards the stage's judge. It was obvious that if this was done well, there'd be great rewards…
"Fine," the judge said, "Number one hundred and eighty-eight, Zhao Feng, you have the lower hand, so if this drags out the judge has the right to make the decision."
This was ok?
Zhao Feng felt anger surge in his heart. The judge was obviously biased towards Zhao Yijian. Obviously, the judge couldn't openly say that Zhao Yijian won, but being the judge, they had the right to make a decision after a while. For example, the judge could decide if a match dragged out for too long.
The judge's decision did cause some disturbance.
"Although Zhao Feng's got the lower hand, he is not losing at all."
"Hmph, all he can do is run! He's just wasting our time!"
The crowd discussed this quietly.
Although some of the older generation felt that this was unjust, they were not willing to offend Zhao Tianjian and his son just for a mere branch sect disciple.
"Fine! I will not run!" Zhao Feng laughed bitterly as he stopped.
"Kid! Take my sword!" Zhao Yijian looked gratefully towards his father.
Zhao Tianjian stood with his hands behind his back, faintly smiling. At this point, some people, like Zhao Kun, had gloating faces.
Zhao Xue looked at that familiar figure and sighed. She had complex feelings towards him, some sympathetic, some cold.
Sssss!
Just as Zhao Yijian's Cold Flowing Sword approached Zhao Feng, the latter didn't make any move to dodge.
"Angry Dragon Fists!" Zhao Feng put all his anger into this punch.
Arrogant! The elders shook their heads.
"Ai," the stage's judge sighed as well.
"Hahaha! It's no use. Break!" Zhao Yijian laughed as he waved his sparkling sword.
"Open!" Zhao Feng took a deep breath as he gave off an extremely powerful aura.
Hu~~~
A faint green glow appeared on Zhao Feng's arms and fists. It looked beautiful under the sunlight.
Before the fist arrived, the winds had already struck Zhao Yijian's body.
Peh!
With Zhao Feng being at the center, the dust under the unseen force slowly floated upwards.
"What! That's…"
"It's…" The main judge stood up, his face full of excitement.
Not good! Zhao Tianjian's expression turned ugly.
"What is going on!" Zhao Yijian felt an unknown pressure bearing down on him, making him unable even to breathe. Even his sword speed was limited. In his eyes, Zhao Feng's fist was like a roaring dragon…
Dang! Kraaaak——
Zhao Yijian spat out a mouthful of blood.
Clang!
His sword split into two pieces and fell onto the ground. There was also an unseen force that traveled through the sword and flowed into his body.
"Ah!"
Zhao Yijian groaned as he was knocked twenty meters back.
Hu~
As Zhao Feng lowered his fist, the dust fell slowly back onto the ground.
Not knowing how long had passed, someone shouted, "Inner Strength of the Martial Path!"
Zhao Feng had chi!
A faint green glow flashed throughout Zhao Feng's body…
Chapter 25 – Top Outer Disciple, Part Two
Sssss!
Cold breaths sounded throughout the field. Everyone was completely shocked.
The white-bearded judge stood up and murmured, "Fourteen years old, and he has already understood the principle of Inner Strength. He is easily going to become a Martial Artist. His talent can be compared to Zhao Linlong's!"
The crowd attention once again focused on Zhao Feng. He was the new king of the outer disciples!
Zhao Feng looked incredulously at his fists. He had seen Zhao Yijian's arm break, seen the sword snap in two…
He had even restrained his strength. If he had not, Zhao Yijian's injury wouldn't be just a broken arm, at least half his arm would have become useless. If it was a normal third rank cultivator instead, this punch would have killed him instantly.
This is the power of inner strength. Zhao Feng trembled with excitement.
The disciples in the crowd looked at Zhao Feng in fear. They now understood the difference in strength between Martial Learners and Martial Artists.
"Zhao Feng wins!" The judge glanced deeply at Zhao Feng. Even though he was biased towards Zhao Yijian, Zhao Feng had still won.
It wasn't just winning; it was winning with complete strength!
"Jian'er!" Zhao Tianjian screamed and appeared at Zhao Yijian's side. His speed was so fast that the people nearby only saw a blur.
"What speed!" Zhao Feng estimated that Zhao Yijian's father had probably reached the sixth rank of the martial path.
The sixth rank of the martial path was the peak of Martial Artists. Another step further would mean becoming a Martial Master.
"I lost…I cannot believe it…" Zhao Yijian couldn't feel his left arm.
"Call an alchemist!" Zhao Tianjian saw that there was a chance of his son's arm becoming useless, and then turned around. "Youngster! What is the meaning of this?" Zhao Tianjian had murderous in his eyes as he looked towards Zhao Feng.
The aura of the sixth rank of the martial path caused great pressure bearing towards Zhao Feng. Zhao Feng felt as if the air had been frozen. Every word he spoke would cost him a lot of energy. He was lucky that he had his own inner strength to fight against Zhao Tianjian's aura.
Peh! Peh!
The faint green glow inside his left eye, which was originally 1.3 meters long, started to creep towards the 1.35m mark. Under the pressure, Zhao Feng had increased his cultivation!
"Good! Now I have the requirements to break through to the fourth rank!" Zhao Feng laughed.
His slight change did not fool Zhao Tianjian's eyes.
Cannot let him live!
Zhao Tianjian felt that Zhao Feng was a threat to him, "Youngster, you're just a lowly branch disciple. For injuring my son's arm, I will take away your cultivation."
Shuah!
In a flash, Zhao Tianjian leaped towards Zhao Feng.
Not good!
Zhao Feng felt great danger come bearing towards him. It was lucky that he was on guard. The second the power started to condense within Zhao Tianjian's body, Zhao Feng had seen it with his left eye.
Teng!
Zhao Feng did not even think at all as he pushed Lightly Floating Ferry to its limit. He jumped over ten meters up and barely managed to dodge the attack. However, he knew that this was the only chance he had to dodge.
When Zhao Tianjian missed, he knew that something was wrong. "Die!" he shouted, as he used his own footwork skill to follow Zhao Feng.
"Lightly Floating Wave!" Zhao Feng double jumped in midair and ran towards the high-status people of the sect.
He knew that Zhao Tianjian only had a middle-high status within the sect. The higher level of the sect would not allow for Zhao Feng's cultivation to be crippled in front of them.
Sou!
Zhao Feng ran towards his goal at his fastest speed.
"Gah! This kid…!" Zhao Tianjian understood Zhao Feng's intentions.
"Zhao Tianjian! Stop!" a deep voice as loud as thunder boomed. Accompanying this voice, a powerful aura formed overhead. It was a white-bearded old man. He stood in front of Zhao Tianjian.
Not good! It is the main judge!
Zhao Tianjian knew that he was someone of
the seventh rank or higher. However, Zhao Feng was right in front of his eyes! He wasn't willing to let him go like this! Zhao Tianjian clenched his teeth as he faced the elder.
"Down!" An unseen hand slammed downwards.
Pah!
Zhao Tianjian felt his power disappear as he spat out a mouthful of blood.
Attacking through the air! How strong!
It was obvious that the main judge had mastered Transformation Strength, a higher level of Inner Strength.
"Elder! This Zhao Feng is deadly and cunning! He broke my son's arm! How can you not punish him?" Zhao Tianijan half knelt on the ground as he spoke with fear.
"Hmph! Who is deadly? When Zhao Feng attacked he had already restrained himself from using all of his strength, or else the result would not be as simple as a broken arm! Your son's arm would at least have been crippled, or he could even have died as a result!" the judge said.
Zhao Tianjian understood immediately.
"Why not go and help your son." The white-bearded judge waved his arms and left the stage.
Zhao Feng unclenched his fist full of cold sweat and looked gratefully at the elder. The elder seemed to notice this and smiled back at him with praise in his eyes.
This disturbance didn't affect the rest of the matches.
"He beat Zhao Yijian…" Zhao Xue's face was stiff. She had the feeling she had fallen from heaven and into the abyss. Before her eyes, that familiar figure had become the king of the outer disciples.
Now, Zhao Feng was without a doubt the best amongst the outer disciples.
Seventy wins…seventy-one wins. Zhao Feng's record kept increasing. Most of his opponents surrendered straight away.
Even when he faced Zhao Yue, Zhao Feng only had to use his chi to break his opponent's Metal Body instantly.
Zhao Feng's strength was no longer that of a quasi Martial Artist; it had reached that of a half-step Martial Artist! Half-step Martial Artist was when one had chi and had reached quasi Martial Artist at the same time. To a certain extent, it was the same as being the fourth rank.
King of Gods - (A Chinese Novel Translation): Book 1 Page 14
