Martial Sage from the Vajra Skill

CRACK! With a spray of blood, Zhu Yang’s head was covered in a web of fractures. His eyes rolled back as he fell.

Worried he wasn’t dead, Xu Yang stomped on his neck, snapping it, and only then did he stop.

"So ruthless! He didn’t leave him any chance to live!"

"Since when did Weiyuan Hall have such a vicious character?"

Witnessing Xu Yang’s brutality, many people felt a chill run down their spines.

On the high platform, Ji Yun shot to his feet, his gaze as sharp as a blade as he stared at Xu Yang from across the arena.

The one to die was actually his disciple, Zhu Yang.

’This useless trash couldn’t even kill a country bumpkin. He’s made me lose face in front of Lin Cheng.’

"Excellent. This disciple you’ve taught is quite something!" he said, gritting his teeth.

Lin Cheng remained expressionless. "I told you I wouldn’t disappoint you, but you didn’t believe me."

’Good kid. I can’t fucking believe I thought you were as timid as a mouse,’ he thought to himself.

He was also greatly surprised, realizing he had been wrong all along.

Xu Yang wasn’t timid as a mouse at all; he was a hidden viper. When he struck, it was always a killing blow.

To be able to kill with such ruthlessness, it was as if he had killed many times before.

"You..."

"Senior Brother Zhu."

Kong Yu and the others cried out in grief, their eyes locked on Xu Yang.

Xu Yang stood on the fighting stage, meeting their gazes.

If not for Zhu Yang and Jiang Yi’s repeated provocations and attempts to kill him, he never would have attracted this much attention today, nor would he have killed Zhu Yang—at least, not in front of such a massive crowd.

"Contestant C-18, you advance!"

The proctor shouted, completely unconcerned about the death.

Since the tournament began, more than one or two people had already died.

Kong Yu said in a low voice, "Go carry Senior Brother Zhu down. Making empty threats is useless. We’ll avenge Senior Brother Zhu when we face him."

Ji Jincheng and the others leaped onto the stage. Seeing Zhu Yang’s twisted neck and cracked skull, their eyes blazed with fury again, but in this kind of setting, they couldn’t even make a threat.

Even getting revenge later would be difficult. Xu Yang wasn’t without a backer; Weiyuan Hall would surely protect him. And if they were discovered, the Court would investigate.

With a cold expression, Xu Yang leaped off the stage and found a place to meditate and recover.

Exchanging more than twenty blows with Zhu Yang had consumed a fair amount of his True Qi.

’I’ve dealt with Zhu Yang. It would be great if I could run into Jiang Yi next, but the chances of that are minuscule.’

"That Zhu Yang is such trash. He had the Heart Shattering Palm but didn’t use it, and just let him win." Gu Fang was displeased.

Now that Xu Yang had won, he would advance to the next round. If his luck held, he might only need one more victory to secure a Dragon Ascension spot.

"It’s good that he won. I haven’t had a real fight with him yet. If he were killed by trash like Zhu Yang, he wouldn’t be the person who’s been chasing after me all this time," Lu Ren said, his face impassive.

Zhu Yang had his palm crippled by a single Tearing Sinews and Shattering Bones. Trash like that was useless whether dead or alive.

"This is bad!"

Gu Fang’s expression suddenly changed. "Quick, go inform the others. If they run into anyone from Gale Hall and aren’t strong enough, they should surrender immediately."

Most of Weiyuan Hall’s disciples were affiliated with the Gu Family. Now that Xu Yang had killed Zhu Yang, all disciples of Weiyuan Hall were targets for retaliation.

The chance of Xu Yang encountering another disciple from Gale Hall was slim, but with so many of them, the probability of someone else running into one was very high.

"He’s made it to the third round. At this rate, he’s very likely to achieve Dragon Ascension."

In the viewing stands, Huang Xu’s expression was grim.

Yesterday, Xu Yang had already caused the Huang Family to lose a great deal of face. If he achieved Dragon Ascension, the Huang Family would become the laughingstock of Qingyuan. They had "eyes but failed to see gold-inlaid jade," and it was likely that no Martial Artist would be willing to serve the Huang Family in the future.

"That kid is so ruthless!"

Huang Ping, on the other hand, was terrified by Xu Yang’s ruthlessness.

He had beaten a Gale Hall disciple to death right in front of all the people of Qingyuan. How could this be the same country bumpkin who once couldn’t even afford to eat?

’My own daughter humiliated him... he’s not going to retaliate, is he?’

The thought terrified him.

...

By the time Xu Yang’s True Qi had recovered, the first phase of the second round had already ended, and the lots were being drawn.

"Junior Brother Xu, have you recovered?" Sun Tao had approached at some point and was standing guard for him.

Xu Yang nodded. "Thank you, Senior Brother Sun. May I ask which of our brothers and sisters have advanced?"

Upon hearing this, Sun Tao replied in a low voice, "Besides you and me, only Senior Sister Gu Fang, Senior Brother Jiang Ping, and Senior Brother Zhao Zhifei have advanced. The others all ran into powerful opponents."

Including Zhang Hong, who drew a bye, that meant only six people from Weiyuan Hall had advanced so far. The remaining six would have to fight again.

The matches began quickly. Xu Yang and Sun Tao moved between the various fighting stages, watching the battles that interested them.

Xiong Kui was blasted off a stage, severely injured and eliminated on the spot.

After exchanging more than fifty blows with his opponent, Zhang Yong found an opening and defeated him, advancing to the third round.

Two other Weiyuan Hall disciples from the Gu Family faction were also tragically eliminated. Yang Lin advanced, but was injured.

Lu Ren encountered a Tongbi Fist master. They fought for over a hundred blows before he finally managed to knock his opponent off the stage, suffering minor injuries himself.

At this point, out of the fourteen Weiyuan Hall disciples participating in the tournament, only nine remained to advance to the third round.

"This is not good!"

Lu Ren’s hair was disheveled, and he had lost his previous confident air.

A fierce battle of over a hundred blows wasn’t just a matter of injury; his True Qi and stamina were severely depleted.

But he had no time to recover. The lots were already being drawn, and once the drawing was over, the duels would begin again immediately.

’This round won’t be easy!’

Xu Yang glanced at the token in his hand: B-6.

Aside from a few lucky ones like Zhang Hong, nearly everyone who made it to the third round had a Cultivation of Mid-Stage Qi Gathering Great Success.

At this stage, there were very few who had advanced on pure luck alone.

However, because the previous round had been so bloody, many people were injured. This actually made it the easiest round to get a lucky break.

Walking to Stage B, he saw some familiar faces. Zhao Zhifei, Jiang Ping, and Zhang Yong had also drawn Stage B.

He also saw Jiang Yi and Ji Jincheng.

Jiang Yi’s robes were stained with blood and his face was pale. He had none of his usual arrogance and didn’t step forward to provoke him.

Xu Yang shot him a cold glance and went to stand with Zhang Yong.

Suddenly, a commotion rippled through the crowd.

A man with a somewhat scholarly air strode forward. It was none other than Han Xing, the master from Tongbi Fist Hall, who was said to be at the Half-Step Marrow Cleansing stage and had cultivated Heaven-Reaching Strength.

He wasn’t as overbearing as Yun Feng. Seeing the fearful looks from the crowd, he even politely clasped his fist in greeting.

’Please don’t let my opponent be him.’

Many people prayed their opponent wouldn’t be Han Xing. Few were willing to face someone who had mastered Heaven-Reaching Strength.

Probably only Cao Rong and Yun Feng could be confident of victory against him. The rest, even people like Gu Haoming, wouldn’t dare claim a one-hundred-percent chance of winning.

The first match of the third round began quickly. Weiyuan Hall’s Zhang Yong was the first to take the stage.

His luck was good this time. His opponent was severely injured and decisively surrendered after just over ten blows. He advanced smoothly.

He was thrilled.

He had come this far; he only needed to win one more match to achieve Dragon Ascension.

"B-6, to the stage!" the proctor shouted from the stage.

"Be careful!" said Zhang Yong.

Xu Yang nodded lightly, leaped onto the stage, and then saw his opponent for this match.

The man’s robes were tattered and his face was bloodless. He looked to be severely injured.

"Brother Xu’s skills are extraordinary. I concede."

The moment the opponent saw it was Xu Yang from Weiyuan Hall—the one who had slaughtered Zhu Yang—and then saw Xu Yang’s own vigorous appearance, he immediately and decisively surrendered.

"He got lucky again!"

Jiang Yi was furious but could do nothing.

"He actually made it this far!" Jiang Ping felt a pang of regret.

Xu Yang only needed one more win for Dragon Ascension. In his current condition, the chances of him winning again were high. Lu Ren, on the other hand, was in danger.

This round ended quickly. Zhang Hong went on stage only to surrender. Sun Tao ran into a master and also surrendered without a fight. Gu Fang did the same.

Lu Ren endured a bitter fight and managed to advance. He hurriedly found a spot to meditate and restore his True Qi.

Zhao Zhifei and Jiang Ping also advanced, but only after a bloody battle that cost them dearly.

In the second phase, Zhang Hong was eliminated. Sun Tao and Gu Fang fought with all their might and finally advanced to the fourth round.

At this point, Weiyuan Hall still had seven disciples who had not been eliminated.

The drawing for the fourth round began. Everyone’s expressions were a mix of excitement and gravity.

Because they only needed one more win to successfully achieve Dragon Ascension, everyone knew this round was crucial and they would have to fight for their lives.

This round, it was feared, would be the one with the most deaths and injuries.