Chapter 216: Envoys From Ten Thousand Stars City
“These two disciples of the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall, in terms of strength, are probably already able to compete with those three monsters who placed top three in the grand competition.” Lin Yan watched Ye Qinglu and Luo Wu Shang below as they picked up the loot and sighed. “With the strength of the two of them, even if we hadn’t come to help, the teams of Sharp Tooth and Steel Bone would probably still have found it hard to deal with the people from the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall.”
The human race captains and vice captains present all looked at the slain Sharp Tooth and Steel Bone, nodded in agreement, and there was a touch of complexity in their eyes.
They had thought that after so many years of tempering in the garrison, their strength might not match experts like Sharp Tooth and Steel Bone, but among the major powers in the city, they could definitely crush those advanced martial artists.
Yet now, experts as strong as Sharp Tooth and Steel Bone had actually been killed one-on-one by two disciples of the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall. This was indeed a bit of a blow to them.
“Zhuoqun, do we still need to go up and help?” Lin Yan could not help asking Wu Zhuoqun, who had been watching all of this.
“No need, let’s head back.” Wu Zhuoqun smiled and glanced at the crowd scattering on the distant high slope. “With Sharp Tooth and Steel Bone both dead this time, I think the forces behind them, and those other scheming factions, will behave themselves a bit more.”
“They might behave a bit more, but with the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall suddenly producing two experts, I guess once those three monsters find out, they probably won’t be able to sit still.” Lin Yan nodded, slightly worried. “They’ve been stuck at the threshold of peak high-level martial artists for too long. Some have even passed thirty, their qi and blood are starting to decline. Now that two experts have appeared who are neither from the garrison nor from the Genius Training Camp, they’re likely to lose control.”
Among the captains of the City of Light Chasing Defense Group, there were three publicly acknowledged monsters. Even someone as strong as Wu Zhuoqun had lost to two of them in the last grand competition, only taking fourth place, and he had not even lasted three moves against those two monsters.
As for these three monsters, even the instructors of the Genius Training Camp believed they had already reached an invincible level among advanced martial artists, and only a Bone Forging Realm initial stage martial artist could slightly suppress them.
Because of the existence of these three, the garrison’s annual grand competition had no champion, runner-up, or third place. All three were first; none could do anything to the others. Truly, an expert’s loneliness.
Now with two experts appearing who could explosively kill Sharp Tooth and Steel Bone, it was very possible the three might, for the sake of pushing further, make a move directly in the wilderness. That possibility could not be ruled out.
“That is indeed a problem.” Wu Zhuoqun also frowned slightly. As he was now, even against both Sharp Tooth and Steel Bone together, he had confidence he could win, but facing those three monsters, he still did not think he had any chance. If those three really acted, aside from Bone Forging Realm experts, probably no one could stop them. “After we return, I will discuss this with the elders. If necessary, we will have those two from the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall join the garrison first. From their appearance, I think they are not yet twenty-five. Once the Genius Training Camp starts recruiting, they can enter the Genius Training Camp. Then those three monsters will not dare to cause trouble.”
“That really is a good solution.” Lin Yan’s eyes lit up. “If the two of them are really under twenty-five, then this year’s Genius Training Camp recruitment will be very interesting.”
As long as the two from the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall joined the garrison and the Genius Training Camp, it would basically cut off the possibility of those three monsters forcing a battle. Otherwise, even if the two from the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall stayed in the city, the three monsters might attack other members of the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall to force them out.
But if the two joined the garrison and held garrison status, and those three monsters tried to force a fight, then the Bone Forging Realm elders would have a pretext to act against those three monsters. As long as the three were not stupid, they definitely would not do such a thing.
As for the two entering the Genius Training Camp, that went without saying. Those were the future of a city. Using a city’s future as test dummies for breakthroughs was courting death.
Their human race had already gone many years without several people entering the Genius Training Camp at the same time. If they now added the two from the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall, then the number of human race martial artists entering the Genius Training Camp this term would reach three, and among them were Ye Qinglu and Luo Wu Shang, two geniuses capable of killing Sharp Tooth and Steel Bone. This would definitely have a huge impact on the geniuses of all races in the Genius Training Camp.
The others present, after hearing this, could not help showing anticipation on their faces.
The death of Elder Liu Tianzong had been a huge blow to the entire human race of the City of Light Chasing. If geniuses like Ye Qinglu and Luo Wu Shang, or even unmatched geniuses, could enter this year’s Genius Training Camp, it would undoubtedly raise the human race’s status in the City of Light Chasing significantly.
“All right, let’s hurry back and report this to the elders.” Wu Zhuoqun, seeing the suddenly lively mood, also reminded them. “Besides, I am not sure whether the two of them are under twenty-five. It’s only my guess. We still need to ask the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall about that.”
Hearing this, everyone immediately piloted the flying transport vehicles back to the City of Light Chasing, eager to learn as soon as possible whether Ye Qinglu and Luo Wu Shang were really under twenty-five.
On another slope, after seeing Sharp Tooth and Steel Bone killed, the captains and vice captains of their two teams also chose to leave by flying transport vehicle at once, not daring to linger at all.
The appearance of Wu Zhuoqun and the others had already made things tricky. Now the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall had produced two more experts who could kill Sharp Tooth and Steel Bone. There was no way to fight this. If they continued, it would only be seeking their own deaths. They had joined the garrison to make breakthroughs, not to sell their lives for racial factions, so there was no need to fight the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall to the death.
“How does the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall still have martial artists this strong? Didn’t they only get the tip of the iceberg of treasures from Crimson Moon Mountain? Could there be an even greater secret inside Crimson Moon Mountain?” Mans, fleeing into the forest, was filled with shock and confusion.
He could understand how the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall could produce a large number of martial artists. After all, training a batch of martial artists with the things the White Feather Gang had been unable to take from Crimson Moon Mountain was not difficult, especially with a small energy vein.
But now he truly could not understand how two disciples of the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall could kill experts like Sharp Tooth and Steel Bone.
You had to know that the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall only benefited from the White Feather Gang’s spoils to produce so many martial artists. That they had produced one genius like Lin Qi before was already incredible, yet now two more had appeared. No matter how he looked at it, this did not seem possible.
The only explanation Mans could think of was that there was still a secret in Crimson Moon Mountain unknown to the White Feather Gang, which had created the current Obsidian Martial Arts Hall.
“This must be reported to the gang leader. There is a great secret in Crimson Moon Mountain that cannot yet be exposed to other factions.” While fleeing, Mans decided he had to quickly inform Gang Leader Isaac of this great secret he had discovered.
Although the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall was already very powerful now, the White Feather Gang still had a chance to take Crimson Moon Mountain back. Then they alone could enjoy the great secret within Crimson Moon Mountain.
While people on both sides quietly scattered, Ye Qinglu and Luo Wu Shang boarded the medium transport vehicle with their loot and, under Lu Fanchen’s driving, headed deeper into the wilderness, as if the robbery just now had been nothing more than a trivial episode.
“The area a bit over thirty kilometers ahead is already the wilderness area. We need to find a place to hide the vehicle and then proceed on foot,” Lu Fanchen explained as he drove the medium transport vehicle. “That two-horned leopard is hiding deep in the wilderness. On the way we should avoid fighting any monsters. Run if we can run. The more we fight, the more monsters we’ll draw. If we attract a lord monster, we’ll all have to start over. You all need to follow me carefully.”
“We all understand that.” Fang Zhen nodded, then suddenly said, “But I think we’re pretty strong now. It wasn’t easy to get into the wilderness. If we can quickly become stronger and reach advanced martial artist, can’t we join forces to deal with those lord monsters?”
“Old Zhen, you mean after we improve, we should not complete the assessment right away, but directly challenge those wilderness bosses above our level?” Yi Ye Fu Yun said, a little worried. “But is that allowed? We only got into the wilderness because we accepted the core disciple assessment, and the wilderness is clearly not meant for our current level. The game manufacturer must know that, so they let us come here to mine ore. If we focus on the lord monsters and even kill one, won’t the game manufacturer just pull the plug on us?”
“Very likely.” Fang Zhen did not deny it, but still said, “But don’t you want the lord monster drops? Those are beyond-version drops. Besides, Fanchen and the other two have been exploiting the wilderness boss bug to level quickly, and the game manufacturer hasn’t said anything. If we really kill a lord monster, the punishment shouldn’t be too serious. At most, we might be barred from the wilderness for a while, or the game manufacturer might cancel the core disciple assessment. But if we kill an over-version boss, the over-version drops likely won’t be taken away. Don’t you want those over-version drops?”
“Over-version drops?” Twilight of the Gods, after pondering a moment, spoke a bit excitedly. “I think this is feasible. After we become advanced martial artists, we can first gather enough ore, then go challenge the boss. For an over-version boss, just its spilled blood can let us improve rapidly. The drops are even more needless to say. Maybe we’ll all have a chance to hit the Bone Forging Realm. Once we reach the Bone Forging Realm, taking a stronghold outside Crimson Moon Mountain will be easy.”
“Impact the Bone Forging Realm and then directly occupy a stronghold in the wilderness?” Yi Ye Fu Yun grew more tempted the more he thought about it.
If they could seize a stronghold in the wilderness immediately before the next version update, their team would not only be far ahead of the large new guilds entering later, but also have long-term stable profit to accelerate their growth.
As High Martial Arts Descend progressed, the higher his level, the more mysterious and unbelievable it felt to him.
Just by becoming a martial artist, he felt he had undergone a metamorphosis in reality. As his sister had said, when he faced that provincial-level combat champion they had hired, he felt he could now beat him with one hand.
If he reached the Bone Forging Realm, he could not imagine how much more he might change. Getting Cosmic Pioneer qualifications then would probably not be difficult.
“Then after we all advance to advanced martial artists, let’s give it a try.” Luo Wu Shang was eager to act.
The fight with the elite-level martial artist NPC had given her a rough sense of her physical resilience. Her physical toughness already exceeded that of mid-level monsters and approached high-level monsters. Her actual physical strength and speed had even surpassed peak high-level martial artists, but the system did not show that; it would require specific testing to measure the gains.
Also, because of the battle with Steel Bone, she had gained a new understanding of the second level of the Body Strengthening Secret Technique.
Using only energy to reconstruct her cell structure had already led to such a massive boost in physical strength. But what if she integrated internal force into it?
After becoming a Sword Saint, the sword skill she had grasped was called Heavenly Severance.
This strike required immense true qi, suffusing her entire body and then compressing it into a single sword strike, letting its edge sever the heavens and cleave the earth, making ten thousand rivers cease flow.
Originally, she had not held out much hope of recreating Heavenly Severance, since qi and blood power did not possess such overwhelming might. Converting it to internal force was possible, but even if she turned all her qi and blood into internal force, it still would not be enough to flood her entire body like the true qi in Pilgrimage.
Before, her cells had been too fragile and could not withstand powerful internal force. Even after mastering the first level of the Body Strengthening Secret Technique, it was still impossible. She had to handle internal force with extreme care. Excessive bursts would cause her body to collapse.
But now, with a qualitative leap in physical toughness, she could fully attempt to integrate internal force, flooding her body with it and recreating the strike she had executed as a Sword Saint.
For the moment, her physical toughness still was not entirely safe. If she broke through to advanced martial artist and her qi and blood rose further, she could control more energy and raise her physical strength another tier. Then she would have great confidence in mastering Heavenly Severance.
With her powerful body and the Sword Saint’s Heavenly Severance strike, challenging a boss above her level would not be impossible.
After everyone made their plans, the medium transport vehicle rolled into a forest at the edge of the wilderness. Under Lu Fanchen’s lead, they quietly penetrated deeper into the wilderness.
As Lu Fanchen and the others entered the wilderness, news of the deaths of Sharp Tooth and Steel Bone also reached the major forces of the City of Light Chasing.
“The human race is quite interesting. Liu Tianzong has just died, and two young generation experts have already appeared.” A golden-furred gorilla, only a little over two meters tall and seemingly about forty or fifty years old, read the information in his hand. His tone was indifferent, but he made a Bone Forging Realm intermediate level ape clan expert who had brought the documents feel immense pressure. Standing before this seemingly ordinary golden-furred gorilla felt like bearing a great mountain, restricting his movements.
“So your ape clan is giving up on that Chiyue Town?” Sitting to the side was a winged tribe woman with two pairs of crimson wings, who looked like an elegant noblewoman. She raised a brow. “If you want to give it up, then Chiyue Town will belong entirely to our winged tribe. Although it is a bit too close to Wanxing City, it is still a town with a small energy vein and can house quite a few of our people.”
“Of course not.” The golden-furred ape clan man replied evenly. “But with Steel Bone and Sharp Tooth both dead, we are not suitable to act. Otherwise, all the races will have opinions.”
“We indeed are not suited to act.” The elegant noblewoman nodded, then continued, “But we can give those three little monsters some benefits and let them take care of the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall. They likely won’t refuse, since those two young people from the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall are quite strong.”
“There is no rush for that.” The golden-furred ape clan man shook his head and tapped his smart watch. “You should look at this first. I just got this news from Wanxing City not long ago.”
“Wanxing City is getting restless?” The elegant noblewoman glanced at it and frowned slightly.
“Yes. The two they sent this time are not simple. One is the future half-beast race young clan leader, and the other is one of this year’s top ten graduates of Wanxing City, who even has a chance to enter a domain city this year.” The golden-furred ape clan man nodded.
“The half-beast race in Wanxing City is truly producing talents this year. Just out of the Genius Training Camp and already preparing for the domain city assessment. Unfortunately, our winged tribe graduates this year are a bit lacking and still short of the minimum threshold for the domain city.” The winged tribe noblewoman sighed.
The domain city assessment took place only once a year, usually at the end of the year. Bone Forging Realm martial artists under thirty could participate. Anyone who had a chance of passing often had a decent chance of reaching that level in the future. Yet each year, among all the cities, only a handful could pass.
“My view is that we wait and see what Wanxing City intends, then decide what to do,” said the golden-furred ape clan man.
“Fine, we are not in a hurry.” The winged tribe noblewoman did not object.
In the City of Light Chasing, at the Martial Artist Association.
The morning sun rose.
A flying car made entirely of C-grade alloy slowly landed on the rooftop, drawing the sidelong glances of martial artists coming and going in the association.
Normal flying cars were built with B2-grade alloy; luxurious ones used B6-grade alloy. Using C-grade alloy to build a flying car was beyond what even advanced Bone Forging Realm martial artists would usually spend. Such a car could even withstand a flying lord monster’s attacks for quite some time. It was a luxury beyond the means of ordinary Bone Forging Realm martial artists.
From the flying car stepped a man and a woman, both with beast ears. The man was handsome, the woman stunningly beautiful. Their qi and blood were so strong that even Bone Forging Realm intermediate martial artists could not compare.
“Brother, are we going to the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall now?” Dona asked.
“Yes, the sooner we go, the sooner we finish.” Igor nodded. “But I don’t know where the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall is, so we need someone from the association to guide us.”
At the Obsidian Martial Arts Hall, in the primary gravity room.
Boom!
As the entire primary gravity room shuddered, Lin Qi’s aura rapidly weakened, and his face turned deathly pale.
“That was close, I almost died. I really don’t know how Luo Wu Shang trained. Did she really not make a mistake with the second level of the Body Strengthening Secret Technique?” Lin Qi’s expression was grim as he recalled the inherited experience he had extracted from Luo Wu Shang, feeling that this second level seemed a bit different from what he had read.
The second level of the Body Strengthening Secret Technique stated that energy was to be used to remodel the cell structure again, but in the newly extracted inheritance from Luo Wu Shang, for some reason, some internal force had become integrated.
Fortunately, his recovery power was strong enough, and he had already cultivated the first level to perfection. Otherwise, he really would not have been able to train this sort of second level of the Body Strengthening Secret Technique.
