Chapter 730 - 289: Tide (3)

Luo Ziming, an Elder of the Nine Heavens Lineage, knitted his brows. With a flash of movement, he was about to leap onto the dueling platform.

He had seen Lu Chenming’s defeat and originally just wanted to ask Chen Qing to show mercy. After all, Lu Chenming had only recently advanced to the True Essence Realm. If his foundation were to be severely damaged, his future would be ruined, which would be a huge loss for the Nine Heavens Lineage.

But he never expected Chen Qing to be so ruthless and decisive, striking such a heavy blow directly!

Judging by his current injuries, Lu Chenming’s foundation had definitely been damaged.

"Elder Luo, the matches on the Seven-Star Platform are meant to be fair and just. Fists and feet have no eyes; we all accept our fates."

Chen Qing turned his head and looked directly at Luo Ziming. "What do you intend to do?"

The air on the Seven-Star Platform turned bone-chillingly cold, sharp and biting!

His voice was neither loud nor soft, yet it resounded throughout the entire arena.

All eyes snapped toward him, and everyone was inwardly shocked. No one had expected an Elder from the Nine Heavens Lineage to appear at this moment, much less to try and stop the fight!

Luo Ziming froze in place, his expression shifting unpredictably. Chen Qing’s words had backed him into a corner.

If he were to forcibly interfere under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the Nine Heavens Lineage would lose all face.

"Elder Luo!"

At that moment, Elder Gong Nansong, who was presiding over the match, stepped forward. His expression was stern as he rebuked in a deep voice, "The rules of the competition are the iron law of the Sect! How can you interfere at will? I will report this matter to the Sect Leader truthfully and let him decide!"

Luo Ziming’s chest heaved violently. He shot a death glare at Chen Qing, then glanced at the righteously stern Gong Nansong, knowing the situation was unsalvageable.

He forcefully suppressed his surging anger, his expression turning solemn. Cupping his hands in a formal gesture toward the platform, he said in a low voice, "I was rash just now, driven by emotion. I apologize for my presumptuous action. I had no intention of interfering with the fairness of the match. I simply could not bear to see fellow disciples fight to the death and harm a future pillar of our Celestial Treasure Upper Sect. This is a tragedy for the Sect. I hope you can understand."

He waved a hand and ordered several pale-faced disciples of the Nine Heavens Lineage behind him, "Hurry up and take Nephew Lu away for treatment!"

The disciples scrambled forward and carefully lifted the unconscious and critically injured Lu Chenming, then hurried away.

A moment of silence fell around the Seven-Star Platform, followed by an even more intense tidal wave of discussion!

"He won! Brother Chen won!"

"My heavens! Brother Lu of the True Essence Realm... was so utterly defeated!"

"Brother Chen broke through to the True Essence Realm too! How long has he been in the Sect? His talent... it’s terrifying!"

"Hahaha! Excellent! Our True Martial Lineage can finally hold our heads high!"

The area for the True Martial Lineage disciples instantly erupted.

Qu River let out a long sigh of relief, a smile touching the corners of his mouth.

An excited flush appeared on Shen Xiuyong’s pale face as he clapped Qiao Hongyun forcefully on the shoulder. "Did you see that, Old Qiao? I told you my nephew was no ordinary character!"

Qiao Hongyun nodded repeatedly, completely stunned.

The disciples from the other lineages looked at Chen Qing with expressions full of awe and complexity.

Luo Ziming’s expression had returned to calm, but a shadow of gloom lingered deep in his eyes.

Zhong Yu’s brows were tightly furrowed, his thoughts unreadable.

Just when everyone thought the day’s turmoil was over and was about to disperse, Chen Qing spoke in a clear voice, his gaze fixed on Zhang Baicheng below the platform. "Brother Zhang, today is a fine day. Please!"

As soon as he spoke, the entire arena fell silent.

Everyone froze, staring at Chen Qing on the platform in stunned disbelief.

He... He was going to issue consecutive challenges?

After just fighting a vicious battle and defeating the newly advanced True Essence cultivator Lu Chenming, he was going to immediately challenge the higher-ranked and more established Zhang Baicheng without even stopping to recover his energy?

"What is Junior Brother Chen doing?"

Ruan Lingxiu’s delicate brows furrowed slightly in confusion.

By defeating Lu Chenming, Chen Qing had already proven his deep foundation and terrifying talent, enough to secure his position as the tenth True Disciple.

But Zhang Baicheng was completely different from Lu Chenming!

Zhang Baicheng had been in the True Essence Realm for a long time. He was a master at the True Essence Second Transformation, having completed two rounds of tempering. His mastery of spear techniques was profound, far beyond what the newly-advanced Lu Chenming could compare to.

It seemed like a match with no chance of victory.

The crowd also cast looks of doubt, shock, and confusion, unable to comprehend why Chen Qing would make such a seemingly reckless move.

Zhang Baicheng himself was taken aback for a moment, then let out a laugh, but his smile carried a hint of anger from being underestimated. "Junior Brother Chen, although your foundation is deep for someone who has just entered the True Essence Realm, fighting consecutive battles is probably not a wise move. In my opinion, why not settle for a few years and solidify your Realm before we spar?"

His words sounded like concern, but anyone with a discerning mind could hear the underlying meaning.

As a cultivator at the True Essence Second Transformation, if he, Zhang Baicheng, used his full strength to defeat Chen Qing, it would be expected and bring him no glory.

But if by some chance... even if he just encountered some difficulty, or let his opponent last too many rounds, he would have no face left to show.

More importantly, if he lost... he would become the perfect stepping stone for Chen Qing’s ascent.

For him, this battle had a hundred harms and not a single benefit.

"No time like the present."

Chen Qing’s tone was calm. "Brother, if you please."

’How could he not know what Zhang Baicheng was plotting? Since Zhang Baicheng had already ’asked for guidance,’ why should he bother worrying about his face? His goal today was never just Lu Chenming. What he wanted was to solve the problem once and for all, saving himself a lot of trouble down the line.’

Chen Qing’s persistence backed Zhang Baicheng into a corner.

If he refused again under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he would appear to be afraid of a fight.

Zhang Baicheng’s face darkened. "Fine! Since Junior Brother Chen is in such high spirits, I shall indulge you in a few moves!"

He hesitated no longer. With a leap, he landed as lightly as a spiritual crane on the platform, facing Chen Qing from a distance.

The platform, which had grown somewhat quiet after Lu Chenming’s defeat, was instantly enveloped once more in an incredibly tense atmosphere.

One was a newly-risen prodigy who had shown overwhelming power upon just entering the True Essence Realm; the other was a veteran expert, steeped in the True Essence Realm for many years, with outstanding spear techniques.

The duel between two geniuses of the Spear Path was far more spectacular than the last!

"Interesting, very interesting!" Yanchi clapped his hands and chuckled, his eyes filled with keen interest.

Zhong Yu shook his head and said, "This Chen Qing is quite calculating, but he’s also too confident. Daring to challenge Zhang Baicheng right after entering the True Essence Realm?"

Luo Chengxuan was stunned for a moment, then snorted coldly. "Arrogant! Does he really think he can run rampant just because he defeated one Lu Chenming? Junior Brother Zhang will make him understand just how enormous the gap is between each transformation in the True Essence Realm!"

Zhang Baicheng was a True Disciple of the Mystic Sun Lineage, after all!

The two were also on very good terms personally.

Now that Chen Qing was challenging Zhang Baicheng, he was on Zhang Baicheng’s side for both public and private reasons.

「Meanwhile」

News of Chen Qing’s consecutive challenges spread through the various peaks as if it had grown wings, moving at an even faster speed.

"What? Chen Qing is going to challenge Brother Zhang Baicheng?"

"Let’s go! To the Seven-Star Platform! If we’re late, we’ll miss the good part!"

"Is he crazy? Doesn’t he need to recover his True Essence?"

Upon hearing the news, some Stewards and Elders who hadn’t arrived yet were also stirred, transforming into streaks of light as they rushed toward the Seven-Star Platform.

Even some of the powerful presences seated high upon the various peaks had their attention drawn to the event.

...