Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
Tuoba Linsu looked just 20 years old with bronzed skin, a tall body, and an angular face. He was wearing a robe refined from the skin of a third-level savage beast and demonstrated an overbearing masculinity.
When he stood up, a man who was wearing a gold and purple robe walked out from the crowd. He turned into a purple shadow and leaped onto the battle stage.
He looked towards Tuoba Linsu, bowed slightly with his hand lifted and said, “Prince Tuoba, this man has killed my younger brother. Would you mind allowing me to fight him?”
Tuoba Linsu said, “Since there is hatred between you two, of course. You may fight him first! If you defeat him, that means he is not worth fighting me.”
Tuoba Linsu spoke calmly, although people could sense his arrogance.
Warriors like Tuoba Linsu, the God’s favored one, were arrogant. Yet he was uniquely charming as he owned it.
The man in the gold and purple robe stared at Zhang Ruochen, looked cold-blooded and said, “Zhang Ruochen, you killed my brother. Today I’m going to avenge him.”
Looking at the man in front of him, Zhang Ruochen felt familiar to him. “Who is your brother?” He asked.
“Huo Xing!” The man answered.
“So you’re Prince Huo Xing’s brother.” Zhang Ruochen replied.
“My name is Huo Ming.” He stared at Zhang Ruochen and murmured, “Killing is forbidden in the Sword Technique Conference. We can, however, commit suicide. Do you dare fight me and stake your life? If I win, you apologize to my brother by committing suicide. If you win, I will kill myself.”
The 36 commanderies of Omen Ridge had all joined this event. Square Commandery Prince picked Prince Huo Ming, his most outstanding son who also wanted to marry the Thirteenth Commandery Princess.
It seemed conspicuous that Huo Ming had come up with this idea on his own, but he had.
He could tell that the Thirteenth Commandery Princess hated Zhang Ruochen.
If he could force Zhang Ruochen to commit suicide, he would please and impress the Thirteenth Commandery Princess.
Second, he wanted to display his love and loyalty in front of the crowd by being willing to sacrifice himself in order to avenge his brother.
Finally, and most importantly, he knew that Zhang Ruochen’s martial cultivation had only reached the Medium State of the Black Realm. He should be no match for him.
As long as he could defeat Zhang Ruochen, he would gain significantly from this plan.
Huo Ming looked towards the Thirteenth Commandery Princess and saw that she was intrigued.
“I was right! Zhang Ruochen must have offended the Thirteenth Commandery Princess. That’s why she is trying to kill him by overpraising him. If I can defeat him, the Thirteenth Commandery Princess will surely take notice.” Huo Ming was complacent.
Zhang Ruochen shook his head and said, “Why should I fight you and stake my life?”
Huo Ming responded coldly, “You killed my brother. It is only fair and reasonable for me to seek revenge. Haven’t you claimed that you have the best sword technique? Are you scared?”
“You are being completely irrational,” said Zhang Ruochen.
In his mind, it was stupid to fight with your life at stake.
You don’t gamble with your life.
If they bet their lives, the values should be equal. Zhang Ruochen considered his life to be much more valuable than Huo Ming’s.
So he turned around and got off the battle stage. He didn’t see the point of talking to people like Huo Ming.
He had already been forced to fight against Zhu Yi. Now he had calmed down and didn’t want to be in the spotlight anymore. He was ready to leave.
Huo Ming looked at Zhang Ruochen’s back with a distorted expression. He would not allow him to leave so easily.
“You have already stepped onto the battle stage, you are not allowed to leave.”
Huo Ming jumped off the ground and flew seven meters up into the air. He held his sword with both hands and swayed it towards Zhang Ruochen’s back.
Huo Ming was able to jump seven meters high purely with the strength of his own body, he was very powerful.
Even without the help of Genuine Qi, the power of his attack was strong enough to split a thick steel bar.
Having heard the wind behind him, Zhang Ruochen shook his head slightly and stopped walking. He turned around at lightning speed and took a step forward.
He timed his counterattack very accurately as if there were eyes in the back of his neck. He almost touched the sword in Huo Ming’s hand.
There was panic in Huo Ming’s eyes as Zhang Ruochen swept his sword towards him and struck his abdomen.
“Boom!”
Huo Ming flew back 10 meters and fell off the battle stage.
He made a large splash as he fell into the pool below.
Although the pain in his belly was terrible, Huo Ming’s body was intact without any puncture wounds.
Zhang Ruochen’s attack was even more incredible than the strike that defeated Zhu Yi.
Everyone watching saw that he swung at Huo Ming’s stomach and pushed him off the battle stage. Surprisingly Huo Ming wasn’t injured.
When the Thirteenth Commandery Princess saw what Zhang Ruochen had done, she thought that Huo Ming would die. She was ready to send her guards to arrest him.
She was astonished when she saw Huo Ming get up out of the pool.
“How is he still alive?”
She clearly saw that he wasn’t wearing any armor, only a plain cloth shirt. Zhang Ruochen’s blade was sharpened as well.
Qing Chibai, a disciple of a Half-Saint, explained what had just happened. “Zhang Ruochen didn’t strike Huo Ming with the edge of his blade, but he slapped him away with the side of it. Since he moved so quickly only a few people could tell what had actually happened.”
“Huo Ming has a very high attainment in swordsmanship, even higher than many Earth Realm warriors. Yet he was defeated by a single attack of the Ninth Prince. Interesting! I would like to challenge him,” said Liu Xin, a student of Left Prime Minister.
On the second floor, a slim hand raised the lace curtain of an elegance hall and threw a jade leaf in the shape of a palm onto the battle stage.
Zhang Ruochen looked at the jade leaf and then looked towards the elegance hall.
He was a little confused. “What does this mean?”
Many young geniuses standing below the Coliseum looked envious when they gazed at the jade leaf fluttering on the battle stage.
Zhang Ruochen glanced at the leaf which was made of pure green jade. The fine lines of the leaf were embedded with golden silk. There were words carved on the edge of the leaf:
“Ning Yuyuan, Minister’s Mansion.”
“What does that mean?”
Zhang Ruochen walked towards the leaf to retrieve it.
A voice came from the crowd. “Brother Zhang, you should think twice before picking up the leaf. You will accept her proposal if you do so. Then you’ll have to marry her.”
Zhang Ruochen pulled back his hand immediately and looked in the direction from where the voice was coming from.
The person who had warned him was a relatively handsome guy with a tiny mole on his glabella. Zhang Ruochen remembered his name, he was called Chen Tianshu.
Chen Tianshu laughed and continued, “The owner of that Golden Jade Leaf is Minister Ning’s seventh generation granddaughter. She is 15 years old and it’s said that she is pretty. If you pick it up you will be the son-in-law of Minister’s Mansion. Not only can you receive support from Minister’s Mansion but also marry a beautiful woman. How incredible!”
It’s as difficult to climb up into the sky as it is to marry the Thirteenth Commandery Princess. After all, she is one of a kind.
So why did those Young Geniuses come all this way knowing it would be extremely competitive?
The reason was that even if they were unable to marry the Thirteenth Commandery Princess, they still had the opportunity to win the favor of other princesses or aristocratic daughters through their performance.
The aim of the Sword Technique Conference was to select suitable warriors for the nobility of Qianshui Commandery.
Zhang Ruochen smiled bitterly and looked towards the second floor of Jinfeng Court where a slender figure stood behind the curtain. She was fairly nervous and didn’t know whether he would pick it up or not.
Huang Yanchen stood on the third floor and gazed at Zhang Ruochen coldly as if she was saying, “Rogue, if you pick it up, I will cut off your hands.”
Finally, he chose not to pick the leaf up and stepped off the battle stage.
It was not his intention to enter the battle stage and impress everyone. Now he just wanted to leave.
Tuoba Linsu stood up and flew to the battle stage blocking Zhang Ruochen’s path. He said, “Although your sword technique is brilliant, there is a flaw. It lacks masculine domineering.”
Tuoba Linsu, a top talent among the young generation, was on equal terms with Xun Guihai, Liu Xin, and Qing Chibai. He was also ranked among the top 20 of the Profound Board before he broke through to the Earth Realm.
He had a special understanding of sword technique.
The sword technique that he practiced was masculine, overbearing, and brave.
Zhang Ruochen stopped and laughed. “There is no such thing as a perfect sword technique.”
When Tuoba Linsu realized that Zhang Ruochen had no intention of fighting him, he provoked him and said, “I can defeat you within 10 strikes.”
Zhang Ruochen realized that Tuoba Linsu was goading him on purpose, but he kept calm and responded, “Do I really have to fight?”
Tuoba Linsu took out his black sword. It was two meters long and one palm wide. Even without activating the inscription in the sword, it weighed 120 kgs.
He touched his black sword with love in his eyes and said, “This sword is called ‘Dao Shan’, a seventh-class Genuine Martial Arms. There are altogether 42 strength inscriptions carved on the sword. If all the inscriptions are activated, the weight will increase to 2,220 kgs. It’s my favorite sword. If you can defeat me, I’ll give it to you.”
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four chapters
