If he were to reject Zhang Xuan, he would appear weak on the surface. In the future, he would not be able to raise his head before the crowd. If he were to accept it, there would naturally be people who were unwilling to accept it.
Just thinking about it gave him a headache.
Just as Zhang Xuan was contemplating how he could resolve this crisis, Pavilion Master Yue suddenly chuckled softly. With a tap of his finger, the wine cup and wine floating in front of him flew straight toward him.
It seemed that the other party didn't give him a chance to refuse.
"I hope that Zhang Shi won't refuse. This is a small token of my appreciation!"
Hula!
The wine cup was brought to him.
In an instant, a strong pressure was transmitted from the wine cup, as if it was going to crush his body.
Feeling this surge of energy, Zhang Xuan frowned once more.
The other party delivered the wine cup to Zhang Xuan at a leisurely pace, and there was a hint of friendliness in it. However, in truth, he was intending to use some underhanded means to intimidate Zhang Xuan.
Once he failed to catch it, the wine within would spill out. Not only would he be disrespecting his master, but he would also be unappreciative of his kindness! There was no need for him to say anything. The people around him, who were already unconvinced to begin with, would all attack and beat him up.
This fellow had pretended to be a good person, displaying his magnanimity, and even tricked him in the process … Impressive!
"Thank you for your kindness, Hall Master Yue!"
If it had been anyone else, they would have surely been caught off guard by the other party's abrupt move and ended up making a fool of themselves. However, Zhang Xuan was different. Activating his Eye of Insight, he was able to see through the trajectory of the zhenqi harnessed within the attack.
Without much movement, he gently raised the chopsticks in his hand and suddenly pointed forward.
The speed of the chopsticks was not fast, but it carried an invincible Spear Intent. In the blink of an eye, it arrived in front of the wine cup. With a "pop" sound, it pierced a hole in the surrounding Zhen Qi.
His zhenqi scattered like a punctured balloon. Without any support, it plummeted straight to the ground.
His chopsticks trembled, and with a light pinch, the wine was caught between them.
"Hmm?"
This series of actions was as smooth as flowing water. It was as if Yue Yiquan had quietly delivered a bottle of fine wine to him, and he had casually received it with his chopsticks … Outsiders couldn't see anything, but Pavilion Master Yue's face couldn't help but darken.
Even a Primordial Spirit realm pinnacle cultivator would not have been able to withstand the might that he had left behind in the wine cup. Yet, the young man before him had actually managed to withstand it with ease … His control over his strength had already reached an astounding level.
According to the news, wasn't the reason why this Zhang Xuan was so strong was because of that human furnace?
Since when did he become so powerful?
The matter of Zhao Xingmo being pummeled badly in the examination was a matter of pride, so there was no way he would speak of it. Naturally, there was no need for Hall Master Wu, Yao shi Tian, Zhang Jiuxiao, and the others to speak of it.
Therefore, even the Qianchong Empire Mingshi Tang Hall Master didn't know that Zhang Xuan's cultivation had skyrocketed and he was invincible among his peers.
The only information he had was from Song Xuan.
On the other hand, Song shi had suffered a loss at the hands of Zhang Xuan, so naturally, he had described the other party as a despicable person who had used a weapon to launch a sneak attack. As for the rest, he was too embarrassed to say anything else. Due to the disparity in information, things didn't go as smoothly as before.
However, as shocked as he was, he was still the head of a Hall Master Hall, so he didn't show the slightest hint of emotion on his face. With a light chuckle, he said, "Zhang Shi, please!"
After saying that, he raised his glass and drained it.
Zhang Xuan chuckled as he raised his wine cup. Just as he was about to speak, the young man named Yun shi abruptly stood up and exclaimed, "Wait a moment!"
Everyone turned to look at him.
"Master Yun, what happened?"
Yue Yiquan asked.
"Pavilion Master Yue, as everyone has said earlier, the wine will go to the one who is capable … You said that Zhang Shi is the strongest among us, but I don't quite agree with your words, so I would like to challenge him. May I know if that's possible?"
Clasping his fist, Yun shi turned to Zhang Xuan with a provocative look in his eyes.
No one would miss out on the Tianchen Brew brewed by Old Man Tianchen. For it to be given to a fellow from Qingyuan Conferred Empire for no reason at all, not only would he be indignant about it, the others would be as well.
"Indeed, I think that it's best for us to have a duel!"
"We are well aware of the situation in Qingyuan Conferred Empire, and if I'm not mistaken, Zhang Shi is only at Saint 4-dan Primordial Spirit realm intermediate stage. With such strength, he should be on par with a student like me. I don't think that it's appropriate for him to be qualified to drink the wine!"
"Zhang Shi, since we're all going to take part in the secondary selection, why don't you show us how strong you are first?"
…
Everyone stared at Zhang Xuan with hostile gazes.
"It seems like I have underestimated the prowess of the wine …"
Seeing their attitude, Zhang Xuan couldn't help but shake his head helplessly.
He had thought that it wouldn't matter who drank the wine, but who could have known that it would be so powerful?
"I have already given the wine to Zhang Shi, so it's up to him to decide how he wants to deal with it.
Zhang Xuan nodded in agreement.
Since the flames had already been lit, all that was left was for him to reap the spoils of war.
"Alright then!"
Hearing Zhang Xuan's words, Yun shi's eyes lit up. With a cold sneer, he turned to Zhang Xuan and said, "Zhang Shi, do you dare to have a duel with me? If you win, the wine will be mine!"
"Oh? What if I lose?"
Zhang Xuan said as he held onto the wine cup in his hand.
"Lose?" Yun shi's lips curled up. "Don't worry, I won't lose!"
"It's not up to you to decide whether I will lose or not. Even if I am weaker than you, I still have a chance of winning … If I win, I'll give you the wine, but if I lose, won't I be taking advantage of you?"
Zhang Xuan raised his eyebrows and looked at Yun shi intently.
"What do you think we should do then?"
Yun shi was taken aback for a moment before harrumphing coldly.
Pavilion Master Yue was the one who had given the wine to Zhang Xuan. If he were to lose, he would lose the wine. On the other hand, if he were to win, he wouldn't be able to fulfill the terms of the bet.
"Simple. You and I both know the value of the Tianchen Brew. This cup is worth ten concentrated high-tier spirit stones … How about this? Instead of betting ten concentrated high-tier spirit stones, I'll bet five concentrated high-tier spirit stones. If I lose, I'll take the wine away, and if I win … the concentrated high-tier spirit stones will belong to me!"
Zhang Xuan replied with a smile.
This Yue Yiquan's motive was to embarrass him, but … if he were to make use of this opportunity, he might be able to extort the wealth of these 'geniuses'!
These geniuses might not be able to take out ten concentrated high-tier spirit stones, but if it was five … given their standing, it shouldn't be too difficult for them to do so.
"Five concentrated high-tier spirit stones?"
Not expecting the stakes to be so high, Yun shi frowned hesitantly.
"It's fine if you don't dare to. Pardon me, I'll drink the wine first …"
Unable to be bothered to say anything more, Zhang Xuan raised the cup and gulped it down.
"Hold it for a moment!"
But barely after raising the cup, yet another master teacher suddenly bellowed loudly. Following which, another master teacher stood up and said, "Old Yun, since you don't have the guts, this cup of wine will belong to me …"
After saying those words, the master teacher flicked his wrist, and a jade box appeared before everyone's eyes. Opening it, five concentrated high-tier spirit stones appeared within.
"Here are five concentrated high-tier spirit stones. Take a look at them!"
With a flick of his wrist, the high-tier spirit stones flew over.
Catching them, Zhang Xuan took a look at them and nodded.
"That's right!"
"Very well, let's begin then. The primary selection tests one's strength, so I'll challenge you to a duel … Do you dare to accept my challenge? "
Seeing that Zhang Xuan had accepted his challenge, the master teacher chuckled softly before walking to the center of the hall.
Even though there were thirty geniuses seated on both sides of the hall, there was still an empty space of several hundred square meters at the center. This space wouldn't affect the duel at all.
"Duel?" At this moment, Zhang Xuan seemed to have lost all of his previous confidence. He looked at the master teacher warily and asked, "May I know how high your cultivation is?"
"I am a Primordial Spirit realm pinnacle cultivator … If you are afraid, I can suppress my cultivation to Primordial Spirit realm intermediate stage, just like you!"
Seeing Zhang Xuan's attitude, the master teacher sneered.
To think that Zhang Xuan would be so weak even before the duel. It was clear who was going to emerge victorious.
"That would be for the best!"
Heaving a sigh of relief, Zhang Xuan put down his wine cup and stood up before walking into the empty space at the center of the hall.
"I am Beiye Empire's Liu Chongxin!"
Seeing the other party walking over, Liu Chongxin's eyebrows shot up as he suppressed his cultivation. In the blink of an eye, he had already reached Primordial Spirit realm intermediate stage, just like Zhang Xuan.
"Qingyuan Empire's Zhang Xuan!"
Zhang Xuan nodded. After a moment of hesitation, he clasped his fist and said, "I beg of you to go easy on me!"
"Hehe, I will!"
It was just a moment ago that Zhang Xuan had been demanding for a bet with him, but in the blink of an eye, Liu Chongxin sneered in disdain. He flicked his wrist, and his palm reddened. "Let's begin!"
He stepped forward and clawed at Zhang Xuan.
"Liu Shi might seem reckless, but he's actually extremely careful. He executed his Ironheart Palm right from the start!"
"To be able to clear Zhao shi's selection, that means that he has withstood three blows from the two spectators. How can Liu Shi possibly be that reckless? He's just putting on a show to make Zhang Xuan lower his guard. In truth, he'll have to be extremely careful in a real battle!"
…
The cultivators who were familiar with Liu Chongxin discussed among themselves.
Those who were able to emerge victorious from a Conferred Empire and get selected were no ordinary characters. Even though Zhang Xuan's performance was subpar, Zhang Xuan still wouldn't let his guard down.
Huala!
As Zhang Xuan's palm fell, the surrounding space reddened, as if it was being burned by charcoal.
Ironheart Palm was the ultimate technique of the Beiye Empire's Mingshi Tang School. It was a Saint intermediate battle technique, and when executed with full strength, it wielded incredible might that was on par with the Grand Constellation Finger.
"Good move!"
Zhang Xuan seemed to have been riled up by Zhang Xuan's attack. With a roar, he flicked his wrist and charged forward.
This move of his was also a Saint intermediate battle technique, Cloudcrane Palm!
Despite its forceful appearance, it was actually extremely agile. Clearly, Zhang Xuan didn't dare to face Zhang Xuan's Ironheart Palm head-on.
"Trying to pull a fast one? Dream on! "
Chuckling softly, Liu Chongxin pressed his palm downward, and the surrounding space seemed to have been shrouded, preventing Zhang Xuan from executing the ingenuity of the Cloudcrane Palm.
Brute Force Conquers Ten Moves!
With his powerful zhenqi cultivation, Zhang Xuan was able to suppress Zhang Xuan's maneuver.
Peng!
As the two palms collided, Zhang Xuan's face paled. He was forced to retreat several steps, as if unable to withstand Zhang Xuan's overwhelming strength. His palms began to distort, and they began trembling uncontrollably under his sleeves.
"I thought that you would be formidable, but to think that you would be able to drink with such puny strength?"
Liu Chongxin's eyebrows shot up as he laughed heartily.
"This …"
Hearing those words, Zhang Jiuxiao's lips twitched. "Zhang shi … when did you become so weak? Let's hope that Liu Shi will be lucky … "
Zhang Xuan looked at Zhang Xuan sympathetically.
Every time Zhang Shi acted in such a manner, someone would be doomed. Zhang Xuan had been through it many times, so he had some experience with it.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
