Chapter 201: Chapter 146: The Impermanence of Worldly Affairs

「Half a month later, the competition began as scheduled.」

The venue for the competition was, as customary, the Tan Family’s martial arts training ground. Several arena platforms had already been set up, and a special protective array was in place to shield the participants.

Lü Zhong followed Tan Shihe, arriving early.

As the platform defender, Lü Zhong went directly onto the arena platform.

A moment later, a man leaped onto the platform.

"Meng Quanshan. I ask for your guidance, Fellow Daoist!" The man who came up was burly and bearded, carrying a heavy Profound Iron Great Sword on his back and wearing an iron Conical Hat. He looked like a Jianghu Wanderer.

"Lü Zhong. I am here to defend this platform at another’s request..."

After the two finished their opening pleasantries, the Array set around the arena was activated. An earth-yellow barrier quickly materialized, which also signified the start of the match.

"My Mountain-Opening Sword is powerful and heavy, Fellow Daoist. You’d best be careful!" Meng Quanshan said as he took down the greatsword, which weighed at least a thousand pounds, with a single hand. Gripping it firmly, he charged toward Lü Zhong. THUD! THUD! THUD! He clearly intended to close the distance for melee combat and win with his Swordsmanship.

"Thank you for the warning!" Lü Zhong replied, feeling it only right to respond to his opponent’s show of goodwill.

’After all, it’s just a match. No need to make it a life-or-death battle.’ While maintaining his guard, he first cast the Flying Star Qi Introduction Skill, a prerequisite for his other Magic Skills. Then, he casually summoned a layer of Spirit Wind to surround himself. The arena platform was over thirty zhang long and wide, giving him plenty of room to dodge and maneuver.

The match was a conventional back-and-forth affair.

Both men used their signature techniques. Meng Quanshan’s Mountain-opening Sword Qi was powerful enough to cleave the arena platform, but he couldn’t land a single hit on Lü Zhong. This was because Lü Zhong was not only using the Light Body Skill but had also mastered the Inheritance Magic, Star Shifting Step, which allowed him to use Instant Teleportation over short distances.

Although Star Shifting Step consumed a considerable amount of energy, it was more than enough to dodge Meng Quanshan’s Sword Momentum.

Lü Zhong would occasionally form several Fireball Bullets to counterattack, and in just a few exchanges, he had his opponent looking utterly disheveled. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

After a few more exchanges, Meng Quanshan, knowing victory was hopeless, simply stopped. He shook his head at a young man below the platform, and then, without waiting for a reaction, jumped off on his own.

As he walked past the young man, he paused and said, "According to our agreement, the debt I owed is now repaid."

The young man opened his mouth, but in the end, said nothing.

"Haha, congratulations on your first victory, Fellow Daoist Lü!" Tan Shihe came over, cupping his hands, and laughed heartily.

Tan Shihe knew how strong Meng Quanshan was. His Mountain-Opening Sword style was bold and sweeping; ordinary cultivators were no match for the man. He never imagined Lü Zhong would win so easily.

"It was just a match, after all. If Fellow Daoist Meng had used his full strength, I’m afraid it wouldn’t have been so easy for me," Lü Zhong said, shaking his head. ’But if his opponent held back, so did I.’

Not to mention his greatest trump card, the Qingyang Mirror.

After all, Lü Zhong hadn’t even used a Magical Artifact, relying entirely on Magic Skills to fight his opponent.

As the two were talking, another person leaped onto the platform.

This time, it was a Tan Family Member.

The Tan Family cultivator nearby who was recording the results saw this and couldn’t help but add a reminder, "Fellow Daoist Lü, remember to pull your punches... Third Sister, if you can’t win, don’t push yourself too hard. There will be other chances in the future."

"Yes, Seventh Uncle." A tall, long-faced Female Cultivator in form-fitting martial attire respectfully cupped her hands toward the elder below the platform, her expression full of deference.

Lü Zhong also nodded at him, indicating he understood.

’This was the most troublesome part of being a family’s Honored Guest Elder. The web of complex relationships was truly difficult to navigate. Fortunately, situations like this were rare. Otherwise, just dealing with them would be a massive headache.’

Before long, the array’s protective shield deployed again, and the match began.

As if she had watched the previous match, the long-faced Female Cultivator rushed forward the moment it started. She had clearly learned from Meng Quanshan’s failure and was prepared to charge recklessly to prevent being kited.

Lü Zhong chuckled to himself, deciding to give her a little surprise.

Before the long-faced Female Cultivator could get close, his figure blurred as he launched a counter-charge.

He used Spirit Wind Protection Body combined with Star Shifting Step to charge directly in front of the long-faced Female Cultivator. An azure Spiritual Light was already glowing in both his hands, quickly solidifying into what looked like tangible Magic Swords.

Before she could react, he unleashed more than a dozen Sword Slashes. SWISH! SWISH!

Empowered by the Qi-Introducing Skill, the dozen or so strikes from his Late Sun Magic Swords shattered her Protective Gang Qi in an instant. Her defenseless body was exposed, and Lü Zhong immediately spun, kicking her in the lower abdomen and sending her flying into the barrier wall.

"Stop! Third Sister, you’ve lost!" The elder, seeing the long-faced Female Cultivator trying to get up, immediately called a halt to the match.

Anyone could see that their power levels were leagues apart.

If that had been a life-or-death battle, the victor would have been decided in an instant.

"I..." The long-faced Female Cultivator started to argue, but then she felt a warm liquid trickling down her neck. Reaching up to touch it, she realized it was her own blood and instantly understood how miserably she had lost.

After she dejectedly jumped off the platform, Lü Zhong had won another match.

’Two wins in a row. Surely no one else will dare to challenge me now.’ Thinking this, Lü Zhong also jumped off the platform. He planned to head to the nearby tea stall for a rest; he had smelled a rich, fragrant tea during the match.

’I pride myself on being a tea lover. How can I not sample a fine tea when I come across one?’

Lü Zhong had just sat down, not yet having lifted his teacup, when Tan Shihe approached. He took a square box from his sleeve and said with a smile, "Congratulations, Lü Zhong, on defending the platform ahead of schedule. I just asked my clan uncle, and no one else plans to issue a challenge. So, as promised, this Golden Sun Insect Fire is yours, Fellow Daoist!"