173: His Majesty has bestowed a marriage upon you? Would you like to accept this blessing?!

Their minds went completely blank!

One stomp, and he shattered the stage of the Central Martial Arena?

Is this something a damn human can do?

Even a King of the Divine Power Realm couldn't achieve this, could they?!

However, Li Qing did not give them time to be shocked.

The moment he shattered the stage, his figure turned into a streak of black lightning, taking the initiative to meet the five Gold-Medal Assassins!

Bang!

He threw a punch, slamming it into the chest of the assassin leading the charge.

That assassin didn't even have time to let out a scream; his entire body, like a struck cannonball, exploded with a boom, turning into a mist of blood that filled the air!

Bang!

He delivered a kick to the abdomen of the second assassin.

That assassin's body folded in half like a boiled shrimp, and he was sent flying back; while still in mid-air, his breath had already ceased.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Li Qing's figure was like a tiger among sheep, weaving back and forth between the remaining three assassins.

Every punch, every kick...

...was accompanied by a dull explosion and the fading of a life.

There were no fancy Moves.

There was no dazzling Yuan Power.

There was only the most primitive, violent, and unreasonable pure strength!

In an instant.

Five Gold-Medal Assassins with strength comparable to the Peak of the Meridian Unblocking Realm and seamless coordination were all killed by him alone using the simplest and most brutal methods!

Not even their bones remained!

...

The entire world fell back into an eternal, deathly silence.

Everyone stared blankly at the stage that had been turned into ruins.

They looked at the youth standing alone atop the debris, his black clothes fluttering, without a single drop of blood staining his body.

It felt as if they were looking up at an invincible God of War who had stepped out of ancient mythology!

One man, one punch, tearing through an entire era!

Gulp.

The Emperor of Great Xia swallowed hard in shock; the way he looked at Li Qing could no longer be described as mere appreciation.

It was desire!

Such a talent deserved to enter the Imperial Family!

The core purpose of the Great Xia Martial Competition was actually to screen for talent.

And the strength Li Qing was displaying now was simply unprecedented.

"Announce, announce Our decree!"

His voice was trembling slightly due to extreme excitement.

"This year's Great Xia Martial Selection concludes here!"

"The champion is Li Qing!"

"Reward him! Reward him heavily!"

"Bestow upon him ten thousand gold taels, one thousand Spirit Stones, and one Earth Rank treasure armor!"

"Furthermore..."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over Xia Qingyue on the Viewing Platform, who was already shocked beyond measure.

"Furthermore, Princess Changle shall be betrothed to Li Qing as his wife!"

"The wedding shall take place on an auspicious day!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire venue exploded once again!

!

Boom—!!!

This final decree from the Emperor of Great Xia was like a sun detonating the entire world, causing everyone's minds to instantly go blank!

A marriage decree?

Betrothing Princess Changle to Li Qing?

...

In the entire Central Martial Arena, the hundreds of thousands of spectators, the hundreds of prodigies, the princes, dukes, and ministers, and even the Crown Prince and the Grand Princess, were all as if struck by a paralysis spell.

Each one had their mouths wide open and eyes bulging, their expressions frozen in a state of sluggishness that words could not describe.

Time seemed to be completely frozen at this moment.

After a brief, suffocating silence...

Whoosh—!!!!!!!

A wave of sound, more violent and crazed than any before, nearly enough to overturn the entire capital, erupted!

"Holy crap! Holy crap! Holy crap! What the hell did I just hear? An illusion! This has to be an illusion!"

"His Majesty wants to marry a princess to Li Qing? Which princess? Princess Changle? Isn't that His Majesty's most beloved Seventh Princess, Xia Ningshuang?!"

"Oh my god! Oh my god! Oh my god! That is the number one beauty of our Great Xia Dynasty! I heard she's as beautiful as a Heavenly Immortal and proficient in zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting—the dream lover of countless youths in the capital!"

"Ascending to heaven in a single step! This is what it truly means to ascend to heaven in a single step!"

"Martial Selection champion, conferred as Marquis Wuan, and marrying the current princess! Do you want this blessing or not!"

"I'm salty! I'm really salty! Why isn't it me! I'd be willing to give up ten years of my life for this chance!"

"Did this Li Qing save Great Xia in his past life? This luck is just too Heaven-Defying!"

The entire Martial Arena went mad!

Everyone was dazed by this sudden, earth-shattering good news!

Envy, jealousy, shock, disbelief... countless emotions crazily intertwined and fermented among the crowd!

They looked at the black-clothed youth on the ruins, who still had an indifferent expression; that gaze could no longer be described as looking up.

They were clearly looking at a living legend!

A walking myth that made people go mad with jealousy!

And as the center of this myth, Li Qing was also dazed at this moment.

What the heck?

A marriage decree?

Marrying a princess?

He looked at the Emperor of Great Xia on the dragon throne, who had a "hurry up and praise me" expression, and then at the surrounding spectators who had fallen into a frenzy.

His brain suffered a brief stall.

What kind of game is this?

I just came to participate in a competition, earn some resources, and incidentally beat up a few blind posers.

How did I end up winning myself a wife while fighting?

And a princess at that?

What kind of international joke is this!

He, Li Qing, was a promising youth of the twenty-first century in his past life, and he believed in free love!

Arranged marriage? What era of bad habits is this!

Subconsciously, he wanted to open his mouth to refuse.

However, at the very instant the words "I refuse" were about to escape his lips...

...his high-speed brain slammed on the brakes!

Refuse?

He glanced at the smiling Old Emperor on the dragon throne.

Refusing the Emperor's marriage decree in front of hundreds of thousands of people?

This wasn't just slapping the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel's face; this was directly pinning the Emperor's face to the ground and rubbing it back and forth with spiked shoes!

Although he was impressive now, he wasn't so impressive that he could ignore an entire Dynasty.

The Sixth-Rank Thunder Dragon he encountered in the river a few days ago had taught him a good lesson.

The waters of this world run very deep!

Before having absolute strength, one still had to be a bit... prudent.

So, accept?

In Li Qing's mind, countless thoughts flashed by in an instant.

What are the benefits of marrying a princess?

First, his status would change.

From a Guest Elder, he would directly become an imperial relative, the Imperial Son-in-Law!

This status could be said to be skyrocketing like a rocket!

Second, resources!

Definitely a massive amount of resources!

To completely tie him to the Imperial Family's war chariot, the Old Emperor would surely invest in him!

Spirit Stones, Medicinal Pills, Cultivation Techniques, Treasure Artifacts... wouldn't he become filthy rich then?

Most importantly, he could gain information.

In this era, what is most important?