80: mad

The young man walked forward, the Little Tiger following close behind.

The surrounding martial artists were no longer surprised by this sight.

Everyone knew that Wang Xuan kept a magnificent young Little Tiger, but no one dared to covet it.

Firstly, there was the deterrent of Wang Xuan's reputation, and secondly, this Little Tiger had a license!

It had a certificate issued by the Chong Tian Jian; who would dare to touch it?

Wang Xuan strolled forward, and the Little Tiger trailed behind him, step for step.

Moreover, the Little Tiger would occasionally bare its fangs and growl at the curious gazes of the surrounding martial artists, glaring back with its wide tiger eyes.

“What are you looking at?!”

Upon being swept by its gaze, many martial artists couldn't help but shrink their necks and avert their eyes.

—Now, the Little Tiger, whether it had eaten some miracle grow or something, was already the size of a small calf.

The word 'Little' could almost be removed, as it possessed the deterrence of a king of beasts.

Qin Chuan’s idea of ‘riding the tiger south’ was not far from being realized.

However, now was not the time to think about that.

Today's battle was of great importance.

As he slowly ascended, the martial artists from all corners of the world followed behind him like a long dragon.

The mountain path of Zijin Mountain was not steep, and their pace was not slow.

During the ascent, Qin Chuan cleared his mind and thought of other things.

—The decision to choose Zijin Mountain as the battleground felt a bit lacking in grandeur.

But if it were the Forbidden City...

Qin Chuan could already imagine the Empress stomping her feet and mobilizing a million troops to suppress the situation.

“Ha.”

Qin Chuan shook his head and chuckled, tapping the Little Tiger on its head to stop it from running around.

After about a moment, the peak of Zijin Mountain came into view.

The mountaintop was not an open space; instead, it was covered with rugged, strangely shaped rocks.

The heavens were kind today, with a full moon hanging directly above the mountain peak, like a jade plate.

The martial artists who came to observe the battle stopped at the mountainside and ridge, searching for the best viewing spots.

Qin Chuan told the Little Tiger to go play, while he stood alone at the peak.

—Yang Shengong had not arrived yet, or perhaps he had arrived but had not appeared.

After all, as a senior who had been famous for many years, and especially one who cherished his reputation, he would certainly not wait beforehand for a junior like Qin Chuan.

So—he would wait with his sword embraced!

Under the full moon, the young man embraced his sword.

A cold wind howled across the mountaintop, blowing his hair about.

The martial heroes who observed this scene were all silent.

Some young ladies from the Families of Prominence who had secretly snuck out were even mesmerized.

Qin Chuan paid no attention to this.

It wasn't until the moon was full and the stars filled the sky that he suddenly opened his eyes.

He looked up into the distance.

The people in the field noticed his movement and followed his gaze.

They saw a small dot appear in the center of the full moon at some unknown time.

As the black dot drew closer, they could finally make out a figure.

A burly man dressed as a middle-aged man descended like a giant roc, riding the moonlight.

“It’s Senior Yang Shengong!”

Unlike other Five Sages who were hard to trace, Yang Shengong often manifested himself in the human world, aggressively showing his presence.

At this moment, it was no exception.

As he once said—a true man, born into this world, should drink the strongest wine and make friends with the most heroic individuals!

As for why he didn't mention the most XX women—

—Those who know, know!

In this scene under everyone's watchful eyes, Yang Shengong sighed:

“The younger generation is truly formidable. I heard you wanted me to give you some pointers, so… Wang kid, I’m here.”

These words directly placed him in the position of a senior.

It was laughable, really.

Since ancient times, in literature, there is no first, and in martial arts, there is no second.

But this situation was reversed in Great Zhou.

Even if the literati of the world were unwilling to admit it, Wang Zhongshu alone suppressed the entire literary world.

The other six of the Seven Sages were clearly half a step weaker than him.

However, among the Five Sages, the strength relationship was relatively vague.

Each person was strong in one aspect, but it was truly difficult to distinguish who was superior.

For example, the recent duel between Gu Qingyun and Crazy Chu, the outcome was unknown, but both returned unharmed, and the water level of Dongting Lake inexplicably dropped by three inches!

Thus, people knew they were strong, but exactly where they were strong remained unknown.

It was precisely because of this that this public challenge was so eye-catching.

Qin Chuan did not care about Yang Shengong's arrogant demeanor.

As a challenger, it was appropriate to position himself correctly.

But, he shouldn't be blamed if he played dirty later.

After all, this was a battle to establish his name!

“Then… I ask for your guidance, Senior!”

Yang Shengong stood with his hands behind his back, feigning an indifferent attitude.

“Go ahead and attack. I want to see how much substance there is to your great reputation. What’s wrong with letting you have three moves!”

“Good!”

Seeing that this man was getting carried away with his act, Qin Chuan did not stand on ceremony with him.

“Clang!”

The frost sword was unsheathed, its sharp blade cutting through the air.

A brutal chill instantly permeated the entire peak of Zijin Mountain.

“Hiss… Why is it so cold?”

The onlookers on the mountain couldn't help but shiver.

However, before they could figure out the cause, Qin Chuan's killing move was already unleashed.

The long sword thrust forward, dots of frost condensing on the blade.

Qin Chuan's eyes were tightly shut; he had already employed the No Thought Sword technique, focusing his spirit into one point.

His mind concentrated—pierce him!

Yang Shengong's eyes across from him subtly changed, and the corner of his mouth couldn't help but twitch.

Outsiders might not feel it, but as the target of the attack, he clearly felt the bone-chilling cold.

This chilling sword blade was not obvious when it was first unsheathed, but by the time the sword tip reached his eyes, the wind and snow it carried had already formed an invisible vortex.

This vortex was pulling him!

Nowhere to hide!

At the critical moment, Yang Shengong's experience as an old hand in the martial world became evident.

He turned slightly and retreated half a step, avoiding the sharp edge.

But unfortunately, although the young man opposite had closed his eyes, the sword tip seemed to have eyes of its own, chasing after him.

Just then, he let out a soft cry.

“Ha!”

His fists shot out, carrying phantoms, and fiercely struck the sword body.

The blade was knocked aside.

At this point, after one exchange, both of them had some understanding of each other's level.

Qin Chuan quickly made a judgment: the opponent's strength and physique slightly surpassed his, while their agility was on par.

This battle would be a tough one!

As for Yang Shengong, he felt like cursing.

—Where did this monster come from?!

He was even more outrageous than those Grandmasters who had been famous in the martial world for many years!

He had originally thought that this trip was just to show his presence, and if the young man opposite was sensible, he wouldn't mind giving him a boost.

After all, everyone likes to lift a flower sedan chair.

But now—he actually felt a risk of overturning?!

This was utterly preposterous!

At this moment, the crowd in the field also recovered from the brief exchange between the two.

“What just happened?!”

“It seems Wang Xuan attacked, and Alliance Master Yang dodged?”

“I don't think so... Look at Alliance Master Yang's sleeve.”

Everyone looked and indeed saw a patch of frosty white on Yang Shengong’s sleeve.

—When he blocked just now, he was affected by the power of the ice frost.

Hearing this, Yang Shengong pretended to be indifferent and put his hands behind his back, avoiding their gazes.

He said, “I underestimated you. You truly live up to those praises. Do you want to come again?”

The meaning in his words was clear—I'm giving you an out, so quickly take it.

Qin Chuan, however, paid no mind. This was just the beginning.

He pretended not to understand, standing with his sword.

“Naturally, we continue. Next, please be careful, Senior, or you might die!”

As soon as these words were uttered, everyone was startled.

People looked past the ashen-faced Yang Shengong and carefully scrutinized the sharp and imposing Wang Xuan.

On his face, everyone saw only one word—

Arrogance!!!

— — — — — —

(One more chapter before 12 PM.)