193: Chapter 192 The Twenty-Second in the Heavenly Ranking, Mo Chongshan

After Yin Shixuan left, the great hall became much quieter. Seeing this, Sun Yi and his companion smiled and left as well.

Mr. Gu, sitting behind the stone table, stroked his two wisps of mustache. After a moment of silence, a sharp glint flashed in his eyes.

"Come to think of it, it's been three months since anyone stepped onto that Battle Arena, hasn't it?" He muttered, reaching out to pick up a Challenge Order from the table. His fingers traced a few patterns in the air above it, and with a flash of spiritual light, the challenge information was instantly branded onto it.

He looked up at the pitch-black night outside the hall, then let out a whistle.

Soon, a small emerald bird flew in from outside the hall, circled above his head a few times, and landed directly in Mr. Gu's hand.

"Go."

The green bird chirped, took the paper in its beak, and vanished into the night as a streak of green light.

Mr. Gu watched the direction in which the bird disappeared, a meaningful smile playing on his lips. "I'm afraid there's a good show to watch this time. But that's fine; this stagnant situation has long needed a reshuffle. Otherwise, how boring it would be!"

Soon, sleepiness washed over him again. Mr. Gu closed his eyes, and before long, the sound of snoring rose once more.

...

Meanwhile, at the residence of Mo Chongshan, who ranked twenty-second in the Second Heaven.

Inside the great hall, a lean man with a grim expression sat cross-legged, a copper basin placed before him. The basin was filled with a thick, black liquid. His hands were completely submerged in this liquid, his eyes slightly closed.

A few breaths later, the black liquid in the basin began to turn clear at a speed visible to the naked eye.

In less than the time it takes to burn a stick of incense, the water in the basin was already crystal clear.

The man's palms had turned pitch black, but the color quickly faded, returning to his normal skin tone.

Indeed, this person was none other than Mo Chongshan, ranked twenty-second.

"Haa." Mo Chongshan slowly exhaled, opened his eyes, and a trace of a smile appeared on his face.

"This palm technique has finally reached the fifth level; it's finally nearing Perfection. Give me another year, and with my strength, I should be able to enter the top five."

Just as Mo Chongshan was feeling self-satisfied, a faint fluttering sound suddenly reached him.

Mo Chongshan frowned and looked up. He saw a small green bird fly in from outside the hall and land before him.

"Mr. Gu's messenger bird? Could something have happened?" Mo Chongshan recognized the origin of this green bird, and a flash of surprise crossed his eyes.

The green bird chirped crisply, opened its beak, and a piece of paper fell before him. Then, it turned and fluttered its wings to fly away.

Mo Chongshan reached out to pick up the paper, unfolded it, and squinted slightly. "A Challenge Order?"

Heaven-Class Disciple ranked twenty-third, Xia Jin, challenges the twenty-second ranked Mo Chongshan. Tomorrow at noon, at the Battle Arena.

Mo Chongshan stared at the Challenge Order, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly, a playful smile appearing on his face.

"I didn't expect that after preparing for so long, before I even started issuing challenges upwards, someone would set their sights on me first."

Mo Chongshan was a man of great ambition. He was ranked twenty-second in the Second Heaven, but this was by no means because his strength was only enough to rank at the bottom. On the contrary, his true strength far exceeded this ranking.

The reason he had remained at the twenty-second spot was that his ambition was too great; his goal had always been the lofty top five positions.

Without the certainty of crushing his opponent, he would never easily initiate a challenge. After all, every challenge meant exposing his true strength. He preferred to lie dormant, to keep a low profile, and wait for that moment when success was guaranteed.

But now, someone had actually set their sights on him first?

"A newcomer who just ascended?" Mo Chongshan's face revealed a trace of mockery. "Rank twenty-three... just ascended today? And they want to challenge me as soon as they get here?"

He shook his head, the smile on his face growing wider.

"Interesting. It seems this newcomer has a lot of confidence in their own strength."

Mo Chongshan stood up, walked to the window, and stood with his hands behind his back.

"Very well," he murmured. "After preparing for so long, it's time to stretch my muscles. Since someone has delivered themselves to my doorstep, I'll use them to test the progress of this palm technique."

He looked down at his hands, where a layer of black mist faintly swirled in his palms before instantly vanishing.

...

Soon, it was noon on the second day. Mo Chongshan slowly opened his eyes. He looked up at the sky.

"The time has come."

He raised his right hand and squeezed the Challenge Order forcefully. The Challenge Order ignited without fire, turning into a ball of blazing light, and soon formed a Void Gate a zhang high in front of him.

Mo Chongshan did not hesitate and stepped into it. When he reappeared, he was already standing on a massive stage with three tiers of stone steps.

"Is this the person challenging me?" Mo Chongshan's gaze quickly fell upon a figure not far away.

It was a man dressed in black Dragon robes. His long, light purple hair was draped casually over his shoulders. Just standing there quietly, he seemed to blend perfectly with the surrounding world, as if he were a natural part of it.

Mo Chongshan's pupils constricted slightly, and his face became more serious. No wonder he dared to challenge him as soon as he ascended to become a Heaven-Class Disciple.

"You are the twenty-third ranked Xia Jin?"

Xia Jin did not respond to him, but instead carefully sized up Mo Chongshan.

"Why does this guy look like a gibbon? Sharp-mouthed and monkey-cheeked, and those long arms are almost touching the ground." A flash of disgust crossed Xia Jin's eyes.

"Hmph! Sharp-tongued! I hope your strength is as tough as your mouth!" Mo Chongshan naturally noticed the change in Xia Jin's eyes, and his expression gradually turned cold.