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âVice Hall Master Wu!â Yang Kai cupped his fist at Wu Zheng Qi, who nodded gently in response.
Wei Cheng came over and stood on the left side of Wu Zheng Qi. He was followed by his Blood Warriors.
Wu Zheng Qi arched his brow, âMany thanks for inviting this Wu to be the witness of this battle. I feel truly honoured. However, I hope that both of you will not go overboard since you are both from the same Sect. Peace and harmony are valued highly here.â
Then, he darted his gaze between Wei Cheng and Yang Kai before saying, âIf there are no objections, the fight shall begin. The rules are the same as always. The fight is divided into three rounds, and the person who wins two rounds will be the winner. Additionally, no weapons are allowed on the Martial Methods Stage. Do you have any problems with this?â
Wei Cheng and Yang Kai expressed that they were fine with the rules.
âGood. As for how youâll fight, you can have a discussion among yourselves. This Wu will not interfere. The reason Iâm here today is only to act as a witness.â Then, Wu Zheng Qi went away and observed them silently.
On the stage, Wei Cheng took a glance at the towering Yang Huai behind Yang Kai, then frowned, âHave you only brought one bodyguard with you, Alchemist Yang? How are we going to fight?â
Yang Kai replied with a smile, âWhatâs wrong with that? The rules state that the person who wins two rounds will be the winner. It doesnât say how many bodyguards we must bring.â
Wei Cheng shook his head, âThatâs right, but I guess youâre underestimating this Wei. The bodyguard youâve brought out of the Blood Warrior Hall is only in the Second-Step Heaven Realm. The weaker one of my two bodyguards is in the Sixth-Step Heaven Realm. Thereâs no way your bodyguard is a match for them.â
âWeâll have to let them fight to find out whether heâs a match.â
Wei Cheng stared fixedly at him, âIf youâre willing to apologise to me, Alchemist Yang, Iâll pretend that nothing has happened so that youâll be spared the embarrassment.â
Yang Kai shook his head, âItâs good to have confidence, Alchemist Wei, but overconfidence will do you more harm than good.â
Wei Chengâs face fell as he snorted, âIâm willing to settle the dispute peacefully, but since youâve rejected me, donât blame me for oppressing you as a Senior Brother. Iâd like to know how youâre going to defeat the three of us when there are only the two of you. The rules are the same. If thereâs no winner after the first two rounds, weâll personally have to compete in the last round.â
âEn.â Yang Kai nodded, âHowever, before that, shouldnât we put down a wager? Otherwise, the fight will be boring.â
âWager?â Wei Cheng was startled, âWhat do you mean?â
Yang Kai turned to look at Wu Zheng Qi, âWill it break the rules of the Sect, Vice Hall Master?â
Wu Zheng Qi replied impassively, âItâs fine as long as both of you agree. The most important thing is that there must not be any casualties.â
âUnderstood.â Yang Kai nodded, then took the sword from his waist and raised it, âItâs a Spirit Armament. Is this wager good enough?â
Wei Chengâs pupils contracted when he heard that, and even Wu Zheng Qi appeared interested. The Alchemists around the Martial Methods Stage immediately broke into a commotion.
âA Spirit Armament? Is that really a Spirit Armament?â Wei Cheng gazed at him in shock.
Yang Kai tossed the True Void Sword at Wu Zheng Qi, âVice Hall Master Wu can definitely tell whether itâs a Spirit Armament or not.â
Wu Zheng Qi took the sword and unsheathed it. After he observed it for a moment, a longing expression appeared on his face. A moment later, he put the sword back into the sheath and nodded, âItâs indeed a Spirit Armament.â
Since Wu Zheng Qi had said so, Wei Cheng naturally wouldnât doubt him. He looked doubtfully at Yang Kai as he wondered what the latter was up to.
A puzzled Wu Zheng Qi inquired, âAre you sure you want to put this Spirit Armament down as a wager, Alchemist Yang? That is an extremely precious treasure.â
In the entire Divine Armament World, Spirit Armaments were the second best weapons after the Ten Great Divine Armaments. Every Spirit Armament was extremely powerful. The power a Spirit Realm Master could use with or without a Spirit Armament was drastically different. Although Wu Zheng Qi was a Spirit Realm Master, even he didnât have a Spirit Armament. Therefore, when he saw Yang Kai, a Heaven Grade Alchemist, nonchalantly fish out a Spirit Armament and use it as a wager, he felt that the latter was being wasteful.
It wouldâve been wonderful if the sword were in his possession.
Yang Kai replied with a smile, âIâm short on money now, and I donât have anything more valuable than this.â
A myriad of expressions came over Wei Cheng, âIt seems that youâre confident of yourself, Alchemist Yang.â
Since Yang Kai had even fished out a Spirit Armament to be used as a wager, he wasnât just confident; he practically had no regard for Wei Cheng, who became vexed at this realisation.
âAlthough Iâd like to get this Spirit Armament, this Wei unfortunately doesnât have anything suitable to be used as a wager.â Wei Cheng shook his head regretfully. It was a shame that he had to let such a chance slip through his fingers.
âItâs fine. I donât need any precious item. I suppose you have some Red Jades, Alchemist Wei?â Yang Kai asked with a smile.
âRed Jades?ââ Wei Cheng was startled, âYou want me to put down Red Jades as a wager?â
He couldnât believe his ears. Even Wu Zheng Qi appeared flabbergasted as he secretly cursed at Yang Kai for being a wastrel. The value of a Spirit Armament could never be measured with Red Jades.
âI said Iâm short on money. Itâs fine as long as you have some Red Jades.â Yang Kai nodded.
âI⌠do have some Red Jades.â
âHow many can you take out?â Yang Kai asked.
An embarrassed Wei Cheng replied, âAbout 200,000 to 300,000. No more than that.â It was expected that a Heaven Grade Alchemist had several hundred thousand to a million Red Jades. Wei Cheng initially had more than a million Red Jades as well, but in order to get the Heaven Flame in the Divine Flame Hall, he had spent quite a lot of money to buy certain items, which was why he was left with so little money.
Of course, even 1 million Red Jades were nowhere near enough to buy a Spirit Armament, not to mention 300,000. He was fully aware of it, which was why he appeared bashful when he spoke.
â300,000 it is.â Yang Kai nodded, âAre you okay with putting down 300,000 Red Jades as a wager, Alchemist Wei?â
Wei Cheng stared at him like the latter was a fool, âAre you sure youâll be fine with me only taking out 300,000 Red Jades as a wager?â
âYes.â Yang Kai nodded.
On the side, Wu Zheng Qi was on pins and needles. If he hadnât been restrained by his identity as a witness, he wouldâve said to Yang Kai that he could lend him some money. It was extremely wasteful to put down a Spirit Armament to be a wager when the other party could only offer 300,000 Red Jades.
Wei Cheng stared fixedly at Yang Kai, and upon making sure that the other party wasnât joking, he nodded, âIn that case, Iâll take out 300,000 Red Jades to be a wager. Please be the witness of it, Vice Hall Master Wu.â
âEn,â Wu Zheng Qi replied lethargically.
âLetâs start now, Alchemist Yang.â Wei Cheng felt elated since he was going to get a Spirit Armament soon. He speculated that it might be Yang Kaiâs way of apologising to him; otherwise, why would anyone do such a foolish thing?
A Spirit Armament could more than make up for his losses in the Divine Flame Hall.
At the thought of this, he felt less hostile towards Yang Kai. Despite Yang Kaiâs firm stance, he was actually a tactful person. This was his indirect way of apologising to Wei Cheng.
Yang Kai nodded, âGood.â He then turned to look at Yang Huai, âDo your best.â
Yang Huai cupped his fist and replied solemnly, âIâll not embarrass you, Sir.â
Yang Kai nodded and leaped off the Martial Methods Stage. On the other hand, Wei Cheng and one of his Blood Warriors also left the stage, leaving only a single Blood Warrior to deal with Yang Huai.
Wu Zheng Qi shot an impassive glance at the people on the stage and replied dispassionately, âIf the two of you are ready, you can start at any moment.â
The next moment, Wei Chengâs Blood Warrior charged towards Yang Huai at the speed of lightning, leaving behind only an afterimage. He reached his opponent in a split second, and following a loud boom, the entire stage shook.
The towering Yang Huai seemed to have been struck by a mountain as he staggered backwards and almost collapsed to the ground. Fortunately, he managed to stabilize himself soon, then he extended his big hand.
A figure disappeared in front of him as he whisked past his palm and circled around him. Soon, another loud boom was heard.
A confident Wei Cheng observed the battle on the stage and nonchalantly stated, âAlchemist Yang, your Blood Warrior is too weak. Thereâs no way he can defeat my bodyguard.â
Yang Kai put on a smile without responding to him.
Yang Huai was only in the Second-Step Heaven Realm while Wei Chengâs bodyguard was in the Sixth-Step. There was a difference of four Minor Realms between them. On the stage, without any external help, Yang Huai was expected to be of no match for his opponent.
In just over ten breaths of time, Yang Huai had been struck more than ten times. Every strike would cause him to stagger and almost collapse to the ground, but he could always stabilise himself soon and counterattack. Although he was unable to harm his opponent, his powerful attacks forced the other party to dodge.
Such a battle was supposed to end quickly since the powers of both parties were drastically different. Nevertheless, the reality was that Yang Huai surprised the others with his perseverance and resoluteness.
Although Wei Chengâs Blood Warrior seemed to have gained the upper hand on the stage, he was unable to defeat Yang Huai or force him out of the stage.
Furthermore, as time passed, a layer of blood mist started forming around Yang Huaiâs figure. It was initially inconspicuous, but as time passed it increasingly thickened.
âWhatâs that?â Wu Zheng Qi, who had been observing the battle on the stage, arched his brow with surprise. That was because he realised that Yang Huaiâs speed and strength were increasing by the breath.
Yang Huai was sturdy, but he was not very agile, and he was four Minor Realms behind his opponent; therefore, since the beginning, he had been in a passive position, and his occasional counterattacks were easily dodged by the opponent. Nevertheless, as the battle dragged on, his attacks gradually became faster and more powerful.
Following a tearing sound, the two of them leaped away from one another. Yang Huai was covered in blood as he widened his eyes with fury. There was a piece of cloth that he had torn from his opponent. After he released it, he dashed towards his opponent like an enraged bull, his eyes bloodshot.
The spectators around the stage exclaimed. It was the first time Yang Huai managed to hit his opponent, even though he had only torn a piece of cloth from the other party.
On the other hand, the Sixth-Step Heaven Realm Master took a look at his own chest where a small part of his robe had been torn off, revealing his vest. When he looked up and saw Yang Huai charging towards him, he became incensed and activated his Spirit Qi to deal with him.