Chapter 553 - Challenge

“What are you planning to do?” Zhongxuan Sheng asked.The one who had just walked in from outside, Shisi, also cast a curious glance.

Shisi had once again donned her full-body armor, hiding her tender and adorable figure within the steel.

The battered Fuyue armor could no longer be repaired.

Of course, this new armor was not as reliable as Fuyue, but it was also forged by a master craftsman at great expense by Zhongxuan Sheng.

Compared to the Fuyue armor, it was a little more compact.

Perhaps for the sake of deterrence, Shisi always made the Fuyue armor appear quite imposing.

Jiang Wang glanced at Zhongxuan Sheng, his look inquiring.

Shisi was actually a lovely girl, and now that pretty much everyone in Linzi was aware of her true appearance, it seemed there was no need to still cover herself up so tightly.

Zhongxuan Sheng made a helpless gesture.

It seemed that it was Shisi’s own choice not to reveal herself.

Over a long time, the steel armor had given both her and Zhongxuan Sheng a great sense of security, and taking it off completely was not an easy decision…

“You help me challenge Lei Zhanqian,” Jiang Wang said offhandedly.

He and Lei Zhanqian had a history of enmity, and from subsequent events, it was clear that Lei Zhanqian bore no intention of reconciling.

Especially considering that recently, Jiang Wang had risen to fame in the ears of the Qi Country nobility by defeating Wang Yiwu in a single move.

His victory over numerous powerhouses in the Secret Realm of the Seven Star Tower had also been the talk of the town.

The Lei Family had been expressing their stance in various indistinct ways, bringing up old resentments and accusing Jiang Wang of unclean tactics, clearly intending to raise their own stature by stepping on him.

Yet, due to considerations for the Lei Family’s reputation, they felt uneasy about directly challenging Jiang Wang who had just entered the Inner Mansion Realm.

If Lei Zhanqian felt uneasy, Jiang Wang, being of a slightly lower realm, had no such reservations.

It is better to resolve enmity rather than hold onto it, but now that it was there, it was time to settle it once and for all, and to settle it well!

Lei Zhanqian, with his talent, backing from the Lei Family, and connections with Jiang Wuqi, was bound to soar to great heights in the future.

What Jiang Wang intended to do was to ensure Lei Zhanqian would never fly too high, to stop him from ascending into the heavens and shatter his confidence of dominating all!

Wasn’t he going around proclaiming that Jiang Wang had only gained advantages and plotted schemes during his journey in the Secret Realm of the Seven Star Tower?

Then let’s have a public challenge, in front of everyone, and make him retract his words.

With Zhongxuan Sheng’s intelligence, he naturally understood Jiang Wang’s thoughts and approved of this method of handling the situation.

But he still offered a word of caution, “You were never this ostentatious before.”

The level of attention this public challenge would spark was far greater than Jiang Wang’s previous no-witness fight against Wang Yiwu within the range of the Silent Beheading Order, a battle with no audience other than Zhongxuan Sheng.

And afterward, when he boldly faced the pressure from Daqi’s military god, it had only attracted the attention of Linzi’s upper echelons.

Most of the attention was cut off by the Beiyaduwei.

Even with a ferocious undercurrent of public opinion, it only swirled in the shadows.

However, this challenge was different.

A public challenge meant that this battle would be exposed to everyone’s view, open to any spectator.

Neither side would agree to such a thing without strong confidence.

One side was Lei Zhanqian, who had already achieved the status of Inner Mansion and obtained Divine Skills, hailed as the Lei Clan’s once-in-a-thousand-year prodigy.

The other side was rumored to have defeated Wang Yiwu, climbed from the world’s number one in the Ascending Dragon Realm to the Inner Mansion, and claimed Divine Skills from the very first mansion.

Zhongxuan Sheng could fully imagine the heated discussion this battle would stir up.

Jiang Wang just smiled, “When one lacks strength, bold words are just threats; when strength suffices, it is time to fulfill them.”

Back in the Seven Star Valley, Lei Zhanqian said that Jiang Wang, a mere Ascending Dragon Realm cultivator, had only gained an advantage by relying on underhanded methods not fit for public view from the Zhong Xuan Family.

And Jiang Wang’s response at the time was, if he were in the Inner Mansion Realm, Lei Zhanqian wouldn’t be able to escape him.

How could Jiang Wang not live up to his own words?

Of course, it was also to make a final splash for Zhongxuan Sheng before leaving, but there was no need to voice such intentions.

“Alright!” Zhongxuan Sheng didn’t ask where Jiang Wang’s confidence came from, but simply agreed, “However, we should delay the challenge by a couple of days.”

“Why?” Jiang Wang asked.

Zhongxuan Sheng was elated as he crunched the numbers, “I’ll buy a martial arts venue in the next couple of days, give it a little decoration, and put up a wall around it.

I’ll set the duel location there, and when the time comes, I’ll charge an entry fee based on tokens!

Ten Prime Stones per person!

This is the first public fight of the top Ascending Dragon after stepping into the Inner Mansion Realm!

I’ll hype up how miserably Wang Yiwu got beaten by you…

The people of Linzi will definitely want to see this!”

Jiang Wang: “…”

He’s really got money on the brain!

Jiang Wang looked disdainful.

Yet his right hand opened up honestly, flashing a five.

He was expecting a fifty-fifty split on the earnings!

Zhongxuan Sheng chuckled, “No problem!”

The duel location was eventually set at the Invincible Martial Arts Pavilion.

Just look at that name.

According to Zhongxuan Sheng, the name was inspired by the aliases they had used in the Taixu Illusion Realm, signifying a joint venture between two close friends and embodying their grand dreams.

The so-called “pavilion” was actually an open-air martial arts field.

In a place like Linzi, where cultivators were plentiful, you couldn’t just start fighting anywhere due to a disagreement – Beiyaduwei wouldn’t stand for that.

Hence, martial arts venues were everywhere and not particularly valuable.

Zhongxuan Sheng smoothed things over to buy it, working overnight to build a wall around the perimeter and had the audacity to boldly call it a “pavilion.”

“With such a large martial arts field and such spacious seating.

Basking in the gentle sunlight, enjoying spectacular Transcendent battles, and the breeze freely blowing through…

Charging ten Prime Stones for a spot isn’t excessive, is it?”

Zhongxuan Sheng stood in the martial arts venue, sweeping his arm wide with great presence, as if a sovereign surveying his kingdom.

The venue itself was quite average, and the spectator areas were all within the boundaries of the wall put up by Zhongxuan Sheng.

The so-called “seats” were nothing more than wooden stools; forget about cushions, there wasn’t even a place to set down a cup of tea.

Besides, the venue was less than five miles from Yuli Square…

Its original price was easy to guess.

Charging ten Prime Stones per person for such a dilapidated place, not excessive?

Just as Jiang Wang was about to denounce this shameless act, he remembered he was set to get half of the share…

Everything suddenly seemed much clearer.

The honest young man surnamed Jiang then ponderously nodded, “Hmm, not excessive.”

Unfortunately, Someone Jiang’s thick skin wasn’t quite up to snuff, and after a while, he circled back, “Still…

your greed makes for a rather unsightly scene, which might invite idle gossip.”

Zhongxuan Sheng laughed meaningfully, “Everyone’s got to have a flaw.”

The more he mulled over it, the more intriguing this statement seemed.

But as far as Jiang Wang was concerned, knowing that Zhongxuan Sheng had his own considerations was enough.

The chubby fellow was never one to lose out.

He curled his lip, “After all that fuss, that’s all you invested—a few broken bricks, some wooden stools, and you still split it fifty-fifty with me.

Yet I’m the one who has to fight for life and death!

The more I think about it, the more I feel like I’m getting the short end of the stick.”

“Jiang Wang, my dear brother, you’re missing the point with that mentality,” Zhongxuan Sheng solemnly lectured.

“It makes you seem very vulgar!”

Arranging someone to deliver the challenge letter to the Lei Family was, of course, all handled by Zhongxuan Sheng.

Jiang Wang had only one requirement, which was to make the wording a bit more impressive.

His intention was for the challenge to be passionate and fierce, something like a mutual appreciation between heroes destined to clash at the peak of Linzi – a splendid story to pass down.

However, unbeknownst to him, the challenge delivered turned out to be—

“Lei guy, heard you weren’t happy after the Secret Realm of the Seven Star Tower?

Hopping around trying to save face.

Come on then, on the 24th of October, at Linzi’s Invincible Martial Arts Pavilion, whoever doesn’t show up is a coward!

I’ll beat you until you admit defeat, until you submit!”

What a piece of work.

It was said that upon seeing the challenge letter, Lei Zhanqian was so furious that smoke billowed from his head, and he rushed to Linzi from the Lei Clan grounds overnight.

And so, the 24th of October arrived as scheduled.