The fatty didn’t seem to care that he was at the Tianyan Sect.
It was unclear whether he had powerful backing or was simply incredibly bold.
As he spoke, he started getting handsy.
Who could tolerate this!
Zhu Lan had been suppressed and beaten down by the male lead for so long that she already had a lot of pent-up frustration.
Now, some nameless fatty cannon fodder from who-knows-where dared to repeatedly provoke her.
Draw the sword!
Zhu Lan slashed out with her blade.
Clang!
The sound of clashing metal echoed.
Zhu Lan raised an eyebrow, feeling a bit surprised.
This fatty’s reactions were actually quite fast; he had managed to draw his own sword to block her attack.
“You…”
“Who is causing trouble here! Do you have no respect for the rules? If you want to fight, go enjoy yourself on the arena stage later!”
The fatty was interrupted by a Tianyan Sect disciple who was maintaining order and had noticed the situation.
However, the fatty didn’t seem discouraged at all.
He flashed a malicious smile.
“Beautiful, I hope you can enter the Tianyan Sect too. When that time comes, I’ll be sure to… favor you properly.”
“Favor your mother! You damn cannon fodder, next time I’ll slice the fat right off your body and drain the oil out of you.”
Zhu Lan was in a terrible mood and shot back without mercy.
“You!”
For a moment, the fatty’s face turned red with rage.
Throughout his life, he had been particularly sensitive about people calling him fat.
“Liang Zhichao.”
The Tianyan Sect disciple called the fatty’s name.
The man snorted coldly and threw out one last threat before heading toward the stage.
“Humph, I hope your mouth is just as tough then!”
Zhu Lan’s face was covered in dark lines.
‘Who did I offend to have so much trouble looking for me?’
This fatty was a potential danger, so Zhu Lan began to observe his performance on the stage.
The man actually had some skill. With a Level 7 Qi Condensation cultivation, he quickly knocked his Level 6 opponent off the stage.
“Liang Zhichao, winner!”
Although the fatty had some ability, Zhu Lan was at Level 8.
Level 7 versus Level 8.
The advantage was hers.
The fatty left the stage, and Zhu Lan intended to watch the next arena, but she immediately saw a scene that made her jaw drop.
On a distant stage, one person was actually fighting five or six people at the same time!
Furthermore, that person’s attacks were incredibly domineering and fierce.
In a short while, he had knocked every other disciple off the stage, leaving only his solitary, proud figure standing tall.
What was going on?!
How did a “manly one-on-one duel” turn into a king-of-the-hill battle?
Was he defending the stage?
“That new disciple is so fierce! Taking on six people at once without falling behind—he even managed to knock all of them off the stage!”
“I remember that disciple. During the aptitude test, he was found to have Fire and Gold Dual Spirit Roots at Level 5 Qi Condensation.”
“Level 5?! If I saw correctly, there were two Level 7s among the people he just beat!”
“He’s only Level 5? Truly, a hero comes from the youth. It seems there are many good seedlings among this year’s batch of disciples. The lawless brats already in the sect are going to suffer a bit, hahahaha…”
A large crowd had gathered around the stage that was the focus of everyone’s attention.
They were all there to observe the heroic bearing of this stage-defending genius from a close distance.
By the time Zhu Lan squeezed through the crowd, she discovered something that made her jaw drop even further.
The person defending the stage wore a black robe that fluttered even without wind.
His cold, sharp face looked down disdainfully at the crowd.
He squinted his eyes, his gaze containing one part disdain, two parts coldness, and three parts indifference.
‘It’s actually the male lead?!’
‘I was wondering where that damn pie chart of an expression came from!’
‘It’s the male lead, so I guess it’s fine.’
Wait, no.
‘Shouldn’t the male lead be participating in the recruitment at the Wanjian Sect right now?’
‘Why is he here?!’
While Zhu Lan was completely baffled, Ye Feng, who was on the stage, suddenly looked in her direction and smiled at her while she was hidden in the crowd.
Zhu Lan: !!!
Zhu Lan immediately hid back into the crowd and returned to her previous position to wait for her number to be called.
There were many female disciples in that area, and when they saw the powerful and handsome man on stage smile in their direction, they all screamed in unison.
“Aaaaah! The baby on stage looked at us!”
“Aaaaah! He looks like a pitiful little puppy. I just want to hold him in my arms and pamper him!”
“Aaaaah! Sisters, I think I’m going to faint right here!”
“Aaaaah! A little puppy who looks cold on the outside but is actually fragile and sensitive on the inside. The Tianyan Sect puppy is so cute!”
“Aaaaah…”
At this moment, Ye Feng, who was on the stage, had no idea that he had become a “cold on the outside, warm on the inside” puppy in the minds of some female disciples.
He looked down at the stage and curled his lips in disdain.
“Is that all?”
“Aaaaah…”
(The reactions of the female disciples being charmed are omitted.)
“Unacceptable! How dare a brat like you be so arrogant! Your Grandfather Erye will come meet you today!”
A 2-meter-tall giant of a man leaped onto the stage and instantly engaged in battle with Ye Feng.
As blades clashed, the giant gradually found himself unable to keep up.
He was horrified to discover that his opponent’s spiritual energy actually seemed to grow more abundant the longer they fought!
“You dare play with me! I wasn’t willing to use this move, but if I injure you, forgive me!”
The giant pulled back, raising his large saber over his head as the spiritual energy in his body gathered frantically onto the blade.
“Thunder Half-Moon Slash!”
“You actually have a few tricks, but unfortunately, it’s nowhere near enough—Billowing Wave Sword Art!”
A violent burst of saber light collided with a blinding sword light.
The 2-meter-tall giant was instantly sent flying off the stage.
“Who else!”
Ye Feng finished the fight and continued to call out to the crowd as if nothing had happened, his face neither red nor his breathing labored.
The area below the stage fell into a deathly silence.
No one else dared to step up.
“Ye Feng has successfully defended the stage and is promoted directly to an inner court disciple!”
So that was it.
Zhu Lan understood now.
Defending the stage was a special trial for geniuses.
As long as one successfully held the stage, they didn’t have to draw lots for more duels and could become an inner court disciple immediately.
‘He is the male lead, after all. If he didn’t have some flashy way to blind the whole crowd during his entrance, it would hurt his prestige.’
Zhu Lan’s number was near the end, so she had to wait for a long time.
Her heart was pounding.
Sometimes, the wait before the event was the most grueling part.
When it was finally Zhu Lan’s turn to go up, she was inevitably a bit nervous.
“Please advise me.”
“Please advise me.”
Zhu Lan won two matches in a row.
She had good luck, as her opponents were only at Level 5 and Level 6 Qi Condensation.
Fortunately, geniuses were still a minority.
If geniuses who could kill people across cultivation levels were everywhere, they wouldn’t be considered geniuses anymore.
“Next, number 24, take the stage.”
This was the final round.
The winner would successfully enter the Tianyan Sect, while the loser would unfortunately have to try again next year.
Since the number of participants had been greatly reduced, a new drawing had taken place.
After Zhu Lan stepped onto the stage, she was shocked to find that her opponent was that damn fatty!
Liang Zhichao was also very surprised, but soon, his narrow eyes—which were squeezed almost into invisibility by his facial fat—revealed a horrifying smile.
“Beautiful, it seems we are fated after all. If you are willing to stay with me for one year, I’ll surrender immediately and give the chance to enter the Tianyan Sect to you. I’ll just come back next year.”
Zhu Lan’s response was a furious strike from her sword.
“Go stay with your mother!”