Martial Sovereign of the Turbulent World

Chapter 174: Chapter 172: Sword Mountain and Fire Bridge, Brutal and Perilous

Once the Westerner serving as notary finished his long-winded speech, a heavy drum boomed, and the arena fell silent.

Seated in the center of the Xuanwu Platform, Zhao Jigang slowly rose. He raised his gaze to look down upon the crowd below, his voice flat as he began to speak, "Today’s proceedings are not for personal grudges, but only to seek justice..."

After finishing the proclamation, Zhao Jigang spat out the words coldly.

"Open the barriers!"

Instantly, the drums thundered. Someone lit a long incense stick in the censer on a long table. Below the Xuanwu Platform, several burly men violently ripped away the heavy black cloths that had been tightly concealing a set of objects!

As the black cloths slid away to reveal what lay hidden, cries of shock and uproar immediately erupted from the crowd.

Before them stood a massive wooden frame nearly two stories tall. Aside from its internal supporting planks, the entire structure was composed of densely packed steel blades, all with their edges facing upward.

Under the direct sunlight, the entire platform reflected countless points of cold, piercing light. It was, in every sense of the word, a "Sword Mountain"!

At the very peak of this "Sword Mountain," a small White Jade Token, tied by a red string, swayed gently in the wind.

"So this is the so-called... life-and-death gauntlet?"

Not far away, Fu Juemin gazed at the chilling forest of blades, his brow furrowing slightly.

"The rules of the Xuanwu Platform are simple: pass a barrier, claim a token. The Jade Tokens are divided into four grades by difficulty: white, green, red, and purple."

"For an ordinary person, this Sword Mountain barrier would be worthy of a green token. And yet, they’ve only hung a White Jade Token... Hah..."

Madam Ding sneered, her eyes filled with undisguised mockery. She then lightly patted the back of Fu Juemin’s hand and said softly, "But don’t you worry. Aunt Ding has already arranged everything. Just sit back and watch."

At that moment, the Martial Arts Master at the side of the Xuanwu Platform bellowed, "The first barrier: Ascend the Sword Mountain!—"

On and off the platform, countless gazes, as if pulled by invisible strings, swiveled in unison to land on the area where the members of the Qinglian Gang were gathered.

Madam Ding then rose. Her face was expressionless as she called out coolly, "Bring them up."

Several well-built men answered the call and stepped forward, carrying two heavy wooden chests. When the lids were opened, they revealed interiors filled with neatly stacked piles of silver coins.

Then, a Master from the God of Wealth Hall came forward, followed by two attendants. Each attendant carried a brocade-covered tray; one was empty, while the other held paper, ink, and a red inkpad.

Madam Ding’s gaze slowly swept over the sea of Qinglian Gang members below. Her voice was not loud, yet it carried clearly to everyone’s ears. "Today, I, Ding Moshan, am asking you, my brothers, for your help."

"Those of you with the guts, come up, make your handprint, and collect one hundred silver coins to face this first barrier for us."

She paused, her gaze suddenly sharpening.

"Should one be unfortunately crippled, I, Ding Moshan, will provide for them for life. Should one unfortunately die, their family will receive ten times the compensation, without delay."

"And if someone can retrieve that token from the peak..."

She gently pointed a finger toward the peak of the Sword Mountain, which glinted with a cold light.

"I will add one thousand silver coins, paid on the spot!"

As her words fell, the breathing of the crowd below grew heavy and ragged.

Countless pairs of eyes darted back and forth between the gleaming silver coins and the menacing "Sword Mountain" in the distance as greed waged a fierce war with fear.

Madam Ding said nothing more, simply watching the men below in silence.

Before long, a tall, powerfully built man with a fierce face shoved his way out of the crowd.

"I’ll do it!"

The coarse muscles on his face twitched as he broke into a ferocious grin.

"It’s just a damn rack of blades. What’s there to be afraid of? The calluses on my feet are getting thick anyway; I’ll use it to scrape them clean!"

Whether he was truly fearless or the high reward had simply stirred his inner desperado, the man strode forward, deftly pressed a bright red handprint onto the paper, and quickly grabbed a handful of silver coins from the chest, stuffing them inside his clothes.

"Good."

Seeing his crude display, Madam Ding wasn’t annoyed in the slightest. On the contrary, her face showed only appreciation. "I’ll be waiting for you to bring back that token."

"I won’t disappoint you, Madam."

The man cupped his fist in a salute, then strode toward the Blade Platform.

Following the rules, he removed his shoes and socks. He took a deep breath and cautiously extended his foot toward the dense cluster of blades.

The moment his foot came down, the man’s entire face contorted in agony!

The sharp edges sliced into the flesh of his sole without resistance. Fresh blood gushed out, running down the steel blades.

The intense pain sent uncontrollable tremors through his body. But the more he trembled, the deeper his foot sank onto the blades, and the more viciously they sliced into him.

He forced himself onward. One step, two steps... Each one left a bloody imprint on the forest of blades. But before he was even halfway, he let out a horrific scream—half of his foot had been completely severed! He instantly lost his balance and collapsed heavily into the bed of blades.

By the time others scrambled to drag him off the Sword Mountain, he had become a bloody mess from head to toe.

This gruesome scene made many spectators gasp in horror. Numerous women and children quickly looked away.

The men from Martial Arts who had set up the barrier, however, all wore cold smirks, as if they had been anticipating this exact outcome.

Madam Ding, however, remained expressionless. She beckoned to the doctors and aides she had waiting, who quickly carried the injured man away for treatment. Then, her gaze returned to the members of the Qinglian Gang below.

"Next. Who dares?"

Whether it was the disdainful sneers from the Martial Arts men or the lure of the gleaming silver coins, the fall of the first man, instead of discouraging the rest, only seemed to ignite their savage nature.

Immediately, a second man stepped forward.

"I’ll go!"

He made his mark, took the money, and ascended the platform...

Fu Juemin watched from the side, his expression calm, but inside a cold tide slowly washed over him.

’Are these men who take the stage afraid? Of course they are.’

’But just like Zhang Yi, who threw in his lot with me a few days ago, this is the world we live in. For those at the bottom to get ahead, to fight for wealth and glory, the only choice is to risk their lives for the slimmest of chances.’

’Aunt Ding managed to secure her current position... Who’s to say she didn’t claw her way out of her own mountains of swords and seas of fire to get here?’

Seven or eight men from the Qinglian Gang attempted the challenge in succession, and all of them failed. The most successful among them barely made it halfway.

The ninth to take the stage was a slender young man whose eyes were exceptionally calm. Perhaps because he had practiced some lightness techniques, combined with a sharp eye, a clever mind, and a bit of luck, he finally succeeded.

The White Jade Token, stained with mottled patches of blood, was placed on the brocade tray and presented before Fu Juemin.

Fu Juemin raised his head, his gaze traveling up the steps of the Xuanwu Platform to finally rest on Zhao Jigang, who sat enthroned at the very top.

The latter seemed to sense his gaze and, expressionless, met it from across the distance.

A flicker crossed Fu Juemin’s eyes. He said nothing, simply lowering his eyelids slowly.

After the "Sword Mountain" came the "Fire Bridge."

The Fire Bridge Barrier consisted of a ten-meter-long path paved with red-hot coals. Special "ingredients" had been mixed into the embers. Anyone who could endure the walk to the end would pass.

Madam Ding’s rules remained the same.

Great rewards bring forth brave men. Tempted by the gleaming silver coins, there was no shortage of men willing to risk death for a payout.

One after another, the men of the Qinglian Gang threw themselves into the fray. After the "Fire Bridge" came the "Oil Pot," the "Arrow Tomb," the "Poison Stake," the "Sand Pool"...

Each barrier was more perilous and vicious than the last. There were times when even the Qinglian Gang was daunted. But whenever they hesitated, Madam Ding would simply increase the prize money.

She would double it, and double it again... until someone finally dared to step forward.

Across the vast Xuanwu Square, the atmosphere shifted from its initial boisterous excitement to something somber and subdued, until at last, it fell completely silent.

The onlookers, who had come expecting to see martial arts duels, fistfights, and a lively spectacle, had now fallen mostly silent.

So this was the bloody reality that lay beneath the glamorous, sensational headlines in the newspapers.

.....

"Miss, I can’t watch anymore."

In the crowd, her maid, Suisui, covered her eyes tightly and pleaded in a small voice, "Can we... can we go home, please?"

Su Hui didn’t speak, only shaking her head gently.

Even for someone of her noble birth, accustomed to all sorts of grand spectacles, witnessing this silent, brutal struggle between the lower-class powers for the first time left her feeling deeply unsettled.

The life-and-death gauntlet had only just begun, yet it was already this desperate. Heaven only knew what greater dangers lay ahead...

At this thought, Su Hui turned to look at the hunchbacked, one-armed old man beside her and called out softly, "Uncle Bai."