Chapter 165: Chapter 165: Nine Grand Arena Masters, Eclipse Accomplished
"Is this true, fifty consecutive wins?"
"This is the first time in decades. Even the universally recognized number one gifted swordsman, Wei Renhao, has never achieved such a record."
After a moment of silence, the crowd’s discussion started to simmer like boiling water, rushing all the way to the sky.
Hearing about a new record, everyone would get excited, and witnessing a new record made the feeling of excitement even more indescribable.
Especially considering that the young man in the arena accomplished this under coercion.
No matter what the final outcome, the Martial World of Floating River Area will inevitably record this wonderful story.
"Is the gap really that big?"
Ling Tianyu’s face was haggard and his desire to compete gradually faded.
If someone is ten steps ahead, one can still catch up. If that person is a hundred steps ahead, there is still hope to catch up. But the distance between him and Shi Xiaole was so great that he could only see the back view and not even recognize the color of Shi Xiaole’s clothes.
"How could he have provoked this individual."
Shi Weiwei, the Sect Master of the Flying Flower Sect, muttered to herself.
Ye Linglong knew who that ’he’ referred to. The scenes in the cave came to mind, making it difficult for her to recover in a short time.
"Stole the Elephant Strength Fruit, and flaunting his power here."
Zhou Yilou’s face was as gloomy as water.
He was sure that without the Elephant Strength Fruit, no matter how high the potential, it would be impossible to reach this point. So the stronger Shi Xiaole appeared, the more heartbreaking it was for Zhou Yilou.
If he had consumed the Elephant Strength Fruit himself, he might have already been on par with the top-tier Sect Masters by now.
Jiang Zhenglin did not speak, but his twitching eyebrows revealed his underlying furious anger. This anger was gradually turning into unease and insecurity.
"There are still nine champions to beat. There’s no way this kid can pass, absolutely impossible!"
Jiang Zhenglin roared in his heart.
On the platform.
"Young Hero Shi, as it will take time to arrange the nine champions, today’s challenge will end here."
The elderly man in white said after regaining his composure.
He hadn’t expected such an outcome. This youngster is far stronger than himself by more than several times. Even Wei Renhao from the past couldn’t manage such an effortless performance.
Of course, as for whether Shi Xiaole could defeat the nine champions, the old man in white still didn’t think highly of him.
To know, the earlier fifty consecutive wins were just against the experts from nearby cities. The later nine champions were selected from the Dark Alley of all the cities across the entire Floating River Area.
If Shi Xiaole could pass, calling him the unbeatable expert below the Qi Absorption level seven of Floating River Area, probably no one would object.
But could he?
The last time a Copper Banner Master emerged was sixty years ago. And that person honed his skills at the Qi Absorption level six realm for decades, achieving an unparalleled battle strength.
Shi Xiaole, he is too young!
"If that’s the case, then I will wait for your message."
Without any competition, Shi Xiaole would not remain. He took a thick stack of silver notes, saluted the elderly man in white attire, and casually left amidst the attentive stares of the spectators.
Even if there were any more matches, Shi Xiaole wouldn’t continue.
Although he won with ease, the most recent multiple matches were all killing moves. It drained him greatly. Seriously speaking, at this moment, he probably only has sixty percent of his strength at his peak power.
Despite having only sixty percent of his full strength left, Shi Xiaole didn’t believe there were too many people who could beat him.
Up until now, other than his sword and his Moon Concealing Sword Technique, he hadn’t used any of his killing moves, like Landslide and Water Split. He hadn’t even used his Blood Battle Ten Forms yet hardly putting any effort into his display, maybe only accounting for thirty or forty percent of his powers.
Such a ratio, if spoken out loud, would scare a bunch of people.
On the days without competition, Shi Xiaole continued to practice with complete abandon.
Meanwhile, the outside world was thoroughly shaken.
"What, he won fifty consecutive matches?"
"Is this true or false? I was not originally interested in the Rivers and Lakes Assassination Order since it’s not my turn to kill and gain fame. But now, it seems I have to go to the Dark Alley to see for myself."
"In so many years, only this one person has done it. I wonder how many champions he can beat?"
In the streets and alleys, teahouses, and restaurants, discussions about the Martial World can be heard everywhere.
The Rivers and Lakes Assassination Order indeed carries a lot of deterrence, but not all people will act upon hearing it. But when the news of the consecutive wins spread, many curious people were moved.
They secretly cherished a hope. If Shi Xiaole could become the Copper Banner Master, and slap the Iron Bone Sect and other great factions in the face, how thrilling it would be!
Although the Iron Bone Sect carries the name of the orthodox sect, their actions are extremely overbearing. Many people have suffered at their hands. Though they may not say it out loud, they harbor many thoughts in their hearts.
Besides, regarding the claim that Shi Xiaole stole the Elephant Strength Fruit, who decreed that the fruit belonged to the Iron Bone Sect? After all, that forbidden land was merely a territory that the Iron Bone Sect forcefully seized.
"Damn it!"
In the western yard of the Iron Bone Sect, Yi Nanxiong, who heard the news, was furious. After his anger subsided, as if thinking of something, he laughed haughtily: "Good, defeating you like this will establish my renown."
"Did someone break my record?"
In a range of mountains where a row of exquisite pavilions is located.
In the east wing of the attic, a young man sat in a courtyard filled with blooming plum blossoms, slowly sipping his tea with a glint in his eyes.
He was dressed in red, his black hair neatly tied with a headband of the same color. From his face, neck to the visible palms, he gave an impression of careful grooming, a sense of complete and perfect harmony, without any perceivable flaw.
This man was Wei Renhao, the first disciple of the Red Sword Pavilion, widely recognized by the Martial World of the Floating River Area as the leading talented swordsman for several decades, the ’Hero among Men’.
"Yes, some ignorant fellow has been praising that man surnamed Shi as the top talented swordsman. They even claim that Senior Brother Wei is inferior to him," said another young man sitting next to him, his face filled with indignation.
On hearing this, Wei Renhao chuckled, "Why should we care about the opinions of others? The fact that he could win four more matches than me proves that he is indeed talented."
The young man looked doubtful and couldn’t help asking, "Senior Brother Wei, how many of the arena masters do you think that Shi fellow could defeat?"
"The nine arena masters are all outstanding experts at the peak of the Qi Absorption phase. They won’t be defeated too quickly even against opponents at the seventh level of Qi Absorption. I guess that man could probably win about two to three matches," replied Wei Renhao nonchalantly.
The strength of the nine arena masters is far beyond what most people in the Floating River Area understand. But as a disciple of Red Sword Pavilion, Wei Renhao had more insight than the average person.
Most importantly, he had once furtively crossed swords with the ninth arena master, only to meet defeat after nearly a hundred exchanges. Therefore, saying that Shi Xiaole could win two to three matches was, in his opinion, a high appraisal.
It was even possible that Shi Xiaole could only win a single match.
The challenge against the nine arena masters was different from the previous fifty-match winning streak. Once it began, there would be no rest. In other words, the challenger had to defeat nine experts at the peak of the Qi Absorption phase without any breaks.
The difficulty of the task was nearly unthinkable. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be the case that the Floating River Area hadn’t seen a single Copper Banner Master in the past sixty years.
On the tenth day after Shi Xiaole’s fifty-match winning streak, nine individuals, six men and three women, appeared on the first floor of the Gold Silver Jade Copper Platform in Zhongshan City.
Each of them exuded an impressive aura, making it feel as if the air itself had frozen. They were the mysterious nine arena masters of the Dark Alleys of the Floating River Area.
"Everyone, I’m sorry for troubling you this time," apologized a white-robed elder with a bow and a fist salute.
"Hehe, none of us have had the chance to fight in a real match since becoming arena masters. This is a good opportunity for us to exercise. We should be thanking that youngster," said a bearded man with a hearty smile.
"Liu Laosan, don’t take this lightly. You might capsize in the gutter," a rather vivacious woman jested with a big smile on her face.
"Liu Laosan, how about we make a bet on how many matches that youngster can win? Whoever loses has to call the other ’grandfather’ in front of everyone. If you’re afraid, you can back down," proposed a middle-aged man with a goatee, grinning sinisterly.
"Hmph, trying to coerce me with your old trick. However, I actually want to try the feeling of being a grandfather. I bet that the youngster can win three matches," Liu Laosan grunted.
Everyone was aware of Shi Xiaole’s situation, and after thorough analysis, they believed that he had only used sixty percent of his abilities. Thus, Liu Laosan confidently announced his bet.
"I bet he can win four matches," said the man with the goatee after a thoughtful pause.
He was trying to play wise. If Shi Xiaole actually won three matches, he could just pretend to lose in one of his matches to make it four. The thought of having Liu Laosan call him ’grandfather’ made him burst into loud laughter.
The others also laughed at their competitive banter.
On the top floor of the attic, the lonesome man in blue clothes smirked as he heard the laughter from below.
Whiz, whiz.
Inside the room, there was no candlelight, only moonlight seeping through the window screen. The specks of light in the moonshine cast tall shadows of Shi Xiaole on the ground which would move as he swung his long sword..
"How can the moonlight be concealed? What it truly conceals is nothing more than human vision,"
As the mental block in his mind suddenly cleared, Shi Xiaole thrust his sword forward, moving as does the moon. This sword seemed to be concealed within the moonlight, arriving wherever the moonlight reached.
His Moon Concealing Sword Technique had successfully entered the Transformation Phase.
The Moon Concealing Sword Technique, when at its peak in the Transformation Phase, might not be more powerful than the Blood Battle Ten Forms in a frontal attack, but it was far superior in terms of its unpredictability. Furthermore, with the addition of the Chaotic Intent Realm, the power of this sword technique reached another level, surpassing even the deadly Landslide and Water Split technique.
At this very moment, Shi Xiaole had once again elevated his strength. If he was only eighty per cent confident about defeating the nine arena masters before, this time he was absolutely confident, without any chance of mishap.
After a long period of cultivation, which posed a significant challenge to his physical and mental energy, Shi Xiaole rested for two days and occasionally strolled around the city.
It was worth mentioning that there were countless martial world experts flooding into Dark Alley every day. However, Dark Alley was well-staffed and strictly guarded, making it impossible for ordinary people to enter.
Zhongshan City, as a result, was bustling with activity.
Everywhere were guests from the martial world, all discussing the upcoming competitions.
In regard to the current situation, the Assassination Order of the martial world that had been issued by the Iron Bone Sect was completely overshadowed by the Copper Banner Order of Dark Alley.
Bang!
Zhou Yilong smashed a chair, gnashing his teeth as he watched Shi Xiaole sauntering casually through Dark Alley, "I don’t believe that you can pass the challenge."
As if sensing something, Shi Xiaole raised his head and shot a smile at Zhou Yilou. The sight angered Zhou Yilou so much that he felt an urge to kill.
Two days later, everything was ready. Shi Xiaole received a notification from Dark Alley, stating that he could participate in the competition starting from that day.
