[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-eternal-green-immortal-sovereign":3,"chapter-eternal-green-immortal-sovereign-eternal-green-immortal-sovereign-chapter-54":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Eternal Green Immortal Sovereign",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2270062,4432,"Chapter 54: Rising to Prominence","eternal-green-immortal-sovereign-chapter-54",54,"\u003Cp>“Has Master Li lost his mind, challenging Xu Tai?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Xu Tai just defeated the Herbal Hall’s master.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I heard Xu Tai used to be a blade-for-hire in the outlying counties—fierce as hell!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The disciples below the stage buzzed with murmurs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A blade-for-hire is someone who earns a living by martial skill—some guard convoys or escort travelers, others hunt down fugitives and kill bandits, all trades lived on the edge of the blade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These men have rich combat experience; making them an opponent is a headache.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Tai often traveled between outlying counties and only recently joined the Heaven and Earth Alliance; his name was unknown.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In that last fight, he toppled the Herbal Hall’s master, and only then did everyone realize Xu Tai’s strength—his swift blade was brutal and fierce, hard for ordinary men to withstand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The master actually challenged Xu Tai?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Shulin opened his mouth wide.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if you must pick an opponent, why choose one so ruthless?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“11”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’s qualified to be a real master—not some mere master of Tianyi Hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In contrast to Zhou Shulin, Liang He’s eyes gleamed:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The master will win!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhou Shulin glanced at Liang He, momentarily speechless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I hope he wins.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wouldn’t blindly trust Li Rui like Liang He did.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Sheng, seated high on the dais, also turned his gaze this way and said with interest: “Blade Captain, who do you favor?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dao Xiong paused a moment:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Warriors measure strength by qi and blood. Li Rui handles his weapon well, but Xu Tai isn’t weak either—he’s younger and was a blade-for-hire.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In one sentence, Li Rui was old.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d placed Li Rui in Tianyi Hall before—not out of malice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A seventy-year-old man simply cannot compete with young warriors; it’s an established fact.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Sheng nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He agreed with Dao Xiong’s assessment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No matter how skilled, without qi to support it, technique is just a castle in the air—crumbles at the slightest force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Tai’s face twitched, his right cheek scar looking even more grotesque.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without a word, he walked calmly onto the stage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“After you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He clasped his hands around the hilt, pulled the blade free with his left hand, and tossed the cowhide scabbard aside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Rui also clasped his fists: “After you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Compared to Sha Jinliang, Xu Tai’s strength was clearly superior.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not a difference in realm, but because blade-for-hires knew how to fight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Rui also drew his long blade from behind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Tai let out a low roar, stepped forward rapidly, closed the distance, and slashed down at Li Rui—perhaps having watched Li Rui’s earlier fight with Sha Jinliang, he struck precisely three feet away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The blade’s tip just touched Li Rui’s vital points, yet left enough distance to prevent Li Rui from closing in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Rui blocked with the flat of his blade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The thick blade easily deflected Xu Tai’s strike, then his wrist flipped, and the thirty-seven-pound blade traced a small circle in midair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The edge swept through with a gust of force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Tai was startled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What a heavy blade!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He hadn’t expected Li Rui’s blade to be this heavy—it must weigh at least thirty catties.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lifting a thirty-catty stone weight is easy, but swinging a thirty-catty blade requires at least three hundred catties of strength!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unbeatable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He tried to retreat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Li Rui gave him no chance—his blade clung to Xu Tai’s like a fish, following its motion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The heavy blade was wielded with effortless grace, dancing like a feather or falling leaf.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this moment, the advantage of weight was fully revealed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Rui’s blade was heavy and kept the upper hand; Xu Tai had to exert far more force to counter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon, Xu Tai’s grip grew numb, his fingers nearly losing hold of the blade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as the crowd was thoroughly engrossed—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I yield!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Tai decisively dropped his blade and leapt off the stage without looking back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His feet had already touched the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The blade on stage still clanged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Rui blinked, then smiled faintly: “Quite decisive.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d dealt with blade-for-hires before—all of them like this: indifferent to victory or defeat, fleeing the moment they sensed defeat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The “11” badge, secured!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Rui achieved his goal and walked calmly off the stage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The crowd below now looked at this old master with new eyes—his fight had been textbook: classic technique overcoming strength, slowness defeating speed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xu Tai had been completely suppressed throughout.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Rui’s victory was unquestionable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Sheng on the stage shook his head and laughed: “Blade Captain, it seems we misjudged him.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master Li’s effortless control is truly remarkable.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dao Xiong’s eyes were sharp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He saw at once the key to Li Rui’s easy victory: both used blades, and Li Rui wielded a heavy one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“He must have planned this step even before Xu Tai’s last fight.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Old ginger is the spiciest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dao Xiong was secretly astonished by Li Rui’s planning—no wonder he waited so long to choose his target.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Such meticulous thought—his intellect borders on the supernatural.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tang Sheng was no fool; he understood this too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Plan first, then act.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These five words sound simple, but are extremely hard to master—Li Rui clearly possessed profound insight into weapons to achieve this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Pity—if he were fifty years younger, I’d have taken him as my disciple no matter what.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But then he smiled and shook his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Rui’s advantages were all forged by years—no young upstart could possess such depth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Han Qin’s eyes blazed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This fight was exactly to his taste—he missed not a single detail.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“One must never underestimate the heroes of the world.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though confident he could defeat Li Rui, it would be through realm and power dominance—not technique; his Falling Petals Sword sought mastery of skill.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“After the matches, I must pay this elder a visit.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Han Qin could hardly wait to exchange insights.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Many in Huaqing Sect thought him reclusive, disliking interaction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Quite the opposite.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He longed to meet kindred spirits—there were simply too few.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Rui was one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Han Qin would never look down on Li Rui for his low birth or low realm—he himself hadn’t come from privilege either.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhu Yue gripped the armrest of his chair so tightly his knuckles turned white.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I lost to a stable boy?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he quickly calmed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was a Huaqing Sect disciple—he had no need to lower himself by comparing with a stable boy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was already Li Rui’s peak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He, however, had only just begun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps in ten years, Li Rui would be buried, while he stood in his prime, with all of Qinghe County beneath his feet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Rui vanished again into the crowd.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet no matter how humble he became, he still attracted glances from those around him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He accepted it calmly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If one is to climb ever higher, attention is unavoidable—hiding one’s strength forever is not a lasting strategy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“After breaking into Eighth Rank, my mindset has truly changed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he did not think it was a bad thing; a martial artist must possess the mindset of a strong person.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A line of small characters appeared before his eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Congratulations, host! Achievement completed: Fame and Fortune — Initial Plot — Rising to Prominence.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This book has had its twists and turns, especially lacking in appeal; thanks to the support of all readers, it has been able to continue. Tuesday follow-up reads are vital for this novel; please try to read to the end and follow closely. (An extra chapter is being added at noon—author’s sincerity has been delivered!)\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1257,"2026-06-19T22:01:09.077Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","255bb01a6f2515e578d7eae8a25ff0313612d9cbc72e6401bbe13e307e6fcef9","eternal-green-immortal-sovereign-chapter-55","eternal-green-immortal-sovereign-chapter-53",866,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Feternal-green-immortal-sovereign-cover.jpg"]