Chapter 26: Martial Debate Tournament

In the Longtan Peak training arena.

In this arena that can accommodate over a thousand people, under normal circumstances it wouldn't be as noisy as now, with no empty seats.

A high occupancy rate at the arena is a rare thing.

But today...

The Longtan Peak arena is already filled with people, not to mention...

Even the area outside the arena is blocked off, leaving no way through.

Among those who arrived today, besides Longtan Peak and Xuan Yue Feng...

Even Purple Canopy Peak and Little Heaven Peak have many people who came specially.

The purpose is to watch this Longtan Peak vs Xuan Yue Feng martial debate tournament!

Actually, to be honest.

The vast majority of those who can come here, nine out of ten, are here for Xuan Yue Feng!

After all, the Four Peaks Grand Competition is imminent!

And Xuan Yue Feng, as the strongest overall among the Ziyang Sect's four peaks and a top contender for the championship!

Every move of Xuan Yue Feng naturally draws the attention of Little Heaven Peak and Purple Canopy Peak.

Even though the participants in this debate tournament don't include those prodigious talents from Xuan Yue Feng, the team leader is Zhao Jianfei, the chief third-year disciple of Outer Peak from Xuan Yue Feng.

He has reached the Ninth-Grade Refining Qi Realm, ranks thirteenth on the Heavenly Prodigy List, and remains a major attraction.

The only regret is that Yao Mengzhen, the First person of Outer Peak from Longtan Peak, seems not to be participating in this debate tournament.

I heard he went into seclusion?

Precisely because of that.

These people swarmed in like sharks smelling blood.

At that moment.

When Li Mu arrived at the arena calmly and unhurriedly, the martial debate tournament had already begun.

If it weren't for considering that Yao Mengzhen is breaking through the Great Achievement Realm with the Purple Thunder Sword Technique and is going to seclude himself to launch another assault on the Qi Refining Realm Great Perfection.

Li Mu had no intention of participating in this debate tournament.

However...

Considering that Yao Mengzhen is absent, Longtan Peak really has no one who can hold the arena.

Li Mu decided to come over and see the situation.

And this debate tournament is conducted by drawing lots.

The names of the participating disciples from Xuan Yue Feng and Longtan Peak are placed in two separate bamboo tubes.

Whoever is drawn steps onto the stage to fight.

The victor may choose to stay on the stage or step down.

The martial debate currently taking place on the stage.

On Longtan Peak's side, the combatant is a youth named Zhou Rusong, who is fiercely battling a second-year Outer Peak disciple from Xuan Yue Feng.

After arriving, Li Mu first looked toward Longtan Peak and saw it already overcrowded, with no empty seats to be found.

So he simply intended to find any empty seat and sit down.

But just as Li Mu sat down, a woman's coquettish voice came from beside him.

"Hey!"

"I say, how can you be like this?"

"Before you sit, shouldn't you first ask whether anyone is here?"

Li Mu looked in the direction of the voice.

He saw, behind him, a boy and a girl standing there, though he didn't know when they had appeared.

Both the boy and girl wore Dao robes, each embroidered on the chest with a towering mountain shrouded in purple clouds, indicating they are disciples of Purple Canopy Peak.

Before the girl could say anything more.

The boy beside her shook his hand and, in a pretentious tone, said.

"Little sister!"

"Anyway, the seats here are in rows, and there aren't many besides him."

"Moreover, our purpose in coming here is mainly to target Xuan Yue Feng, to get a clear picture of them before the Four Peaks Grand Competition arrives."

Though the Dao‑robed boy says this, a hint of arrogance seeps through his words.

"Hey!"

"Did you hear that?"

"Hurry up and thank my big brother!"

"Otherwise, you wouldn't even have the chance to stand and watch right now!"

Wu Peipei, irritated, gave Li Mu a cold stare and said in an entitled tone.

Li Mu just smiled; the sibling's conceit was as if carved from the same mold.

For such passersby, Li Mu couldn't even muster the interest to strike them.

He placed his hands behind his head, leaned back, and continued to watch the martial debate between Longtan Peak and Xuan Yue Feng on the stage.

Seeing this.

This made Wu Chengfeng's complexion look rather unpleasant.

As a top third-year Outer Peak disciple of Little Heaven Peak and ranked thirty‑eighth on the Heavenly Prodigy List, Wu Chengfeng is certainly a well‑known figure here.

But Li Mu actually still dares to act so flamboyantly in front of me; isn't that plainly showing that he doesn't take Wu Chengfeng seriously?

If it weren't because he's wearing a Longtan Peak Dao robe, I'd personally give this kid a good beating!

Wu Peipei was even too lazy to look at Li Mu any longer.

Adhering to the principle of "out of sight, out of mind," she directly turned her gaze to the two fighters from Longtan Peak and Xuan Yue Feng battling on the arena and asked in confusion.

"Brother!"

"I heard that this time Xuan Yue Feng's team is led by Zhao Jianfei, a third‑year member of Outer Peak!"

"Why hasn't he appeared yet?"

"Hehe…"

Wu Chengfeng heard that and immediately let out a laugh.

"Little sister!"

"You also know that the person leading Xuan Yue Feng's team is Zhao Jianfei!"

"What kind of person do you think Zhao Jianfei is?"

Upon saying that, Wu Chengfeng deliberately paused, then glanced at Li Mu in a mocking tone: "Little sister, isn't there a Longtan Peak cultivator sitting right next to you?"

"Why not ask him yourself!"

"Someone of Zhao Jianfei's caliber—what tier does he belong to?"

"Isn't he, aside from Yao Mengzhen, the kind of presence that all other Longtan Peak disciples have to look up to?"

"However, I heard Yao Mengzhen is going into seclusion, so he probably can't take part in this martial arts tournament."

"Alas…"

"If that's the case, it's truly worrisome."

Wu Peipei remained silent, casting a scornful, mocking glance at Li Mu.

The siblings, fully aware that Li Mu is from Longtan Peak, still deliberately said that to his face, their words full of jeering and mockery.

But Li Mu seemed completely oblivious to Wu Chengfeng's mocking tone; he didn't even glance at them, speaking calmly as if recounting a trivial, everyday matter.

"Is that so?"

"I think it's quite ordinary."

"What did you say?"

"You dare to say Zhao Jianfei is ordinary!"

Wu Peipei hadn't even reacted yet, while Wu Chengfeng's tone beside her suddenly rose an octave.

"Hey!"

"You kid, do you know what you're saying?"

"Zhao Jianfei!"

"He holds the 13th seat of the Tianjiao List, a teenage prodigy with a Ninth‑Grade Refining Qi Realm!"

"Just based on what you said, if Zhao Jianfei heard it, one punch could kill you right here!"

"Still spouting such shameless boasts here?"

"Truly lacking self‑awareness!"

"One punch?"

Li Mu let out a light laugh as if he had heard some cosmic joke, and said.

"Even if I stand still and they throw ten or eight punches at me, I would emerge completely unscathed!"

Li Mu said this with utmost seriousness, showing no hint of joking.

But when Wu Chengfeng heard it, he gave a sarcastic smile and turned his head away.

Clearly, he has no intention of listening to Li Mu's bragging any longer.

"Tsk!"

"You are the most incompetent I've ever seen, yet the most clueless."

"And also someone who loves to tell tall tales."

"If it were just bragging, who wouldn't?"

"I even claimed that this time my power would surpass the three great Tianjiao of the Four Peaks and claim this year's tournament championship!"

"Is that possible?"

After a brief encounter, Wu Peipei clearly despised Li Mu's arrogance to the extreme.

But Li Mu merely smiled without a word, too lazy to explain anything.

"Sometimes, when you speak the truth, people may not believe it."

"When you tell a lie, people instead find it plausible."

"But at that moment…"

On the arena, Qiu Zhou Ruisong didn't exert much effort and easily defeated the opponent.

Longtan Peak, which had always been tightly suppressed by Xuan Yue Feng, now secured an opening victory at the martial arts tournament.

In that instant, Longtan Peak's side was invigorated, as if they saw hope of defeating Xuan Yue Feng; cheers rose wave after wave, as if they might lift the roof off.

Zhou Ruisong was also swept up by the atmosphere; feeling in good shape, he shouted to the nearby judge: "Continue the draw!"

"I can fight another round!"

The judge nodded, drew a bamboo stick from the bamboo tube and shouted loudly: "Next, Xuan Yue Feng…"

But before the judge could finish the announcement, a heroic voice suddenly rang out from outside the arena.

"No need to draw lots!"

"I'll go!"

The Longtan Peak crowd turned back in astonishment.

The disciples of Xuan Yue Feng, meanwhile, looked toward the direction from which the voice came, their expressions agitated.

Suddenly, a robust human silhouette appeared in everyone's line of sight.

He immediately broke into a run, his speed no less than that of an afterimage leopard.

Just as he neared the audience seats, he planted his foot heavily on the ground and leapt over the dozens‑meter‑long audience area, landing heavily on the arena.

"Zhao Jianfei!"

"Did he really appear this early?"

Seeing the man on the arena—dressed in Xuan Yue Feng's black Dao robe, his aura imposing—Wu Chengfeng couldn't help but show a hint of astonishment on his face.

In his view, Zhao Jianfei should wait until Yao Mengzhen makes a move before appearing again.

How could Zhao Jianfei be unable to hold back and show up right after the first match of the martial conference ended?

It's as if Longtan Peak just launched a counter‑ten, while Xuan Yue Feng immediately threw a trump card!

That shouldn't happen…

On Xuan Yue Feng's side, after seeing Zhao Jianfei appear, everyone turned to Longtan Peak, their faces showing amused smiles.

As for Zhou Ruisong on the stage, he was also startled by Zhao Jianfei's move and involuntarily stepped back.

Clearly, she was already familiar with Zhao Jianfei's renowned name!

Facing a Ninth-Grade Refining Qi Realm cultivator, she had no chance of winning.

Zhao Jianfei glanced sideways at Zhou Ruisong, sneered contemptuously, and said astonishingly, "Just trash of a Six Grade Qi Refining Realm!".

"I'll give you two choices now!"

"Either surrender."

"Or be beaten to the brink by me!"

He finished speaking.

A terrifying, overwhelming aura instantly surged from Zhao Jianfei.

It was clearly the peak of a Ninth Grade Qi Refining Realm, its imposing aura sweeping all directions, giving an intense sense of oppression.