Chapter 583

“Jiege, Chulan, Baobao, I’ll head out first.”

After what had happened, Feng Xingtong had no face to stay any longer; he bid farewell and left, covering his face.

“Jiege, this Wang family…”

Watching Wang Bing’s retreating back, still brazenly arrogant, Zhang Chulan felt uneasy.

“What if we… tonight…”

Feng Baobao, ruthless and terse, placed her right hand to her throat and slashed it sharply.

She was also deeply annoyed by Wang Bing’s arrogance.

“That’s not necessary.”

Zhang Chulan declined Feng Baobao’s suggestion with a wry smile.

Wang Bing’s arrogance annoyed him too, but not enough to warrant murder.

Besides, Wang Bing had the entire Wang family behind him—he wasn’t alone; if you beat the young one, the old one would surely come;

if you sent the old one packing, half the time an even older one would show up—father after father, generation after generation, endlessly—until you’d torn down the whole Wang family.

Does even Jiege have that kind of strength?

After all, in the history of the occult world, the strongest occultist ever recorded,

Xiang Yu, was worn down to death by Liu Bang’s human wave tactics.

“Don’t worry—the Wang family won’t cause major trouble.”

Jiege spoke to reassure the anxious Zhang Chulan.

Though Feng family bowed and scraped before the Wang family like servants, Feng Zhenghao was merely biding his time,

honing his claws, waiting in the shadows for the chance to deliver a fatal blow to the Wang family.

Feng Zhenghao had lifted the Tianxia Association from nothing to its current stature—he was skilled in maneuvering, with the makings of a warlord.

With Feng Zhenghao watching them, the Wang family’s future is plain to see.

“Wang Bing will also participate in the Luotian Da Jiao—you can give him a proper lesson in broad daylight.”

“Don’t worry, Jiege, I’ll treat him right when the time comes.”

Zhang Chulan grinned fiercely—he loved saying “no” to arrogant, overbearing types like Wang Bing.

Arrogance, eyes stuck on his forehead—that was bad enough.

What really got under his skin was Wang Bing’s assumption that Qi Ti Yuan Liu was his to claim,

that Zhang Chulan should just hand it over as if it were his by right.

That was his grandfather’s legacy!

By noon, registration for the Luotian Da Jiao had closed; the elder occultists who had been absent had now arrived.

The Old Celestial Master, Wang Ai, head of the Wang family, Lu Ci, head of the Lu family,

and the patriarchs of other sects stood atop the arena, looking down from above.

“Old Celestial Master, it’s been many years—your health is still robust.”

“Old, old—I’ll step down once I’ve chosen my successor.”

After exchanging pleasantries, the Old Celestial Master, as the head of the Tian Shi Fu,

addressed all the occultists as the host of this Luotian Da Jiao.

“I declare the Luotian Da Jiao open!”

The Old Celestial Master did not drone on—he announced the competition’s start immediately.

High schoolers and middle schoolers, long battered by principal speeches, rejoiced.

“Jia Zi Rat—I’m going first?”

Zhang Jie raised an eyebrow at the wooden tally in his hand.

For fairness, the first match of this Luotian Da Jiao used random draw:

matches were ordered by Jia, Yi, Bing, Ding, and opponents were indicated by the Twelve Zodiac signs—same zodiac meant paired opponents.

“Contestant of Jia Zi Rat, enter the arena.”

After the draw, the Tian Shi Fu disciples announced the entrants.

Zhang Jie walked in through one gate; from the other three gates emerged three figures.

One was slender, with neat short hair, twirling a dagger in his hand,

the silver-white blade dancing like a butterfly among flowers, astonishingly agile.

Another was massively built, his arms bulging with muscle thicker than an ordinary man’s thighs,

his face heavy with flesh, wearing only a sleeveless vest that revealed a palm-sized patch of chest hair,

his head gleaming bald—clearly a body cultivator.

The last wore a Daoist robe, smiling pleasantly, harmless-looking—a Daoist priest.

As Zhang Jie sized up the three, they sized him up too.

As Zhang Jie sized up the three, the three were also sizing up the others.

The dagger-wielding youth found Zhang Jie utterly ordinary, unable to discern his specialty.

“A powerless ordinary occultist—one punch will knock him down!”

The body cultivator judged with his brain packed with muscle.

“Brother Zhang Jie.”

The Daoist priest, however, recognized Zhang Jie.

“Oh? You’re Huang Ming from the Quanzhen Longmen Sect.”

Zhang Jie greeted the young Daoist with a smile.

“Young Daoist, you know each other?”

The dagger-wielder asked casually.

The dagger youth asked without changing expression.

Huang Ming nodded, earnestly introducing:

“This is Brother Zhang Jie, a lay disciple of the Tian Shi Fu.”

“A disciple of Longhu Mountain.”

Both the dagger-wielder and the body cultivator tensed, raising their guard against Zhang Jie.

Though merely a lay disciple, studying at the Tian Shi Fu meant Zhang Jie likely had real skill.

They exchanged glances and moved closer to each other without speaking.

Compared to them as lone wolves, the two—Quanzhen Longmen Sect and Tian Shi Fu lay disciple—were both Daoist disciples;

they must ally to avoid being picked off one by one.

The preliminary round was a four-way free-for-all, and alliances were permitted.

Even if someone drew intense hostility and was ganged up on by the other three, it was within the rules.

Thus, the contest tested not only strength but also luck.

If luck ran bad, even a top seed could be eliminated.

Of course, one could also break through purely by strength—if you could fight three at once.

Of course, you could also break through purely by strength, as long as you can take on three at once.

Seeing the situation, Huang Ming hurried toward Zhang Jie:

“Let’s team up and eliminate them first—then we’ll settle our own rivalry.”

“Let’s team up to eliminate them first, then my brother and I can settle who’s superior.”

Zhang Jie had no reason to refuse.

Zhang Jie had no reason to refuse.

Though they’d just met, the dagger-wielder and the body cultivator moved in perfect sync toward Huang Ming.

Though the dagger youth and the hardened man had only just met, they moved with perfect coordination toward the young Daoist Huang Ming.

The dagger-wielder flicked his wrist—his blade shot forward as a silver streak aimed at Huang Ming.

He practiced the Art of Object Control!

“Hah!”

The body cultivator roared, his already bulging muscles swelling another third, true Qi flowing,

glinting under the sun like a celestial giant descended to earth.

His body cultivation, though not divine, was far from amateur—solidly accomplished.

In ancient times, armed with a long weapon, mounted on a steed, clad in heavy armor,

he’d have been a warrior capable of cutting through thousands in battle.

“Brother Zhang, rely on you!”

Huang Ming quickly shoved Zhang Jie in front of himself.

The Quanzhen Longmen Sect wasn’t known for defense.

As for defense, the Tian Shi Fu’s Golden Light Spell stood alone—

only Shaolin’s Diamond Body could rival it.

“Never thought I’d be shielded in front like this.”

Zhang Jie chuckled softly.

Zhang Jie let out a silent laugh.

Protecting a fellow cultivator in front of oneself is a divine protection technique pioneered by Han Li, the Runaway Han, from the novel The Legend of Cultivating Immortality.

Its core principle is “Let the fellow cultivator die, not me”—using the fellow cultivator as a flesh shield.

“Heavenly and earthly mysteries, root of all qi. Cultivate for a billion eons, realize my divine power.

Within the Three Realms, only the Dao is supreme. My body radiates golden light, shielding me completely.

…

Golden light appears swiftly, enveloping the True Person—hasten, as the law commands!”

As Zhang Jie chanted the Golden Light Spell, bright yet non-glaring golden light emerged from his body,

not only fully enveloping him but also covering Huang Ming, the young Daoist hiding behind him,

who was caught in the edge-of-AOE range, making them both appear like two solid gold statues.

Although Zhang Jie’s mastery was such that he no longer needed to chant the spell aloud,

a technique spoken without its name lacks soul!