Chapter 709: Tournament

Xinfeng City, morning.

Inside a row house.

At the stairwell entrance.

Li Wei descended the stairs, opened the box at the stairwell entrance, took out a bottle of milk, and returned home.

“Wow… there’s milk.”

His sleepy sister saw it and immediately widened her eyes.

“Sigh, Xiao Wei, didn’t I tell you not to buy so much stuff?”

Li Wei’s parents got up, looked at the lavish breakfast on the table, and sighed: “What a waste of money…”

“It’s fine—I need to eat more anyway since I train martial arts.”

Li Wei poured a cup of milk for his little sister and drank the rest in one gulp.

This milk factory supposedly raises many cows, some with beast-blood lineage, and has imported a production line from Bai Ying, with high-quality bottling standards; crucially, as a security guard for the factory, he gets discounts on milk orders.

After drinking the milk, Li Wei carefully stored the bottle.

These bottles can be returned to the milk factory for a good amount of silver.

“Since the discovery of Bai Ying Continent… Dala has enjoyed steady weather, and ordinary people’s lives have improved.”

After eating and drinking his fill, Li Wei lay on the sofa and opened today’s newspaper.

The paper was coarse, and the ink still seemed damp.

Yet Li Wei’s hand holding the newspaper was spotless, revealing control beyond “water cannot penetrate.”

“Hmm?”

After reading just a few lines, he stared in shock: “Ice Sculptor wreaks havoc on Bai Ying Continent… Can this world even be fixed?”

Li Wei kept reading, his mouth widening further: “The North Pole expedition ship discovered an ice sculpture… then the sculpture came to life, called itself ‘The Martial Maniac,’ seized control of the ship, returned home, and is now challenging Bai Ying Continent’s experts, leaving behind multiple massacres.”

“This…”

Fang Xing, upon seeing the newspaper, was also surprised.

Although he could briefly observe the mortal world through his cultivation of the True Martial Contemplation,

he still knew little about the situation on Bai Ying Continent.

‘Using ten-thousand-year black ice to freeze himself… Which genius followed my advice?’

Fang Xing thought: ‘To freeze oneself requires breaking the limit of the Turtle Breathing Art… Back then, only Xun Heihu could achieve it using the True Martial Talisman. But after the heavens lifted their restraints, Void-Realm martial artists emerged one after another. If someone truly had extraordinary talent, they could meet this requirement and break the Turtle Breathing limit… Yet even then, too many variables remain—like this one, who was dug up halfway.’

Actually, this one was lucky.

Someone with worse luck might have perished inside the ice, encountered calamity, or had their body ruined…

‘This Martial Maniac… is almost certainly someone from the old True Martial Mountain.’

As Fang Xing mused, he heard Li Wei’s astonished voice: ‘Bai Ying will send a delegation to visit Dala and host the “World’s Number One Martial Tournament,” to meet martial peers and crown the greatest? This… have Bai Ying people’s brains been kicked stupid by the Martial Maniac? Prize money? Tsk tsk… a million taels of silver!’

“Oh?”

Fang Xing looked over and saw further details.

Though only a rumor, the million-tael prize was indeed extremely tempting.

‘According to this schedule, it will last several years… If you’re serious, you might as well compete.’

Fang Xing chuckled.

‘Forget it… my life now is fine. No need for more turmoil.’

Li Wei glanced again at his adoptive parents and sister, feeling deeply content.

Three years later.

Splash!

The sea surged with waves.

A ship sailed across the endless ocean.

Li Wei, clad in black martial attire with a hardened expression, stared at the distant silhouette of a massive island: ‘Is the final round of the World’s Number One Martial Tournament held on this “Island of Death”?’

Compared to three years ago, Li Wei’s demeanor had changed completely, and a gruesome scar now marked his face.

It resembled a centipede, and even a slight movement made it seem alive.

‘An Ning…’

Thinking of his little sister, Li Wei’s heart ached.

Three years ago, his younger sister fell gravely ill—with a congenital disease.

Even after exhausting all their family’s wealth, they found no cause.

Only after visiting a Bai Ying medical clinic did they barely identify the problem, followed by terrifying treatment costs that nearly drove Li Wei to become a bandit.

Fortunately, the World’s Number One Martial Tournament had just opened; Li Wei immediately signed up and placed heavy bets on himself as an outsider.

As he kept winning, he earned vast sums of silver.

Along the way, he met many friends and rivals…

Before he knew it, he had reached this point!

‘This final round on the Island of Death truly hides dragons and tigers… I hear even the Martial Maniac will compete…’

Li Wei thought to himself.

‘Not just him—the Demon Cult’s leader too…’

Fang Xing’s voice chuckled in Li Wei’s mind: ‘I can sense special rituals and arrangements on the Island of Death—likely the Demon Cult’s leader, the Second-Rank “Lord of the Abyss,” preparing to ascend to First Rank.’

Li Wei’s expression grew complex.

The world’s elevation had been deeply altering reality.

Now, the Demon Cult’s leader was about to ascend to First Rank.

Knowing how treacherous the “End Existence” was, even if he didn’t compete, he had to intervene.

‘Though I’ve spread the “Soul-Corrupting Poison Body Art” through black markets and other channels… few practice it. People don’t teach people well—you need to teach through suffering.’

Li Wei thought: ‘If no true End Existence emerges, and only tens of thousands die… neither Bai Ying nor Dala will take notice.’

‘Hmm, boy, you’ve truly grown.’

Fang Xing nodded, then fell silent.

‘Vulture Li Wei?’

On deck, a powerful knight approached.

Li Wei looked over and saw a blonde, blue-eyed female knight.

She smiled brightly at him: ‘I’m the “Rose Knight” Aivier… pleased to meet you.’

‘Aivier, hello.’

Li Wei greeted her, but his tone remained distant.

He turned and returned to his cabin.

‘Indeed, Vulture Li Wei is as rumored—cold, aloof…’

Aivier watched him go, a sweet smile forming on her face: ‘Conquering a man like this is more interesting than conquering the sky…’

…

Splash!

The ship docked, and martial experts with strange auras stepped ashore.

‘Ladies and gentlemen… welcome to the final stage of the World’s Number One Martial Tournament.’

A figure descended from the sky.

His face was ancient and square, radiating an overwhelming aura.

‘Him?’

Li Wei’s eyes flickered: ‘The Martial Maniac!’

‘Fought eight hundred battles, defeated Bai Ying single-handedly—he is now the undisputed “King of Bai Ying.” Rumor says he pushed for this tournament and now serves as its guardian…’

Li Wei’s gaze shifted away.

But to him, the man’s greatest label was still ‘True Martial Disciple!’

It was said he had awakened the purest 'True Martial Sacred Body,' matching the innate talent of the True Martial Ancestor himself—and was now the strongest contender for the world's number one.

‘To break through, he deliberately organized the World’s Number One Martial Tournament? Truly extravagant…’

Li Wei thought.

‘Excellent… Today I see many martial prodigies. Not worth my ten-thousand-year slumber.’

The Martial Maniac suddenly raised his hand.

Puff! Puff! Puff! Puff! Puff! Puff! Puff!

Light and shadow flashed in the air.

Li Wei instinctively raised his hand, activating the Black Tortoise True Art—his skin hardened impenetrably.

Even so, he felt a tremendous force surge through him, causing him to sway slightly.

When he looked at his palm, he saw a fragment of a token embedded in his palm.

‘Those still standing qualify for the next stage… You must survive and cultivate on this Island of Death… and ultimately collect one full token to reach the “Discourse Platform” at the island’s center!’

The Martial Maniac rose higher, then vanished: ‘Only the top eight will earn the right to challenge me.’

‘Collect tokens?’

Li Wei scanned the crowd and saw Aivier watching him warily—he sighed inwardly: ‘At most eight will qualify… and the tokens might be even fewer…’

‘Let’s go.’

He flashed forward and plunged into the dense forest.

Those warriors who hesitated even a step were dragged helplessly into the chaos of battle…

…

In another direction of Death Island.

The temporary port location.

Another ship of contestants arrived.

Chu Kuangtu descended from the sky, uttering the exact same words and scattering fragments of tokens to test these people’s martial arts.

Inside the cabin.

Several cultists guarded a pitch-black coffin, exchanging glances: “Everyone has entered… may the ritual succeed.”

“No! With the protection of that great being, our Lord will surely succeed… reach the ‘End’!”

They gazed at the pitch-black coffin, their eyes filled with fanaticism.

These were the most devout and fervent believers of the cult, tested repeatedly.

“This time, our Lord will surely break through to the First Rank!”

“To achieve the End, many powerful warriors’ endings must serve as offerings for the ritual…”

“Hehe, the martial artists on Death Island—their deaths are part of our Lord’s ascension ritual; those still alive will make perfect nourishment after our Lord breaks through…”

“Wu Kuangtu already suspects something—won’t he intervene?”

One cultist said, worried.

“Hmph, that man is a martial madman—he’s nearly insane in his pursuit of higher martial realms. He tacitly approved our actions this time, just so our Lord can break through to the First Rank and become his whetstone… Hehe, yet he doesn’t know how often the whetstone is too hard, and breaks the blade instead…”

As the cultists spoke, the pitch-black coffin shimmered with one after another ritual pattern and secret runes; tendrils of black mist writhed as if alive.