The Strongest Sect of All Times

The first match of the first round started and then…. Oh, it ended. 

The time needed, calculating it from the moment the referee shouted ‘begin’, was about 2 seconds. 

Sun Kai, whose irritable temper was now noticeable, was howling in pain as he clutched his stomach. The audience and the Great Red Gate’s elder were wide-eyed. 

Before the match began, they had all imagined the scene where Sun Kai punched Tian Qi like a madman, hearing the sound of the Ironbone Sect disciple crying out pitifully. 

Now?

Were their eyes seeing things?

Many cultivators subconsciously rubbed their eyes. When they saw that the participant on the ground was still the Great Red Gate’s, their expressions became splendid. 

Their feeling of vertigo could not be blamed, as they simply did not expect for the Ironbone Sect disciples to act so quickly and decisively. 

The referee was frozen for a moment, before announcing, “Round One Match One, the winner is Tian Qi!”

Li Qingyang shook his head, saying with a smile, “Junior Brother Tian, have you vented?”

They had been ridiculed and called names, humiliated by others, but they had held back. Now that Tian Qi had sent his opponent flying with one strike, they felt their anger being vented. 

“Ha…” Su Xiaomo squatted by the stage, stretching slightly. “When can I go on stage?”

Jun Changxiao turned to the soulless fatty and humbly said, “Sorry, the temperament of my sect’s disciple is even more irritable, not willing to waste time on your sect’s trash.”

The Great Red Gate’s elder became flushed with anger, looking like he had had just swallowed a fl— no, like he had just eaten shit. 

…

Tian Qi was the first of the sect to fight and beat Sun Kai within a few seconds, causing the crowd to be astonished. 

But it was a momentary astonishment, as many cultivators concluded that the Great Red Gate disciple’s guard had been down, allowing his opponent to seize an opportunity. 

“Losing against such a weak opponent, wasting a chance to enter the second round in vain.”

“That boy’s speed was pretty good, but it’s a pity that only his speed is fast. Otherwise, he would have met a defeat.”

Many participants' opinions of Tian Qi did not improve because of his win. Instead, they believed he depended on superior footwork to win. 

“First round second match, Li He versus Tie Long!”

In the other zones, the referees continued to shout. 

The arena had six stages, so six elimination matches were simultaneously held. It was just that the other zones did not have enough time to announce the contestants before Tian Qi’s fight had ended. 

“First round third match, Zhao Ying versus He Ren!”

“First round fourth match…”

“First round fifth match…”

…

Several referees announced the matches and the ten contestants on the other five stages began to fight. 

Due to the randomized ballot, the power gap between participants could be huge. In these cases, the process was very simple and the match would end shortly. 

The winner qualified for the next round, the losers were eliminated. 

Then twelve new participants climbed onstage to fight and the crowd cheered. 

Jun Changxiao yawned, leaning back. 

After some time, a referee shouted, “First round twentieth match, Li Qingyang versus Hu Yao!”

Jun Changxiao opened his eyes and sat up.

“Begin!”

Bang!

The referee’s voice had just resounded, his words still echoing through the area, when the participant named Hu Yao was thrown out of the ring with one fist strike. 

His punching posture was also the same as Tian Qi’s…

Regarding this second disciple’s victory, Jun Changxiao was not surprised. After all, the youth had both strength and natural talent. 

“You let me win.” Li Qingyang cupped his fist. 

“…” The corner of the referee’s mouth twitched. He then announced the results, “First round twentieth match, the winner is Li Qingyang!”

“Worthy of being Qingyang City’s number one talent, really powerful!”

“I don’t think he even used his full power!”

“This is only the first round and all the opponents are not very strong, of course he’s going to save energy.”

The crown murmured spiritedly.

Both were instantaneous victories, but Tian Qi was belittled while ‘Qingyang City’s number one talent’ Li Qingyang was praised. That really was preferential treatment because of talent.

…

The competition continued and contestants continued to fight. Some people won with ease, others were well-matched. 

Then arrived Match 32 of Round 1, when Su Xiaomo mounted the stage for the Ironbone Sect, his opponent a Eleventh Stage Meridian Opening cultivator named Song He. 

During each competition, the winner was usually a Martial Apprentice. Therefore Eleventh Stage Meridian Opening was among the middle to higher tier of the contestants. 

“Boy.” Song He formed a fist and said with a smile, “You should know your limits. Quickly jump off the stage so as to not waste time, that way you won’t be beaten up.”

“Is that so?” Su Xiaomo’s eyes crinkled into crescents as he smiled. 

The referee called, “Begin!”

Shua!

Song He seemed really pressed for time, taking the initiative to step forward, his right fist lighting up with eleven rings of spiritual energy. As he punched, his fist whistled through the air. 

“It’s finished.”

“Poor guy.”

The crown shook their heads.

In the meantime, Su Xiaomo dodged the fist, scuttling to step behind Song He. With both fists, he directly hit the opponent’s waist.

“Hiss!” Song He sucked in a breath of cold air. 

“Let’s go!” Su Xiaomo leapt into the air and his right foot came whistling down, directly smacking the opponent in the face, knocking the man out. 

Crunch. 

Floating to the ground, he clapped his hands. “So weak.”

The crown was wide-eyed again.

If Tian Qi won because his opponent’s guard was down, they couldn’t say the same now because this time, Song He had taken the initiative. This was hard to accept!

That discrete old man was startled. This child and that one named Tian Qi are the same, making a move without spiritual power, directly knocking out someone at Meridian Opening Stage Eleven. 

“First round match thirty-two, the winner is Su Xiaomo!” 

The referee’s clear and resonant voice announced.

Jun Changxiao’s face showed a happy expression. Three of his disciples had passed the round. As long as Lu Qianqian and Xiao Zuiji won, regardless of the final results, he would not fail the Epic Mission. 

…

Bang! Bang!

On the six zone stages, the sounds of fighting continued. 

Shortly, Lu Qianqian appeared on stage. Her appearached captured the attention of many male audience members. After all, she was a beauty, attracting attention wherever she went. 

Her opponent was named Jiang Li. With difficulty, he said, “Fighting with a woman, I’m a bit embarrassed. 

Lu Qianqian huffed, “Trash.”

“Begin,” announced the referee.

Jiang Li was still considering how he should go about defeating this younger sister when he felt his feet lift off the ground and his body flying out of the ring, slamming into the ground.

Putong!

Four feet landed simultaneously. 

Lu Qianqian stood in the same place, her jade hands returning to their original position. 

The referee regained his composure and quickly announced, “First round match fifty, the winner is Lu Qianqian.”

The crowd was silent. 

Blankly, they watched as Lu Qianqian walked off the stage. With one movement of her hands, she’d shoved her opponent off stage. That was definitely spiritual power!

“So she has spiritual power, just hid it so well no one realized!”

“My god, pushing a Twelfth Stage Meridian Opening participant? So strong!”

The people exclaimed. 

The winners of other zones glanced over vigilantly, “Strong opponent.”

“First round match fifty-one, Xiao Zuiji versus Wang Lie!”

Swiftly, the referee could be heard again. 

Everyone, even the cultivators watching other zones, suddenly paid attention. Staring at Xiao Zuiji mounting the stage, their lips curled into sneers. 

This loser had finally gotten onstage. 

To be his opponent, that was true luck.

Crunch. 

Xiao Zuiji walked on stage and heard the ridicule coming from all around him, letting out a deep breath. 

He remembered what Sect Head had said, that he should not be influenced by outside things. 

Wang Lie walked on stage and grinned. “I didn’t expect that I, Wang Lie, would one day compare notes with the millennium rare genius. I’m really honored.”

“Begin,” said the referee.

Shua!

Wang Lie took the initiative, striding forward to strike with his elbows. 

Spiritual power erupted, ruffling Xiao Zuiji’s black hair. 

Bang!

The elbow landed on his shoulder and the ground crumbled under a wave of qi, dust billowing into the air and obstructing the crowd’s view.

“Haha, that loser didn’t even have the chance to dodge!”

“Previously, the Ironbone Sect would defeat their opponents in a second. The tables have turned for this one.”

The audience laughed. 

Slowly though, the laughter disappeared as an unbelievable scene appeared. 

On the stage, despite being pressed down with a hit carrying at least 1000 jin of strength, Xiao Zuiji was still standing there. Even more astonishing, he was smiling. 

“How is this possible…” Wang Lie was astounded. 

Xiao Zuiji grabbed his arm. “Comparing your strength with the tempering machine, the difference is too great.”

He flung his arm to the side!

Wang Lie lost control of his body and flew off-stage, smashing with a putong. 

The entire venue was instantly silent…