Chapter 565 - 555: Enormous Penalty

Chapter 565: Chapter 555: Enormous Penalty

Before they even had a moment to be confused, Mu Chen’s figure weaved through the crowd like lightning, accompanied by a series of pained cries. One by one, the White Camp students were sent flying amidst the rhythmic thuds of impact, landing in their rest area. After a few groans, they fell unconscious.

In just ten seconds, the once jam-packed alleyway now held only five people: the blonde-haired Elder Lei, his eyes bulging and his expression dazed; the stupefied Yun Yue and Yueyun sisters; and Mu Chen, who stood calmly in place, dusting off his hands. As for Mu Junwu and Chu Aoqing, they were standing outside the alley, looking at Mu Chen with rather odd expressions.

A moment later, the two women from the Black Camp, Yun Yue and Yueyun, finally snapped out of their stupor. The hot-tempered older sister, Yun Yue, stared at Mu Chen in shock and muttered, "What... what just happened?"

Yueyun shook her head, her eyes vacant. They had been watching the entire fight from the sidelines. Compared to those involved, their perspective should have been clearer. But in those brief ten seconds, aside from the figures being sent flying out one after another, they hadn’t been able to perceive Mu Chen’s movements at all. And among those nineteen people, at least three were Eighth-Ring Martial Emperors, while the rest were Sixth-Ring Martial Emperors at the minimum.

’To single-handedly defeat over a dozen mid- to high-level Martial Emperors in an instant without even revealing his Martial Arts Realm! Such strength... unless he’s a Martial Venerable!! But why would a Martial Venerable sign up for a camp battle? That doesn’t make any sense. Calamity! Who is he?!’

"Whew... Hitting people feels much better," Mu Chen smiled and said casually.

Hearing this, Mu Junwu and Chu Aoqing both rolled their eyes. It was true. For the past three months, all of Mu Chen’s training had been shadowboxing; hitting the air was nowhere near as satisfying as a real fight. However, judging from the combat prowess Mu Chen had just displayed, probably no one short of a Ninth-Ring Martial Emperor could withstand a single blow from him.

This deduction was spot on. When he was a First-Ring Martial Sect, Mu Chen’s Tier Jumping limit was a Fifth-Ring Martial Emperor. Now that he was a Seventh-Ring Martial Sect, his strength had improved by leaps and bounds, yet his Tier Jumping range had only increased by three rings compared to when he was a First-Ring Martial Sect. Following this pattern, Mu Chen’s Tier Jumping Ability would gradually decrease in the future, eventually aligning with his own realm.

Sighing, Chu Aoqing said, "Twenty people... two hundred days’ worth of Cultivation Resources. Can Mu Chen afford to pay that back?"

Mu Junwu smiled at her words. "Before the fight, Mu Chen already asked Elder Lei. Since he still chose to act without hesitation after learning the punishments would stack, it means he’s absolutely confident he can resolve the penalty."

Chu Aoqing nodded repeatedly. They had spent three months together, and although Mu Chen hadn’t done anything particularly noteworthy, both women were exceptionally intelligent. They could tell just from casual conversation that Mu Chen was a very level-headed person who would never be reckless. Now, they just had to see how he would handle the punishment.

Elder Lei had also recovered from his shock by now. He looked at Mu Chen with a grave expression, took a sharp breath, and asked, "What fighting style was that you just used?"

Mu Chen chuckled. "I can’t tell you that. It’s a personal secret."

Elder Lei retorted irritably, "Even if you don’t tell me, do you think you can hide it from my eyes? That was clearly a fighting style that can only be used by controlling Primordial Power to the absolute limit, unleashing it only at the moment of impact without even revealing your Martial Arts Realm. Am I right?"

Mu Chen grunted in acknowledgment but didn’t elaborate. ’Even Chu Aoqing and Mu Junwu could figure that out, let alone him.’

Seeing Mu Chen’s lack of response, Elder Lei didn’t get angry. He closed his eyes and said, "You’ve had your moment to show off, kid. And while I can see you’re a talent, there are no backdoors to the arena’s rules. I can let the matter of you hitting people slide, but as for the two hundred days of Cultivation Resources... how do you plan on having those deducted?"

At this, Elder Lei snorted. Let alone two hundred days’ worth of Cultivation Resources, even thirty days was far more than any Inner Mountain Student could produce at once. And he had just looked into Mu Chen’s situation—an arena newcomer. It was impossible for him to have that many Cultivation Resources for deduction.

Hearing this, Mu Chen rubbed his nose and said, "I don’t have that much right now, it’s true. But do the rules state that the penalty must be deducted immediately, on the spot?"

Elder Lei was taken aback. He thought for a moment and said, "It’s true there’s no requirement for it to be deducted on the spot, but it must be deducted within the same day. In other words, starting now, you have twenty-four hours to gather two hundred days of Cultivation Resources and transfer them to the arena."

Mu Chen smiled relaxedly upon hearing this. "Twenty-four hours? That’s plenty!"

Elder Lei’s interest was piqued. He laughed, "Quite confident, aren’t you? Well then, I’ll have to watch closely today and see how you manage to gather two hundred days of Cultivation Resources in a single day. If you can’t produce the amount for deduction by then, don’t blame me for sending you to the Holy Punishment Field." With that, Elder Lei snorted again, and his figure flickered and vanished.

’I doubt that Elder Lei is so kind as to just go about his business. He’s probably watching me from somewhere right now.’ Paying no mind to the clamor from the White Camp’s rest area, Mu Chen was lost in thought.

Meanwhile, the sisters Yun Yue and Yueyun slowly walked over to Mu Chen. The hot-tempered older sister, Yun Yue, looked at Mu Chen, struggling to find the words, but then realized she didn’t even know what to call him. After a moment of careful thought, Yun Yue seemed to recall his codename and said nervously, "Calamity, um..."

Mu Chen turned his head at the sound of her voice and saw the two sisters. "What is it?" he asked, puzzled.

Yun Yue lowered her head, hesitated for a moment, then looked up and said, "I’m sorry."

Her apology took Mu Chen by surprise. He reflexively went to rub his nose, then remembered he was wearing a mask. He smiled faintly and said, "Why the sudden apology?"

Yun Yue said, "I shouldn’t have spoken to you in that tone earlier. And not only did you not mind, you even helped us... and... and got yourself such a heavy punishment because of it."

’So that’s what this is about,’ Mu Chen said to himself. He shook his head. "No need to apologize. Anyone would be fuming after waiting for three hours. As for teaching them a lesson, I just can’t stand seeing people act like bullies. Besides, I didn’t want to keep waiting like that either."

Yun Yue felt much better hearing his words, though she also knew this was Mu Chen’s way of telling her he didn’t really care. But when she thought about the heavy penalty, she suddenly asked, "Calamity, how many days of Cultivation Resources do you have on you right now?"

"Cultivation Resources?" Mu Chen’s expression turned odd. The very reason he’d come to the arena was because he had run out of them. Now that she asked, he suddenly remembered he didn’t have a single minute’s worth left. He gave a wry smile. "Uh... I don’t think I have any."

"What?!"

Yun Yue and Yueyun exclaimed in unison, aghast. "You don’t have any Cultivation Resources? Then... then how are they going to deduct the penalty days?"

Thinking of this, Yun Yue suddenly grit her teeth. She extended a delicate, fair hand and brushed it against her other wrist. An exquisite accessory, clearly a woman’s bracelet, appeared in her hand.

The bracelet was a dazzling gold, with a circle of smooth jade stones embedded in the chain. In the very center of the bracelet, a piece of jade about the size of a thumbnail was emitting a soft glow. A number floated in the center of this jade piece, giving it an air of pure luxury.

The moment Yun Yue took off the bracelet, a crisp cracking sound came from within it. Of course, it wasn’t the bracelet that had broken, but the Spiritual Mark inside it.

Seeing the Spiritual Mark was removed, Yun Yue shoved the bracelet into Mu Chen’s hand. "These are our Cultivation Resources. My sister and I worked on a mission for a month to get them. There’s... there’s only fifteen days’ worth inside."

As she said this, the face hidden under Yun Yue’s black mask flushed with embarrassment. Thankfully, the mask hid it, or else the others would have surely seen.

Mu Chen looked at the golden bracelet in his hand and was about to say something, but Yun Yue immediately cut him off. "I know. It’s nowhere near enough to cover your penalty, but we’ll find a way to help you raise the rest."

"Right! My sister and I know some people. We might not be able to gather all two hundred days, but if we’re lucky, we can borrow at least a hundred. For the rest, we’ll go plead with Elder Lei. Wait for us! Sister, let’s go borrow it," the soft-spoken younger sister, Yueyun, said hurriedly.

With that, she grabbed Yun Yue and was about to run out of the alley. But before they had taken two steps, Mu Chen grabbed Yueyun’s other hand. The action made Yueyun jolt and instinctively pull her hand away.

Mu Chen also realized his action was impolite. He waved his hands and said, "Sorry, I didn’t mean to do that."

Yueyun lowered her head, looking even more embarrassed. "No, no, I should be the one apologizing. I overreacted..."

"Uh..." ’These sisters are really quite cute,’ Mu Chen thought. He smiled and said, "Actually, there’s no need to go borrowing. I can get the Cultivation Resources myself."

Yun Yue blinked, then pouted. "Didn’t you just say you didn’t have any Cultivation Resources?"

Mu Chen nodded with complete honesty. "I don’t."

Yun Yue rolled her eyes repeatedly. "Then how are you going to get them?"

"From them, of course."

With a faint, mischievous smile, Mu Chen looked at the students in the White Camp. On the way to the registration desk, Chu Aoqing had explained all the different competition formats in the arena. One of them was perfectly suited for him, and now, he was going to use it to gather the Cultivation Resources for his penalty.

With that thought, Mu Chen turned and walked toward the registration desk, calling out to the registrar, "I’m signing up! I want to participate in the King of the Hill Circuit! I’m applying to be the defender for a fixed set of twenty matches! Codename: Calamity!"