Chapter 759: Tit for Tat

The reason Celestial Drum City was so named was twofold.

It was not only because the powerhouse who founded this faction was named Zhan Tiangu, but also because Celestial Drum City possessed a city-guarding Divine Soldier: the Zhan Tiangu!

Legend had it…

Years ago, Zhan Tiangu stood before an army of tens of thousands, wielding the Divine Soldier, the Zhan Tiangu.

He struck the Celestial Drum with a mighty blow.

The vast sound waves flattened the land for ten thousand li and annihilated the entire army!

Among them were two masters at the Domain Ninth Refining Level!

Therefore.

After founding Celestial Drum City, Ancestor Zhan Tiangu erected a replica of the Celestial Drum outside the city.

If a master could strike the Celestial Drum ten times, they would receive a Pardon Order. The holder of this order, as long as they hadn’t committed acts that endangered Celestial Drum City, could be pardoned once for any crime.

However…

The Celestial Drum had stood there for tens of thousands of years, and those who managed to strike it ten times were few and far between.

Over time.

The matter of the ten-strike Pardon Order for this Celestial Drum was gradually forgotten. Instead, it became a way for the powerhouses at the tail end of the Holy Sanctuary Mountain Range to compete and test each other’s talent!

The entire Celestial Drum was three thousand meters tall.

Its circular drumhead was said to be made from the hide of an Ancient Exotic Beast Taotie at the Domain Ninth Refinement, and coiled around the drum was the corpse of an Emperor Realm Perfection Level Demon Flood Dragon that had been on the verge of transforming into a true dragon. The entire drum was majestic and solemn, covered in strange patterns that were unsettling to behold.

“The real Zhan Tiangu is a Divine-tier Profound Weapon, while this replica is Saint Tier Advanced.” Sima Lingkong looked at Jiang Chen and the others, his expression grave, and said apologetically, “I’m sorry, everyone. It’s my fault you’ve all been dragged into this.”

“It’s nothing!”

“I couldn’t stand that Beishan Jing either!”

“Later, let’s not hold anything back. We have to screw them over!”

Jiang Chen and the others said with a laugh.

Sima Lingkong clenched his fists, his face filled with emotion.

Beishan Jing had a smug look on his face. With his arms crossed, he swept a disdainful gaze over Jiang Chen and his group. “Who among you is going first?”

“Each side will send out eight people. Let’s take turns!” Sima Lingkong said.

Beishan Jing shrugged. “I don’t care. You’re going to lose in the end anyway!” As he spoke, he jutted his chin at Sima Lingkong. “You can go first!”

After a brief discussion, they decided on the order.

From weakest to strongest!

Gai Shi stepped forward. “I’ll try first!”

“Late-stage Emperor Realm? Tsk, sending out someone with that kind of strength… It seems Coastal City really has no one left!” Beishan Jing said contemptuously.

Gai Shi snorted coldly.

He walked to the left of the Celestial Drum, where there was a massive pillar a thousand meters high and over a hundred meters in diameter. A metallic dragon pattern ran along the pillar, emitting a faint, cold light. This was the mallet used to strike the Celestial Drum.

“That drum mallet has a Restriction on it. An expert at the Early Stage of the Emperor Realm can barely move it. This guy, Gai Shi, he probably can’t even get a single strike, can he?”

“I’d say it’s already impressive if he can lift the mallet at all!”

The people from Beishan City jeered.

Anger flooded Gai Shi’s face, his eyes spitting fire. He wrapped his hands around the drum mallet and, with a great roar, let out a loud BOOM. He pulled the mallet up. It was so heavy he nearly fell backward. His footsteps thudded against the ground—DONG DONG DONG—cracking the earth and leaving deep footprints.

After struggling to steady himself, Gai Shi’s muscles bulged to their limit, veins popping on his skin. He let out another furious roar and swung the mallet toward the Celestial Drum.

DONG!

A massive boom echoed throughout Celestial Drum City.

At that moment.

Experts both inside and outside Celestial Drum City had their attention drawn. “What’s going on? Is someone striking the Heaven-Beating Drum?”

“Let’s go check it out!”

“It’s been hundreds of years since anyone struck the Heaven-Beating Drum. I wonder how many times it will sound this time?”

One by one, the experts began to converge on the city gate.

Sima Qingtian, who was in the middle of registering to enter the city, was taken aback. He frowned. “Someone is actually striking the Heaven-Beating Drum?”

The City Lord of Beishan City, North Mountain Bear, gave a faint smile. “The Holy War is imminent. The geniuses from the third-class factions under Celestial Drum City are all gathering here. It’s understandable that someone would want to test their talent and make a name for themselves. As for your Coastal City, not a single person from there made it into the top ten million in the last Holy War. I doubt any of you would dare to strike the Heaven-Beating Drum!”

“Hmph!”

Sima Qingtian snorted. “Your Beishan City isn’t much better than us!”

North Mountain Bear grinned, looking smug. “My eldest son has been accepted as a subordinate to Lord Qin and is currently breaking through to the Domain Fourth Refinement. Forget the top ten million—his goal this time is to break into the top one hundred thousand!”

Sima Qingtian’s expression darkened slightly, and he turned to leave.

North Mountain Bear followed after him.

「A short while later…」

The two of them arrived at the location of the Celestial Drum. They saw Gai Shi, who had tossed the mallet aside and was sitting on the ground, panting heavily.

Sima Qingtian’s eyes widened. “Holy shit, why is it this kid?”

“What’s going on here?” North Mountain Bear asked as he spotted Beishan Jing.

Beishan Jing immediately told North Mountain Bear the whole story from beginning to end.

North Mountain Bear frowned, a harsh glint in his eyes. He said in a low voice, “Since the dispute has already started, all of you brats better give it your all. Crush Coastal City for me, suppress them completely!”

“Don’t worry, Father!” Beishan Jing said confidently. He then called an Emperor Realm Perfection expert to the stage. “This is Zheng Chong,” he announced proudly. “He has Innate Divine Strength. He can strike it at least twice!”

Zheng Chong had a burly physique.

He was built like an ox.

He swung the mallet, striking it fiercely with all his might, and managed two chimes.

Coastal City’s side then sent up Sima Luohua…

One expert after another took the stage.

Sima Luohua managed one strike, Nangong Weiwo three, Dongfang Qinglong three, and Yao Yueye also three. Yiluo managed four strikes. Then, Sima Lingkong took the stage with a solemn expression. He struck it five times at the cost of sustaining heavy injuries. So far, Coastal City had accumulated a total of twenty-three strikes.

As for the experts from Beishan City, they had struck a total of twenty-five times.

Beishan Jing looked smugly at Sima Lingkong and said with a grin, “Sima Lingkong, we’re leading by two strikes now. Looks like you’re going to lose this time!”

“Hmph, it’s not over yet. It’s a bit too early for you to be declaring victory!” Sima Lingkong said, his expression ugly.

Although they still had Jiang Chen on their side.

But…

‘Even though Jiang Chen is stronger than me,’ Sima Lingkong thought, ‘he could probably strike it six times at most—seven, if he pushed his absolute limit. Their opponent, Beishan Jing, is about on par with me. Under these circumstances, as long as Beishan Jing manages five or more strikes, victory will be in his grasp!’

Beishan Jing looked at Jiang Chen, a corner of his mouth twitching as he said flatly, “Kid, it’s your turn!”

Jiang Chen shrugged and walked up.

Seeing his slender frame, the crowd sneered. “This kid? The absolute most he’ll get is four strikes!”

“I bet three at most!”

“Either way, we’ve already won!”

The people from Beishan City were full of confidence.

Gai Shi’s face flushed red. “What are you so smug about? When my boss makes his move, all you’ll be able to do is despair!”

“Young Master Jiang will definitely win!”

Dongfang Qinglong nodded, speaking with the gravity of an old man. “Ditto!”

The two sides were locked in a tense standoff, their words like daggers.

But Jiang Chen, as if he were a mere bystander, looked completely relaxed. He hummed a little tune as he walked toward the massive drum mallet…

[Author’s Note: Taking a day off today to adjust. The upcoming Holy War plot is very important, so I need to properly organize my thoughts. Please forgive me!]