Chapter 324 - 307: 100,000 Volcanoes

On the tournament stage, the referee’s voice was still echoing through the air when Yann Lengmu’s figure shot toward Chu Yuxiang like a bolt of lightning. Chu Yuxiang was world-renowned for his skill with a Bow and Arrow. The only way to defeat him was to close the distance; otherwise, no matter how powerful an opponent was, they were bound to be struck by his arrows.

Chu Yuxiang had a total of eighteen long arrows. Once he began his attack, it was a relentless barrage. Even the mightiest of foes would fall in bitter defeat under such a continuous assault.

Yann Lengmu’s plan was sound, but he had barely lunged forward twenty feet when Chu Yuxiang, over a hundred feet away, suddenly had a Longbow in his hands. The Longbow was aimed icily at Yann Lengmu. All at once, Yann Lengmu felt as if he were being stared down by a terrifyingly venomous snake. He was suddenly plunged into grave danger, his entire body turning cold, so very cold.

’This is bad! Chu Yuxiang’s arrow has locked onto me!’ Yann Lengmu’s heart pounded in alarm.

Chu Yuxiang was an archer who relied on his aura to lock onto enemies before firing. Being targeted by him meant facing a terrifyingly powerful attack. To continue charging at Chu Yuxiang now would be nothing short of suicide!

WHOOSH! True Qi surged through Yann Lengmu’s body. He stomped his foot hard on the ground, forcing himself to an abrupt halt. At that exact moment, Chu Yuxiang’s aura shot toward him like an arrow. The Longbow in his hand vibrated in a profoundly mysterious way, as if it would release an incomparably sharp arrow in the very next instant.

Yann Lengmu was horrified. He unleashed cascading waves of energy from his Long Sword, forming a tight defense around himself. At the same time, he executed a Body Technique and retreated rapidly, putting more distance between himself and Chu Yuxiang.

TWANG!

Yann Lengmu heard the twang of a bowstring. The instant he heard it, he sensed immense danger. He cried out, his body flying backward in retreat as his Spiritual Power locked onto the space around him, on high alert for Chu Yuxiang’s arrow.

Yann Lengmu was a Martial Arts Ninth-Layer Expert, but his Spiritual Power couldn’t sense any arrow at all. All he could hear was a roar of laughter from below the stage. Glancing at his surroundings, Yann Lengmu finally realized that he had, at some point, retreated completely off the tournament stage!

When he looked up at Chu Yuxiang, he saw him still standing in his original spot, Longbow in hand and a smile on his face. Not one of the eighteen long arrows on his back was missing! It turned out Chu Yuxiang hadn’t fired an arrow at all. He had relied on his sheer, masterful killing intent to create an overwhelming sense of danger and make Yann Lengmu incredibly tense. Finally, the simple sound of Chu Yuxiang plucking his bowstring was enough to make Yann Lengmu jump at shadows, retreating again and again until he was off the stage without even realizing it.

CRACK! Yann Lengmu’s fists clenched, his face flushing red and pale with shame. He had lost this fight before Chu Yuxiang had even made a real move. It was the height of humiliation. If a crack were to open up in the ground, he would have jumped into it without a second thought.

The referee then walked onto the stage and announced, "Chu Yuxiang is the victor!"

ROAR!

The spectators below erupted in excited cheers. Chu Yuxiang had forced a Martial Arts Ninth-Layer expert to retreat from the stage and claim victory, all without firing a single arrow. Such a miraculous technique was a true eye-opener, and the crowd was shaken by his incredible power.

Zhaang Ye sending Fu Songshi flying with a single blow had been shocking enough. But now, Chu Yuxiang had forced a Martial Arts Ninth-Layer expert to retreat without firing a single arrow. This was even more stunning!

"Chu Yuxiang! Chu Yuxiang! Chu Yuxiang!" Below the stage, the Martial Artists of the Great Rong Kingdom chanted his name in unison. The fervent look in their eyes seemed powerful enough to set the world ablaze, and their cheers crashed down in waves, one after another!

In the area reserved for the Wei Kingdom True Hall, Wei Jingtian stared intently at Chu Yuxiang for a moment before remarking with a wry smile, "This Chu Yuxiang... he’s simply divine!"

Xuli Long nodded and added with a wry smile, "His control over his aura has reached the level of Mastery. Under that kind of pressure, Yann Lengmu defeated himself without even having a chance to attack. The man truly is the number one expert of the Six Eastern Countries!"

"The number one expert of the Six Eastern Countries?" Zhaang Ye smiled faintly, a flicker of confidence in his eyes.

The four of them—Wei Jingtian, Xuli Long, Fang Caiying, and Feng Tongming—were all slightly taken aback by Zhaang Ye’s confident expression. Chu Yuxiang’s power was like a deep, dark pool—impossible to fathom. Yet, Zhaang Ye’s power was much the same; the more time they spent with him, the more Wei Jingtian and the others felt how unfathomable he was. What would a battle between two such immeasurable individuals look like? They all began to look forward to finding out.

Just then, a new battle began on the stage. Both combatants fought conventionally, and in the end, an expert from the Celestial Forest Kingdom relied on his superior Cultivation to overpower his opponent and claim victory.

A total of thirty young experts were participating in this warm-up tournament, which was supposed to be divided into fifteen matches. However, Feng Tongming’s Cultivation was only at the Seventh Layer Peak, so she was not qualified to compete. The person who drew her name automatically advanced. As a result, this round only had fourteen matches, and with the end of the fourteenth match, the first part of the newcomer warm-up tournament concluded.

The newcomer warm-up tournament for the Six Eastern Countries was divided into two parts: the first was a series of matches determined by a random draw, and the second was a round of open challenges. As it was already late, the open challenge round would be held the next day.

That night, Zhaang Ye was silently meditating on the Ancient Sword Intent when he suddenly sensed a faint, almost imperceptible fluctuation of Heaven and Earth Essence Qi in the sky above. He immediately called out, "Who’s there? Come down!"

"Oh? I’m surprised you were able to sense my arrival!" No sooner had Zhaang Ye spoken than an elderly voice rang out in the night sky. A moment later, a long-bearded old man descended from above, landing right in front of him.

Upon seeing the old man, Zhaang Ye quickly stood up, bowed respectfully, and said, "Greetings, Eighth Elder."

This uninvited guest, it turned out, was none other than the Eighth Elder of the Wei Kingdom True Hall.

The Eighth Elder waved his hand and stared at Zhaang Ye in astonishment. "You’re quite something, kid! My Cultivation is at the Peak of the Martial Arts Ninth Layer, yet you, a mere Martial Arts Ninth Layer practitioner, actually sensed my approach. It seems your Spiritual Power is truly extraordinary, Zhaang Ye!"

Zhaang Ye smiled faintly. When he had first cultivated Spiritual Power, he had been able to sense everything within a radius of three hundred feet. After his Cultivation rose to the Martial Arts Ninth Layer and he came into contact with both Ancient Sword Intent and Ancient Fist Intent, his Spiritual Power grew progressively stronger. Now, he could detect the slightest disturbance within a radius of ten thousand feet. This ability was on par with that of a Late-stage Martial Arts Ninth-Layer expert, and it was precisely because of this formidable Spiritual Power that Zhaang Ye could so quickly gauge an opponent’s true strength from their aura alone.

The Eighth Elder then said slowly, "Zhaang Ye, I came to find you in the middle of the night to give you a warning. By crippling Fu Songshi today, you have gravely offended the Moon Country True Hall. They won’t dare to do anything to you while you’re inside Great Rong City, but you will be in danger the moment you leave."

"Oh?" Zhaang Ye said. "Are you saying the Moon Country True Hall will send people to assassinate me?"

The Eighth Elder nodded slightly. "It’s highly likely. The Great Hall Master of the Moon Country True Hall, Fu Yuguang, not only has unfathomable Cultivation but is also exceptionally domineering. With Fu Songshi crippled by you, the Ninth Elder, Fu Yibo, will have no way of answering to Fu Yuguang if he doesn’t kill you. Therefore, he will certainly look for an opportunity to strike."

Zhaang Ye’s brow furrowed slightly. Although he had trump cards of his own, a top expert like the Moon Country True Hall’s Ninth Elder, Fu Yibo, was bound to have his own as well. Being targeted by a Peak Martial Arts Ninth-Layer expert like that... even someone as confident and capable as Zhaang Ye felt a massive headache coming on.

Seeing Zhaang Ye frown, the Eighth Elder chuckled. "Don’t worry about it too much. I came to Great Rong City to acquire a few treasures from the Ten Thousand Volcanoes. As soon as I get my hands on them, I’ll be returning to the True Hall immediately. You can come back with me. No matter how powerful Fu Yibo is, he wouldn’t dare make trouble for you then."

Zhaang Ye was delighted. "Then I thank you, Eighth Elder. By the way, I heard someone mention the Ten Thousand Volcanoes recently. What exactly is that place?"

The Eighth Elder had a very good impression of Zhaang Ye. Hearing his question, he chuckled and explained, "To the east of the Great Rong Kingdom, there is a volcanic region spanning millions of square miles. There are too many volcanoes in this area to count, so people call it the Ten Thousand Volcanoes. The Ten Thousand Volcanoes are home to powerful Fierce Beasts like Fire Crows, but they also contain all sorts of treasures, such as Volcanic Jade, Volcanic Essence Gold, Volcano Obsidian, Volcano Pine Resin Stone, and Volcanic Profound Iron. In addition to all these rare metals, the Ten Thousand Volcanoes also contain extremely rare Spiritual Springs. These springs are formed when volcanic eruptions carry Spiritual Qi from deep underground into the water. Cultivating in them allows a Martial Artist to rapidly replenish their True Qi. Oh, and Great Rong City has one such Spiritual Spring. Whoever takes first place in the warm-up tournament gets to cultivate in it for a day."

Zhaang Ye listened in silence, then suddenly asked, "I’ve heard that there are Ancient Space Arrays within the Ten Thousand Volcanoes. Is that true?"

The Eighth Elder chuckled. "Of course, that’s true. It is said that one purpose of these Spatial Arrays is to seal spatial rifts, while another is to contain the Ten Thousand Volcanoes and prevent the subterranean fire from erupting..."

"Ten Thousand Volcanoes... Ancient Space Array..." Zhaang Ye repeated in a murmur. He thought of the map tucked away on his person, and his eyes slowly began to shine. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian.com to vote with Recommendation Tickets and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)