Though his mouth spoke words of dissuasion, his heart was already stirred.
Regardless, Li Daoqiang was truly greedy for wealth and lust, and he walked a different path from the Song Kingdom and orthodox sects like the Quanzhen Sect.
He was absolutely someone worth trying to win over.
If he could truly take this chance to gauge Li Daoqiang's real strength, from every angle, the benefits outweighed the risks.
As for Wang Chongyang and the other two...
After a moment's thought, he didn't worry much.
The purpose here was to dampen the Hero Conference's morale, flaunt the Great Yuan's martial might, and test the waters.
Letting Bi Xuan duel Li Daoqiang wouldn't have much impact.
The more he thought, the more Si Hanfei's heart stirred. Li Daoqiang's two simple moves earlier had left a profound impression on him.
Without clarifying that kind of power, he couldn't rest easy.
If he truly missed a powerhouse with immense strength and great potential, he'd be even more unsettled.
Of course, none of this showed on his face. His expression remained solemn and slightly helpless as he said, "Both of you are my friends—why must it come to this?"
"Brother Si," Li Daoqiang said, his smile still in place but his tone turning somber, "If I don't show my worth at this point, would I still have the face to discuss this deal with you?"
Inwardly, he sneered. Si Hanfei was tempted.
Then, his eyes blazed with fighting intent as he fixed his gaze on Bi Xuan.
Bi Xuan gave Si Hanfei a deep look, catching on as well.
If Si Hanfei truly wanted to stop this, his reaction wouldn't be so mild.
He wants me to probe Li Daoqiang's real strength?
A flicker of retreat rose in his heart.
He hadn't come here to be Si Hanfei's pawn so easily.
But Li Daoqiang's fighting spirit—picking the softest persimmon to provoke—and his own pride wouldn't let him back down.
For a moment, he was caught in a dilemma.
And growing more uncertain.
What exactly did Li Daoqiang want?
Provoking me like this, seeking a fight—was it really just to showcase his own strength and value?
Even so, in this situation, he had to seriously weigh his options.
As he pondered, he responded with a cold, aloof gaze.
Proud, calm, fearless.
Wang Chongyang and the other two stayed silent, watching coldly.
A silent understanding passed between them with a glance.
The current situation favored them; no need to interfere.
"Brother Bi, shall we give it a try?" Li Daoqiang's smile faded, his tone turning colder, firm and unyielding.
A faint aura rose from him, pressing down until the void around him seemed to groan.
Bi Xuan's eyes sharpened. With Li Daoqiang issuing such a direct challenge, there was no backing down now.
Then let's fight. Let's see if I'm truly the soft persimmon.
Decision made, he hesitated no longer. A blazing fighting spirit surged in his eyes, and he spat out two words, cold and proud: "Come, fight."
"Boom!"
His own aura erupted, pushing everything back, standing in the void like a demon god.
Si Hanfei, Wang Chongyang, and the others watched as the two were about to clash in a great battle in an instant.
Their minds raced.
"Brother Bi, Brother Li... ah." Si Hanfei sighed softly, a hint of helplessness in his voice. While keeping an eye on Wang Chongyang and the other two, he retreated with the Carefree King.
Wang Chongyang exchanged glances with the other two.
He said meaningfully, "Brother Li, if you have any requests, just speak plainly."
Then he, Zhuge Zhengwo, and the Holy Monk stepped back.
Seeing the others retreat, Li Daoqiang and Bi Xuan simultaneously heightened their power. Rolling auras shot into the sky, colliding fiercely.
"Boom!"
A golden light and a crimson light, like two vast seas, came suddenly and clashed even more suddenly.
The terrifying, abrupt collision was earth-shattering.
For miles around, the sky darkened.
Rolling shockwaves, like enraged tides, howled in every direction.
In an instant, all the grandmasters around the arena felt their hearts tremble.
Their faces changed drastically as they looked toward the same spot.
Ouyang Feng and Hong Qigong stopped their fight, their faces equally shocked as they looked on.
A battle of peerless experts!
And it was Li Daoqiang and Bi Xuan!
Every grandmaster was stunned and puzzled.
Then they stared intently, not missing a moment.
Soon, many innate masters vaguely saw the anomaly—a golden and a crimson light churning the boundless clouds.
"It's Li Daoqiang and Bi Xuan—how did they start fighting!"
"A battle of peerless experts is actually happening! And it's Li Daoqiang and Bi Xuan!"
"Could it be because of Ouyang Feng?"
"To witness a battle of peerless experts with my own eyes—this trip was worth it."
"Li Daoqiang or Bi Xuan—who will come out on top?"
"Definitely Li Daoqiang. He's almost unbelievably strong."
"Bi Xuan is the top expert of the Jin Kingdom, known as the Martial Lord, a peerless expert famous for decades. He might not lose."
......
......
As the commotion grew, more and more people saw it.
Soon, the area around the arena erupted into chaos.
"Mom, Li Daoqiang and Bi Xuan are fighting! What's happening?" Guo Fu tugged nervously at Huang Rong's sleeve, straining to look in that direction, but her strength wasn't enough to see much detail.
Huang Rong's jade-like face was solemn as she stared intently, saying sternly, "Fu'er, don't fuss."
Inside the Lu family manor, Yang Guo watched with a fiery gaze, filled with longing, passion, and a hint of resentment.
Without blinking, he said, "Aunt, let's watch this peerless battle first. A clash between peerless experts is a rare sight in the world."
Xiao Longnu saw Yang Guo's expression and felt a pang of pain, understanding.
Guo'er still can't forget the outside world!
Huanhuan and the other two stood frozen, wide-eyed, watching nervously.
"Li Daoqiang is actually fighting Bi Xuan! Huanhuan, should we take this chance to leave?" Wen Caiting couldn't help but say after her shock.
Bian Bufu's gaze flickered with fear, hesitant.
Huanhuan's beautiful eyes showed a moment of hesitation. Remembering the warning from earlier, she gritted her teeth. "Let's watch a bit more."
"Yes, let's watch a bit more," Bian Bufu chimed in.
In another grove.
Ding Chunqiu and the others exchanged glances, never expecting their big boss to suddenly fight the Martial Lord Bi Xuan.
All sorts of thoughts arose.
They watched intently, their eyes gleaming with sharp light.
At the center of countless gazes.
The golden and crimson lights grew brighter and more dazzling.
Gradually, they dyed the sky, rapidly and fiercely claiming every corner.
Two vast, ocean-like forces were vying for the spiritual energy of the surrounding heavens, neither yielding an inch.
For miles, tens of miles, hundreds of miles...
Winds surged and clouds rolled. The empty void, like water, began to boil.
Endless spiritual energy was seized and drawn into their bodies by force.
As if the moment was right, they both struck.
Bi Xuan thrust his spear. The spear shot out, as if half the heavens followed, so heavy that space seemed to collapse.
Boundless heat rose without reason, instantly evaporating every trace of moisture in the void.
The spear seemed slow, but in the blink of an eye, it had crossed half the distance.
And a palm arrived at the same time.
It was an unremarkable palm, yet one look told you it was filled with power.
Glowing with golden light, the space before it collapsed under its terrifying force.
"Boom!"
The spear and palm met without any flourish.
A terrifying wave of power erupted, warping space. The brilliant light seemed to outshine the sun for a moment.
Before countless onlookers could even marvel, as if the warm-up was over, Bi Xuan moved like thunder.
His towering form seemed to hold up the sky and earth, like a demon god commanding the grasslands. Oceanic power surged to its peak.
The indestructible spear, with the might to shatter all, thrust at Li Daoqiang.
Endless heat rose, and the spiritual energy and void for miles around truly boiled.
From afar, a group of grandmasters and everyone else seemed to see a great sun appear, extending a claw that could tear mountains and sever rivers.
Li Daoqiang inwardly praised. After a simple probe, realizing his power might fall short, Bi Xuan immediately seized the initiative, unleashing the full, unstoppable, explosive might of his Blazing Sun Art.
In that moment, Bi Xuan cast aside all hesitation and calculation.
Fighting for the sake of fighting.
That decisiveness, that pure devotion to the martial path—he truly deserved the title Martial Lord.
Praising inwardly, Li Daoqiang's palm moved without delay.
A surge of fighting spirit rose in his heart, and the power of Dragon-Elephant Jiangyang flowed.
Facing the sharp, heavy, and fierce spear, he had no thought of retreat.
He raised his right palm and met it head-on.
"Boom!"
Palm and spear clashed, like thunder exploding out of nowhere, unleashing endless devastation.
The indestructible, scorching heat and the faint, all-pushing momentum seemed to make the world around them shake.
At that moment, Si Hanfei and the others tensed up, their faces grim.
Not daring, not even thinking, to be careless.
In the distance, everyone who could see felt as if a breath was caught in their throats, unable to contain their tension.
Before they could think further.
It seemed slow—every move clear to see—the spear and palm withdrew and clashed again.
But then, several thunderous explosions rang out in the void, the shockwaves sweeping everything.
After that, the spear and palm stopped moving, pressed together.
Only true experts realized they weren't still.
They were moving too fast, so fast it seemed like they weren't.
In an instant, the spear struck thirteen times, and the palm countered thirteen times.
No pause, no recovery.
Every strike was at full power.
The spiritual energy for miles around was drained in a single breath.
With each clash, those who saw it felt their tension mount, a breath stuck in their noses and mouths, unable to exhale.
A wordless, chilling dread invaded them, leaving some feeling powerless.
The dazzling light grew brighter and more blinding, obscuring everything, including the two figures.
But the clash continued, the breath growing heavier and higher, seemingly without limit. The surrounding heavens seemed to swell with that breath, ready to burst at any moment.
The fourteenth strike, the fifteenth, the sixteenth—
Suddenly, Li Daoqiang's eyes blazed.
Found it.
His pupils widened, like a lion awakening, a dragon raising its head. That breath exploded.
"Roar~!"
(Chapter 1, please support.)
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