Chapter 046：Fight to Fame

The five battle platforms are located in the center of the drill ground. On each platform, there are eight figures. The main platform is occupied by the Nalan family of the City Lord's Mansion. The eight figures stand on the highest central main battle platform, looking down upon all the rivals. The other four battle platforms are respectively occupied by the Gu family, the Lin family, the Wen family, and the scattered martial forces led by Qiu Lan. 

At this moment, in the direction of Nalan's residence, beside the Lord Nalan Xiong, an elderly man stood up and his gaze fell upon the battle platform. 

"Today's martial contest is to test the prowess of the outstanding young men from all over the city of Yangzhou. Therefore, everyone needn't be overly merciful. If one loses the battle, he can admit defeat and the fight can end. If he refuses to admit defeat, the fight will continue until one side collapses completely. Whether it's life or death is not the concern." 

When the old man finished speaking, a considerable stir was caused among the crowd. He refused to admit defeat, saying that even if it meant sacrificing his life, he would not give in. Such a statement was truly ruthless. 

Some arrogant martial cultivators attach great importance to their dignity and face. They are extremely ashamed of admitting defeat and conceding to the opponent. Therefore, few people would deliberately admit defeat. Even if they are defeated, they will continue to fight on, defending their honor and maintaining their dignity even after defeat. They are proud even when defeated. 

However, the words of the elder had to make those people think twice. This was tantamount to not restricting the fighting. If both sides were evenly matched and neither was willing to admit defeat, it would mean that they would fight to the death, and such a situation would lead to deep-seated hatred. 

"Very astute." Many people murmured in admiration. The old man was clearly speaking on behalf of Nalan Xiong. Doing so would only bring benefits to the Nalan family and no harm. After all, this time it was the Lord Mayor's Mansion of the city that was hosting the event, and those who dared to kill the Lord Mayor of the city from within the Mansion were acting on behalf of the city's Lord Mayor. However, the situation was different for other groups. There was a possibility of a desperate fight breaking out, which could lead to enmity between the two families. 

Nalan Xiong, this is an attempt to stir up conflicts among the other major families by staging a martial contest. Although the leaders of the other three families are well aware of Nalan Xiong's intentions, they can only go along with it. Each of them doesn't want their family to be at the top and be looked up to by other families. Therefore, their instructions to their family members are naturally all geared towards striving for victory. 

Moreover, the elder also said that if one is defeated, they can admit defeat and end the battle. Therefore, this rule seems not to be a problem. They couldn't refute it either. Who would admit that their family disciple is inferior to others? 

"During this tournament, I have obtained the rosters of all the participants. The battle arrangements are all up to me. I wonder if there are any objections from the three of you as the host families." The old man's gaze fell upon the three host families. 

"Ha ha, since it's the arrangement of the Lord Mayor's residence, I naturally agree." Gu Jinglang, the head of the Gu family, said loudly, seemingly not caring at all. 

"Previous tournaments were all presided over by Lord Nalan of Nalan City. This time, of course, it will be the same." Wen Renyan, the head of the Wen family, also spoke up. 

"I have no objection either." Lin Daoba was naturally not going to object either. 

"Then I'll represent Lord Xie of Nalan City and thank the three of you for your hospitality," the old man smiled slightly at the three of them and announced, "In the Battle of Skill Competitions, starting from the first round, it's a knockout match. The losers are eliminated and the winners advance." 

"Now I shall announce the contestants. Those who have been called will proceed to the arena, while others should wait below the arena. The main arena: Nalan Family vs Wen Family, Nalan Feng against Wen Xin; East arena: Gu Family vs Lin Family, Gu Yun against Lin Wu; South arena: Lin Family vs Wen Family, Lin Yu against Wen Feng; West arena: Nalan Family vs Feng Family, Nalan Zhi against Feng Gen; North arena: Douming, the Assassin, vs Gu Family, Gu Qing." 

There are five battle platforms. Each platform can accommodate ten or forty players. With just four rounds of battles, the competition can be concluded. Half of the players will be eliminated, leaving twenty players remaining. 

Those who were not called by name all walked off the stage, while the ten people whose names were called stepped onto their own stages. 

"Ha ha, Wen Xin of the Wen family is really unlucky. She met Nalan Feng in the first round and was eliminated despite her not being a weak opponent. " 

"Heard that Lin Wu from the Lin family is quite powerful. He has already reached the ninth stage of the cultivation in the realm of Qi and Martial Arts. It seems that he is the one who will undoubtedly win the East Arena Battle." 

"South Battle Platform should be Wan Feng Sheng's, while West Battle Platform belongs to Feng Gan Sheng. As for the final North Battle Platform, although that one was extremely mysterious and wore a mask, he was defeated by Gu Qing. There was no chance for him to win at all." 

The battle has not yet begun, but everyone has already determined the outcome of the battle. After all, the crowd knows something about these young and handsome heroes from Yangzhou City on the stage. They are well aware of the disparity in their strength. 

However, the death of Wu Xiu's "Shen Zhi" (a term meaning "the most powerful") at the Battle of Beijiantai did attract the attention of the crowd. Wu Xiu's "Shen Zhi" was wearing a silver mask. The people had never heard of such a thing before. And judging from his appearance, he seemed to have an extraordinary demeanor. Unfortunately, he met Gu Qing. From that moment on, the game was already lost. You see, Gu Qing's strength was at the peak of the Qi-Wu realm. Below the Ling-Wu realm, few people could be his opponents. And a person with no reputation at all in Yangzhou City could naturally not defeat Gu Qing. 

The predictions about the crowd were also quite accurate. Wen Xin, who was facing Nalan Feng in battle, gave up before the actual fight even began. Although face was of great importance, admitting defeat to Nalan Feng was not disgraceful. If one had to fight, it would be considered a lack of courage. 

The two battle platforms on the east and west sides were also gradually determining the victor. As expected by the victors and the crowd, Lin Wu and Wen Feng, and Feng Guan from the west battle platform had completely dominated their opponents, and the battle would soon come to an end. However, the last battle platform in the north had not started yet, and the battle was dragging on for a long time, leaving everyone speechless. 

Especially Gu Qing, this person's eyes were not at all focused on killing this opponent. He regarded the opponent as nothing more than air and his gaze was constantly fixed on the battlefields of the other several groups. He was observing their combat. After all, he would soon enter the next round and naturally needed to get familiar with the strength of others. 

"Regarding Nanlan Feng, I don't think I'll be in a position to compete against her. I hope we won't have to encounter her. Lin Wu and Wen Feng are quite easy to defeat. As for Feng Gan, she seems to have become much stronger than before. But she can still be dealt with. There won't be any problem if we encounter all three of them in the next round." 

Gu Qing murmured to himself in his heart, completely disregarding the deadly creature with the silver mask, and already considering the next round of battle. 

Finally, Feng Gan delivered a decisive blow to his opponent, Nalan Zhu. Nalan Zhu was no longer capable of fighting back and surrendered, conceding defeat. All eyes were focused on the North War Platform. 

"It's over. How quickly it's over!" murmured everyone. It seemed that the first round was coming to an end like this. 

"Gu Qing, don't waste any more time," said Gu Qing's master Gu Qingpeng in a cold and indifferent tone. His voice was arrogant, as if he believed that his own disciples were so powerful that they could easily defeat their opponents at any moment. 

"Yes, Master," Gu Qing replied with a nod. Then he turned his gaze to Lin Feng and said in a cold tone, "Get out of here yourself. I'm too lazy to do it." 

Lin Feng stood with his hands behind his back, wearing a silver mask. Only his eyes and half of his face were exposed, and it was impossible to tell what his expression was like. 

Like Gu Qing, he had also been observing the battle just now. Since the opponent wasn't in a hurry to attack, why should he be in a rush? As for Gu Qing's arrogance, Lin Feng had long been accustomed to seeing how those self-righteous so-called geniuses actually behave. 

"Didn't you hear me? I told you to get out of here. If I were to do it myself, you might not even have the chance to crawl down. I would have killed you right there and then." 

When Gu Qing saw that Lin Feng showed no reaction, he frowned and said, "The several big families here have always looked down upon those so-called wandering cultivators who are considered geniuses. Without the cultivation training of the families, how could they become great talents? Like Lin Feng, this unknown wandering cultivator, he is even more despised by me. Therefore, Gu Qing showed no respect for Lin Feng." 

"Before I change my mind now, get out of here." Lin Feng spat out these words, causing everyone's gazes to freeze for a moment. Then someone snorted and laughed, thinking that this person must be crazy. 

Only those few people who came along with Qiulan did not laugh. Lin Feng seemed very mysterious and powerful in their eyes. Even Wu Xiao was no match for him. 

"Gu Qing, you're just unlucky then." Feng Gan, who had just won the battle, muttered to himself upon seeing the situation here. In his opinion, Gu Qing's actions were suicidal. 

However, at this moment, Gu Qing looked rather displeased. He never expected that someone with no reputation at all would dare to speak to him like that. He was the second person in the Gu family, one of the strongest in the realm of Spirit Martial Arts below the rank of Immortal Martial Arts, and was highly valued by the family. 

"Let him succeed." Gu Qing bellowed, his voice cold and stern, causing everyone's expressions to harden. They all thought that Lin Feng was doomed. Clearly, Gu Qing's intention was to have Gu Qing kill Lin Feng. 

"Alright." Gu Qing heard the anger in the master's voice. His figure flickered and moved at an incredibly fast speed. He didn't even intend to give Lin Feng a chance to admit defeat. 

"Unbridled Fist." Gu Qing roared out, his fist swinging with a fierce momentum. The force of the blow was terrifying beyond measure, as if the very air had been torn apart by his fist's onslaught. 

However, Lin Feng remained as immovable as a mountain. Just as the fierce fists were about to reach his face, the brilliant light overwhelmed everything, and the swordlight descended from the sky.