Eagle San's hands felt numb, his entire arm trembling, and he could barely hold the five-foot-long broadsword steady.
He gritted his teeth and held on, managing not to fall, but his face was filled with shock.
As the saying goes, an expert's move reveals their skill. Despite his reluctance to believe it, Eagle San knew that the short-haired youth before him, in his early twenties, was a formidable master.
The many disciples of Jiangdong Pavilion around them were also stunned, their mouths agape in disbelief.
"What just happened? That kid surnamed Xiao just flicked Eagle San's broadsword away with a single flick. How is that even possible?"
"What's so unbelievable about that? I heard that back at the gambling house, this kid surnamed Xiao used just two fingers to catch Tu Sandao's quick blade. Thinking about it now, this guy surnamed Xiao's skills are probably truly extraordinary!"
It wasn't just the ordinary disciples of Jiangdong Pavilion who were discussing, but even the great protectors below the stage wore grave expressions.
Xiao Yunlong's expression remained calm. He glanced at Eagle San and said indifferently, "You can still concede now!"
"Concede? I will never concede in this lifetime! That was just me being careless. Do you really think I'd lose to a brat like you?"
Eagle San let out a cold snort, channeled his internal energy, and forcefully lifted his broadsword, charging at Xiao Yunlong again.
But suddenly, with a loud bang!
Xiao Yunlong had suddenly moved like lightning and punched Eagle San in the abdomen.
Accompanied by a cry of pain, Eagle San flew back in a straight line and crashed heavily against the edge of the ring.
Finally, he rolled off the stage and, after spitting out a mouthful of blood, passed out on the spot.
A wave of uproar erupted from the crowd.
Xiao Yunlong simply clapped his hands and sneered, "With just this little ability, you wanted my life? Truly overestimating yourself!"
With that, he walked off the stage.
At this moment, the gazes of the people from Jiangdong Pavilion below the stage finally changed.
"One move, he defeated Boss Eagle San in just one move! This kid surnamed Xiao is too strong!"
"Yes, although Eagle San isn't the strongest among the five protectors, he's not weak either. From this, it seems likely that this guy surnamed Xiao will enter the top three, or even win this championship!"
Meanwhile, at the main seat of the high platform, the Pavilion Master of Jiangdong Pavilion calmly asked the two withered Zen elders, "How is it, esteemed elders? Can you see it now?"
"Naturally, we can. When he moved his dantian's energy, how could it escape our discerning eyes!"
The withered Zen elder on the left smiled faintly, then continued, "A Martial King at the Three Flowers Gathering stage. Although the opponent is trying his best to conceal the energy of the three flowers above his head, we still captured it. It is truly the Three Flowers Gathering stage. Eagle San is merely a Grandmaster of Hua Jin, so naturally, he wouldn't be his opponent!"
The Pavilion Master of Jiangdong Pavilion sighed, "I never imagined that this young man, not even twenty-five years old, would already be at the Three Flowers Gathering Martial King realm. His martial talent is truly terrifying!"
The withered Zen elder on the right smiled faintly and said, "Pavilion Master, rest assured. This Xiao kid should have only recently broken through to the Three Flowers Gathering stage. With us two here, he won't be able to cause much trouble!"
"With your assurance, esteemed elders, I can be at ease!" The Pavilion Master of Jiangdong Pavilion nodded slightly.
As Xiao Yunlong stepped off the stage, the second match began, with Boss Gao and the bearded protector as the combatants.
Boss Gao, with his prominent cheekbones, seemed to practice a whip-leg martial art. His whip legs swept forward like layers of immense waves, completely catching the bearded protector by surprise. It appeared that this whip-leg martial art was something Boss Gao had deliberately hidden, only revealing it in this championship.
Without any suspense, the bearded protector was defeated. Boss Gao stood triumphantly on the stage, and as he walked off, he couldn't resist casting a provocative glance at Xiao Yunlong.
Xiao Yunlong merely smiled faintly in response and then asked Jun Bufan beside him, "If you were to face this guy surnamed Gao, would you be confident of winning?"
Jun Bufan shook his head and said with a wry smile, "His whip legs are too powerful. Even if I used my agile footwork to evade, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to cope. However, if you give me another three months, I will definitely be able to contend with him or even defeat him!"
"Three months isn't too long!" Xiao Yunlong nodded slightly.
Next, the third match began. The remaining two were special reinforcements invited by the two protectors of Jiangdong Pavilion.
To everyone's surprise, as the two stepped onto the stage and were about to engage, one of them suddenly collapsed without warning, spitting white foam from his mouth and convulsing uncontrollably.
"What's going on?" Liu Ruyan asked, confused.
Xiao Yunlong smiled faintly, "He's been poisoned!"
"Poisoned? Could it be that his opponent poisoned him?"
"Yes, I didn't expect that guy to be a master poisoner. From stepping onto the stage to the opponent falling, it only took about ten seconds. To succeed in poisoning within such a short time, and to do it so tracelessly, this person's poison skills are extraordinary."
Xiao Yunlong narrowed his eyes and looked at the foreign man in the azure robe on the stage, clearly showing a hint of surprise even for him.
Liu Ruyan couldn't help but ask, "I really can't figure out how that blue-robed man administered the poison. Yunlong, did you see it?"
"The air," Xiao Yunlong said with a light smile.
"The air?" Not only Liu Ruyan, but even Jun Bufan, Buddha, and the others were puzzled.
Xiao Yunlong explained, "This person's control over his energy has reached a terrifying level. In fact, when he stepped onto the stage earlier, he used his own energy to subtly wrap around the poisonous gas like a fine thread and delivered it to his opponent."
"This... this is too terrifying. Silently delivering poisonous gas to the opponent through his own energy, just how terrifyingly meticulous is his control over energy!" Liu Ruyan sighed deeply.
Xiao Yunlong nodded slightly and smiled, "This person is indeed skilled, but although his control over energy is meticulous, it's also because he's been immersed in this path for so long that he's neglected the cultivation of internal force, so his internal force is not robust."
Jun Bufan immediately asked, "I suddenly remembered something Big Brother said before: obsessing over technique while neglecting the fundamentals. This is a mistake many martial artists in our Dragon Country make. Is the blue-robed person on the stage also like this?"
"Precisely. Technique is not unimportant, but if one obsesses over it too much, constantly pursuing the path of cleverness, it becomes abandoning the root for the branches." Xiao Yunlong said seriously.
Jun Bufan nodded and said, "When one cultivates to the Grandmaster of Hua Jin stage, they can usually hold their breath, at least for more than five minutes. So, as long as they guard against it, hold their breath in advance, and resolve the battle within a few minutes, then this kind of poisoning would be useless."
"Exactly." Xiao Yunlong smiled faintly, then added, "However, if my guess is correct, in addition to using poison, this person who has honed his energy so meticulously should also be skilled in using hidden weapons!"
Just then, the participant who had fallen and was spitting white foam mumbled, "I concede, I concede! The antidote... give me the antidote!"
The crowd below was in an uproar, but the blue-robed man remained indifferent, as if he heard nothing.
Only when the Pavilion Master of Jiangdong Pavilion spoke from the main seat of the high platform did he say, "Give him the antidote. If he dies, you've broken the rules, and you'll die too!"
Upon hearing this, the blue-robed man was startled and, not daring to hesitate any further, quickly rushed over and stuffed an antidote pill into the other's mouth.
Soon, the fallen participant stopped spitting white foam and trembling. It seemed the poisoning had stabilized.
Thus, the first round of the championship matches concluded. The three winners were Xiao Yunlong, Boss Gao, and the blue-robed man.
Of course, this didn't mean the three had advanced to the top three, as there was still a revival challenge match.
Simply put, the three who failed in the first round could challenge the three winners. The challenged could not refuse. If there were multiple challengers, the challenged could choose one challenger as their opponent.
Xiao Yunlong gave an example: in the revival challenge match, besides Eagle San, whom he had defeated earlier, the remaining bearded man and the person who was poisoned could both challenge him. Xiao Yunlong could not refuse and could only choose one of them as his opponent!
As soon as the revival challenge match was announced to begin, the bearded protector, who had been defeated by Boss Gao earlier, was the first to step forward and say, "I want to challenge Xiao Yunlong, I want to challenge him!"
At this moment, the thin and tall guy who was poisoned had also recovered slightly. He gritted his teeth and said, "I'm not convinced either. I was inexplicably poisoned and lost without even making a move. I lost so frustratingly. I also want to challenge Xiao Yunlong!"
"Hey Xiao, if you have the guts, choose me!" the bearded protector gritted out.
"Choose me, choose me! Hey Xiao, I guarantee I won't beat you to death!" shouted the thin and tall guy in the black martial arts attire.
The host then looked at Xiao Yunlong and said, "Mr. Xiao, according to the custom of the championship, you cannot refuse the challenge and must choose one of the two. Please make your choice!"
Xiao Yunlong asked, "Before I make my choice, I'd like to ask a question."
"Please do," the host nodded slightly.
"Does the championship have any regulations regarding choosing both of them simultaneously?" Xiao Yunlong asked.
"Choosing both at the same time? There's no such rule in the tournament system." The host was stunned for a moment before replying.
Xiao Yunlong smiled slightly, "Since there are no such regulations, then you don't need to argue. Come at me together!"
"What did you say? Come at you together? Are you saying you want to fight us both?" The bearded protector's eyes widened.
"You're truly an audacious young man. I admit you're strong, but to want to fight both of us with just you, you're seeking death!"
The thin and tall man in the black martial arts attire gritted his teeth and shouted coldly.
The host frowned and said, "Mr. Xiao can indeed fight both of them, but there's a question: if you lose, which of them will advance?"
"With these two, let alone defeating me, if they can touch the corner of my clothes, then I've lost!"
Xiao Yunlong said, not wanting to waste any more time, and immediately strode onto the stage.
"Damn it, this kid is unbelievably arrogant! If I don't take him down today, then these past ten-plus years of my life in the martial world have been for nothing! Let's go! After we defeat this kid, we can fight each other again!"
The bearded protector was furious, gritted his teeth, and leaped onto the stage.
"Alright, since this kid surnamed Xiao is seeking death, I'll fulfill his wish!" the thin and tall elder said, and he also leaped onto the stage.
Only then did Xiao Yunlong slowly walk onto the stage.
As the host announced the start, the previously noisy scene immediately fell silent. Everyone held their breath and looked up.
Clearly, everyone present was very curious as to which side would win this battle of one against two!
At this moment, the withered Zen elder on the left of the high platform's main seat muttered to himself, "The Three Flowers Gathering Martial King realm cannot contend with a Grandmaster of Hua Jin. It doesn't matter how many come, let alone just two."
"If nothing unexpected happens, this Xiao Yunlong kid should win the championship. It looks like I need to prepare the victory banquet in advance!" the Pavilion Master of Jiangdong Pavilion chuckled.
On the stage, the bearded protector stopped wasting words, clenched his fist, and immediately lunged at Xiao Yunlong like a tiger or leopard.
The thin and tall elder on the right flicked his wrist, and a steel whip swept towards Xiao Yunlong like a flowing ribbon.
"Petty tricks!" Xiao Yunlong sneered, closed the distance, and met the bearded protector head-on, throwing a punch.
Fist met fist!
With a loud bang, the bearded protector was sent flying back like a kite with a broken string, directly off the stage. Judging by the sound of the collision, his entire arm had likely suffered a comminuted fracture.
Then, Xiao Yunlong turned around like lightning. The flowing ribbon-like steel whip had just swept out when he was already in front of the thin and tall elder.
Another punch was thrown, and the thin and tall elder, without any suspense, clutched his stomach and fell to the ground like a shrimp, completely losing his fighting ability.
A deathly silence fell upon the crowd. Everyone's mouths hung open, their faces once again filled with utter shock.
"He... he won again! So strong! This guy surnamed Xiao, he's truly so strong!"
"He's successfully entered the top three! This means that according to the prior agreement, he can officially take over the territory and forces of Boss An and Tu Sandao. This also means he will be one of us Jiangdong Pavilion members from now on, and his position will be at least that of a protector!"
At this moment, the host, holding a microphone, also said, "Congratulations, Mr. Xiao. Congratulations on successfully entering the top three. From today onwards, you are one of the six protectors of our Jiangdong Pavilion."
Xiao Yunlong's expression remained unchanged. He asked indifferently, "For the subsequent championship matches, do we still need to draw lots and fight the other two in turn?"
"According to the tournament rules, that's indeed the case, until the champion is decided!" the host nodded.
"No need for such trouble. Let them both come at me. It's already noon, and I'm getting hungry. Let's finish quickly so I can go have lunch!" Xiao Yunlong said calmly.
The host was stunned and didn't know how to respond for a moment.
Boss Gao could no longer sit still. He coldly snorted, "Hey Xiao, don't think you're invincible just because you defeated those two in a one-on-two fight. You still want to fight both of us? You really don't take me seriously!"
The blue-robed man, skilled in poison, also snorted coldly, "You're truly too arrogant. Kid, you think you're something just because you have some martial talent and act so presumptuously. I've seen many like you, but the grass on their graves is already three meters high!"
Xiao Yunlong pointed at the two and said word by word, "Don't waste my time. Hurry up and come up. With your caliber, if you can touch the corner of my clothes, then I lose!"
"Damn it! In that case, I'll destroy you today!" Boss Gao could no longer tolerate it and leaped onto the stage.
The blue-robed man also stopped talking nonsense. He tapped his foot and leaped up as if he were a spring from dry land.