A Shameless Way of Fighting
Even Gu Changsheng wasn't very confident, but he felt it was worth mentioning. If the other party was too arrogant and agreed, he would have gained something.
"It's alright, I don't object to this rule."
Si Ming's unexpected answer filled the members of the Aristocratic Clan with joy, but his next sentence was. "Anyway, I will personally take part in the sixth match."
"Leader!" Kou Feng exclaimed in surprise, as he had assumed he would definitely be scheduled to play in the sixth match.
"I'm tired of this formula: three wins and three losses, resulting in a draw, followed by a final showdown between each team's aces!"
Si Ming slowly walked forward, his gaze sweeping over the members of the Aristocratic Clan, his disdain undisguised. "Having been entangled with a bunch of trash for so long has worn down my patience. I'm not willing to waste any more of my precious time on you. Hurry up and send someone to die; I'll finish you off in one chapter!"
Chapter 361 A Rogue's Fighting Style
Although Si Ming's contempt infuriated the Aristocratic Clan families, there was no eagerness to volunteer for battle. They all seemed to have grasped the principle of "silence is golden," killing with their eyes alone. On one hand, they were so angry that they wanted to bite him, but on the other hand, they were obedient and dared not cross the line.
Si Shuiyun deserves much credit for creating this situation. Although it's obvious to everyone that Shen Wumian Si Shuiyun actually a notch below Shen Wumian in terms of strength, she is still at a level between first-rate and top-tier in the martial arts world. For ordinary martial artists, she is already an unattainable figure. If a mere dowry maid has such astonishing cultivation, then what kind of terrifying existence is Si Ming, the head of a family and the leader of an alliance?
The crowd found it hard to imagine, and dared not test the waters. If they lost the sixth match, there would be no point in playing the seventh. In such a crucial situation, no one could bear the responsibility of failure, thus creating a bizarre situation where everyone dared to be angry but dared not speak out.
The high-ranking members of the Aristocratic Clan exchanged glances, signaling to each other to send someone over quickly, as the silence was becoming increasingly awkward.
Following the established order, this time it's the Gu family's turn, who haven't appeared yet. But Gu Changsheng isn't stupid. Not only is this Alliance Leader Sima's strength unfathomable, but he's also thick-skinned and ruthless. The fact that he can laugh and accept the slander thrown at him shows he's no innocent or kind person. Ordinary schemes are unlikely to escape his notice. The worst part is, what if he says again, "I can afford to lose, but can't you afford to die?"
Although killing your opponent is tantamount to forfeiting and admitting defeat, and most people wouldn't make such a losing proposition, this leader's style is truly unpredictable. What if he doesn't play by the rules again?
Our own experts aren't like cabbages in a field; there's no reason to send them to their deaths so easily. As for those "low-level" fighters without any real skill, they probably don't even deserve to be killed.
After much deliberation, Gu Changsheng still couldn't make a decision. He wanted to shirk responsibility, but the gazes of the other six representatives were like thorns in his back, making it impossible for him to speak.
"Let me do it."
The sudden remark in the quiet environment immediately drew everyone's attention to the speaker. Two thoughts immediately popped into everyone's minds: "Who is this person?" and "His appearance is an insult to the eyes."
Si Ming also turned his gaze and found that the other person was the particularly ugly man he had noticed before. Just as he had guessed, this man was not from the Aristocratic Clan. The evidence was that the other clansmen did not seem to recognize him, and only a few clan heads knew his identity.
The family heads discussed the matter in secret for a while, then nodded to each other and said, "Then we'll have to trouble you, sir."
The ugly man said bluntly, "Let me make this clear: I'm not confident of victory. In fact, I'm more likely to lose. You should be prepared to honor your bet if you lose. Given how things have turned out, I think you understand your chances are slim. Even if I win this round by luck, you don't have much of a chance in the seventh round. Rather than gambling on that slim hope, you should plan your escape route as soon as possible."
These words were extremely rude and even had the potential to undermine morale, drawing angry glares from the members of the Aristocratic Clan families. However, none of the family heads spoke; they simply shook their heads with wry smiles, tacitly acknowledging the statement.
Si Ming ignored the commotion from the Aristocratic Clan, looked up at the nearly 100-meter-high waterfall, took a step, and leaped more than 30 meters into the air. He then stepped on the hanging waterfall, and amidst the splashing water, he rose more than 30 meters upwards again. He then switched to the other foot and repeated the process, before finally leaping to the top of the cliff.
He leaped up the hundred-meter-high platform in just two steps, a sight that made the members of the Aristocratic Clan' eyelids twitch.
Although some of them could do the same thing, it required them to use their Internal Cultivation and activate more than 50% of their Cultivation Body. They couldn't do it as effortlessly as Leader Sima, who appeared to be doing nothing at all, True Qi solely on his physical strength and lightness skills.
The ugly man chuckled, but instead of showing off his martial arts skills, he stepped onto the lake and formed a Law Seals. The water beneath his feet instantly transformed into an elevator, condensing into the shape of a giant hand that lifted him up the waterfall and quickly transported him to the top of the cliff.
This performance improved the expressions of the Aristocratic Clan families considerably, restoring some of their confidence. In order to see the martial arts battle clearly, everyone displayed their Divine Ability, climbing up the waterfall cliff in a frantic manner.
Si Ming looked at the man across the stream and asked, "Why are you fighting for the Aristocratic Clan?"
This statement implies two questions, one of which is to ask, by default, whether the other person Aristocratic Clan.
The ugly man, seemingly oblivious to the question, smiled and said, "Because I'm interested in you."
Si Ming thought to himself, "Damn it! Laozi dream is to have a huge harem with countless beauties. I have absolutely no interest in gay relationships. Besides, with your appearance, even fujoshi wouldn't feel any desire for you. In BL, everyone is a handsome young man. Ugly men don't even qualify to be the subject of BL."
"Sorry, I asked too much."
Si Ming really wanted to slap himself. He should have just rushed up and given him a good beating instead of asking a question. As a result, he was teased by the other party, which he deserved. So he simply skipped the step of introducing himself and just wanted to finish the job as soon as possible so he could go home and rest.
"Well, between men, fists are more direct. So, I won't be polite and will go first."
The ugly man raised his hand, his body moving with his palm as he leaped across the stream, delivering a palm strike to test the other's cultivation level.
"Enough with the nonsense!"
Si Ming intentionally maintained the image of a "Sick Young Master" in the eyes of others, so he did not use his divine power, wanting to hide this as a trump card and rely solely on his skills to fight his enemies.
They struck each other with their palms, each being knocked back, thus assessing the other's cultivation level.
A hint of surprise flashed through Si Ming's mind. The opponent's Internal Cultivation strength was unexpectedly profound, even surpassing that of Hongdou. He immediately felt that this battle was going to be tricky. If things went wrong, he might expose the secret that the "Sick Young Master" was actually a "fierce man".
"Hmm? The Alliance Leader's cultivation level isn't as high as expected. Could it be that he was injured?"
In fact, Level Nine Internal Cultivation is already quite strong, and in the Barbarian Continent, it would be considered top-tier. However, compared to the opponent's near- Spirit Transformation cultivation, it is indeed somewhat lacking.
Si Ming did not want to answer. He looked up at the sky. It was about two o'clock in the afternoon, when the sun was at its strongest. A ball of light hung in the sky, fiery red, showing a strong presence. So he made a plan. He rubbed his palm into a knife and slashed it. A hundred or so True Yang Vermilion Blaze Saber broke through the air and intertwined into a dense net.
"Thousand Blades Scorching the Plains!"
"Huh, are they using their ultimate move right off the bat?"
The ugly man flicked his fingers repeatedly. His finger technique was very strange. Each finger energy would explode like fireworks after colliding with the other. Therefore, even though the number of finger energies he shot was far less than Si Ming's sword energy, he blocked them all.
Seeing this, Si Ming didn't care. He waved his palm and unleashed another hundred or so True Yang Vermilion Blaze Saber. The ugly man blocked them with his finger energy. Then he waved again, and the other man blocked again. He waved again, and the other man blocked again.
Swish, swish, swish!
Block! Block! Block!
The ugly man was puzzled. Knowing the difference in their cultivation levels, why did his opponent choose this tactic of testing internal strength? Wasn't he afraid of running out of True Qi and being defeated without a fight?
After a dozen or so rounds of back-and-forth, just when the ugly man estimated that Si Ming's internal True Qi was almost exhausted, Si Ming indeed lowered the hand that had been swung more than a dozen times, and then switched to the other hand, slashing out a series of blade energies with a series of swift movements.
Is this a case of switching arms after one gets tired?