Greedy Jixing Martial Hall

"Kang Tianchen was beside himself with rage at those shameless bastards from Jixing Martial Hall!"

He looked like a mother hen whose chicks had been threatened, utterly enraged.

"A Seedling Plan contender, Jixing Martial Hall's third seat, actually entering the amateur division? Have they no shame at all?!"

Large martial arts schools like Chengtian Martial Arts School had never sent anyone to compete in Group B.

This was an unspoken convention in Rong City. Group B was a stage for members of smaller martial arts schools, or young geniuses like Jiang He.

Fine, a large martial arts school wanted to participate—but they had actually sent a veteran competitor who was twenty-eight or twenty-nine years old. Worse still, he was one of their top three contenders for this Youth Cup, a bona fide Seedling Plan candidate.

A formal member of a large martial arts school, older in age, and a Seedling Plan contender.

Put all those factors together, and it was downright outrageous.

This was the first time Kang Tianchen had encountered such shameless behavior. They were being far too blatant!

But that was not the only thing enraging Kang Tianchen.

What irritated him even more was that his student, Li Changqing, had finally gotten a chance to make a name for himself on an individual stage. The upcoming matches should have been Li Changqing's personal showcase.

Yet this shameless old bastard had to come meddle?

"Is Jixing Martial Hall so poor they can't afford food? Sending a Seedling Plan contender to Group B just to grab attention?"

Looking at Rong Heng on the arena platform, wearing an expression of utter disdain, Kang Tianchen was reminded of the painful memory from their last practice match, when their martial arts school had been crushed ten to zero by Jixing Martial Hall.

"The practice match was one thing. My student finally gets a chance to show himself off, and you still have to come ruin it?"

Huang Xuan watched the furious Kang Tianchen without daring to say a word, only shooting Li Changqing meaningful looks.

"Coach, it's just Rong Heng." Li Changqing grabbed Kang Tianchen by the shoulder.

"He's only Lower-Rank Seven-Star. So what?"

"Changqing!" Kang Tianchen thought Li Changqing was trying to comfort him and shook his head repeatedly.

"Rong Heng is different. He's a Seedling Plan contender from Jixing Martial Hall. Don't think that just because he's only one star above you, he's not a threat. He's lived seven more years than you and has far more experience!

"And Jixing Martial Hall has definitely prepared all kinds of methods for him. His strength is nowhere near as simple as you think."

"No, I need to call Hou Chengtian. There's still time. He has to take you into intensive training!"

Kang Tianchen grabbed his phone and hurried into the passageway, leaving Li Changqing and Huang Xuan staring at each other helplessly.

At the commentary desk.

Tang Cheng frowned deeply. He knew Rong Heng.

In the previous Youth Cup, Rong Heng had been one of Jixing Martial Hall's main forces. A Seedling Plan contender competing in Group B?

What kind of nonsense was that?

"As I recall, contestant Rong Heng is a Seedling Plan contender from Jixing Martial Hall. Why is he participating in Group B?"

Tang Cheng looked toward the host. The latter clearly had no idea either; even Rong Heng's appearance had caught them completely off guard.

"Mr. Tang Cheng, there's been a change of plans. The association said Rong Heng's registration and appearance both comply with the rules."

"They comply with the rules? Then why didn't I know about it?"

The host opened his mouth, his expression helpless. "The association said it was to make Group B more entertaining."

"More entertaining? Heh!" Tang Cheng laughed in anger.

A dirty trick!

How could he not know that Jixing Martial Hall had definitely pulled strings from top to bottom?

This year's Youth Cup championship was tied to the Seedling Plan. It had drawn attention not only from Rong City, but from across the entire province.

Jixing Martial Hall had clearly decided to get as much exposure as possible this year.

They were unwilling to let even Group B's sole qualification slot go.

"Mr. Tang Cheng, the contestants have already entered the arena." The host looked miserable. The director had already switched away from the shot.

He only hoped Tang Cheng would not simply walk away and abandon the commentary.

"They've entered? Heh, then let's get ready to commentate." Tang Cheng was a consummate professional.

Even though he knew there was something fishy going on, what could he do?

"Ah, what a shame. Rong City's true genius has been robbed of his chance."

With Rong Heng competing, coupled with Jixing Martial Hall's marketing operations, Li Changqing's fame as a genius would undoubtedly be greatly diminished.

Most crucially, Tang Cheng could no longer see any hope of Li Changqing winning the matches ahead.

On the arena platform.

A contestant who had only just stepped into the martial arts realm walked onto the platform with a dazed expression.

The moment he saw the person standing before him, he was completely dumbfounded.

Rong Heng, Lower-Rank Seven-Star.

Wasn't this Group B?

Why was a seeded contender from Group A here?

"Let's start. I'm in a hurry." Rong Heng looked toward the referee.

From beginning to end, his gaze never once landed on his opponent.

To Rong Heng, securing this spot was like going to the supermarket to buy groceries.

Go in, take it, that simple.

The match began.

At the referee's command.

Rong Heng flashed forward and drove a punch into his opponent's abdomen. His blood and qi erupted.

Bang!

He dusted off his sleeves without even sparing a glance for the contestant who had been knocked from the ring.

"Rong Heng wins!"

The audience immediately began to stir.

"What's going on? Isn't this guy a seeded contender from Jixing Martial Hall this year? What's he doing here?"

"Isn't he almost thirty? Why is he still competing in Group B? I remember the contestants who made it into the ranking battles were all under twenty-five."

"Does he have no shame?"

At the commentary desk, Tang Cheng's voice was utterly devoid of enthusiasm.

"Oh, as we can see, Lower-Rank Seven-Star contestant Rong Heng has effortlessly defeated the contestant before him, who had only just stepped into the Martial Artist realm. What a relaxed and pleasant victory."

"It seems contestant Rong Heng is quite skilled at defeating ordinary Martial Artists."

Faced with a Mid-Rank Martial Artist in a bad mood, the host had completely lost any desire to play along.

Tang Cheng glanced at Rong Heng, who remained on the ring without leaving, and felt a little annoyed.

"Contestant Rong Heng, you have already won the match. You may step down from the ring now."

Hearing the commentator's voice over the broadcast, Rong Heng raised his head with a wildly arrogant smile.

"I want to apply for consecutive ring matches."

Consecutive ring matches? What was that?

Tang Cheng was just about to refuse when the host grabbed his hand. The latter said with an awkward expression, "Well, Mr. Tang Cheng, the association says that Group B is an amateur division, so it should give way to entertainment value."

"So, after their meticulous discussion and careful analysis, the association has decided to approve Rong Heng's application."

Tang Cheng: ???

The instant he heard this news, Tang Cheng truly wanted to storm off.

This was simply too shameless!

He had seen greedy people before, but never anyone this greedy!

Xiang Zhuang danced with his sword, but his true target was Pei Gong.

How could he not understand Jixing Martial Hall's intentions now?

Their target was Li Changqing!

Those people were afraid that, after a few more days, their hall master would train some killer move into that super genius and produce a massive upset.

Jixing Martial Hall was determined to use Li Changqing as a stepping stone and seize this spot.

Rong Heng might not have had this idea before, but judging by the association's urgent notice.

Tang Cheng understood.

They had stuffed more money into someone's pockets again.

But what could he do?

"Heh, if the association has already said so, why ask me?"

The matches began again.

When the later contestants entered and saw that Rong Heng was their opponent, they all broke down.

Defeat after defeat after defeat!

Rong Heng sent every opponent flying with a single punch and claimed victory.

As a Lower-Rank Seven-Star in Group B, he was like a wolf among sheep.

His opponents had mostly only just entered the martial path, and some were even four or five years younger than him.

How were they supposed to fight a match like this?

It was practically the same as an adult professional competing in an amateur youth division.

From then on, Tang Cheng only occasionally made a few sarcastic remarks.

What was there to comment on in a Lower-Rank Seven-Star fighting a One-Star, or perhaps not even that?

In less than ten minutes, Rong Heng alone had swept aside all six remaining contestants.

At the end, standing on the arena, Rong Heng made no attempt to hide his intentions as his gaze immediately shifted toward a corner of the stands.

At the same time, the spotlight followed.

"Li Changqing, right? I never expected that Rong City would have another genius besides Jiang He."

Rong Heng smiled teasingly and rolled his neck.

"You're the only one left. Perfect—we can finish the finals for the rankings today as well. Let me see what exactly makes you worthy of being called a genius."

The moment those words came out, the crowd erupted.

"Asshole! You thirty-year-old man, stop trying to ride our brother's fame!"

"You're almost thirty and still competing in Group B? Pah!"

The audience's support for Li Changqing was even louder than before.

Compared to an old man who liked bullying the young, the fans were far more willing to support Li Changqing, who was not only talented but also young and handsome.

Rong Heng's expression did not change in the slightest. He was nearly thirty anyway, and this was his final Youth Cup. Afterward, he would head to another city to prepare for the Provincial Competition.

He did not care at all about his reputation in Rong City.

"Junior Brother!" Huang Xuan nervously grabbed Li Changqing's arm, but before he could say anything—

"Senior Brother, I know what I'm doing." Li Changqing patted Huang Xuan on the shoulder and met Rong Heng's provocative gaze head-on.

He gave a light laugh.

Then he strode forward and headed straight for the competitors' passage.

Li Changqing had accepted the challenge!

"What foolishness!" At the commentators' desk, Tang Cheng slammed a hand onto the table.

"Contestant Li Changqing is still too young, too confident. The other side clearly wants to provoke him. As long as contestant Li Changqing refused, this farcical match would have ended here. Yet he actually agreed."

"Mr. Tang Cheng, do you not think highly of contestant Li Changqing either?"

"It's not that I don't think highly of him." Tang Cheng waved his hand irritably.

"I said the same thing about Jiang He before. Their youth is both their advantage and their weakness."

"Compared with Rong Heng, Li Changqing's greatest disadvantage isn't his vitality and blood—it's experience! Rong Heng is already twenty-nine and has competed in many major tournaments."

"A one-star gap in vitality and blood is actually the least important issue."

"Give him another half year—no, perhaps he won't even need that long—and Li Changqing would definitely be able to defeat Rong Heng with ease."

"But right now..." Tang Cheng sighed.

"He's too young."

At the passageway, Kang Tianchen hurried over and saw Huang Xuan standing alone.

"Where's your junior brother?!" He seized Huang Xuan, his brow twitching violently.

A terrible premonition rose within him.

Sure enough, the instant Huang Xuan saw him, his face fell as he said miserably, "Coach, Junior Brother Li was too strong. I couldn't stop him."

"What foolishness—" Though he had already expected it, Kang Tianchen still covered his face upon hearing the answer.

"Changqing, couldn't you have waited a few more days? Let Hou Chengtian teach you a few more vitality-and-blood secret arts. With your talent, you might still have had a chance of winning!"

"At this point..." Kang Tianchen lowered his head.

It was too difficult.