Inside the arena, Zhang Chulan dodged the lightning from above in a sorry state. Sweat poured down his face like rain, while exhaustion crept across the whites of his eyes like bloodshot veins.
Even though he knew Lin Feng had gone easy on him, he was still shocked.
Because even so, he was still no match for Lin Feng, while Lin Feng merely stood there calmly without taking a single step, toying with him at will.
"That's about enough."
Watching Zhang Chulan struggle to hold on, Lin Feng knew the guy was nearing his limit.
He blinked at Zhang Chulan and gave him a meaningful look.
Zhang Chulan paused as he panted, then immediately understood.
He silently nodded, gathered his strength, and charged forward.
Lin Feng remained still. The lightning in the sky struck around Zhang Chulan as though it had gone blind, no longer pressing him step by step as it had at the start.
This time, the lightning seemed to be building momentum for Zhang Chulan, blue-white sparks wrapping around his entire body.
His speed gradually became a streak of light. In the blink of an eye, he appeared before Lin Feng.
"I'm gonna hit you!!!"
Zhang Chulan let out a strange roar and slammed a fist into Lin Feng's chest.
Bang!!
The tremendous force nearly blasted up the dust around them, yet Lin Feng stood completely unmoved, looking at Zhang Chulan with an odd expression instead.
"Is that the strongest you've got?"
Lin Feng asked quietly.
"Uh! Uncle Lin, how about we do that again?"
Zhang Chulan swore that had absolutely been the strongest blow he could deliver.
But judging by this, it had been like a feather brushing against Lin Feng, utterly ineffective.
Lin Feng shook his head helplessly, then bent over like a shrimp.
Then he cried out in pain and suddenly flew backward.
Lin Feng's feet gouged two long trenches across the ground, and the speed at which he flew back instantly broke the sound barrier.
Boom!!!
A visible sonic boom cloud exploded through the arena, and everyone covered their ears.
Then, with a thud, Lin Feng's body smashed into the arena wall.
Zhang Chulan: ...
Old Celestial Master, Tian Jinzhong, Lu Jin: ...
Spectators: ...
"Winner! Zhang Chulan!!!"
After a long silence, the referee priest speechlessly turned to glance at the Old Celestial Master.
Only after seeing the Old Celestial Master silently nod did the priest understand.
In the world of extraordinary people, neither strength nor luck mattered.
What mattered was having connections. Zhang Chulan's grandfather had been the Old Celestial Master's junior fellow disciple, so the position of the next Celestial Master naturally belonged to him.
What had he even been thinking?
After he announced the final victor, the silent spectator stands suddenly erupted into jeers.
Then came curses loud enough to shake the heavens.
"What the hell is this bullshit?!"
"It's rigged!! Completely rigged!!"
"Fuck!! Can Celestial Master Mansion get any more shameless?!"
The Old Celestial Master seemed not to hear any of the insults. He descended from the arena and walked over to Zhang Chulan.
"Chulan! Now you're in first place. As for what I need to tell you, once everyone has left tonight and you take the seat of the Celestial Master, I'll tell you everything."
Zhang Zhiwei spoke earnestly. He patted Zhang Chulan on the shoulder and nodded in satisfaction.
"Martial Grandfather!"
Zhang Chulan cried out excitedly.
He had waited for this day far too long. By this point, every emotion Zhang Chulan showed came from the depths of his heart.
"All right, now it's Old Lu's turn. Let's move aside and not disturb him."
Seeing Lin Feng emerge from the wall without a scratch, Zhang Zhiwei pulled Chulan away from the arena.
"Lu Jin! Get down here!"
Lin Feng walked to the center of the arena and crooked a finger at Lu Jin in the stands.
That sight instantly silenced the crowd, which had been furious just moments ago.
"Hmph!!"
Lu Jin snorted. Though he was over a hundred years old, he leaped down from the eight- or nine-meter-high stands like a martial arts master, crossing more than ten meters and landing steadily before Lin Feng.
"The winner of this competition is supposed to be taught the Heaven Communicating Talisman Art, but... Zhang Chulan!! Do you want it?"
With a smile, Lin Feng looked toward Zhang Chulan, who was being led away by the Old Celestial Master, and called out loudly.
"I don't want it!! I've already been dragged into so much trouble over the Qi-State Origin-Flow that I've never even seen. If I get the Heaven Communicating Talisman Art too, will I ever have another peaceful day!!! Senior Lu!!! Thank you kindly!!"
Standing beside Zhang Zhiwei, Zhang Chulan waved one hand like a windmill.
Lu Jin turned to look at the Old Celestial Master, his gaze as cold and sharp as a blade. Zhang Chulan was so frightened that he immediately stood straight and quietly asked beside the Old Celestial Master's ear, "Martial Grandfather! With that look in Senior Lu's eyes, is he going to kill me?"
"Hahaha! He won't. Your martial grandfather is here."
The Old Celestial Master laughed heartily, then patted Zhang Chulan's shoulder to reassure him.
"Since the first-place winner doesn't want the Heaven Communicating Talisman Art, then as second place, do you want it?"
Lu Jin took a book from his robes. Three characters in ancient clerical script were written vertically on the plain, thread-bound volume.
Heaven Communicating Talisman Art.
"Thank you."
Lin Feng spoke indifferently, then used telekinesis to take it directly from Lu Jin's hand.
Lu Jin only felt a numbness in his hand before the Heaven Communicating Talisman Art floated into Lin Feng's grasp.
"You!"
In the instant Lu Jin was stunned, he saw something even more shocking.
After obtaining the Heaven Communicating Talisman Art, Lin Feng opened it and began reading it right there before everyone in the arena.
"The record is rather convoluted, but given your level of comprehension, that's normal."
Lin Feng spoke as he read, his faintly mocking words echoing in everyone's ears.
"You bastard!! What nonsense are you talking about?!!"
Watching the ultimate technique his good friend had preserved at the cost of his life be belittled like this, Lu Jin was unafraid even if he could not defeat this man.
Whoosh!!!
Lin Feng looked at Lu Jin with a disdainful smile and closed the Heaven Communicating Talisman Art in his hand.
Then a brilliant blaze reduced the Heaven Communicating Talisman Art, which every extraordinary person longed to obtain, to ashes.
"I already told you. I came to reclaim the Eight Wonders, so naturally your Heaven Communicating Talisman Art cannot be left behind."
The flames that had burned the Heaven Communicating Talisman Art suddenly surged, gradually transforming into a fire dragon above Lin Feng's head that roared at Lu Jin.
"You brat!! Don't look down on people!!!"
Lu Jin's temper flared. His fingers trembled as though they had been fitted with vibrators, drawing countless afterimages through the air.
One astonishingly powerful talisman after another poured from his hands in swarms, shooting toward Lin Feng like bullets.
Lin Feng snorted. The fire dragon above his head circled around him as though it were alive.
Each incoming talisman struck the fire dragon's body, scattering tiny sparks before vanishing without a trace.
Like stones sinking into the sea, they caused not the slightest ripple.
Then, with a bang, the fire dragon transformed into countless flames that spread outward like a blooming lotus, breathtakingly bewitching.
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