Challenge

Seeing this, Mo Can secretly tugged at Luo Zheng's sleeve and said, "Let's find another place."

They couldn't afford to provoke these people, but they could at least avoid them, right?

Luo Zheng, however, continued eating his meal, not looking up or paying any attention.

"I told you to get lost, didn't you hear me?" The young man saw that Luo Zheng was completely still and slammed his hand on the dining table in the cafeteria. The table was made of rock wood and was extremely sturdy, but the young man's palm left an imprint, showing the power of his strike.

Luo Zheng still lowered his head and ate, chewing slowly, as if the commotion around him had nothing to do with him.

"Pah!"

Seeing that Luo Zheng still didn't react, the young man spat into Luo Zheng's dish and sneered, "Let's see how you eat this!"

Luo Zheng suddenly stood up, one hand shooting out like lightning to grab the young man's collar, while the other hand clenched into a fist, ready to strike him on the head.

But at this moment, Mo Can, who was beside him, pulled Luo Zheng back and said anxiously, "Brother Luo Zheng, you can't fight here. According to the Azure Cloud Sect Rules, disciples fighting each other will have their points deducted. If your points are insufficient, you'll be expelled from the Azure Cloud Sect at best, and imprisoned in Purgatory Mountain at worst!"

Hearing Mo Can's words, Luo Zheng also calmed down. He had learned these rules during his time at Little Rain Peak.

Before Luo Zheng grew stronger, these rules were like a forbidden zone that he couldn't cross. Zhou Xian had mentioned this, and Instructor Su Lingyun had also told them about it.

This young man was clearly prepared, his goal being to provoke him into action, force him to violate the Sect Rules, and get him expelled from the Azure Cloud Sect.

With this thought, a faint smile suddenly appeared on Luo Zheng's face. He released his grip and then slowly stared at the young man, saying, "I don't know who instructed you to come and trouble me, but honestly, I'm worried about your intelligence. You can only come up with such low-level tactics to provoke me! Since you're so eager to die, I'll give you a chance to challenge me, how about it?"

What Luo Zheng said was exactly what the young man wanted. He laughed wildly, "Haha, I was afraid you'd be like a coward and not dare to fight. In that case, we'll meet on the Arena. Whoever doesn't show up is a coward!"

The Azure Cloud Sect stipulated that private fights between disciples were strictly prohibited, and anyone found doing so would be severely punished.

However, the Azure Cloud Sect was originally a martial arts sacred ground, and it was impossible for there to be no friction or conflict among the hundreds of thousands of disciples who practiced martial arts and were full of vigor.

The solution was to go to the Arena.

These Arenas were located on every peak, and Little Rain Peak was no exception.

"Wait, wait, everyone, let's talk things over. Not everything needs to be resolved on the Arena!" It was Zhou Xian who spoke. He had just entered the cafeteria and saw the tense scene, so he quickly rushed over to mediate.

"Zhou Xian, what are you? Why are you sticking your nose into this?" The young man sneered, "This kid has already agreed to go to the Arena with me. It's too late to regret it now. I can give him three days. After three days, just wait to collect his body." After saying this, the young man turned and left with his people.

"I say, Luo Zheng, of all people you could provoke, why did you provoke him?" Zhou Xian asked with a face full of anxiety.

Mo Can, who was beside him, leaned in and explained, "Brother Zhou Xian, this isn't Brother Luo Zheng's fault. They came looking for trouble."

"Even so, you should have avoided them. That guy is not easy to mess with. His name is Xu Lie, and among the tens of thousands of Outer Sect Disciples on our Little Rain Peak, he ranks thirtieth! Although he hasn't entered the Innate Secret Realm yet, he's also a Half-Step to the Innate Realm expert!" It was no wonder Zhou Xian was anxious. Luo Zheng was only at the peak of the Viscera Refining Realm, yet he had agreed to go to the Arena with a Half-Step to the Innate Realm expert. In Zhou Xian's eyes, this was undoubtedly a suicidal act.

"Half-Step to the Innate Realm! Ranked thirtieth! What should we do?" Mo Can had witnessed Luo Zheng's strength, but when he heard the words "Half-Step to the Innate Realm," he was still startled. Although Mo Can understood that Luo Zheng's strength was outstanding and far beyond that of ordinary Viscera Refining Realm practitioners, there was still a Marrow Refining Realm between him and a Half-Step to the Innate Realm. The gap was too large.

Half-Step to the Innate Realm? Luo Zheng also frowned after hearing this. During the Bloodcolor Trials, Luo Zheng had indeed relied on his own strength to kill a Level 5 Illusory Beast, and the strength of that Devil Race person was comparable to that of a human in the Innate Secret Realm. However, killing that Devil Race person involved some coincidence and luck.

That Devil Race person's strength and defense only reached the level of the Innate Secret Realm, but they had no intelligence and couldn't control True Essence.

Furthermore, Luo Zheng had thrown out that broken Flying Knife in a moment of desperation. If that broken Flying Knife hadn't shown its power at the critical moment, he would have probably been eliminated long ago.

"I think we should report this matter to Instructor Su and not participate in the Arena match, right?" At the critical moment, Zhou Xian thought of the instructor on Little Rain Peak.

These instructors on Little Rain Peak, strictly speaking, couldn't be considered the masters of the many disciples. Like Instructor Su, they generally wouldn't interfere with the disciples' cultivation. They would issue tasks every day, organize various activities within the sect, maintain order on each peak, and distribute various rewards.

But they wouldn't directly teach the disciples how to cultivate.

Compared to that, they were more like the managers of Little Rain Peak.

Zhou Xian was right. It would be better to have Su Lingyun step in and interfere in this matter.

After a long silence, Luo Zheng finally shook his head and said, "This person came specifically for me. I can't avoid him even if I wanted to. Besides, I, Luo Zheng, have already agreed to go to the Arena. A promise made is like a team of horses that cannot be overtaken. If I back down because of this small trouble, my martial arts heart will probably be greatly damaged!"

Walking the path of a martial artist relies on a single-minded obsession.

Those who achieve great things are all people who possess an obsession so strong it's infuriating, an obsession they will never give up until death.

If Luo Zheng retreated when he encountered trouble today, then he would find reasons to retreat when he encountered trouble tomorrow, and his obsession would slowly waver. If he lost this obsession, then his path of martial arts would end there.

Moreover, Xu Lie inexplicably came looking for trouble, which must have been instigated by someone, but Luo Zheng couldn't determine who it was.

Was it Wang Hengzhi and the others? Or the Fang Family? Or that kid surnamed Zhuge? Luo Zheng didn't want to guess anymore. No matter who wanted to play with him, he would see it through to the end.

"Luo Zheng, you... sigh!" Zhou Xian was warm-hearted and completely considered things from Luo Zheng's perspective, feeling more anxious than Luo Zheng himself.

In the cafeteria, many Outer Sect Disciples looked at Luo Zheng with pity.

An Outer Sect Disciple who had just entered Little Rain Peak actually accepted Xu Lie's challenge and dared to go to the Arena. Wasn't this seeking death? On the Arena, fists and feet have no eyes, and even if you were beaten to death, you wouldn't bear any responsibility!

Under normal circumstances, unless there was a great feud, it was absolutely unnecessary to go to the Arena. This kid probably wouldn't live past tomorrow.

Luo Zheng, however, didn't care at all. He even turned around and comforted Zhou Xian, "It's okay. Remember to come to the Arena tomorrow to cheer for me!"

Half-Step to the Innate Realm...

It was indeed quite tricky for Luo Zheng. When he fought Xie Lang back then, Luo Zheng had just entered the Viscera Refining Realm, and he won with great difficulty, and Xie Lang was already at the end of his rope at that time.

Now, Luo Zheng had not only entered the peak of the Viscera Refining Realm, but two Dragon Scales had also awakened on the giant furnace in his mind. In terms of pure strength, he was definitely not inferior to a Marrow Refining Realm expert, and even quite a bit stronger than a Marrow Refining Realm expert.

Accepting a challenge from a Half-Step to the Innate Realm practitioner was indeed a bit risky, but Luo Zheng might not be without the strength to fight!

Zhou Xian was still deeply worried about the Arena match tomorrow.

Luo Zheng was only in the Viscera Refining Realm and had only been in Little Rain Peak for about half a month, belonging to the newest of the new disciples, yet he dared to accept Xu Lie's challenge. Should he say Luo Zheng was an idiot? Or a fool?

After Luo Zheng and Mo Can left the cafeteria, he thought for a long time and finally decided to report this news to Instructor Su.

Instructor Su had privately instructed him a few days ago that if Luo Zheng made any moves or showed any performance, he should actively report back to her.

However, what Zhou Xian didn't expect was that after Instructor Su learned of this news, there was no expression on her face, not even a hint of worry. She only said that she would make time to watch the arena matches tomorrow.

If it weren't for his position, Zhou Xian really wanted to ask her why she didn't step in to stop it.

Of course, Su Lingyun wouldn't stop it. Her grand goal was to cultivate a super disciple on Little Rain Peak who could suppress all thirty-two peaks!

In reality, Luo Zheng was just one of Su Lingyun's candidates. There were many inner sect disciples on Little Rain Peak who were already quite accomplished. In terms of strength, those inner sect disciples were naturally far superior to the current Luo Zheng, but Su Lingyun had a faint premonition that this young man would eventually grow to a point where she would look up to him.

For such a disciple, Su Lingyun would not interfere too much. Only by giving him ample experience and constantly cycling through the edge of life and death could his true potential be stimulated.

Therefore, even if Xu Lie didn't make a move, Su Lingyun herself would choose a few disciples to go and "trouble" Luo Zheng.