Ye Zhen's Astonishing Move

"Senior Brother Jin, can Marrow Cleansing Pills be used as a wager?" Ye Zhen walked up to Jin Yuanbao and asked. With such a golden opportunity, Ye Zhen would be a fool not to earn a profit for himself.

"Of course! With me, Jin Yuanbao, anything of value can be wagered, and the rates are fair! One Marrow Cleansing Pill is valued at one thousand taels of silver." Jin Yuanbao said, not without a hint of smugness.

"What about Sect Contribution Points?"

"Naturally, those are accepted too!"

"Good, Senior Brother Jin. Two Marrow Cleansing Pills and fifty Sect Contribution Points—I'm betting on myself!" Having placed his wager, Ye Zhen turned away with a flourish and headed straight for the Martial Arena.

One Marrow Cleansing Pill was his reward for clearing the Fish Dragon Path, while the other was issued by the sect after he broke through to the Blood Refining Fourth Level as an Outer Disciple.

"Junior Brother Ye, is this your entire net worth?"

After Ye Zhen nodded, a flash of secret, wild joy suddenly crossed Jin Yuanbao's stunned face. Generally, those who dared to bet their entire net worth were either lunatics or possessed absolute certainty.

"Ye Zhen, I want you dead!"

Swish!

On the Martial Arena, the long sword behind Ma Hun's back left its sheath. With a flick of the blade, nine cold stars flashed like lightning, piercing toward Ye Zhen.

A Mortal-tier High Grade martial art, the Cold Star Sword Technique was known for being fast, accurate, and ruthless. When mastered to its peak, one could strike nine times in a single thrust, specializing in piercing the throat.

"Too slow!" Ye Zhen crouched and sprang, appearing twenty meters away. Ma Hun felt a blur before his eyes and lost sight of Ye Zhen; when he turned, he saw Ye Zhen sneering behind him, his expression instantly turning grim.

"My god, the Snake-Wandering Steps! That technique, which was rumored to be impossible for Outer Disciples to master, has actually been mastered by Ye Zhen." Seeing Ye Zhen's use of the Snake Springing Grass move, the Outer Disciples beneath the Martial Arena gasped in shock.

"Doesn't that mean Ye Zhen might actually win? Heavens, I bet five hundred taels on Ma Hun!" The corner of an Outer Disciple's mouth began to twitch.

"That's not necessarily true. The Snake-Wandering Steps only provide an advantage in movement. But mastering them is truly no simple feat..."

Watching Ye Zhen execute the Snake-Wandering Steps, the many Outer Disciples all wore solemn expressions. If they knew that Ye Zhen was still holding back even now, there is no telling how shocked they would have been.

"Movement techniques aren't just for you!" Ma Hun let out a sharp cry, his body soaring like a swallow as he lunged at Ye Zhen. The long sword in his hand struck repeatedly, conjuring countless cold stars that nearly sealed off all of Ye Zhen's paths of retreat, leaving him no choice but to face it head-on.

This time, Ye Zhen did not dodge early. As the long sword reached him, his body twisted with the eerie fluidity of a serpent, skillfully slipping past the coverage of Ma Hun's blade.

"Try taking a punch from me!"

Following the momentum, Ye Zhen turned slightly, conjuring shadows of fists as he smashed a Five Peaks Divine Fist toward Ma Hun.

Seeing an enemy only fueled their hatred; a dazzling cyan light erupted from Ma Hun's long sword as he met Ye Zhen's attack.

"Ma Hun is using his true energy. Ye Zhen is going to lose." An Outer Disciple whispered from below the arena.

"True energy? I have that too!"

Ye Zhen tightened his fist and exerted force, his twin fists accelerating violently. A blinding cyan glow of true energy erupted simultaneously, meeting Ma Hun's long sword.

"In such a short time, Ye Zhen has actually broken through to the Blood Refining Fifth Level?"

The moment the Outer Disciples gasped, Ye Zhen's fist and Ma Hun's long sword collided with a thunderous crash. Surprisingly, three inches from Ye Zhen's fist, an invisible shield seemed to manifest, preventing Ma Hun's sword from advancing even a fraction.

Hum!

As both men exerted force, Ma Hun's long sword bent to its limit before snapping back with a buzzing sound as Ma Hun retreated.

During the clash, Ma Hun had actually been forced back half a step. The Outer Disciples who had bet on Ma Hun's victory grew tense; in the short hundred breaths since the fight began, this was already the second time Ma Hun had shown signs of defeat.

As Ma Hun retreated, Ye Zhen pursued like a shadow. The cyan light on his hands gathered into a mass, each strike of the Five Peaks Divine Fist more fierce than the last. Ma Hun did not show weakness, his long sword dancing in a blur of cyan light, blocking the onslaught like a watertight seal.

Suddenly, Ma Hun's pupils contracted inexplicably.

His long sword had been aimed at Ye Zhen's fist, but the cyan light on Ye Zhen's fist flickered and vanished without warning.

By the time Ma Hun sensed something amiss near his chest, the vanished light from Ye Zhen's fist was already inches from his heart.

The Fist Qi of the Five Peaks Divine Fist, projected from the body!

Ye Zhen executed the grand, sweeping Five Peaks Divine Fist with such eerie precision that Ma Hun was terrified to his core. However, the true energy Fist Qi was incredibly fast. In the face of life and death, Ma Hun could only instinctively twist his body, narrowly avoiding a fatal blow to his heart.

Bang!

The explosive true energy detonated against Ma Hun's chest, instantly reducing the flesh there to a bloody mess. The immense power contained within sent Ma Hun flying backward.

Ye Zhen's figure surged forward like a shadow once more. Using both fists and feet, a flurry of light and shadow rained down upon Ma Hun's body.

The bang-bang-bang of impacts accompanied the sound of Ma Hun's bones snapping, and blood began to spray uncontrollably from Ma Hun's mouth.

Ye Zhen pummeled Ma Hun as if he were a human punching bag. The memories of Ma Hun intentionally picking fights and nearly killing him in the past flashed before his eyes, turning Ye Zhen's gaze icy cold. Even though Ma Hun was severely wounded and had almost no strength left to resist, Ye Zhen showed no intention of stopping.

The gruesome scene left the many Outer Disciples beneath the arena collectively speechless.

The Sect Deacon guarding the Martial Arena nearby leaped onto the stage at this moment, stopping Ye Zhen. "Enough! Ye Zhen, you have already won. Stop now; do not violate the sect's rules!"

While it was true that once Outer Disciples of the Qi Yun Sect stepped onto the Martial Arena, they fought with everything they had—making it inevitable that injuries or deaths would occur—it was common for people to be beaten to death or crippled.

However, because there had been too many casualties on the arena in previous years, and some disciples with deep grudges treated the arena as a life-or-death struggle, the sect had assigned Deacons to oversee the matches. They usually remained silent, but once a winner was decided, they would intervene if the victor continued to press for a kill.

Bang!

Ye Zhen kicked Ma Hun away with a sense of lingering resentment before finally stopping. Had the Sect Deacon not intervened, Ye Zhen might have truly finished Ma Hun off. A person like Ma Hun deserved to die!

Following Ye Zhen's victory, the many Outer Disciples who had bet on Ma Hun began to sigh and moan, while the rare few who had bet on Ye Zhen were now itching to jump for joy.

The happiest person of all was Jin Yuanbao, whose fat face was scrunched into a smile. A dark horse upset like this allowed him to fill his pockets to the brim every time it happened.

"If only this guy could fight a few more matches, how great that would be!" Jin Yuanbao's gaze toward Ye Zhen was already filled with stars.

At the very same moment Ye Zhen defeated Ma Hun, the Identity Jade Tokens of both Ye Zhen and Ma Hun flickered slightly. In the next instant, Ye Zhen's name appeared at the 308th position on the Earth Ranking, replacing Ma Hun.

Ma Hun's name did not simply drop off; instead, it shifted down one spot.

However, Ye Zhen's gaze, cast far toward the Earth Ranking, was fixed on the very top of the list.

"Senior Brother Jin, do you have an Amplification Talisman? Could I borrow one?" Ye Zhen's gaze paused as he looked toward Jin Yuanbao.

"An Amplification Talisman? I have one..." Jin Yuanbao, who had been smiling as he answered, suddenly looked terrified. "Watch out..."

Before the word 'out' could even leave his lips, a fierce wind rose behind Ye Zhen.

Ma Hun, who had been sprawled on the Martial Arena, had caught his breath. Looking at Ye Zhen's back with venomous resentment, he was suddenly overcome by a surge of malice. Summoning the last of his strength, he hurled his longsword at Ye Zhen from a distance.

Whoosh!

The longsword, imbued with all of Ma Hun's remaining power, let out a startling whistle as it pierced the air toward Ye Zhen's back.

Hearing the fierce wind behind him, Ye Zhen's eyes turned cold. He stomped his foot, performed a nimble somersault, and dodged the projectile. The moment he cleared it, Ye Zhen unleashed a flurry of kicks.

With one light tap, he deflected the longsword, causing it to change direction halfway. Then, with a vicious kick, he sent the blade spiraling in a wide arc, flying back toward Ma Hun at a speed even greater than before!

Pfft!

Before the dazed and blood-eyed Ma Hun could even react, his own longsword had pierced through his chest, and he died instantly.

Ye Zhen looked toward the Sect Deacon still on the stage and spread his hands, indicating that this had nothing to do with him.

"He brought this upon himself; there is no escaping that," the Sect Deacon sighed softly before leaping off the Martial Arena. Others would soon come to collect Ma Hun's corpse.

From a distance, Jin Yuanbao gave Ye Zhen a thumbs-up. At the same time, he tossed a jade talisman toward him. "Junior Brother Ye, what do you need an Amplification Talisman for? This thing is usually only used by us merchants. It costs a hundred taels of silver, but consider it a gift!"

Ye Zhen smiled mysteriously. "You'll know in a moment!"

In the next instant, Ye Zhen crushed the Amplification Talisman in his hand. As the talisman emitted a faint cyan glow, Ye Zhen, fueled by the momentum of having just killed Ma Hun, projected his voice—laden with chilling killing intent—to every corner of East Arrival Peak!

"Hong Bao, you turtle-grandson, do you dare to fight your grandfather Ye Zhen!"

The many Outer Disciples beneath the Martial Arena, who had been leaving with dejected faces after losing their silver, were struck as if by lightning. The looks they cast toward Ye Zhen suddenly turned to pure disbelief!

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ps: Young ones, since Ye Zhen is being this crazy, why don't you go crazy with your recommendation votes too!