Bull Head Man!

"What... what?"

The black-clad man felt a stab of pain at his neck. A tiny wound had already appeared, with thin threads of blood seeping out!

The black-clad man was shaken. "O-one punch... and you broke my sword?"

How profound was this cultivation?

"A first-rate expert! Absolutely a first-rate expert!" Manager Mu had witnessed the scene, and delight appeared on his face. Tang Jie's profound cultivation was definitely at the level of a first-rate expert!

Manager Mu said without hesitation, "What's your name? You can take the vacant spot in the fifth match!"

"My name is Tang Jie." Tang Jie gave his name, and excitement rose in his heart. His luck was better than he had imagined. If no one had been absent, even if Tang Jie signed up now, he would have had to wait another month to participate in a martial bout. Now, he could participate directly in this one.

"Good. For this martial bout, I'll pay you the veteran's appearance fee. If you lose, you'll receive thirty taels of silver. If you win, your appearance fee will be one hundred taels of silver!" Manager Mu immediately agreed.

Under normal circumstances, a martial artist participating in a martial bout for the first time would not receive such a high appearance fee. However, Tang Jie's displayed strength had made Manager Mu offer him extremely favorable treatment!

Tang Jie was naturally delighted as well. One tael of silver was enough to cover an ordinary household's living expenses for a month. One hundred taels of silver was a fortune many people could not earn in ten years!

Tang Jie waited patiently in the waiting room for his turn to enter the arena. Looking around, he saw a number of masks displayed on the wall beside him.

Tang Jie remembered that Tiger Head Saber had also worn a mask earlier. Participants in martial bouts were allowed to wear masks. Some did it to keep a low profile, while others did it to intimidate their opponents.

"I'd better wear a mask too."

After thinking it over, Tang Jie decided that wearing a mask would be better, lest he cause unnecessary trouble. He had only come here to make money.

Thus, Tang Jie picked up a Bull Head Mask and put it over his face.

"It's your turn to enter the arena." At that moment, a staff member from the martial arena came to notify Tang Jie.

"Good."

Tang Jie had been waiting for quite some time. He stood up, followed the staff member, strode through the passage, and entered the center of the fighting arena!

"Today's fifth martial bout will be between Green Face Ghost and... Bull Head Man!"

The host announced it loudly. He saw Tang Jie but did not know the name of this new participant. Seeing Tang Jie wearing a Bull Head Mask, he casually made up a title for him.

"Bull Head Man?" Tang Jie was speechless at the title pinned on him. But it was only an alias for the martial arena anyway, so it did not matter what he was called.

"Bull Head Man? Is he new?"

"He looks quite young!"

In the audience stands, everyone began discussing Tang Jie as they watched him enter.

Although Tang Jie wore a mask, his bearing, bright eyes, and the skin around his neck allowed people to judge that he was not very old. He appeared to be a young man.

"Brother Tang has entered! His opponent this round, Green Face Ghost, is no weaker than me. Can Brother Tang win?"

Cheng Yuan also saw Tang Jie enter from the audience stands and immediately grew excited. At the same time, he could not help feeling somewhat worried about whether Tang Jie could defeat his opponent.

Opposite Tang Jie stood a burly man wearing a mask with a green face and fangs. It looked extremely ferocious. He was clearly Tang Jie's opponent for this bout, Green Face Ghost.

Green Face Ghost looked at Tang Jie, who was also wearing a mask, and chuckled. "This is your first time participating in a martial bout, right? Bull Head Man, your luck is terrible. You ran into me in your very first match!"

Among all the martial artists, Green Face Ghost's strength was at the level of a quasi-first-rate expert. He was undoubtedly a formidable opponent!

"It looks like Green Face Ghost's original opponent, Scarface, ran into trouble. This Bull Head Man is a substitute."

"How strong can a substitute be? There isn't much suspense in this fight!"

The tens of thousands of spectators present discussed the strength of both sides. Most of them were not optimistic about Tang Jie, believing that as a substitute facing a quasi-first-rate martial artist like Green Face Ghost, he was far more likely to lose than win.

"Begin!"

The host issued the command to start the battle.

At that very moment, Tang Jie suddenly moved.

"Boom!"

Tang Jie stamped his foot against the ground, and his profound inner force erupted. The hard stone floor caved in, leaving a one-inch-deep footprint. Tang Jie himself charged forward like a ferocious beast, his abruptly exploding aura enough to make hearts tremble!

"What?"

Green Face Ghost's pupils contracted slightly. He was indeed a veteran expert who had experienced more than a hundred battles of all sizes. Though shocked by Tang Jie's speed and momentum, he immediately drew the Ghost Head Saber from his waist, roared, gathered his inner force, and slashed out!

"Iron Cutting Saber Art: Splitting Slash!"

Tang Jie held the Iron Cutting Saber in one hand. With a terrifying momentum, it came crashing down from above, unstoppable.

The Iron Cutting Saber Art had only three moves: the downward Splitting Slash, the horizontal Cross Slash, and the upward Lifting Slash!

Among the three techniques, the simplest was the Splitting Slash, and the most powerful was also the Splitting Slash. Tang Jie had practiced this technique more than a million times!

Even if the thing before him were a lump of gold and stone, Tang Jie could easily cleave it apart with one slash.

"Clang!"

Under everyone's unblinking gaze, the two sabers collided. A violent metallic shriek that set teeth on edge exploded out. Almost in an instant, Green Face Ghost grunted. He felt an immense, irresistible force surge through him. Even though he held his saber with both hands, the webs between his thumbs and forefingers split from the shock, and blood seeped out!

"Crack!"

What shocked Green Face Ghost even more was the sound of metal breaking in his ears. Amid flying sparks, the Ghost Head Saber in his hands had actually been cleaved in two by Tang Jie's unstoppable slash!

"How is this possible?" Green Face Ghost was utterly horrified. An ordinary longsword would be one thing. Its blade was thin, so it was easy to break. Even a longsword made of ordinary material might break after stabbing into an enemy's bones.

But the Ghost Head Saber Green Face Ghost wielded was a thick-backed chopping saber, made with a tremendous amount of metal and weighing more than ten pounds. It was incomparably sturdy. Chopping through hard bones was as easy as chopping through rotten wood.

Yet even such a heavy Ghost Head Saber had been broken by Tang Jie in a single strike? What a terrifying slash!

Tang Jie's Iron Cutting Saber Art had long since reached the pinnacle of perfection. Combined with his profound inner force, the might of his slash could split gold and sever iron with ease. Ordinary martial artists could not possibly withstand even one exchange with him. After all, their weapons were no different from wooden sticks before Tang Jie, easily cleaved apart by him. How could they possibly fight him?

"Pfft!"

Tang Jie's Iron Cutting Saber severed Green Face Ghost's Ghost Head Saber, then continued downward, sweeping across the middle of Green Face Ghost's face. The green-faced, fanged mask on Green Face Ghost's face split apart, revealing a rough-hewn face.

"Clatter!"

The mask crashed to the ground. Green Face Ghost staggered back several steps. A shallow bloody mark had appeared on his face, scraped there by the wind of Tang Jie's saber!

"I... lost..." Green Face Ghost spoke in a hoarse voice. His eyes were complicated as he looked at the tall youth before him, who wore a mask and remained silent.

His opponent had defeated him with a single slash, shattering his convictions as well. If Tang Jie had not held back, that terrifying slash would not only have broken his saber—his own body would have been split in two down the middle!