White Crow

The referee hurriedly stopped Gao Wu. Nervously checking Yang Lin's neck and cervical vertebrae, he felt around for a while and found no twisting or fractures. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.

Gao Wu stood quietly to one side, still feeling a measure of sympathy for the unconscious Yang Lin.

It was not that he had wanted to strike so ruthlessly. Advanced Martial Artists were simply too tough; ordinary methods made them difficult to bring down.

If the referee had not been watching him with the wariness of a guard against a thief, he would have gone over to help Yang Lin up and given him a dose of the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation.

They were merely opponents, not enemies. If he could lend a hand, that was always for the best. It was not as though he coveted that bit of Merit...

Though Yang Lin's arrogant, overbearing manner was rather irritating, he did not deserve this. Seeing the referee's expression ease, Gao Wu relaxed as well.

If his cervical vertebrae had truly been broken, Yang Lin would suffer terribly even if his family had money.

"Dragon-Roaming Palm has already reached the beginner stage. Interesting."

Watching the livestream on the tablet before him, Han Yang smiled and offered a word of praise.

Beside him, Yang Ru looked somewhat greedily at Han Yang's profile. He had sword-like brows, starry eyes, sharply defined features, flowing long bangs, and skin as fair as jade. His side profile was even more distinctly sculpted, exceptionally captivating.

More captivating still was Han Yang's confidence and elegance, that refined bearing of a noble young gentleman standing like a jade tree in the wind, enough to make anyone swoon. She casually said, "He is just a poor kid who drugs himself up. He has no foundation. He is not worth noticing."

As a direct descendant of one of the Four Great Lineages, Yang Ru simply did not think much of anyone outside them.

Martial arts were easy to practice, but achieving anything required sufficient resources. A bottom-feeder like Gao Wu could risk his life and show off for a while.

Without the corresponding resources to nourish his body, he would be finished within two years. She felt there was no need to pay attention to him at all.

Han Yang turned his head and glanced at Yang Ru. "Look at Gao Wu's left hand."

"Hm?"

"He jabbed with such tremendous force. His fingers should have borne the same force. Yet Gao Wu's left hand is neither red nor swollen. Either his force control is so precise that he can neutralize the recoil, or his body is tough enough to withstand it.

"Also note that Yang Lin kicked him in the neck first. Yang Lin's hooked foot was like a sickle, slashing inward with at least a thousand kilograms of force. An ordinary person's neck could easily have been broken. Yet Gao Wu withstood that kick. This shows that his body is exceptionally powerful."

Han Yang said gently, "Among the myriad living beings, remarkable talents and geniuses will always emerge. Though we have an advantage in resources, we cannot look down on others."

"Second Brother is right." Yang Ru's beautiful face was filled with obedient sweetness. Her family and Han Yang's were old family friends, so she affectionately called him Second Brother.

After thinking for a moment, she added, "Second Brother ranks first in Dongjiang points, far ahead of everyone else. No matter how capable Gao Wu is, he poses no threat to you."

"This person posts training videos every day. He is very positive and quite interesting; I rather appreciate him." Han Yang smiled faintly. "On the competition day the week after next, we will face No. 9 Middle School. Then we can meet this young genius who has newly become an Advanced Martial Artist..."

Yang Ru smiled confidently. "Second Brother will not need to act. I can take care of him myself!"

Han Yang laughed heartily. "All right. Then I will be counting on you..."

First Middle School was competing as well, but their opponent was too weak. Yang Ru and Han Yang had no need to take the stage, so they could relax and chat below it.

Zhang Hao, who was also watching the video livestream, was in an exceptionally irritable mood.

He stared at Gao Wu on the screen, his two rows of snow-white teeth grinding with a creak, creak. Intense jealousy made him want nothing more than to bite Gao Wu in the screen to death.

That move from earlier, Parting the Clouds and Seeing the Sun, was clearly a supreme technique within Dragon-Roaming Palm. He had learned the form, but not its true essence.

Gao Wu had been apprenticed for less than a month, yet he was already using Dragon-Roaming Palm with such exquisite skill!

Tie Dalong was truly biased. That old woman Tie Ying only knew how to take advantage of him, yet gave him nothing in return. She deserved death even more!

"You all deserve to die. You all deserve to die!"

The more Zhang Hao thought about it, the more he hated them. His surging blood and qi turned his eyes completely crimson, and a wolf-like howl escaped his mouth.

The bound woman beside him recoiled again and again in fright. She wanted to call for help, but her mouth was stuffed, and the muffled whimpers she made were extremely faint.

The woman's movements caught Zhang Hao's attention. His gaze shifted to her, and a vicious aura spread across his face.

Those people had said that using a human as a sacrifice would grant one the Demon God's power. Since the woman was here with him, why not give it a try?

Then he looked at the foot-long statue on the offering table. It had a bird's head and a human body, with snow-white wings growing from its back. Only its eyes were two points of blood-red.

The statue looked as though a crow's head and wings had been crudely pieced together with a human body. It was said to be the White Crow King, one of the Twelve Supreme Demon Gods of the Ten Thousand Gods Cult.

The Ten Thousand Gods Cult was also known as the Ten Thousand Beasts Cult or the Ten Thousand Demons Cult. Its Demon Gods all came from the Otherworld and were said to possess unimaginable power.

The Alliance had explicitly legislated that the Ten Thousand Gods Cult was a Demonic Cult. Joining a Demonic Cult was equivalent to betraying The Alliance and humanity. Everything connected to the Ten Thousand Gods Cult was met with the harshest measures of suppression.

Anything related to the Ten Thousand Gods Cult was taboo within The Alliance.

Zhang Hao had only joined recently and understood none of this. He had merely taken too many drugs, and his body could no longer hold up. The road ahead had been cut off as well.

Provoked by the young Gao Wu, he had steeled his heart and joined the Ten Thousand Gods Cult through a friend's introduction. He had seized someone and completed a blood sacrifice on the spot, only then passing the trial and becoming a believer.

Following the instructions from above, Zhang Hao had captured another person to serve as a sacrifice. He had kept her at home for nearly two days now, and he was already growing extremely impatient.

Then he saw Gao Wu display Dragon-Roaming Palm, and rage surged into his heart, causing him to completely lose his reason. All he could think of now was completing the blood sacrifice and obtaining power from the Demon God...

Light and shadow flickered across the computer screen. The second arena match had already begun.

Fourth Middle School's lead fighter, Han Song, stepped onto the stage. This eighteen-year-old youth was already somewhat bald. Broad and thickly built, with rough skin and a mature-looking face, he resembled an old man in his forties or fifties.

Zhang Hao could not help snorting. With a single glance, he could tell that this balding youth had used too many drugs, causing his body to visibly show signs of aging.

He did not pity the other man. Instead, he was deeply contemptuous. Another guy propped up by drugs!

Cheers and encouragement rang out once more from the stands of Fourth Middle School's Martial Arts Arena. Han Song did not have a good image and was far less popular than Yang Lin. But he was stronger. With Yang Lin's defeat, Fourth Middle School's teachers and students had placed their hopes on Han Song.

Compared to the orderly female chants from before, male voices had become the main force this time, their waves of sound carrying a few more notes of deep, majestic weight.

The two clasped their fists in salute. Without saying a word, Han Song gave a great shout at Gao Wu.

Han Song looked mature and honest, but at that moment every muscle on his face strained. Blood and qi surged within him as his tendons and flesh exerted force. His latissimus muscles suddenly spread, and his entire body swelled to at least three times its original size, as though a big cat had abruptly transformed into a terrifying man-eating tiger.

With that single shout, his momentum actually surpassed the unified cries of thousands of spectators.

Such might was truly like a tiger roaring through the mountain forest, sending all beasts into submission, its qi charging into the heavens!

Gao Wu, standing opposite him, immediately felt enormous pressure. It was no exaggeration to say that Han Song's spread latissimus muscles even blocked the lights above the arena, plunging his vision into darkness...