First Glimpse of Sharpness

In the Phoenix Cry Empire, where martial arts flourished, conflict was inevitable. Thus, outside the imperial capital, a life-and-death arena existed as a place to resolve personal grudges.

Here, as long as both parties agreed and signed a life-and-death contract, once they stepped onto the stage, even if they killed the opponent, they would not face legal repercussions from the empire.

Normally, countless spectators would gather here. Today was no different, but after several duels concluded, a commotion arose when two young men stepped onto the stage.

"Isn't that Long Chen? Why is he here again?"

"Yeah, he was almost beaten to death yesterday. Why is he back today?"

"Hmph, he probably doesn't want to live anymore and wants to be beaten to death here."

Long Tianxiao was honored as Marquis Zhenyuan and hailed as a God of War. However, only those commoners who had suffered the ravages of war year-round truly called him that.

In the imperial capital, the wealthy and noble, living in an era of peace, did not hold the commoner-born Long Tianxiao in high regard. Consequently, few people in the entire imperial capital thought highly of Long Chen.

"Long Chen, you good-for-nothing, why are you here again? Aren't you just wasting everyone's time? Who wants to watch you fight? Get lost!"

"Exactly! If you want to commit suicide, find a place where no one is around. No one wants to watch a waste of space; it's too time-consuming."

For a moment, hundreds of spectators below cursed loudly, clearly showing their strong dislike for Long Chen.

However, in an inconspicuous corner far away, two veiled young women were intently watching the figure on the stage.

"Sister, is that your fiancé? He looks so unimpressive, with no fluctuations of power at all," one young woman said with some disappointment.

"Hmph, it's all Father's doing. He arranged our marriage when we were still in the womb. It makes me so angry," the other young woman said, extremely annoyed.

On the stage, Long Chen was completely unaware that two young women were spying on him. He also showed no reaction to the scolding, merely looking calmly at Li Hao.

Li Hao pointed at the agitated crowd and sneered, "See? You're an unwelcome waste. If you know what's good for you, you'll just bash your own head in."

Long Chen merely looked at him calmly, saying nothing.

"Clang."

A bell rang, signaling the start of the duel. With the bell, it was a matter of life and death.

The previously noisy crowd fell silent at the sound of the bell. After all, it was a life-and-death battle; someone could die at any moment.

"Sister, your fiancé has no cultivation at all, and he's facing someone at Qi Gathering Triple Heaven. Aren't you worried?" the woman asked.

"Hmph, what's there to be worried about? If he dies, he dies. What does it have to do with me?" the other young woman snorted. However, even as she spoke, a peculiar net appeared in her palm.

"Hehe, you say you don't care, yet you've already prepared a weapon. It seems you do care about him. But I must say, although his cultivation is trash, he's quite handsome. How about you give him to me, Sister?" the woman giggled.

"Nonsense! Can such a thing be casually given away? If you like him, you can have him after I break off the engagement," the other woman said angrily.

"Hehe."

On the stage, Long Chen remained as calm as ever, a stark contrast to the gritting-teeth Long Chen of yesterday.

"Long Chen, have you finally calmed down as death approaches? Don't worry, I won't kill you today, considering your bet," Li Hao said smugly.

"So much nonsense. Hurry up and attack. I have other things to do later," Long Chen said impatiently.

Because the entire venue was silent, Long Chen's words reached everyone's ears without missing a beat. Instantly, a wave of mockery erupted from the crowd below the stage.

"Li Hao, what are you waiting for? Hurry up and kill this bastard. He's making us sick!"

Someone recognized Li Hao and shouted.

A cold smile appeared on Li Hao's face. He no longer hesitated, unleashing the full power of his Qi Gathering Triple Heaven cultivation. He stomped on the stage and lunged at Long Chen, throwing a punch.

As soon as Li Hao attacked, cheers erupted from the crowd. Li Hao's posture was beautiful and dashing.

"What a move, Jade Tree Facing the Wind Fist!"

Someone recognized the technique. However, the two women in the distance secretly spat, a hint of mockery appearing at the corners of their mouths.

A mocking smile also appeared on Long Chen's lips: Such a flawed, idiotic move, and you call it combat?

Seeing the fist hurtling towards his face, the whistling wind seemed to have no effect as Long Chen stood still, unmoved.

"Haha, this waste can't even dodge!" someone in the crowd jeered.

But before the mockery finished, Li Hao's fist stopped three inches from Long Chen's face, motionless.

The people who had been enthusiastically mocking fell silent. They noticed Long Chen had extended a leg, his foot kicking fiercely between Li Hao's legs.

Li Hao, who had previously worn a proud and dashing expression, now had a face the color of a purple eggplant. Clearly, Long Chen's kick had not been pleasant for him. The intense pain contorted his features, leaving him unable to move.

He couldn't move, but Long Chen could. The moment Li Hao froze, Long Chen grabbed his hair with both hands, yanked him back, and simultaneously drove his knee forward.

"Bang, bang, bang!"

Long Chen's movements were incredibly pleasing to the eye, distinct and well-paced, delivering a powerful visual impact and a brisk rhythm.

The sickening sound of bone cracking echoed as Li Hao took three heavy blows. His nose bridge had collapsed and deformed, his face was covered in blood, and he had already lost consciousness.

For a moment, the entire venue was deathly silent. No one had expected a strong practitioner at Qi Gathering Triple Heaven to be defeated so quickly by a supposed waste with no cultivation whatsoever.

Moreover, he had been defeated in the cleanest and most decisive manner. This outcome felt like a harsh slap to the faces of the people who had been clamoring.

Even the two young women secretly observing from afar looked astonished. Li Hao was nothing in front of them; he could be easily dealt with.

But Long Chen was different. From beginning to end, he hadn't used a single trace of spiritual energy, defeating Li Hao entirely with mortal combat techniques.

"Long Chen wins."

A voice came from below the stage. It was an elder, specifically in charge of presiding over the arena, responsible for registration and announcements.

Long Chen's chest heaved violently a few times. It took immense willpower for him to suppress the killing intent in his heart; now was not a good time to kill anyone.

However, it had been suppressed for too long, and once it erupted, it was difficult to retract. To outsiders, it looked as if Long Chen was simply exhausted from the fight, panting wildly.

Long Chen walked off the stage and approached the elder, reclaiming his bet and receiving a Crystal Card worth five thousand Gold Coins.

The rules here stipulated that before a match, bets had to be handed over to the referee to ensure fairness and eliminate any possibility of backing out.

After receiving the prized saber, Long Chen immediately returned it to Shi Feng and put the Crystal Card into his pocket, feeling a surge of excitement.

Although five thousand Gold Coins wasn't a lot, it could solve some pressing issues. The Long family's stipends had been withheld for a long time, and they were truly struggling to make ends meet.

Under the gaze of countless onlookers, the two slowly departed. The two young girls, seeing Long Chen leave, also disappeared.

News of Long Chen defeating Li Hao spread like wildfire throughout the imperial capital, leaving many bewildered. How could a cripple who couldn't practice martial arts suddenly become so powerful?

Yet, numerous people had witnessed it firsthand, and the news of Li Hao being carried back to his manor further fueled the confusion. For a time, many found it hard to accept.

After Long Chen and Shi Feng left, Long Chen wanted to split the spoils with Shi Feng, but Shi Feng adamantly refused. He eventually used the excuse of having business to attend to and left first, not even asking why Long Chen had suddenly become stronger.

Keeping this favor in mind, Long Chen headed straight for the Hundred Herbs Hall. Upon entering, he requested a catalog of their medicinal ingredients.

It clearly listed the names and prices of various herbs. Long Chen saw most of the ingredients needed to refine the Wind Mansion Pill. Fortunately, the ingredients for the Wind Mansion Pill weren't particularly rare.

However, seeing the prices made Long Chen's heart ache. His Gold Coins were only enough to purchase three sets of materials.

But he couldn't buy all the materials; he still needed to buy a Pill Cauldron, and more importantly, some backup medicinal ingredients. The Gold Coins he had were like a drop in the ocean.

Yet, he couldn't afford not to buy them. Long Chen gritted his teeth and spent twelve hundred Gold Coins on a Bronze Cauldron of the lowest quality.

He also bought a set of ingredients for refining the Wind Mansion Pill and a large quantity of ingredients for refining Qi Recovery Powder. When Long Chen emerged from the Hundred Herbs Hall, he only had five hundred Gold Coins left on his Crystal Card.

Upon returning home, Long Chen went straight to his room, locking the door tightly and instructing Bao'er to inform everyone not to disturb him.

He knew his mother would find out he had gone to fight again and would worry. He deliberately had Bao'er block his mother, figuring he wasn't in any real danger, so she shouldn't be overly concerned.

Now, every second counted, and he had to quickly improve his strength. The Long family's predicament was far more serious than it appeared, and Long Chen sensed a crisis.

"Hoo..."

Long Chen circulated the spiritual energy within his body, and a ball of flame appeared on his palm. This was the Pill Fire condensed by a Pill Master. However, seeing the flame made Long Chen want to laugh and cry at the same time; the flame was just too weak.

Pill Fire was a spiritual energy fire condensed by a Pill Master using their own spiritual energy through a unique method of circulation. But the Pill Fire Long Chen had condensed now had a very low temperature, not much stronger than ordinary mortal fire.

Furthermore, Long Chen discovered that without the support of a Dantian, his Pill Fire couldn't last for even fifteen minutes, far too short a time to refine pills.

Long Chen gave a wry smile. Fortunately, he had a backup plan. Instead of refining pills, Long Chen first placed the ingredients for Qi Recovery Powder into the cauldron and refined them one by one. However, he didn't use Pill Fire; instead, he used wood fire.

After all the medicinal ingredients were refined, Long Chen had a full jar of Qi Recovery Fluid beside him. After resting briefly, Long Chen took a deep breath:

It was time to officially begin refining the Wind Mansion Pill.