White Whale Martial Arts Hall

"Haha, you possess immense strength, friend! Zhao Wei of the White Whale Martial Arts Hall has learned his lesson!"

When one's skills are inferior, one must retreat immediately!

Suppressing the stifled feeling in his chest, Zhao Wei let out a hearty laugh. He tapped his feet repeatedly to dissipate the force, then leaped upward. His burly frame resembled a great whale breaching the water beneath the moon, flying over the crowd in an instant and clearing the battlefield.

Tyrant Whale Fist...

White Whale Martial Arts Hall.

Wu Dao's eyes flickered. He retracted his fist, expressionless, making no move to pursue.

The manual for the Tyrant Whale Fist had mentioned the origins of this legacy.

The Giant Whale Sect from fifty years ago.

It had once been at the height of its power in Guangqing Prefecture, with martial arts halls everywhere and disciples across the land, its scale far exceeding the Fangcun Sword Hall where Yun Tianliu currently resided.

It was not that this fist technique was particularly strong.

Rather, the founder practiced no discrimination in teaching, accepting disciples widely, which naturally sowed the Root of Disaster for its later collapse.

Seeking quantity over quality meant that his disciples were a mix of good and bad, with varying moral characters.

Coupled with the lack of strict sect rules, many who learned the fist used their martial prowess to commit evil, bullying the weak and causing public grievances to boil over in Guangqing Prefecture.

Not only did the impression of the Giant Whale Sect in the martial world gradually turn into that of an evil faction, but internally, it also split into two camps due to differing philosophies.

Ultimately, under the intensification of internal conflicts and the suppression by the martial world and the imperial court, the Giant Whale Sect collapsed, and one of its core legacies, the Tyrant Whale Fist, drifted to the four corners of the earth, much like a whale fall nourishing all things.

The White Whale Martial Arts Hall mentioned by this burly man was one such remnant.

Back at the Red Fire Mine.

Wu Dao had learned about the landscape of Guangqing Prefecture from that "Wu Dalang," knowing the scale of the White Whale Martial Arts Hall.

It was the largest power in the region, aside from the Four Seas Gang that dominated the south of Guangqing Prefecture.

Rising like a phoenix from the ashes of the Giant Whale Sect, it boasted over ten thousand disciples and martial arts halls everywhere.

It even had a group of elders from the original Giant Whale Sect sitting in command, and both overtly and covertly, north and south, it held the intent to stand toe-to-toe with the Four Seas Gang.

Of course.

The main point was that the White Whale Martial Arts Hall and the Four Seas Gang were at odds; one righteous and one evil, walking different paths, they could be said to despise the sight of each other.

If he could use this as a stepping stone...

In a flash, thoughts surged through Wu Dao's mind, and he already had a plan.

In this world, he was like duckweed without roots, having no foothold, and his understanding of the world was limited, leaving him constrained in his actions and highly inconvenienced.

If he could find a stepping stone to quickly integrate, understand this world, and leverage their influence to search for anomalies, that would naturally be for the best.

And the identity of being a fellow successor of the Tyrant Whale Fist was a decent brick to knock on the door.

To be honest.

If not for his fear that the Four Seas Gang possessed more sophisticated methods of seeking revenge, he would have even considered offering his allegiance.

For him, there was no distinction between good and evil, nor did he care about the means; practical, tangible benefits were the only things that were real.

As for fighting alone.

In his current weak state, he had never considered it.

To survive in this world, one needed a background and a power base; when trouble arose, one needed someone to clean up the mess and take the blame, knowing how to leverage influence.

A reckless brute who couldn't read the situation and charged blindly was destined not to go far.

Being a lone wolf meant others could manipulate you as they pleased; if you got into trouble, you could only hide and live in fear, leading a miserable and precarious existence—this was truly the worst possible path.

However.

Although the thought of approaching the White Whale Martial Arts Hall had crossed his mind, Wu Dao did not reveal it, merely glancing coldly at Zhao Wei outside the arena before ignoring him.

Guangqing Prefecture was neither large nor small.

Having reached the Divine Strength Realm and being a Fist Dao Grandmaster, he already possessed the status of a local figure, so he naturally had to maintain a certain level of pride; there was no need to lower his status and rush to attach himself to others, only to be looked down upon.

Otherwise.

Others would only view him as a simple-minded, easily manipulated nouveau riche, and he would have already placed himself at a disadvantage from the start.

"What a temper!"

Outside the arena, Zhao Wei felt the waves of swelling pain radiating from the bones and flesh of his thick right arm, and he couldn't help but draw a sharp breath.

Just now, he had only been testing the waters and hadn't used his full strength, yet he hadn't expected Wu Dao to ignore everything and launch a killing blow right from the start.

If not for his solid foundation.

His entire right arm would have been crippled by that single punch!

"Still, this at least confirms he isn't one of the Four Seas Gang."

Zhao Wei circulated his blood energy to recover his right arm, the suspicion in his eyes fading slightly.

Years ago, the Giant Whale Sect collapsed.

Its greatest foundation was split into one righteous and one evil faction.

White Whale Martial Arts Hall walked the righteous path and enjoyed a good reputation, while the Four Seas Gang remained incorrigible, engaging in nothing but filthy, dirty deeds that people found shameful.

This resulted in the two forces, despite sharing the same origin, having a relationship that was as incompatible as fire and water.

They had been at each other's throats for over a decade without a clear winner, and instead, their grudges only deepened, reaching the point where they would come to blows the moment they met.

That was why Zhao Wei and his men showed such hostility toward the stranger Wu Dao, who possessed master-level mastery of the Tyrant Whale Fist, upon their first meeting.

After all, a Divine Strength Realm expert was not just some common weed; having one extra person could break the balance between White Whale Martial Arts Hall and the Four Seas Gang.

Fortunately.

After the brief probe just now, and with the name of White Whale Martial Arts Hall brought up, Wu Dao had not launched an all-out, relentless attack.

This suggested that Wu Dao was not a member of the Four Seas Gang, but likely a Scattered Fist Cultivator who had obtained the fortune of the Giant Whale Sect and only now, having achieved some success, had emerged to travel the world.

If handled correctly.

There was a chance to recruit him for the use of White Whale Martial Arts Hall.

Unfortunately, judging by his temperament—arrogant and wild—trying to recruit him with empty sentiments like "fellow sect member" was likely impossible.

But...

The world was currently in turmoil, and the political situation was chaotic.

If White Whale Martial Arts Hall wanted to protect its legacy in the coming troubled times.

It had to have a constant stream of strong and powerful new blood joining its ranks!

Thoughts flashed like lightning.

In the span of a few breaths, Zhao Wei had considered much, his view of Wu Dao having completely changed, and his desire to recruit him grew ever stronger.

"Stop!!"

A sharp shout rang out across the night sky!

It interrupted Zhao Wei's train of thought.

It also caused the chaotic battlefield to freeze for a moment.

Hum!

Everyone present, including the three Divine Strength Realm experts—Wu Dao, Yun Tianliu, and Zhao Wei—felt a buzzing in their brains, their consciousnesses tossed into a storm, teetering on the edge!

"What is this?"

Wu Dao activated Stealing Heaven's Secret, his brain instantly regaining clarity, his eyes narrowing as he noticed the disheveled, hotheaded Taoist crushing a silver talisman in his palm.

The mental shock from a moment ago must have originated from that.

It seemed the honest man had been pushed to his limit.

"Heh..."

Wu Dao tossed aside the severed arm of some unlucky soul he had been holding, raised an eyebrow slightly, and stopped his slaughter, leaping away from the Taoist.

Methods of the Immortal Dao were mysterious and unpredictable.

They were not something that mere brute strength, no matter how formidable, could truly contend with.

If that Taoist were truly pushed to the edge.

There was no telling what other "lethal weapons" he might be hiding.

An excellent predator always knew how to weigh the pros and cons, to measure the gains and losses.

He didn't want to end up with nothing to eat, only to get a mouthful of thorns that would ruin his appetite.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~

The night wind swept across the landscape.

The clamor and chaos of the battle vanished.

On the wasteland in front of Chunxiang Garden, the ground was covered in mangled flesh and shattered bones, the air thick with an inescapable scent of blood, and the young Taoist's heavy, bellows-like breathing was exceptionally clear.

In less than a few minutes.

Of the original fifty or sixty martial artists.

Only fewer than ten Internal Strengthening peak Foundation Establishment Cultivators remained.

These men were seasoned veterans who had spent years walking on the edge of a blade, their skills for killing and surviving honed to the max.

They had been intent on avoiding the fight.

Coupled with the chaos of the scene.

Even Wu Dao could not say he could kill them just as he pleased; though, of course, if he had truly set his mind on taking their lives, it would only have been a matter of time.

Unfortunately.

A small Daoist priest's talisman interrupted the slaughter.

Wu Dao licked his blood-stained lips, still feeling a sense of unfinished business.

"Sigh, what a sin..."

The small Daoist priest shot an indignant glance at Wu Dao before letting out a long sigh and shaking his head.

He seemed to be quite wary of Wu Dao.

Even though he felt dissatisfied, he did not flare up on the spot.

Wu Dao, however, didn't care in the slightest; he grinned to reveal a mouthful of inhuman shark-like teeth, returning the small Daoist priest with a chilling smile that made him shudder and look away.

"The Soul-Absorbing Gourd is an item of our Immortal Sect. If one doesn't walk this path, what use is it to obtain it? Such a simple truth..."

The small Daoist priest muttered to himself as he walked to the center of the bloody fragments, picked up the Red Skin Gourd that no longer radiated light, and scanned the corpses littering the ground with a face full of compassion: "Truly, what is the point? It wasn't worth it."

"Heh, that might not be true."

Zhao Wei had arrived beside Wu Dao, who was covered in gore and flesh fragments, and chuckled softly: "If one could really obtain that gourd, the Martial Dao would have its own ways to utilize it."

"I'm just afraid of biting off more than I can chew and shattering my teeth instead."

Wu Dao cast a faint glance at Zhao Wei, knowing his words carried a hidden meaning; he clearly knew that this small Daoist priest had an extraordinary background and could not be touched lightly.

"He's from the Huanglong Temple of Fuguang Mountain. If we really touch him, it will be like poking a hornet's nest."

Zhao Wei glanced at the inconspicuous yellow dragon embroidered on the Divination Bag at the small Daoist priest's waist, rubbing his steel-needle-like beard with eyes full of both greed and caution.