The old man was lean, but his eyes were bright. He didn't look like a martial artist at all. Yet he was Li Zhen's grandfather, and a Rank 9 Great Grandmaster. He was like a volcano hiding its strength, liable to erupt with astonishing power at any moment.
Though his body was frail, he was like a tightly coiled spring, brimming with boundless strength. His gaze was as sharp as an eagle's, as if he could see through every obstacle to the truth of things.
The marks of age were clear on him, but his spirit remained vigorous.
"Zhang Tao, Academy Head Li has mentioned you to me many times, and Xiao Zhen has spoken of you often as well. Now that I've finally met you, I see your reputation is well deserved!" The old man looked Zhang Tao over and smiled.
From what the old man could tell, Zhang Tao would soon reach Rank 8. That kind of cultivation speed was truly astonishing.
"Grandmaster Li, you're too kind. You're the one who truly lives up to your reputation!" Zhang Tao replied at once. No matter what, this man was a Great Grandmaster and Li Zhen's grandfather. He deserved the proper respect.
Li Wujie chuckled, then asked, "Zhang Tao, has Xiao Zhen told you about it?"
Zhang Tao nodded. On the way here, Li Zhen had told him a little about the Land of King Battles. In truth, even without Li Zhen's explanation, Zhang Tao already knew what to expect.
"Good. This time, there'll be some danger. Your Rank 7 Domain especially. If Xiao Zhen hadn't already reached the late stage of Rank 7, I wouldn't have let him enter. After all, the Old Ancestor's reputation is too great. The Catacombs want nothing more than to wipe out our Li Family." Li Wujie briefly explained, then asked, "Are you still going in?"
Zhang Tao nodded. What a joke. He'd come all this way. How could he give up halfway?
Li Wujie said no more. They took the passage used by Zhenxing City and headed to Sea-Suppressing Mountain.
Along the way, Zhang Tao got to see the seniors stationed at Sea-Suppressing Mountain. By the time they reached the Land of King Battles, people from the other Holy Lands were already waiting there.
Across from them stood a group of Catacombs fighters. Each wore a haughty expression and looked at them with disdain.
Zhang Tao didn't try to draw attention to himself. He stayed behind Li Zhen. Zhenxing City had brought only six people this time, and the other Holy Lands clearly had no intention of joining forces with them. It was plain that in this era, infighting among the Holy Lands was also quite severe.
"I didn't expect you to be leading them, Li Wujie. Does that mean someone from your Li Family is joining us this time?" a Rank 9 Divine General asked.
Li Wujie snorted and ignored him. The Divine General immediately turned his gaze toward the people from Zhenxing City, then fixed it on Li Zhen. After all, Li Zhen stood near the front. He was hard to miss.
"Are you a descendant of the Heaven Suppressing King?" the Rank 9 Divine General asked.
Seeing how the Catacombs fighters looked down on everyone, Li Zhen snorted. As a descendant of the Heaven Suppressing King, he couldn't show weakness. "That's right. I'm Li Zhen, a descendant of the Heaven Suppressing King!"
The Rank 9 Divine General burst out laughing. "I didn't expect a descendant of the Heaven Suppressing King to join us this time! Men, kill him and claim your reward—"
The Catacombs' younger generation erupted in excitement. A descendant of the Heaven Suppressing King had actually joined them! If they killed him, wouldn't they become famous across the God Continent?
Li Zhen remained expressionless. He'd already been prepared for this when he decided to come. He glanced at Zhang Tao, making his meaning clear.
Zhang Tao said nothing, only returning his look.
"Li Zhen, I'm Zhu Wusheng, a descendant of the Bamboo King. You'd better hide, or I'll find you!" Zhu Wusheng said arrogantly.
Li Zhen ignored him. There was no point in saying anything now.
"All right, go in," Li Wujie said, paying no attention to that supposed descendant of the Bamboo King.
The people from the Six Great Sacred Lands entered together. Most of those who came this time were from the Rank 6 Domain; there weren't many from the Rank 7 Domain. Only ten people entered alongside Zhang Tao's group, and they belonged to different Holy Lands.
Once they entered the Land of King Battles, the ten immediately took off, without the slightest intention of joining Li Zhen and the others.
The people from Zhenxing City stayed behind. One of them, who looked to be at the middle stage of Rank 7, asked, "Xiao Zhen, what are you planning to do?"
"Brother Su, don't worry about me," Li Zhen said at once. He didn't want to drag Su Changqing and the others into this.
Zhang Tao stayed silent, wanting to see what the people from Zhenxing City would decide.
"What kind of nonsense is that? You think we can just leave you behind? Didn't you see how excited those bastards were? They all want you dead!" Su Changqing snorted. To be honest, none of them had expected to make it out alive this time. Besides, Li Zhen was the pride of Zhenxing City. They could die, but Li Zhen couldn't.
Li Zhen was about to say something, but Zhang Tao cut in. "Stop wasting time. The Catacombs fighters will enter in half an hour. Since they want to kill Li Zhen, we'll just kill them first."
Su Changqing froze, then looked at Zhang Tao. They'd all heard of him, but did he really have to be this bold? Did he know how many Catacombs fighters were about to enter? At least several dozen! And how many of them were there? How were they supposed to kill them?
Still, Zhang Tao had one thing right: they were short on time. So Su Changqing said, "Zhang Tao has a point. We're running out of time. Let's discuss it while we fly."
As he spoke, Su Changqing was about to lead the two of them away.
Zhang Tao smiled. "Brother Su, this is a great opportunity. It's not like they'll all rush in at once. If we ambush them here, we can catch them off guard and kill a few."
Su Changqing froze. Damn, the rumors about Zhang Tao being recklessly bold were true! They'd just arrived, and he was already planning to ambush a whole group. Were the martial artists from the outside world all this reckless?
Li Zhen was stunned too. That was so like Zhang Tao.
"Quit staring. We're short on time. If you trust me, I'll make the arrangements. Li Zhen, go find the monsters around here. If I remember correctly, there are chaotic monsters nearby. Lead them this way. We'll kill a wave first— as many as we can—then retreat once the monsters arrive." Zhang Tao explained his plan.
Su Changqing was completely dumbfounded. They could do that? Wasn't he worried they might not get away?
Li Zhen's eyes lit up. "Good! Brother Su, listen to him!"
Hearing Li Zhen say the same, Su Changqing considered it for a moment, then said, "All right!"
Zhang Tao went straight to the entrance, took a look, and began digging a hole. He also instructed Su Changqing and the others to split into pairs and hide nearby, waiting for his signal. When he said to attack, they would attack; when he said to leave, they would leave.
Li Zhen flew off to find the monsters. He also had to keep track of the timing!
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