Discussion

Li Beichen admitted that Yuan Dazong was a martial artist who thirsted for the path of martial arts.

Regardless of the heat or cold, he practiced diligently day and night without pause.

This behavior was something everyone in the martial hall could see.

However, he also knew that Yuan Dazong's talent was truly mediocre.

It took him a full eight months just to strike a single sound.

Breaking through to the Eighth Rank of Tendon Refining took another two years.

After that, he remained trapped at the Eighth Rank; three years passed, then another three, a full six years without breaking through to the Seventh Rank.

If there were any hope of reaching the Seventh Rank, Yuan Dazong would seize every opportunity.

Meng Juxiang, who had been listening for a long time from the side, shook his head.

"Yuan Dazong's aptitude is mediocre, and his meridians are naturally weak. Being able to reach the Great Completion of Tendon Refining within ten years is already the result of his arduous cultivation."

"If he were to distract himself with the external martial arts of the Thunderbolt Martial Hall, it would be absolutely impossible for him to break through to the Seventh Rank."

"Unless... he finds another way and practices True Qi martial arts, otherwise, the highest he will ever reach in this life is the lower three ranks."

"True Qi martial arts?!"

Zhang Meng's eyes widened, and he blurted out.

"Master, are you saying the Thunderbolt Martial Hall might possess True Qi martial arts?!!"

Li Beichen also pricked up his ears.

"Huang Baitao comes from the Five-Thunder Thunderbolt Sect, which does have a heritage of True Qi martial arts."

"But Huang Baitao definitely does not have it, otherwise he would not have suffered nothing but defeat at my hands."

When Meng Juxiang said this, a trace of dominance appeared on his face, before he continued.

"In the Huang family, the only one with the inheritance of True Qi martial arts is Huang Baitao's eldest son, Huang Feng, who is a true disciple of the Five-Thunder Thunderbolt Sect."

Zhang Meng scratched his head at this moment.

"Huang Shan, who was killed by the second junior brother, was only a concubine-born son. I heard his talent was extremely poor, not even reaching the ranks. Could Huang Feng have secretly passed True Qi martial arts to him?"

"Although Huang Feng and Huang Shan were born of different mothers, they were still biological brothers. Perhaps that is a possibility..."

"Then Master... what should we do?"

Meng Juxiang's eyes half-closed, and he fell silent for a moment.

"If Yuan Dazong returns, send him away immediately. Tell him to go far away and not return to Ram City until he reaches the Sixth Rank."

"If he does not return, we shall act as if we know nothing of this matter."

Hearing this, Zhang Meng became a bit anxious.

"But Master, we can act as if we don't know, but the Thunderbolt Martial Hall cannot. If they can't find the second junior brother, they will surely come knocking on our door."

"We are certainly not afraid of those brats from the Thunderbolt Martial Hall, but a clash is inevitable."

Meng Juxiang looked up out the window. Li Beichen could see a hint of compassion on the face that usually bore a fierce scar.

"I know Yuan Dazong's character is poor, but he has followed me for so many years, after all."

"Even though he handled this matter poorly, as his master, I still want to protect him."

"If you were the ones in trouble, I would do the same."

Hearing this, Zhang Meng said nothing more.

Li Beichen watched from the side.

He discovered that this master, who appeared fierce and intimidating, was not cold or heartless; on the contrary, he valued loyalty and sentiment.

Meng Juxiang had once said that the disciples in the hall were only obsessed with building big muscles and had no other schemes.

Looking at it now, the most honest one might just be Meng Juxiang himself.

Li Beichen had a very poor impression of Yuan Dazong.

Like his senior brother Zhang Meng, he believed that Yuan Dazong was not worth Meng Juxiang taking the fall for this matter.

Furthermore, when Yuan Dazong killed Huang Shan, he did it in broad daylight without any attempt at concealment, clearly never considering the impact it would have on the martial hall.

Meanwhile, in a house less than a hundred meters away from the Thunderbolt Martial Hall in the Jinglong District.

Yuan Dazong, who was being hunted everywhere by the Thunderbolt Martial Hall, was actually hiding right here.

No one would have guessed that Yuan Dazong was hiding right under their noses.

Throughout all of Ram City, and even the surrounding villages, towns, and wilderness, people from the Thunderbolt Martial Hall were searching.

The only place they hadn't searched was the civilian residence right next to the Thunderbolt Martial Hall.

At this moment, Yuan Dazong was focused intently on studying a yellowed book in front of him.

His thin, narrow eyes were filled with fanaticism.

"True Qi martial arts—once I master True Qi, I will surely break through to the Seventh Grade, or even higher!"

The people from Thunderbolt Martial Hall searched for a full day and night.

They even mobilized both the underworld and the legitimate authorities, along with every walk of life, to join the hunt.

Yet, there was still no result.

Early the next morning, the people from Thunderbolt Martial Hall, led by Lin Xiong, marched aggressively toward Like-Elephant Martial Hall.

The entire Jinglong District was shaken.

One must know that Thunderbolt and Like-Elephant were both among the four top-tier martial halls.

In Ram City, they were considered the most powerful factions.

Now, these two major martial halls were about to clash.

Countless martial artists and even ordinary people looking for excitement followed behind the disciples of Thunderbolt Martial Hall, eager to witness the scene firsthand.

Inside Like-Elephant Martial Hall, Li Beichen, Zhang Meng, and several other inner-court disciples gathered together.

Last night, Zhang Meng had summoned all the disciples to inform them about the matter concerning Yuan Dazong.

To prevent any accidents, Li Beichen and the others had stayed the night directly within the martial hall.

"Senior Brother, the people from Thunderbolt Martial Hall are about to arrive!"

An outer-court disciple who had been sent out to scout for information hurried back.

"Who is leading them?!"

"Lin Xiong and Mo Changkun are both in the ranks; their inner-court disciples should all be here!"

"Hasn't Huang Baitao appeared?"

"No."

"Very well, go and rest!"

Zhang Meng's eyes narrowed as he spoke to Li Beichen and the other inner-court disciples.

"Junior brothers and sisters, since Huang Baitao, the master of Thunderbolt Martial Hall, has not come in person, we cannot let our Master step forward either. We must handle this ourselves first!"

"But Lin Xiong and Mo Changkun of Thunderbolt Martial Hall are both Seventh Grade martial artists, and we only have Senior Brother."

"In the Eighth and Ninth Grades, they have more people than we do."

Yang Ling and Han Fengqi spoke one after another, their voices filled with worry.

In terms of the number of inner-court disciples, Like-Elephant Martial Hall had always been at the bottom of the four major martial halls.

"It is fine. Even if Huang Baitao's son is dead, they must still follow the rules. The possibility of them engaging in an all-out brawl with us is slim, as it would only lead to mutual destruction."

"According to the rules, it will be nothing more than a martial duel."

Third Senior Brother Wang Dao raised his head, his gaze seemingly fixed on Zhang Meng, but in reality, he was staring at the tightly shut nanmu doors of the inner-court hall.

"The second one committed a crime, and we have to bear the consequences together—that is fine. But for the Master not to even show his face, it is truly disheartening."

"Third Brother!"

Zhang Meng shouted in a low voice to stop Wang Dao.

Seeing that the people from Thunderbolt Martial Hall had not yet arrived, their own ranks were already in disarray.

Li Beichen stepped forward.

"Third Senior Brother, Master is not in the hall right now; he is in the back courtyard. Even if you say such things, he cannot hear you."

His interruption eased the atmosphere.

Fifth Senior Sister Fang Meiqin, who had been silent for a long time, raised her brows, revealing a murderous intent.

"If they want to cause trouble, then we shall set the terms directly: a martial duel it is."

"Besides, I have been displeased with that bunch from Thunderbolt Martial Hall for a long time!"

"Fifth Senior Sister is right, a martial duel it is. Count me, Li Beichen, in!"

Li Beichen also stood out directly.

Although he had joined Like-Elephant Martial Hall for less than a year, he had received much care from Meng Juxiang and Zhang Meng.

The matter of Zhou Zhongru at the Meat Guild had been cleaned up by the martial hall on his behalf.

He was a man who clearly distinguished between gratitude and grudges; even though he did not like Yuan Dazong, since Meng Juxiang had made his decision, he would follow without hesitation.

"Good!"

Zhang Meng made up his mind.

"If Thunderbolt Martial Hall refuses to let this go, we will take the initiative to propose a martial duel—one bout each for the Seventh, Eighth, and Ninth Grades. That way, our chances of winning will be quite high!"