The Favorites to Win

"Dad, that's Junior Brother Li Yun I told you about."

From the stands, Lu Kuan pointed at Li Yun on the arena and spoke to his father beside him.

Lu Zhengyu sat upright in his chair, his sturdy frame accentuated by his green satin robe. At his son's words, he looked up.

A handsome, clean-cut young man with a tall, lean build stood on the arena.

Facing him was a burly man, his face flushed red, chest bare and muscles knotted.

Once both sides were ready, the referee signaled for the match to begin.

The burly man stamped hard against the ground and charged forward like a Wild Ox. His right arm spread like a claw as he lunged straight for Li Yun's face.

Li Yun stood there as if scared senseless, not moving an inch.

Lu Zhengyu's brows lifted slightly. He was a Dark Force martial artist himself. Li Yun might have looked motionless, but his feet were planted against the ground, his center of gravity lowered, and his aura gathered without dispersing. He was clearly no frightened fool.

Just as the burly man's claw came within three feet of Li Yun's face—

Li Yun moved!

He drew his left foot back half a step, while his left hand shot out like lightning.

He caught the burly man's wrist with perfect precision and pulled it down, dropping his left elbow like an iron pestle into the man.

Then he twisted his waist, entangled the man's arm, pressed down on his shoulder, and chopped with his elbow—all three movements flowing together.

So fast that only afterimages remained.

Bang.

The burly man hit the ground flat on his back, knocked unconscious.

The referee stepped forward to check on him. Seeing that he had passed out, he announced Li Yun's victory.

The whole thing had taken no more than a breath. They had met once, and the winner was decided.

It seemed his son might be a bit of a wild card, but his judgment wasn't bad.

A flicker of surprise crossed Lu Zhengyu's eyes as he watched from the stands. He said gravely, "Quick hands, clever force, steady mind. This kid has some real skill."

"Heh, I told you Junior Brother Li was good, didn't I?

"So, hurry up and sponsor him. If you miss your chance, he might win the tournament and have plenty of options. Then you won't get another opportunity~"

Lu Kuan looked pleased. His father had approved of the junior brother he had taken a liking to.

He was happy.

After all, his father rarely praised anyone.

Lu Zhengyu recalled the information his son had told him:

Seven-grade roots, from a hunter's family, with no other support.

Steadfast in his pursuit of martial arts, he trained day and night without pause and had earned the title Martial Fanatic.

The burly man just now had abundant qi and blood, and his attacks had carried considerable force.

Li Yun had caught them with ease and knocked him unconscious with a counterattack.

His qi and blood were surely strong, and his fist technique had reached a certain level of mastery.

To reach this level in just one year—

This investment... was worth making.

"All right. Follow the rules and offer him a middle... no, upper-tier contract."

"Huh? I was thinking of giving him the benefits of an upper-tier guest."

Li Kuan was often pestered by Li Yun to spar. After spending so much time with him, he couldn't claim to have seen through him completely, but he was fairly confident in his judgment.

As someone who often sat and discussed the Way with Little Green, he found it hard to imagine that Li Yun kept approaching Yu Qingqing just so others would ask him to spar.

His junior brother put martial arts first, without question.

Everything else could wait.

Lu Kuan believed that as long as Li Yun had the resources to support him, he would shine one day.

That was why he wanted to offer him the better benefits of a guest, rather than sponsorship through a binding contract.

Lu Zhengyu turned to look at his son. His round, carefree face was now filled with earnestness.

He couldn't help but take him more seriously.

An upper-tier contract offered much the same resources as an upper-tier guest.

But a guest had no set term of service to the family.

It was simply a matter of making a friend and giving him resources.

If they ever found themselves in trouble, it would be up to the other person's mood whether he lent a hand.

There were no restrictions at all.

It was a gamble on his character.

After some thought, Lu Zhengyu shook his head.

"Let's watch him a little longer. There's no rush."

Li Yun had no idea that his modest approach had cost him a sponsorship in the span of a moment.

But even if he had known, he wouldn't have cared.

Resources were only an accelerator. Safety mattered far more.

He took the black wooden token from the referee, then left the arena to look for his next target.

That was also one of the tournament rules: contestants could keep defending their arena or step down to rest.

After all, this was a promotional exhibition, not a rigorous competition, so no rest periods had been set.

Li Yun made his way among the arenas.

As well as looking for a target, he was also gathering information on his opponents.

"Hey, brother, want a list of the tournament favorites?"

A short while later, a skinny man with a sharp nose stopped Li Yun to ask.

Li Yun had just been thinking about finding out more, and here someone was already compiling information.

"Oh? It's only just started. You already have intel?"

"The top contenders in this tournament are all the martial halls' own favorites. It doesn't matter much when it starts."

The Sharp-Mouthed Skinny Guy spoke with the air of an old hand, lowering his voice mysteriously. Then he rubbed his fingers together.

"Only twenty copper coins, and you'll know everything.

"So, want a copy?"

It wasn't much money, so Li Yun paid, just for the fun of it.

The Sharp-Mouthed Skinny Guy took the money and lowered his voice.

"First place goes to Su Xue of the White Crane Martial Hall.

"I hear she's been there less than a year, and her qi and blood are already at their peak. She could condense Bright Force at any time.

"But she's held off just for the tournament.

"Her White Crane Fist has reached minor mastery."

At this point, the Sharp-Mouthed Skinny Guy crept even closer, looking furtive.

"I hear—I hear, mind you—that Su Xue's even brought the accompanying footwork to minor mastery.

"So she's probably the big favorite in this tournament."

Who knew if any of it was true?

But if it was, then Su Xue—with her fist technique and footwork both at minor mastery and her qi and blood brimming—would indeed be a formidable opponent.

Still, the arena tournament limited how much she could use her footwork. Li Yun still had a good chance of winning.

If he wanted to claim the Blood Ginseng, it seemed he would have to reveal more of his strength.

As for his safety... he would see how things went.

The Sharp-Mouthed Skinny Guy continued.

"Second is Ma Chen of the Wild Ox Martial Hall.

"That guy's only been at the hall for half a year, yet his qi and blood are already brimming.

"His Wild Ox Fist has also reached minor mastery. I hear plenty of senior brothers aren't his match, even though they're at the same level.

"Most importantly, the guy's born with incredible strength."

Once martial artists opened the qi-and-blood pathways beneath their skin, they were already strong.

If someone dared call him born with incredible strength, then his strength had to be extraordinary.

The Sharp-Mouthed Skinny Guy swallowed, then continued with the intel.

"Third is the Subduing Tiger Martial Hall.

"Good grief, every martial hall seems to have stumbled into a hornet's nest this year. They've all taken in geniuses one after another.

"I hear the Subduing Tiger Hall Master took in a genius from a butcher's family who somehow developed Bright Force in just half a year.

"Unfortunately, he lacks a foundation. Who knows if he'll make a splash in the Bright Force arena?"

The Sharp-Mouthed Skinny Guy seemed to realize he had strayed off topic, and hurriedly returned to the Body Tempering Realm favorites.

"The Subduing Tiger Martial Hall's candidate is also a newcomer.

"What's his name... Li Yun, I think.

"I hear the guy's a Martial Fanatic.

"He eats and sleeps at the hall, and whenever he has nothing to do, he asks people to spar.

"He's beaten every Body Tempering Realm martial artist at the hall.

"But later, for some reason, he stopped showing up there much.

"Since nobody knows how strong his qi and blood are, I've ranked him third."

Ahem.

What did he mean, he'd beaten everyone?

Those had been ordinary sparring matches.

And Li Yun hadn't only targeted his fellow disciples in the Body Tempering Realm. He'd gone to the Bright Force senior brothers too... to ask them for advice on fist techniques.

Li Yun had been very skeptical of the Sharp-Mouthed Skinny Guy's information.

But the guy even knew some things about him.

So the earlier information might be worth considering.

After all, Li Yun rarely fought in public. The source behind this information clearly had access to some useful connections.

"Besides the martial halls, are there any other candidates?"