I Swear, This Time I Really Burned Out

The third bout.

His opponent was a skinny martial artist wielding a spear, also at the peak of the Qi Nurturing Realm.

The two sides exchanged another fierce flurry of blows. After several hundred moves, Lu Yun once again narrowly won by a single move.

After this match, Lu Yun's aura looked even weaker than before.

As the skinny martial artist limped off the arena, his face was full of unwillingness.

"Just a little short... just a tiny bit short..."

The chance to gain both fame and fortune had been right before him, yet he had still failed to seize it.

The bitterness in his heart was beyond words.

"Quick, get up there! Lu Yun is nearly done for. It's obvious he's about to burn out..."

The people below stared excitedly, as though they could already see Lu Yun being beaten flat on the arena.

Then came the fourth, the fifth, the sixth...

Martial artists stepped onto the stage one after another, only to fall short by a single move each time. They left behind ten origin stones and withdrew dejectedly.

As for Lu Yun, though he always looked half-dead, he stubbornly clung to his last breath and simply would not fall. Every battle left him looking as if he had burned everything he had, making people unable to help but believe it.

As time passed.

Lu Yun kept winning, all the way through his fiftieth match. The origin stones in his possession had already accumulated to over five hundred.

At that moment, he sat on the ground, panting heavily. Looking utterly drained, he called down to the crowd, "Anyone else coming up? I'm really about to burn out this time. I don't have a shred of strength left."

"Just step up and you can claim ten origin stones. It's practically picking up money..."

He tried his utmost to egg on the people around him, but no one dared step up to challenge him again.

"Fuck, you've said that forty-nine times already! Every time, you claim you're about to burn out—but what happened? You think we're idiots you can fool?"

At last, the many martial artists watching began to sense that something was off.

Quite a few started voicing their doubts.

"That's impossible!"

"No one can keep burning their blood essence to fight and still win fifty matches in a row."

"He must have concealed his strength. This man has probably already broken through to the Internal Fortification Realm. Otherwise, there's no way he could pull this off..."

Shen Weihong, the know-it-all, spoke with absolute certainty.

He did not know whether to laugh or cry at Lu Yun's shameless behavior.

The moment those words were spoken, even the slowest-witted martial artists caught on.

The entire place instantly erupted in outrage.

"Fuck, this guy's tactics are filthy! Wasn't he deliberately setting us up? Do you think it's easy for us to earn a few origin stones?"

"Beast! What a beast! He even put on an act like he'd collapse in the next match, luring us up to challenge him... How can his heart be this black?"

"Hehe... who told you to be greedy? You wanted to rise to prominence by stepping on someone else's name, and you wanted to make a fortune in origin stones too. Where in this world is there a business that guarantees profit without loss? Tried to steal a chicken, only to lose the rice meant to bait it, didn't you?"

Some of the smarter martial artists mocked them.

Watching others suffer a setback made them feel much better.

Wang Tianba and Wang Dashan, however, looked as though they were on the verge of tears.

They had spent more than a month saving up, risking their lives overseas to accumulate ten origin stones, only for them to vanish just like that.

Not only that, they had always believed that they were only a tiny bit weaker than Lu Yun.

Now, that dream had shattered on the spot.

"So I was the clown all along. He didn't just beat me—he stabbed me in the heart."

That was how the fifty martial artists who had gone up felt, their hearts filled with bitterness.

"Hehe... Since no one wants to come up and challenge me, I'll be leaving first."

Lu Yun grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth.

Then, with a whoosh, he sprang to his feet, slung a large bag of origin stones over his back, and headed toward the military camp.

He moved so briskly that there was not the slightest sign of someone about to burn out.

He was clearly a vigorous martial arts expert, his qi and blood brimming with vitality.

"As expected, he fooled every last one of us..."

Everyone beneath the arena ground their teeth, their eyes seeming ready to spit fire.

Quite a few were even envious, wishing they could take his place.

Five hundred origin stones was an enormous fortune even to them.

And he had earned it in half a day.

Wherever Lu Yun went, the people in the square parted to make way. No one dared block him in the slightest.

Though this crowd complained loudly enough, when it came time for someone to step forward, every last one of them shrank back.

Offending a future Hidden Dragon Ranking genius was no laughing matter.

In their eyes, a twenty-one-year-old Internal Fortification martial artist clearly possessed the momentum to challenge the Hidden Dragon Ranking.

Ye Quan carried that outrageously arrogant canvas banner and followed cautiously behind Lu Yun, terrified that this enraged pack of martial artists would beat him to death.

His scrawny frame could not withstand more than a few punches.

Fortunately, everyone feared Lu Yun and did not make things difficult for Ye Quan.

The two gradually walked farther away and soon vanished at the far end of the square.

Once they saw Lu Yun leave, the crowd could no longer contain their fury.

"No, we can't just let this go. This is too stifling. I suggest we pool our funds and hire an expert from the Hidden Dragon Ranking to snipe him. Let him have a taste of being suppressed too."

"Right! If I don't avenge this grudge, I swear I'm not human! I'll contribute one origin stone."

"I'll contribute one origin stone too..."

Some of the martial artists who had lost origin stones began organizing themselves. After all, having been toyed with like monkeys, there was no way they could swallow this humiliation. For a time, the square became exceedingly lively.

It was a pity Lu Yun was not there. Otherwise, he would only have added fuel to the flames.

Ever since reaching the completion of Internal Fortification, he too wanted to see just what level the geniuses of the Hidden Dragon Ranking had reached.

Could they withstand his full-strength attack?

Winning fifty matches in a row just now had not even counted as a warm-up.

When Lu Yun returned to the barracks dormitory, he found the atmosphere inside somewhat strange.

Ou Dewen and Yang Tianxiao stood at the door with their four roommates.

When they saw Lu Yun and Ye Quan approaching, all six wore respectful expressions.

"Lord Lu, this youngster failed to recognize Mount Tai. I have offended you many times in the past..."

As he spoke, Ou Dewen handed over a cloth bag containing thirty origin stones.

The six of them had pooled these together in hopes of earning Lu Yun's forgiveness, not hesitating to bleed themselves dry for it.

Five origin stones per person was no small sum.

Just moments ago, three of them had personally witnessed Lu Yun's results in the square. After returning, they had told Ou Dewen and Yang Tianxiao about it.

At first, the two did not believe them. Only when they found that all three spoke with one voice did they have no choice but to believe it.

"It's nothing. You are all thoughtful."

Lu Yun smiled faintly and accepted the origin stones they offered.

There had never been any real conflict between them. Clinging to the matter would only seem beneath him.

Accepting the origin stones also gave them a way out. Everyone was satisfied.

Seeing Lu Yun accept them, Yang Tianxiao and Ou Dewen secretly let out sighs of relief.

This matter could be considered settled.

Otherwise, if they offended a strong contender for centurion, they would truly be finished. Their families might even be affected.

At the same time, all six were filled with resentment toward Ye Quan.

He had clearly known Lu Yun's strength, yet kept his mouth shut the entire time, deliberately letting them make fools of themselves. He was simply less than human.

That night.

Lu Yun found an unoccupied spot and absorbed all the origin stones in his possession.

"Lifespan +1, Lifespan +1..."

Very quickly, all five hundred and thirty origin stones were completely absorbed.

In total, he gained a little over forty-three years of lifespan. The harvest was not small.

Once I get another batch of resources, I'll be able to break through to Bone Forging.

Lu Yun thought to himself.

Over the following days.

Everyone's attitude toward Lu Yun grew increasingly respectful. The others took care of all matters, large and small, and even cleared out the best spot for him.

Ye Quan's status as a lackey became even more secure. In order to cling tightly to Lu Yun's thigh, he carried out every task Lu Yun gave him without a single flaw.

Over the past few days, Lu Yun did not return to the arena to fight.

Doing something like that once was more than enough. The others were not fools, either.

Ever since he had made a killing last time, the repercussions had been considerable.

Among the vast number of Qi Nurturing martial artists, Lu Yun had become infamous—a heinous, unforgivable figure.

As the stories spread from person to person, Lu Yun was practically fashioned into an unparalleled great demon.

At the same time, news of Lu Yun being a Red Flame Army recruit spread as well.

The Know-It-All ranked Lu Yun twentieth on the centurion candidate list.

He was also one of the strongest candidates for becoming a centurion.