The Contest Begins

Three days later, outside the Chen Residence.

Wang Xuance wore a black mask, his entire body shrouded in a wide black robe.

Gazing at the vigorous, iron-stroke-and-silver-hook golden plaque, Wang Xuance could not help but marvel that the Chen Clan truly deserved its reputation as a century-old great clan.

The two white jade stone lions at the entrance alone, each as tall as a man, were worth hundreds of taels of silver, yet they served merely to symbolize peace and protection for the residence.

"Tut, tut. One of the foremost powers in the outer city indeed—truly extraordinary!"

As early as two days ago, Chen Linger had sent a servant with a mask forged from refined iron and special metals. Unless a Martial Practitioner of the Fetal Breath Realm or above personally examined him, there was no chance of seeing through his disguise!

She had also sent two fifty-tael silver notes as a deposit!

After all, asking him to fend off someone in the Fetal Breath Realm was, at a certain level, inherently a risky undertaking.

The moment he approached the gates of the Chen Residence, the two servants standing guard shouted aloud.

"Stop! This is the residence of the Chen Clan. Idlers are forbidden from proceeding!"

Wang Xuance swept a cold glance over the two of them without uttering a word.

"Tap, tap, tap—"

An elderly man in black hurried out from the Chen Residence. Seeing Wang Xuance dressed in black robes, he immediately went over and kicked each of the two servants, sending them staggering.

"You worthless fools! This is Lord Wang, a martial expert invited by the young lady. How dare you treat him so rudely!"

Having said that, he ignored the two men as they awkwardly rubbed their backsides and said with a fawning smile,

"Lord Wang, please come in at once. The young lady has been waiting inside for quite some time!"

The Chen Residence occupied an enormous area. With its grand courtyards extending three gates deep and three gates wide, it radiated magnificence and fully displayed the family's solid wealth and foundation.

Past the entrance stood a rockery of dark gray stones. Living underground water flowed around it from the northwest, while several palm-sized golden carp drifted slowly through the water, occasionally poking their heads out to blow a string of bubbles!

Four ancient green pines stood rooted in the courtyard, their tangled roots twisting together and casting the entire front court beneath a distinctive coolness!

After leading Wang Xuance across the Zhongting Acupoint, the elderly man in black silently withdrew.

Chen Linger was speaking with a handsome young man. Upon seeing Wang Xuance arrive, she hurriedly led him over.

"Brother Wang, this is my elder brother, Chen Feng!"

"Brother, this is Wang Xuance, whom my brother introduced to you before. Though he has only just reached adulthood, he already possesses the strength of the Three-Knock Blood Pass!"

Seeing the armor-like mask on Wang Xuance's face, Chen Feng's expression tightened. They were both at the Three-Knock Blood Pass, so why did he sense a dangerous aura from the other man?

He could not help cupping his hands with a smile. "Brother Wang, we will be relying entirely on your great assistance this time!"

"You flatter me. We are merely taking what we each need. I only wonder when it will begin."

Wang Xuance glanced at Chen Feng. The man did have a fine face—sword-like brows, starry eyes, and phoenix eyes brimming with authority. If he had been thrown into Wang Xuance's previous life, he would at least have been called a "succubus."

"The contest is still some time away. Attendants!"

A maid dressed in green silk hurried in from outside the courtyard.

"Young Master, what are your instructions?"

"Go. Take Brother Wang to an elegant room to rest. Do not neglect him!"

"Brother Wang, rest for the night and conserve your strength, so that you may prepare for the contest two days from now."

Once Wang Xuance had been led away, Chen Linger could not help asking,

"Brother, I had not even finished speaking. Why did you send him away already?"

"Little sister, this man does have some skill, but he is still only at the Three-Knock Blood Pass. A Martial Practitioner already has true qi within his body. Once true qi is unleashed, how could Essence of Blood and Qi possibly withstand it?"

"Alas, it is only a pity for that silk armor the Lineage purchased at great expense..."

Inside the elegant room, after dismissing the maid who had guided him there, Wang Xuance raised a brow as he recalled the strange look in Chen Feng's eyes earlier.

"Heh, so I was underestimated. Well, I am ultimately only at the Three-Knock Blood Pass, not a Martial Practitioner. Even if I have a few tricks, I am nothing more than a desperate gamble to them—a dead horse treated as if it were alive!"

"Only..."

A sly glint flashed through Wang Xuance's eyes. Experts often grew careless, but he wondered what agonizing price they would have to pay for that carelessness.

Two days passed in the blink of an eye.

On this day, a square earthen platform had been piled up in the courtyard of the Chen Residence's Zhongting Acupoint. At its four corners stood boundary posts wrapped in pinewood and hemp bark.

Below the platform, the six branches of the Chen Clan had each chosen a spot and erected awnings to shelter from the summer heat.

The sun was blazing overhead, and waves of heat rolled through the air, making everyone feel as though they were trapped inside a steamer. The scorching heat was unbearable.

"Big Brother, Chen Feng has become so smug after breaking through to become a Martial Practitioner. He was only lucky—what is he acting so high and mighty for?!"

Chen Linger pressed her lips together, her expression displeased.

Following her gaze, on the opposite side, Chen Feng lounged leisurely in a reclining chair, holding a plump woman in palace dress with golden hairpins in his arms.

"Hmph! He merely got lucky and opened the Mystic Gate one step ahead of everyone else. What is there to be proud of?"

Who in the outer city did not know that Chen Feng, grandson of the second branch elder of the Chen Clan, favored married women and had even sought to bed them before their husbands?

"A lecherous man obsessed with women may gain the advantage for a time, but he will never grace an elegant hall!"

Chen Feng glanced at Chen Feng. Seeing him eat grapes peeled by the fingertips of the woman in his arms, his face full of lust and his manner affected and coy, he sneered.

"He is exactly like his grandfather. Father should have stripped his family of their second-branch status long ago!"

At that moment, two figures appeared atop the platform without warning. They were none other than First Elder Chen Xuanjing and Second Elder Chen Xuanfeng.

Meanwhile, from a corner beneath the platform, Wang Xuance gave Chen Feng a meaningful look.

He was completely different from how he had appeared before the Mountain Sea Guard. Now, he looked more like a scion of an aristocratic clan—overbearing, arrogant, and addicted to lust.

"Tut, tut. Chen Feng is quite fashionable, isn't he?"

You truly could not judge a person by appearance, just as the sea could not be measured with a bucket—this saying was displayed to perfection here!

"There is indeed a reason the Chen Clan has been able to hold steady in business in the outer city!"

The two old men on the platform possessed majestic auras. Black and green true qi flickered faintly around them, but Wang Xuance's senses were extraordinarily sharp. Of the two, the elder wrapped in a sheepskin fur coat was clearly stronger.

His aura was strong enough to rival any headmaster of the Six Schools!

One had to know that anyone who established a school and accepted disciples in White Light Outer City was an existence of the Force Aura Realm.

"Furthermore..."

There were four other old men beneath the platform whose auras were slightly weaker than those two, yet they were already Martial Practitioners. They were likely the elders of the remaining branches Chen Linger had mentioned.

Dong!

The Chen Residence's steward raised a mallet and smashed it hard against a bronze gong.

The noisy surroundings fell silent in an instant, and countless eyes turned toward the two men atop the platform.

"Everyone, today is the day our Chen Clan contends for the position of main branch and settles the division of financial authority. Thus, all six Chen branches have gathered here!"

"Hereby, I announce that this contest now begins!"

Chen Xuanjing sank his qi into his dantian and projected his voice with force.

"Each branch shall select three outstanding disciples to compete on the platform. You may only fight to the point of contact; no one may strike with the intent to kill!"

After saying this, he cast a meaningful glance at the one-eyed Chen Xuanfeng beside him.

Seeing the man's eyes half-closed as though he were asleep yet not asleep, Chen Xuanjing could not help snorting coldly. Last night, this man had gone to the city's largest den of dissipation and fought through the entire night. He truly was vigorous despite his age!

With another strike of the gong, the contest that concerned the life and death of the Chen Clan's six branches officially began.

"Brother Wang, leave Chen Feng to you. In truth, as long as my brother and I win two matches, Brother Wang need only protect yourself when you face him!"

"There is no need to stake your life against his!"

At some point, Chen Linger had approached. A fragrant breeze wafted over, leaving Wang Xuance's mind momentarily dazed.

"What a sweet fragrance!"