Momentum

Having said that, he lowered his head and charged at the burly man. The man burst into laughter and set aside his Level-Brow Staff, raising a hand to hold back the boy who had rushed at him. He let the boy punch and kick as he pleased, then applied a little force. The boy staggered backward and landed on the ground on his backside.

The boy's face flushed red. Facing the crowd's gazes, he gritted his teeth and hurriedly slipped into the crowd, disappearing from sight.

With that opening act, the atmosphere grew lively.

More than a dozen people stepped forward one after another, only to be knocked down by the man's deftly wielded Level-Brow Staff. Finally, a female swordswoman dressed like a wandering hero stepped up. She shifted her footing to evade, then flicked her sword upward through a gap and pressed it against the big man's throat. She looked utterly at ease; only someone supremely skilled and bold could put on such a splendid display of swordsmanship.

The scene drew loud cheers from the crowd. Only Fang Ling and the seven or eight Celestial Immortals around her remained grim-faced. They watched one another in secret, ready to respond the instant anyone made a move.

Even now, several Celestial Immortals had originally gathered around Fang Ling as a small group. Yet after the Green-Robed Scholar announced the rules, they silently moved apart. Everyone understood perfectly well that the final contest would be decided among them.

Though they all looked skeletal from resisting the corruption of the City of Phantoms, over the long lifespan of a Celestial Immortal, even those who had never studied close-combat martial arts knew very well how to use their bodies to deliver the greatest possible force.

They also understood that, aside from that freak Lu