Zhou Deze, the chief disciple of Prajna Hall's Fifth Branch, flew into a rage when he heard this. "Arrogant! A mere Arhat Hall disciple dares to speak so shamelessly, saying that reaching the top ten would be as easy as turning his hand. Where does that leave us Prajna Hall disciples?!"
Li Changfeng said disdainfully, "Senior Brother Zhou! Since you're so unconvinced, how about we fight in the next match?"
Zhou Deze's expression shifted uncertainly. "A mere Arhat Hall disciple! What right do you have to challenge the chief disciple of Prajna Hall? Defeat the other Prajna Hall disciples first before you talk!"
"Heh heh! If you don't dare, then you don't dare! Stop spouting nonsense. The chief disciple of Prajna Hall's Fifth Branch is actually afraid to fight—what a huge joke!"
Zhou Deze's face darkened at the mocking words. He stood there without saying a word, glaring venomously at Li Changfeng. The other Prajna Hall disciples looked equally unpleasant, furious but unable to speak. There was simply nothing they could do about Li Changfeng's arrogance.
Dong Tianbao was enraged when he heard this. "You're the chief disciple of the Fifth Branch, yet you're afraid to fight? You've utterly disgraced us Prajna Hall disciples!"
Hearing such insults, Zhou Deze's face twisted viciously. He stood there stubbornly silent, trembling all over with rage.
In truth, his choice was not wrong. He had never been confident that he could defeat Li Changfeng. But having been challenged by Li Changfeng before everyone's eyes, he could not step down gracefully and could only grit his teeth and endure it.
Li Changfeng thought to himself, This guy can really endure. He can tolerate being provoked to his face. He knows when to bend and when to stretch—he's someone worth watching. I'd better be careful around him!
"Hmph! Li Changfeng! Don't get too pleased with yourself! I, Dong Tianbao, will be waiting for you later. When you meet me, you'd better not surrender!"
"Heh! You make it sound like I'm afraid of you. I'll be waiting!"
"Enough! Stop arguing! There's still one more match! Golden Arhat, come up and draw your lot!"
"Yes, Martial Arts Elder! I'm coming up now."
Golden Arhat slowly walked onto the martial arts stage. The Prajna Hall disciples below instantly grew tense. In their eyes, only their top chief disciple, Dong Tianbao, could contend with him. They certainly did not want to face him!
Golden Arhat then handed the lot he had drawn to the Martial Arts Elder. The Martial Arts Elder looked at it and said:
Next,
the battle for the top twenty-five.
Fifth match.
Golden Arhat, chief disciple of Arhat Hall's First Branch.
Versus
Zhang Yuankai, disciple of Prajna Hall's Third Branch.
Zhang Yuankai's face turned ugly as he gritted his teeth. "Why am I so unlucky? I actually have to fight this Golden Arhat. Damn it!"
The two then slowly walked onto the martial arts stage and cupped their fists.
"I am Golden Arhat, chief disciple of Arhat Hall's First Branch. Please enlighten me!"
"I am Zhang Yuankai, a disciple of Prajna Hall's Third Branch. Please enlighten me!"
"Hmph! Golden Arhat! It won't be so easy for you to defeat me!"
"Heh heh! Junior Brother Zhang! Then let's see what you can do!"
Zhang Yuankai made the first move. True energy surged throughout his body, releasing the aura of a peak third-rate expert. With his left hand, he unleashed the first form of the Wei Tuo Palm, "Stone Crusher." Streams of firm yet supple true energy gathered in his palm, forming a Yin Softness-style palm technique.
With twenty years of Inner Force, he charged at Golden Arhat and struck with a force of sixteen hundred jin, slamming his palm toward him.
With his right hand, he unleashed the first form of Shaolin Fist, "Three Consecutive Punches," using fierce fist force to attack Dong Pengfu's upper, middle, and lower regions—one punch to the abdomen, one to the chest, and one to the face.
Each punch carried twenty years of Inner Force and a force of sixteen hundred jin as it smashed toward Golden Arhat from three directions.
Golden Arhat was slightly surprised. True energy boiled throughout his body as he activated the seventh level of the Golden Bell Shield. A golden phantom of a great bell slowly appeared, and a fierce force of the golden bell enveloped his body.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The sound of great bells colliding rang out repeatedly. Golden Arhat remained standing in place without moving, while the fierce power of Zhang Yuankai's fists and palms struck wildly against the golden bell phantom around him. Golden Arhat did not move an inch.
Zhang Yuankai, however, was forced back again and again by a powerful rebounding force. His fists and palms went numb, his hands trembling slightly as he stared unwillingly at Golden Arhat.
"Junior Brother Zhang! You actually know how to fight with both hands independently, using a different martial skill with each hand. Such remarkable talent truly surprises me!"
"Hmph! Do I need you to comment on my talent? Next, I'll strike with everything I have. Let's see if you can still be so calm!"
"Heh heh! Junior Brother Zhang! How about this? If you can force me back even one step, I'll count it as my loss. What do you say?"
"Hmph! You're being so overconfident. Martial Arts Elder, do his words count?"
"Those who have left the secular world do not speak falsehoods! Since he has said it, of course it counts!"
"Heh heh! Since you're so overconfident, don't blame me!"
The Prajna Hall Chief below the stage shook his head. "A martial artist who lacks even the most basic bearing of a warrior will never amount to much, no matter how outstanding his talent is!"
Zhang Yuankai sneered. True energy boiled throughout his body as he struck with all his strength. His left hand unleashed the second form of the Wei Tuo Palm, "Stone Breaker." Streams of firm yet supple true energy gathered in his palm, creating palm force that was fierce without losing its softness and producing a blur of phantom palm prints.
With twenty years of Inner Force, he charged at Golden Arhat and struck with a force of seventeen hundred jin, slamming his palm toward him.
With his right hand, he unleashed the second form of Shaolin Fist, "Five Consecutive Punches," using fierce fist force to attack Shi Yong's upper and middle regions—one punch to the abdomen, one to the chest, one to the face, and the final two punches at the dantian.
Each punch carried twenty years of Inner Force and a force of seventeen hundred jin as it smashed toward Golden Arhat.
Golden Arhat smiled faintly and remained standing in place. He activated the seventh level of the Golden Bell Shield again. A gleaming golden phantom of a great bell slowly appeared, much more solid than before, as fierce golden bell force enveloped his body.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The repeated sound of great bells colliding rang out. Golden Arhat used the gleaming golden bell phantom around him to withstand the fierce and violent power of the fists and palms head-on. After the barrage ended, he remained firmly in place without shifting even a single step.
After his frenzied barrage, Zhang Yuankai stood where he was, panting heavily. Drops of blood trickled from his hands as they trembled faintly.
"Junior Brother Zhang! Can you continue?"
"You... you bastard! Take my final move!"
Zhang Yuankai's face was filled with fury. True energy boiled throughout his body as he struck with all his might. With his left hand, he unleashed the third form of the Wei Tuo Palm, "Stone Shatterer." Streams of firm yet supple true energy gathered in his palm, instantly erupting with violent palm force capable of shattering stone.
With twenty years of Inner Force, he charged at Golden Arhat and struck with a force of nineteen hundred jin, slamming his palm toward him.
With his right hand, he unleashed the third form of Shaolin Fist, "Ten Consecutive Punches." Streams of fierce true energy gathered in his fist, instantly erupting with savage fist force and creating ten phantom punches that attacked every part of Golden Arhat's body in a frenzy.
Each punch carried twenty years of Inner Force and a force of nineteen hundred jin as it smashed toward Golden Arhat.
Even faced with such a ferocious attack, Golden Arhat remained unmoved. He activated the eighth level of the Golden Bell Shield. A solid, gleaming golden phantom of a great bell slowly appeared, and the ultimate fierce force of the golden bell enveloped his body.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Zhang Yuankai's face was crazed as he desperately unleashed the power of his fists and palms, smashing wildly against Golden Arhat's solid bell phantom. Continuous bell chimes rang out without pause.
After the mad barrage, dust rose all around them. Golden Arhat remained firmly standing in place without moving a single step, while Zhang Yuankai was struck by the fierce rebounding force. Both his arms broke, and he spat out a mouthful of blood before being flung away. He had already lost.
The Martial Arts Elder slowly stepped forward and said calmly, "Arhat Hall wins this match!"
Before you continue