Snatching the Ranking (2)

The blue stone arena in the south of the city was teeming with people. As Li Chen Zhou reined in his horse, he saw a burly, bearded man kick a Six Doors constable off the stage, blood arcing through the air in a stark line.

"Who's next?!" The large man pounded his black-haired chest, the gilded plaque on his waist, reading "Human Ranking Thirty-Nine," clanging loudly. "Is this all the imperial court has to offer?"

The arena supervisor's face was ashen. Behind him lay seven or eight heavily injured soldiers of the Ministry of War.

Amidst the jeers of the surrounding martial artists, Li Chen Zhou's riding crop suddenly cracked!

"Snap!"

The tip of the whip snatched up the life-and-death agreement from the edge of the arena, the ink still wet on the white paper as it fluttered like a butterfly.

Li Chen Zhou tapped his saddle with his toe, his figure transforming into a streak of crimson that swept onto the arena. As he landed, the Blood Demon Blade's scabbard slammed heavily against the ground, causing the copper bells at the four corners of the arena to chime in unison.

"Li Chen Zhou of the Brocade Guard." He pushed his thumb against the blade guard, revealing three inches of scarlet edge. "Anyone unafraid of death, sign the agreement and come up."

The entire arena fell silent.

Looking at the burly man, Li Chen Zhou sneered, "A clown."

Li Chen Zhou's aura made the man wary, and jeers came from the martial artists below:

"Go on, what are you afraid of!"

With so many eyes upon him, the burly man was afraid of losing face and signed the life-and-death agreement with a stiff upper lip.

Stepping onto the arena, he glared at Li Chen Zhou's attire and sneered, "Hmph, a mere Banner Officer dares to come on stage. I see the imperial court is truly lacking in talent."

Suddenly, someone below shouted a warning, "Don't be careless! That's Little Devil Li Chen Zhou. Be careful of his Soul Absorption Art; it's incredibly wicked."

The burly man cracked his neck, his bones popping loudly, and said dismissively, "Soul Absorption Art? I'd like to see if it's as wicked as the legends say." With that, he charged toward Li Chen Zhou.

Li Chen Zhou stood still, not moving an inch.

The burly man threw a punch, stopping three inches from Li Chen Zhou's face.

Contempt filled Li Chen Zhou's eyes. "You? You're not worthy."

The burly man stared, wide-eyed, at his full-force blow, unable to make the other man even take a step back.

Li Chen Zhou kicked out, striking the man squarely in the chest, sending him flying off the arena. His chest bones were shattered, and he died instantly.

Immediately, the city guards responsible for the scene dragged the body away.

A voice rang out the next moment:

"Lord Li, your methods are so ruthless, leaving no one a chance to live. Isn't that a bit much?" The speaker was none other than Gentleman's Sword Xie An, the one who had challenged him before.

"If you're afraid of death, stay down there and cower. Why come out and play the saint?" Li Chen Zhou didn't care about such accusations.

Xie An's white robes fluttered in the autumn wind, the "Gentleman" jade pendant at his waist striking against his long sword, producing a clear, ringing sound.

As he slowly walked onto the arena, his toe paused on the bloodstains left by the burly man, and he pulled out a snow-white handkerchief to cover his mouth and nose.

"Lord Li." He lightly flicked his sword tip, and the life-and-death agreement floated into his palm. "Xie is not here today for the Heavenly Desire Palace, nor for the martial arts ranking..." As he dipped his brush in ink and began to write, the gold thread embroidered bamboo pattern on his sleeve shimmered in the sunlight. "Only to seek instruction in true imperial court martial arts."

Li Chen Zhou suddenly laughed. He thrust the Blood Demon Blade into the center of the arena and drew his Embroidered Spring Blade from his waist. "Using the Blood Demon Blade against you would be a waste." The scabbard spun lightly, revealing the cold, sharp edge of an ordinary Embroidered Spring Blade.

Xie An's white robes fluttered in the autumn wind, the "Gentleman's Sword" jade pendant at his waist reflecting the pale light of the sky. As he slowly walked onto the arena, ice lotuses bloomed on the blue stone floor—a sign that he had cultivated his Frost Qi to the pinnacle.

"Lord Li." Xie An cupped his fist in salute, a gilded challenge letter sliding from his sleeve. "The appointment at Emerald Cloud Tower three days ago..."

"Noisy." Li Chen Zhou slammed the Blood Demon Blade's scabbard heavily against the ground, and the copper bells at the four corners of the arena suddenly shattered in unison. "If you want to fight, then fight. Why so much nonsense?"

Xie An was not annoyed but instead pulled out the long sword stuck in the edge of the arena. As the sword left its sheath, the moisture within ten yards instantly condensed into frost, and ice crystals hung from the eyebrows of several martial artists who were standing too close.

"Gentleman's Sword Art, First Form—"

The trajectory of the sword's path condensed into ice crystals in the air, and Xie An's figure suddenly split into three! The three "Xie An" simultaneously stabbed toward Li Chen Zhou's throat, heart, and dantian, the cold light of the sword tips like stars.

"Petty tricks." Li Chen Zhou sneered, not caring at all, and activated his perfected Golden Bell Shield to the extreme.

The three figures struck at the same time, with sparks only flying at the throat.

Xie An changed his moves with extreme speed, his sword technique suddenly turning soft and gentle, like a spring breeze turning into rain, entangling the Embroidered Spring Blade. This was the Gentleman's Sword Art's most insidious "Finger Entangling Softness," seemingly peaceful, but in reality, each sword qi concealed thirty-six layers of hidden strength.

"Lord Li, do you know..." Xie An suddenly transmitted a secret message, "Holy Maiden Nangong is offering ten thousand taels to buy a complete recording of you using the Soul Absorption Art." He deliberately brushed his sword against the Blood Demon Blade, creating a streak of dazzling sparks. "Heavenly Desire Palace is trying to decipher your..."

Before he could finish speaking, the Embroidered Spring Blade suddenly emitted a dragon-like tremor! Wisps of blood mist seeped from Li Chen Zhou's pores, and the blood mist wrapped around the blade, forming dark red patterns. Those dark red patterns actually began to wriggle like living things.

"You talk too much."

The first of the Three Abyssal Slashes, "Severing Samsara," was unleashed with a roar!

Xie An hurriedly met the attack with his sword, only to see that the seemingly fierce blade technique suddenly transformed into finger-entangling softness—using his own methods against him!

"Crack!"

The Gentleman's Sword snapped in response.

Xie An retreated seven steps, with only the hilt of his sword remaining in his hand.

"Is that all you've got?" Li Chen Zhou suddenly changed his move, striking the back of Xie An's wrist heavily with the back of his blade.

Xie An staggered backward, suddenly shooting out a handful of fine needles from his sleeve! The tips of the needles were dark blue, clearly coated with poison.

As Li Chen Zhou spun to dodge, he heard exclamations from below: "It's the Tang Clan's Rainstorm Pear Blossom Needles!"

Countless poisonous needles flew toward him, and Li Chen Zhou roared, "Great Cosmos Shift!"

The Soul Absorption Art was activated with full force, and the ejected poison needles were immediately frozen in the air, before blasting into the stone wall next to the arena.

"You dare call yourself the Gentleman's Sword? A fraud who deceives the world and steals its reputation." Li Chen Zhou sneered, and the Embroidered Spring Blade suddenly flew out of his hand, the hilt heavily striking Xie An's sternum. As Xie An spat blood and flew backward, Li Chen Zhou had already moved like a ghost to behind him, pressing a palm on the back of his heart—

"You want to see the Soul Absorption Art? I'll grant your wish."

The Soul Absorption Art was activated!

Xie An let out a scream that didn't sound human, and the power within his entire body surged into Li Chen Zhou's meridians like a burst dam.

The crowd below was horrified to see that the skin of this elegant young man withered at a speed visible to the naked eye, eventually turning into a shriveled husk!

Thump. As the corpse fell, Li Chen Zhou closed his eyes, feeling the added twelve years of cultivation.

Current Internal Energy Cultivation: 135 years

But the next moment, a sinister laughter suddenly came from the northwest corner:

"As expected of someone ranked twentieth on the Rising Dragon Ranking by the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion, the title of Little Devil is well-deserved!"

The crowd parted like a tide, and a gaunt gray-clothed man walked out.

With each step he took, a scorched footprint was left on the bluestone slab, and the jade tag at his waist that read "Human Ranking Twenty-Eight" glowed with a poisonous miasma-like green light.

"Cui Wei, Scorched Bone Hand, a renegade from the Five Poisons Sect." The monitoring official exclaimed in a lost voice, "He actually came too!"

Cui Wei's withered claws slammed onto the life-and-death contract, and the palm print immediately corroded into wisps of green smoke: "I heard that Banner Officer Li's Soul Absorption Art from the Heavenly Desire Palace is incredibly bizarre, and seeing it today, it truly lives up to its name. I just wonder if my poison skills are something that Sir Li can accept?"