A Sparring Tournament?

"First, it is a great honor to welcome all of you who have traveled from afar to attend the investiture ceremony for Spirit Hall's newly appointed ninth elder, Elder Liu Hao. For ten thousand years, Spirit Hall has overseen order among the continent's Soul Masters, meting out rewards and punishments fairly..."

As Spirit Hall's Supreme Pontiff, Bibi Dong delivered the opening address with effortless assurance, all manner of ceremonial pleasantries flowing readily from her lips.

Carried by powerful pulses of Soul Power, her elegant, solemn voice reached every corner of the square, ensuring that everyone present could hear her clearly.

"I believe you have all noticed a young, unfamiliar face in Spirit Hall's elders' section. That is right-he is the man at the center of today's ceremony, Elder Liu Hao. Now, let us invite Elder Liu Hao onto the platform to give his speech."

Unlike Blue Star in his previous life, the Douluo World had no custom of applauding on solemn occasions like this.

There were only pairs of curious, probing, appraising, and even scrutinizing eyes, leaving the atmosphere heavy.

Liu Hao did not care, though. After all, why would a person care about the gazes of a swarm of ants?

Liu Hao strolled leisurely onto the highest platform, then turned and stood facing the crowd.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Liu Hao, a rank-99 Limit Douluo. This year, I just turned twelve."

An uproar erupted-

The entire crowd burst into an uproar, no one able to remain calm.

Incredulous questions rang out one after another.

"A twelve-year-old Limit Douluo? How is that possible?"

"He must be joking, right?"

"Of course he is. That is far too outrageous."

"He probably wanted to break the ice this way. I admit, he succeeded."

Boom!

After allowing the crowd to discuss it for half a minute, Liu Hao suddenly unleashed an overwhelmingly powerful, terrifying aura that swept across the square!

It was as though an ancient Ferocious Beast had awakened. A might that could swallow mountains and rivers surged toward them; even a single glance sent chills down their spines and made their hearts crawl.

The entire square instantly fell silent.

The people who had been chattering moments earlier now behaved like a flock of obedient children.

Every one of them sat stiffly in their seat, eyes wide.

A powerhouse-an unparalleled powerhouse!

That was the thought shared by everyone.

He had released neither his Martial Soul nor his Soul Rings. The pressure generated simply by circulating his Soul Power was already this terrifying.

It showed just how frighteningly powerful this newly appointed ninth elder was!

They had originally assumed that this new elder, being willing to settle for ninth place, was probably not all that strong, and that the rumors of him being a rank-99 Limit Douluo were mistaken.

They had never expected him to be so formidable!

With strength like that, why would you be the ninth elder? Couldn't you sit alongside Qian Daoliu in the Worship Hall?

"You may have doubts about my age, but that does not matter. Age is unimportant. I imagine what interests you more is my strength."

Liu Hao smiled faintly and continued, "So, I have a little suggestion. Why don't we hold a small sparring tournament? I will hold the arena, and any of you may come up to spar with me. What do you think?"

There was no doubt about it: Liu Hao had made this suggestion to show off.

After all, possessing strength without showing it off was like wearing splendid robes through the night-what was the point?

Seated nearby, Bibi Dong's eyes lit up at Liu Hao's suggestion.

Wasn't this exactly what she wanted? After all, one of her reasons for holding this investiture ceremony was to intimidate the various factions.

Bibi Dong had already been considering how to get Liu Hao to act and demonstrate his strength.

Now that Liu Hao himself had proposed a sparring tournament, it played right into her hands.

Everyone exchanged glances, yet no one made a move. None of them seemed willing to be the first bird to poke its head out.

Liu Hao took a strangely shaped, richly fragrant immortal herb from the Wishful Treasure Pouch. The corners of his lips lifted slightly as he looked toward the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

"Everyone, perhaps sparring alone is a little dull. How about this? I will put up a prize. Whoever can injure me, even leaving the smallest cut, will receive this immortal herb, aromatic silk beauty. What do you think?"

Yet everyone remained unmoved. Clearly, they did not understand the value of this immortal herb.

Except...

"Um, Ninth Elder, may I give it a try?"

A thin, delicate voice suddenly rang out.

Everyone turned to look and saw a man with soft, feminine features rise from Spirit Hall's elders' section.

He wore a silver-white robe embroidered with golden chrysanthemums. He was none other than Chrysanthemum Douluo, one of Bibi Dong's trusted aides.

At that moment, Yue Guan's eyes gleamed with excitement.

His Martial Soul was singular velvet sky chrysanthemum, itself one of the immortal herbs. Thus, he adored flowers and plants and had spent years studying all sorts of exotic flora.

As for the legendary immortal herbs, he yearned for them with all his heart and dreamed of obtaining one.

Unfortunately, despite searching painstakingly for years, he had never had the chance to see one with his own eyes.

Yue Guan had never imagined that he would happen upon one by sheer chance on an occasion like this.

Through his singular velvet sky chrysanthemum Martial Soul, he instantly sensed that what Liu Hao held was indeed an immortal-grade medicinal herb.

He was beside himself with excitement. Even knowing he was no match for Liu Hao, he could not resist giving it a try.

"Yue Guan? Of course."

Liu Hao smiled faintly and nodded his approval.

Whoever stepped up would be his punching bag anyway. What difference did it make whom he hit?

"Would anyone else like to try?"

As Liu Hao spoke, he looked toward the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect again.

Strange. Couldn't Ning Fengzhi's Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda sense heavenly treasures? Why hadn't he reacted yet? Was he too far away to sense it clearly?

After a moment's thought, Liu Hao decided to lay his cards on the table.

After all, apart from Spirit Hall's Titled Douluos, Sword Douluo Chen Xin had always ranked among the very strongest in the major sects. He was an excellent candidate for a punching bag.

"This aromatic silk beauty grew by absorbing the essence of heaven and earth and the radiance of the sun and moon. It offers tremendous benefits to treasure-type Martial Souls. For example, if someone with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Martial Soul, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, consumes it, their Martial Soul will evolve into the legendary Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda!"

The moment Liu Hao said this, everyone turned toward the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

Some were curious, some surprised, some delighted in their misfortune, and others were ready to enjoy the show.

Clearly, everyone could tell that Liu Hao was targeting the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

After all, those words had put them squarely on the spot.

Ning Fengzhi wore luxurious blue-green robes. Refined and handsome, he appeared to be in his forties and possessed a gentle bearing.

At that moment, a complicated expression crossed his face as he exchanged glances with Sword Douluo beside him.

Clearly, both men found themselves in a difficult position.

This was Spirit Hall's territory, and representatives from so many other factions were present.

Ning Fengzhi desperately wanted this aromatic silk beauty. After all, evolving their Martial Soul into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda had been his sect's ultimate aspiration for a thousand years, as well as his own lifelong pursuit.

The problem was that obtaining this aromatic silk beauty would not be easy.

If they injured Liu Hao and took away this priceless aromatic silk beauty, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect would offend both a rank-99 Limit Douluo and Chrysanthemum Douluo.

They would also very likely draw particular attention from Spirit Hall, perhaps even covert retaliation.

But if Sword Douluo fought and failed to injure Liu Hao, that would also deal a considerable blow to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's reputation.

After all, Sword Douluo's Seven Kill Sword was a top-tier tool Martial Soul reputed to possess the ultimate offensive power.

If he could not even break through his opponent's defenses, they would lose face terribly.

After hesitating for a long while, Ning Fengzhi finally gave an affirmative look.

After all, they no longer had any way to retreat.

Liu Hao had named them outright. If they did not even dare to fight, the blow to their sect's reputation would only be greater.

At worst, after obtaining the aromatic silk beauty, they could find some way to compensate him or negotiate with Spirit Hall. They would decide what to do when the time came.

"Then let this old man give it a try."

A somewhat aged voice rang out.

The speaker had a head of white hair and stood tall and straight, his bearing cool and aloof, his eyes as sharp as swords. He was Sword Douluo Chen Xin, one of the Douluos who protected the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.