Chapter 1269-1270
Chapter 1269 – Top Three
Although not everyone from the Devil Realm has these yin lightning mines, their insight made them recognize that the mines in front of them were the real deal.
Zhongli QIang looked at the person in confusion as he said, "Lin Jiang, why do you have so much yin lightning mines? Did you find a way to make them?"
The man named Lin Jiang forced a smile as he said, "Like it's that easy. I got these mines a long time ago. Back then, I was searching for plants on a green planet and came across a cave with a dead Cultivator inside. I don't know for how long the bones have been there but there are these 7 yin lightning mines as well as devil artifacts."
Upon hearing Lin Jiang, everyone lamented on his good fortune. But Zhongli Qiang didn't immediately take the yin lightning mines. Instead he turned to Tu Mietan and said, "Mietan, can you deal with Zhao Hai?"
Tu Mietan smiled and said, "Elder, rest assured. I'll take care of him. I thank Uncle Ling, I'll be impolite and take these mines."
Lin Jiang threw his mines over and said, "I hope that these mines can help destroy Zhao Hai. That guy is too dangerous. He will be a huge threat to our Devil Realm."
Zhongli Qiang nodded and said, "If Zhao Hai is allowed to return to the Machine Field, it would be more difficult to get rid of him. Don't forget, he just ascended less than a year ago. He accomplished all of these in one year. He is a monster."
Everyone was silent. Tu Mietan carefully put away the yin lightning mines. Then he turned back to watch the battles in the arena.
But what the people from the Devil Realm didn't know was that their conversation was being eavesdropped. Zhao Hai was now aware of the existence of the yin lightning mines.
After listening to Laura about what yin lightning mines were, Zhao Hai felt the killing intent welling up inside him. Since the other party wanted to deal with him, then he doesn't need to be polite. The Devil Realm already tried to kill him once, if he doesn't retaliate, then he could no longer be called Zhao Hai.
Zhao Hai exhibited his domineering side because he discovered that Nascent Soul Experts could walk sideways in the World of Cultivation. As long as they don't offend any huge sect, then they don't have to fear anything. Nascent Soul Experts were in no real danger unless they met unfortunate circumstances.
Zhao Hai currently has Nascent Soul-level strength. In fact, most Nascent Soul Experts couldn't defeat him. In addition to his Liquid Silver, Zhao Hai also has astral qi. He's more powerful than most Nascent Soul Experts.
Nascent Soul Stage was a bottleneck for Cultivators. As long as they successfully get through their tribulation, then their lifespan would be greatly improved along with their physical body. The body of Transcending Tribulation Experts return to their youth. It wasn't uncommon for Transcending Tribulation Experts to revert their appearance to their younger years.
It was also because of this that Transcending Tribulation Experts treasure their own lives and would normally close up. Only when matters regarding the life and death of the sect would these people come out. Therefore, it was close to impossible for a Transcending Tribulation Expert to come and deal with Zhao Hai.
Transcending Tribulation Experts, Severed Soul Experts, and those above them could only be counted on ones hands. Such people were very secretive in their actions and most Cultivators wouldn't even know them. Even major sect leaders couldn't just meet them whenever they wanted.
Since he knew about this, Zhao Hai decided to show his strength. Therefore, even if the Cultivation Realm and the Devil Realm wanted to deal with him, they would have to think properly. Unless they give up on courtesies and send a large number of experts to kill Zhao Hai, then once he returns to the Machine Feild, then they would lose any opportunity to deal with him.
Although the Machine Field was the weakest realm in the World of Cultivation, they were still able to defend against all other realms for many years. Naturally, this meant that they had their strong point. If the Cultivators and the people from the Devil Realm sent small amounts of people to the Machine Field, then it's highly probable for these people to not return.
For many years, the Machine FIeld didn't have any great talents appear. But now that there was Zhao Hai, the Machine FIeld would definitely go all out in defending him.
Naturally, Zhongli Qiang's group was aware of this. Therefore, they decided to have Tu Mietan kill Zhao Hai in the arena. They didn't even hesitate to take out treasures like yin lightning mines. They think that with Zhao Hai's present strength, he would hold back in dealing with his opponents. But they didn't expect that Zhao Hai wouldn't dare treat this matter lightly. Zhao Hai knew that even lions go all out in dealing with a rabbit.
The Cultivators in the arena were still sparring. Their battles weren't interesting. One would win while the other lost, the battles continued on. The constant boring fights caused people to feel sleepy.
After all battles had concluded, Zhao Hai expected that they would be given time to rest before the next round began. But what he didn't expect was that the committee didn't pause. They immediately announced the beginning of the next round of battles.
At this point, only 24 participants were left and 12 battles remaining. The opponent that Zhao Hai has drawn with was someone from the Cultivation Realm. Although the Cultivator was quite strong, he was still defeated by Zhao Hai.
Tu Mietan was also able to smoothly enter the top 12. His opponent turned out to be Qin Zhang, one of the Cultivation Realm's top 10. He was a person who specialized in fire spells. But in the end, he wasn't able to last long against Tu Mietan.
Actually, Qin Zhang's strength wasn't inferior to Tu Mietan. He was only defeated because of the gap in artifacts. In addition to his three artifacts, Tu Mietan also took out a ghost hook and a halberd. These two artifacts have strength that was comparable to the three artifacts. Because of these two artifacts, Qin Zhang was constantly held back before he was forced to surrender.
This wasn't surprising since Qin Zhang was just one of the top 100 of the Cultivation Realm. It was impossible for the entire Cultivation Realm to support him alone. The only support he had was the support he got from his sect.
On the other hand, Tu Mietan was the Devil Realm's last participant in the competition. His position in the Devil Realm was the same as Zhao Hai's position in the Machine Field. Naturally, he would have the support of his entire realm. Because of this, the artifacts he had in hand were richer compared to the other participants.
After the top twelve has been determined, it was time to decide the top 6. The person that Zhao Hai faced this time was Yi Shuihan. This caused Zhao Hai to feel strange. Besides Su LIancheng and Qin Zhang, Zhao Hai had faced all the top 10 in the elimination round. According to this pattern, it was highly probable for him to meet Su Liancheng the next round.
Naturally, Zhao Hai wasn't polite. Although Yi Shuihan tried his best, he was still defeated by Zhao Hai. Fortunately, Yi Shuihan didn't follow Jiang Tian's path. Therefore, Zhao Hai didn't take his life.
The Cultivators also discovered that if one wasn't excessive towards Zhao Hai, then Zhao Hai wouldn't kill them. This caused the Cultivators to pause before starting to make a move.
How strong was Zhao Hai? If the people from the Cultivation Realm order their participants to go all out on Zhao Hai, then it's possible that Zhao Hai would kill them. This wasn't good for the Cultivation Realm. After all, those who participated in the competition were geniuses. Losing just one of them would be bad.
Most importantly, they had to consider the impact of this action to the Ascenders. If the people from the Cultivation realm forced the participants to go all out against Zhao Hai, then Ascenders in the Cultivation Realm would think that the Cultivation Realm don't treat their lives as important.
One must know that the Cultivation Realm's Ascender situation was different compared to the Machine Field. In the Machine Field, Ascenders don't have much status and power. On the other hand, Ascenders in the Cultivation Realm have a much higher status compared to Ascenders in the Machine Field. There would be no benefit for the Cultivation Realm if this matter goes bad. So even if the Cultivation Realm instructed their participants to go all out against Zhao Hai, they didn't tell them to go desperate in order to win.
Tu Mietan also defeated his opponent. But this time, it was evident that he used a lot of effort to do so. And in addition to his five artifacts, he also used some paper talismans.
Zhao Hai knew that the Devil Realm was saving the yin lightning mines for him. Zhao Hai was also paying more attention to them. He believes that Tu Mietan doesn't only have yin lightning mines prepared to deal with him. He surely has more methods that were hidden.
Zhao Hai knew that the competition in the Devil Realm was much more brutal than in the Cultivation Realm. Unlike the Cultivation Realm, resources in the Devil Realm were scarce. Coupled with how ruthless the people in the Devil Realm were, this resulted in an environment were the strongest tower over the weak. With this treacherous environment as his origin, Tu Mietan certainly has aces that he had yet to reveal.
And who was Zhao Hai? He was now deemed to be the most powerful rookie in the entire World of Cultivation. His position certainly attracts hate and envy. Those who can defeat him would gain instant fame and status.
Tu Mietan might be the current most influential rookie in the Devil Realm, but there were a lot of people who were vying for his position. If he was beaten by Zhao Hai, then his position would certainly be in peril. Therefore, not only would Tu Mietan eliminate Zhao Hai for fame, he would also do it in order to gain more resources from the Devil Realm.
If a person of lower status wanted a higher position in a short period of time, then the easiest method would be killing someone higher up and stepping on their corpse to ascend. With how highly Zhao Hai was being looked upon, those who could step on his corpse would certainly be able to rise smoothly.
Since he knew of this point, Zhao Hai didn't dare take Tu Mietan lightly. Tu Mietan exerted some effort to defeat his latest opponent without taking the yin lightning mines out. This meant that he was saving the mines for Zhao Hai. But if Tu Mietan has something other than the mines, then things would be more troublesome.
When the six battles ended, the top three were determined. These three were Zhao Hai, Tu Mietan, and Suo Liancheng. This time, they would no longer use the tournament format. Instead, they would use points to determine their place in the competition.
This so-called point system was actually very simple. Zhao Hai, Tu Mietan and Suo Liancheng would fight each other. If they won, then they would get a point, and if they lost, then the other party would get the point. The one with the highest point would be the champion.
In other words, one of them would get no points, one would get two points, and one would get one point.
Naturally, it's possible for each of them to get one point each. However, the probability of this was very small. After all, this battle was mainly determined by strength. If Zhao Hai lost to Suo Liancheng but won against Tu Mietan, then this proves that Suo Liancheng was stronger than Zhao Hai and even stronger than Tu Mietan.
But if the three were to tie, then they would fight once again until the tie is broken. But everyone knew that a second round of fights would never happen.
After drawing lots, Zhao Hai was drawn along with Suo Liancheng. Upon seeing the result, Zhao Hai didn't hesitate and immediately flew towards the arena.
Suo Liancheng also appeared in the arena. His sword was still strapped on his back. Back when he was fighting Cultivators, he didn't reveal much of his strength. It can be said that he was able to smoothly progress towards the top three.
However, Suo Liancheng wasn't happy because of this. What he wanted was to fight Zhao Hai. He didn't expect to face him in the last battles of the tournament. This caused Suo Liancheng to be somewhat depressed.
When the two stepped on the arena, Zhao Hai looked at Suo Liancheng and then smiled faintly as he said, "Suo Liancheng, I’ve been looking forward to facing you. I didn't expect to meet you this late."
When Suo Liancheng heard Zhao Hai, he couldn't help but laugh as he replied, "That's what I was about to say. You're strong, so I want to test my skills against you. In the eyes of sword cultivators, every enemy is an opportunity to hone our blades."
Zhao Hai smiled faintly and said, "Then please." Suo Liancheng took out the golden sword at his back. Then the golden sword flashed for a moment before it pierced towards Zhao Hai.
The sword was very fast. Moreover, it brought with it a strong aura. One could see that Suo Liancheng was utilizing all of the sword's power. He was showing how sharp his sword was.
Zhao Hai waved his hand as he released a 100-layer formation in front of him. Then the formation turned into a shield to block the incoming sword.
However, since the sword has the metal-attribute, it was very sharp. The golden sword punctured through Zhao Hai's shield and went straight for his throat!
Chapter 1270 – One Move, One Fist
Zhao Hai looked at the sword that was quickly approaching his throat, he couldn't help but praise it in his heart. At this point, he wouldn't be able to evade the sword without using the Space since it's too close. It was also too late to use a magic formation. This was the peak of Suo Liancheng's sword. Once it's out, you die! There's no return. The only thing to do was face it head on!
Zhao Hai's throat could feel the sharp aura coming out of Suo Liancheng's sword. His hair couldn't help but rise up.
Seeing Zhao Hai's situation, Ma Rulong and the others stood up. Zhao Hai's current situation was too dangerous. He couldn't evade nor could he defend. He could only stand there to wait for death. Suo Liancheng's sword was too savage.
Almost everyone in the spectator stands stood up, not only the people from the Machine Field . They were also startled by Suo Liancheng's sword. The sword was too fast. It hasn't been long since Zhao Hai invited Suo Liancheng to begin. Moreover, Suo Liancheng's timing was just right. He attacked when Zhao Hai wasn't fully prepared.
Everyone wanted to look and see if Suo Liancheng could break Zhao Hai's unbeatable myth. They were even wondering if he could kill Zhao Hai.
But just as Suo Liancheng's sword was about to piece Zhao Hai's throat, Zhao Hai's hand moved and grasped forward. The next moment, Suo Liancheng's sword stuck firmly between Zhao Hai's thumb, index finger, and middle finger. Because Suo Liancheng's sword was travelling too fast and was suddenly stopped, the sword body couldn't stop shaking violently.
One should know that Suo Liancheng's sword wasn't ordinary. It was Ten Thousand Sword Sect's most known weapons. It was also built excellently. When this sword shook, it rang as though it was a fragile bell.
Everyone was stunned. They didn't expect Zhao Hai to just catch the sword barehanded. One could see the sword's power by looking at how violently it shook. But in the end, Zhao Hai just caught it with three fingers.
When Suo Liancheng saw that Zhao Hai had grabbed his sword, his complexion changed. He immediately used a secret art to retrieve his sword. However, the sword just shook violently and couldn't break out of Zhao Hai's grip. Zhao Hai's fingers were like iron casts, grasping the sword firmly.
Zhao Hai looked at Suo Liancheng and then smiled, "Alright. Suo Liancheng, you're truly worthy of being a sword cultivator. Your sword is very sharp. However, I'm a Warrior as well. This sword cannot deal with me. You should surrender."
If he was against other Cultivators, then Zhao Hai might not be able to tell them to admit defeat. But since Suo Liancheng was a sword cultivator, he doesn't have any other magic artifact. Most sword cultivators wouldn't use artifacts other than their swords. All of them were focused on their sword skills and to make it as sharp as possible. Suo Liancheng was the same.
When he saw Zhao Hai's calm appearance, Suo Liancheng knew that it was already impossible for him to win. Suo Liancheng nodded, his voice solemn as he said, "Mister is correct. Since my sword can't do anything, then this Suo Liancheng admits defeat."
Zhao Hai laughed and then let go of Suo Liancheng's sword. The golden sword hastened back to return. Then it flew around Suo Liancheng looking like a son who was complaining to his father about being bullied.
Suo Liancheng extended his hand and rubbed his sword, comforting it. Then after some time, the sword returned to its sheath on Suo Liancheng's back.
Seeing Suo Liancheng's action, Zhao Hai nodded and said, "Suo Liancheng, it seems like you already have a grasp on the sword dao. You're truly talented."
Suo Liancheng smiled faintly and said, "Mister Zhao Hai is too polite. Mister is the true talent. You were able to reach this level of strength less than a year after ascending. This one is envious."
Zhao Hai smiled and said, "To be honest, there are only a few Cultivators that have my respect. You're one of them. I hope that we can meet again after this and become friends."
Suo Liancheng looked at Zhao Hai deeply before heading down the arena. Since Zhao Hai won, then he would stay in the arena since he would have to fight Tu Mietan. But even if he lost, he would have to stay to accept Tu Mietan's challenge.
One shouldn't say that this was unfair to Zhao Hai. There are only a few things that's fair in this world. The competition has rules, and these rules needed to be implemented. In fact, this was the rule that the Cultivation Realm prepared for him. In their minds, Zhao Hai was already strong. With his strength, victory was almost certain. As long as Zhao Hai won, then he would have to fight the second person immediately. This would give the other person a greater chance to defeat Zhao Hai.
But they didn't expect Zhao Hai to be so strong and defeat Suo Liancheng in one move. He didn't consume too much energy in the fight. This caused them to be surprised.
However, at this point, there was no way for them to change the competition's rules. Therefore, they can only look at the arena to spectate Zhao Hai's battle against Tu Mietan. The spectators didn't have much expectations towards Tu Mietan. Although Tu Mietan was indeed strong, his strength could only be on par with Yi Shuihan or Yao Guang. He would not be able to win against Suo Liancheng. Moreover, Suo Liancheng was the Cultivation Realm's undisputable strongest rookie.
It was because of this that the other participants from the Cultivation Realm looked at Suo Liancheng with respect. After all, Suo Liancheng's strength was the real deal. But Suo Liancheng was defeated by Zhao Hai in just one move. This meant that it would be very difficult for Tu Mietan to defeat Zhao Hai.
While Zhao Hai was waiting in the arena, he heard the sound of clothes ruffling before Tu Mietan stepped on the ground. Tu Mietan still wore his everlasting smile, then he gave Zhao Hai a salute as he said, "Tu Mietan has met Mister Zhao Hai. Mister Zhao Hai has great talent and strength. It's an honor for me to fight you today."
Zhao Hai returned the courtesy and said, "Mister Tu Mietan is too polite. I was also able to see Mister Tu Mietan's strength in the past few days. To be honest, Mister Tu Mietan is strong as well. This Zhao Hai admires your strength. However, since we are in the arena, Mister will have to excuse me for being impolite."
Tu Mietan felt somewhat strange. He didn't expect Zhao Hai to be polite to someone like him. Moreover, Zhao Hai was more polite than him. But he quickly recovered and replied, "Mister is too polite. Mister, please."
Zhao Hai gave a very polite bow. If this interaction didn't happen in the arena, then the spectators might believe that they are seeing two friends greeting each other.
Upon seeing this scene, those from the Cultivation Realm couldn't help but feel disappointed. They thought that the Devil Realm would make Zhao Hai their enemy. On the other hand, those from the Devil Realm were ecstatic. Seeing Zhao Hai being polite, this meant that he wasn't worried about the fight. As long as Zhao Hai wasn't worried, then the plan regarding the yin lightning mines might succeed.
The two people stood opposite to each other. Tu Mietan already took his blade and ghost face shield out. He didn't take his flag out in the meantime. It seems like he's trying to make Zhao Hai lower his guard.
On the other hand, Zhao Hai just stood there, he didn't even take his magic staff out. Everyone knew that Zhao Hai's staff was an extraordinary weapon. If Zhao Hai took his staff out, then Tu Mietan wouldn't have any chance of winning. Seeing Zhao Hai not equipping any weapon, this made Tu Mietan think that Zhao Hai has lowered his guard. The people from the Devil Realm were also becoming more confident in their victory.
At this time, Tu Mietan began to move. His blade cut towards Zhao Hai. Zhao Hai also took a step forward and punched.
Everyone stared. They haven't seen Zhao Hai use his fist to attack his enemy before. But after Zhao Hai punched out, everyone's expression changed. The speed of Zhao Hai's punch was much faster compared to Suo Liancheng's sword. A very short time after he punched out, the fist had already hit the ghost face shield.
Dang! Hao! The fist hit the ghost face shield. When the two collided, the shield screamed out before disintegrating. However, the fist didn't lose momentum as it continued towards Tu Mietan. When it hit Tu Mietan's body, Tu Mietan coughed out blood before his body was slammed to the ground. He was no longer breathing, he was killed by one fist.
Zhao Hai waved his hand as a clump of gas surrounded Tu Mietan's body. Then as the gas disappeared, so did Tu Mietan's corpse. Everyone spectating the battle couldn't help but gawk upon seeing this outcome. Zhao Hai used the same method to deal with Jiang Tian. But at that time, Jiang Tian had used his life essence blood with the intention of killing Zhao Hai. This time, Tu Mietan didn't even release a hint of killing intent. Zhao Hai's response was too strange.
When Zhongli Qiang saw this, his eyes shook. He immediately stood up and said, "Zhao Hai, you dare!"
Zhao Hai turned his head towards Zhongli Qiang as he sneered and said, "And why shouldn't I dare, Zhongli Qiang? First, you tried to poison us in Seamount City, and now you took out yin lightning mines to deal with me. Do you think that this Zhao Hai is an idiot? Hahaha. Isn't Tu Mietan your once in a hundred years genius? Then this grandfather will make him into his Undead. Everyone who offends this Zhao Hai will pay the price!"
Upon hearing Zhao Hai, Zhongli Qiang calmed down. He looked at Zhao Hai with a cold gaze as he said, "Good, Zhao Hai, good. I didn't expect you to make this move. Good, good. My Sacred Blood Sect will remember this."
Zhao Hai laughed and said, "This Zhao Hai has a lot of enemies, what is one more? If you want revenge, then come at me! I will certainly entertain you."
Zhongli Qiang coldly snorted and then sat down and closed his eyes. He was afraid that looking at Zhao Hai for long would force him to make a move.