Chapter 144: The Big Picture Takes Priority
Chapter 144: Chapter 144: The Big Picture Takes Priority
"Hurry, hurry! Get home!"
"This is terrible, a Venerable is enraged!"
"Nonsense! He’s clearly a Mountain Shattering Martial Artist, how did he become a Venerable?"
"You don’t know, do you? He’s a prodigy of our Human Race!"
"What does that mean?"
"Well, I’ve heard that so-called geniuses can fight several opponents of the same realm without losing. But prodigies? They can kill enemies in higher realms!"
"Doesn’t that mean..."
"That’s right. Our City Lord is only in the Third Realm, but that guy is a Second Realm prodigy!"
Countless people on the streets and in the alleys discussed everything about Zhu Ge.
No one appears from thin air, but rack their brains as they might, no one could figure out where Zhu Ge had come from.
No one knew Zhu Ge’s origins, let alone his history, so they could only make wild guesses.
However, as Zhu Ge advanced, many people figured out his destination.
The Fish Scale Martial Arts Hall!
Jianshui City was originally a great mountain, carved into its current form by a master craftsman using Supreme Magical Power, so its total area was limited.
And now, the place Zhu Ge was heading was none other than the Fish Scale Martial Arts Hall, which was presided over by a Mountain Shattering Martial Artist.
The clash between two Mountain Shattering Martial Artists would naturally attract a crowd of onlookers.
Of course, people had their reasons for wanting to watch the spectacle.
First, Zhu Ge was clearly a prodigy. And while the Mountain Shattering Martial Artist of the Fish Scale Martial Arts Hall was no prodigy, he was still a late-stage Mountain Shattering Realm Martial Artist.
A fight between two tigers is always interesting.
The second reason, obviously, was all the various industries connected to the Fish Scale Martial Arts Hall.
Behind every Martial Artist was a mountain of accumulated resources and investments.
Otherwise, it would be impossible for a Martial Artist to develop at all.
If Zhu Ge lost, it wouldn’t mean much. But what if he won?
A victory for Zhu Ge meant that a huge amount of resources within Jianshui City tied to the Fish Scale Martial Arts Hall would shift.
Setting other things aside, just consider the matter of future student recruitment.
Even if the tuition for one disciple was only one silver coin, a hundred of them would be ten gold coins.
And that wasn’t even counting how much a disciple could do for the Martial Arts Hall after succeeding in the Martial Dao.
But the number of potential disciples was limited.
Jianshui City only had so many people, and only so many newborns each year.
The competition between these Martial Arts Halls, academies, and the like was quite fierce.
And although the villages outside the city had more people, like Jianshan Village, they each had their own person in charge.
Therefore, the spheres of influence for these powers were generally confined within the city walls.
So, if Zhu Ge won this time?
In the future, other powers could use many methods to shrink the Fish Scale Martial Arts Hall’s share of disciples.
Thus, the crowd of onlookers grew larger and larger, with quite a few individuals with cultivation among them.
As for ordinary people, they ran as far away as they could.
When it came to survival, watching the show wasn’t important.
This was a fight between two Second Realm experts. With sand flying and stones scattering, just being caught in the crossfire could be fatal for an ordinary person.
WHOOSH...
Just then, Zhu Ge’s heart skipped a beat, and he looked up toward the east.
It seemed some kind of power had just swept over his body.
’The Jianshui City Lord...’ Zhu Ge realized.
That power must have been the Jianshui City Lord’s Divine Sense.
Zhu Ge hadn’t expected that his physical body was already capable of vaguely perceiving Divine Sense.
The effects of the Great Sun Glaze Body, a Body Refining Skill, were truly miraculous.
But since the Jianshui City Lord was now paying attention, Zhu Ge decided not to delay any longer.
He gently kicked Mazhu’s belly, and the bamboo horse immediately picked up its pace a little.
A moment later, the Fish Scale Martial Arts Hall came into Zhu Ge’s view.
"Yu Rui of the Fish Scale Martial Arts Hall, come out and face your death," Zhu Ge said, his expression calm, but his voice boomed for miles around.
"Yu Rui? Young Master Yu?"
"I get it now! Yu Yijin had his son late in life and spoils Yu Rui rotten. It looks like Yu Rui offended someone he shouldn’t have!"
"That Yu Rui is a classic bully—preys on the weak and fears the strong. He didn’t expect to run into a tough nut this time."
"Isn’t that the truth! Yu Rui knows all the powerful people in Jianshui City, but he doesn’t know the ones from outside. He’s really stepped in it this time."
Countless people eagerly discussed the information contained in Zhu Ge’s words.
The Fish Scale Martial Arts Hall had stood in Jianshui City for many years, and it didn’t rely on fighting prowess alone.
Take Yu Rui, for example. He was usually a tyrant, but he would naturally steer clear of anyone with a strong aura.
But previously, Zhu Ge had absorbed all his Blood Qi into his Martial Arts Heart, only revealing the Cultivation of the Confucian Dao First Realm Confucian Scholar Realm.
Because of this, Yu Rui had naturally hit a wall.
"Hm?"
As he listened to the discussions around him, Zhu Ge arrived before the main gate of the Fish Scale Martial Arts Hall. When he saw the open gate and what was behind it, he froze.
There, tied up at the entrance of the Fish Scale Martial Arts Hall, knelt a young man. It was Yu Rui!
Seeing this, Zhu Ge narrowed his eyes.
The master of the Fish Scale Martial Arts Hall was truly a crafty veteran. Knowing Zhu Ge was coming, he had tied his only son up here.
He didn’t show his face, avoiding damage to his reputation.
Nor did he opt for a direct confrontation, avoiding a loss to his interests.
Originally, the choice of how to proceed was up to the master of the Fish Scale Martial Arts Hall.
But now, the choice of what to do had fallen to Zhu Ge.
"Young Master Yu is actually tied up!"
"This is like a gecko shedding its tail! How ruthless!"
"I think the guy on the bamboo horse is in for an awkward time! But that’s normal. He looks pretty young, so he probably doesn’t have much experience handling these things."
"Yeah! With young people, to put it nicely, they’re full of hot-blooded passion. To put it bluntly, they’re just stupid!"
"Exactly. Coming here with so much fanfare, anyone would have been prepared. He’s just too young and naive."
The people in the crowd naturally saw the dilemma Zhu Ge was facing.
At that moment, soldiers were also rushing up from behind Zhu Ge. The one in the lead also had a Second Realm Cultivation and was likely Jianshui City’s Soldier Commander.
"Young Master Zhu, please wait!"
The Commander was a bald man with a deep voice. "The Demon Race is rampant outside our walls! We of the Human Race should be sticking together!"
At the same time, a figure appeared in the sky.
This person wore green robes, his hair and beard were completely white, and he held a writing brush in his hand.
He looked at Zhu Ge with a kindly gaze.
"Hehe, young friend, I am the Jianshui City Lord. At a time when our Human Race has just achieved a hard-won victory against the Demon Race, we should prioritize the greater good..."
The Jianshui City Lord had appeared as well!
Zhu Ge could feel the body of Mazhu tremble beneath him.
But Zhu Ge’s expression remained calm.
SWOOSH!!!
The next second, the Purgatory Star Rod shot out of his hand, aimed straight for Yu Rui’s head.
If this strike landed, Yu Rui’s head would undoubtedly explode.
"How audacious!!"
"Stop!!"
"Insolent!!"
Scoldings, angry roars, and cold snorts rang out at the same time.
As expected, Zhu Ge’s rod was intercepted.
"Hehe, the greater good?"