"I can agree to it, but I have one condition!" Chu Ming said indifferently, already having a plan in mind.
"What condition?" Zhao Hu was overjoyed upon hearing this and couldn't help but look down on Chu Ming. After all, he was still too inexperienced. Zhao Hu and Du Ming had used a simple goading tactic, and he couldn't take it.
"Our duel will take place ten days from now!" Chu Ming said slowly. Within ten days, with the wealth of the infamous bandit Huai Kui, he could definitely break through to the middle stage of the Postnatal Ninth Layer. By then, facing Zhao Hu would be no problem at all.
"What's the matter? Are you scared? Trying to buy time?" Zhao Hu sneered upon hearing this, immediately understanding Du Ming's intentions. The man next to him, in the yellow robe, also laughed disdainfully.
"Could it be that Senior Brother is not willing to give me this little bit of time?" Chu Ming smiled lightly, looking confident that he had Zhao Hu exactly where he wanted him.
"Fine, the duel will be ten days from now. If I lose, I'll avoid you whenever I see you!" Zhao Hu loudly proclaimed, mocking Chu Ming. He even used some spiritual power, making it so that almost the entire Martial Arts Pavilion could hear it. Instantly, the disciples on the first floor, choosing martial techniques, were all attracted.
"Isn't that Senior Brother Zhao Hu? I heard ever since he started cultivating the 'Yin Cha Technique', even his male characteristics have been slowly disappearing!"
"Isn't that the boy in white Chu Ming? Did they have a conflict?"
"It seems like I just heard something about a duel!"
"Tsk tsk tsk, this will be interesting to watch."
"Isn't that Zuoqiu Yun, ranked eighty-eighth on the Cyan Yang List, standing beside Zhao Hu? Even he has appeared."
"..."
The surrounding onlookers murmured among themselves, with snippets of conversation reaching Chu Ming's ears. To his surprise, the man in the yellow robe was a disciple on the Cyan Yang List. The Cyan Yang List was a list of the top one hundred Inner Sect disciples in the Cyan Yang Sect, each with formidable strength.
Chu Ming glanced at the list once before. Even the lowest-ranked disciple had the cultivation level of the Sixth Layer of the Transcendence Realm. This meant that the man in the yellow robe was at least a Sixth Layer Transcendence Realm martial artist.
"See you in ten days!" Chu Ming said indifferently, turning to walk towards the Guardian Elder.
"Hmph, in ten days, I'll beat you to a pulp!" Zhao Hu said with malice, watching Chu Ming leave, a sinister look in his eyes.
Upon leaving the Martial Arts Pavilion, Chu Ming looked at his dwindling Contribution Points and couldn't help but feel a bit helpless. Two top-tier Yellow Level martial techniques had exhausted all his Contribution Points.
"I must earn Contribution Points quickly; only that way can I swiftly enhance my strength!" Chu Ming thought to himself, hurrying to his small courtyard. He took out the two martial techniques.
Both were top-tier Yellow Level martial techniques. 'Divine Travel Step' needed no further mention, while 'Tyrant Fist' had four techniques.
The first technique, Tyrant's Invincibility!
The second technique, Tyrant's Ruthlessness!
The third technique, Tyrant's Tears!
The fourth technique, Dominate the World!
Similarly, cultivating the 'Tyrant Fist' required a high degree of physical strength from the martial artist. To cultivate the first technique, the martial artist's body must possess the Power of Five Tigers. However, Chu Ming had long reached this limit. Before clearing the Wooden Dummy Alley, he already had the Power of Five Tigers. After breaking through the Postnatal Ninth Layer, his strength reached the Power of Eight Tigers.
Chu Ming held the 'Tyrant Fist' in his hands, studying the acupoint routes and cultivating slowly. At the same time, in his chest, white light pieces continuously spurted forth his understanding of the 'Tyrant Fist'.
In just one hour, Chu Ming had gained some insight into the first technique, Tyrant's Invincibility.
Chu Ming stood up, continuously practicing his punches in the courtyard. Gusts of wind constantly blew, causing his white robes to flutter. Unknowingly, five days passed. During those five days, aside from eating, Chu Ming focused on cultivating the two martial techniques.
By the third day, he had perfected all four techniques of the 'Tyrant Fist'. In the following two days, he perfected the 'Divine Travel Step' as well. He couldn't help but marvel once more at the mysterious power of the white light pieces.
It was the foundation for Chu Ming to reach the pinnacle of the martial path!
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
In a courtyard, a handsome young man continuously brandished the sword in his hand. On close inspection, one could see that his footwork was rather peculiar. It was erratic and graceful, as if he were wandering in a divine journey.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
When the sword stopped, all the dried leaves in the air turned to dust, scattered into the air.
"This 'Divine Travel Step' is truly remarkable, though it does consume a lot of spiritual power." The handsome young man in white was Chu Ming, practicing his swordsmanship.
Thinking this, Chu Ming returned to his room, slowly sat down cross-legged, and took out a bottle from his Storage Ring. Inside were five green elixirs, spinning. He couldn't help but show a bit of heartache.
These green elixirs were Spirit Gathering Pills, but unlike regular ones, these were middle-grade Spirit Gathering Pills. Each one could save a Postnatal Martial Artist a month of cultivation time. On the market, a single middle-grade Spirit Gathering Pill cost twenty thousand silver. If Chu Ming hadn't fortuitously acquired Huai Kui's wealth, he wouldn't have been able to afford such luxury.
Chu Ming had used elixirs for cultivation before, but none were as expensive. Even though he was the Patriarch's son of the Chu Family, one of the four major families in the Great Yan Kingdom, he received only five hundred silver per month. Even though the Chu Family needed to support many martial artists, the resources were limited for each individual. Plus, Chu Ming's talent for cultivation was mediocre. Five hundred silver a month was already the limit.
Gulp
Chu Ming took out an elixir from the bottle and tossed it into his mouth. Instantly, the spiritual power flowed through Chu Ming's body, continuously strengthening his internal spiritual power. Chu Ming's momentum gradually increased.
Eventually, Chu Ming opened his eyes and swallowed the second Spirit Gathering Pill, then the third, the fourth....
After completely refining the fourth Spirit Gathering Pill, Chu Ming's momentum shifted. He felt like a treasure sword unsheathed. Around him, several small light swords spun continuously.
The middle stage of the Postnatal Ninth Layer, accomplished!
Chu Ming didn't stop there immediately. Instead, after refining the last Spirit Gathering Pill, he slowly stood up and felt the spiritual power within. It was about twenty percent more than before, but far more refined.
In the remaining five days, Chu Ming stayed in his room, silently cultivating. He felt that his 'Cyan Yuan Technique' was about to break through. Once it did, it would reach the Sixth Layer. Such cultivation speed was monstrous. In the Chu Family, those who reached the Sixth Layer cultivating the 'Cyan Yuan Technique' were all True Dao Martial Artists, whose cultivation years far exceeded Chu Ming's.
Five days flew by. Even with Chu Ming cultivating tirelessly, he was just a step away from the final layer of the 'Cyan Yuan Technique'.
"It seems only by reaching the Transcendence Realm can I fully master the Sixth Layer of the 'Cyan Yuan Technique'!" Chu Ming thought silently as he got up and headed towards the martial stage on the mountain.
Today was the day of the duel with Zhao Hu. Even though Chu Ming hadn't left his room for the past few days, he could easily guess that news of their duel had spread throughout the Inner Sect, causing quite a stir. After all, one was a martial artist in the Third Heaven of the Transcendence Realm, and the other a martial artist in the Postnatal Ninth Layer, a significant gap between them.
At a northern arena, the space around the stage was already packed with people. Many disciples watched a slender figure on stage. From overhead, the Inner Sect Elders could be seen.
"It's almost time. Why hasn't Chu Ming arrived yet?"
"Could it be that he's too scared to come because of Zhao Hu?"
"I suspect he arranged this duel with Zhao Hu just to buy time to escape!"
"This Senior Brother seems to make a lot of sense!"
"....."
Seeing no sign of Chu Ming, the disciples below began to speculate. Zhao Hu's face turned dark as he felt he might have been played.
"Look, Chu Ming is here!"
Someone shouted, causing the surrounding disciples to clear a path. A boy in white, radiating pure energy, walked over slowly. The disciples around him fell silent.
"You're late!" Zhao Hu said coldly, a constant aura of darkness surrounding him.
"It's you who came too early!" Chu Ming replied with a calm smile, unfazed by Zhao Hu's Transcendence Realm Third Heaven cultivation level.
Whoosh!
At this moment, a gray figure landed on a pillar near the stage. This person wore a gray robe and was somewhat emaciated. When Chu Ming saw the elder, his eyes narrowed. He sensed the presence of death from this elder, who had a few majestic mountain peaks embroidered on his chest—the symbols of the Cyan Yang Mountain Range. Chu Ming had seen this emblem before on the inner sect elder presiding over the Wooden Dummy Alley test.
"Today, your duel will be presided over by me. Other matters aside, remember one thing: No killing, or you'll face sect rules!" The gray-robed elder spoke calmly, but there was an inherent authority in his voice.
"Yes, Elder!"
"Now, the duel begins!"