Light Fortress
Chapter 401 - 79: Bai Wudi (Seeking Monthly Votes)

Chapter 401: Chapter 79: Bai Wudi (Seeking Monthly Votes)

"A newcomer battle?"

Gu Shen was momentarily taken aback by the mention.

If not for Gong Zi’s remark, he would have truly forgotten about it.

"In a little over twenty days, the registration will close."

Gong Zi couldn’t help but smile wryly in his heart and sent a telepathic message, "Do you know there’s a vote happening on the Snow Forbidden City forum now?"

"A vote..."

Gu Shen furrowed his brow, his voice even-keeled, "I’m not aware of it."

"It’s about the betting on the outcome of your duel with Bai Xiu. Many people think you’re not signing up because you’re scared of Bai Xiu," Gong Zi glanced at Bai Lu, adding, "This crazy woman has been looking for you, probably for the same reason..."

"Gu Shen."

Indeed, Bai Lu spoke up, "You should know about the newcomer battle, right?"

Gu Shen hummed indifferently.

"You aren’t thinking of avoiding the fight, are you?" Bai Lu cut to the chase, her gaze intense, "The whole of Changye is waiting to see you and Little Xiuzi fight."

A direct confrontation!

Her attitude... was somewhat aggressive.

Gong Zi felt a headache coming on for Gu Shen, this was truly not an easy question to answer!

Little did she know, to Gu Shen, this wasn’t even a concern.

"..."

Gu Shen rubbed his forehead, flashed a wry smile, and sincerely responded, "I’m sorry, but I really don’t have the time."

On one hand, he had to go to Divine Temple Mountain to clean the ancient residence and remove Black Flower.

On the other, he needed to go to Qingzhong to study ancient scripts and repair Array Patterns.

Where would he find any spare time?

Newcomer battle?

Bai Xiu?

Gu Shen truly never held them in high regard!

And to Bai Lu and Gong Zi, the four words "I don’t have time" sounded somewhat like an excuse.

"...is that your answer?"

The Bai Family Witch was somewhat disappointed.

She dropped her previous manner, and spoke slowly, "Let me tell you some good news. Maybe Little Xiuzi won’t be able to make it back to Changye before the deadline... This experience has greatly improved him; the newcomer battle might not be that important to him."

Indeed, good news... Gong Zi hid his emotions well, his heart lifting.

Meanwhile, on the other side.

Gu Shen was genuinely indifferent.

As a courtesy,

He nodded, "Oh... I understand."

This impassive demeanor, impervious to persuasion, only irritated Bai Lu further.

She didn’t know if Gu Shen truly did not care or if he was just feigning nonchalance...

"I’m leaving!"

Miss Bai slammed the table and got up abruptly.

A departure!

No more attending!

On her way out, she wanted to slam the door violently but then noticed the wooden sword hanging in the sky above Fenglai Temple. After a fierce mental struggle, she ultimately chose to relent.

The Bai Family Witch gently closed the door, then quickly walked away.

Laughter burst forth from the courtyard.

...

...

"If Bai Xiu doesn’t participate in this year’s newcomer battle... it really would be a good thing."

Gong Zi smiled and clicked his tongue, "Maybe I have a chance then?"

Mu Nan adjusted his glasses and said quietly, "I think that’s unlikely... not a single word from Bai Lu’s mouth can be trusted. How could Bai Xiu, who’s after the title ’Changye Invincible’, possibly forfeit the fight, especially when..."

He stopped mid-sentence.

His gaze shifted towards Gu Shen.

His implication couldn’t be clearer.

Now the whole Snow Forbidden City was creating momentum for Gu Shen... An S-rank, a Divination Inheritor at that.

By the looks of it, the two of them wouldn’t be able to resolve things unless they fought.

"Don’t look at me, I really don’t care about the newcomer battle," Gu Shen chuckled, "But I’m curious... is Bai Xiu really that strong?"

Gong Zi was the future Head of the Gong Family.

To think he actually contemplated avoiding a fight with Bai Xiu!

That was not the "conviction" a Young Master should have!

The question hung in the air.

The small courtyard fell silent for a few seconds.

Gong Zi took a deep breath, his eyes reflecting unspeakable complexity, and finally forced out a few words, "Strong, very strong... incredibly strong."

In those words, one could hear his unwillingness.

And also... his acknowledgement.

"Some people’s strength doesn’t require a confrontation to be felt," Gong Zi heaved a sigh, "Bai Xiu is a natural-born combat genius. The aura he emits is incredibly powerful, as if he has his own ’Domain’ surrounding him. If you get close, you’ll feel suffocated, naturally wanting to retreat and not daring to engage with his edge."

"I sparred with him once, he didn’t even use his abilities, just body techniques... and he beat me so badly I could only defend, not retaliate," Mu Nan spoke softly, his voice low, "That was three years ago. Our elders suggested a friendly sparring match, and I lost miserably... and he was even holding back one hand."

Gu Shen fell silent.

He had felt it from the moment he first saw Mu Nan...

Within the five great families, the "Mu Family" must possess some powerful inheritance of body techniques. Mu Nan’s physique was uncommon, and when truly unleashing his power, his agility and mobility would increase significantly.

And three years ago... to lose like that in a contest of body techniques against Bai Xiu?

The descriptions from these two made Bai Xiu sound quite frightening.

At first, Gu Shen even thought this guy had three heads and six arms.

He looked at Shen Li again.

Knowing Shen Li as he did, this martial arts fanatic wouldn’t fear a fight, and wouldn’t shrink back, even in the face of a stronger opponent.

"What about you?"

Gu Shen had barely spoken when Shen Li promptly replied, "Don’t look at me, I definitely can’t beat him."

"You’re giving up a bit too easily..."

Gu Shen frowned and asked, "Have you fought with him too?"

"No!"

Shen Li shook his head but his expression soon changed.

Excitedly recalling the past, he said, "I remember just after I entered the prison, my teacher took me on a mission... I happened to witness Bai Xiu in action. The moment he made his move, lightning danced across the sky, and an entire mountain, crack, just shattered!"

Lightning dancing across the sky?

Shattering a mountain with a move?

This sounded even more terrifying than what the previous two had said... almost like a Heavenly God descending to earth.

Gu Shen narrowed his eyes.

The Bai Family protected Bai Xiu extremely well, sealing his records tightly, forbidding any investigation.

Chu Ling had tried to look into this "Bai Wudi"’s records but, unfortunately, came up with nothing.

"Bai Xiu rarely reveals his abilities."

Gong Zi became serious and asked earnestly, "When was it that you saw him take action?"

"About a year and a half ago... I guess?"

Shen Li scratched his head, trying hard to recall, and said, "It was around that time, in Changye Wilderness, pursuing an out-of-control. Though he was young, he was fully capable of working alongside Judge-level Transcendents. I saw Bai Xiu walking in the void, commanding lightning that filled the sky, blocking a large direction, and ultimately successfully intercepting the target. In the course of the mission, he shattered an entire mountain with his move... And while the mountain wasn’t particularly large, the momentum was indeed terrifying."

Hearing this description... his Divine might truly seemed unstoppable.

"Chu Ling, based on that scale of lethality, how strong would Bai Xiu have been a year and a half ago?"

Gu Shen couldn’t help but admire inwardly.

"It depends on the power rating..."

Chu Ling replied, "If it’s an extremely dangerous ability, causing such a phenomenon isn’t difficult, by overexerting oneself and paying a certain price, it can be done. But if it’s a normal use, then that’s at least beyond the seventh layer of the deep water area. If Bai Xiu’s ability is related to lightning, judging by the destructive force capable of shattering a mountain, he probably had formed a Domain Embryo a year and a half ago."

A year and a half ago... Bai Xiu was already in the third phase of being a Transcendent?

That was indeed unparalleled.

What could his peers in Changye possibly go up against?

As for shattering mountain ranges... that’s indeed intimidating. If it were other abilities, like Shen Li’s Iron Eater, unless one achieved Great Success in cultivation, it simply couldn’t be done.

"That apocalyptic scene is something I still can’t forget to this day," said Shen Li, raising his fist wistfully, "I mean, how long would I have to punch to level a mountain peak?"

A hundred punches, a thousand punches?

From sunrise to sunset, then to the next sunrise?

But Bai Xiu merely blinked, and the whole mountain crumbled!

"So..."

Shen Li shook his head vigorously like a rattle-drum, "I don’t want to be struck by lightning, nor do I want to fight Bai Xiu!"

"Spineless."

Gu Shen, frustrated at his lack of resolve, said, "If you don’t even try, how do you know you can’t beat him?"

"You think I’m a fool?" Shen Li scoffed, "I don’t have to fight Bai Xiu to know I can’t defeat him!"

By comparison...

The one who was often challenged suddenly felt insulted.

Gu Shen asked darkly, "From your tone, when you kept challenging me before... you didn’t think you could win, did you?"

"You and Bai Xiu are different."

Shen Li, ever so honest, seriously said, "The reason I can’t beat Bai Xiu is because I absolutely won’t fight him... But you’re different, I always feel that your S-level isn’t that impressive, and the gap between us is just a little bit."

This man was not only thick-headed.

But also stubborn.

What a pity... Bai Xiu would forever miss the chance to conquer him.

It looked like, for now, the opportunity was exclusively his.

Gu Shen felt both amused and resigned.

"On the Snow Forbidden City forum poll... I voted for you to win," Shen Li said earnestly, "Don’t get me wrong, it’s because you looked really pitiable."

Gu Shen was deeply moved and about to say something when the latter part of the sentence choked him up.

"However... if you really fight Bai Xiu, I’ll bet on you to win," he continued.

The conversation took a sudden turn.

Before Gu Shen could continue feeling moved.

Shen Li promptly added, "The prison has opened a betting pool, and I heard the odds are as high as thirty to one. If you win, I make a killing, if you lose, I don’t lose out... just consider it a tribute to Bai Xiu."

"Thirty to one?" Gong Zi gasped, lowering his voice to ask, "Is that betting pool still open?"

Mu Nan whispered in agreement, "Hey, can you take me along... I’m going all in."

Gu Shen glared fiercely at the three of them.

"If there really is a betting pool... all in on Bai Xiu winning will result in losing everything."

Gu Shen sneered.

The others looked somewhat lost.

"Because I’m not even participating in this year’s rookie battle..."

Gu Shen stood up and said solemnly, "This fight simply won’t happen, what will he use to win against me?"

...

...

(Vote for monthly tickets!)