Martial Conquest of the Nine Desolates
Chapter 160 - 158: Business Association Martial Contest

Chapter 160: Chapter 158: Business Association Martial Contest

"My Martial Arts True Intent has grown so much!" Xiao Ye opened his eyes, his face brimming with surprise.

At this moment, Xiao Ye’s dark pupils were replaced by two clusters of flames. With just a thought, the overwhelming Flame True Intent soared into the sky, sweeping across all directions.

Hiss, hiss, hiss!

Once the Flame True Intent materialized, thirty Flame Lotuses floated in the void. If not for Xiao Ye’s deliberate control, everything within a hundred meters would be engulfed in a sea of fire, incinerating everything to ashes.

"Sixty percent of the Flame True Intent!" Xiao Ye waved his hand, and the Flame Lotuses scattered. His eyes sparkled deeply, his body filled with confidence.

Replacing any other martial artist with Bodhi Leaf would, at most, enhance their comprehension by tenfold, increasing their Martial Arts True Intent by just ten percent—far from this dramatic.

Since his Flame Saber already contained the complete Flame True Intent, all he needed was to directly comprehend it. This was how he managed to surge by an entire twenty percent in just two days.

"To reach the Xuanwu Realm is not a dream for me, Xiao Ye! I am going to be the youngest Xuanwu Realm powerhouse in Black Dragon Country!" Xiao Ye clenched his fists, full of confidence in his future.

Looking through the history of Black Dragon Country, very few have steadily ascended to the Xuanwu Realm, and the fastest among them took at least forty to fifty years. Yet now, at only nineteen years old, his potential is boundless, on par with the Human Race Four Emperors.

If the Vice Sect Leader who expelled him from Chongyang Sect learns that he has become the youngest Xuanwu Realm powerhouse in Black Dragon Country, what would their expression be?

"Once I reach the Xuanwu Realm, I’ll be able to step into the third layer of the Time Tower, gaining thirty times more time than others. Who can compete with me!" Xiao Ye’s mood surged with pride and ambition.

It took a long while before Xiao Ye finally calmed down.

"This Bodhi Leaf has helped me greatly. The sixty percent of Flame True Intent I’ve comprehended can now be fully integrated into the Heaven Burning Slash. If driven by a Xuan Artifact, it would be enough to threaten an ordinary martial artist at the Innate Limit." Xiao Ye thought to himself.

From Ji Hong, Xiao Ye learned that the strength of martial artists who had reached the Innate Limit varied greatly, depending on their Martial Arts True Intent and the combat techniques they cultivated.

As for Wu Feng, being listed amongst the Young Talents of the Hidden Dragon List, his strength was naturally extraordinary, but Xiao Ye was also confident that he could defeat him.

Of course, that was without making use of his Physical Body Power.

"Has this guy finally stopped?" Outside Xiao Ye’s house, numerous Guest Elders were discussing animatedly.

The expression of Flame True Intent emitted by Xiao Ye was truly astonishing—even though he restrained it, it still caused a big commotion.

"In the realm of Martial Arts True Intent, Wang Lin has already reached a very high level." Kuang Wu’s face was bitter.

Unlike others, his aptitude among the Guest Elders was quite good, he had even comprehended ten percent of Martial Arts True Intent, so he was very familiar with the fluctuations of Martial Arts True Intent.

Even if his heart was unwilling, he had no choice but to admit that he was far inferior to Xiao Ye.

Another half month passed in the blink of an eye, and Xiao Ye’s intense training was interrupted by Ji Hong. It was then Xiao Ye realized that the time for the combat competition between the three major commerce associations had arrived.

"You kid, haven’t you become so engrossed in cultivation that you’ve forgotten the time?" Ji Hong chided him with a chuckle.

Judging from Xiao Ye’s performance during this period, he had great confidence in him.

"Heh heh." Xiao Ye cracked a smile; he had indeed almost forgotten about time.

"Wu Feng possesses an Innate Weapon. If you face him in battle, you can’t be at too much of a disadvantage in terms of weapons. I’ll take you to the association’s Weapons Repository to have a look. Although there are no Innate Weapons there, there are still some good items," Ji Hong said.

Xiao Ye shook his head and replied, "No need. Even without a weapon, I am fully confident that I can defeat Wu Feng."

He held the Xuanqi Flame Saber in his hand, which made even Innate Weapons pale in comparison.

Moreover, with his current strength, he could use the Flame Saber without any reservations. Even if the Sun and Moon Sect discovered it, as long as no Xuanwu Realm powerhouse chased after him, he feared nothing.

Ji Hong frowned slightly, but recalling the scene of Xiao Ye comprehending Martial Arts True Intent, he still nodded and agreed.

The next morning, Ji Hong set off with Xiao Ye, Kuang Wu, and another Guest Elder. There were a total of three matches in this combat competition; the commerce association that won the most matches would obtain five years of operational rights.

It didn’t take long for Ji Hong and his group to arrive at a huge duel arena in Red Sun City, which was the venue for the combat competition of the three major commerce associations.

Ji Ruyue also followed. She had learned from Ji Hong that the position once held by Wang Lin had now been taken by Xiao Ye, so the sorrow from before was gone, replaced instead by some resentment.

After all, her old flame Wang Lin had been killed by Xiao Ye.

"Sigh." Xiao Ye shook his head helplessly; if Ji Ruyue knew Wang Lin’s true face, one wondered what she would think.

Soon, in addition to the Qingming Commerce, people from Gao Feng Commerce and Flowing Water Commerce also arrived.

Among the Gao Feng Commerce group, a youth clad in Black Armor stood out the most. He stood there proudly, closing his eyes and resting, seemingly indifferent to the impending combat competition.

This Black Armor youth was Wu Feng—a Young Talent listed on the Hidden Dragon List.

And indeed, when the practitioners from Flowing Water Commerce saw Wu Feng, their faces showed a look of fear.

"Dammit, how did Gao Feng Commerce manage to recruit a young talent like Wu Feng? This combat competition is now pointless!" The president of Flowing Water Commerce couldn’t help but curse under his breath.

The Guest Elders of his commerce, being Independent Practitioners, naturally couldn’t compare to the Young Talents.

However, the five-year operational rights were extremely important to them, so they still had to give it a try.

"Hehe, Brother Ji, Brother Shen, I hope you are doing well," the president of Gao Feng Commerce said with a triumphant smile.

"Hmph!" The president of Flowing Water Commerce snorted coldly and ignored the other party.

Ji Hong, however, kept a smile on his face and politely responded, exchanging a few pleasantries with the other side.

Seeing Ji Hong’s composed demeanor, the president of Gao Feng Commerce showed a surprised expression: "It seems Brother Ji is quite confident."

As he spoke, he glanced behind Ji Hong, and when he discovered Xiao Ye, his expression froze, a sneer forming on his lips: "Brother Ji, even if you intend to give up, there’s no need to bring Wang Lin over as well."

As a competitor, Gao Feng Commerce had specially investigated the guest elders of Qingming Commerce, naturally recognizing Wang Lin.

However, when Xiao Ye displayed his strength, Ji Hong promptly sealed the news, so the president of Gao Feng Commerce’s knowledge of Wang Lin was still outdated.

The people of Gao Feng Commerce immediately burst into laughter.

Ji Hong indifferently said: "Let the martial duel begin."

Feeling snubbed, the president of Gao Feng Commerce huffed and took a seat in the spectator stands of the Duel Arena.

"Let’s start the drawing now." An elderly referee with graying hair approached.

For the martial duel between the three major commerce guilds, to ensure fairness, they used a drawing to determine the sequence of combatants.

"There’s no need for a drawing!" A cold shout came, interrupting the referee.

Whoosh!

Immediately afterward, a figure arrived on the stage, none other than Wu Feng in his black armor, standing like a towering mountain, exerting immense pressure on everyone.

Each of the Young Talents who ranked on the Hidden Dragon List possessed strength to dominate their peers.

Wu Feng coldly surveyed the entire crowd, proudly declaring: "For Gao Feng Commerce, I alone am sufficient."

The president of Flowing Water Commerce revealed a slight hint of joy: "This guy is so arrogant, we might actually have a chance to win. You three go up and confront this man; as long as we defeat him, things will be easier afterward."

"Yes, President!"

From the ranks of Flowing Water Commerce, three forty-something-year-old martial artists, each wielding a weapon, jumped onto the platform.

After the referee announced the start, these three martial artists roared and charged at Wu Feng.

Faced with a Young Talent like Wu Feng, they dared not be careless, pushing their strength to the peak.

These three had considerable cultivation: one was at the Early Stage of the Innate Realm Ninth Layer, while the other two were at the Ninth Layer Middle Stage. It seemed that Flowing Water Commerce had paid a hefty price to recruit them.

"Hmph, think just because your Cultivation is on par with mine that you can compare with me?" Wu Feng sneered coldly, his surging strength set the Duel Arena trembling.

Boom!

The moment the three touched him, a massive battle erupted, with powerful combat waves echoing thunderously.

However, contrary to everyone’s expectations, within just a few breaths, one of the guest elders from Flowing Water Commerce was blasted off the platform by Wu Feng.

"Get off all of you!" Wu Feng bellowed, swinging his palms that engulfed the void in front with overwhelming Innate True Qi, sending the other two guest elders flying.

Dead silence fell over the arena, everyone’s face filled with shock—Wu Feng hadn’t even resorted to an Innate Weapon yet.

Complete domination!

Ashamed, the three guest elders from Flowing Water Commerce picked themselves up from the ground. Their Cultivation was not weaker than Wu Feng’s, but the gap in their strength was huge.

"As expected, Cultivation doesn’t represent true strength. These loose cultivator martial artists, lacking powerful combat techniques, how can they compare with Wu Feng?" Xiao Ye thought to himself.

"Qingming Commerce, it’s your turn, all of you come up together!" Wu Feng said coldly.

Seeing Wu Feng’s impressive performance, Ji Hong looked at Xiao Ye with some concern: "Should we let Kuang Wu and the others assist you, and take the stage together?"

"No need, Kuang Wu and the others going up would be of no use." After Xiao Ye said this, he stamped his foot, his body soaring into the sky, and landed on the platform.

Kuang Wu could only bitterly smile, as Xiao Ye wasn’t wrong in his statement.

"For Qingming Commerce, I alone am enough." Xiao Ye spoke lightly, facing Wu Feng with equal defiance.

His words shocked the entire venue, especially the president of Gao Feng Commerce, whose face was filled with mockery: "Brother Ji, has your guild really run out of people? To actually send this pretty boy to fight alone."

Ji Hong heard this with an expressionless face, but his palms were already sweating nervously, as Wu Feng had demonstrated far too great a strength.

"You alone want to mimic my challenge?" Wu Feng’s eyes flared with icy light.

"Mimic you? You overestimate yourself. I’m simply not in the mood to waste time, defeating you quickly so I can finish the martial duel sooner," Xiao Ye replied.

Wu Feng was momentarily stunned by these words, then his face contorted with fury—this was outright contempt for him.

As a Heavenly Pride, he despised these independent practitioners the most.

"Get off the stage!" Wu Feng roared, a palm striking towards Xiao Ye, power enough to overwhelm the void.

"Silent Annihilation Hand!" Xiao Ye countered without showing weakness, executing a Perfection Level Silent Annihilation Hand.

Boom!

Instantly, a hand imbued with the aura of annihilation shattered the void and collided with Wu Feng.