The whole Arena was silent. The eyes of all onlookers were on the stage where two figures could be seen confronting each other…

“...”

“...”

“Uhm...” Lao Jianghu was slowly growing impatient: he wasn’t here to babysit a bunch of kids! He was here to watch those kids slaughter each other! Not too the point where limbs were sent flying, sure, but a bloody show was always entertaining to watch.

“...”

“...”

“...”

“You two planning to stare at each other any longer?”

Te Rin smiled as she saw the two majestic geniuses, the monstrous Fang Lu and the mysterious Fu Yin seemingly hold a glaring contest. If that had been the occasion however, the match would have been completely one-sided…

The chubby youth had veins popping out of his forehead and his red eyes had swollen to the size of two tennis balls while a big, red, slap mark could be seen on his left cheek. Meanwhile, Fu Yin was holding both his hands on his mouth as he spasmed occasionally, his eyes tearing as he did his best trying to hold his laughter in.

“No need to worry sis…” Fang Lu’s eyes twitched as he gritted his teeth:

“This won’t last long…”

Fang Lu suddenly bared his teeth and his veins bulged out even more on his chubby face. Fu Yin finally could not hold it in any longer:

“Pfff… AHAHAHAHAH!”

Fang Lu retracted his fierce expression and made a victory sign:

“Told ya. My victory.”

Falling down on the ground, the white-haired boy couldn’t resist the urge to laugh after looking at his opponent’s appearance: it was simply too comical!

As the white-haired boy had foam coming out from the sides of his mouth, his spasms slowly ceasing as he growed closer and closer to death…

“Woah… first time ever I see someone truly ‘ROFTL’ing… I must admit it is quite amusing!” Te Rin giggled at the scene. Then, she shook her head in disbelief:

“Who could have thought that brother Fu Yin had such a weakness…”

Fang Lu nodded:

“Knowing this crazy bastard, if someone else did know, he would not be standing(?) in front of us right now. Instead, to see him, we would probably have to search somewhere very deep underground. His ability to make enemies is something to be admired!”

Te Rin pouted:

“And you are confident that this cannot possibly be used in battle? Like, a hundred percent sure? This could very well turn out being a trump card like no other!”

Fang Lu nodded:

“Definitely. This guy transforms into a whole different person if given the time to get serious. After all, else, would you believe that this guy is actually the most powerful disciple in this Sect?”

“Oh?” Te Rin’s eyes opened wide as he heard the youth’s words:

“You actually think of yourself as inferior to someone? That’s… rare. First time I’ve seen this as well! It is true that you learn something new everyday!”

“Don’t try me girl.” Fang Lu’s cheeks flared up as he glared at the young woman:

“The only way we can defeat that brute is by working together, otherwise we would not be talking like this. However, I wouldn’t mind landing in a blow or two at the cost of your life if needed. You should not-”

“Oh yeah, about that offer of yours…” Te Rin interrupted by bowing, almost as if she were seeking forgiveness: “Sorry, but I am afraid we can’t work together after all!”

“Uh?” Fang Lu’s mind went blank: ‘can’t work together after all’? What did that mean? Could you eat a ‘can’t work together after all’? Were they any good for your skin?

Then, his jaw hit the ground as enough time passed for the words to sink in…

“WHAAAA?” Fang Lu’s eyes were literally about to fall from their orbits as they had widened that much. It took a few moments, but he finally regained his mental capacities:

“What do you mean?!? We can’t possibly hope to fight that monster alone! Listen, I already told you my plan! It might not be enough to guarantee victory, but without a doubt it’s our best option! Do you think you, with your abilities, could actually be a match for him?”

“Uh?” Te Rin shook her head in confusion:

“No, nothing of the sort. It’s the opposite. Just as you said, he already saw through my technique from the very start. We know he is able to see energy fluctuations due to your research, so wherever I hide, he would be able to find me. Even if I hid beside the First Protector, using his powerful presence to disguise mine as I had done before, he could just go through process of elimination to find me. At that time, would you risk your life to protect me? Nah, you’d probably, use that as an opening. What’s more, your techniques are mostly large-scale attacks, to use those against him would probably lead to me being caught up in a crossfire as well. Then, what if we followed this plan of yours? If this plan did, in fact, work, it would still require one of us to be gravely injured in the process. What if we fail? I’m pretty sure that demon wouldn’t let go of a single chance to torture us, so I would basically be throwing myself in the mouth of the tiger. Finally, even if we defeated him, what then? I would probably be either powerless due to running out of spiritual energy, as you have much more spiritual energy than me this would put me at a disadvantage, or simply be unable to fight due to the injuries incurred in the clash against Fu Yin…”

Fang Lu felt his head ache as if someone had decided to pick him as a target for some warhammer training. Was this girl always this talkative?

“Wait! Slow down, so, basically, you are telling me…”

Te Rin smiled: “Yep, I quit our little ‘team’, not that there has ever been one in the first place. Since I am going to lose anyways, why should I help you and get hurt in the process? Thanks, but no thanks. There are people who actually use their brains here instead of coming up with some absurd plans!”

“Oh, snap! Man down, man down! He’s got severe burns!” Fu Yin yelled as he rested on his back.

Fang Lu and the audience both stared in shock as the young girl willingly walked down the stage and made a sign to Lao Jianghu:

“Esteemed First Protector Lao Jianghu, I give up! Please, feel free to start the match in my absence!”

Those words hit Fang Lu like a mountain. What the hell had just happened?

“Oh, brother Fu Yin! Will you really tell me later how exactly Fang Lu got slapped leaving that palm mark as you promised?”

“~Sure~”

“Thanks!”

Fang Lu’s expression had turned into something unbelievable. If anyone were to eat crap as he watched his or her loved one be raped right in front of their eyes by their most hated person, his or her expression would still not match up to the display of emotions on Fang Lu’s face!

With a wave of the golden eyed, white haired old man, the golden, semitransparent walls appeared and glowed brightly. The old man nodded and loudly proclaimed:

“Very well. The fight may begin!”

The audience exploded with countless yells and shouts. These bloodthirsty cries were so loud that they eclipsed those from the previous battles. Suddenly, however, these cries stopped.

The reason was that a red fog had appeared within the golden shield, completely blocking the view from the outside world. Many members of the audience started booing: they were here to watch a show, how could they possibly see anything with that bloody fog in the way?

However, Lao Jianghu’s thoughts were vastly different…

So… it starts.

However, what he was looking at was not the stage, but instead, it was the inner area of the Golden Emperor Sect. There, a total of four figures all stood up from their seats on the very top of the tallest tower in the innermost Ring.

“Let’s head out.”

The voice broken voice of a youth sounded out.

And, just as the four figures disappeared, Lao Jianghu’s voice echoed out, startling everyone present:

“ENEMY ATTACK!”

At that time, the first thought to pass through the minds of the members of the audience most probably must have been:

Uh? An attack? Enemies? Where?

Just as the people from the Sect recovered from the shock induced by the shout, countless robed figures stood up from all over the stalls.

The enemy… had actually been there all along, mixing with the members of the audience up until now! Unnoticed, they had been lurking, biding for time!

Their motive unknown, countless figures stood up and charged towards the stage!