Chapter 823: Chapter One Hundred and Seventeen: Bluff
The midday sun blazed overhead, casting a golden hue over the early autumn landscape as the four from Longxi made their way back, still not having snapped out of the excitent that had occurred before the Divine Fire Hall.
What is the greatest sorrow of a martial artist? It is to have the bravery to go down together in mutual destruction without possessing the ans to do so. Tang Luo’s display of “a common man’s wrath” in front of the Divine Fire Hall was intended to tell those lofty sects that the Longxi Alliance was not so soft clay to be oppressed and bullied at will. If truly cornered, even against a sect like the Evil King Palace, the n of Longxi would not hesitate to fight.
“When a common man rages, grandmasters struggle to protect,” this secret technique pulled from the extre limits of the soul had shown the three young people a glimpse of Longxi Alliance’s future, boosting their morale significantly. They felt that, though the world was vast, there were now only holy lands left to be revered.
And all of this started with that potentially ga-changing “a common man’s wrath.” Although Cui Haoran was exhausted and injured in his martial foundation, when he saw Tang Luo in front of the Divine Fire Hall, he saw another path reaching to the heavens.
Walking alongside Tang Luo, Cui Haoran recalled the recent scene and excitedly punched the air in front of him, saying, “Look at how Duan Longshu was so arrogant at first. He was scared silly by the captain’s ‘a common man’s wrath’ and ended up kneeling and begging for rcy. It was so satisfying! Captain, does every one in the Fierce Realm of our Longxi Alliance practice this common man’s wrath? When I reach the Fierce Realm, can I also cultivate it? Do I need to earn so achievents first and then go to the Martial Hall to exchange for the thod of cultivation?”
Tang Luo, looking at the young man hopping around him, touched his nose with a guilty conscience and said, “Uh… if I say that ‘a common man’s wrath’ was just sothing I used to scare Duan Longshu, would you be disappointed?”
“Wha… what?” Cui Haoran froze, as if encased in ice, and stamred, “Ca… Captain, don’t joke like that. I saw it myself in front of the Divine Fire Hall… how could it be a bluff?”
“The display of soul power was real, capable of easily erasing a group from the Evil King Palace, no doubt about it,” Tang Luo confird in a hushed voice after making sure no one was eavesdropping. “But no ordinary martial artist can learn this set of secret techniques. The requirents for the body and soul are simply too high…”
“You’re… you’re kidding, right?” Cui Haoran felt numbness in his face, his lips trembling incessantly. “Then, if we didn’t have it… what if Duan Longshu hadn’t backed down just now…”
“What nonsense are you talking about?” Tang Luo patted Cui Haoran’s back and chuckled dismissively. “Duan Longshu, a spoiled brat who isn’t even the Young Palace Master, how could he dare to bear the severe karma? After seeing my soul power, he couldn’t even think straight, let alone discern truth from fiction. Not just him, but even you three, the finest of our Longxi Alliance, believed there really was ‘a common man’s wrath,’ didn’t you?”
“But, Captain,” Cui Haoran was on the verge of tears, seeing only gloom in his future, “if there’s no ‘a common man’s wrath,’ why did you outright reject Grandmaster Bu Chun’s offer? Wouldn’t it be better to have more support if the truth ca out?”
The reason the three from Longxi had been so confident was “a common man’s wrath,” believing they could even take down the Evil King Palace in a mutual destruction. But after hearing Tang Luo’s words, they fell into a state of profound fear, thinking Tang Luo had refused Bu Chun’s invitation because he got too caught up in his own act.
If Cui Haoran was fearful, Li Xuanba was thinking even deeper, adding, “Yeah, Captain, since ‘a common man’s wrath’ is fake, why didn’t you just accept Grandmaster Bu Chun’s invitation to join the Martial Research Division of Bifang Mountain? I’ve heard that Martial Saint Mountain is the source of the world’s martial arts, with a treasure trove of secret techniques and bizarre thods aplenty. The Saint Martial Scripture Pavilion is said to compile countless heaven-level techniques, the ultimate treasures. With your talent, Captain, if you could gain access to the inner workings of Martial Saint Mountain, even bringing out just a tenth of their knowledge could greatly enhance the foundation of our Longxi Alliance.”
“pia! pia!”
Struck by two Fierce Realm finger snaps to the head in succession, both Li Xuanba and Cui Haoran were in so much pain they felt like their snot bubbles were about to burst, clutching their heads and gasping in the cool air.
“You two rascals,” Tang Luo said indifferently as he withdrew his fingers, “Every year, Martial Saint Mountain accepts so many disciples. How many have you seen return after learning what they sought and revitalize their clans? Do you really think the Human Race’s sacred ground is so kind of charity that allows outsiders to easily access these precious resources?”
Clutching their heads, the two team mbers had a sudden revelation, and Xiao Ziyu even asked in a deep voice, “So what you an is, Bu Chun’s invitation wasn’t offered with good intentions?”
“It depends on how you see it,” Tang Luo glanced at the redhead youth and responded lightly, “Today, the soul domain I expanded not only enveloped the entire Evil Dragon Palace but also included all the disciples from every sect. They say there’s a great terror between life and death, and facing such a real threat of demise, it’s inevitable that so might bear a grudge. Bu Chun’s invitation is one, because my soul truly delighted him, and two, perhaps because of his eager love for talent, wanting to shield from these karmic consequences.”
“Then you…”
“Are you asking why I didn’t just go with the flow and accept the offer?” Tang Luo shook his head and chuckled, “Do you really think accepting such goodwill cos without a price? Martial Saint Mountain is known for its study of martial arts. That Bu Chun could extend an invitation beyond Qilin Mountain and Phoenix Mountain to is simply because he’s curious about the novel martial arts philosophy and the soul that I displayed in the third trial. Otherwise, why would a grandmaster who is proficient in a hundred secret techniques and on the brink of the King Realm pay such respects to a young man like just starting out?”
“Moreover, accepting Bu Chun’s invitation would an losing my autonomy. I am a martial artist first and a scholar of martial arts second. I study martial arts theory rely to make myself stronger. Joining Martial Saint Mountain would an that most of my ti would be controlled. And I believe that the conveniences Martial Saint Mountain could bring to my clan are things I could provide on my own, even without joining. That’s why I refused Grandmaster Bu Chun’s invitation.”
Having finished speaking, the group had already arrived at the outer courtyard. Standing in front of their rooms, Tang Luo turned to the three team mbers and summarized, “Alright, that’s it for now. Rest well and rember to gather at the main peak of Bifang Mountain in three days. Then, we will return to Longxi.”
“Wait, don’t disband just yet.”
Cui Haoran decisively interrupted the disbanding command, but hesitated under Tang Luo’s questioning gaze, stamring without quite knowing what to mutter.
After waiting for a long ti without hearing anything, Tang Luo said impatiently, “If you have nothing to say, then we’ll disband!”
“No, Captain, I have a question!” Cui Haoran made up his mind and, through gritted teeth, asked, “The ‘Fury of a Common Man,’ was it really just a bluff to scare Duan Longshu?”
“Oh… you! It’s not that after you saw the undefeated record of this secret technique in the third trial, you actually believed it’s an invincible combination, right? I’ve said that, at best, the third trial is nothing more than a martial arts ga…”
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