si-mexico Chapter 361 Martial Arts Conference (1)
Chapter 361 Martial Arts Conference (1)
Back in his room, Li Chenglong found the dishes had been washed and Yun Lan had finished showering and was trying on her new combat uniform. Seeing him return, Yun Lan ran over like a little rabbit and spun around in front of him: "This combat uniform is really good, it's so comfortable. I tried to tear it open just now, but I couldn't!"
At this moment, Yunlan suddenly thought of something: "We all have combat suits, didn't you prepare one for yourself?" Li Chenglong shook his head: "I don't need one. I'm one with the Aizamlai metal and G-crystal, so I don't need this kind of combat suit anymore." After Li Chenglong finished showering, the two chatted for a while before going to sleep.
At 7:5 AM on May 2nd, all the humans and several hundred zombies who had come arrived at the arena. Initially, two level 9 zombies came to provoke them. Li Chenglong could tell from their size that they were non-human, low-intelligence level 9 zombies. Qin Wan promptly stepped in and drove the two zombies away, forbidding them from entering the arena.
The arena was the city's stadium, much larger than a professional football field, with a significantly larger area for combat. The two sides sat on opposite sides, more than 100 meters apart, ensuring they wouldn't interfere with each other and preventing any conflict.
After they were seated, Li Chenglong saw a handsome young man in a white suit sitting opposite him. The man seemed to sense that Li Chenglong was looking at him and looked over as well. Although they were more than a hundred meters apart, they could still see each other's facial expressions.
“A level 13 Awakener?” Li Chenglong murmured. Yun Lan hadn’t noticed anything unusual on the other side yet. Seeing Li Chenglong staring intently at the other person, she smiled and asked, “What’s wrong? Why are you so serious?” He shook his head and replied with a smile, “Nothing, just thinking about something.”
Once everyone had arrived, Qin Wan went to the center of the arena. She was both the host and the referee for this martial arts tournament. Li Chenglong and Dongfang Yunbing stood to Qin Wan's left and right, drawing lots to decide which side would send their participants first. Qin Wan took out a coin and said, "Would you bet on the number side or the suit side?" Dongfang Yunbing spoke first, "I want the number side." Seeing Li Chenglong nod in agreement, Qin Wan tossed the coin into the air. When it landed on the ground, it was clearly the suit side, meaning the human side would send their participants first.
本次前来参战的8护法中的6护法，除了12级初期的水土力量三系异能丧尸坤护法外，其他5名都是12级中期。而另外两名12级初期的坎护法和兑护法则没有前来。
Li Chenglong returned to his camp and said earnestly, "Wang Ruyan, you go first. Just do your best, and if things don't look good, admit defeat." Wang Ruyan nodded, "Okay, but I will definitely do my best." With that, she quickly walked to the center of the arena. Dongfang Yunbing saw that it was Wang Ruyan, a mid-level 11th-grade B-rank Spirit Sable Awakener, and said to the mid-level 12th-grade Wind, Wood, and Speed Tri-elemental Zombie Protector Xun beside her, "You will fight in the first match. You must win your first battle."
Protector Xun bowed to Dongfang Yunbing and said, "Yes, your subordinate will do his best." Protector Xun and Protector Kun are twin sisters, but her younger sister is the weakest of the eight protectors. Zhao Liying, sitting behind Li Chenglong, whispered, "Protector Xun is a mid-level level 12 three-element ability user. Wang Ruyan will be difficult to defeat."
Li Chenglong's expression was also somewhat serious: "Although the second Protector Xun looks like a delicate woman, she should not be underestimated. Her strength ranks at least in the top 4 among the 8 Protectors. If Wang Ruyan loses this match, then Ding Hai, you will go up." Ding Hai, who was in the back row, nodded and began to carefully observe the battle in the arena.
Wang Ruyan, wielding the Dragon Fang Dagger, arrived at the center of the arena, while Protector Xun, holding a long sword, approached from the other side. Li Chenglong, observing the two poised to attack, sensed that Wang Ruyan might not even last five minutes. Due to their inherent aptitude, Awakened Beings with potential at or below B-rank do not possess a spiritual form. However, upon reaching level 12, they can master spirit summoning; the level 12 B-rank vampire mosquito Awakened Being, Yu Wenxun, whom Li Chenglong had previously killed, was the best proof of this.
With referee Qin Wan's whistle, the match began immediately. Wang Ruyan launched a fierce attack from the start, brandishing her Dragon Fang Dagger at Protector Xun. Even the spectators, Ding Hai and Liu Zhigang, nodded in approval, agreeing that Wang Ruyan's combat ability was no weaker than theirs, these level 12 ability users. Li Xue cheered for Wang Ruyan with waving her fists, while Zhao Liying and Shangguan Jingyun frequently applauded her brilliant performance.
Protector Xun and her twin sister, Protector Kun, are 28 years old this year, but they are both petite and, being level 12 three-elemental ability zombies, they look like they are only sixteen or seventeen. While parrying Wang Ruyan's various attacks, she smiled and said, "Little sister, your moves are quite good, but your strength is far from enough. Why don't you become a disciple of us new humans and have the opportunity to become a protector like me in the future?"
Wang Ruyan scoffed, "Pah! You little brat, how dare you lecture me? Let's see who's the real deal with our moves, watch out for my skills!" Although Protector Xun looked like a slightly older loli, he was actually quite old. Hearing Wang Ruyan's words, he immediately gritted his teeth in anger and raised his energy to its maximum, preparing to kill his opponent in one fell swoop.
Seeing that her opponent was serious, Wang Ruyan was not intimidated at all. She gathered her spiritual energy into the Dragon Fang Dagger and charged forward. However, due to the significant difference in the amount and quality of their energy reserves, coupled with the fact that Protector Xun was also using his strongest form, Wang Ruyan was knocked out of the arena after less than three moves.
Li Chenglong rushed over to check on Wang Ruyan's condition and found that apart from a large depletion of her spiritual energy, she only had some scratches. He then told her to go back to where the human contestants were sitting and rest properly.
Protector Xun was surprised that Wang Ruyan was so easily defeated. He walked around the arena with his head held high, like a proud white swan.
Enraged, Ding Hai charged forward with his fully activated energy lightsaber, launching a fierce attack on Protector Xun. As a level 12 wind and fire elementalist, his combat abilities far surpassed Wang Ruyan's. Initially, Ding Hai's imposing aura initially overwhelmed Protector Xun, leaving her with only the ability to parry and no chance to retaliate with a series of skills.
Although Protector Xun had easily eliminated Wang Ruyan, he had indeed expended some energy. In the end, Ding Hai used a "mutual destruction" move, taking Protector Xun with him as they fell out of the arena. Li Chenglong ordered his men to rescue Ding Hai in time, and the wood-type ability users in the guard company immediately treated him.
Since the human side sent out their contestants first, and now both of them are eliminated, it's time for the zombie side to go first. Dongfang Yunbing looked at the gradually recovering Protector Xun, somewhat dissatisfied. She had thought she could eliminate at least three human contestants, but she had already failed after only two.
She said to Kun, a level 12 early-stage water and earth elemental power user, "You go this round. As long as you can eliminate one person, you've completed your mission." Kun didn't say anything, and after seeing that his sister was alright, he immediately rushed to the arena. Li Chenglong said to Zhao Liying, "You go. She's relatively weak. As long as you're serious, you can definitely win. After winning, you don't need to fight in the next round; just admit defeat."
Zhao Liying nodded, leaped up, and landed lightly on the arena, facing Protector Kun from afar. Li Chenglong whispered from behind, "A surprise attack, a quick victory is the best."
Zhao Liying understood her captain's meaning and charged towards Protector Kun, brandishing her Shadow Twin Blades. Protector Kun hadn't paid much attention to his opponent, who was only a level 11 Awakened, but he was surprised to be forced to retreat by Zhao Liying, who had activated her psionic form, as soon as the fight began.
On the other side, Zhao Liying went all out from the start, intending to use this momentum to deliver a heavy blow to the unprepared Kun Protector. "Phantom Kill!" As soon as she finished speaking, countless figures of Zhao Liying appeared around Kun Protector, swirling around her, making it impossible for her to tell which was real and which was fake.
Just as she was searching for her true form, the phantoms simultaneously swung their blades and stabbed her, knocking her out of the arena. Actually, Zhao Liying could have killed her. Although the rules didn't explicitly forbid killing, this was a martial arts tournament, and it was during a meeting; killing was definitely not allowed, otherwise the subsequent talks wouldn't be able to proceed.
Seeing another member of their side eliminated, Dongfang Yunbing clenched her fists and coldly looked at the injured Kun Protector: "Go and rest for a while, and work hard to improve your combat ability in the future. You'll be the Qian Protector in the next match. You're the strongest among the eight protectors, so don't embarrass us again."
Protector Qian bowed and said, "Yes, I will not fail you!" He then brandished his spear and charged into the center of the arena. Li Chenglong warned him in time, "He is the strongest of the eight protectors, you must be careful. Sister Shangguan, you will take this match." Shangguan Jingyun had been eager to fight, and upon hearing Li Chenglong's words, she immediately took out her Giant Abyss Twin Forks and stepped forward.
(The earlier battles were described rather briefly, which was my mistake. I made the number of participants too high, with 12 people on one side. I felt that seven or eight people would have been ideal. If every battle were described in detail, it would lead to viewer fatigue, and the eliminations would happen more quickly. However, the most exciting battles will definitely be described in detail.)