si-mexico Chapter 129 Banquet
Chapter 129 Banquet
At 11:30 AM, the martial arts competition took a break. It was August, the hottest time of the year, and even for those with supernatural abilities, prolonged combat in such conditions would be unbearable. Li Chenglong and the other ten champions, led by waiters, arrived at the restaurant. Surprisingly, although the restaurant was small, it had air conditioning, and many high-ranking officials were also eating and cooling off there. The food was quite good, with each person even receiving a small amount of exotic beast meat and fresh fruit. After lunch, everyone could return to their assigned rooms to rest, or leave, provided they arrived at the competition venue before 8:10 PM.
After weighing his options, Li Chenglong decided to rest in the room they had arranged. The room was only 20 square meters in size, containing nothing but a bed and a computer desk. The only slightly comforting thing was the electric fan on the computer desk, which brought a bit of coolness in the sweltering midday heat. He locked the door and lay down on the bed to rest.
The afternoon's arena matches continued. From the Xu family, only Xu Qingming and a few subordinates came to watch, while Chen Guohao and Chen Guoqiang from the Chen family both brought their subordinates to watch from a private box. Both Chen Guohao and Chen Guoqiang were level 6 ability users; Chen Guohao, like Wu Gang, was a dual ability user of both fire and wind elements. Besides the Xu family patriarch Xu Limin, a level 6 ability user with three different elemental types, his son Xu Qingming and younger brother Xu Fumin were both level 5 awakened individuals and ability users. Li Chenglong had only learned yesterday, through inquiries, that the Xu family had one level 6 ability user and eight level 5 ability users. The Chen family had two level 6 ability users and eight level 5 ability users. The Nie family had two level 7 ability users, one level 6 ability user, and seven level 5 ability users. The Wei family had one level 6 ability user and six level 5 ability users. The Lei family had two level 6 ability users and twelve level 5 ability users. Of course, these figures are only superficial; no one knows the exact numbers, and Li Chenglong felt they could only be used as a reference.
Xuzhou City is slightly smaller, with only the Xu and Chen families as its two powerful clans and four armies under its command. Although they are called armies, the number of troops is not that many, with each army having less than 10,000 men. However, it is still quite formidable, considering that all the troops in Shuguang City combined have less than 4,000 men.
Li Chenglong arrived at his arena on time. While Xu Qingming paid attention to him, he was even more interested in the level 5 ability users on the other four arenas. After all, apart from the Nie family's dominance, the other families were roughly equal in strength. Recruiting level 5 ability users through this martial arts competition would significantly boost his family's power. Li Chenglong poured himself a glass of cold water and sat down to drink. A moment later, he heard a man's voice: "I challenge you!" Li Chenglong turned around and saw a muscular man standing at the edge of the arena, staring intently at him. Li Chenglong smiled slightly. He recognized this man; he had been with Xu Qingming yesterday afternoon and this morning, and was a level 5 speed-type ability user. The man's training was obvious; he was clearly a soldier.
Li Chenglong tightened the lid of the cup and placed it in a corner of the arena, setting the chair aside as well. The Chen brothers, Guohao and Guoqiang, were puzzled to see Xu Qingming's adjutant challenge a level four strength-type Awakened individual. Chen Guohao glanced towards Xu Qingming's private box and saw Xu Qingming smiling at them. Chen Guoqiang said, "What's this kid up to? Is he trying to eliminate that level four?" Chen Guohao replied, "That level four strength-type Awakened individual performed quite well. After he's eliminated, we can send someone to contact him; we can get him a battalion commander or deputy battalion commander position."
As soon as Xu Qingming's adjutant stepped onto the stage, he said, "You'd better go all out right from the start. You should know that there's a world of difference between Level 5 and Level 4. I won't hold back." Li Chenglong replied with a smile, "Is that so? You, an officer, actually dare to challenge me. I wonder if this is your personal decision or Xu Qingming's?" The adjutant's expression changed slightly: "Guess for yourself." After saying that, he activated his speed ability, and his figure disappeared without a trace. However, this disappearance was different from Li Chenglong's spatial teleportation. It was just that the speed was so fast that ordinary people couldn't see it clearly, so it looked like he disappeared.
The adjutant darted back and forth around Li Chenglong at incredible speed, but Li Chenglong remained completely still. A level four ability user champion nearby laughed loudly, "Is this guy scared stiff by a level five ability user? He's not moving at all." Li Chenglong was also quite helpless. Although this level five speed-type ability user was indeed very fast in the eyes of others or some ability users, to him it was like slow motion. He couldn't fight back, nor could he not fight back. Fighting back might expose him, but not fighting back was annoying because this person kept darting around him.
Suddenly, the adjutant threw a punch from behind with incredible speed. Li Chenglong ducked sharply, dodging the blow, and then tripped the adjutant with his right foot. However, the adjutant, being a level five speed-based ability user, reacted extremely quickly. He braced himself with his arms, rolled twice, and without stopping, kicked Li Chenglong in the head. Li Chenglong blocked the attack with his crossed arms, and his right leg flew out to strike the adjutant's supporting leg. However, the adjutant reacted quickly, rapidly unleashing his ability to retreat several meters and dodge the attack.
Xu Qingming narrowed his eyes, staring at Li Chenglong, his heart filled with astonishment. The Chen brothers, Guohao and Guoqiang, also frowned, remaining silent. The fourth-level ability user who had just mocked Li Chenglong nearly dropped his jaw, unable to understand how someone who had been so terrified moments before could suddenly become so fierce. However, the most astonished was Xu Qingming's adjutant. He finally understood that this man was no ordinary person, and immediately stood at attention, saying, "I am Commander Xu's adjutant, named Xu Hu. May I ask who you are?" Li Chenglong's expression remained calm: "I am Li Long. The competition isn't over yet. If you don't continue your attack, it will be my turn."
Xu Hu's lips twitched, and he immediately focused his attention. His fists clenched, and a blue aura emanated from his body. Li Chenglong knew this meant Xu Hu was going all out, but it still wasn't enough. His attributes were more than double Xu Hu's, and even with his strength and abilities suppressed, a level five opponent was still a formidable opponent. Xu Hu roared and charged, and Li Chenglong met him head-on, their battle raging. Xu Hu's attacks were incredibly fierce, and Li Chenglong, not wanting to reveal too much, remained on the defensive, parrying and deflecting Xu Hu's attacks time and again. The audience, finding the fight spectacular, erupted in deafening cheers and shouts of encouragement.
The two fought for five minutes, and Li Chenglong couldn't help but admire the guy. This man was not only highly skilled in military combat techniques, but also seemed to have some experience with Jiu-Jitsu and Muay Thai. If he were an ordinary level four ability user, he certainly wouldn't be able to handle him. Eight minutes later, Xu Hu, seeing that he couldn't gain the upper hand and was panting and drenched in sweat from the intense battle, while the man before him remained relaxed and seemed to be getting stronger with each fight, realized he had achieved his goal. He quickly slipped to the back and said, "I give up the challenge. You win." Li Chenglong cupped his hands in a gesture of respect: "Thank you for the concession." Then he sat down on a nearby chair, opened his cup, and began to drink water. Xu Hu's lips twitched, and he quickly left the arena.
Because Li Chenglong's performance in this battle was so astonishing, few others dared to challenge him that afternoon. Only one decent level four fire-type ability user was defeated by Li Chenglong in a "mutually assured destruction" manner. At 7 PM, the martial arts tournament took a break, with the third day of competition resuming the next morning. As soon as Li Chenglong stepped out of the stadium, he saw Xu Hu already standing there, with an SUV parked beside him, seemingly having been waiting for some time. Before he could speak, Xu Hu said, "Li Long, our young master would like to invite you to a casual meal. Would you do me the honor?" Li Chenglong glanced at his watch: "It's too late today. I have to go back. Please thank your master for me."
Xu Hu continued, "You're going back to have dinner with some family, right? We just sent them a lot of food. I wonder if that would free up some of your time." Li Chenglong's face turned cold: "Is this blackmail?" At this moment, a man's voice came from the back seat of the SUV: "Absolutely not. I just admire you and wanted to invite you to dinner. As for them, I have absolutely no ill intentions. I've already removed the people around here." The car door slowly opened, revealing Xu Qingming in plain clothes. Li Chenglong knew he couldn't refuse now, so he tossed his backpack to Xu Hu: "Alright then. But I can only stay for a while."
After Li Chenglong got into the car, Xu Hu also got into the driver's seat, and the vehicle slowly drove into the distance.