Rise from a Poor Family: My Martial Arts Counterattack

Chapter 302 Congratulations, Brother Lu!

The Mysterious Realm of a Thousand Illusions.

A small golden tower floated above Lu Chuanning's head, with a golden light shield hanging down from it, protecting Lu Chuanning within.

Those red souls rushed forward one after another, but they immediately vanished upon touching the golden light shield.

Inside the light barrier, Lu Chuanning's eyes gleamed with smugness.

Soul-Destroying Tower!
This is a spirit weapon capable of destroying spirit objects; he prepared it specifically for this ranking competition.

This ranking tournament is being held in the Yan Kingdom, and the Dean had already guessed that the points tournament arranged by the Yan Kingdom must be related to the divine soul.

This is Yan's advantage, and Yan has no reason to give up such a great advantage.

This spiritual weapon did not belong to him; it was temporarily lent to him by the Dean, who had anticipated the situation in the Thousand Illusions Secret Realm.

The situation inside the Thousand Illusions Secret Realm is no secret to the Koreans.

Many disciples of the Yan Kingdom's Royal Martial Academy had also visited the Han Kingdom and informed them of the situation in the Thousand Illusions Secret Realm.

"No matter how powerful Lin Chen's soul is, it can't compare to my Soul Extinction Tower. I will definitely have the highest score in this round."

Lu Chuanning's eyes revealed a look of certainty. He had been here for 1,500 breaths, which was equivalent to 1,400 points. With Lin Chen's strength, he could only last for 500 breaths at most. Even if he included the points from the test round, he had far surpassed Lin Chen.

However, just to be on the safe side, Lu Chuanning did not rush to leave, but decided to search through the clouds and mist.

With the Soul-Destroying Tower there, he could clearly see within a radius of one zhang (approximately 3.3 meters) and would not lose his way.

Several dozen breaths later.

Lu Chuanning found no trace of him and was about to leave when he suddenly stopped and looked up at the millstone in the sky.

The millstone stopped spinning, and no more souls emerged from the red crack. A green leaf revealed its true form from the crack.

One piece, two pieces, three pieces...

Among the three green leaves, a bright red fruit stands out.

"what is this?"

Lu Chuanning's eyes gleamed. He didn't know what the red fruit was, but he knew it was definitely something good.

Without any hesitation, Lu Chuanning leaped toward the fruit. When he was only three zhang away from the red fruit, his face showed excitement, and he reached out to pick it.

call out!
Just then, a cold light whistled through the air.

The cold light struck Lu Chuanning's golden shield, and Lu Chuanning was startled, looking behind him.

"It's you!"

When Lu Chuanning saw Lin Chen behind him, he was stunned. Sixteen hundred breaths had passed, and Lin Chen was still in this secret realm.

Coming to his senses, Lu Chuanning revealed a sinister smile. He had searched high and low without finding it, but it had come to him effortlessly.

If Lin Chen leaves the secret realm, he can't do anything to Lin Chen. But even if he kills Lin Chen in this secret realm, the Liang Kingdom can't do anything to him.

Although the red fruit in front of him was tempting, Lu Chuanning wanted to kill Lin Chen more than Lin Chen.

There's no rush to take the red fruit after killing Lin Chen.

Lin Chen squinted at Lu Chuanning, mainly at the tower above Lu Chuanning's head.

He had just attacked with a divine sense flying knife, which directly targeted the soul and was difficult for ordinary objects to block. However, the golden protective shield hanging from the pagoda above Lu Chuanning's head blocked it. In addition, Lu Chuanning had been here for so long, which made him realize that this pagoda was probably able to withstand attacks on the soul.

"Lin Chen, die!"

A cold glint flashed in Lu Chuanning's eyes. With a swift movement, he broke free from the pagoda above his head and hurtled towards Lin Chen.

In Lu Chuanning's view, the pagoda was used to resist the soul objects here, but he didn't need the pagoda to deal with Lin Chen. He could kill Lin Chen here with his own strength.

"court death!"

Seeing that Lu Chuanning had abandoned the pagoda, Lin Chen moved his mind and the ten flying knives condensed again, and the next moment they suddenly merged into one.

call out!
The throwing knife, now twice its original size, arrived in front of Lu Chuanning in the blink of an eye. Lu Chuanning's pupils shrank, but he didn't care and struck out with his palm to meet the throwing knife.

However, despite the swirling wind from his palm, the speed of the throwing knife did not decrease at all. To Lu Chuanning's disbelief, the throwing knife pierced through his palm and disappeared into his heart.

Lu Chuanning's clothes were not torn at all, but he staggered and fell to the ground in mid-air.

Just as Lu Chuanning lost his focus and fell, Lin Chen's right hand produced the Dragon Shadow Bow, and a golden arrow shot out.

puff!
The arrow pierced Lu Chuanning's chest. When Lu Chuanning regained his senses, blood spurted from his mouth, and he fell heavily to the ground.

"I was thinking about how to break through your golden shield, but I didn't expect you to deliver yourself to my door."

Lin Chen walked up to Lu Chuanning, looked at the disbelief in Lu Chuanning's eyes, and without any hesitation, slapped down with his palm.

Lu Chuanning wanted to kill him, so naturally he wouldn't let him go.

Having dealt with Lu Chuanning, the pagoda slowly descended. Lin Chen flashed and grabbed the pagoda in his hand, then headed towards the millstone to pluck the red fruit.

The moment the red fruit touched my hand, it turned into a pool of liquid that seeped into my skin and disappeared.

A cool and comfortable sensation instantly washed over him, and Lin Chen immediately summoned his control panel.

[Host: Lin Chen]

[Realm Level: Ninth Rank]

[Spirit Rank: 3.6]

……

hiss!
My divine soul has increased by 0.3 grades. This red fruit is amazing!
By now, Lin Chen understood the concept of Spirit Rank, which refers to the grade of one's own soul.

A ninth-grade divine soul is only one level, while my own divine soul is already equivalent to a seventh-grade martial artist, and even at the upper-middle level of a seventh-grade martial artist.

With the Thousand Machines Refining God Technique, if a seventh-rank martial artist has no way to resist the soul, he can easily kill them with his flying knives.

The Thousand Machines Refining God Technique is currently his most powerful killing move and trump card.

Lin Chen landed back on the ground and looked at Lu Chuanning's corpse. Out of respect for him, he carefully searched his body, but unfortunately, apart from some silver notes, there was nothing of value.

"This respect was given away for nothing."

Lin Chen looked regretful; he couldn't use the Korean silver notes, but this pagoda…

Lin Chen's gaze returned to the pagoda in his hand. He used the Thousand Machines Refining God Technique to send a wisp of his divine soul onto the pagoda. The pagoda began to tremble, repelling Lin Chen's divine soul. However, as Lin Chen sent his second and third divine souls onto the pagoda, it gradually calmed down.

"rise!"

Lin Chen gave a soft shout, and the pagoda slowly began to float up, hovering above his head. A golden light shield descended, enveloping his entire body.

"receive!"

With a soft whisper from Lin Chen, the pagoda descended, landing in his hand this time. However, its size began to shrink, eventually becoming only a finger's width tall.

He hid it in his bosom, so that no clues could be seen from the outside.

……

...Two thousand breaths!
The martial artist outside the stone gate grew increasingly anxious; such a long delay was clearly abnormal.

“Junior Brother Hou, it seems that Lin Chen is indeed quite good. He has only entered the ninth rank, yet he has been able to stay in the Thousand Illusions Secret Realm for such a long time. Your Liang Kingdom has produced a genius who is no less than Pei Qingming.”

Lu Qiguang spoke with a smile, and before Hou Zhantian could respond, the other powerful figures from the surrounding countries had thoughtful expressions on their faces.

Logically speaking, the longer Lin Chen stays inside, the more disadvantageous it will be for Han Guo, since Lin Chen was leading by 600 points in the first round.

But Lu Qiguang didn't seem anxious at all, which showed that he had absolute confidence in Lu Chuanning.
That shouldn't be the expression, unless...

Some people thought of a possibility: unless something beneficial to South Korea happened inside.

"Brother Murong, is there any way to get the disciples out of the secret realm?"

Hou Zhantian had also guessed this possibility, and immediately looked at Murong Song. There were only Lin Chen and Lu Chuanning in the secret realm. Judging from Lu Qiguang's words, he had obviously expected that Lu Chuanning would be able to stay inside for so long.

Han Kingdom has made contingency plans regarding the Thousand Illusions Secret Realm.

If that's the case, Lin Chen might be in danger.

Murong Song's expression also changed slightly. If Hou Zhantian could guess these things, he naturally could too.

Before the first round, he naturally wouldn't have interfered in the conflict between Liang and Han, but seeing that Lin Chen was able to separate his soul, he couldn't sit still any longer.

Lin Chen cannot die!
"Okay, I'll close the secret realm now."

"Brother Murong, this is inappropriate!"

Lu Qiguang spoke up to stop him: "The outcome is still undecided. How can we close the secret realm? This is a martial arts academy ranking competition, which concerns the ranking of martial arts academies in nine countries. It is not just a matter for your Yan Kingdom alone."

The threat in his words was extremely obvious.

"Brother Lu is right. This is a ranking tournament. How can we interfere?"

The Zheng Guo expert chimed in, a cold smile on his face. It would be best if Lin Chen were killed by Lu Chuanning in the secret realm.

"To put it bluntly, if you dare to participate in the Martial Arts Academy Ranking Tournament, you must be prepared to die. If something goes wrong and you die, then so be it."

The powerful figure from the Xiang Kingdom added meaningfully, "This is a pre-arranged ambush for Lu Chuanning to kill Lin Chen."

"I think you all agree with what I'm saying."

Lu Qiguang laughed and said, "Brother Hu is right, but the ranking tournament has been held for many years and there is no life-and-death enmity between our nine countries. So let's not deliberately take the life of our opponents."

This is extremely hypocritical.

Everyone understood what Lu Qiguang meant. If Lin Chen was really killed by Lu Chuanning in the secret realm, it was definitely not Lu Chuanning's intention, but an accident.

Hou Zhantian's eyes blazed with fury. Compared to the ranking of the martial arts academy, he cared more about Lin Chen's safety.

If he had known that Han Guo had made prior arrangements, he would never have allowed Lin Chen to enter the secret realm.

Hou Zhantian ignored the mocking words of Lu Qiguang and the others, and instead looked at Murong Song: "Brother Murong, in this round, my Liang Kingdom acknowledges..."

Before the word "lose" could be uttered, a figure appeared at the stone gate.

Lin Chen's figure emerged from inside the stone gate.

The moment they saw Lin Chen appear, everyone on the Liang Kingdom's side breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness... Junior Brother Lin was alright.

In contrast, the warriors from Zheng and Han looked regretful, especially Bian Xinjie, who knew that his junior brother Lu had brought a special spiritual weapon into the secret realm and could easily hold out for two thousand breaths.

The reason Lin Chen hasn't come out for so long isn't because he can hold out for that long, but because he was killed by Junior Brother Lu in the secret realm long ago.

Once a person dies, they naturally cannot come out.

"What exactly happened to Junior Brother Lu? How did he manage to get Lin Chen out alive?"

A hint of dissatisfaction flashed in Bian Xinjie's eyes. At that moment, at the forefront, Murong Song looked at Hou Zhantian and smiled, "What was Brother Hou about to say?"

"nothing."

Hou Zhantian breathed a sigh of relief. Now that Lin Chen had come out, he naturally wouldn't say that Liang had admitted defeat and that Murong Song had closed the secret realm.

"Junior Brother Lin, you actually stayed inside for two thousand breaths."

Seeing Lin Chen approach, Li Yuan and the others were very excited. Lin Chen asked curiously, "Am I number one?"

"Lu Chuanning is still out."

"Are there still people who haven't come out?"

Lin Chen frowned. Seeing Lin Chen's expression, Li Yuan comforted him, "Junior Brother Lin, this result is already very good. There's no need to be too hard on yourself."

"Ah."

Lin Chen nodded, stepped aside, and said nothing more. He was quite satisfied with himself; it was just an act.

"Senior Brother Lin, even if Lu Chuanning came out a thousand breaths later, Canglan Martial Academy's points would still rank second, which would already break the academy's record," Meng Xing chimed in.

The moment Lin Chen appeared, Lu Qiguang, who was at the very top, lost his smile.

Lu Chuanning failed to kill Lin Chen, and Lin Chen was able to stay inside for two thousand breaths. Lin Chen's spiritual strength far surpasses that of his peers. If he is not eliminated as soon as possible, he will become a formidable enemy of Han Kingdom in the future.

Once the ranking competition is over, he will report to His Majesty and launch an assassination attempt against Lin Chen.

"Pity."

The powerful figure from Zheng whispered something, and everyone understood the meaning behind his "what a pity."

Unfortunately, Lin Chen survived.

"Even if Canglan Martial Academy gets second place in points, it just means they can survive a few more rounds in the official competition."

Hou Zhantian didn't care about these comments; second place at Canglan Martial Academy was indeed enough.

There wasn't much difference between the first and second place.

Winning first place is more of a symbolic achievement.

One hundred breaths later, Lu Chuanning still hadn't come out, and Lu Qiguang's expression remained unchanged.

Three hundred breaths later, the Zheng Kingdom's powerful figures began to congratulate Lu Qiguang.

"Congratulations, Brother Lu, Tianque Martial Academy has won first place."

With Lu Chuanning's points plus Ling Tianhao's points from Tianque Martial Academy, they have already surpassed Canglan Martial Academy, or more accurately, surpassed Lin Chen.

However, after five hundred breaths, Lu Chuanning still hadn't appeared, and a gloomy look appeared on Lu Qiguang's face.

Six hundred breaths later, Lu Qiguang's old eyes flashed with a sharp light as he stared intently at Lin Chen and shouted, "Lin Chen, what did you do in the secret realm!"

By now, Lu Qiguang had realized something was wrong. Lu Chuanning couldn't possibly have stayed away for so long; something must have happened to him in the secret realm.

The only person who could possibly get Lu Chuanning into trouble is Lin Chen!

Lin Chen looked puzzled, seemingly not understanding what Lu Qiguang was saying.

　There will be another chapter at midnight, same time as usual.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)