Invincible!

Chapter 49 Taking the Stage
"The Five Elements Platform!?"

"Only those who overpower all others can obtain the Dragon Gate Token? This year's Dragon Gate Token is obtained in this way!"

"A martial arts competition... and the most prestigious title defense match at that! There's no way to cheat except by winning by the crowd and defeating everyone!"

"That's not necessarily true. When the strength is roughly equal, those with impressive status and powerful backgrounds will still have a significant advantage!"

As soon as Shen Chenzhou finished speaking, the room erupted in an uproar.

Not only the numerous martial artists, relatives, and family members who participated in the Dragon Gate Tournament, but also the elders and grandmasters of the Taixu Sword Palace, Tianbao Pavilion, and Shengwu Tower on the high platform of the pavilion, as well as the royal elders, princes, and dukes, all showed expressions of surprise.

"They've used the 'defending the champion' style of leaping over the dragon gate again. I remember the last time this happened was 60 years ago."

"This kind of competition directly eliminates all those martial artists who have undergone blood transfusion and marrow cleansing, leaving them no chance whatsoever. In fact, even if those martial artists who have undergone blood transfusion and marrow cleansing want to take a gamble, the price will be their lives. This is because, in order to deter others, all the defenders will absolutely not show any mercy and will kill without hesitation, lest they be exhausted by the gauntlet battle."

"This method is not very useful. After all, it's not like you lose your qualification just because you fail. As long as you still have the fighting strength, you can go down first, rest for a while, and then come back on stage when you're ready."

"At this point, the five Dragon Gate Tokens are basically a foregone conclusion."

One by one, the elders and sect leaders who had cultivated true qi and even opened up the eight extraordinary meridians spoke up to give their evaluations.

Among them, the royal family, Prince Yan Shi Ri, whose title was "Wu", smiled and looked at Guangyuan Sword Saint, who was also upstairs.

"It looks like the kid you invested in won't be able to go to the Immortal Sect this year."

The Sword Saint of Guangyuan knew who he was talking about, and immediately smiled and said, "He is still young. If he can't go, he can't go. He can wait another five years. With his talent and foundation, it is not an unrealistic expectation that he will be able to cultivate true qi in five years. When that time comes, he will be able to leap over the dragon gate with ease."

"Heh... Five years, not a long time, not a short time. Anything can happen during that time. Given his arrogant and disrespectful behavior, it wouldn't be surprising if he got killed one day."

King Wu said calmly, "I will eclipse the sun."

"He is arrogant now because he has not experienced setbacks. After witnessing the strength of the top five in this Dragon Gate Tournament, he will understand the gap between himself and others, and thus recognize his own limitations."

At this moment, the master of the Holy Martial Pavilion spoke.

After saying that, he turned directly to Xiao Ruqing and said, "Go and tell that Li Qianlong that the doors of my Shengwu Tower will always be open to him."

"Yes."

Xiao Ruqing, who was sitting beside him, quickly acknowledged and withdrew.

Seeing this, the people from Taixu Sword Palace and Tianbao Pavilion quickly gave Li Qiong and Long Yu a wink.

The two of them tacitly withdrew from the attic.

Seeing this, Yan Shi Ri was too lazy to argue anymore. He turned his gaze to a woman who looked to be only twenty-four or twenty-five years old with a cold expression, and his tone immediately became gentle: "Yu'er, go. This kind of competition is like defying the heavens and changing one's fate for other martial artists, but for you, it's just a matter of loosening your muscles and going through the motions."

Yan Yu nodded slightly and calmly said, "It doesn't matter which method you use."

Yan Shi Ri smiled upon hearing this: "Indeed, absolute strength naturally implies absolute confidence. The land of Great Zhou is ultimately too small for a proud daughter of heaven like you. Go, take the Dragon Gate Token, and head to the Immortal Sect, just like the previous prodigies of my Yan family. That is the true stage that belongs to you."

Yan Yu nodded and left the pavilion.

Outside, sword-bearing maids and personal maids were already waiting, surrounding her as she headed straight for the Five Elements Platform.

On the other side, Nangong Zhaoyue, the master of Taixu Sword Palace, also turned her gaze to Xiang Yangsheng.

He didn't speak, he just nodded.

Xiang Yangsheng calmly stood up, gave a slight bow to his palace master and master, and turned to leave.

Throughout the entire process, the two did not exchange a single word.

But judging from that calm demeanor...

It seems that for both Nangong Zhaoyue and Xiang Yangsheng, the small leap over the dragon gate was never a problem.

Using the false to cultivate the true, one can develop the cultivation of true qi...

Among the younger generation of the Great Zhou Dynasty, they are invincible.

Just as Yan Shi Ri said, the Dragon Gate Tournament, which would be a life-changing event for ordinary martial artists, was just a formality in their eyes.

……

Five Elements Platform.

It is nearly two meters high and thirty meters in diameter.

At its center stands a stone pillar, nine meters high and one meter in diameter, carved with five dragon reliefs, upon which rest the five Dragon Gate Tokens.

At this moment, crowds surged outside the stage.

Those who had learned about the process of previous Dragon Gate competitions beforehand understood the rules of this grand competition.

The winner is the one who goes on stage and no one dares to challenge them after the incense stick has burned for a while.

but……

No one went up on stage first.

Many people even turned their attention to an attic.

It was a place of rest for many sect leaders and royal family members, as well as a place for Yan Yu, the number one on the Hidden Dragon List, to cultivate his spirit.

……

"Ugh."

Zhou Juechen let out a long sigh.

Hongyu and another Zhou family elder who had cultivated internal energy also looked very solemn. "Master..."

"It's all about timing and fate."

Zhou Juechen exhaled: "This kind of Dragon Gate Leap method, which allows no fancy tricks and must suppress all dissent with absolute power, has the highest gold content. It also minimizes the element of luck! In fact, not only luck, but the competition itself is also extremely unfriendly to people like us with ordinary status and background."

Li Xian understood what he meant.

In such competitions, when the difference in strength is relatively small, social status naturally becomes the key factor.

Those martial artists who know they can't defend their title until the end might think, "If I can't have it, neither can you," and exhaust the stamina of those with a smaller advantage, pulling them off their horses through a series of attacks.

But if that person is of noble status...

Unless they were prepared to die, they certainly wouldn't dare to cause trouble and completely offend them, lest they suffer retaliation.

Every time the Dragon Gate Tournament ends, the martial arts world is in turmoil for one or two years, and some sects and forces are destroyed. This is the reason.

Do you want to go on stage?

Li asked first.

"superior."

Zhou Juechen said in a deep voice, "Since we're already here, I won't be satisfied unless we fight with all our might!"

He paused for a moment, then added, "However... we have to choose the right time."

Li nodded.

At this moment, Zhou Juechen thought of something and glanced at Li Xian: "If you can choose the right time and make your move at the last moment, there may still be a sliver of hope. After all, everyone knows that even if you fail, you will definitely succeed in the next competition. This kind of deterrent power is no less than that of martial artists from top sects."

"Making a move at the last minute?"

Li shook his head.

If all the top players leave by then, what's the point of him stepping on stage again?
do not care.

Whoever goes up gets attacked.

At that moment, a suppressed gasp suddenly came from the crowd.

"coming."

"Princess Yan Yu, the nineteenth princess, has arrived."

"She's number one on the Hidden Dragon List. Who would dare to challenge her? Going up there would probably just be suicide! The only one who could threaten her, Xiang Yangsheng, doesn't need to fight her to the death. In this mode, her Dragon Gate Token is practically free."

Amidst suppressed conversations, Yan Yu, surrounded by sword-bearing maids, made her way through the crowd.

As she passed by, everyone in front of her spontaneously made way for her.

these people……

Whether they were relatives of the contestants, contestants themselves, or even those who had made it onto the Hidden Dragon List, everyone made way for them without exception.

She was like a water divider; wherever she went, people scattered, and no one dared to stop her in the slightest.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, she disregarded their gazes and leaped onto the Five Elements Platform.

Then, he leaped into the air, using the five dragon reliefs on the pillar as if riding on dragons to fly to the sky, and went directly to the top of the stone pillar, calmly taking a Dragon Gate Token in his hand.

Yan Yu turned her gaze to the staff of Shenglong Pavilion next to her.

"Can I go?"

This staff member is Yang Xu.

"Sorry, you'll need to wait up there for a while. We need to make sure no one is rushing around, devising tactics, and preparing to challenge you."

Yang Xu responded.

"Challenge me? Is that even possible?"

Yan Yu said calmly, "I'm not trying to be mean, but Xiang Yangsheng is the only decent one here. Everyone else isn't even qualified to be my opponent. They'd just be throwing their lives away."

That's arrogant and conceited.

But among all those self-proclaimed geniuses in the audience, not a single person uttered a word of rebuttal.

They knew she was telling the truth.

Even geniuses are divided into different levels.

At the scene, Yan Yu was undoubtedly the most dazzling prodigy.

Yang Xu also understood this principle.

However, the necessary procedures still need to be followed.

He then addressed the audience, saying, "The first Dragon Gate Token is now in His Highness Yan Yu's hands. Is there anyone who wishes to compete with him? If no one is willing to compete, acknowledging his superior skill, then..."

"call out!"

The next moment, almost everyone was completely unresponsive...

Even when Zhou Juechen thought this was just a waste of time, Li Xian leaped up and stepped directly onto the Five Elements Platform.

(End of this chapter)