Gao Wu: From Martial Arts Student to Star Emperor

Chapter 615 Top Ten in Martial Arts

Chen Lie had nothing to say to this pretentious person and remained silent.

Soon, the announcement "The duel begins" rang out.

Yang Qi's power as a fourth-level Qi Gathering Realm cultivator was revealed. He threw a punch, and the true qi of the five elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth—formed a hundred-step divine fist that blasted towards Chen Lie.

With a deafening roar, a powerful fist strike instantly swept towards Chen Lie with overwhelming force.

In response, Chen Lie raised his hand and struck back with a palm, the force of which formed a huge handprint that collided with the Hundred Steps Divine Fist of the fourth-level Qi Gathering Realm.

The two forces collided, followed by a loud bang, and the recoil caused Yang Qi to retreat repeatedly.

Yang Qi looked slightly surprised: "I didn't expect you to have such strength. I underestimated you!"

If you hadn't been matched with me, you would definitely have advanced, and there's a good chance you'd even be in the top ten of the all-system martial arts competition, but there are no "ifs"!

After just one exchange, Yang Qi instantly recognized Chen Lie's strength. He unleashed his powerful martial arts skills, his full strength exploding as he pressed forward like a blur, delivering over a hundred punches in the blink of an eye.

"Golden Meteor Fist!"

Hundreds of fist shadows instantly covered half of the battle stage. The combination of metal and fire true energy unleashed an incomparably powerful force.

"What utter nonsense!"

Chen Lie channeled his inner energy, using his powerful physique as support, and engaged Yang Qi in a fierce battle.

On the battle stage, the booming sounds of true energy colliding were deafening. The two forces clashed, and waves of energy rippled outwards, even affecting the audience near the stage.

In less than two minutes, Chen Lie and Yang Qi had exchanged over a hundred blows.

Below, many martial arts students from Canglongzhou Martial Arts High School watched the battle unfold on the fighting stage with astonishment.

"These are freshmen who have been at Starry Sky University for less than six months! How are they so amazing!"

"Yes, I've seen recordings of past martial arts competitions. In previous years, it seemed that such intense battles only occurred when the top ten of the entire department's martial arts competition were in.

It seems the Ten Star Alliance has more and more powerful martial arts geniuses this year than in previous years!

"Suyun Star is a planet of the Ten-Star Alliance, but where is this Blue Star? I've never heard of Blue Star within the 58 stars of the Central Star Region."

The Canglong Star martial arts students around them all looked astonished.

They had been at Starry Sky University for less than half a year and were not from any of the Ten Star Alliance planets. They could understand that, after all, there were so many planets in the Central Star Region, and it was understandable that a powerful martial arts genius would occasionally emerge.

However, it is indeed somewhat unbelievable that someone from a remote planet could possess such strength in less than half a year after entering Star University.

Looking towards the war zone, Huang Yucheng was astonished to see the strength Chen Lie displayed.

Judging from Chen Lie's demonstrated strength, he's not far behind me.

How could someone from a barren planet have made such great progress in martial arts after only a few months in the martial arts department?

Huang Yuxi sat upright in front, watching the battle on the fighting stage, her eyes narrowed.

On the battle stage, Chen Lie, relying on his profound internal energy and powerful physique, gradually suppressed Yang Qi in the face of the constant fighting.

He could tell that Yang Qi was at the early stage of the fourth-order Qi Gathering Realm, with a solid foundation in martial arts. He should have opened his Yuan Aperture during the Qi and Blood stage, and the Qi cultivation method he practiced was also a Heaven-rank Qi cultivation method. Therefore, his combat strength was roughly equivalent to that of a typical late-stage Qi Gathering Realm cultivator.

Under normal circumstances, this level of strength should be enough to rank among the top ten in the entire martial arts system.

Unfortunately, he encountered himself in the first round of the all-system martial arts competition.

Chen Lie's moves were fierce, each punch and kick possessing immense power. The two types of true energy clashed head-on, and in the constant battle, he pushed Yang Qi to his limit.

Under Chen Lie's relentless pursuit, Yang Qi, in desperation, finally revealed a slight weakness.

Chen Lie unleashed a powerful punch, still gathering his strength.

"boom!"

The powerful true energy surged outwards and slammed heavily into Yang Qi's chest, directly piercing through his true energy defenses and sending him flying off the battle stage with a "bang".

The outcome of the battle was instantly captured by the satellite's surveillance system overhead, and a broadcast announced: "The duel is over. Yang Qi from Suyun Star vs. Chen Lie from Blue Star."

Blue Star's Chen Lie has won and advanced to the top 20 of the Martial Arts Department.

On the battle stage, Chen Lie glanced at Yang Qi, who had fallen outside, and said, "It wasn't easy to get to this point."

"Under normal circumstances, you should be able to enter the top ten of the martial arts department, but you're unlucky to have run into me."

After Chen Lie finished speaking, he turned around and left the battle stage.

There's no revival round in this all-system martial arts competition.

Yang Qi, sitting in the audience, looked extremely pale and then flushed.

On a high platform far from the fighting arena, the head of the Kendo Department exclaimed in surprise, "Director Yan, your Martial Arts Department has produced a promising talent this time."

"On a barren planet like Blue Star, even those entering Star University are only at the Qi and Blood stage. To have achieved this level of strength in less than six months is truly remarkable."

Yan Zhiyun simply nodded.

She had heard from her daughter that Chen Lie's martial arts analysis results ranked him among the top 1,000 in the three major star regions over a ten-year period.

With this level of combat power, entering the top ten in the martial arts department's freshman martial arts competition would not be a problem, and even being number one in the entire department is not impossible.

She had expected this outcome.

……

After Chen Lie stepped off the fighting platform, the announcement to begin the martial arts competition rang out again.

After sitting down in the waiting area, Huang Yucheng couldn't help but say, "Hey, what level were you at when you entered Starry Sky University? How did you manage to acquire this kind of strength in just half a year?"

"Naturally, it's the Qi and Blood Realm," Chen Lie said.

Huang Yucheng was shocked; it seemed she had indeed misunderstood Chen Lie's talent.

When he entered Starry Sky University, he was only at the Qi and Blood stage, but in less than half a year, he has acquired this kind of strength. Even the top geniuses of Canglong Star are no more than this, right?

Moreover, Chen Lie is just a person from a barren planet.

Huang Yuxi asked, "Chen Lie, have you not yet cultivated the Five Elements True Qi?"

Chen Lie nodded: "Yes!"

"Is it because we don't have enough resources?"

"No, teaching assistant, I think I told you before that the spiritual items I use to cultivate the Five Elements True Qi are all stored on my home planet, but I haven't had the chance to retrieve them yet," Chen Lie said.

"The Five Elements True Qi greatly enhances combat power. Your ordinary True Qi is inherently one level weaker than the elemental True Qi."

"If you had cultivated one or two of the Five Elements True Qi, you wouldn't have needed to exert so much effort when fighting Yang Qi just now," Huang Yuxi said.

Chen Lie knew that Huang Yuxi was subtly reminding him to be prepared for his target ranking to fall short of expectations. He didn't say much, but simply said, "Don't worry, teaching assistant. I am proficient in a high-level Earth-grade sword technique. When using a spirit sword in duels, I can completely avoid the shortcomings and deficiencies of ordinary true qi against attribute true qi."

"Oh? You actually know a high-level Earth-grade sword technique?"

Huang Yuxi was slightly startled.

High-grade earth-level sword techniques are generally suitable for martial artists at the seventh level of the Qi Refining Realm or the eighth level of the Innate Breathing Realm. It is very difficult for those below the fifth level to cultivate such a level of sword technique, and even if they do, it is difficult to control it.

Unless one can hone their swordsmanship to a level of consummate skill.

"Yes, I've almost reached a state of divine mastery in my cultivation," Chen Lie said.

"Yes, at your stage, being able to cultivate a high-level earth-grade sword technique to such a high level is enough to demonstrate your extraordinary talent."

However… you still need to be prepared. Getting into the top ten of the entire Martial Arts Department shouldn't be a problem for you, but getting first place will be a bit difficult.”

Chen Lie simply nodded.

On the fighting stage, the martial arts competition continued to advance.

The first round of the martial arts competition ended quickly.

The announcement came on again.

"The first round of the martial arts competition for freshmen of the Martial Arts Department of Starry Sky University, Class of 7366, in the Galaxy Calendar, has ended."

Next, the second round of the martial arts competition, the battle for the top ten in the martial arts department, officially begins.

"The first match of the top ten competition: Wei Zeyang of Weiguang Star vs. Yu Wuxia of Chongyu Star."

"Please, both students, come up to the stage immediately for a martial arts competition."

……

As the broadcast ended, Wei Zeyang and Yu Wuxia arrived at the battle arena.

Inside Chen Lie's waiting area, Huang Yuxi said to Chen Lie, "This Wei Zeyang is probably the most likely person in the martial arts department to win the top spot in the entire department."

His true strength is not far from being on the Hidden Dragon List. If you want to win the top spot in the whole school, you can observe his strength.

He is an insurmountable obstacle for everyone in the martial arts department's all-department martial arts competition.

Chen Lie nodded and said "hmm". He had just watched a match with Wei Zeyang. Wei Zeyang's cultivation level should be less than the fourth level of Qi Gathering Realm. He should be at the peak of Qi Condensation Realm.

In the previous round of the martial arts competition, Wei Zeyang's opponent did not force him to show his strength at all. This Chong Yuxing Yu Wuxia must not have been able to test Wei Zeyang's strength either.

The top twenty freshmen from each waiting area of ​​the Martial Arts Department watched Wei Zeyang's performance on the battle stage with bated breath.

Soon, the announcement that "the competition has begun" rang out.

As Wei Zeyang's opponent, Yu Wuxia was filled with trepidation.

She was matched with Wei Zeyang. She knew she would never make it into the top ten of the martial arts department, but since she could fight against such an opponent, she couldn't miss the opportunity.

As soon as the announcement "The martial arts competition begins" rang out, Yu Wuxia gripped her weapon, a spirit-grade long whip, in her hand and began to unleash her whip technique.

"Raikage Purple Lightning Whip!"

Yu Wuxia brandished her long whip, which was enveloped in a strange true energy with lightning attributes, and crackling sounds filled the air.

With a loud "boom!", Yu Wuxia lashed out at Wei Zeyang with her spiritual whip. The lightning energy, amplified by the whip, formed a force of annihilation.

Wei Zeyang remained unfazed, ignoring the destructive power of the whip, and directly reached out and grasped the tip of the whip.

"you……"

Yu Wuxia was startled to see Wei Zeyang catch the whip with his bare hands.

This is a magical weapon; catching a whip with bare hands is no less effective than catching a knife or sword with bare hands.

She glanced at him and was shocked to see that Wei Zeyang was completely unharmed.

What an amazing physique!

Wei Zeyang's arm trembled, and his true energy was transmitted directly from the tip of the whip to Yu Wuxia's palm holding the whip.

With a "whoosh," Wei Zeyang pulled hard and snatched the spirit whip from Yu Wuxia's hand.

Before Yu Wuxia could react, Wei Zeyang unleashed a palm strike, gathering the five elements of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth in his palm. With a push, the powerful palm force surged toward Yu Wuxia with a resounding boom.

The powerful palm strike, infused with the five elements of true energy, created a small shockwave that sent Yu Wuxia flying off the battle stage.

"The duel has ended. Wei Zeyang of Weiguang Star vs. Yu Wuxia of Chongyu Star."

Wei Zeyang from Weiguang Star won and advanced to the top ten of all freshmen in the Martial Arts Department.

After the broadcast ended, Wei Zeyang threw the spirit whip back to Yu Wuxia.

The students in the top 20 of the martial arts department below the stage were all shocked by Wei Zeyang's strength.

Many martial arts students in the audience were surprised.

"This Wei Zeyang seems pretty impressive; he was able to defeat his opponent in one move."

"Yes, Starry Sky University truly lives up to its reputation as an institution serving the entire star system; it has so many geniuses!"

"He didn't seem to be using much of his strength."

……

Huang Yucheng, who was in the waiting area where Chen Lie was, was also slightly surprised to see Wei Zeyang.

"Hey, you want to take first place in the whole school, are you confident you can beat Wei Zeyang?" Huang Yucheng asked Chen Lie.

"Yes!" Chen Lie nodded.

"You're just bragging!" Huang Yucheng couldn't help but say.

"Yu Cheng, the martial arts department finals haven't started yet, don't distract Chen Lie's mindset," Huang Yuxi said.

After hearing her sister's words, Huang Yucheng remained silent.

The martial arts competition was progressing rapidly, and the top ten competition was already more than halfway through.

After several matches, Chen Lie's name was finally announced over the loudspeaker again.

"The seventh match of the top ten competition: Hai Ranxing Wang Haoran vs. Lanxing Chen Lie."

"Please come up to the stage immediately for the duel."

……

After hearing the broadcast, Chen Lie once again climbed the long ladder and went up to the battle platform.

On the other side, Wang Haoran also stepped onto the battle stage and came to Chen Lie's side.

"I watched your fight with Yang Qi just now. You are not weak, but you have a big weakness. You haven't cultivated the Five Elements True Qi. Based on this alone, you have no chance of winning against me."

"We'll only know after we fight!" Chen Lie said.

Wang Haoran chuckled twice and took out a magical curved sword from his storage bag.

"My spirit blade is a treasure forged ten times. You are empty-handed and only have ordinary true energy. What can you use to fight me?"

Chen Lie had witnessed Wang Haoran's strength in previous rounds; he was also at the early stage of the fourth-order Qi Gathering Realm, and his strength was no weaker than Yang Qi's. Now that Wang Haoran possessed a spirit blade, Chen Lie could only avoid his attacks if he did not use an equivalent weapon.

That Shen Jiuxi is really inefficient. He promised to deliver the spirit sword today, but the martial arts competition is almost over and there's still no sign of him.

Left with no other choice, Chen Lie had to take out the black spirit knife that had been confiscated.

When Wang Haoran saw Chen Lie take out the spirit blade, he couldn't help but say, "You actually have a spirit weapon too?"

Chen Lie held the black longsword horizontally in front of him without saying a word.

Just then, a loud announcement rang out: "The martial arts competition begins!"

Before the words had even faded, Chen Lie leaped up and slashed out with his sword.

With a loud "boom".

A powerful, thousand-meter-long blade of energy instantly descended from above, cleaving through space and striking towards Wang Haoran's head.

Wang Haoran was immediately shocked and quickly drew his knife to defend himself.

"Boom boom boom!"

A devastating blade of energy slashed down, and Wang Haoran was instantly propelled to the edge of the battle platform by the force of the energy.

The ground of the battle arena was left with a deep mark due to the slashing of the blade.

"How can this sword energy be so strong?"

Before Wang Haoran could react, Chen Lie attacked again with his blade.

He unleashed his Blood Dragon Blade Technique and engaged in a fierce battle with Wang Haoran.

"Boom boom boom!"

On the battle stage, the incomparably powerful blade aura swept across the battlefield.

In just over a dozen moves, Wang Haoran was forced to abandon his sword and was powerless to fight back.

Seeing this, Chen Lie unleashed a weakened version of "Blood Dragon Emerging from the Sea," and with a "boom," the powerful blade energy forced Wang Haoran off the battle stage.

"The duel has ended. Hai Ranxing Wang Haoran vs. Lanxing Chen Lie."

Blue Star's Chen Lie has won, advancing to the top ten of all freshmen in the Martial Arts Department.

"The eighth match of the Martial Arts Department Top Ten Competition: Su Yunxing Tian Sisi vs. Canglongxing Sun Yan."

"Please come up to the stage immediately for the duel."

……

Chen Lie kicked Wang Haoran's discarded spirit sword towards Wang Haoran below the stage. Before Wang Haoran could even step off the stage, the announcement for the next round of the competition rang out.

At this moment, some of the younger martial arts students from Canglong Star in the audience were shocked.

"That swordsmanship was incredibly powerful!"

"Such powerful sword energy, how high must the grade of this sword technique be!"

"That's not the point. The point is that Chen Lie from Blue Star has made it into the top ten of the martial arts competition for freshmen at Starry Sky University."

"Blue Star is such a remote place, just a barren planet in the outer reaches of the star system, worlds apart from the planets of the Ten Star Alliance. It's unbelievable that people from this planet can get into the top ten of the martial arts department at Starry Sky University!"

"Yes, for several years, no one from outside the Ten Star Alliance planets has entered the top ten of the three major department martial arts competitions at Starry Sky University. This Blue Star person is truly unique."

"Wait, doesn't this further demonstrate how talented this person is?"

……

On the other side, Chen Lie returned to his seat in the waiting area and sat down.

The others all turned to look at them.

At the location of Class 17 of the Martial Arts Department on the Tian Er Campus, Chong Yuxing and the other two were stunned by Chen Lie's performance.

"This... Brother Chen, you are truly a hidden talent. I never expected your swordsmanship to be so amazing..." Hou Yutan couldn't help but say.

"Yes, we all came to Starry Sky University together, and it's only been less than half a year. Why is there such a big difference?"

"After this match, Brother Chen will be among the top ten freshmen in the martial arts department," Nie Cheng said.

"Is being number one in the Eastern Star Region really that amazing?"

Qiao Xuanxi bit her lip and glanced in the direction of Chen Lie.

The difference between being in the top 100 of a department and being in the top 10 of the entire department is enormous!

On the other side, just as Chen Lie sat down on the fighting platform, the staff from Starry Sky University who were hosting the martial arts competition came over.

"Hello, Chen Lie, I am Zhao Shuangting, an academic affairs staff member from the central campus of Xingkong University."

"Hello!"

Chen Lie stood up, left his seat, and went to Zhao Shuangting: "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Oh, it's nothing much. It's just that you made it into the top ten of the martial arts department's competition. As usual, Starry Sky University will give your home planet a medal."

Let me confirm, you're from Earth, right?

"Yes!"

"So where are your Blue Star campus-based work team members?"

"They're not here!" Chen Lie said.

"Not here?"

Zhao Shuangting found it strange. Blue Star is a planet in the outer star region. It is not easy for a genius in the top ten of the martial arts system to emerge from such a planet. Shouldn't he have come here to guard it long ago? Why is he absent?

"Alright then, if there's nothing else, I'll contact the Blue Star campus work team and have them come over."

After Zhao Shuangting finished speaking, she immediately left the waiting area.

Chen Lie returned to his seat and sat down.