The Twelve Trials Starting from Zero

"Alas, finding a worthy adversary is so difficult, loneliness is as boundless as snow..."

His gaze swept over the groaning, listless opponents on the ground. With a flick of his wrist, Su Qi sheathed his sword and stepped off the stage with a lonely yet dashing air.

Next, he, who was practically a max-level character who could easily crush the newbie village, undoubtedly advanced all the way up, unstoppable, breaking through one team after another amidst the surprised or incredulous gazes of the crowd, and finally... ushered in the final battle with Dao Lian.

Chapter Nine: Beating up children

"Look, the patriarch and several hall masters have arrived!"

"What's so surprising? They must have come to see Dao Lian."

"Perhaps they've come to see Daocheng?"

"Don't be silly. That guy didn't show any signs of strength before. He suddenly became so strong this time. Who would come all the way to see him?"

……

Just before the final challenge began, amidst the discussions and gazes of the crowd, Dao Yuan, clad in a dark blue Taoist robe and with an exaggerated physique like a small mountain, appeared in the arena and sat on a specially reserved viewing platform closest to the ring.

Behind him, his wife Daolan was dressed in palace attire, the previous head of the Daoist family, Daozhen, was dressed in a dark yellow Daoist robe, and a group of hall masters from Kanli Hall, Baosheng Hall, Xuanming Hall, Hanying Hall, and Xingyu Hall, dressed in blue Daoist robes, followed closely behind.

Before this battle, which could determine the fate of the young master of the Taoist sect, all the high-ranking members of the Taoist sect were present.

Meanwhile, in the waiting room below the stage, Dao Run, looking disheveled and having just had his wounds bandaged, staggered in, leaning against the wall, despite his weakness.

Because the surprise attack on Su Qi before the battle clearly went against Dao Yuan's wishes, she did not dare to report the injury, nor did she go to Kanli Palace for treatment. Instead, she returned to her residence to treat her injuries and then hurriedly rushed to Jiebo Platform.

Fortunately, as a psychic who manipulates zombies, she had plenty of tools for repairing corpses, such as bandages and needles, in her residence, and she also had some knowledge of the human body and medicine, so she didn't spend too much time on it.

"Dao Run?"

Dao Lian, who was sitting on a bench with her eyes closed, resting and recuperating while holding a Guan Dao, opened her eyes and saw Dao Run's pale face and the dust and bloodstains on his cheongsam. Her expression instantly turned cold. "You're injured!?"

He jumped to his feet, walked up to Dao Run, his eyes filled with murderous intent, "Who did this? I'll kill him!"

Although Dao Lian is arrogant, immature, and indifferent to the lives of others, she still has some affection for Dao Run, her older sister who cares about her wholeheartedly.

“It’s Dao Cheng…” Dao Run said weakly, leaning against the wall. “He has mastered the super spirit body and said he wants to kill you. You must be careful when you face him later.”

"It was him?" Dao Lian's face grew even colder, then she realized what he meant and frowned. "You went to see him behind my back?"

Dao Run lowered his head. "I'm sorry, I'm worried, and that person... does indeed possess formidable strength."

"Hmph, you always do unnecessary things. But that's fine, if that guy is a weakling who can be killed in a few moves, it won't satisfy this young master."

As they were speaking, the urgent sound of war drums began to beat outside.

Dao Lian narrowed his eyes, slung his Guan Dao over his shoulder, and turned to leave, saying coldly, "Dao Run, I'll avenge you right away. Of course, I'll avenge mine too. Just watch as I hack that bastard to death on the arena!"

As he finished speaking, he walked out of the entrance passage, his back disappearing into the bright light.

……

A moment later, on a wide platform, one foot above the ground and entirely constructed of tightly fitted, heavy granite blocks, covering an area of ​​eighty-one square meters, Su Qi and Dao Lian stood facing each other, one zhang apart.

The war drums stopped, everyone's eyes were fixed on the stage, and a deathly silence fell over the platform, signifying that the battle could begin at any moment.

“It wasn’t easy…” Su Qi spoke first, drawing his sword as he said, “To challenge you, I had to overcome many obstacles. It was exhausting.”

However, this guy crushed his opponents all the way through, without expending much effort at all.

"Hmph, that's only natural." Dao Lian raised her chin slightly and said arrogantly, "Because the weak don't even have the right to look up to the strong!"

“Very good, that’s the kind of arrogant, condescending, self-important attitude you’re looking for.” Su Qi smiled instead of getting angry. “I’m starting to look forward to seeing what kind of delightful expression will appear on your face when your pride is shattered.”

"How dare you speak so arrogantly!" Dao Lian's face turned cold. "I'll tear that filthy mouth off your face right now!"

Su Qi held a knife in one hand and a scabbard in the other, arms outstretched, looking relaxed and carefree. He said, "Then come on, face me head-on. But don't worry, I'll hold back, because... I've never really taken you seriously as my opponent."

"you wanna die!"

The contemptuous words were like a sharp arrow, piercing deeply into Dao Lian's most sensitive and sensitive pride.

"Ma Sun, get him!"

He roared, grabbed the spirit holding the weapon, and slammed it heavily onto the halberd. The next moment, witch power wrapped around the spirit, enveloping the medium, and instantly expanded and deformed, manifesting a golden, glittering super-spirit.

The super-spirit entity used a Guan Dao (a type of halberd) as its framework, with the rest remaining unchanged. It was enveloped in a transparent, flame-like mixture of sorcerous and spiritual power. Only at the junction of the blade and the handle bulged a large, dazzling golden sphere, about two feet in diameter, composed entirely of armor and spikes. At first glance, it looked like a fusion of a Guan Dao and the head of a meteor hammer.

"die!!"

Once the Super Spirit Body was formed, Dao Lian was about to step forward and shatter Su Qi in front of her with a single blow. However, in the next instant, the step she had just taken suddenly stopped.

He had to stop, because just as he was merging with the super spirit body, Su Qi had somehow appeared before him, holding the blade to his throat. An inch further and the tip would have pierced his neck.

With his right hand firmly gripping the hilt of the knife, Su Qi sighed with a look of exasperation, "Sigh, I've told you before, don't cast spells in front of the enemy. Why can't you learn that, you silly kid?"

boom!

Dao Lian suddenly pushed off the ground and leaped backward, instantly leaving the longsword's attack range. Su Qi simply watched quietly, showing no intention of pursuing.

He finally stopped a good ten feet away, staring intently at Su Qi with a grim expression. After a long while, he gritted his teeth and said, "Dao Cheng, you'll regret not killing me earlier!"

"Oh, then please make me regret it quickly."

"Super Spirit! Unleash your Super Spirit! I will defeat you fair and square!"

"Not needed for now."

"What did you say!?"

"Please, you're really weak." Su Qi shrugged, looking helpless. "If I have to use my super spirit body to deal with someone as weak as you, wouldn't my status as a strong person be dragged down to the same level?"

Am I...weak? Am I...weak?

Hearing the other party's words, which took him for granted and regarded him as a weakling, Dao Lian froze, his mind blank for a moment. The next moment, a raging fire exploded, and boundless anger almost burned all his reason to ashes.

"The Way is accomplished!!!"

A roar echoed throughout the arena as Dao Lian burst forth, her blazing sword slashing down at Su Qi.

"Super Golden Chinese Slash!!"

boom!!

The ground shattered, dust and smoke scattered, and the shockwave swept towards the viewing platform. The violent force cracked the ground and split the entire arena in half.

However, Su Qi emerged unharmed from the dust and smoke, instantly rushing to Dao Lian's side.

"Don't even think about it!!"

On the Guan Dao, the golden, gleaming armored sphere facing forward suddenly exploded, creating a shockwave that allowed Dao Lian to use the recoil to instantly create distance.

"Hmph, do you think I'll fall for that trick again?"

He sneered, spun around, and cleaved the air with his Guan Dao, drawing a huge arc that swept fiercely towards Su Qi.

The latter neither dodged nor evaded, charging head-on, his dark eyes like mirrors reflecting the flow and nodes of all the witch power and spiritual power on the opponent's super-spiritual body. Then, just before the guan dao was about to cut him in half, the witch power compressed to its limit attached to the blade, and the longsword slashed out diagonally, drawing an extremely mysterious arc in mid-air.

Sword Skill: Spirit Release!

A flash of light appeared, the super-spirit body shattered, and the blade tip was severed and flew away. Su Qi dodged the long handle, his speed undiminished, and like an arrow released from a bow, he rushed to Dao Lian's side once again.

How is that possible?!

Dao Lian's pupils contracted, his eyes filled with shock and disbelief. But he quickly recovered, swinging the long handle that had transformed into a stick and smashing it fiercely at Su Qi, who was rushing towards him.

The next moment, a flash of cold light appeared, and the long handle was cleaved in two again. Dao Lian's left cheek was also cut by the blade, with a long bloody gash running diagonally from the corner of her mouth to her ear.

"Are you ready?"

As the voice rang out, Su Qi released the scabbard, clenched his left fist, and slammed it into Dao Lian's abdomen with a loud thud. His fist twisted the clothes and sank deep inside.

"puff!!"

The latter's eyes were wide open, his eyeballs bulging, his face contorted and flushed with extreme pain, and he vomited a mouthful of acid on the spot.

"It might hurt a little."

Before he could finish speaking, Su Qi pulled his hand away and slammed his right hand, which was gripping the hilt of the knife, hard against Dao Lian's back, knocking him to the ground with a thud and kicking up a cloud of dust.

"How does it feel?" Su Qi stomped on Dao Lian's right hand, breaking it in two. Listening to his screams, he smiled and said, "Do you still think you're high and mighty, the center of the world, the light, the electricity, the only myth?"

Click!

Another hand was crushed, and Dao Lian lay sprawled in the dust, her face pressed against the cold, filthy ground. She heard that gleaming, devilish voice echo above her once more, "Actually, I didn't come to the Tribulation Wave Platform to duel you. I simply wanted to, as an elder, impart some valuable life experience to you..."

boom! !

A sudden weight pressed down on his back, and with a muffled groan, the man stepped over him, breaking another leg. He said leisurely, "That's because there are always people more capable than you, and there's always something beyond your understanding. When your vision is narrow and your information is insufficient, you should have basic respect for this world. Making a fortune quietly is the best policy..."

Then, with another crack, the last leg was broken. "So now, Young Master Dao Lian, whose opponent was easily defeated without even using his Super Spirit Body, how thick-skinned do you have to call yourself a strongman? Admit it, you ignorant and arrogant young master, in front of the stronger, you are nothing but a lowly weakling. So when you look down on others and insult them, be prepared to be looked down on and insulted by the stronger."

Humiliation...unprecedented humiliation...

Despite the excruciating pain of her broken limbs, Dao Lian gritted her teeth, her face flushed, and lay on the ground like a dead dog, remaining silent in the face of Su Qi's sarcasm.

He endured it with all his might, ignoring his opponent's cold, ruthless, and smug mockery. Every word in those remarks was like a carving knife, deeply engraving and ruthlessly cutting, shattering his pride and leaving it bleeding.

But he won't be defeated so easily. He will persevere, continue to live, and one day, he will repay all these insults tenfold or a hundredfold!

Chapter Ten: My Pain Is Above Yours

"stop!!"

Just as Su Qi was about to put more pressure on Dao Lian, Dao Run, who had been watching from the sidelines, finally couldn't hold back and rushed over.

She stumbled and climbed onto the arena, threw herself on Dao Lian, hugged him, looked at Su Qi with tears in her eyes, and pleaded, "Please! Please let him go, let's end it here!"

Su Qi frowned slightly and said expressionlessly, "Miss Dao Run, according to the rules, outsiders are not allowed to interfere during a duel, right? The duel is not over yet, and Dao Lian has not admitted defeat. How can you rush onto the stage without permission?"

"He admits defeat! Dao Lian admits defeat!" Dao Run hurriedly shook Dao Lian's body, anxiously pleading, "Dao Lian, quick! Quickly say you admit defeat! Otherwise, he will kill you!"

Dao Lian gritted his teeth, remaining silent. He could admit defeat in his heart, but he simply couldn't bring himself to say it to Su Qi. Moreover, he didn't believe that Dao Yuan, sitting on the viewing platform, would allow him to be killed. That man was, after all, his father; no matter how cold-blooded he was, even for the sake of the Dao family's revival, he would never allow his heir to die here.

……

Meanwhile, on the viewing platform, the Taoist leaders were indeed somewhat agitated by the situation on the arena.

"Daoyuan, this duel should end here."

The first to speak was Daoyuan's wife, Daolian's mother—Daolan. In her view, neither Daolian's miserable state nor Su Qi's offense against the main family was something she could tolerate any longer.

“That’s right, let’s end it here. Consider Lian’er defeated. After all, Lian’er is the direct descendant of our Daoist family, and she cannot die here so easily.” The previous family head, Dao Zhen, also echoed this sentiment with a serious expression.