CHAPTER 709: CHAPTER 637: A WHETSTONE FOR THE DISCIPLES OF THE IMMORTAL GATE

Dozens of dishes filled the wooden table before him.

More than half were made from Mutant Beast meat.

Dachang’s culinary methods included steaming, searing, stewing, and roasting, with some unique spices from the new world, overall, the taste was not bad.

Tang, the gourmet, would have given it 70 points.

After tasting a bit, Tang Yu placed a few Source Crystals on the table.

Dachang also had metal currency.

There were only two types: silver and brass; there were no Gold Coins, and the highest-value currency was the Source Crystal, one unit of which could be exchanged for ten silver coins, and one silver coin could be exchanged for a hundred copper coins.

Source Crystals held high value in Dachang.

This inn was located in one of the busiest districts of the Royal Capital. The dishes he ordered were not cheap, with the most precious being the meat of a Cloud Pattern Snake from the Tenth Layer of Awakening.

Even though one Cloud Pattern Snake could make hundreds of servings, the table cost less than five units of Source Crystals.

In Green Shadow, it would have cost dozens, if not hundreds.

Dangdangdang—

The sound of gongs and drums came from afar, stirring up the crowd on the street, rushing in one direction.

Inside the inn, many Martial Artists settled their bills and hurried out.

Tang Yu heard phrases like "the younger generation" and "martial competition," raising his eyebrows slightly.

Fani looked over, signaling with her eyes.

"Let’s go take a look."

Between eating and watching the excitement, he chose to be an onlooker.

Following the crowd, it wasn’t long before he saw a dark stone platform in the depression ahead, full of mottled marks, showing its age.

The platform was huge, at least a kilometer by a kilometer in size, surrounded by towering stone pillars on which sat many profound figures, cross-legged.

They, the onlookers, were stopped quite far from the platform.

At least three thousand warriors from the Body-shaping Realm and Source Condensation Realm of the Black Armor Army were maintaining order.

Tang Yu also sensed several Transcendent Realm presences, but at that moment, he and Fani concealed their energy to the utmost, appearing like ordinary Martial Artists.

On the platform, a young man stood with a sword, his gaze coldly sweeping around, "Who else!"

The scene fell silent for several minutes, suddenly, a shout burst from the inner circle, "I’ll come!"

A burly man leaped onto the platform in two strides, and Tang Yu noticed that the edge of the platform flickered a few times when the burly man stepped on it, the green glow gradually fading.

The burly man held a shield in one hand and a knife in the other, his aura was in the Basic Period of the Eighth Layer, slightly weaker than the sword-bearing youth, but the burly man did not fear and attacked first, pushing the giant shield in front of him, charging like a tank.

Dundundun—

Where the burly man stamped, waves of air rippled out.

The sword-bearing youth agilely dodged and swung out several Sword Qi attacks.

Dang! Dang!

The Sword Qi struck the black giant shield, leaving several shallow marks.

The burly man grinned fiercely and suddenly accelerated, using some kind of Charge Battle Skill, and in a flash, he was in front of the young man, slamming the giant shield heavily on the ground.

With a booming sound, the entire platform seemed to tremble, the invisible wave of energy surged out, the air shook repeatedly.

At that moment,

The young man faltered, his movements stiffening for an instant.

The burly man’s right hand raised the sword high, the blade covered in a white gleam.

Swoosh!

Three Combat Skills in succession impressed the watching Martial Artists and soldiers of the Black Armor Army.

"This burly man is fierce, combining Charge, Control, and Strong Attack Skills all at once, who can stand against him at the same level?"

"Poor people shed tears, but as an Awakener of the Eighth Layer, I’ve only mastered a few garbage combat skills."

"It looks like the young swordsman’s winning streak is going to end."

"It’s a pity, he was just a dozen or so victories away from successfully defending his position."

In just a few words, Tang Yu realized that this "youth martial arts competition" had already been going on for several days.

The rules were simple: whoever could continue to win against a hundred people, or hold the platform for two hours, would qualify for the next round.

Around the high platform, sitting cross-legged on stone pillars were those Awakeners who had already passed the first round by defending their platforms.

Not everyone, of course, as sitting on the high platform meant enduring the sun.

Amidst the discussion,

The young swordsman had already been cut in two by a muscular man, but no blood flowed out; instead, only a bisected garment was left behind.

The muscular man’s face changed dramatically, but it was already too late. The fierce sword light attacked, bypassing the giant shield from the side, and in an instant, snowflakes bloomed on the muscular man’s chest, wrist, and thigh, and he fell stiffly.

It wasn’t a fatal injury, but the muscular man was severely injured. Even with medical treatment, it would take a month or two to recover fully, and he might suffer long-term effects if luck wasn’t on his side.

Such ruthless moves immediately subdued others who were eager to challenge.

As time ticked away, the young swordsman didn’t receive his hundredth victory, but... two hours passed, and as the sound of gongs echoed once more, the young swordsman earned his ticket to the next round.

"I might as well do something with my free time..."

Tang Yu stroked his chin.

The entry condition for the martial arts competition was a bone age of under thirty years... He obviously wouldn’t demean himself by participating—though he was also under thirty.

"But it’s a good choice to give the young ones from Immortal Gate some experience."

Nowadays, the Immortal Gate had become a force that transcended national power. Its disciples had started to venture out of Anxia Country to eliminate monsters globally, expanding their influence to every corner.

But without any rival, the disciples of the Immortal Gate, within a few months, could match or surpass the past experts of Anxia Country.

In the Spirit Space, the Immortal Gate and the Green Shadow were separate, each occupying its own independent world.

It’s lonely at the top, and some people inevitably became arrogant.

Although the disciples of the Immortal Gate were of the highest will and character, capable of controlling themselves and aware that the world is vast—cough, there are always stronger ones, so they shouldn’t be complacent.

Tang Yu frequently cautioned himself, and while he harbored some pride, in the long run, his state of mind couldn’t achieve Perfection.

Hunting mutant beasts was useless; no matter how strong the monsters, they were but beasts. The young elites of Dachang could sharpen the outstanding disciples of the Immortal Gate.

The plan was a go!

Tang Yu immediately informed bamboo rat Li and Enze, who were in charge of the Immortal Gate... Mainly the bamboo rat Li showed interest, clamoring to participate in the competition. It cost two barbeque meals to appease him.

...

A week passed, and the youth’s defense battles continued.

Young scions from big families easily won their battles with overwhelming power. Whenever such individuals appeared, other top experts acknowledged their qualifications unless there were grievances involved, and they rarely took action.

Tang Yu and Fani occasionally strolled through the market, buying many local specialties, and occasionally watched the battles.

For several days, Dachang’s government had not tracked them down.

"The efficiency is somewhat slow..."

Meanwhile,

At the Immortal Gate.

The first group to participate in training included Shanggong Ling and several other core disciples of the Immortal Gate.

They all had experience hunting mutant beasts in new worlds.

But this time was different; they were entering a country named Dachang. After a week of training, they had finally mastered the language of Dachang.

The light from the Transmission Array gradually dimmed, and a dozen figures disappeared along with the light.

At the same time,

In a secluded area within Dachang, individuals such as bamboo rat Li, Shanggong Ling, and others stepped out from the Transmission Array.