Translator: AnubisTL
"Moreover, the Third Prince is humble and enjoys making friends. Do you really think just anyone can drink with him? To be qualified to drink with the Third Prince, a cultivator must possess talent, status, and the right personality. And let me tell you, the accommodations for the Sunset Glow Sect were arranged in advance by the Third Prince himself!"
"Do you think the competition among Innate disciples would catch the attention of Vice-Prefect Ouyang, the chief examiner of this grand examination? Even if it did, would it be necessary for him to personally oversee it?"
"Those Sea Condensation Realm Elders from the major sects, all of them with solemn expressions and narrowed eyes—do you think their mothers or sons died? Otherwise, why would they look so grim?"
"When you connect all these signs, doesn't it make things clear?"
Wu Mingbao spoke rapidly, his words flying like bullets from a machine gun, while Shan Feier in front of him kept wiping her face with her sleeve.
"Isn't your dream to become the top information disseminator in the Great Chu Dynasty? Now's your chance! From now on, you don't need to do anything else. Just follow Gu Feng and his Sunset Glow Sect, and you might achieve your goal!"
Shan Feier listened intently, her eyes wide and her mouth slightly agape, utterly astonished. Though she was still a bit confused, she instinctively sensed that Gu Feng was no ordinary person.
"Most people who become sect masters don't earn their titles lightly, especially those who achieve it as Innate Realm cultivators, leading nearly a hundred thousand disciples. It's not something an average person can do," Wu Mingbao said earnestly.
"Let me tell you something else. Don't think that 10 billion low-grade spirit stones is a lot. Compared to Gu Feng's wealth, it's just a drop in the ocean. He spent over 100 billion in the northern frontier to erect a fortress in the swamp... He owns 49% of it, while the Sunset Glow Sect holds 10%...
The partners in this fortress include Sima Juncong, the son of the Northern Frontier Marshal, the marshal's wife's family, the Grand Harmony Academy, and some sect forces from Cloud Prefecture.
Even the Grand Harmony Academy, in order to secure an 8% stake in the Swamp Fortress, offered a sum of spirit stones plus a thousand special admission quotas without examination.
A thousand! That's an astonishing number. Which sect in the Chu Dynasty could get so many? Even the top-ranked Blazing Light Sect only has a mere three hundred special admission quotas."
"On the day he ascended as the Sunset Glow Sect Master, the old sect master was forced to commit suicide, and Shu Yuheng, the son of the Imperial City Guard Commander Shu Wentao, was killed on the spot. Even the Crown Prince's personal guards intervened, but they couldn't stop his rise!
What's even more incredible is that after the incident, the Crown Prince didn't pursue the matter further, and Shu Wentao remained silent about it!"
"Gu Feng has no backing. Everything he's achieved, he's earned through his own efforts. Tell me, who in the Great Chu Dynasty, at his age, could accomplish such feats?
His future is limitless. The only thing that could stop him is the Heavenly Thunder Tribulation!"
As he spoke, Wu Mingbao's tone grew impassioned, his expression excited. If it weren't for the fact that Gu Feng seemed to have a good impression of Shan Feier, he would never have entrusted such a lucrative task to this naive girl.
Shan Feier was utterly stunned, her mouth wide enough to fit several eggs.
"He... he's that incredible? And he's not much older than me!" she stammered.
"Be more mindful. As long as we gather his information properly, in the future, not to mention becoming the Pavilion Master, my Heaven's Chosen group will definitely be handed over to you.
Of course, the premise is that he can survive the tribulations of the Spirit Nurturing Realm and the subsequent Sea Condensation Realm."
This was a conversation that changed fate. Years later, when Shan Feier became the Pavilion Master of the Wind Cloud Pavilion, she still couldn't believe the existence of that god-like man when recalling him.
...
"Old Guo, hearing this news really gave me a scare. Fortunately, Gu Feng didn't challenge five thousand matches, otherwise the Spirit Stones he owes us could have been paid off in one go!" Patriarch Bao Tianxin said with lingering fear.
"I knew it! This kid must have been holding back a big move!" another Guo family shareholder said with a bitter laugh.
"Human strength has its limits, and so does Gu Feng's physical stamina. A thousand matches must be what he considers his limit. Don't worry, everyone. A few days after the grand exam is the three-month deadline. There's no way he can earn 45 billion!" Lin Xinhua remained relatively calm.
"I can believe he could defeat a thousand ordinary peak Innate Realm cultivators, but these candidates are all from renowned major sects. Gu Feng probably can't handle them!" the Cloud Prefecture Prefect said with a smile.
For him, even if Gu Feng won a hundred matches, it would be enough to boost the prestige of Cloud Prefecture, allowing him to stand tall among the other prefects.
"How foolish! They might have a chance to defeat Gu Feng with a war of attrition, but they actually want to hold back and toy with him. Utterly foolish!" a family head from Cloud Prefecture, who understood some lip-reading, commented.
"Is that so? How interesting. Do you think the scene from the Swamp Fortress training room might repeat itself, where the earlier cultivators remained silent, not revealing Gu Feng's strength, and tricking those who came later?"
"That's unlikely. Even if they can't see Gu Feng's strength, the Sea Condensation Realm Elders should have noticed something and would speak up to warn them."
...
"Stop dawdling! Are we fighting or not?"
The performance had gone on for too long, and the thousand Heaven's Chosen on the opposite side had lost their patience.
Gu Feng also felt it was about time. With a wave of his hand, he signaled the cheerleaders to step back.
He strode into the arena, his gaze calm as he faced the Heaven's Chosen.
"Who's first?"
"Damn it! I'm Xue Kai, the first challenger!"
Xue Kai roared, charging at Gu Feng with incredible speed. He threw a punch, carrying a thunderous momentum, the violent Spiritual Power shaking the Innate Realm candidates watching from the air.
In an instant, the candidates felt an overwhelming sense of invincibility, their confidence shattered, and some even considered not participating in the grand exam.
"Is this a disciple of the Blazing Light Sect? He's too strong."
"I feel like I wouldn't even last one move. I should go back and train more, then try the exam again next year."
"The sheer pressure is making my soul tremble. I've lost all confidence."
"What's there to fear? Besides strength, the exam also depends on luck."
"Luck still needs strength to back it up. I feel like our small sects are just here to make up the numbers."
"The Sunset Glow Sect is finished. Sect Leader Gu is finished. He won't last a single move."
"Clearly, I really hope Gu Feng can put up a fight, but in the face of absolute strength, everything is futile."
"..."
Just as everyone was in awe of Xue Kai's domineering punch, Gu Feng, who was enveloped in the violent fist momentum, smiled slightly, revealing two rows of white teeth.
With a focused gaze, Gu Feng slightly activated his Immortal Eye, a faint emerald glow flickering in his right eye.
In this kind of battle of attrition, stamina was crucial. If he could defeat his opponent in one strike, he would never resort to a second.
Another function of the Immortal Eye, Void Break, activated. Xue Kai's attack trajectory flashed in his mind, and he instantly analyzed the method to counter it.
With a strange twist of his body, Gu Feng exposed his back to Xue Kai while slightly lowering his stance.
"Hahaha, sorry everyone, but you won't get a chance to step onto the stage!" Xue Kai laughed maniacally. Originally, the plan was to beat Gu Feng up and then feign defeat, allowing the next challenger to continue the torment.
But Gu Feng's act was so nauseating that it made Xue Kai want to vomit up his dinner from the night before.
Without a second thought, Xue Kai decided to defeat him in one strike and call it a day.
Boom—
As the punch neared Gu Feng's back, it unleashed its full force, roaring like a primordial beast, scraping a layer off the ground.
However, this seemingly certain strike was deftly dodged by Gu Feng. With a powerful push from his back leg, he struck Xue Kai's chest, releasing a torrent of Spiritual Power.
Xue Kai's body was sent flying like a cannonball, crashing into the mountainside and sliding down along the slope.
The kick was earth-shattering, leaving the entire scene in stunned silence.
"Contestant number two!"
Before anyone could react, Ouyang Qi's voice rang out.
"Contestant number three!"
"Contestant number four!"
"..."
"Contestant number eighteen!"
The numbers were called out rapidly, with almost no pause in between. Any challenger who was kicked out of the two-kilometer diameter circle was deemed defeated.
Watching the Heaven's Chosen ones charge forward only to be instantly knocked back, everyone was dumbfounded.
At this moment, they finally realized that Gu Feng wasn't just strong—he was ridiculously strong.
The once bustling city gate had been turned into a solemn graveyard by Gu Feng. The only sounds were the thuds of bodies hitting the ground and the heavy breathing of the onlookers.
"Contestant number fifty-eight!"
It was fast, too fast. In the blink of an eye, the challengers had reached number fifty-eight!
"My God, this is a straight-up beatdown of amateurs! In less than half an incense stick's time, Gu Feng has defeated fifty-seven Heaven's Chosen at the peak of the Innate Realm!"
"Are these Heaven's Chosen really from major sects? They seem so weak. I haven't seen anyone last more than two moves."
"This is truly astonishing. Gu Feng is unbelievably strong. His words weren't arrogance—they were a declaration of victory!"
"Who would have thought that such a powerful cultivator would emerge from a small sect? At this rate, it seems that out of a thousand people, no one could stand against him in a one-on-one fight."
"To this day, no one has forced him to use a second move. Gu Feng's depth is unfathomable. If it weren't for Examiner Ouyang being present, we might suspect he was hiding his true realm."
"He is indeed in the Innate Realm. With so many Sea Condensation Realm cultivators at the city gate, no one has raised any objections."
"..."
The audience was initially shocked, but as the challenge continued, they grew numb.
Gu Feng was simply inhuman. Over two hundred cultivators were defeated in a single move, and not one of them could force him to use a second.
The Elders from the various sects on the city gate had grim expressions. Some of them secretly sent voice transmissions to their disciples, guiding them on tactics and strategies.
But it was all in vain. These disciples still fell in a single move.
As the challenge progressed, the remaining disciples at the peak of the Innate Realm began to falter before even stepping onto the stage. Despair crept onto their faces, and their confidence slowly eroded.
He was simply too strong, so strong it was terrifying, so strong he didn't seem like a disciple of the Innate Realm.
By the time he reached the three hundredth opponent, Gu Feng was starting to tire, his breathing becoming heavier, beads of sweat appearing on his forehead.
"Finally, finally forced him to use his second move!!"
When Gu Feng unleashed his second move, the audience erupted in excitement.
The excitement came quickly but faded just as fast.
It wasn't until the five hundredth Heaven's Chosen stepped onto the stage that Gu Feng was forced to use his third move.
To be honest, this challenge match wasn't the least bit exciting.
It was too monotonous, too dull, too boring. Those Heaven's Chosen would charge forward with a roar, only to be sent flying with a howl.
There were no dazzling martial skills, no jaw-dropping improvisations, no fierce confrontations—just one-sided domination.
The five hundredth Heaven's Chosen forced Gu Feng's third move.
The six hundredth Heaven's Chosen forced his fourth move.
The eight hundredth Heaven's Chosen forced his fifth move.
The nine hundredth Heaven's Chosen forced his sixth move!
The nine hundred and fiftieth Heaven's Chosen forced his seventh move!
By this point, the audience had lost interest, and Gu Feng's spirits weren't high either.
The Immortal Eye: Void Break was practically a cheat. No matter how many feints his opponents threw at him, he could see through them at a glance. Combined with Gu Feng's superior understanding of martial skills, breaking through their defenses was only natural.
As the nine hundred and fifty-first Heaven's Chosen stepped onto the stage, just as he was about to make his move—
Ouyang Qi spoke up.
"Gu Feng, I've been presiding over this for two hours now. Don't you think you owe me some feedback?"
"Vice-Prefect Ouyang, please speak!" Gu Feng clasped his fists respectfully in response.
"You're too strong. One-on-one fights are boring. I want to see a group brawl!" Ouyang Qi smiled slightly.
"I've been wanting to do that for a while now, but I was afraid of crushing their morale!" Gu Feng grinned, revealing a row of white teeth.
The crowd rolled their eyes. You, who defeated your opponents in one or two moves, have no right to say that!
"The remaining fifty, come at me together!" Gu Feng roared, issuing the challenge!
The audience erupted in excitement once again!
(End of the Chapter)
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