Desolate Devouring Art

Chapter 378 - 77

Liu Wuxie carried on with his seclusion after returning to his courtyard. To ensure he wouldn’t miss the competition, Jian Xing’er moved to the neighboring room to take care of him.

Seeing this, Liu Wuxie could only smile bitterly because he would’ve missed it without her reminder. He had just reached the Heavenly Dipper Realm and still needed time to adapt to it, as he had left in a hurry to participate in the competition.

Thus, he decided to use the remaining time to settle down. His consciousness sank into the Heavenly Dao Book, where hundreds of neatly arranged laws represented the order of the world.

Performing the Desolate Devouring Art, the surrounding spiritual energy gathered above Liu Wuxie, forming a thick layer of spiritual cloud.

Jian Xing’er was already accustomed to it as she sat in a daze in the courtyard.

Time passed by the minute, and the competition’s first day came to an end. Many people were reluctant to leave after finishing their matches and sat in place, waiting for the next day to arrive.

When the door creaked open, Bai Lin and Tang Tian came in. They had also participated in the competition and rushed over after finishing their matches.

They were both taken aback when they saw Jian Xing’er. They couldn’t process why there was an inner disciple, who was such a beauty, in Liu Wuxie’s courtyard.

“Greetings, senior sister. We’re here to look for Junior Brother Liu!” Bai Lin quickly came forward and bowed.

“He’s in seclusion!” Jian Xing’er pointed to the room. She had been sitting here all day, but Liu Wuxie hadn’t even come out.

After a day of seclusion, the door to Liu Wuxie’s room suddenly opened. Having gained a better understanding of the Heavenly Dipper Realm, he finally emerged at dusk.

“Junior brother, why did you leave so early? The later matches were intense, and you should’ve stayed to learn more about your opponents.” They had a close relationship, and they spoke without reservation.

Bai Lin hoped Liu Wuxie would achieve a good result and believed he should have stayed to observe the battles of potential opponents.

“What experts are there?” Liu Wuxie invited everyone to sit down and listen to Bai Lin recounting the details, but there weren’t many outer disciples who could attract his attention.

Bai Lin and Tang Tian didn’t dare to hide anything and shared everything they knew in detail. They spoke while Liu Wuxie listened without interrupting them.

“Junior brother, there are six popular contenders for the championship. They’re the Heavenly Trigram Peak’s Shao Wendong, Profound Inscription Peak’s Wen Haoran, Earth Force Peaks’ Chen Lin, Terrain Summit Peak’s Tu Yue, Mortal Plume Peak’s He Lan, and Treasure Pill Peak’s Zhao Yi.” Tang Tian placed a list on the stone table containing detailed information about the six contenders. They had invested significant effort in compiling the data.

"The popular candidates were Wen Shaodong and Chen Lin," Bai Lin emphasized, as they had a high chance of becoming the champion. "Despite being a woman, Chen Lin’s strength cannot be underestimated. She reached the third level of the Heavenly Dipper Realm six months ago but delayed her promotion for this competition."

Many speculated privately about who would emerge victorious between them. Each year, the competition primarily centered around the Heavenly Trigram Peak and Earth Force Peak, and this year was no different.

“Thank you, senior brothers, for telling me this. You two have worked hard today, so rest early and prepare for tomorrow’s battles.” Liu Wuxie stood up and was genuinely grateful for their efforts.

“Junior brother, we’ll be heading back now. Don’t be late tomorrow!” Bai Lin cupped his fists together and left Liu Wuxie’s courtyard to rest.

As the sky darkened, peace returned to the courtyard, yet the entire Heavenly Trigram Peak remained abuzz with discussions about the day's competition.

“Junior brother, these six shouldn’t be a threat to you based on your strength.” Only Jian Xing’er knew Liu Wuxie’s true strength in the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, and she knew that the six were far inferior compared to him.

“I can’t be careless. The fact they concealed their strength for six months proves they cannot be underestimated.” Liu Wuxie would never treat his opponent lightly.

They talked about other matters, primarily those among the inner disciples.

The night passed peacefully. When Liu Wuxie finished his morning routine the following day, he took a Fasting Pill and headed straight to the martial field with Jian Xing’er.

The martial field bustled with spectators, many of whom had stayed overnight. Today's matches did not involve Liu Wuxie, as they were reserved for participants numbered from 10,001 to the last number.

The two days of competition would eliminate over ten thousand people. After that, the competition would become more intense.

Match after match, more contenders were swiftly eliminated while Liu Wuxie remained in deep meditation, completely indifferent to the unfolding battles.

By the end of the last round, only about 10,100 people advanced to the next segment.

Like the previous day, Bai Lin and Tang Tian brought detailed information they had collected to Liu Wuxie. They had already decided to follow Liu Wuxie and handle these miscellaneous matters for him.

The true competition had just commenced, and the number of disciples from the six peaks had been drastically reduced, with half eliminated. Despite this, Liu Wuxie continued to linger on the periphery.

“I believe there’s no need for me to explain the rules. We will continue with the lottery!” Elder Tian Xing’s voice sounded with a hint of authority.

Over ten thousand disciples approached the lottery box, completing the draw in under two hours.

Liu Wuxie was surprised when he looked at his number because he got the same number again, which was too much of a coincidence. But he didn’t overthink about it and moved to Arena 77.

But before he could steady himself, a ferocious shockwave swept towards him. This came from his opponent, who attacked when he landed in the arena.

“You’re courting death!” Liu Wuxie was enraged by his opponent’s action. This was because most people would introduce themselves when stepping into the arena, but this person attacked without saying a word.

With a diagonal palm chop, Liu Wuxie unleashed a powerful shockwave that drove his opponent to the arena's edge. As he got a clear look at his opponent, he saw a young man in his mid-twenties, possessing cultivation at the pinnacle True Core Realm and a pair of sinister eyes.

Overwhelming murderous intent swept toward Liu Wuxie like a river. Despite failing to land his first strike on Liu Wuxie, his opponent wasn’t discouraged and looked at him with a hint of mockery in his eyes. Instead, his fighting spirits blazed even more ferociously. He said, “Interesting...you managed to dodge my attack!”

Judging from his words, it wasn’t hard to detect his dense, murderous intent for Liu Wuxie.

“I don’t seem to know you!” Liu Wuxie was puzzled. This young man was a stranger to him, and he had never seen this person before, let alone having any grievance. Thus, he was curious where this young man’s murderous intent against him came from.

“You don’t know me, but I know you. Someone paid a high price for your head, and I will still profit even if I don’t get the sect’s reward as long as I kill you.” As a pinnacle True Core Realm cultivator, he wasn’t even qualified to make it into the top hundred, but he could make a fortune by killing Liu Wuxie.

Liu Wuxie was baffled. Too many people wanted him dead, and whose order was this person following? He asked, “Who sent you to kill me?”

"Ask when you're in hell. Dying by my hands is a worthy end." The youth, named Deng Chong, did not disclose which peak he hailed from.

The deacons typically ignored the fatalities, as over thirty deaths had already occurred in the past two days. As the competition advanced, the death toll was expected to rise, just as it had in previous years.

“I have over ten thousand ways to make you speak!” Liu Wuxie needed to know the mastermind to feel at ease. Furthermore, he wanted to know if there were others besides Deng Chong.

If one were in the open and one in the dark, this would put him in a disadvantageous position. When Deng Chong drew a damaged spiritual treasure from his interspatial pouch, no one said a word.

Despite its incomplete state, the spiritual treasure was not to be underestimated. Furthermore, aside from Jian Xing'er, no one knew that Liu Wuxie also possessed spiritual treasures.

“Liu Wuxie, die!” Deng Chong roared and released his blade intent, tearing through the air and appearing before Liu Wuxie.

The arena howled ferociously, but a spiritual array prevented the shockwave from spreading out. The commotion naturally drew much attention, and many turned their eyes to Arena 77.

“What’s going on there? Why did it progress into a deathmatch?” After all, deathmatch was rare in the competition, but there were always exceptions, such as the long-standing feud between two disciples. They would generally settle their scores in the arena if that were the case.

There was also another possibility for a battle to progress into a deathmatch when no one was willing to admit defeat. Just the previous day alone, half of the thirty-odd people who died ended up in mutual destruction, perishing together.

“It’s Liu Wuxie! That brat is still alive?!” Exclamations came from many regions, and many hoped for Liu Wuxie’s demise.

“He will die today. A new disciple dares to participate in the competition?” Disdainful voices could be heard, but no one supported Liu Wuxie. Many disciples were familiar with Liu Wuxie, and only a few didn’t know him. However, through this incident, Liu Wuxie became famous in the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion’s outer sect.

“I heard he killed someone in the pinnacle True Core Realm with one palm strike, so Senior Brother Deng Chong might not be his match!” The discussion on the Profound Inscription Peak was the most intense because several disciples had died at Liu Wuxie’s hands. Thus, it was natural for them to hate him to the bone.

“So what? Senior Brother Deng Chong isn’t your ordinary pinnacle True Core Realm expert. He has a damaged spiritual treasure, and he can even fight with someone at the first level of the Heavenly Dipper Realm.” Another round of ridicule was sparked, with many people believing Liu Wuxie was doomed.

Ignoring the surrounding discussion, Liu Wuxie moved like lightning and appeared before Deng Chong. When Deng Chong missed his attack, his heart tightened, but it was too late for him to retreat.

Liu Wuxie moved with incredible speed, reaching for Deng Chong's neck as the latter retreated. The entire exchange happened in the blink of an eye, leaving many onlookers in disbelief.

Before anyone could blink, Liu Wuxie’s right hand tore through Deng Chong’s defenses, tearing the blade aura around him.

“What speed!” The deacon standing at the side of the stage narrowed his eyes, shocked by Liu Wuxie’s speed.

When the blade aura disappeared, the arena calmed down, and Liu Wuxie lifted Deng Chong by his neck. No one saw how Liu Wuxie accomplished this feat.