Chapter 1961: Challenging a Group

"Yes!" Wang Jiandong nodded, took out his card, and walked to the front desk.

At this moment, everyone present was provoked by him, and one by one they placed their Jian Pavilion coins on the counter as a deposit, so that even if they were killed, the bet could still be fulfilled.

"This guy is asking for death..."

Seeing this, Zhu Yanzhi and Wei Suifeng were so excited they could explode.

Originally, their intention in finding Liu Lujie and Wang Jiandong was simple: to use them to teach this guy a lesson, force him to reveal his identity, and then win back the money they had lost. They never expected this guy to court death... challenging all the inner disciples alone!

Absolutely insane!

This guy's strength was decent, but two fists can't fight four hands, let alone over a thousand hands...

"This time, even if he doesn't use his ultimate move, he's definitely no match for so many people. He's bound to be punished by the sect..."

Both of them felt somewhat balanced in their hearts.

They had been angry about losing their money, but now that they could foresee his miserable state, their previous anger was gone.

"This guy, though brainless, is indeed bold enough..."

"Yeah, challenging so many alone—I wouldn't dare!"

"Even if he dies this time, he'll probably become famous throughout the entire Jian Pavilion..."

...

Although the crowd was angry, many also admired the courage of this 'I Am Very Low-Key.'

At least, such suicidal behavior hadn't been seen in the Lingyun Jian Pavilion for many years.

"Who's first!"

Ignoring the mixed praise and criticism, Zhang Xuan's eyes sparkled as he excitedly jumped onto the competition stage and looked around.

If he had known that challenging everyone would let him rob all their wallets, he would have done it long ago instead of agonizing for over ten minutes!

"So arrogant... I can't stand it; I'll kill him first!"

An inner disciple could no longer hold back and leaped onto the stage.

"I am Wu Feng, ranked 157th in the last inner sect competition. My cultivation is not high, but I will not tolerate insults!"

This inner disciple let out a long roar, his long sword dancing with sword flowers as he glared at 'I Am Very Low-Key' ahead, his eyes filled with intense killing intent.

Since the other dared to say such things, his strength must be formidable. He might not be a match, but so what? Death is death, but he would not tolerate insults!

Whoosh!

In the blink of an eye, he thrust eighteen times, each faster than the last.

Martial technique: Mountain Road Eighteen Bends!

It was his strongest technique, with which he had slain many enemies of the same level.

Now he executed it with practiced ease, the sword qi howling.

"Draw your sword!" Shielding his body with sword qi, Wu Feng roared loudly.

"Draw my sword?" Standing still, Zhang Xuan scratched his head in embarrassment: "I already have..."

"Already have?"

Wu Feng was stunned, then felt a sharp pain in his throat. As he tried to look down, blood spurted out, and with a 'plop,' his head fell to the ground.

"This... impossible!"

Turning into specks of light, he vanished on the spot.

He had unleashed his full-powered strike, yet the other had not only failed to block it but had also sliced off his head... How was that possible?

Not only him, but the audience below was also stunned into silence.

Earlier, everyone thought this guy was too arrogant, but now it seemed he indeed had the strength to be arrogant.

At least, no one had seen how that previous sword strike was executed or how it cut off Wu Feng's neck.

"Impressive!"

"What's the use of being impressive? We'll wear him down in a war of attrition; I don't believe his true qi can last that long!"

"Right, everyone don't be afraid. At worst, we lose a Divine Communication Talisman!"

"Let's fight him first; I don't believe he can hold out against several of us!"

...

After the shock, shouts arose from the crowd, and another person jumped onto the stage.

If it were real death, some might hesitate, but in the Divine Communication Hall, at most they'd lose a Divine Communication Talisman. As long as they could kill this guy, they would wear down his true qi even in a war of attrition!

"I am..."

The inner disciple who jumped onto the stage raised his long sword and was about to say some harsh words when his throat itched, and then he saw his own heels...

His head had also fallen off.

"You all better come up together; that way I can save time. Otherwise, jumping up one by one—with so many people—how long will it take to kill you all?"

After killing his opponent, Zhang Xuan frowned and looked over.

There were over eight hundred people below, and more were arriving upon hearing the news. If they came up one by one, it would take until tomorrow to finish them all. It would be better to let them come together.

"Courting death..."

The crowd below was truly about to explode with rage.

Going one by one, though the recovery time was short, at least there was a chance to replenish true qi. But if many went together, it wouldn't be a war of attrition but a siege!

"Let's go together!"

Whoosh!

Five inner disciples jumped onto the stage.

These five were all quite strong, almost all ranked within the top three hundred of the competition.

"Don't worry, we won't use combined attacks... We'll fight you one by one!"

The leader snorted coldly.

A siege by many was already beneath their dignity; using combined combat techniques would be even more shameful.

"Whatever, just hurry up!"

Zhang Xuan nodded, raised his long sword, gently shook it, and walked through the five: "Next batch..."

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

As his words ended, the heads of the five fell to the ground simultaneously, and their bodies turned into light and vanished.

The crowd knew that a war of attrition and siege would consume a lot of true qi, and Zhang Xuan naturally understood that. If it were his true self, having cultivated the Heavenly Dao technique and undergone sanctification, his true qi would be inexhaustible, but this body granted by the Divine Communication Hall was not that strong!

So he killed with one strike, not giving a chance for a second move!

This saved a lot of energy.

"Continue!"

"This guy's sword is very fast. Don't waste words with him; go up and directly use your strongest sword techniques!"

"Right, everyone, show no mercy. Unleash your most powerful attacks. Even if we can't kill him, we must ensure he expends more energy..."

Unexpectedly, before the five could even launch a siege, their heads were cut off. The crowd below erupted again, and another five rushed up.

By now, everyone knew that this guy's strength was indeed terrifying.

But they still didn't believe he could kill all of them with his own strength!

Buzz buzz buzz buzz buzz!

This time, the five who jumped onto the stage said nothing. Each unleashed their sword qi, executing their strongest sword techniques.

Although they didn't deliberately use a combined formation, each was an expert. As soon as they struck, the five sword qi streams merged, sealing off all possible movement directions around Zhang Xuan.

Seeing that these five were smarter than the previous ones, Zhang Xuan smiled faintly, shook his body, and immediately drilled into the sword net.

As he moved, the sword net followed.

He shook twice in succession.

Puchi! Puchi!

Without any visible sword movement, two heads fell to the ground. He took another step back, and another person was slain on the spot.

The remaining two were easier. With a swing of his sword, within a breath, they too vanished from the competition stage.

"This..."

Liu Lujie below the stage trembled slightly, his pupils constricting: "He treated the five as a single entity and used their own hands to kill each other!"

"Doing this saves a lot of true qi, minimizing consumption!"

Wang Jiandong nodded, his eyes wide as lanterns, looking as if he had seen a ghost.

Using the opponent's失控 sword qi to kill others, borrowing force to strike—sounds simple, but in practice, it's extremely difficult.

First, one must have a deep understanding of the five's techniques, knowing the trajectory of each move and the next action, so as to charge into the sword group without getting hurt!

Second, one must know each person's ultimate move and how to force them to use it, so as to use their own sword techniques to kill their comrades!

Third, one must control the direction of attacks with hair's breadth precision and have an unshakable mind; otherwise, with the slightest panic, not only would one fail to kill the group, but one might be killed on the spot!

These three points are indispensable. Although his own strength could also defeat the five, he absolutely could not achieve this feat!

Unable to hold back, he looked at Liu Lujie beside him, wondering if the top inner disciple could accomplish it.

"I can't do it either... He killed these five using only a single thread of true qi; I would need at least five..." Liu Lujie shook his head.

He too could charge into the five and use their own power to kill them, but he absolutely could not do it with such ease and finesse!

In fact, doing so would consume even more true qi!

"However, if I can identify his strongest technique and trump card, and attack him with my full strength, I should be able to kill him."

After a pause, Liu Lujie said.

Although the opponent's techniques were very fast and strange, he could also do it. However, this body had limited true qi, so he must finish quickly.

As long as he could figure out what the opponent's best technique was and prepare in advance, with his strength, winning should not be difficult!

"Everyone be careful, don't use combined formations or joint attacks, or he'll borrow your power..."

He and Wang Jiandong had seen Zhang Xuan's technique of borrowing force to kill, and others had also noticed, exclaiming in alarm.

Killing each other—how could that wear down his true qi and grind him down?

"What do we do?"

"If we can't attack together, going up one by one will result in even worse deaths..."

For a moment, the hall fell silent; no one continued to rush up.

Going one by one wouldn't work; going in a group without coordination wouldn't work; coordinating wouldn't work either... This fight was impossible!

No matter how they fought, they would lose!

"Let me go..."

Seeing no one moving, Wang Jiandong glanced at Liu Lujie, stretched his body, and stepped toward the stage.

Before he had gone far, a low voice came: "I'll go all out and try to force him to use his ultimate move. You watch carefully, figure out a countermeasure, and then... kill him in one strike!"

"Okay!"

Knowing his intention, Liu Lujie nodded.

Those who had charged before were not very strong; none were ranked in the top fifty of the inner disciples.

Wang Jiandong, ranked third, would surely force out the opponent's secrets and let him see something.

Then he could go up with greater confidence to defeat him!

"I am Wang Jiandong. Let me see your ultimate move!"

Upon reaching the stage, Wang Jiandong shed his ordinary appearance. True qi roared within him, and in an instant, his aura soared to the heavens like a war god.

The long sword in his hand emitted a sobbing sound, as if infected by his sword intent, like a roaring dragon.

"Senior Brother Wang Jiandong?"

"He's here too? Great..."

"Ranked third among inner disciples, with superb swordsmanship. If he makes a move, this guy will definitely be killed!"

"Even if he doesn't die, he'll expend a lot of true qi..."

Hearing the name, everyone became excited.

Liu Lujie and Wang Jiandong also used aliases, not revealing their real names, so others couldn't recognize them.

"Wang Jiandong? Third?"

Hearing the discussion, Zhang Xuan looked over in confusion.

"That's right. Make your move..."

With a flick of his long sword, Wang Jiandong's sword qi howled.

"Okay!"

Zhang Xuan stepped forward.

Plop!

Wang Jiandong's head fell to the ground.

All around, there was dead silence.