Chapter 167: Chapter 165: Martial Arts Arena

The next day, at dawn.

Jiang Chen had changed into a long black robe, secured at his waist by a belt of white jade inlaid with gold. His black hair cascaded down his back. With sharp, sword-like brows and eyes like stars, he looked utterly magnificent.

Xiao Qingyi wore a long, purple dress.

Her waterfall-like black hair flowed down her back, reaching her waist. Though she wore no makeup, she was still breathtakingly beautiful.

Every frown and every smile was enough to leave one utterly captivated.

The Black Emperor lay sprawled on Little White’s head as they followed Jiang Chen and Xiao Qingyi into the carriage Cui Zheng had prepared. They then set off for the Martial Arts Arena.

The Martial Arts Arena was located in the Imperial Capital’s East District.

This Martial Arts Arena was backed by the Saint Martial Dynasty’s Royal Family, possessing a profound background and immense power.

The entire Battle Arena had three main venues, named Heaven, Earth, and Spirit, respectively.

Inside the carriage, Cui Zheng explained the rules of the Martial Arts Arena to Jiang Chen. "Master, the Battle Arena is divided into the Heaven, Earth, and Spirit venues. They are for combatants at the Union Palace Realm, Heavenly Destiny Realm, and True Martial Realm, respectively. The Spirit Level Battle Arena has nine war zones, for Martial Artists from the True Martial Realm First Stage to the Ninth Stage. It’s also the liveliest part of the Martial Arts Arena!"

Jiang Chen nodded to himself.

Powerhouses at the Heavenly Destiny Realm and Union Palace Realm were all regional Overlords, or even pillar-like figures of entire nations.

Few such powerhouses would fight in the Martial Arts Arena just for Spirit Crystals.

As for the Spirit Level Battle Arena, it was for True Martial Realm powerhouses. Given the vast territory of the Saint Martial Dynasty and its population of over a billion, True Martial Realm powerhouses were naturally the most numerous.

’The Martial Arts Arena’s way of dividing the venues is quite reasonable!’

"We’re headed to the Sixth War Zone of the Spirit Level Battle Arena. The arena’s rules are one-on-one, round-based Combat Duels. Spectators can bet on the duels, with a minimum bet of 10,000 Gold and no upper limit. The challenger on the stage receives a Spirit Crystal reward for every match they win. Moreover, if they can achieve a winning streak—say, ten consecutive wins—they’ll get one percent of the total betting pool from those ten matches."

Cui Zheng swallowed and continued, "If you get a twenty-win streak, you get two percent of the total bets as a reward, and so on. The longer the winning streak, the more Spirit Crystals you earn. The current record in the Martial Arts Arena is a ninety-eight-win streak, held by the current number one on the Earth List, Lan Haichen. To this day, no one has been able to break his record!"

"Ninety-eight wins?"

Jiang Chen couldn’t help but narrow his eyes, a cold glint flashing within them.

Lan Haichen!

’This man and I are destined to be irreconcilable enemies.’

’Lan Haichen, I said that one day I would crush you under my heel... I’ll start with this Martial Arts Arena record of yours!’ Jiang Chen clenched his fists, his eyes surging with fighting spirit.

A short while later, they arrived at the Martial Arts Arena. After paying a total entrance fee of forty thousand Gold for the four of them, Jiang Chen’s group of four people and two beasts was finally able to enter.

Although it was just one war zone within the Spirit Level Battle Arena, the place was vast enough to accommodate a hundred thousand spectators for the Combat Duels. When Jiang Chen and his group arrived at the Observation Platform, the area was already a sea of people, stretching as far as the eye could see. Jiang Chen couldn’t help but sigh in amazement. ’There must be at least eighty or ninety thousand people here. At ten thousand Gold per person for the entrance fee, the Martial Arts Arena must be making a fortune on ticket sales alone!’

"Well, well, if it isn’t Elder Cui!" Just then, an unwelcome voice rang out.

Jiang Chen and the others looked toward the voice and saw a fat-headed, big-eared middle-aged man approaching with a young man and a young woman.

Cui Zheng’s expression darkened. With a smile that didn’t reach his eyes, he said, "So it’s Elder Shan. I trust you’ve been well."

A look of confusion appeared on Jiang Chen’s face.

Kumu whispered, "Master, that guy is Shan Gang, an Elder of the Alchemist Guild and also a Tier Two Intermediate Alchemist. The position my Senior Brother now holds was originally supposed to be his. But because Senior Brother broke through two ranks in a row, he caught the attention of the President of the Alchemist Guild, who specially promoted him. Shan Gang has held a grudge ever since and often looks for trouble with my Senior Brother!"

"I see!" Jiang Chen nodded, glanced at Shan Gang, and said no more.

"I was wondering why I heard a magpie chirping this morning. Turns out it was because I was going to run into Elder Cui!" Elder Shan laughed, then glanced at Jiang Chen and the others behind Cui Zheng and asked indifferently, "Elder Cui, and who might these people be?"

Cui Zheng said, "This is Young Master Jiang, and this is Miss Qingyi. You should know Kumu. It’s Young Master Jiang’s first time in the Imperial Capital, so we brought him to the Martial Arts Arena to have a look."

Before they left, Jiang Chen had reminded the two of them to simply call him Young Master Jiang when others were around.

After all...

The two of them were already somewhat famous in the Imperial Capital. If they were to call a mere teenager like him ’Master,’ it would inevitably attract unnecessary trouble.

Shan Gang acknowledged Kumu, but his gaze only swept past Jiang Chen as he said, "So, they are your juniors. Elder Cui, you are our Alchemist Guild’s hottest rising star, and the President has placed high hopes on you. I wonder, what abilities might this junior of yours have?"

Cui Zheng froze, unsure how to respond.

But Jiang Chen spoke up, "Just an ordinary young man, without any great abilities to speak of."

Shan Gang’s expression immediately darkened, his displeasure obvious.

The young man with flirtatious eyes beside him snapped, "Who do you think you are? My uncle is speaking with Elder Cui. What right do you have to interrupt?"

The expressions of both Cui Zheng and Kumu changed at once. "What did you say?"

Both were Second-Grade Masters. The pressure they released instantly caused the young man’s face to turn pale.

Shan Gang coughed lightly and stepped in front of the young man. "You two, why bother with a junior?" After a pause, he looked at the young man and said, "Little Le, aren’t you going to apologize to the two masters?"

"Yes, Uncle!"

Shan Le responded, but with no sincerity whatsoever, he said perfunctorily, "My two masters, I was out of line just now. My apologies."

As soon as he finished speaking, he tossed his head and walked behind Shan Gang, starting a quiet conversation with the pretty young woman.

Although they lowered their voices, with their cultivation, Jiang Chen and his group could still hear them clearly...

Shan Le was saying, "Sister Xiaoling, I’m going down to fight in a Combat Duel in a bit. You have to cheer for me! When I win some money, I’ll take you shopping at the Money Commerce Association. I’ll buy you anything you like!"

"Brother Shan Le, will you really buy me anything I want?" Xiaoling asked, blinking her eyes.

Shan Le puffed out his chest and declared confidently, "Of course!"

Xiaoling’s gaze burned as she stared at Xiao Qingyi and Little White beside her. "I want that girl’s purple dress, and that little white beast!"

Shan Le faltered for a moment. Seeing the burning desire in Xiaoling’s eyes, he gritted his teeth and said, "Alright, I’ll definitely get them for you later!"

The two of them had no idea that their entire conversation had been heard, word for word, by Jiang Chen.

Jiang Chen glanced at Shan Le and Xiaoling, sneering inwardly. ’You want Little White and Qingyi’s dress? Let’s see if you have what it takes!’

As it happened, their assigned seats were in adjacent rows, so both parties took their seats.

Just then, the two Martial Artists for the next Combat Duel stepped onto the stage...