"Begin!" Mu Kai announced as the crowd watched with rapt attention.
Everyone was curious about the new direct disciple the sect master had taken in, the position had been open for so long that the last few generations of disciples didn't even know when it became open in the first place, the current sect master Rong Jia took over the last sect master's position over a full century ago! There weren't many in the sect that had lived that long and even if they did, they were almost all elders with a couple of the oldest disciples making an exception.
One of those exceptions was Chao Shi who was her nephew removed by less than a handful of generations, who was respected as one of the strongest senior brothers of the sect.
That was another thing, rumour has it that the new direct disciple was brought by Chao Shi himself meaning there was something even more special about him, any time Chao Shi brought anyone to the sect personally they turned out to be true talents!
Of course, none of them knew the truth that he was only invited along on a whim, the one invited initially was Shu He after all.
Nevertheless, he had been shut away with the sect master so there was only speculation, but now that they saw him with their eyes they felt a bit underwhelmed.
They had expected a true beauty matching the sect master herself, or a handsome man with a heroic appearance similar to their senior brother, someone who would stun their eyes in to worship; Yet the man that stood before them was a tall man with bulky muscles, his head without a hair to be seen as it fiercely reflected the glare of the sun.
'He looks like a street thug' was the thought that passed many a mind, an appearance that was neither attractive nor heroic, rather he seemed… rough, in a way.
A lot of the audience members were chatting and laughing a little as they observed the new direct disciples appearance, thinking someone like him didn't deserve the position, even more so when the truth spread that he was a mere common mortal with no foundation in the world of cultivation.
However there were the select few among the crowd that remained silent with their eyes glimmering as they steadily watched the bulk of a man stand proudly, not a single sense of nervousness or hesitation laying in the depths of his eyes.
They weren't fools like the rest, although they too were upset when the direct disciple position was taken since they had aimed for it as a goal for many years now, they wouldn't doubt the sect masters decision when taking someone in to fill it.
There was a clear reason why he was in that position now, he either had the power or the potential to take it! And so, in hopes of gleaming the depths of the truth they watched silently awaiting his performance.
Gang Bo's opponent was one of the stronger disciples that entered the tournament, he was close to crossing over the threshold of Balance Attainment and moving into the next stage, Elemental Infusion!
Though at the same time he was also the oldest that entered the tournament, meaning he wasn't particularly skilled, just that he had cultivated longer than most others that entered, however that wasn't a reason to underestimate him, all those years gave him time to refine his skills after all.
His appearance was of someone in their mid-forties, although he had a fit body there were clear signs of aging, wrinkles at the corner of his mouth and brow and his hair had strands of white spotting here and there.
Cultivating increased ones lifespan, however it wasn't a set amount, and it can vary person to person, however on average it followed –
1st Stage – 5 – 15 Years
2nd Stage – 25 – 40 Years
3rd Stage – 35 – 60 Years
4th Stage – 50 – 80 Years
5th Stage – 75 – 110 Years
6th Stage – 100 – 150 years
7th Stage – 140 – 200 Years
8th Stage – 200 – 300 Years
These were the recorded values on average for cultivators, and the values were not additive, they had the average life expectancy of an average person subtracted from them, as if they were a normal healthy mortal which is around 67 years in a city like Orefine.
Meaning, at most, on average, an 8th stage cultivator would live for 367 years! Multiple lifetimes of an average person, it's one of the biggest reasons a lot of people cultivate; As it was seen in Yun Jiang cultivating when near the end of ones lifespan can improve ones appearance, cultivators generally age a bit as they cultivate but at a certain point they stop usually at the young adult stage if they started as a child and then they don't age any further unless they desired to, or they reach the last tenth of their lifespan where they age rapidly.
For Gang Bo's opponent, he had begun to show signs of aging meaning it was well over 100 years old! In that case, he could be considered an 'old guard' of the sect.
While people mocked him for clinging on to the sect despite his age and lack of progress, disciples of the same level or lower had a degree of fear towards him because of his knowledge.
"Hoh, so you're the one the Sect Master chose. Quite a study lad, aren't you?" The man said, rubbing his chin as he eyed Gang Bo from head to toe.
"Thanks?" Gang Bo said with his brow raised as he casually stood still "I didn't expect to see someone older looking than me here, I was feeling a bit off being the odd one out" he laughed.
"Nonsense, there's no need to feel left out, no one is too old to cultivate." The man said as he spread his arms out like he was showing something off "Right, your name was Gang Bo, correct?"
"Yeah, so?" Gang Bo asked, standing still without a single movement other than a raised brow.
"Ahem, my name is Guo Shi." He said, pulling his weapon to the front of him, it was something Gang Bo hadn't seen used by any other competitors yet.
A staff, it was a pure silver that glistened in the sunlight and had a simple engraving flames passing along its length, atop of it was a phoenix carving, or forging in this case, with a small orange sphere in its beak.
"What's that?" Gang Bo asked out of curiosity, he had seen different kinds of weapons before, but a staff wasn't something he was familiar with, at least no this kind; It definitely wasn't a 'Bo' Staff.
Guo Shi looked at his weapon with a gentle smile, rubbing along its smooth metal material like one would gently caress a baby's head "This here is the result of all my hard work over these years, a beautiful piece made of Spiritual Metal with a Spirit Heart of a Scorching Skyhawk!". He spoke proudly, almost fanatically as he stared at the staff.
"Oh… so it's a spirit weapon, Master said she'd have one made for me later on" Gang Bo's merely nodded and recalled what he remembered.
"…I spent nearly a full century getting this beauty made and he will get one, just like that?..." Guo Shi grimaced as he murmured to himself "How is this fair…" He kept going, a string of complaints filling the arena.
"What was that?" Gang Bo asked while picking his ear as if he thought he was going death.
"Nothing! Enough, aren't you a bit too relaxed?!" Guo Shi shouted, his eyes slightly bloodshot, clearly he had been triggered.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Gang Bo said, completely unsure what he was talking about.
"The match has started! Aren't you going to make a move! You've given me plenty of time to prepare!"
'Aren't a bit too you dumb?!' was what Guo Shi stopped himself from adding on, he was speaking to the direct disciple after all.
"Eh? No, I mean you haven't attacked yet so why would I?" Gang Bo tilted his head as his expression read 'Is this guy stupid or something?' infuriating Guo Shi.
"I'm the senior disciple here! You think I'd attack a new disciple without giving them a chance?! What kind of person do you think I am?!"
"The kind that would sprawl the arena with traps while we're talking" Gang Bo replied bluntly.
"Wha-" Guo Shi paused for a second before staring deep into Gang Bo's eyes, he could feel the ever so gentle flickering of Qi deep inside. "Heh… so the sect master has beaten Qi Sight into you already, most new disciples don't get how important it is in fights" he sighed and shrugged his shoulders.
Qi Sight was one of the techniques given for free to all disciples that reach Meridian Awakening, its simple function was to visually see Qi and many disciples don't put it as a priority because it doesn't aid in their cultivation nor does it directly affect combat strength, however its utility was so high that it is considered an indispensable technique.
Shu He had seen this technique and not even bothered to learn it, the reason was his 'Keen Sight' was basically the far, far better version of it.
The technique had its restrictions, you need to be familiar with a Qi type to see it well, and there was a capacity, if your Qi was too weak when using the technique it would be harder to see subtle uses of Qi and impossible to see Qi far stronger than yours, in those cases one would need to rely on their natural senses to 'see' it.
In this case, Gang Bo had been using the technique from the start, he had clearly seen tiny balls of concentrated Qi being thrown from Guo Shi's hands as he gestured while talking, creating a minefield between the two.
"Well, since the pretences are out of the way" Guo Shi held the staff in front of him, his other hand hovering near the gem,
"FALL!"
A light enveloped the arena suddenly, but it wasn't some sort of blinding spell, a fire ball multiple times the size of the ones that were seen before in the tournament appeared!
The <
"That's big" Gang Bo said as he took a simple stance, planting his feet steadily on the ground, his chest jutting out and arms firmly by his side.
"My Scorching Pheonix Staff amplifies my fire techniques and increases my Qi efficiency! My <
He shouted over the roaring flames, expecting to see his opponent try to dodge or brace for impact, yet Gang Bo did nothing other than stare at the approaching flames with a grin.
"Then this is a good test!" He shouted, gleefully.
"A test?!" Guo Shi exclaimed dumbfoundedly.
'Is he a fool?! This technique of mine could easily incinerate someone of your level!' He thought to himself as he watched on, he fully expected to hear the announcer call it in the next few seconds.
*DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*
The raging sun impacted, spilling out of its compact ball shape, and exploding into a roaring inferno that covered nearly half the stage, many in the audience gasped at seeing a technique of such scale in a low-level tournament, they thought it was over.
Yet the match wasn't ended, Mu Kai watched on with a neutral expression.
"What?!" Guo Shi stared wide eyed across the stage, unable to believe the sight he was seeing.
The flame had hit Gang Bo, he was sure of that, yet as he stared across the arena his opponent was basically unscathed! He was stood in his proud, study stance that he was in before without a single change.
This would make sense if the formation had activated and protected him from the lethal blow, but there wasn't a sign of the formation at work! This means it didn't deem the attack lethal for Gang Bo!
"That's impossible!" His lips quivered, his eyes searching for an explanation, a reason for this event, yet when he saw how the scorch marks covered all of the arena apart from a small cone behind Gang Bo he could only come to a single conclusion.
He blocked it!
"But how?!" His mind spun, looking for answers.
'Did he pull out some sort of treasure at the very last second?!' He tried to reason with what he just saw.
"Since you've attacked, it's my turn" Gang Bo stated as he boldly took a step forward.
That single step was like a trigger for Guo Shi, he stopped thinking about it since it was distracting him and concentrated on the fight.
*Step Step Step*
*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*
A large explosion shot from the ground, from between the cracks of the stage like he had stepped on a landmine, a plume of flames growing into the sky.
"IDIOT! You knew I had traps and yet you walk-" Guo Shi choked on his words as he watched Gang Bo step out of the explosion with a slightly unpleasant expression, coughing.
"I think I ate some dirt" *Cough* But he kept walking.
*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*
Another explosion went off, engulfing his towering figure once more.
"You-" Guo Shi only got a single word out before it watched Gang Bo walk out scot-free once more, blowing his nose.
"Got a stone up my nose". He explained casually.
*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*
*DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*
*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*
It was like a warzone, every few steps an explosion went off, many people cried out at the brutality of Guo Shi's tactics but to Guo Shi each explosion was like a crack in his heart.
'I used so much QI here! If I use them all then I won't have any for the future matches!' He felt his chest clench and his forehead began to sweat.
His staff also had another function, he could use it to store up his Qi and he had been doing so for years at this point, the amount of Qi being wasted right now was months' worth!
*Step*
He felt shivers up his spine, Gang Bo was now barely ten meters away from him, he was almost close enough to engage! He was weak in close combat so he couldn't allow it!
He tapped his staff on the floor and lights surged to it, he scraped the remaining traps Qi back to him and held his staff out once more.
<
His Qi flew into the staff then into the ground which burst open at multiple points, gradually shifting its volume into chains of earth the ignited with fire! The chains then quickly wrapped themselves around Gang Bo restraining his arms, legs, torso, and neck!
Gang Bo tugged on the chains to see if they'd break, but they held tight.
"Quite strong" He said with a bit of surprise.
"So they should be!" Guo Shi yelled out, continually channelling his Qi to keep the chains strengthened and repair their faults.
His brow was now drenched and his eyed bloodshot as he began to cast another technique! Multi-casting of techniques was hard for low level disciples, but his experience let him do so!
A ring of <
"If one wasn't enough, then how about multiple!"
*DON DON DON DON*
The balls shot towards the bound Gang Bo like rounds of an automatic gun and began pelting him with smaller explosions, his body became engulfed in flames like before.
"STILL STRUGGLING?!" Guo Shi could feel his stored Qi draining fast, not just from the double technique usage but from Gang Bo struggling and breaking the chains which then repaired.
All of a sudden, he yelped with surprise as a hand burst out of the flames filmed with a metallic sheen grasping for his head.
"Ah?!" He was surprised but managed to doge away at the last second, however because of it his concentration broke along with the chains and the barrage of fireballs.
Amid scorch marks, smoke and lingering flames stood Gang Bo breathing slightly heavily, his teeth gritted "That was quite hot" he said, reluctantly.
Gui Shi could see signs of the formation protecting him here and there, but only for minor injuries.
"After all that.. that's all it did?!" He seethed.
The constant barrage of fireballs had increased the temperature in some areas to such a degree that it had actually hurt him, and the constant ignition of flames had begun to drain the oxygen in the air near him, yet he was barely injured.
After breathing out and in to get some air in his lungs Gang Bo glanced at Guo Shi who ground his teeth.
'My Qi investment will be for nothing at this rate!' He panicked.
"All? No, no, I'm not ending it like this" A dangerous glint flashed in his eyes.
*SHHHHHHHHH* He held his staff out to the side as a horrid whispering sound echoed throughout the arena, wind began whipping back and forth around the tip of his staff.
<
*SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN* A long blade formed from the tip of the staff, bright orange with tinges of blue at the centre, the temperature of the surrounding area began increasing steadily as sparks flew off the blade, its tip that touched the ground began melting the stone before it even made contact.
There were gasps from the audience.
Why? Because this technique was something usually unusable by those at Meridian Awakening, it was considered a high-level technique that required a lot of Qi to use! Only with the help of his staff and reserves of Qi can Guo Shi use it!
But not for long, without a second of thought he lifted the blazing blade above his head and yelled.
"THERE'S NO WAY YOU CAN BLOCK THIS WITH YOUR BODY!".
The blade swung down, drawing a bright crescent sun across the stage as it headed for Gang Bo's head.
His eyes widened, clearly he realised he couldn't just passively tank it like before, he would definitely lose!
Yet he only moved one arm, that arm suddenly gained a metallic sheen like it was a statue made of pure metal as he reached out towards the blade with his palm!
"FOOL! EVEN IF YOU USE <
However… he hadn't account for him being completely wrong.
The hand grasped the blade and lights flew everywhere, like a fireworks display fragments of hardened flame shot out before exploding in to whisps and a loud screeching sound split the ears of everyone watching.
"WHAT?!!!" Guo Shi's pupils constricted to the size of pins, his head feeling dizzy from using a higher-level technique and his body feeling exhausted made his shout feel weak, yet he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
His tump card, his strongest technique, the culmination of all his efforts was being blocked… by a mere palm.
Of someone a level lower in cultivation than him.
*SHATTER*
Gang Bo tightened his fist and the blade shattered like a brilliant star at the end of its lifespan, silence then fell on the arena.
Guo Shi was on his knees, his eyes trembling and mind shaking as he stared at the stone flooring that had melted away, slight embers resting in its warped remains.
He then looked up at Gang Bo.
"How?" Was the question needed to ask, his culmination of more than a century beaten by a cultivator less than a few years old, only three months of training under the sect master.
"My Master was generous with me" Gang Bo said proudly.
"The Sect Master?"
His eyes looked vague for a second like his mind was elsewhere.
'I knew he was the direct disciple, but I didn't think he'd be this strong… is there a reason for it? He should have access to the same techniques as us even if they're a higher level….' He thought, but then his mind shook.
He had made a mistake.
His master was THE sect master, there would be techniques only taught to people in that position.
He was a long-time disciple of the sect, he recalled one such technique that hadn't been used even in the last 500 years of sect history, there was no one compatible enough.
He looked up at his opponent, feeling a chill.
"The Titanic Body Scripture…?" He spoke slowly, watching Gang Bo's eyes closely.
Gang Bo looked slightly surprised before scratching his head "Master said I might be suited to it, so I went and tried and what do you know, I am".
Guo Shi's body relaxed at that moment, he felt relief throughout his entire body.
"Ahaha… Ahahahahaha… Ahahahhaahahahhahahahahahahhahahaaahah!" He began laughing manically.
"What's up with you?" Gang Bo backed away slightly, creeped out.
"Nothing! I just remembered that there's always greater heights! Gang Bo you truly are worthy of the position 'Direct Disciple' and I'm sure many will have seen that today, be proud!" He said, patting Gang Bo's shoulder.
"Thanks? Should I knock you out now?" Gang Bo replied, priming his fist.
"No! No thanks! I surrender!" Guo Shi shivered slightly, even with the formation being on the receiving end of such a fist would be terrifying to him.
"Guo Shi has surrendered; the match is over!" Mu Kai who had been listening to their conversation immediately announced causing the crowd to burst out with cheers.
That day Gang Bo made his debut in the sect and began to cement his place as the direct disciple, the match being worth of being part of the finals yet only part of the first round would be talked about aplenty.