Chapter 091: Rushing to the Market (Fourth Update, Please Vote)

Ling Feng looked up and recognized Xin Lang. “It’s you!”

Xin Lang had been somewhat uncertain before, but seeing the man before him confirmed his suspicions. This was indeed Ling Feng, the one he’d met yesterday in the street—Ouyang Feiyun’s relative.

Xin Lang felt amused at the sight of Ling Feng. Yesterday, seeing his confident and arrogant demeanor, Xin Lang had assumed he was at least a Silver Badge student. To his surprise, he was merely a Bronze Badge student.

“Yes, it’s me! We ran into each other yesterday in the street!” Xin Lang pressed further, “You’re not a Silver Badge student—how can you freely enter and exit the school gates?”

Ling Feng scoffed, his sense of superiority rising. “Don’t you know? Bronze Badge students can come and go if they pay a gold coin! Oh, I forgot, you’re a new student! And that exit fee—a gold coin each time—might be a bit pricey for you! So, what are you doing here? I’m the current champion of the Nineteenth Battle Hall, and I don’t have time for you now. If you’re here to cozy up to me, come back tomorrow—can’t you see I’m busy?”

Xin Lang, who’d been worried about Fatty Gu’s inability to visit the brothel for cultivation, realized now he’d been overthinking.

“Hey, I’m talking to you—Xin… Xin something! Hurry up and get down, or people will think you’re here to challenge me!” Ling Feng shouted at Xin Lang.

Xin Lang’s lips curled upward in a subtle smile. “Actually, I am here to challenge you.”

“What did you say?” Ling Feng exclaimed. “You want to challenge me? Are you serious? Ouyang said you had some skill, but I’m the champion of the Nineteenth Battle Hall, with full points. You’re a freshman—I won’t bully you. Come back when you’ve accumulated more points!”

Xin Lang thought to himself, “What kind of logic is that? Does more points necessarily mean more strength?”

He addressed the referee below, “Can we start the match? I’m in a hurry and don’t want to listen to his rambling.”

Ling Feng, seeing Xin Lang disregard him so completely, grew furious. “You… You… Who are you calling rambling? I’m doing this for your own good, and you dare say I’m rambling? If you’ve got guts, challenge me!”

Xin Lang had no patience for further talk. He again asked the referee, “Can we start?”

“The match begins!” the referee announced mechanically.

“One more thing…” Xin Lang asked the referee, “How is victory determined?”

“One side surrenders voluntarily, or the opponent is knocked out of the ring, or loses the ability to fight,” the referee explained.

“Understood!” With that, Xin Lang strode toward Ling Feng.

“You… You really want to challenge me?” Ling Feng asked again, incredulous. In his mind, a freshman like Xin Lang simply didn’t have the strength to challenge a seasoned student with full points.

“Rambling!”

Xin Lang needed to advance to Silver Badge within ten days, so he was pressed for time and had no intention of wasting it on Ling Feng. He raised his fist and struck.

Bang!

A scream echoed as a figure flew off the main ring of the Nineteenth Battle Hall.

Ling Feng had not expected Xin Lang to attack so suddenly, and was sent flying by a punch that came without warning.

“What happened? Who screamed?” someone in the hall asked.

Normally, the main ring didn’t see much combat, so most paid it little attention. Only when Ling Feng hit the ground did the students realize a fight had just occurred on the main stage.

“Wasn’t that the champion who got thrown out? Who hit him?”

As everyone turned to look, Xin Lang had already jumped down from the ring. He walked to the registration desk, retrieved his identity token, and asked the staff, “Does this mean I’ve earned a point?”

“Uh… Yes, yes! After all today’s matches, we’ll tally the students’ points and announce them later,” the staff replied, astounded that Xin Lang had dispatched Ling Feng with a single punch. Even accounting for the element of surprise, Ling Feng’s strength shouldn’t have allowed him to be knocked out so easily.

“Is this kid a master?” the staff wondered.

Receiving confirmation, Xin Lang didn’t linger. He pocketed his identity token and left the Battle Hall.

“Boss, where are you going?” Fatty Gu hurried after him.

“You all stay and wait for your matches. I’m going to check out the other Battle Halls,” Xin Lang said, and exited the Nineteenth Battle Hall.

Ling Feng, knocked aside by Xin Lang’s punch, wasn’t seriously hurt but saw stars. When he got up to seek revenge, Xin Lang was nowhere to be found.

Fatty Gu, Qian Baidu, and Hong Jingang had all signed up and been assigned matches, so they remained to await their turn.

Xin Lang, upon leaving the Nineteenth Battle Hall, headed straight for the Eighteenth Battle Hall.

Having already grasped the rules of these halls, he approached the main ring, tossed his identity token onto the registration desk, and jumped onto the stage.

“Who are you?” the champion of the ring asked. Few people challenged the main stage, so the champion was curious about Xin Lang’s identity.

Xin Lang ignored him and called out to the referee, “Can we start?”

Although challenges to the main stage were rare, they did occur, so the referee didn’t hesitate to start the match.

“Sorry, I’m pressed for time!” Xin Lang said, and without further ado launched an attack—a punch aimed at the champion.

Zhou Chunfeng was a veteran student who had once advanced to Silver Badge, but bad luck saw him defeated by a Bronze Badge challenger after only two days, losing his qualification. He’d spent nearly half a year accumulating the hundred points needed to reenter the advancement tournament, though his match hadn’t been scheduled for today.

Zhou Chunfeng was a Level Four martial artist, much stronger than Ling Feng. Seeing Xin Lang’s punch, he raised his arm to block. But then a sharp pain struck his ribs, and his entire body was sent flying.

Xin Lang’s punch was a feint—the real attack was the spinning kick that followed.

Poor Zhou Chunfeng didn’t even get to show his strength before he was knocked out. Not only that, Xin Lang broke five of his ribs, making him unable to compete in tomorrow’s advancement tournament.

As Zhou Chunfeng hit the ground and the crowd reeled in shock, Xin Lang had already left the Eighteenth Battle Hall, heading for the Seventeenth…