The seats on the stage gradually filled.
"Ahem..."
Several oversized loudspeakers in the underground plaza suddenly boomed with a male voice.
On the stage, a middle-aged man in his forties stood.
Holding a microphone, he said, "Everyone, I believe most of you know who I am. However, I still need to introduce myself. I am the president of our Pingcheng Martial Arts Association, Fang Tai!"
"The annual Martial Arts Tournament is about to begin..."
After a few opening remarks, Fang Tai continued, "Let's cut to the chase. I will now explain the rules, and then we will proceed to the official competition!"
"This year's rules will be in a challenge arena format. After each participant has accepted two challengers, they can step down and rest for two rounds. After two rounds, they can return to the stage to accept challenges! Challengers also have the option not to rest."
"The ultimate champion will win the prize fund donated by the members of our Martial Arts Association, one hundred million yuan!"
Roar...
Instantly, the entire venue erupted in cheers, and the crowd's enthusiasm soared.
Fang Tai announced, "The Martial Arts Tournament officially begins!"
As soon as the words fell, a young man rushed onto the stage.
"I, Wang Yiren, am here! Who dares to challenge me?" the man shouted.
Murmurs rippled through the crowd below. "As expected, it's always these small fries who go up first. But a Xuan-level master isn't too bad."
Not a single person from below stepped up to challenge him, and a brief silence fell over the venue.
"Is no one brave enough to challenge me? Wang Yiren, do you dare to come up, you sinner who offended our Martial Arts Association?" Wang Yiren suddenly glared in Chen Jie's direction and shouted.
The crowd erupted in an uproar.
He had directly targeted Chen Jie.
Chen Jie, wasn't he the one who had offended the Martial Arts Association?
In the viewing stands, Fang Rong sneered.
This scene had been orchestrated by them long ago; as soon as he appeared, he directly provoked Chen Jie.
Beside Chen Jie, Jiang Xue's body tensed instantly. "What should we do?"
Chen Jie shrugged, making no move.
"Chen Jie, are you a coward? Aren't you coming up to meet your death?" Wang Yiren provoked him again, shouting.
"Hahaha... Chen Jie, I truly look down on you, a timid coward!"
"You, dare to challenge our Martial Arts Association? You overestimate yourself, you cur!"
"Let me!" Suddenly, a booming shout echoed.
Immediately after, a figure strode towards the stage.
In the viewing stands, Fang Rong's brows furrowed. "What's going on? Which idiot is challenging the stage at this time? Trying to court death?"
Wang Yiren looked at the approaching person and shouted, "Who are you?"
"Dragon Tiger Gate, Zhou Wei!"
The person who stepped up to challenge was indeed Zhou Wei.
"What? He's that orphan from the Zhou family, Zhou Wei?"
"No way? Wasn't his entire family killed by Chen Jie? Why is he stepping out to take a blow for Chen Jie now?"
"You don't know this, do you? That Chen Jie is a ruthless man. He killed Zhou Wei's entire family and then made Zhou Wei his dog. He's not afraid of this dog biting him back."
Upon learning Zhou Wei's background, someone exclaimed in shock.
They inwardly cursed Chen Jie for being so brutal.
And yet, he had taught him well, causing Zhou Wei to willingly step onto the stage to face death.
After all, Zhou Wei was not a martial artist.
This Wang Yiren was the one who had delivered Chen Jie's entry ticket yesterday.
He recognized Zhou Wei and immediately sneered, "You are not a member of our Martial Arts Association, so you are not qualified to challenge me. Get off the stage!"
Zhou Wei retorted rudely, "Trash! My master is also not a member of your Martial Arts Association. By what right do you demand my master to come up and challenge you?"
"You... your master offended our Martial Arts Association, so we are making an exception to give him a chance," Wang Yiren said angrily.
From a distance, Fang Tai coughed, picked up the microphone, and said, "Since Chen Jie wants his subordinate to court death, then we shall give him a chance. This time, we will make an exception and allow non-members of the Martial Arts Association to challenge. If an outsider wins the championship, the prize money will still be awarded!"
Wang Yiren looked at Zhou Wei with a playful gaze. "Very well, if you wish to court death, I shall oblige! After killing you, it will be just as easy to kill Chen Jie!"
"Just you? You trash, dare to dream of dealing with my master!" Zhou Wei said dismissively.
"You're courting death!"
Wang Yiren's eyes turned cold, and he suddenly moved.
"A dog dares to bark at me? You're just a normal person, aren't you? Someone like you, I can kill two with one slap. Chen Jie really should discipline his dog better!"
Bang!
He slapped Zhou Wei.
A loud crash echoed.
Many spectators sighed in pity, lamenting the loss of a young life, sent to its end so carelessly.
They could tell long ago that Zhou Wei wasn't even a martial artist, at best a slightly stronger ordinary person.
Wouldn't this slap turn him into a pile of pulverized flesh?
"He's fine!"
Someone unexpectedly shouted.
The crowd's gazes sharpened. They all stood up, looking at Zhou Wei in disbelief.
"How is this possible!"
Everyone gasped.
To take a palm strike head-on, even a Di-level martial artist wouldn't remain completely unharmed.
Yet, Zhou Wei was not only unharmed but hadn't even budged.
"Trash! I'm just a dog, standing here and you can't even move me. You're truly useless!"
"Let alone teaching my master a lesson, even as my master's dog, I can teach you a good lesson!" Zhou Wei taunted mercilessly.
"Impossible! You're clearly just an ordinary person! I don't believe my attack had no effect on you!"
"I'll strike!"
Wang Yiren had gone mad. Mimicking the famous figure Bruce Lee, he let out a strange cry and delivered another palm strike.
This time, all the spectators were fixedly staring at Zhou Wei.
Without surprise, Zhou Wei was still unharmed.
Because as Wang Yiren's palm touched Zhou Wei, a shimmering barrier suddenly appeared on Zhou Wei's body, blocking the attack.
"A protective artifact! I see now, it's a protective artifact!" Fang Rong stood up and exclaimed in disbelief.
"What protective artifact?" Yin Chuji, standing beside him, asked with a frown.
Fang Rong's face darkened. "This is a protective artifact made by Chen Jie. It can block attacks for the wearer. Recently, it's become quite famous in Pingcheng, and many martial artists who know about it want to buy one to carry with them!"
"Chen Jie can really create such magical items?" Yin Chuji's expression also changed.
Fang Rong sneered, "It's not that wonderful. This protective artifact is not only prohibitively expensive but also only effective for fifteen days. After fifteen days, it needs to be recharged! Furthermore, after several heavy blows, the protective artifact will deplete its energy and become useless."
Yin Chuji breathed a sigh of relief.
He clearly understood the vast difference between a permanent protective artifact and a temporary one.
If Chen Jie's protective artifact were permanent, he would surely soar to prominence with it.
"So it's a protective artifact. No wonder you're so arrogant! Let's see how long you can last!" Wang Yiren, clearly aware of the existence of protective artifacts, now smiled confidently and attacked again.