Chapter 192: Professionalism
Translator: AstralGhost Editor: Kurisu
Su Bai’s group was currently trekking slowly through the mountainous path. As regular people with no cultivation, their speed was naturally inferior to Bei Feng’s group. They had also taken a separate path, and only reached the Taoist Temple now.
“Let’s go back, Su Bai. It’s already so late now. If we don’t go, it’s going to get dark soon.”
Lin Qingya sat on a rock and massaged her ankles. Although the scenery was truly very enchanting, her legs still hurt after walking for so long.
“Alright. We’ve actually come this far without realizing it… how about we take a look at the Taoist Master Residences before we go?”
Su Bai looked at his digital watch and said. If they turned back now, it would still be around 7-8 pm by the time they walked out of the scenic area. Since they’d already reached their destination, he didn’t want to come this far without seeing anything.
“Hou! Yin!”
Two incredibly savage roars suddenly sounded out from the direction of the Taoist Temple, causing Su Bai and the rest to shudder with fright.
“What’s going on? What kind of animal did those roars come from?!”
Su Bai was so scared he nearly wet his pants in fright. There wasn’t even a single human apart from them in the area. Hearing such a savage roar in such a situation, anyone would be petrified!
“Come on, let’s go and take a look.”
Su Bai’s expression flickered and no one could tell what he was thinking. With a determined gaze, he gritted his teeth and started towards the Temple.
“Honey, let’s go back… ”
Wu Xiaoli tugged on Su Bai’s sleeves and mumbled in a timid tone.
“Don’t worry. I actually want to see which idiot is hiding there and playing tricks with us! Besides, how can we not pay a visit to the Taoist Master Residences when we’re here at Mount Longhu?”
At this time, Su Bai had the heroic airs of someone going up a mountain despite knowing that tigers dwell there.
The two girls exchanged a helpless glance and hurried to follow behind him. Su Bai was not wrong in his thoughts. Since they were already at Mount Longhu, how can they simply go back without seeing the splendor of the Taoist Temple?
***
Within the Demon Subduing Hall, the atmosphere had turned incredibly tense as soon as Danxia Zi’s words sounded out. Everyone was staring at each other with hostility. Right now, everybody was an opponent!
The young martial practitioners all wore vastly different expressions on their faces. Some were filled with excitement, some were heavy, and some were burning with eagerness.
The most attention-grabbing individual was a 25-years-old man. This man had dashing sword-like brows and starry pupils. His jet-black hair was combed neatly and bundled in an exquisite white jade hair crown. Two light green silk ribbons hung off the hair crown, one on each side of his head, tied at the bottom with a knot.
He was dressed in a flowing snow-white robe, and his person emanated an aura which gave others a feeling that he was a person separated from the crowd. Even though some of the people in the hall were men, they couldn’t help but admit that this person was really indescribably handsome and striking!
“Isn’t that just a gay-looking gigolo? For all we know, he might be a wax spear masquerading as a silver spear, only good for admiring his appearance. What’s there to be so arrogant about?”
Yi Xiao Qian harrumphed with jealousy as he saw all the girls in the hall looking at the guy.
“If you can reach Evolved Jing realm before the age of 30, this lady here will marry you immediately even with your current looks!”
A tall and rough-looking girl said sarcastically as she heard Yi Xiao Qian’s disdainful words.
Yi Xiao Qian turned to look at the girl who had spoken and was immediately lost for words. As if he was afraid of being infected by something, he leapt a few meters away in an instant. “Forget it, I’d rather be stuck at my current level and never break through to Evolved Jing!”
‘D*mn! Where did this ugly b*tch come from? How come I never noticed her just now?’
Yi Xiao Qian cursed with some trepidation in his heart as he looked at the muscular arm of that girl, which was almost as thick as his own thigh. Her muscles were bulging and filled with the beautiful aesthetics of strength.
“Hmph! You’d better pray hard that you do not get matched against me later on!”
The girl’s face darkened to the color of the bottom of a wok. She did not intend to continue bickering with Yi Xiao Qian. “Grandpa was right. When reason doesn’t work, it’s better to just beat the person up first! After that, the person will naturally be more receptive to logical reasoning.”
Yi Xiao Qian felt his heart quiver slightly. This girl was obviously not someone who could be easily offended. But, a general may lose the soldiers, but they must keep the formation! In that moment, he still hardened his scalp, “That was exactly what I was going to say too!”
The Demon Subduing Hall was extremely spacious, enough to be used as the stage for the competition. The older cultivators were seated along the sides of the hall to watch the contest. At the same time, young Daoist disciples were bustling about, serving fruits and tea to them.
Bei Feng was also sitting cross-legged on the ground with a cup of fragrant tea. Mystic Four and the rest stood respectfully behind him.
‘In this era of guns and explosives, the martial world is actually still so powerful. I wonder how glorious the martial world was when it was in its most flourishing years!’
Bei Feng only took a quick look, but he could already estimate that there was at least 100 Evolved Jing masters gathered here! Furthermore, this was probably just the tip of the iceberg!
In the center of the hall, two youths bowed lightly to each other and began fighting!
Every punch and kick was filled with vigor and power, causing Mystic Four and the rest to widen their eyes with shock. However, these moves were not even enough to catch Bei Feng’s eye.
At this time, Su Bai and the rest had also arrived at the Temple. As everybody was currently gathered at the Demon Subduing Hall, they were not stopped at all.
Following the din coming from the back hall, the three boldly proceeded onward.
“Wow! No wonder the attraction was closed. Are they filming a movie here? My god, who is that person? He’s so handsome!
Which celebrity is that? How come even I cannot recognize him?”
Su Bai and the rest stood rooted outside of the hall as they looked in just in time to see Gao Li soaring gracefully through the air like an angel and stepping on his opponent’s shoulder. Wu Xiaoli immediately transformed into her smitten fangirl mode.
“Which production team is this? Where are the cameras?”
Su Bai looked at the diverse crowd of people in the hall and felt like something was off.
“Maybe they’re filming a comedy film?”
Su Bai scratched his head with puzzlement as he observed the strange clothing of the people in the hall.
“It’s probably something directed by a third-rate small-time director.”
Su Bai looked at Wu Xiaoli and said dryly.
“My major just happens to be on Acting and Performance Arts. I wonder if this filming crew is still recruiting?”
Wu Xiaoli felt a rush of excitement. Even if the film was headed by an unknown director, it was still a great opportunity! Who knows? The film might even become popular!
“This kind of small production team will definitely not have many sponsors. As long as you take out a few tens of thousand yuan, they will definitely give you a role.”
Su Bai snorted nonchalantly. Films directed by famous directors would draw a ton of enthusiastic investors naturally without them having to do anything. Those unknown production teams, on the other hand, had to go around and beg for sponsors.
“Still, this dueling scene is actually pretty good! They are clashing directly and filming everything in one shot without any cuts. Those are really professional actors!”
Su Bai evaluated casually as he fondled his chin.
“Dang! Dang!”
The two contestants at the center of the hall were waving their blades and weapons furiously as they exchanged countless blows. Their striking speed was so fast that the entire scene looked somewhat illusory. The loud clanging of steel sounded through the hall.
Finally, the saber-wielding man proved the weaker of the two. With an eight-sided Han sword on his neck, he had no choice but to concede and retreat.
“Haha, looks like your luck is not bad indeed to actually bump into me.”
Zhu Danhong laughed uproariously as she looked at the bitter-faced Yi Xiao Qian standing across her.
‘I’ve really been matched against the tomboy…’
Yi Xiao Qian was completely speechless as his heart pounded furiously in his chest. This violent girl was exceptionally vicious in her attacks. None of her opponents had escaped with light injuries. All those defeated by her were left with broken bones and terrible bruises!
“Wait! I concede!”
Seeing Zhu Dan Hong clench her fists, Yi Xiao Qian lost all composure. He hurriedly blurted out his surrender and scrambled off.
‘Although it’s a shameful matter to surrender, it’s still better than being beaten into a pulp, right? A man who can recognize and accept the reality is a paragon of men. There’s nothing shameful about this.’
Yi Xiao Qian consoled himself. He’d completely thrown the matter about helping his grandfather obtain a Dragon Tiger Pill to the back of his mind.
The contest went on like this until only four people were left. The kirin of the Gao clan, Gao Li! As an Evolved Jing master at the age of 25, he could be considered the most outstanding genius among his peers!
The other person was a youth from the Cang clan. His looks were exceptionally plain, and his gaze was like the coldest ice, not melting for tens of thousands of years. His eyes betrayed no emotion as he looked at his opponents. It was like he was looking at a puddle of stagnant water. The only time his face revealed some traces of warmth was when he looked at the sword in his hands. The old and simple-looking sword which seemed to be a relic from the past had never once left his hands!
Next was a fairy-like beauty. Her appearance was like a transcendent being, floating independently above the world!
Lastly, the most surprising remaining contestant was actually the terrifying tomboy with arms thick enough for horses to race upon, and breasts solid enough to crush stones!