Ding Shanhe's words had barely faded.
On the raised platform, forty contestants stood shoulder to shoulder, each remaining in place, eyes warily scanning the others.
Every one of them radiated a fierce and intimidating aura.
Those in late-stage Outer Strength had burly, muscular builds that screamed power at a glance, while those above Inner Strength appeared much more restrained.
Zane Zhen stood dead center on the platform, hands clasped behind his back, sweeping a cold gaze over the crowd.
"A bunch of trash. What a waste of time."
Seeing that nobody dared make a move, Zane Zhen snorted, stepped forward, and rammed his right shoulder into a 1.8-meter-tall brute, sending the man flying off the stage.
With Zane Zhen's sudden move, the entire platform erupted into chaos.
The fighters began howling as they lunged at each other, plunging the stage into a wild melee. From outside, all you could see were fists and kicks flying everywhere.
Roars and shouts filled the air as fists tore through the space with thunderous force.
"Damn, this is way more exciting than those schoolyard brawls. Man, if only I could record this and show it to Brother Xia!"
Keaton Wang was all fired up, while Megan Liu sat beside him, puffing out her cheeks in silence.
"Hey Lin, who's the strongest in there? Is it the guy who just jumped into the middle?" Keaton Wang turned to Evan Lin, all hyped up.
He didn't know squat about martial arts. All he knew was that Drake Huang was River City's number one, and his buddy Evan Lin was the madman who could throw down with Drake in public.
"Yeah."
Evan Lin nodded.
Most of the first batch on stage were late-stage Outer Strength fighters, which made the fight much more entertaining—every punch landed with a booming thud.
Every now and then, someone would get blasted off the platform with a single punch.
There was a hulking brute on stage, nearly 1.9 meters tall, his muscles like forged steel. With a grim face, he grabbed two men—each weighing over 180 pounds—and tossed them off the platform as if they were nothing.
From a distance, the guy looked just like an iron tower.
"That guy's freakishly strong!"
"Whoa, who is this dude? He tosses people like they're garbage. How come we've never seen him before?"
The audience buzzed with speculation.
More and more fighters kept getting launched off the stage.
Zane Zhen kicked a nearby contestant without a hint of emotion. The man was sent flying backward, crashed into another, and both tumbled off the platform together.
From start to finish, Zane Zhen barely exerted himself, moving with ease and showing zero pressure.
"Has Zane Zhen gotten even stronger these past few days?"
Eric Ding frowned from below the stage.
"Yesterday I saw Elder Mu give him a pill. It was probably Medicine King Valley's Heaven Origin Pill."
Ding Shanhe stood beside Eric Ding, speaking slowly.
"Heaven Origin Pill!" Eric Ding's face changed slightly at Ding Shanhe's words.
"Yeah, Medicine King Valley has three treasures: the Heaven Elixir Pool that stimulates latent potential, the Heaven Origin Pill that boosts your realm, and..." Ding Shanhe paused, leaving the last one unsaid.
"And what else?"
Eric Ding couldn't help but ask.
Ding Shanhe shook his head slightly. "You'll find out when the time comes."
"You mean you just eat a Heaven Origin Pill and your cultivation jumps up a realm? That's insane!" Eric Ding took a deep breath, still finding it hard to believe.
"The Heaven Origin Pill can only be taken by those below the Vajra Realm. It might not be Medicine King Valley's best pill, but it's definitely the most practical one."
"Otherwise, why do you think so many Valley Guardians are willing to serve Medicine King Valley?" Ding Shanhe glanced at Zane Zhen standing on the platform. "That kid Zane Zhen is probably already at peak Inner Strength, just one step away from Great Perfection."
"Plus, he's so young. In a few years, he'll probably step into the Vajra Realm. Medicine King Valley sent him here for the tournament—they might actually want him to marry into our Ding family. That'd be a huge win for us."
Ding Shanhe's eyes gleamed as he pondered.
On the platform, as the last contestant was knocked off the stage—
the first match came to an end.
Five people remained on stage.
One was the iron tower brute, nearly 1.9 meters tall; the other three were much more reserved.
Zane Zhen stood at the center, scanning the crowd below, his gaze finally locking onto Evan Lin.
Everyone's attention had been on Zane Zhen, but now, following his gaze, they spotted Evan Lin sitting in the stands.
"Those guys again? Seriously?"
"Not bad! First they pissed off Carter Cheng, now it looks like they've got beef with Medicine King Valley's guy too!"
The audience erupted in discussion.
Over on the other side, Carter Cheng noticed this as well. His eyes lit up and he gave a cold laugh: "So those punks have pissed off Medicine King Valley too? When this is over, I'll have my uncle take care of them—maybe Medicine King Valley will even owe me a favor."
"Zane Zhen's been sulking these past few days. I heard it's because he got outperformed by some kid during the prelims—totally lost face. Could that guy be him?" Ruby Ding hesitated as she voiced her suspicion.
Zane Zhen is seriously strong, so if that's true, wouldn't that kid be even stronger?
The thought made Ruby Ding inexplicably uneasy.
"So what if he is? So what if he isn't! My uncle's a fourth-grade Vajra! He could swat Zane Zhen off the stage with a single punch. Even if that kid's stronger than Zane Zhen, at best he might survive one hit from my uncle!"
Carter Cheng rubbed his swollen face. Shawn Shi's slaps had nearly knocked him out, but he managed to tough it out.
Still, every time someone glanced this way, Carter Cheng felt utterly humiliated.
And it's all those punks' fault!
Carter Cheng clenched his teeth, his face dark with resentment.
"That guy over there keeps staring at us," Megan Liu said, frowning as she noticed Carter Cheng's glare.
Keaton Wang shot a smug look over. "That pig-head's probably just jealous I'm better looking than he is."
While Keaton Wang and Megan Liu were chatting—
Zane Zhen strode toward the edge of the platform. Facing Evan Lin, he raised his hand, gave a thumbs-up, then flipped it over—thumb pointed down.
Pure mockery.
Blatant, undisguised mockery!
"You'd better hope you get knocked out in the first round. Otherwise, if you run into me, I'll make you regret ever being born!"
Zane Zhen's voice was icy as he tilted his head back, eyes full of contempt as he stared at Evan Lin.
The whole arena instantly erupted!