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Three moves!

The military officers in the martial arts field all perked up.

Chen Qing’s performance had been exceedingly shocking.

Frankly speaking, even if the Emperor verbally sided with Wutu Gu and forcefully prevented Chen Qing from using techniques, and the two were to fight it out in earnest, they still wouldn’t think Chen Qing would lose.

This could be seen from the fact that Chen Qing was able to dodge the opponent’s attacks while setting up a barrier.

Chen Qing’s close combat skills were not lacking at all, and might even be a complete and utter crush over Wutu Gu!

But saying it would take three moves was a bit too arrogant!

Wutu Gu’s displayed strength exceeded expectations. Even if Chen Qing was strong enough, wanting to win within three moves seemed too exaggerated, and this could be an opportunity!

Chen Qing’s performance just now was enough to bring honor, so Great Jin would not lose face. Now if he were to lose the match because of his claim of three moves, it would simply be a result of excessive arrogance, at least in terms of public opinion, it wouldn’t be too one-sided.

As long as Chen Qing didn’t win, his prestige would plummet, and those in Jiangnan who had sided with Chen Qing, were all no simple characters.

Duke Qi Tian Heng, Great Sorcerer Zi Yue, and the ambitious Shen Family -- if Chen Qing wanted to suppress them, he needed sufficient prestige and skill.

If he ended up losing face this time, upon returning, Jiangnan’s already troublesome situation would become even more turbulent, which would play an important role for the Imperial Court to regain control over Jiangnan.

The Sorcerer Families thought the same. Honestly, they didn’t favor the meritocracy style of Jiangnan, which allowed many talented individuals from low-ranked families to rise, potentially breaking the monopoly of the great families.

Of course, they preferred Jiangnan to be completely in their control, rather than the current passive mode.

"Here it comes!"

Weichi Peng excitedly whispered, the many scions around him hurriedly turned their gaze towards the stage. The two combatants had not yet moved, and it was unclear how Weichi Peng determined that it was about to start.

But soon, it was proven that Weichi Peng’s guess was not wrong; Wutu Gu started acting without any visible signs.

Actually, it wasn’t without signs. Any martial artist with decent vision could tell that Wutu Gu was gathering his momentum.

With the barrier in place, everyone in the stands couldn’t feel Wutu Gu’s direct momentum, otherwise, just from the previous terrifying display, all the spectators would have been more embarrassed than before when they were variously spitting blood.

But the observational skills of a warrior are different from those of ordinary people. Even if the momentum was shrouded within the barrier, they could still observe and determine that at this instant, Wutu Gu’s momentum had reached its peak.

What was strange, however, was that they realized Chen Qing didn’t seem to care much about the opponent’s momentum. He didn’t intentionally interrupt it, nor did he gather his own momentum like the opponent.

From the very beginning, he stood there like a resolute pine tree, giving people the feeling... as if he were watching a play.

"Die!!"

With bloodshot eyes, Wutu Gu’s momentum peaked to the utmost, but seeing that his opponent made no move, even the most cautious person’s chest would be filled with rage at that moment.

Veins bulged all over his body, complemented by astonishing momentum.

At that moment, he felt that he could pulverize anything in the world with his strike!

Ten zhang, five zhang, three zhang!

Still not moving?

Wutu Gu glared at Chen Qing, concentrating all his power into one point while retaining an angle sufficient to change his move.

Everyone on the outside couldn’t see his movements, but he himself could feel the distance. With a three zhang distance, at his speed, even that terrifying Serpent Mother wouldn’t dare to remain motionless, right?

Finally... Chen Qing moved.

His short sword slightly rose, presenting a very elegant starting position, exploding suddenly towards the oncoming adversary. At that instant, the sword energy surged to the sky!

"Excellent swordsmanship!"

That was the only thought in Wutu Gu’s mind. The sword move was indescribably exquisite, like a phoenix soaring to the skies, making him lose himself in the technique for a moment. By the time he realized and inwardly exclaimed at the wondrous swordsmanship, that move... had already ended.

Wutu Gu couldn’t remember how he had landed, only feeling his body light and floaty, incapable of exerting any strength. He couldn’t turn back to see what Chen Qing would do next; he even found breathing to be incredibly difficult at this moment.

Only the onlookers could see clearly that at this time, his body did not have a single patch of good flesh, to say his flesh and blood were blurry was an understatement—he was now merely a skeleton!

"The trident, this kind of weapon, is a favorite of the behemoth guards and True Dragon Breed of the Dragon Palace. Its origin comes from the techniques of a Master Lü who specialized in striking skills a thousand years ago. Since then, tens of thousands of years have passed. At that time, maybe it was considered exquisite, but in today’s Great Jin, even some of those without special bloodlines for striking skills would look down on this technique; it has been obsolete for many years. "

"I don’t know why you would still use such an ancient and outdated method, even if you wield it rather poorly but still insist on it. Is it merely because this technique comes from the powerful memories of a Dragon Transformation?"

Wutu Gu couldn’t turn back and could only respond with confusion, "The techniques of that powerful creature, you say they are outdated?"

"Strength is innate, not a technique," Chen Qing said with a smile.

"Don’t underestimate the Human Race. With hundreds of thousands of years of skill refinement, how could we possibly be behind those from the past?

In the field of striking skills, the Human Race of today, the Central Plains of today, are stronger than any other era! "

"Is it really that powerful?" Wutu Gu said bewilderedly.

"It is really that powerful..."

Chen Qing’s voice was not loud, yet it penetrated the barrier, reaching every person’s ears. The people of the Central Plains, especially those well-versed in striking skills, puffed up their chests one by one.

Including those Military Generals from prestigious families, a boundless pride inexplicably surged inside them at this moment.

Our ancestors only took three generations to drive the demons out of the Central Plains. We warriors, from generation to generation, have refined our skills. Among our peers, slaying demons is as easy as slaughtering pigs and dogs!

Under the iron cavalry, demons can only scheme in dark corners. It is these people who have forged this reality with their fists.

How could these Southern Barbarians understand?

"You’ve lost without disgrace!" Chen Qing, having sheathed his sword, said without looking back, "Princess Chang is among the top martial art masters of Central Plains. The three techniques she imparted to me, you wouldn’t even be able to learn them if you worship those worthless evil deities for a hundred years. It’s a pity that, as a king, I do not know lower-grade skills; I only know the three techniques imparted to me by Princess Chang.

Thus, it was overkill to use them on you, a bit wasteful, yet you have still gained.

With just the skills you have, you really weren’t qualified to witness these sword techniques. "

Boom!

The barrier shattered, the energy dispersing gently, warming the icy field like spring. But Wutu Gu, left with nothing but bones, bowed his spine after Chen Qing finished speaking, his body visibly crumbling.

He regretted using the unfamiliar trident. If he had used the Tiger’s Mouth Broadsword he had wielded since childhood, and shown his opponent the skills he had honed in battles against countless masters, perhaps... he wouldn’t have lost so miserably, right?

At least... he wouldn’t have received such an evaluation, right?

Since when did he start to doubt his own skills?

Was it when that woman overawed him in the great hall?

Or after the Dragon Transformation, when he witnessed the power of the Dragon Clan?

No wonder the opponent had stopped taking him seriously after he had taken out the trident.

Perhaps from that moment on, that guy... had never considered him an opponent again, right?

It truly is... humiliating...

-------------------

"The match is over..." Chen Qing walked out of the Martial Arts Stage, arriving below the observation platform, standing tall, directly facing the once terrifyingly powerful adversary he had been most wary of.

"Please, Your Majesty, fulfill the imperial edict from years ago and return my wife to this king!"