Overlord of the Wilderness

None of the Zhaang Family’s participating disciples held much hope for Zhaang Ye. At fourteen, he had managed to reach the Martial Arts Fourth Layer Early Stage and also achieve some success with his Body Refining Techniques. Accomplishing that much was already quite remarkable.

Zhaang Ye was only a boy—a fourteen-year-old boy. Could they really expect him to outshine a group of men in their twenties and thirties?

Unlike the other disciples, Zhaang Tianlong held immense expectations for Zhaang Ye. Ever since learning that Zhaang Ye had received a legacy from the Ancient Races, Zhaang Tianlong had been secretly keeping an eye on him. Zhaang Tianlong had witnessed all of Zhaang Ye’s recent feats—defeating Lee Liang in a single move, overpowering Lee Liang’s older brother Lee Xiu at the armory, and even using stones to temper his Saber Technique on the brink of life and death—and each one had left him more astonished than the last.

Zhaang Ye’s performance led Zhaang Tianlong to a swift conclusion: ’This kid’s strength is even greater than I imagined!’

Originally, Zhaang Tianlong had intended to use Zhaang Ye as a trump card. But now, he had no choice but to force Zhaang Ye to reveal his full strength. Otherwise, with morale so low, the combat effectiveness of the participating disciples would surely be affected. Combat required passion and courage. If they were timid before the fight even began, they were far more likely to lose than to win in this ranking tournament!

Under the crowd’s watchful gaze, Zhaang Ye slowly rose. His movements were unhurried, poised, and elegant as he floated toward the Memorial Stone like a wisp of a cloud.

Watching Zhaang Ye’s Body Technique, the eyes of the normally quiet Zhaang Yijian suddenly lit up. ”Such an elegant and effortless Body Technique, like a cloud drifting across the sky... it must be the Mid-Level Body Technique, the Cloud Stepping Technique, right? To think Junior Brother Zhaang has actually cultivated the Cloud Stepping Technique to the Great Success Realm!”

”The Cloud Stepping Technique at Great Success!” Hearing Zhaang Yijian’s words, the surrounding disciples all gasped, their eyes filled with shock. No one could have imagined that Zhaang Ye, at the mere age of fourteen, had cultivated a Mid-Level Body Technique all the way to the Great Success Realm.

After all, even among the Inner Sect Disciples, only Zhaang Yizhi had mastered a Mid-Level Body Technique to Great Success. The others, like Zhaang Dong, were still a long way off.

While the True Disciples had all reached the Great Success Realm in their Body Techniques, most had been in their twenties when they achieved it. Even the most formidable of them, Zhaang Yijian, had been nineteen years old when he finally mastered his Mid-Level Body Technique.

Zhaang Yizhi suddenly sighed. ”Junior Brother Zhaang is a true genius. However, his Cultivation is simply too low. With his Martial Arts Fourth Layer Cultivation, leaping to a height of twenty zhang would be a good showing.”

The other disciples nodded in agreement. There were still differences even among those who had reached Great Success in a Body Technique. Nearly all Body Techniques were powered by one’s Dantian True Qi; those with purer, more abundant True Qi could push their technique to the absolute limit. Experts like Zhaang Yijian, Luo Yongsheng, and Lee Lie also used Mid-Level Body Techniques, but their Qi of the Dantian was so exceptionally pure and powerful that they could use it to leap far higher than others.

As for the average True Disciples, even though they had also reached the Great Success Realm, their Qi of the Dantian was inferior to that of Zhaang Yijian and his peers, so they could only leap to a height of twenty-five or twenty-six zhang.

Zhaang Ye’s Cultivation was considerably weaker than that of an average True Disciple. By suggesting twenty zhang, Zhaang Yizhi was already slightly overestimating him.

As everyone watched, Zhaang Ye’s figure continued to rise.

Ten zhang.

Fifteen zhang.

At this point, the participating experts from the Lee, Zhou, and Luo Families also noticed that Zhaang Ye’s Body Technique had reached Great Success, and their gazes converged on him.

Of course, it was only a moment’s notice. For these competitors, the only people worth watching were the True Disciples and the top-ranking Inner Sect Disciples. Few would spare a second glance for an unknown like Zhaang Ye.

Zhaang Ye quickly ascended to seventeen zhang. Just then, one of his sleeves suddenly whipped out in a peculiar fashion, striking the empty air. As it did, his other sleeve shot out, smacking squarely against the perfectly smooth rock face of the Memorial Stone. To everyone’s astonishment, as his two sleeves struck out, his slightly stalled ascent was replaced by a sudden burst of momentum, and he shot rapidly upward.

”Hm? Zhaang Ye has another trick up his sleeve? To be able to integrate such a Power-Borrowing Technique into a Body Technique... truly marvelous!” A glint of surprise flashed in even Zhaang Yijian’s eyes as he watched.

Upon seeing Zhaang Ye’s ingenious Power-Borrowing Technique, the experts from the Lee, Zhou, and Luo Families were also intrigued and began to regard him as a serious opponent.

Zhaang Ye’s Power-Borrowing Technique captured the attention of many, and even the Elders from the Lee, Zhou, and Luo Families began to focus on him.

Zhaang Ye’s sleeves flapped like wings. With every strike, his body would rise by more than half a zhang. After a dozen or so flaps, Zhaang Ye had already reached a height of twenty-four zhang.

Twenty-four zhang. This was already the limit for an Inner Sect Disciple. Only a True Disciple could force their way higher by relying on their Dantian True Qi alone.

SWISH! SWISH! His sleeves struck out twice more. To the stunned amazement of the crowd, Zhaang Ye’s body didn’t stop, but continued its ascent.

Twenty-five zhang, twenty-six zhang, twenty-seven zhang!

The initial shock gave way to derision. Lee Liang, an Inner Sect Disciple from the Lee Family, burst out laughing. ”Haha, has this kid gone mad with his desire to show off? That Power-Borrowing Technique of his is clever, but it must consume a massive amount of True Qi. With his level of Cultivation, I bet he’d used up half his True Qi by twenty-two zhang, and he’s still going up! He’s finished! There’s no way he’ll be able to carve his name on the wall now!”

The Zhaang Family disciples also felt Zhaang Ye was overreaching. Some sighed softly, others muttered curses, and one was about to shout a warning to him. Just then, Zhaang Tianlong let out a low grunt. ”Silence!”

The Zhaang Family disciples instantly fell silent. They watched Zhaang Ye quietly, but now, none of them held out any hope for him.

Zhaang Ye’s sleeves suddenly whipped out twice more, and with those two motions, his body abruptly shot up to the thirty-five-zhang mark!

Thirty-five zhang! Not even an ordinary True Disciple could carve their name at such a height!

Only the top ten experts of the Younger Generation could rely on their vast reserves of True Qi to leap this high and leave their mark.

Zhaang Ye was just an unknown Inner Sect Disciple. What right did he have to carve his name here?

Under the contemptuous gaze of dozens of disciples, Zhaang Ye finally made his move. He suddenly held his hand rigid, forming a Palm Blade. Then, with a sudden exertion of Palm Power, he swung it, chopping toward the Memorial Stone.

SWISH!

With that one strike, a large chunk was gouged out of the hard Memorial Stone. Before the dislodged rock could even fall, Zhaang Ye’s palm swung again, his entire hand moving like a great battle-ax as it hacked viciously into the cliff face. With every strike, a piece of the Memorial Stone’s hard surface peeled away. It was as if Zhaang Ye wasn’t striking solid rock, but hacking at a lump of soft clay!

Zhaang Ye’s movements were so relaxed and natural, it was as if he were standing on solid ground!

”This—”

The one who had just mocked Zhaang Ye was utterly dumbfounded. Even the True Disciples from the various families couldn’t help but be astonished by his performance.

’Good lad. So you really were hiding your strength, heh heh!’ Seeing Zhaang Ye’s display, Zhaang Tianlong could finally relax, a look of ease spreading across his face. As for the Zhaang Family disciples, who had just been convinced it was impossible for Zhaang Ye to carve his name so high, his effortless movements left them completely dumbstruck, their jaws hanging wide open.

Zhaang Yijian and Zhaang Yizhi were the first to recover from the shock. They could both see that Zhaang Ye wasn’t using True Qi to carve his name; he was using his Body Refining Techniques, relying on pure, brute strength to etch his name into the solid rock!

”What a powerful Body Refining Technique this kid has!” Zhaang Yijian muttered in spite of himself.

SWISH SWISH SWISH SWISH SWISH— Zhaang Ye’s movements were as smooth as flowing water, and he quickly carved out the character for ”Zhaang.” The character itself was as large as two tables, and judging from the penmanship, each stroke was powerful and incisive, delving deep into the stone, in no way inferior to the characters carved by Lee Lie and the others.

Having finished his surname, Zhaang Ye’s palm swung out again. His hand flashed across the cliff face like a streak of golden light, and in the blink of an eye, the character for ”Ye” appeared. When he reached the final vertical stroke, he did not pull his hand back. Instead, he left his palm pressed against the stone wall as his body began to plummet.

As his body fell, the hand he’d left on the stone wall carved a score mark a full twenty-odd zhang long.

The mark was exceptionally straight and thick. It sliced straight down the Memorial Stone, as if a sharp blade had descended from the heavens. Its fierce, cutting aura could be felt even from more than twenty zhang away!

An uproar erupted from the crowd.

Seeing Zhaang Ye’s final stroke, nearly everyone shot to their feet, their eyes locked on that final vertical line, their faces a mask of pure shock.

’This kid’s Comprehension is astounding! That final vertical stroke... it actually contains a hint of a Realm! How is this possible? How can this be possible?’ Zhaang Tianlong stared at Zhaang Ye, his face a picture of disbelief.

After staring at Zhaang Ye’s final stroke for a long moment, Luo Yongsheng, Lee Lie, Zhou Yuhe, and the other experts all turned their gazes upon Zhaang Ye himself.

The gazes of these masters were all tinged with solemnity. Zhaang Ye’s performance had made them realize that this previously unknown disciple was, in fact, a powerful adversary.

Lee Lie gripped the saber at his side even tighter. His eyes were locked on Zhaang Ye, burning with intense battle intent, and he muttered under his breath, ”Zhaang Ye, so you use a blade as well. But among the Younger Generation, only I am worthy of wielding one! I’ll be waiting for our duel.”

-(To be continued. If you like this work, please come to Qidian.com to vote with Recommendation Tickets and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)