Chapter 78: Chapter 74: Contest

On the General Selection Platform, you could hear a pin drop.

The only sound was the faint noise from Gao Sheng’s mouth as his body twitched uncontrollably.

Faint as it was, the sound scraped at everyone’s heart like a knife.

“HISS!”

“His spine… is shattered! Gao Sheng is crippled! Completely crippled!”

“The Songfeng Martial Arts Hall… has lost its future pillar!”

….

Discussions erupted all around.

Many of the experts present actually sighed in relief, a hint of malicious glee in their eyes.

Gao Sheng was crippled. This was a catastrophe for Songfeng, but a blessing for them.

The Songfeng Martial Arts Hall could forget about producing a third Transmutation Force expert anytime soon.

On the Zhou Institute’s side, the brief shock was followed by ecstasy and an indescribable excitement.

Sun Shun clutched his shoulder and gazed at the upright figure on the platform, his heart trembling.

’I’ve fought Gao Sheng before, and I know how strong he is. I never imagined he’d be defeated so completely, and so fast!’

Sun Shun and Liu Nianbo had both been defeated by Gao Sheng.

Only now, with this contrast, did the disciples of the Zhou Institute truly understand how formidable Chen Qing was.

In stark contrast to the Zhou Institute’s excitement, the Songfeng Martial Arts Hall’s side was deathly silent.

The smiles on the faces of disciples like Zhu Lian’Er had long since frozen.

Watching the figure twitching on the platform like a heap of sludge, many of them began to tremble.

“Ah! Senior Brother Gao!”

“Master! Master! Senior Brother Gao is…!”

The brief, deathly silence was broken. The Songfeng disciples rushed onto the platform, scrambling to lift Gao Sheng, and hurried toward the infirmary.

“Excellent! Just excellent! Quite the Zhou Institute! And quite the Chen Qing!”

The smile on Shi Wenshan’s face had long since vanished without a trace, his eyes coldly staring at Chen Qing on the platform.

’This isn’t just about crippling one of my disciples. He’s stomped all over my, Shi Wenshan’s, honor.’

’But I can’t lash out now. If I jump in and start making accusations, I’ll only humiliate myself.’

’Chen Qing could just spout some nonsense like, “I can’t perfectly control my Power,” or “I was just using my full strength to defend myself,” and shut down any accusations.’

’If I want to regain my honor, we have to win it back.’

“Yaohui, don’t hold back!”

Shi Wenshan said coldly.

“I understand, Master!”

Qu Yaohui slowly walked out from among the Songfeng disciples and onto the platform. “Qu Yaohui of the Songfeng Martial Arts Hall. I ask for your guidance!”

An uproar swept through the crowd around the General Selection Platform!

Chen Qing looked over. He was not unfamiliar with the name Qu Yaohui.

The true number two expert of the Songfeng Martial Arts Hall, Shi Wenshan’s most senior disciple!

He was already a Transmutation Force expert, and his foundation was solid and his Power was seasoned, far surpassing an ordinary newcomer to the Transmutation Force realm.

He was the true Stabilizing Needle of the Songfeng Martial Arts Hall, and also the disciple Shi Wenshan valued the most.

Qu Yaohui’s figure was not tall, even a bit lean and wiry. He wore simple gray attire, looking completely unremarkable.

His face was plain, even a bit dull. But his eyes, as they opened and closed, held a profound, hidden light, as steady as a deep pool. His gait seemed ordinary, yet his steps were silent. Each step landed with a measured precision, carrying a strange rhythm.

His aura wasn’t flashy or ostentatious. Instead, it possessed a profound, restrained weight, like a reef polished perfectly smooth by the ages. It lay hidden beneath a calm sea, yet held the power to shatter a great ship.

The air instantly froze!

The entire venue once again fell into a deathly silence, but this time, the atmosphere was even more oppressive and heavy, like the prelude to a storm.

A duel between Transmutation Force experts!

The experts who had been uninterested before now all sat up straight, their gazes focused.

The Songfeng Martial Arts Hall had been forced into a corner and was now baring its fangs.

Qu Yaohui was in no way comparable to Gao Sheng.

Chen Qing’s previously displayed strength was certainly astonishing, but facing this hidden Transmutation Force expert, who would emerge victorious was still unknown!

Zhou Liang’s brows knitted into a knot. He had just given Chen Qing a meaningful look, but he didn’t know if the latter had seen it.

But he couldn’t stop it. Stopping the duel now would be detrimental to Chen Qing’s mental state.

Liu Ze said in a low voice, “Brother Zhou, this is going to be difficult.”

Chen Qing had only recently broken through to the Transmutation Force realm; he was likely no match for Qu Yaohui.

It wasn’t just Liu Ze who thought this way; many of the experts present held the same opinion.

Shi Wenshan sneered, “You’ve only just broken through to Transmutation Force. Let’s see how skilled you really are.”

Chen Qing watched Qu Yaohui approach with steady steps, his eyes as calm as still water.

He took a deep breath, calming the slightly agitated qi and blood from his earlier thunderous strike.

He slowly assumed the opening stance of Long Arm Fist: Spiritual Ape Asks the Way.

Qu Yaohui stepped onto the platform, stopping about ten yards opposite Chen Qing.

He didn’t assume any fancy stance, merely sinking his waist slightly, bending his knees, and letting his hands hang naturally at his sides. His aura was terrifyingly calm.

Without another word, their gazes met in mid-air, and their invisible auras clashed with a roar!

He moved!

Qu Yaohui’s movement lacked Gao Sheng’s savage burst, but it was lightning-fast. One moment he was ten yards away; the next, a hand with thick, heavily calloused knuckles was silently pressing toward Chen Qing’s chest.

There was no sound of tearing air, no whistling wind, only a cold, sinister Dark Force, condensed to the extreme, that pierced through everything. Like a venomous snake striking, it aimed straight for the internal organs.

Mountain-Breaking Hand! Yin Snake Bone Piercing!

Fast! Vicious! Precise! Insidious and cunning to the extreme!

His first move was a killing blow!

Chen Qing’s brow furrowed slightly. His opponent’s speed and timing far surpassed any expert he had encountered before. That silent yet fatally penetrating Palm Force made him feel a sense of danger.

In a flash, the muscles in Chen Qing’s right arm tensed like twisted steel cables. His forearm flicked upward like a Spiritual Snake, his five fingers forming an iron chisel. Wielding a Spiral Force that was both hard and soft, he struck second but arrived first, aiming with absolute precision for the Shenmen Acupoint on Qu Yaohui’s wrist.

Long Arm Fist! Reverse Arm Whip Hand!

Point against point! Attack as defense!

TSSS!

A soft hiss sounded the instant his fingertip touched the skin of Qu Yaohui’s wrist.

Qu Yaohui’s wrist slipped bizarrely as if it were oiled, and most of Chen Qing’s concentrated Spiral Force was deflected.

And Qu Yaohui’s palm, which was aiming for Chen Qing’s chest, was also knocked off course by an inch as Chen Qing slightly turned his body.

PFFT!

Although most of the Palm Power was deflected, some Dark Force still penetrated his body.

Chen Qing’s figure slid back half a step, the qi and blood in his chest churning.

Meanwhile, at the spot on Qu Yaohui’s wrist where Chen Qing’s fingertip had struck, the sleeve silently disintegrated to reveal the skin beneath. A small red dot appeared, the surrounding muscles slightly indented. It was clear he had also suffered a subtle blow.

A trace of surprise flashed through his eyes. ’He’s fast,’ he thought. ’I didn’t expect him to react so quickly, deflect so cleverly, and counter so fiercely.’

In a flash, the first exchange was over!

As the saying goes, the layman watches the excitement, while the expert sees the technique.

Many of the Transmutation Force experts watching were secretly amazed. ’Chen Qing’s mastery of Transmutation Force is so fluid and effortless.’

The entire audience held their breath. This was a true duel between Transmutation Force masters.

There was no earth-shattering momentum, only the perilous life-and-death struggle where one hears thunder in the silence. Every contact was a brush with death.

….

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep