Chapter 388: The Fierce Blood Blade Manor

"Even though Zhao Qinghan and her group didn’t participate, several of the others who did were eliminated. Only one person managed to scrape by and advance."

"This Martial Arts Grand Ceremony is so much harder than the last one. The competition is just too fierce," the old man from the Zhao Family said with a sigh.

With this year’s lineup, getting into the top few dozen would have been a huge struggle even in past competitions.

"Back in the day, Brother Tianshan made it into the top thirty. That was truly impressive," the old man from the Zhao Family continued.

Chu Tianshan’s brow twitched at his words. He quickly explained, "Cut the crap. I only made the top thirty in the regional qualifiers back then, not the grand finals. What’s so impressive about that?"

’If everyone gets the wrong idea, they’ll come looking to challenge me. How am I supposed to deal with that? I can’t let this slide.’

’Besides, if this rumor spreads, plenty of people will call me out on it. It’ll just make me look like a liar.’

"That’s still very impressive," the Martial Arts Venerable from the Three Swords Sect chimed in with a smile.

"That’s when he earned his nickname, Madman Chu. When he fought, he was completely reckless, like he had a death wish. I’m not making that up, am I?"

"Besides, Brother Tianshan, back in the day, my Zhao Family and your Chu Family arranged a marriage. You haven’t forgotten about that, have you?" the old man from the Zhao Family asked with a meaningful smile.

The arrangement had been made decades ago, but because the Chu Family went into seclusion, the Zhao Family had all but forgotten about it and never took it seriously.

Who would have thought the old man would suddenly remember it now, and he was even grinning at Chu Tianshan as he did.

"Impossible. I don’t remember any such thing. You must be making that up," Chu Tianshan immediately denied.

"How could I be mistaken? It was your brother, Chu Tianyun, who arranged it. And that childhood engagement from back then... I have a feeling it was for Chu Feng, wasn’t it? Could it be Venerable Chu Feng?" the Zhao Family’s old ancestor asked with a smile.

At that moment, Chu Feng, who had just taken a sip of wine, spat it all out.

He was completely stunned. ’How in the world does this involve me?’

"This... How could this have anything to do with me? I didn’t even grow up in the Chu Family! I haven’t been with them since I was a child. It definitely wasn’t me!" Chu Feng said frantically.

"Brother Tianshan should know about this. Besides, I even have the marriage contract right here," the old man from the Zhao Family said with a smile.

"Hey, now, we’re in the middle of the Martial Arts Grand Ceremony! Let’s not talk about other things. Let’s just drink. We can discuss the rest when we get back," Chu Tianshan said hurriedly, trying to change the subject.

"Alright, we’ll drop it for now and talk later. Let’s drink." The Zhao Family’s ancestor was all smiles. He wasn’t in a hurry; now that the cat was out of the bag, it wasn’t going anywhere.

"The disciples from Blood Blade Manor are on the rankings this time, too. I suspect they’re the ones who made their move during the first selection round," said the Western Celestial King.

"It was them. I’ve had my eye on them for a while now. They’re ruthless and show no mercy. They’ll kill anyone they encounter!" the Martial Arts Venerable from the Three Swords Sect spoke up.

Because the entire event was under full surveillance this time, everyone saw what happened.

However, those two held back a little this time, knowing they were being watched. They weren’t as outrageous as they had been during the first selection round.

Even so, when those guys did strike, they were still incredibly vicious, giving their opponents no chance to survive.

It had been emphasized many times during the Martial Arts Grand Ceremony that participants needed to show restraint and not take lives, but those guys paid it no mind.

Plus, Blood Blade Manor was known for being full of ruthless individuals who never showed mercy.

"They can afford to be so tyrannical because they have the strength to back it up. Those who were killed can only be said to have been outmatched," the Western Celestial King said.

As an official power, they wouldn’t interfere too much in the selection process for the Martial Arts Grand Ceremony.

Besides, all participants were Cultivators of the Great Xia Country. It was possible that Blood Blade Manor might even be recruited to work for the government in the future.

Therefore, the Western Celestial King wasn’t in a position to say much about it.

"Sigh... Every time Blood Blade Manor makes an appearance, they throw the entire Martial Arts Realm into chaos. It’s a complete mess. Who knows how many more people will have to die," the Martial Arts Venerable from the Three Swords Sect lamented.

The disciples his Three Swords Sect had sent out this time had been all but wiped out. Out of fifteen people, only four were left.

They had run into Blood Blade Manor. Throughout the entire competition, very few who crossed paths with Blood Blade Manor managed to escape with their lives. Most of them ended up dead, and the Three Swords Sect was a prime example.

"Don’t worry. There will be even stronger contenders," Chu Feng said.

He wasn’t the least bit concerned or worried about any of it.

From what he knew, Li Zhengyi’s strength was at least on par with those two disciples from Blood Blade Manor—he might even be slightly stronger.

"Venerable Chu Feng is right," someone spoke up. "Although the disciples of Blood Blade Manor are always incredibly powerful and go on a killing spree whenever they emerge, in the end, they rarely escape death themselves."