Chapter 399 - 245: 1 Move

Chapter 399: Chapter 245: 1 Move

"How do you feel?" Li Longxuan asked when he saw Su Xing suddenly open his eyes.

"Good."

Su Xing smiled and slowly stood up. A crisp CRACKLING sound erupted from all over his body, as if a string of firecrackers had been set off inside him.

"Good."

"You’ll probably be up on stage soon."

Not long after Li Longxuan finished speaking, the announcer’s voice from outside reached Su Xing’s ears. The two exchanged a glance, and Su Xing walked onto the lift, which began to ascend toward the martial arts arena.

Thanks to his victory in the previous match, the crowd’s cheers grew even more intense as Su Xing appeared before them. The deafening roar was almost enough to tear the roof off.

But Su Xing had already fought a match, so he showed no discomfort at the overwhelming cheers, simply standing there quietly.

Su Xing suddenly noticed that all traces of his battle with Lin Tianhan had vanished from the martial arts arena. ’The Dragon Gate Sect must have sent people to clean it up,’ he thought. ’But I don’t know how they managed to repair everything so quickly.’

"Alright!"

"This is our second pinnacle showdown!"

"Both combatants have incredible backgrounds! On one side, we have the Master of the Dragon Gate, Ao Lin! On the other, the super genius who defeated Liu City’s branch leader Lin Tianhan, Su Xing!"

"Will Ao Lin defend the honor of Dragon Gate, or will this black horse, Su Xing, continue his charge forward? Let’s wait and see!"

The announcer briefly introduced both fighters with his incredibly dramatic voice.

"And now!"

"Let’s welcome our competitors to the stage!"

Holding the microphone in one hand, he pointed to the sky with the other and yelled.

WHOOSH—

Spotlights instantly flooded the two lifts, one for Su Xing and one for Ao Lin. As the lights hit, both men emerged simultaneously, appearing in everyone’s sight.

"Hmm?"

Su Xing frowned as he looked at Ao Lin. He wasn’t sure if it was his imagination, but he had a nagging feeling that the Dragon Gate Master was somewhat stronger than he had been at Desperate Gorge.

Then, his gaze shifted to the audience, where he immediately spotted a man who looked nearly identical to Ao Lin. The man stared back blankly, showing not a single flicker of emotion at his own brother’s appearance.

"Heh, interesting."

Li Longxuan, who had made his way into the audience at some point, stared at the Dragon Gate Master. A curious smile played on his lips as he muttered to himself:

"That kid Su Xing is in for a tough time. I can’t believe Ao Lin would use that thing this early. He must be feeling the pressure."

"Let’s go!"

Nearly all the cheers from the crowd were for Ao Lin. As the leader of the Dragon Gate, he had the full home-field advantage. Even many of those who had previously supported Su Xing had now switched their allegiance.

Su Xing, however, couldn’t care less about the crowd. He simply continued to observe his opponent. He couldn’t be sure if it was just his imagination, but he sensed a faint, indescribable power radiating from the man.

Su Xing quietly sized up his opponent. ’Can someone really change this much in just a few days?’ he wondered.

The fight hadn’t even begun, but Su Xing could already tell that Ao Lin was stronger than before—and definitely stronger than Lin Tianhan. The difference wasn’t massive, but stronger was stronger.

"Your rate of growth is truly astonishing, Young Friend Su. I heard that my Dragon Gate Disciples disturbed you in the Scripture Pavilion, for which I am deeply sorry. I trust you still found your visit to our Scripture Pavilion fruitful?"

Ao Lin spoke with great courtesy. For the revered master of a sect to speak to Su Xing in such a way, in front of everyone, was tantamount to elevating Su Xing to an extremely high status.

It was a given. When the Dragon Gate Disciples in the audience heard their leader speak like this, they would certainly assume that Su Xing held a place of great importance in the Sect Leader’s eyes. Combined with Su Xing’s already formidable power, his future path within the Dragon Gate would be completely unobstructed.

"There’s no need for such formalities, Sect Leader Ao. My time in your esteemed sect’s Scripture Pavilion was immensely rewarding," Su Xing replied with a smile.

Even though they were about to fight, since his opponent was being so courteous, Su Xing naturally had to show the proper bearing in return. As the saying goes, you don’t strike a smiling face. Besides, there was no real hatred or animosity between them, so there was no need for trash talk.

"In that case, have you recognized what this energy emanating from me is, Young Friend?" Ao Lin replied, also smiling.

As he spoke, the faint, flickering energy around Ao Lin seemed to solidify. This finally triggered a realization in Su Xing. His eyes narrowed slightly as he murmured:

"Dragon Qi?"

"Indeed. It is Dragon Qi."

Ao Lin seemed slightly surprised that Su Xing knew the answer. It meant that Su Xing had genuinely studied their cultivation system. His trip to the Scripture Pavilion hadn’t been just for casual browsing; he had actually learned something.

Dragon Qi was an extremely rare power within the Dragon Gate’s martial arts, capable of greatly enhancing a user’s physical durability and destructive force.

Legend had it that this power originally stemmed from a bloodline—not the founder of Dragon Gate’s own, but that of a dragon he had integrated into his body. By fusing the dragon’s bloodline with his own, and applying his great intellect, he ultimately created this method of cultivation.