Chapter 376: Snatching the Token

Very soon, it was the day of the martial tournament!

Before dawn had even broken, huge numbers of martial artists, merchants, and common folk were already hurrying over from the counties and major towns around Sanhe Commandery to witness the grand event hosted by the Caobang.

Early in the morning, the riverbank was already packed solid with spectators.

Those with means had booked positions at the inns and restaurants by the river well in advance;

those without such means squeezed toward the railings of the riverbank walkways, fighting to seize the best lines of sight;

and the Caobang disciples had arrived early to maintain order.

The men of the Six Gates also took up their positions in time.

Even with the crowds pressing together, everything remained orderly!

At intervals along the riverbank, sheets detailing the tournament schedule and rules had been posted up for all to see, clear and public.

People crowded around the notice boards and read the contents aloud:

“Two hundred people to a group, with an elimination round first.”

“The total number of first-rank martial artists has already reached more than four thousand... Holy hell! That many?”

“Watch me carve my way out of the crowd!”

“Haha... if I can stand out from all of them and fight my way into the top ten, I’ll definitely become famous after this!” The martial artists were both nervous and exhilarated.

Behind the crowd, quite a few people wore grave expressions tinged with disdain:

With more than four thousand martial artists, the ones who could really fight their way into the top ten would all be rare talents among rare talents. What did any of that have to do with the likes of you?

“The number of second-rank martial artists isn’t small either—there are nearly two thousand!”

“Tsk tsk!”

“That’s another true clash of dragons and tigers!”

“This martial tournament really is being held at a high level.”

“It has been a long time since the Jianghu was this lively.”

“Hahahaha...”

Inside the inns and restaurants, groups of martial artists with deep pockets and solid backing listened to the chatter below while whispering among themselves to the friends at their side:

“Who would have thought that a martial tournament hosted by a mere Caobang hall would be pursued with such enthusiasm? At least five hundred Jianghu forces have sent people over, from the Emperor’s favored disciples in the capital down to the bitterly cold borderlands. If one can take a ranking this time, the trip will not have been made in vain!”

“In truth, this martial tournament can no longer be considered something hosted by a mere hall. I heard that aside from the two fifth-rank martial artists from the Six Gates, there are also two elders from the Caobang overseeing the event, both at the fifth-rank level. And on top of that, it seems several experts from famous clans and great sects have also been invited... There are at least more than ten fifth-rank martial artists gathered here!”

“What?”

“Is that true?”

“It seems the decision was made only last night.”

“To ensure the fairness of the martial tournament, Old Seven—who was originally in charge of overseeing it—is now only responsible for hosting. The people in charge of judging and supervising are now an extremely impressive group.”

“Exactly, exactly. I also heard that even one of the Lu Family’s Offering Masters was invited over in the middle of the night.”

“...”

“The standards just keep rising.”

“Look.”

“It seems that the stages on the river have also been widened and reinforced quite a bit. Around each stage, ships of various sizes have been tied down and fixed in place. That too was proposed from above, they say, in order to accommodate more people and prevent the Caobang from holding too great an advantage on the river.”

“That makes sense!”

“A stage on the river does favor the Caobang somewhat! Now that the fighting area has been expanded, it is much friendlier to those of us who are useless in the water.”

“The martial tournament has gained a few more marks of fairness.”

“Indeed!”

Both the spectators along the river and the participating martial artists were full of discussion. As for the judges and overseers who had arrived overnight, they were almost universally welcomed.

Especially the boats added overnight—these drew nearly unanimous praise!

Their voices carried into the third floor of one of the restaurants.

There, a group of Jianghu figures with no small amount of presence heard everything clearly and said to the two elders of the Caobang:

“Your Caobang really knows how to play its hand.”

“These last-minute changes were obviously your own doing, yet you insist on putting them forward in our name...”

“Heh heh...”

“Wasn’t that simply to set everyone at ease and let them see the sincerity of our Caobang’s fairness and impartiality?”

Wan Xiwen was very satisfied with the public reaction.

Then he glanced at Old Seven, who stood waiting respectfully nearby, and gave him an approving look.

Old Seven stepped forward and cupped his fists.

“Honored judges, the time is almost upon us. Please take your positions and help stabilize the scene at the martial tournament! In another quarter of an hour, we will officially begin.”

One after another, the fifth-rank martial artists headed toward their assigned areas of the venue.

Their tasks were not only to judge the tournament, but also to ensure that no one interfered with its progress.

As the group of fifth-rank martial artists revealed themselves and entered the field, the atmosphere instantly became solemn.

Everyone surged forward.

Then they saw Old Seven leap onto the central stage on the river. With a burst of lightness skill, he rose to the highest point of the mast, his voice loud and resonant as he announced:

“Now then, everyone, prepare to enter according to the number token you received when you registered!”

“The first round of the elimination tournament will take place in Stage Area One on the river! The competitors will be the first-rank martial artists numbered from one through two hundred!”

“From these two hundred people, we will select forty!”

The moment his words fell, martial artists already holding their number tokens began leaping onto the ships and rushing along the ship paths erected by the Caobang disciples, scrambling to seize positions around the stage.

Old Seven continued announcing the rules of the competition:

“Once the match begins, the competition officially begins.”

“All competitors must search the ships and the waters for an object like this!”

Old Seven raised a metal token about the size of a palm and said:

“For each elimination round, we will allow only the time it takes to burn one stick of incense!”

“There are two ways to advance!”

“First!”

“Obtain this item and personally bring it back to the shore. That will count as advancement, and you will secure one place.”

“Second!”

“When the time it takes to burn one stick of incense has ended, if this token still remains in your hand, that also counts as advancement!”

Old Seven swept his gaze across the crowd and declared:

“Good!”

“Light the incense!”

“The competition officially begins!”

Of the two hundred martial artists, a portion had already begun searching throughout Stage Area One.

Some searched inside and outside the ships around the stage;

some jumped straight into the water...

“Found one!”

A man rushed out from the ship’s cabin holding an iron token exactly like the one Old Seven had raised. On the front were the words “Advance,” and on the back was a number.

The moment he burst out of the cabin, someone nearby could not help shaking his head.

“What an idiot.”

“If you got it, then run. Why are you shouting like that?”

“Sigh...”

Sure enough!

Those nearby martial artists who had not found a token immediately reacted like sharks scenting blood and attacked without the slightest hesitation.

Smack!

One nearby martial artist struck the man squarely in the back with a palm strike.

The token changed hands.

The attacker was extremely decisive. The moment he seized the Advancement Token, he tapped off with his feet and sprinted toward the shore across the tops of the ships.

“Take it!”

“Don’t let him get away!”

On the stage, more and more martial artists finally caught on and rushed forward to block him.

Two hundred people were competing over forty tokens.

Every token that got away meant one fewer remained.

The very first Advancement Token had only just changed hands when it was intercepted again. Its holder was ganged up on, injured, and brought down.

Someone had only just stooped to pick up the token when he instantly became the next target of all.

Everyone attacked him at once.

Several martial artists were wounded in succession and lost their combat strength. The token fell to the ground, and at that point everyone hesitated, none daring to step forward, each afraid of becoming the next victim.

“This...”

“Isn’t that a bit unfair?”

Quite a few watching martial artists could not help baring their teeth.

From within the crowd, someone standing with folded arms let out a cold laugh.

“If a person has walked the Jianghu this far and still doesn’t understand the principle that a man carrying jade invites disaster, or that one should hide one’s brilliance and bide one’s time, then without a little experience and a few exceptional methods, how could he possibly be qualified to contend for the top ten...”

“Exactly!”

“A martial tournament is meant to screen for the strong, not to take care of the weak.”

“If you don’t have the ability, then don’t force your way in!”

“Even if you managed to survive this round of eliminations, you’d still be taken out in the next.”