CHAPTER 203: CHAPTER 159: BLOOD EXCHANGE FORBIDDEN TECHNIQUE, THE MIGHT OF PILL ENERGY

In an instant, all the guests’ gazes converged on Jiang Shu.

Brother Shang... Zhang Ruo’s mind went blank. When Jiang Shu stood up, it felt as if an infinite storm was roaring in her ears. Brother Shang, Shang Junming... a first-class genius, Blood Exchange Realm... All her past encounters with Jiang Shu flashed wildly through her mind, shattering into pieces. The familiar figure appeared before her, towering like a mountain. She stood rooted to the spot, speechless.

Jiang Shu walked step by step from the edge of the stands toward the arena.

This battle is unavoidable; I cannot, and will not, avoid it. This isn’t just a rivalry between our Martial Arts spirits. It’s also a factional struggle within the Danxia Chamber of Commerce! The Clan Leaders of the great families and the guests invited by the Zhang Family aren’t the real spectators. The true audience is far beyond the commandery city! Within the Chamber of Commerce, countless spies from the state capital headquarters will be watching this battle, ready to relay news of victory or defeat. The outcome will affect my trip to the state capital!

"So, you are Shang Junming." On the arena, Zhao Chengxuan stood proudly, sizing Shang Junming up from head to toe.

Wielding a Forbidden Technique, he dominates the commandery city. What does it matter if this Shang Junming is a first-class genius? If you haven’t been to the state capital, you’ll never know how vast the world truly is. You don’t understand what it truly means to be on the Little Dragon Tiger List. A Blood Exchange Realm expert like this? A single punch from me will suffice! It’s time to end this.

Silently chanting in his heart, drops of Essence Blood burned within Zhao Chengxuan’s body. His hair billowed, and layers of power stacked upon his fists, resembling a long-dormant volcano about to erupt! An infinite might, at this moment, surged forth.

Zhao Chengxuan stepped forward. In this battle, I must not only win. I must win thoroughly and decisively!

"My loss... was not undeserved..." Below, Wang Liancheng was dispirited, muttering endlessly as he watched the rising pillar of essence energy, like wolf smoke, ascend to the sky. The explosion of this punch was clearly even more powerful than before! Shang Junming is finished. In his heart, he truly wanted Zhao Chengxuan to taste failure. But the reality was that Zhao Chengxuan’s body was like an elephant, his vital energy like a flood dragon. Even without relying on a Forbidden Technique, he could dominate the commandery city, peerless among his generation. Shang Junming, no matter how great a first-class genius, was just from a minor place. In terms of perspective, experience, and understanding of Cultivation Techniques and Martial Arts, how could he possibly compare to Zhao Chengxuan? He couldn’t help but shake his head, and some of the guests behind him shared his opinion.

Everyone in the venue, along with Zhang Ruo who had finally, with great difficulty, come to her senses, began to worry for Jiang Shu.

"Shang Junming," Zhao Chengxuan’s voice boomed like thunder, reverberating in the sky, "since I became a first-class genius at seventeen, my peers in the commandery city have regarded me as their leader. During my training in the state capital, I rarely suffered defeat. In less than a year, I can attempt to ascend the Little Dragon Tiger List. To be defeated by my fist will be a tale you can boast of in the future." Even passersby outside the Zhang Family could hear his words loud and clear.

A brilliant pillar of light erupted on the arena once more, like a meteor crashing to earth, an immense power pouring out.

So this is a Forbidden Technique. Facing the hurricane-like force of the punch, Jiang Shu’s expression was as calm as a still lake. He mumbled inwardly. His Martial Arts journey began in the county seat. After arriving in the commandery city, he had not encountered any renowned masters; he had mostly relied on self-exploration. Though the treasury contained various Martial Arts secrets of the Da Jing Dynasty, exchanging for each secret cost a significant amount of Contribution Value, and what he could see was just the tip of the iceberg. He had not yet learned about Forbidden Techniques. Previously, observing from afar in the stands, he could only sense Zhao Chengxuan’s surge in vital energy, initially thinking a Forbidden Technique was a Martial Art that could enhance one’s vital energy. But now it seems that a Forbidden Technique is a kind of combustion and refinement. He could clearly feel that as Zhao Chengxuan employed the Forbidden Technique, the power in his fists became increasingly condensed, gradually becoming more refined. It’s like comparing two objects of the same weight. One might be a block of wood, the other a block of iron. Though the object seems smaller, the actual damage increases manifold. It’s no wonder for the Da Jing Dynasty, which has developed Martial Arts for countless years. Every time, it brings me new surprises! If I could master such Forbidden Techniques, my strength would increase manifold!

Images from his time in Fusang quickly flashed through his mind. Jiang Shu slowly lifted his hands, circling them in the air. Streams of True Strength swirled between his hands, forming a Taiji symbol where Yin and Yang merged. The Martial Arts of the Da Jing Dynasty are unparalleled. But the Xia Country, with its five-thousand-year inheritance, also has its own Martial Arts philosophy: to overcome hardness with softness. Zhao Chengxuan wants to attack with words, to intimidate me, to achieve an invincible aura. But he doesn’t know that, compared to me, he has only dominated the commandery city and gained experience in the state capital. How could such experiences compare to mine? I traveled alone to Fusang, shattered the iron pagoda, and killed the Sword God with my fists!

BOOM!

Like a cannonball striking, tearing through the air, the explosion shook heaven and earth.

Jiang Shu was composed, embracing the Void as if cradling mountains, rivers, heaven, and earth. The Four Symbols True Strength vibrated in the air, layer by layer discharging the fist’s power towards the ground and onto the True Strength shield outside the arena. The arena, built by the Zhang Family at great expense, shattered with a thunderous CRACK as the force was dispersed. The True Strength shield maintained by the Clan Leaders of the ten great families also developed layers of cracks.

"True Strength merging with Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi! Shang Junming, who exactly are you?" Seeing Jiang Shu, who seemed to merge with heaven and earth, Zhao Chengxuan’s expression changed dramatically, his eyes filled with utter shock.